"Where No Man Has Gone Before"
For reference, I watched the Alternate Version of this episode. The one that convinced NBC to pick up Star Trek as a series. The credits are different, the theme going with the credits is different, and there are title cards at the beginning of each act. Structurally, even if they didn't have the "Act I", "Act II", "Act III", and "Act IV", each act began with a Captain's Log, updating us about the situation. I'm glad they didn't stick with this version of the theme song. It's not iconic at all, unlike the theme song from "The Cage" that would later be fine-tuned on TOS the series. I did like the extra shots of the crew moving around at the beginning, including some of the main and supporting cast in this episode, when Red Alert is sounded. And I loved the intro Kirk gives before opening credits, summing up what the Enterprise had been doing up to this point before saying the Enterprise had a new mission: to boldly go where no man has gone before. In an alternate world where WNMHGB would've aired first on NBC, this is what should've been in there to start off the series.
Even though I like "The Cage" a little bit better than "Where No Man Has Gone Before", I can see why NBC liked this episode a lot better. The story couldn't be simpler, and the stakes couldn't be more clearly defined. Kirk's friend Mitchell is affected when the Enterprise crosses through the galactic barrier, he becomes corrupted as he slowly turns into a God-like being, and Kirk has to find a way to stop him before it's too late. Kirk is torn because he doesn't want to have to kill his friend, but he's left with no choice. Then it ends with a fistfight, Kirk gets his shirt ripped in classic TOS fashion, and he saves the day. Perfect action-adventure story with a moral dilemma that just happens to take place in space. Which is what NBC wanted.
Another thing I can see NBC preferring, and one aspect that I happen to prefer myself, is all the character interactions. Even among cast we don't see again. Mitchell and Dr. Dehner immediately have a chemistry, even though they don't get along at first. Kelso has a real everyman quality to him. Paul Fix, who plays Dr. Piper, feels more at home in a western than on a science-fiction series, it probably doesn't help that I mainly know him as Micah from The Rifleman, but he works if you're pitching Star Trek as a "space western". Scotty's personality immediately shines through. From their interactions, it feels like Scotty and Kelso have worked together for years. At least it felt that way.
The only three main and supporting characters who get the short end of the stick are: 1) Alden, basically a male Uhura, who I didn't know was supposed to be a main cast member until I read about it in Bob Justman and Herb Solow's Star Trek: The Real Story; 2) Yeoman Smith, who doesn't have the presence or personality of either Colt or Rand; and 3) Sulu, who's like WNMHGB's version of Spock in "The Cage", where you get no sense of what the character will be like later on. Quite a career change for Sulu to go from sciences to helm. If you don't know that Alden, Smith, and Sulu were supposed to be part of the supporting cast, you don't even think about it. You've got Kirk and Spock (who I'll get to) at the top, then Mitchell and Dehner, and to round things off Scotty, Piper, and Kelso. More than enough characters to get us through the episode and where the focus would be.
The only explicitly clear connection Pike had with any of the other crew in "The Cage" was with Boyce. We don't get that much with Pike and Number One, and we get no sense of anything with Pike and Spock which is interesting since Number One and Spock were the second and third-in-commands respectively.
Spock's very much in the background for most of "The Cage". "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is a sharp contrast. Kirk is conflicted about doing what he knows he has to do. Spock is there every time Kirk doubts himself, to throw a splash of cold water and to give it to him straight. Spock's race being logical is established in this episode. He's pragmatic to a fault and always tells everyone what they need to know. Whenever Kirk needs another opinion before weighing in on a decision, he turns to Spock. He says he doesn't feel, yet he emotes during the episode. I attribute that to Leonard Nimoy still trying to figure out how to play Spock. As the Enterprise passes through the galactic barrier, HE SPEAKS IN ALL CAPITALS as if he's Wolf Blitzer on CNN giving a news bulletin. Contrast this scene to a similar scene in "By Any Other Name" and the way Leonard Nimoy plays the character couldn't be more different. Spock gives the same exact lines as he does in WHNMBG, when they cross through the barrier again, but he sounds like the Spock we're more familiar with.
