I don't agree with this analysis. Using the phasers to destroy what seemed to be a central power source is but a plot point. Hardly "the same ending."
In "Who Mourns For Adonais?" it is suggested that Mankind crossed paths with advanced extraterrestrials sometime in its history. They came, they left their mark, and they went. Without getting into the subtleties of "gods" needing worship, the ETs apparently did not linger on Earth very long. And Apollo's display after the destruction of his temple showed that it was not the source of his power, or at least not the only asset in his tool chest. How much of his power, if any, was innate?
"The Apple" is a peculiar tale. How exactly did the People of Vaal come to be? Were they a civilization that "voted their way into a system that needed shooting to get out of"? Were they a protected lab experiment set up by another civilization, or perhaps a colony sent forth from elsewhere? (Imagine a sub-light starship with no sleepers, no on-board generations living out the voyage—just the germ plasm of the species to be seeded and raised by advanced machines at the distant colony world.) Kirk and company knocked over an apple cart they knew nothing about.
And Trelane? He was the "child" of an apparently highly advanced race. And like Apollo, Trelane had other resources at his command than "the mirror." Maybe the mirror was his "social media" audience. It's a fascinating concept, but the episode, as-is, should not be taken as anything more than a tongue-in-cheek treatment of the idea. (I love it when Kirk calls Trelane pompous.)
