Name That Star Trek Object
- Thread starter Methuselah Flint
- Start date
Would you believe...
Elaan’s sparkly yet powerful Dilithium crystal necklace.
Elaan’s sparkly yet powerful Dilithium crystal necklace.
Objection. Counsel is framing Taming of the Shrew in space.
Objection. Not proportional to the needs of the big lizard-mouth statue/monument.
1. Refreshingly alien in design.
2. More donned than carried.
3. Has at least two functions, apparently.
4. While the primary function is demonstrated several times in an obvious way, the second, less apparent function is only implied by dialogue, and it's utterly unclear how it works, or would work.
5. The primary function mirrors that of little boxes we see work, and usually well and consistently. The secondary function (as implied, and rather heavily) mirrors the function of somewhat larger boxes whose operation is less consistent, like the far larger system of which they are themselves a smaller version.
2. More donned than carried.
3. Has at least two functions, apparently.
4. While the primary function is demonstrated several times in an obvious way, the second, less apparent function is only implied by dialogue, and it's utterly unclear how it works, or would work.
5. The primary function mirrors that of little boxes we see work, and usually well and consistently. The secondary function (as implied, and rather heavily) mirrors the function of somewhat larger boxes whose operation is less consistent, like the far larger system of which they are themselves a smaller version.
Portable Life Support Mask/Belt?
1. Provides fresh air to breath.
2. Worn on face and belt.
3. Air plus pressure.
4. Primary function is air, but it must provide pressure, too. Probably a weak invisible force field.
5. A larger system would be the pressure chamber in Medical.
1. Provides fresh air to breath.
2. Worn on face and belt.
3. Air plus pressure.
4. Primary function is air, but it must provide pressure, too. Probably a weak invisible force field.
5. A larger system would be the pressure chamber in Medical.
Would you believe...
the paralysis field projector installed in the Emergency Manual Monitor that Spock determines can’t be breached in By Any Other Name
the paralysis field projector installed in the Emergency Manual Monitor that Spock determines can’t be breached in By Any Other Name
I was thinking of that with my above post, but it's like 6 cylindrical silver tubes, not boxes
(Wow, these guesses are outstanding. I anticipated that someone would offer up the Kelvans' paralyzers.)
Objection. Assumes masks not in evidence.
Objection. Failure to move into evidence. Non-guess portion of post is not objected to.
Objection. Beyond the scope of self-destruction.
Objection. Assumes masks not in evidence.
Objection. Failure to move into evidence. Non-guess portion of post is not objected to.
Objection. Beyond the scope of self-destruction.
1. Refreshingly alien in design.
2. More donned than carried.
3. Has at least two functions, apparently.
4. While the primary function is demonstrated several times in an obvious way, the second, less apparent function is only implied by dialogue, and it's utterly unclear how it works, or would work.
5. The primary function mirrors that of little boxes we see work, and usually well and consistently. The secondary function (as implied, and rather heavily) mirrors the function of somewhat larger boxes whose operation is less consistent, like the far larger system of which they are themselves a smaller version.
6. That which we call a rose / By any other name . . . . or in any event, pedal to the metal and all that.
2. More donned than carried.
3. Has at least two functions, apparently.
4. While the primary function is demonstrated several times in an obvious way, the second, less apparent function is only implied by dialogue, and it's utterly unclear how it works, or would work.
5. The primary function mirrors that of little boxes we see work, and usually well and consistently. The secondary function (as implied, and rather heavily) mirrors the function of somewhat larger boxes whose operation is less consistent, like the far larger system of which they are themselves a smaller version.
6. That which we call a rose / By any other name . . . . or in any event, pedal to the metal and all that.
The arm belt device that the women wear in Spock's Brain?
if "pedal to the metal" means speed, they went to warp 8 or better in "Amok Time", 8 in "Arena"
achieved warp 10 in "The Changling, Warp 10 and increasing in "Let that be your last battlefield", Warp 14.1 "That which survives"
Still can't figure out the object??
achieved warp 10 in "The Changling, Warp 10 and increasing in "Let that be your last battlefield", Warp 14.1 "That which survives"
Still can't figure out the object??
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Sorry for the delay, folks - will rejoin the action ASAP.
Nice job, BK613!!! Outstanding conclusion on your part - and everyone else had some really inspired guesses as well. I'm not nearly as good at the object-guessing as the rest of you, so it may be a while before I get one right again. I'm therefore glad this round, for me at least, was so entertaining.