Captain Kirk comes across as a more durable version of Captain Pike. When Kirk is put through the wringer, he bounces back immediately. William Shatner plays Kirk just as passionately as Jeffery Huner played Pike, but Kirk comes across as lighter and nimbler than Pike, who just feels heavier and slower to adapt to changing circumstances. Unlike Pike, Kirk is someone who doesn't keep things bottled up. Even though NBC didn't object to Jeffrey Hunter's Pike, I can see them preferring William Shatner's Kirk, because Kirk passes the Beer Test. "Who would you rather have a beer with?" Kirk seems more relatable and approachable than Pike. In his first scene, Kirk is joking around with Spock while they're playing chess. Then there's the bantering between Kirk, Spock, and Mitchell afterwards when they talk about the game. Later on, in the middle of the episode, Kirk shows that he can make the tough choice after weighing everyone's analyses about what's happening to Mitchell. Toward the end, Mitchell gets Dehner, who's also now been affected, to turn on the crew as well, and then Kirk has to turn her back, to help him beat Mitchell. So, he can make the tough calls, he can be persuasive, he can be friendly, he can be the leader. Overall, we see the qualities that make him a good Captain and a man the audience can get behind.
Now the main guest-cast. Both this episode and "The Cage" treated the guest-characters on the level of the characters who had top billing. Susan Oliver had billing in the opening credits in "The Cage" while Gary Lockwood as Mitchell and Sally Kellerman as Dehner have billing towards the beginning in this alternate version of "Where No Man Has Gone Before" that was presented to NBC.
Mitchell's evolution over the course of the episode is a sight to be seen. He starts off as a seemingly pretty regular guy, with no sense of superiority. All he has is a high ESP rating. After he becomes affected, his superiority grows and grows and grows. He's reading things he never bothered with before, he's disagreeing with philosophers, calling intellectuals simplistic in their thinking, eventually says that Humans and Espers can't co-exist, and then finally equates himself to a God and says, "Morals are for men, not Gods." Everything grew except for his wisdom and his conscience, the latter of which regressed as it became corrupted.
At the beginning of the episode, Mitchell immediately put off by Dr. Dehner, who's highly intelligent, professional, and willing to call out Mitchell right away. Mitchell calls her a "walking freezer unit." I've long-thought Dehner was Gene Roddenberry's second attempt to work in a character like Number One, and he can take Dehner further than Number One since Dehner wasn't intended to be a continuing character. Dehner confronts Mitchell about calling her a walking freezer unit, he apologizes, then she says that women professionals tend to over-compensate. She has to constantly prove how good she is in a career dominated by men. Unfortunately, she also had a high ESP rating, and turned on the crew as well, turning into an Esper herself.
Once Dehner becomes an Esper, suddenly Mitchell likes her, and wants her by his side, but he doesn't truly see her as an equal to him. When Kirk tries to stop Mitchell, he makes Kirk pray to him, and Kirk correctly points out that he's making him pray only to him and not Dehner. I think Kirk was able to get through to Dehner because she was already smarter and wiser than Mitchell to begin with, and earlier she was passionately arguing how about how the Espers could be good. Because Kirk was able to appeal to Dehner's morals and intellect, and because she could see how Mitchell was acting the exact opposite of what she said Espers could be, she helps Kirk by weakening Mitchell to the point where Kirk can finally stop him.
After Mitchell and Dehner die, Kirk shows how fair he is by noting in his log that Mitchell and Dehner gave their lives in the line of duty. "I want his career to end that way. He didn't ask for what happened to him." The best part is when Spock says, "I felt for him too," and Kirk says, "I believe there's some hope for you after all, Mr. Spock." Right there establishing the Humanity within Spock, and running gag that's going to run through TOS of Kirk and McCoy trying to bring that through or being quick to point out when it actually does come through. So, just from this pilot, you get a rough sense of who Kirk and Spock are going to be as characters.
