They killed Hengist!

[Warped9]

Scotty testified he didn’t black out when Sibo was killed and that when he went to help her “something was in his way.”

If we take that at face value then it suggests this thing could kill even without possessing someone’s body. I don’t recall the exact seating arrangement during Sibo’s seance, but my impression is Hengist was on the opposite side of the table from Sibo. It seems unlikely he could get around to kill Sibo then return to his place in those scant few seconds before the lights came back up. Plus it beggars belief no one would be aware of Hengist moving. And I don’t recall if everyone was supposed to be holding hands.

So either this thing could kill without possessing someone’s body or it took over someone who was seated next to Sibo for just those few seconds it took to kill her. Since no one offered up any experience of disorientation or strangeness we can assume this thing could kill while in its natural disembodied form.

 

[Christopher]

Scotty testified he didn’t black out when Sibo was killed and that when he went to help her “something was in his way.”

If we take that at face value then it suggests this thing could kill even without possessing someone’s body. I don’t recall the exact seating arrangement during Sibo’s seance, but my impression is Hengist was on the opposite side of the table from Sibo. It seems unlikely he could get around to kill Sibo then return to his place in those scant few seconds before the lights came back up. Plus it beggars belief no one would be aware of Hengist moving. And I don’t recall if everyone was supposed to be holding hands.

So either this thing could kill without possessing someone’s body or it took over someone who was seated next to Sibo for just those few seconds it took to kill her. Since no one offered up any experience of disorientation or strangeness we can assume this thing could kill while in its natural disembodied form.

Or, hypothetically, Redjac could've possessed Scotty and altered his perceptions rather than simply blacking him out. I don't think that's likely, but people's perceptions can be unreliable.

 

[Warped9]

Or, hypothetically, Redjac could've possessed Scotty and altered his perceptions rather than simply blacking him out. I don't think that's likely, but people's perceptions can be unreliable.

Scotty said he heard the woman scream then moved toward her wherein he ran into “something.” And the computer verified what he was saying was true. Of course, it’s only true as far as Scotty knows and he isn’t deliberately lying. But it supports the idea this thing can kill in its natural form.

 

[BillJ]

I always figure they killed Hengist in the process of destroying Redjac. Can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs.

 

[Christopher]

Of course, it’s only true as far as Scotty knows and he isn’t deliberately lying.

Yes, exactly. Perceptions can be altered, and hypothetically, if Redjac briefly possessed Scotty, that could cause him to hallucinate. We know there are cases of brain damage where someone can perceive a part of their own body as if it belongs to someone else. Even though they can look at their arm, say, and see that it's attached to their own body, their brains can't recognize that fact and remain convinced it's someone else's arm. So conceivably, Redjac's possession and takeover of Scotty's body (if that's what happened, I don't know) could have dissociated Scotty from his somatic awareness, and he could've seen himself stabbing Sybo but perceived it as another person in front of him, blocking his path.

I'm not saying it's likely, but it's an interesting alternative possibility to think about.

 

[David cgc]

I don't think the episode implies that Scotty's body did the killing. What I take from the episode is that Hengist was the killer. The entity also does not jump from body to body that rapidly, and picks the ship rather than switching from person to person. I don't think the episode means to imply that this entity is possessing bodies to confuse what today we would call forensic evidence. Maybe it is a long-lived life form and always had Hengist's body.

Same. I was confused when I finally saw the episode because both the jokes about Scotty getting away with murder and the serious episode recaps/summaries always seemed to agree to Scotty physically did the murders. The impression I got was Hengist was the actual murderer, with the Redjak entity being a little extra spooky sauce on top of a conventional framing/false accusation.

 

[Warped9]

Hengist could have killed Kara the dancer as we hadn’t been introduced to him yet so his physical whereabouts are not known. He could have physically killed Lt. Tracy since he left the room and we have only his word as to where he was. But I find it highly unlikely he could have physically killed Sibo because I’m pretty sure he was on the other side of the table from her and simply didn’t have enough time to physically get to her and back to his place before the lights came up. And when the lights come up Hengist is beside Jarvis and he’s beside Kirk. And it looks like McCoy is right beside Sibo.

