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- See Eye of the Beholder for the TNG episode of (almost) the same name.
Beaming down to a planet to search for the crew of a missing ship, the crew is captured by previously unknown aliens.
Summary
- "Captain's log: Stardate 5501.2. We are orbiting the planet Lactra VII. Our mission is to discover the whereabouts or fate of a six member science crew. Voice contact having yielded nothing, a landing party beamed aboard to see if the deserted ship's log and computers could give us any information."
Their computer intones, "It is now 32 minutes since our last contact with the three members of our crew on the planet's surface. As the senior officer aboard I, Lieutenant Commander Markel, have made the following decision. The three remaining crew members, myself included will beam down to effect a rescue. If for any reason we do not return, be it known that..." Kirk says, "It was against all orders." McCoy claims, "The crew was apparently desperate." Kirk states, "The captain of a ship, no matter his rank, must follow the book." Spock remarks, "A capability, I'm afraid, out of the reach of most Humans." Kirk wants a landing party to beam down to the last known coordinates the crew used. "Gentlemen, we'll travel light. Phasers, tricorders, communicators and medical kit."
Their communicator picks up a short signal, but there is no trace of sentient inhabitants. They are attacked by a beast that seems similar to one on Canopus III, which is light years away, but the desert area they now occupy is the same. As they continue walking the environment changes. Spock doesn't think that two such disparate ecologies could co-exist so closely. Scott communicates that ship's sensors have discovered a large concentration of lifeforms 98.5 kilometers north east. Apparently a city or central gathering place. Spock's has a theory that they have found a plethora of different habitats and their inhabitants. The environments have been manufactured, not created by nature.
They are attacked by other creatures, but before any harm can befall them the creatures are stopped by a force field. The crew meets the Lactrans, a group of twenty-foot slugs who capture them. Spock discovers the Lactrans are telepathic, but the speed at which their thoughts flow is too difficult for him to comprehend, except for the most fleeting image. He realizes that they are advanced as much beyond Kirk as Kirk is to a colony of ants. They are taken to an environment like Earth and imprisoned along with the three remaining Ariel crewmembers. They have become exhibits in a zoo.
The Lactrans are unaware Ariel's Lieutenant Randolph has become ill, and they were too late to save the first landing party. They have tried every means of escape they could. They have attempted communication but only aroused a quivering motion. Kirk asks Spock to try to make contact but he can't. His impression is that they are laughing at him. They all concentrate their need to have McCoy's medical kit that is located outside a force field and succeed.
Spock notices that the Lactrans can pick up specific thought transmissions from them if they care to go to the trouble. He suggests that one of them should appear to be ill and the rest of them should put strong thoughts in their minds that a communicator is needed for recovery. A child responds, gives them the communicator and Kirk contacts the ship. They are beamed up along with the child. The elders are worried about the child and think Kirk made the child disappear. The child's parents are worried and almost kill Kirk in an attempt to contact him. On the starship, the child reads Scott's brain, all the information contained in the library computer and sends them flying out of orbit. Scotty convinced the child, that Humans are not pets and to return and let his parents know what he has learned. The child does so and the Lactrans release the crew from confinement and allow them to leave because the Lactrans do not feel the crew belongs in their zoo. They send a final telepathic message to Spock – "Humans may return when they grow up, in 20 or 30 of their centuries and it will take Spock some time to figure out how long that is to them." Kirk says, "Either way Mr. Spock, it will hardly be our problem."
Memorable Quotes
"They don't seem very interested in communicating with us, if they can communicate at all."
"Perhaps not in a way we understand. I keep receiving impressions."
"Any ideas doctor?"
"Well, I've got one and I definitely don't like it. I guess they're doing exactly what we would do. If we came upon an alien creature we'd never seen before the first thing we'd do... the first thing we'd do is to make sure it was free of harmful bacteria, then we'd see if it was intelligent."
"Congratulations doctor. A most logical assumption."
- - McCoy, Spock, Kirk, McCoy, and Spock again
"Are the aliens telepathic?"
"I've come to the conclusion they are Captain but the speed at which the thoughts flow is too great for me to comprehend except for the most fleeting image."
"Surely we can communicate with them someway."
"They appear to be as advanced beyond Earth civilization as you are from a colony of ants."
- - Kirk and Spock
Background Information
- The author, David P. Harmon also wrote TOS: "The Deadly Years" and "A Piece of the Action".
- There was a seventh season TNG: "Eye of the Beholder" and also a classic Twilight Zone episode by the same name.
- There also was a Star Trek novel by A.C. Crispin entitled The Eyes of the Beholders published by Pocket Books in September 1990, but it is an entirely different story.
- Lieutenant Commander Tom Markel was shown with commander's stripes on his sleeve.
- Scott was shown with captain's stripes on his sleeve in the scene when Kirk, Spock, and McCoy beam down to the planet surface.
Video and DVD releases
- UK VHS release (CIC Video): Volume 5, catalogue number VHR 2539, 17 February 1992.
- As part of the The Animated Series DVD collection.
Links and References
Regular Cast
- William Shatner as Kirk
- Leonard Nimoy as Spock
- DeForest Kelley as McCoy
- James Doohan as
- George Takei as Sulu
- Nichelle Nichols as Lieutenant Uhura
- Majel Barrett as M'Ress
Guest Stars
References
ant; Ariel, USS; bacteria; Canopus III; Canopus III dinosaur; class M; fever; force field; grass; insect; intelligence quotient; Lactra VII; Lactra VII zoo; Lactran city; Lactrans; Maravel; Maravel dragon; material type infection; medikit; Randolph, Nancy; telepathy
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