James Goldstone was the Director of this episode and Emest Haller was the Cinematographer. I have no doubt that Ernest Haller, who worked on Gone With the Wind, had a great deal of input into the shot compositions. A lot of overhead shots inside the Enterprise, several fun shots as the Enterprise passes through the galactic barrier which are re-used in "By Any Other Name" and "Is There In Truth No Beauty?", and extremely creative cinematography on the surface of Delta Vega. Especially when Kirk is sneaking to approach Mitchell. James Goldstone got perfect performances out of all the actors. And, once again, great use of matte shots to give a sense of scale on the planet's surface.
One particularly interesting aspect of this episode is the color and the lighting. "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is visually an intermediate stage between "The Cage" and TOS Proper. In "The Cage", the sets are mono-chromatic. In WHNHGB, some color has been added to the sets, but not as much as what we'll see in the rest of TOS. I think this was done in part to break up how things looked visually on black-and-white TV sets. They haven't fully embraced color yet though. The TOS sets were lit with color, later on. Here, it's all standard lighting. The biggest contrast is in sickbay, which looks very beige, unlike how colorful it'll be afterwards.
One more thing: In the '80s, when Harve Bennett took over the reigns, he watched every single episode of TOS before making The Wrath of Khan. I'm sure he was taking as many notes about the main characters as possible. Including their backgrounds. So, I'm of the belief that when Mitchell talks about how he set Kirk up with the "little blonde lab technician" who Kirk says he almost married, Harve Bennett referred back to this episode and, retroactively, they are indeed talking about Carol Marcus.
Summing Up: Even though I said I prefer "The Cage", I like "Where No Man Has Gone Before" about as much, there's a lot to recommend it, and I thought it was an effective pilot on every level. I give it a 10.
For reference, I watched the Alternate Version of this episode. The one that convinced NBC to pick up Star Trek as a series. The credits are different, the theme going with the credits is different, and there are title cards at the beginning of each act. Structurally, even if they didn't have the "Act I", "Act II", "Act III", and "Act IV", each act began with a Captain's Log, updating us about the situation. I'm glad they didn't stick with this version of the theme song. It's not iconic at all, unlike the theme song from "The Cage" that would later be fine-tuned on TOS the series. I did like the extra shots of the crew moving around at the beginning, including some of the main and supporting cast in this episode, when Red Alert is sounded. And I loved the intro Kirk gives before opening credits, summing up what the Enterprise had been doing up to this point before saying the Enterprise had a new mission: to boldly go where no man has gone before. In an alternate world where WNMHGB would've aired first on NBC, this is what should've been in there to start off the series.
Even though I like "The Cage" a little bit better than "Where No Man Has Gone Before", I can see why NBC liked this episode a lot better. The story couldn't be simpler, and the stakes couldn't be more clearly defined. Kirk's friend Mitchell is affected when the Enterprise crosses through the galactic barrier, he becomes corrupted as he slowly turns into a God-like being, and Kirk has to find a way to stop him before it's too late. Kirk is torn because he doesn't want to have to kill his friend, but he's left with no choice. Then it ends with a fistfight, Kirk gets his shirt ripped in classic TOS fashion, and he saves the day. Perfect action-adventure story with a moral dilemma that just happens to take place in space. Which is what NBC wanted.
Another thing I can see NBC preferring, and one aspect that I happen to prefer myself, is all the character interactions. Even among cast we don't see again. Mitchell and Dr. Dehner immediately have a chemistry, even though they don't get along at first. Kelso has a real everyman quality to him. Paul Fix, who plays Dr. Piper, feels more at home in a western than on a science-fiction series, it probably doesn't help that I mainly know him as Micah from The Rifleman, but he works if you're pitching Star Trek as a "space western". Scotty's personality immediately shines through. From their interactions, it feels like Scotty and Kelso have worked together for years. At least it felt that way.