Okay, so I took a look at a screencap giving us an overhead view of the seance. Starting with Sibo and going clockwise you have Sibo, McCoy, Kara’s father, Hengist, Jarvis, Kirk, Scotty, Morla and back to Sibo. And everyone is holding hands. So for Hengist to kill Sibo he has to disengage holding hands with Jarvis and Kara’s father, get around to the opposite side of the table to kill Sibo, then get back to his place before the lights come up. For Scotty to kill Sibo he has to let go of Kirk’s and Morla’s hands and get around Morla to get to Sibo. And note the killer also has to get the knife.

From what I see the more likely scenario is one of three options:
- Redjac possesses McCoy to kill Sibo (because McCoy only has to let go of Sibo’s left hand to grab the knife.
- Redjac possesses Morla to kill Sibo (because Morla only has to let go of Sibo’s right hand to get the knife).
- Or, finally, Redjac doesn’t need to possess anyone to kill Sibo with the knife because he can float right over the table to grab the knife and kill her.

If we take Scotty’s assertion as factual, that he heard the woman scream and got up to go toward her and “something,” not someone, was in his way then it supports the notion Redjac could kill without possessing a physical body.

 

[Christopher]

From what I see the more likely scenario is one of three options:
- Redjac possesses McCoy to kill Sibo (because McCoy only has to let go of Sibo’s left hand to grab the knife.
- Redjac possesses Morla to kill Sibo (because Morla only has to let go of Sibo’s right hand to get the knife).
- Or, finally, Redjac doesn’t need to possess anyone to kill Sibo with the knife because he can float right over the table to grab the knife and kill her.

You left out one: Redjac possesses Sybo and makes her stab herself. Though that could be distinguished from the others by the angle of the wound and other forensic evidence.

Speaking of forensic evidence, though, wasn't Scotty the only one with blood on his hands? That would seem to suggest that either Redjac possessed him, or Redjac killed her incorporeally and Scotty got blood on his hands when he tried to help her.

 

[Warped9]

^^ How does Sibo stab herself in the back?

 

[Christopher]

^^ How does Sibo stab herself in the back?

Oh.

Umm... Well, she was a native of the planet of free-love hedonists, so maybe she was really limber.

 

[Set Harth]

They killed Hengist! YOU BASTARDS!!!!

 

[Warped9]

The episode establishes Redjac is a long lived entity at least centuries old. I doubt its killing spree began with Jack the Ripper for serial killers no doubt existed long before then. Kirk supposes this thing moved out into space along with mankind, supported by Spock’s observation that the places identified in connection with the names Sibo uttered before dying, lay in a direct path between Earth and Argelius. But thats assuming this thing took a direct path. It could well have made other stops along the way over all that time. Also who is to say this thing didn’t come from elsewhere originally and land on Earth in some way during the Victorian era?

The episode definitely establishes it can jump bodies. It left Hengist to jump into the ship’s computer system then jumped into Jarvis then back into Hengist. Redjac reanimating Hengist supports the idea Hengist might well have been a zombie controlled by Redjac the whole time. In that light Hengist was already long dead when they beamed him out into space. Hengist might have been a zombie from before first coming to Argelius.

I think the episode also establishes it doesn’t need a corporeal form to kill. When Lt. Tracy was killed they assert the room was inaccessible and the outside door locked, although they allow the lock could have been picked. But if Redjac can kill without corporeal form then it could likely get past a locked door to possess Scotty to kill Lt. Tracy or even just kill her on its own. This seems to be supported later when Sibo is killed and Hengist is on the opposite side of the table. Redjac either possessed someone else next to Sibo to kill her or, again, killed her on its own. And Scotty’s assertion that he came up against “something” when moving toward Sibo seems to support Redjac doesn’t need a physical form to kill, but seems to prefer it.

