"The Menagerie" Line-by-Line

[Leandar]

Kirk: Do you know what you're doing? Have you lost your mind?!

 

[CoveTom]

SPOCK: Captain, Jim, please. Don't stop me. Don't let him stop me. It's your career and Captain Pike's life. You must see the rest of the transmission.

 

[Leandar]

Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. It's five year mission, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no man has gone before.

(Act One)

(Enterprise continues through space)

Kirk: The court martial of Mr. Spock continues in closed session. Despite all we can do, images continue to be transmitted to us from Talos IV.

 

[CoveTom]

MENDEZ: Starfleet has ordered no contact with Talos IV. They made no exceptions.

 

[Leandar]

Spock: You have no choice, sir. I'm sorry. (To Pike) The Keeper has taken over control of our screen. Do you understand, sir? (Pike beeps "yes") As you saw before, Captain Pike had been knocked unconscious and captured by the Talosians.

(viewscreen activates)

 

[LeadHead]

Pike wakes up and sees the transparent wall in his cell. He elbows it, seeing if he can break through, and fails. Talosians enter the area.

Pike: Can you hear me? My name is Christopher Pike, commander of the Space Vehicle Enterprise from a stellar group at the other end of this galaxy. Our intentions are peaceful, can you understand me?

 

[Leandar]

Talosian: It appears Magistrate, that the intelligence of the specimen is shockingly limited.

 

[LeadHead]

Magistrate: There is no surprise since his vessel was baited here so easily with a simulated message. As you can read in his thoughts, it is only now beginning to suspect that the survivors and encampment were a simple illusion we placed in their minds.

 

[Leandar]

Pike: You're not speaking, yet I can hear you.

 

[LeadHead]

Magistrate: You will not the confusion as it reads our thought transmissions.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

PIKE: All right, then, telepathy. You can read my mind. I can read yours. Now, unless you want my ship to consider capturing me an unfriendly act

 

[Leandar]

Keeper: You now see the primitive, fear-threat reaction. The specimen is about to boast of his strength, the weaponry of his vessel, and so on. Next.... frustrated into a need to display physical prowess, the creature will throw himself against the transparency.

 

[Captain Robert April]

Were you in here, too, when you tested these walls? There's a way out of any cage and I'll find it!

 

[Leandar]

Keeper: Despite its frustration, the creature appears more adaptable than our specimens from other planets. We can soon begin the experiment.

(Pike looks up at the Talosians, incredulous)

 

[scotpens]

Were you in here, too, when you tested these walls? There's a way out of any cage and I'll find it!

CORRECTION: The actual line is, “If you were in here, wouldn't you test the strength of these walls too?”


(Cut to Enterprise briefing room)

SPOCK: The inhabitants of this planet must live deep underground, probably manufacture food and other needs down there. Our tests indicate the planet's surface, without considerably more vegetation or some animals, is simply too barren to support life.

 

[JanewayRulz!]

NUMBER ONE: So we just thought we saw survivors there.

 

[Leandar]

Spock: Exactly. An illusion, placed in our minds by this planet's inhabitants.

 

[CoveTom]

BOYCE: It was a perfect illusion. They had us seeing just what we wanted to see: human beings who'd survived with dignity and bravery, everything entirely logical, right down to the building of the camp, the tattered clothing, everything. Now let's be sure we understand the danger of this. The inhabitants of this planet can read our minds, they can create illusions out of a person's own thoughts, memories, and experiences, even out of a person's own desires. Illusions just as real and solid as this table top and just as impossible to ignore.

 

[Leandar]

Number One: Any estimate as to what they might want one of us for?

 

[scotpens]

NOTE: The pilot had some cuts and re-edits for the two-part ep “The Menagerie.” Which version are we quoting here?

Can I get a ruling?