Explanations of my thinking:
1. Refreshingly alien in design.
I've always liked the little flower-like elements of the Scalosians' communicators and particularly like the green and pink (I think that's pink) adornments on two of the stems, stalks or spokes of the model. The communicators do not seem to double as emblems of differential rank or status; the other Scalosians appear to have units identical in appearance to Deela's, as seen here:
There are probably other examples in TOS I'm not thinking of at the moment, but the look and operation of the Scalosian communicators ("SCs") in some ways prefigures the TNG-era comm badges, including that they may appear at first glance to be a mere decoration. (However, no one I recall who wanted to deprive Starfleet personnel of their equipment on TNG/DS9/VOY ever seemed to have any difficulty figuring out what the badges were and promptly taking them away, which made me long for the awesome Star Trek communicators even more than I did already.)
Finally, in a wonderful, somewhat "retronymic" development, I didn't initially mean anything by the use of the term "refreshing" except that I liked the SCs better than other alien devices that . . . don't look all that alien. But due to some initial guesses, I later realized that the device has always looked like a flower to me, and "refreshing" coincidentally fit in fairly well with flowers.
2. More donned than carried.
I was trying to focus everyone in on the type of item here. You crafty folk got that memo immediately and started going for landing party-style offensive and defensive equipment, including the Kelvans' paralyzers.
3. Has at least two functions, apparently.
Deela and Rael clearly demonstrate the communication function of the SCs. (I don't think the other three Scalosians use theirs on screen.) But after Kirk leaves environmental engineering in the aftermath of Compton's sad passing, Deela interrupts a private conversation with Rael to announce that "[Kirk]'s gone to medical laboratory. He's trying to communicate with the Vulcan." She evidently arrives at this conclusion by touching the pink element on one of the stalks/spokes/whatever of her SC, located at the farthest point on the device from her left ear:
There is no audible dialogue to inform her of Kirk's movements, but I suppose this could still be communication between the invaders, and the Scalosians had unseen earpieces (or there was dialogue that was not dubbed in). It is unclear who is sending the communication. However, Ekor and the unnamed female Scalosian appear to have departed Environmental Engineering after Kirk is rendered unconscious, and the unnamed male Scalosian is there when Kirk awakens (covering him with his Scalosian Wrist Weapon) but is not seen thereafter. Any of those three could therefore be sending a message regarding Kirk that Deela appears to hear somehow, although the message arrives so quickly after Kirk's departure that I don't know how anyone knew where he was headed unless he got there very quickly, and I'm not certain that EE and any medical lab were supposed to be on the same deck. (One of you Enterprise layout experts will know more.) Remember, the turbolifts did not work for the accelerated Scalosians and Kirk really didn't have sufficient time to climb to another deck.
4. While the primary function is demonstrated several times in an obvious way, the second, less apparent function is only implied by dialogue, and it's utterly unclear how it works, or would work.
I've always interpreted the sequence discussed in explanation 3 above as an indication that the SC has some sort of scanning function, like a tricorder, although it remains unclear how Deela can learn anything from touching or twisting part of the device. Perhaps she had a tracker on Kirk, but without some form of communication that the viewers can't hear, there's no indication how it informs her of anything, if at all. I will rewatch WOE - never a problem for me in free time - soon to see if there's any muted sound to suggest that someone is sending her a faint voice message.
5. The primary function mirrors that of little boxes we see work, and usually well and consistently. The secondary function (as implied, and rather heavily) mirrors the function of somewhat larger boxes whose operation is less consistent, like the far larger system of which they are themselves a smaller version.
If you go with my interpretation that the SCs had a scanning function - which also fits with their apparent lack of any other means of obtaining information or data besides talking to one another or via direct tactile interaction with objects - then the primary function mirrors the consistently employed and mostly reliable Starfleet communicators (little boxes) while the secondary (or better put, less apparent) function mirrors the Starfleet tricorders (larger boxes), whose operation and capabilities vary from episode to episode across the series, like the ship's sensors (the far larger system). Yeah, this clue was difficult and perhaps even overly obscure, but you people are just too good for Joe Blow Cluegiver.
6. That which we call a rose / By any other name . . . . or in any event, pedal to the metal and all that.
By this point everyone had arrived at the Kelvans, so I returned to the flower motif with the Shakespeare quote and the pedal (instead of petal) reference, as well as a hint that the SCs seem to be made of some sort of alloy. And that, as they say, is that.
For what it's worth, the next, seventh clue was going to be "we see only two of the five units actually function," and the eighth clue was going to be "they work fast, like their owners." I didn't want to keep everyone guessing for too long. And sorry for the delay after BK613 got it; I was tied up with some work.
TL; DR - You folks are smart. It's the Scalosian communicators but many other guesses were great. Nice job by everyone.
Hope everyone enjoyed this round as much as I did. @BK613 - you have the conn!
@Phaser Two Thank you. Nice clues and a cool object choice.
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Clue 1: It was certainly futuristic, until the late 1990s.
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Clue 1: It was certainly futuristic, until the late 1990s.
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