The only three main and supporting characters who get the short end of the stick are: 1) Alden, basically a male Uhura, who I didn't know was supposed to be a main cast member until I read about it in Bob Justman and Herb Solow's Star Trek: The Real Story; 2) Yeoman Smith, who doesn't have the presence or personality of either Colt or Rand; and 3) Sulu, who's like WNMHGB's version of Spock in "The Cage", where you get no sense of what the character will be like later on. Quite a career change for Sulu to go from sciences to helm. If you don't know that Alden, Smith, and Sulu were supposed to be part of the supporting cast, you don't even think about it. You've got Kirk and Spock (who I'll get to) at the top, then Mitchell and Dehner, and to round things off Scotty, Piper, and Kelso. More than enough characters to get us through the episode and where the focus would be.
The only explicitly clear connection Pike had with any of the other crew in "The Cage" was with Boyce. We don't get that much with Pike and Number One, and we get no sense of anything with Pike and Spock which is interesting since Number One and Spock were the second and third-in-commands respectively.
Spock's very much in the background for most of "The Cage". "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is a sharp contrast. Kirk is conflicted about doing what he knows he has to do. Spock is there every time Kirk doubts himself, to throw a splash of cold water and to give it to him straight. Spock's race being logical is established in this episode. He's pragmatic to a fault and always tells everyone what they need to know. Whenever Kirk needs another opinion before weighing in on a decision, he turns to Spock. He says he doesn't feel, yet he emotes during the episode. I attribute that to Leonard Nimoy still trying to figure out how to play Spock. As the Enterprise passes through the galactic barrier, HE SPEAKS IN ALL CAPITALS as if he's Wolf Blitzer on CNN giving a news bulletin. Contrast this scene to a similar scene in "By Any Other Name" and the way Leonard Nimoy plays the character couldn't be more different. Spock gives the same exact lines as he does in WHNMBG, when they cross through the barrier again, but he sounds like the Spock we're more familiar with.
Captain Kirk comes across as a more durable version of Captain Pike. When Kirk is put through the wringer, he bounces back immediately. William Shatner plays Kirk just as passionately as Jeffery Huner played Pike, but Kirk comes across as lighter and nimbler than Pike, who just feels heavier and slower to adapt to changing circumstances. Unlike Pike, Kirk is someone who doesn't keep things bottled up. Even though NBC didn't object to Jeffrey Hunter's Pike, I can see them preferring William Shatner's Kirk, because Kirk passes the Beer Test. "Who would you rather have a beer with?" Kirk seems more relatable and approachable than Pike. In his first scene, Kirk is joking around with Spock while they're playing chess. Then there's the bantering between Kirk, Spock, and Mitchell afterwards when they talk about the game. Later on, in the middle of the episode, Kirk shows that he can make the tough choice after weighing everyone's analyses about what's happening to Mitchell. Toward the end, Mitchell gets Dehner, who's also now been affected, to turn on the crew as well, and then Kirk has to turn her back, to help him beat Mitchell. So, he can make the tough calls, he can be persuasive, he can be friendly, he can be the leader. Overall, we see the qualities that make him a good Captain and a man the audience can get behind.
Now the main guest-cast. Both this episode and "The Cage" treated the guest-characters on the level of the characters who had top billing. Susan Oliver had billing in the opening credits in "The Cage" while Gary Lockwood as Mitchell and Sally Kellerman as Dehner have billing towards the beginning in this alternate version of "Where No Man Has Gone Before" that was presented to NBC.
Mitchell's evolution over the course of the episode is a sight to be seen. He starts off as a seemingly pretty regular guy, with no sense of superiority. All he has is a high ESP rating. After he becomes affected, his superiority grows and grows and grows. He's reading things he never bothered with before, he's disagreeing with philosophers, calling intellectuals simplistic in their thinking, eventually says that Humans and Espers can't co-exist, and then finally equates himself to a God and says, "Morals are for men, not Gods." Everything grew except for his wisdom and his conscience, the latter of which regressed as it became corrupted.
