Devil In The Dark might be the most quintessential “Star Trek” episode yet produced – an alien creature, seen at first as a threat, becomes close ally once we take the time to communicate and understand.
So many good character moments but here are my favourites:
- Spock is against killing the mass murdering silicon creature as it may be the last of it’s kind, and Kirk later comes to agree with him. How far they’ve both come since The Man Trap!
- Scotty is a good engineer but not so proud as to deny his limitations. He constantly berates himself and his efforts when trying to rig a replacement for the reactor pump.
Remember in earlier episodes this season, when the lasers from
The Cage would serve as civilian weaponry? Well, these miners have access to Phaser 1 and later on Vanderberg is sporting a Phaser 2! Are military grade weapons really this freely available?
We also get explicit mentions of Phaser 1 and Phaser 2, along with confirmation that the latter is much more powerful.
The HD version really highlights just how flat those cave floors are, especially compared to the rough and rugged walls
Spock’s tricorder can scan through solid rock for up to 100 miles! Impressive
Another opening teaser that doesn’t feature the Enterprise. These guys are just getting on with their daily lives, trying to make their way in the Federation…
Spock uses the mind meld again. This is the second time in the series and only the third time for any mind powers at all. Let's see if similiar restraint is used in the following seasons...
As Kirk and Spock were exploring alone (later in the episode) my 6 year old son deduced that the round things were eggs, a testament to the iconography used in the production design. This episode captivated him more than others this season, a testament to the excellent concept and creature design.
I think Lt. Giotto was Bob Wesley's first cousin or they incredibly, impossibly, just looked alike!

JB
This used to happen in classic Doctor Who all the time
