History Recap / StarTrekS2E24TheUltimateComputer

* SanitySlippage: As M-5's murderous misdeeds become more and more impossible to downplay, Dr. Daystrom attempts to rationalize them drive him over the edge until he is raving hysterically and has to be neckpinched into submission.

* CatchPhrase: Bones warns Spock against his usual "Fascinating" CatchPhrase. Spock uses "Interesting" instead.

* ReligiousRobot: Daystrom apparently taught M-5 that murder violated the laws of both Man and God.

* CutTheJuice: How the ''Enterprise'' crew tries to take out M5. Scratch one RedShirt.

* MildlyMilitary: Kirk is in command of the ''Enterprise'' at the end of the episode as it flies back from the war game location to the starbase where the rest of the crew was left. If a current naval vessel so much as ''dented'' another during an exercise (let alone effectively destroyed it, like ''Enterprise'' did to ''Excalibur''), the captain would be relieved even if it wasn't directly their fault.
** To be fair, this really wasn't Kirk's fault in any way. If anything, his presence prevented more deaths that would be caused by M-5.

** To be fair, this really wasn't Kirk's fault in any way.

* FriendshipMoment: The other two members of the PowerTrio each [[Heartwarming/StarTrek try to support their captain and friend]] as he faces the possibility of losing his ship.

* FamousFamousFictional: Daystrom is a recipient of "the Nobel and Zee-Magnees prizes", and Kirk compares him to "Einstein, Kazanga, or Sitar of Vulcan". In each case, the first is real and the rest of the list is fictional.

* FormerChildStar: Richard Daystrom, of the scientific variety. He was a BoyGenius of the first order, having invented a revolutionary new computing system at a young age, and promptly spent the rest of his life trying to top himself. The FreudianExcuse behind his ultimate breakdown is trying prove to the universe that he didn't peak at 25.

-->'''Spock''': Computers are useful servants, but I do not wish to serve under one. Captain, a starship also runs on loyalty to one man, and nothing can replace it, or him.

**

* FamousFamousFictional: Daystrom is a recipient of the Nobel Prize (famous) and the Zee-Magnees Prize (fictional), and Kirk compares him to Einstein (famous), Kazanga (fictional), and Sitar of Vulcan (fictional).

* MamaDidntRaiseNoCriminal: Daystrom stubbornly refuses to admit his computer was at fault - he created it, and he's a pacificst, so his machine should not be able to engage in unprovoked aggression.
* MildlyMilitary: If a current naval vessel so much as ''dented'' another during an exercise (let alone effectively destroyed it, like ''Enterprise'' did to ''Excalibur''), the captain would be relieved even if it wasn't directly their fault.
** Commadore Wesley is next seen out of Starfleet and governing a distant colony so there was some punishment.

* HeyItsThatVoice: It's hard to notice at first, since he doesn't use a brogue and speaks very flatly, but that's Scotty as the voice of M5.

* NoConservationOfEnergy: this episode correctly predicts that future computers would draw more power for complex tasks than for simple ones, although tapping into the wrap engines seems excessive! What's overlooked, however, is that all that energy ends up as heat. M5 is drawing vast amounts of power, yet somehow avoids melting into slag.

* HeyItsThatGuy: Daystrom (William Marshall) looks a lot like {{Blacula}} and [[Series/PeeWeesPlayhouse The King Of Cartoons]]. Oh, and he once played some guy called Theatre/{{Othello}} too.
** The casting of Marshall as Daystrom may be the best example of how forward-thinking TOS was for its day (the original script - as evidenced by the James Blish novelization of this episode - describes Daystrom as a mousy little man with a pipe). Marshall has stated in interviews how significant it was when Captain Kirk addressed a Black man in this episode as "sir."

* JerkassWoobie: Daystrom is being completely unreasonable where his precious computer is concerned. However, it's clear that he feels very guilty about the deaths that resulted from his machine and has to be committed.
** Presumably, he got better and went on to bigger and better things, judging by the existence of the "Daystrom Institute" by the TNG era.

* RealitySubtext: William Marshall stars as Dr. Richard Daystrom, a prideful and ultimately fanatical computer designer. His eventual SanitySlippage carries a haunting subtext: Daystrom delivers a heartbreaking monologue about how he's been mocked and ridiculed and underestimated by people who did not understand him or his genius. In real life, Marshall was a [[ClassicallyTrainedExtra classically trained actor]] and ''opera singer'' who likely suffered similar indignities and a shortage of opportunities because he was African-American.
** At the time of filming, the show was very close to being cancelled, adding quite a bit of pathos to Kirk's worry that he'll be out of a job soon.

The head of the games and Kirk's superior, Commodore Wesley, is unable to contact Kirk because of the radio silence rule of the games, and assumes Kirk is on a rogue bent. He prepares to fire on the ''Enterprise'' even as Daystrom and Kirk are talking to M-5, trying to find out why it did what it did; then [=McCoy=] notices that while Kirk is accusing Daystrom of not being thorough enough in transferring his experiences to the M-5, Daystrom is becoming, first arrogant, then quite insane, that his own creation, powered by his own thoughts, could kill people when he himself was a sworn pacifist.

* CurbStompBattle: The M-5 destroys the ''Excalibur'' and seriously damages the ''Lexington'', ''Hood'' and ''Potemkin'' within the first few minutes of the war game exercise. Justified, as none of the other ships expected M-5 to use full weapons.

* GloryDays: Daystrom's FreudianExcuse for being so obsessed with the success of the M5 is that he doesn't want anyone to think he's a TeenGenius who fizzled out.

* InstantAIJustAddWater: M5 starts draining power from the ''Enterprise'' to be more powerful.

* JobStealingRobot: M5. Kirk and Bones discuss the history of technology making certain jobs obsolete.
* LogicBomb: This should just be called The Kirk Maneuver considering how many times Kirk has used this to take out out-of-control computers.
* LuddWasRight: Kirk does not like the idea of his job being taken over by a computer.
* MamaDidntRaiseNoCriminal: Daystrom stubbornly refuses to admit his computer was at fault.

* {{Redshirt}}: When M5 vaporizes one, Daystrom says "M5 needed more power...the Ensign merely got in the way". At that, Kirk growls "And how long before we ''all'' 'just get in the way'?"

* SanitySlippage: As M5's murderous misdeeds become more and more impossible to downplay, Dr. Daystrom attempts to rationalize them drive him over the edge until he is raving hysterically and has to be neckpinched into submission.
* UnseenPrototype: M1 through M4.

* HeyItsThatGuy: Daystrom looks a lot like {{Blacula}} and [[PeeWeesPlayhouse The King Of Cartoons]]. Oh, and he once played some guy called Theatre/{{Othello}} too.