At the beginning of the episode, Mitchell immediately put off by Dr. Dehner, who's highly intelligent, professional, and willing to call out Mitchell right away. Mitchell calls her a "walking freezer unit." I've long-thought Dehner was Gene Roddenberry's second attempt to work in a character like Number One, and he can take Dehner further than Number One since Dehner wasn't intended to be a continuing character. Dehner confronts Mitchell about calling her a walking freezer unit, he apologizes, then she says that women professionals tend to over-compensate. She has to constantly prove how good she is in a career dominated by men. Unfortunately, she also had a high ESP rating, and turned on the crew as well, turning into an Esper herself.
Once Dehner becomes an Esper, suddenly Mitchell likes her, and wants her by his side, but he doesn't truly see her as an equal to him. When Kirk tries to stop Mitchell, he makes Kirk pray to him, and Kirk correctly points out that he's making him pray only to him and not Dehner. I think Kirk was able to get through to Dehner because she was already smarter and wiser than Mitchell to begin with, and earlier she was passionately arguing how about how the Espers could be good. Because Kirk was able to appeal to Dehner's morals and intellect, and because she could see how Mitchell was acting the exact opposite of what she said Espers could be, she helps Kirk by weakening Mitchell to the point where Kirk can finally stop him.
After Mitchell and Dehner die, Kirk shows how fair he is by noting in his log that Mitchell and Dehner gave their lives in the line of duty. "I want his career to end that way. He didn't ask for what happened to him." The best part is when Spock says, "I felt for him too," and Kirk says, "I believe there's some hope for you after all, Mr. Spock." Right there establishing the Humanity within Spock, and running gag that's going to run through TOS of Kirk and McCoy trying to bring that through or being quick to point out when it actually does come through. So, just from this pilot, you get a rough sense of who Kirk and Spock are going to be as characters.
James Goldstone was the Director of this episode and Emest Haller was the Cinematographer. I have no doubt that Ernest Haller, who worked on Gone With the Wind, had a great deal of input into the shot compositions. A lot of overhead shots inside the Enterprise, several fun shots as the Enterprise passes through the galactic barrier which are re-used in "By Any Other Name" and "Is There In Truth No Beauty?", and extremely creative cinematography on the surface of Delta Vega. Especially when Kirk is sneaking to approach Mitchell. James Goldstone got perfect performances out of all the actors. And, once again, great use of matte shots to give a sense of scale on the planet's surface.
One particularly interesting aspect of this episode is the color and the lighting. "Where No Man Has Gone Before" is visually an intermediate stage between "The Cage" and TOS Proper. In "The Cage", the sets are mono-chromatic. In WHNHGB, some color has been added to the sets, but not as much as what we'll see in the rest of TOS. I think this was done in part to break up how things looked visually on black-and-white TV sets. They haven't fully embraced color yet though. The TOS sets were lit with color, later on. Here, it's all standard lighting. The biggest contrast is in sickbay, which looks very beige, unlike how colorful it'll be afterwards.
One more thing: In the '80s, when Harve Bennett took over the reigns, he watched every single episode of TOS before making The Wrath of Khan. I'm sure he was taking as many notes about the main characters as possible. Including their backgrounds. So, I'm of the belief that when Mitchell talks about how he set Kirk up with the "little blonde lab technician" who Kirk says he almost married, Harve Bennett referred back to this episode and, retroactively, they are indeed talking about Carol Marcus.
Summing Up: Even though I said I prefer "The Cage", I like "Where No Man Has Gone Before" about as much, there's a lot to recommend it, and I thought it was an effective pilot on every level. I give it a 10.
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Logs reveal they died of an infection brought from the planet. The Exeter's captain, Ron Tracey, is on the planet. The landing party goes there and finds out the planet not only keeps them from dying, but also seems to protect from any type of disease or infection, giving long life. Tracey wants to make a fortune if they can discover the secret. He's also been helping the Kohms, who resemble Chinese humans, in violation of the prime directive. They are at war with Caucasian-looking "savages" called the Yangs.
