Star Trek 1.09

Dagger of the Mind

The Enterprise is making a delivery to the penal colony on Tantalus V when Doctor Simon van Gelder sneaks aboard in a box that is beamed up from the planet. Doctor van Gelder is very agitated and insists that they not return him to Tantalus V. Kirk and Spock subdue van Gelder and he is taken to sick bay wher he is tied down and sedated.

The Enterprise returns to the penal colony. Captain Kirk and Doctor Helen Noel beam down to meet Doctor Tristan Adams, who runs the penal colony and investigate what might have gone wrong and caused Doctor van Gelder to become so agitated. Mr. Spock and Doctor McCoy remain on the Enterprise and try to learn more from van Gelder who has trouble communicating due to his agitated state.

Captain Kirk and Doctor Noel learn about the neural neutralizer, a device that is used on inmates at the penal colony to rid them of their destructive inclinations. It was used on Doctor van Gelder. Spock and McCoy also learn about it from van Gelder. Spock uses a Vulcan technique to delve into van Gelder's thoughts and learn what he can about what van Gelder experienced. Kirk and Noel sneak into the neural neutralizer room. Kirk insists on testing it on having Noel test it on him. Doctor Noel uses it to convince him that he fell in love with her when they met previously at a Christmas party. 

Doctor Adams catches Captain Kirk and Doctor Noel in the neural neutralizer room. He turns up the power and forces Kirk to hand over his phaser and his communicator. Kirk and Noel are returned to his quarters. He finds a ventilation shaft and encourages her to use it to find and sabotage the power supply for the penal colony. After she departs through the ventilation shaft he is taken back to the neural neutralizer room for more "treatment".

Doctor Noel does just as Captain Kirk asked her to do. He is able to escape from the neural neutralizer room. Spock beams down once the force shield that prevented him from beaming down sooner is powered down. Doctor Adams inadvertently has his mind hollowed out by the neural neutralizer when the power comes back on.

Thoughts

James Gregory played Doctor Tristan Adams. His face was familiar but I couldn't remember what I might have seen him in until I checked his filmography. The role he is best known for is playing Senator Iselin in The Manchurian Candidate (1962) which I have seen but I'm pretty sure that I have seen him in a number of other things.

I did not recognize the actors that played Doctor Simon van Gelder or Doctor Helen Noel. I looked them both up. I might have seen them in other things but their faces still don't ring any bells.

The technique that Mr. Spock employed to learn more about what van Gelder knows, the Vulcan Mind Meld, was used for the first time in this episode. It was most famously employed in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982). I don't know how many more times it is used in the original series.

This was not a great episode but I really enjoyed it. I love the rogue scientist trope and the way it is used in this episode. It isn't perfect or even extremely well done but I love how wacky it gets in this episode. I will admit that everything gets wrapped up a little too quickly and conveniently. I'm torn as to whether this is just a good episode or a great one. I'm leaning towards good.