 

[Christopher]

Kirk supposes this thing moved out into space along with mankind, supported by Spock’s observation that the places identified in connection with the names Sibo uttered before dying, lay in a direct path between Earth and Argelius.

Which is irreconcilable with Star Trek Star Charts and the onscreen maps based on it in the modern shows, since one of those planets in the "direct path" was Alpha Eridani II, and Alpha Eridani, i.e. Achernar, is 140 light years away, while STSC puts Argelius around Iota Leonis, only 79 ly away. And Eridanus and Leo are in very different directions. Also, STSC puts Achernar deep in Romulan territory, or perhaps "above" or "below" it relative to the plane of the map page.

While we're at it, how could Spock say that Mars was in a direct line between Argelius and Earth? As it happens, Iota Leonis is pretty close to the orbital plane of the planets, so it's possible that Mars would occasionally be on a pretty straight line between the two, but for most of its orbit, it wouldn't be.

Also who is to say this thing didn’t come from elsewhere originally and land on Earth in some way during the Victorian era?

That's the implication, that it was some alien entity that came to Earth.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Maybe it is a long-lived life form and always had Hengist's body.

If the folks from Rigel IV are Vulcanoids, Hengist could be over 100.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

Meaning, origin and history of the name Hengist

The meaning, origin and history of the given name Hengist

www.behindthename.com

His name means "stallion". So he's the horse and Redjac is the rider.

 

[Phaser Two]

Man, this thing really is ghoulish the more you think about it.

Yeah. Trek certainly did horror well, mostly in S1 and S3, but I've never precisely understood why Redjac, in an S2 entry, doesn't get more praise. It is arguably the most horrifying being faced by the crew over the three seasons. And as a bonus, neither Kirk nor Spock is the slightest bit ruffled by its presence, which is awesome. [indicates casually] "Cut that thing off." I love it.

I don't think the episode implies that Scotty's body did the killing. What I take from the episode is that Hengist was the killer. The entity also does not jump from body to body that rapidly, and picks the ship rather than switching from person to person. I don't think the episode means to imply that this entity is possessing bodies to confuse what today we would call forensic evidence. Maybe it is a long-lived life form and always had Hengist's body.

I agree with this completely. Redjac used its hypnotic screen to take away Scotty's memory and frame him while it, in the "person" of Hengist, killed Kara and Lt. Tracy. Hence why Kirk notes that Hengist was unaccounted for when Lt. Tracy was sadly killed, as he and Spock start to put the pieces together. But Scotty himself notes that he didn't black out when Sybo was murdered, so the hypnotic screen evidently wasn't used on that occasion for whatever reason—perhaps because it would have been ineffective against the multiple people present, or the close quarters, or both. Instead, the entity seems to have either used Hengist's body to kill Sybo, or it reverted to its true form and killed Sybo, accounting for Scotty's testimony that "something was in the way." I seem to recall also that in the James Blish novelization, he added something about a sound like the flapping of wings during the Sybo scene, which just adds to the fantastically scary premise.

 

[Warped9]

There is no question Redjac did the killings, but the question is how, in what form, he/it did them.

 

[JonnyQuest037]

Yes. they killed the entity, but what of Hengist?

...And what of Lazarus? What of Lazarus?!?

 

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Really, the only major flaw in the episode was the misogyny.

 

[Christopher]

Really, the only major flaw in the episode was the misogyny.

Quite right. If, say, Scotty’s injury had been caused by a black crewmember and it made him hostile toward all black people, everyone both in-show and out would consider that horribly bigoted, and it would imply that the potential for that kind of racism had been inside Scotty all along. Yet when he develops a sudden resentment for all women because of one woman’s mistake, the other characters react to that as if it’s an understandable response and no more than a mild inconvenience.

But the most sexist part is that their solution to getting Scotty to overcome his resentment toward women is not to sit him down with women so he can talk to them and relate to them as individuals, but to take him to a stripper bar and get him laid. Meaning that in their view, the healthy way for a man to like women is to desire them as sex objects. “Resentment of women” isn’t seen as problematical because it’s bigoted so much as because it’s insufficiently heterosexual.