Line #37 Recap/StarTrekS1E9DaggerOfTheMind


1	[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dagger_of_the_mind_4136.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:320:Spock and Van Gelder share the very first [[MentalFusion Mind Meld]].]]
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4	'''Original air date:''' November 3, 1966
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6	The ''Enterprise'' is delivering some huge ass bottles of drugs to the Tantalus PenalColony. (Wonder where they got big enough cotton balls?) They also pick up a box marked "Do Not Open" and addressed to "Bureau of Penology, Stockholm, Eurasia-NE". Not sure what it was supposed to be holding, but it is soon revealed to be holding a crazy old man who knows karate!
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8	Said crazy old man is at first believed to be an escaped inmate from Tantalus, but it's discovered that he's actually Simon Van Gelder, one of the doctors. Dr. Adams tells Kirk that Dr. Van Gelder pulled a ProfessorGuineaPig while working on a device called the Neural Neutralizer, losing his mind in the process. And would he kindly return him? Bones tells Kirk he smells a rat. Kirk gives Adams some B.S. about how they can't due to some red tape. Adams good naturedly accepts this and cordially invites Kirk down for a visit. Kirk takes him up on this. Bones suggests Kirk take a psychological expert with him. He recommends Dr. Noel. It seems Kirk and Dr. ''Helen'' Noel have met before. Apparently, even in the future office Christmas parties can get out of hand...
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10	This episode is also known as "The One That Got [[Recap/SouthParkS2E11RogerEbertShouldLayOffTheFattyFoods Parodied Off]] By ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark''".
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12	!!Tropes of the Mind:
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14	* AboveTheInfluence: Zigzagged; when Kirk tells Helen to give him a fake memory, she chooses one where [[BridalCarry he sweeps Helen off her feet]] after the Christmas party regardless of what the crew might think. However even in this fantasy she accepts that Kirk [[TheCasanova doesn't genuinely love her]], and is horrified when Dr Adams implants the suggestion in Kirk's mind.
15	* ActionSurvivor: Dr Helen Noel doesn't have the skills to fight security mooks and sabotage power circuits, but she saves the day anyway. In fact, she's the first (and possibly only) Starfleet woman in TOS to straight-up kill someone.
16	* AgonyBeam: There's a MindRape machine that looks like a [[NoBudget sun lamp shining on a hair-salon chair]]. The subject isn't even strapped in, implying that the beam is so intense that no such restraint is typically necessary. Kirk however is so strong-willed (a trait established in several other episodes) that twice he is able to get out of the chair.
17	* AirVentPassageway: Helen is sent down the air shaft because she'll fit more easily. [[InformedAttribute It appears big enough for Kirk too]], but he's hauled off by the guards for further experimentation [[ItsUpToYou so it's up to her anyway.]]
18	* ArcSymbol: The logo on Dr. Adams' boiler suit and that of his "helpers" is a hand freeing (or crushing?) a dove under a stylized sun. (We'll see it again in "Whom Gods Destroy.") Or is that "sun" actually the round, flashy light of the Neural Neutralizer?
19	* ArtisticLicenceGeography: Stockholm's position in Eurasia is clearly to the north-''west'' (NW), not the north-east. (Northeastern Eurasia is basically Siberia.) It ''is'' in Northeastern ''Europe'', however.
20	* BigDamnKiss: Kirk plants a SmoochOfVictory on Noel. She reluctantly tells him that he was only hypnotized to think he was in love with her.
21	* BigElectricSwitch: A [[BigRedButton red double-handed]] switch is used to shut off the power to the facility, including the security force field. Good thing too, as Helen might not otherwise have known how to CutTheJuice. After he arrives, Spock disables the forcefield by breaking into a circuit box and [[BoringButPractical flicks off a row of switches]], then flips the Big Red Switch back on to restore power elsewhere.
22	* BigNo: When Dr. Van Gelder tries to warn Kirk against staying on Tantalus.
23	* BotheringByTheBook: Bones does this to force Kirk to investigate what's going on at the Tantalus colony, as Kirk feels it's SomeoneElsesProblem. Fortunately Kirk is more amused than upset.
24	* BridalCarry: Noel induces an ImagineSpot for Kirk suggesting that he carried her into his quarters this way.
25	* BrokenAce: Van Gelder. Perhaps Adams to a degree.
26	* CantArgueWithElves: Spock finds it interesting that "Your Earth people glorify organized violence for forty centuries, but you imprison those who employ it privately." Even Bones has no come back for that.
27	* CatScare: Aware there's an escaped prisoner on the loose, Kirk and Bones flinch when the turbolift opens behind them only to admit a RedShirt who takes up position by the door. [[TheGuardsMustBeCrazy Which leaves him in an excellent position to be knocked unconscious]] when a phaser-wielding maniac charges through the turbolift door later on.
28	* ChekhovsGun: The forcefield that prevents beaming in the opening scene becomes a plot point when Kirk and Helen's lives are in danger.
29	* CreepyMonotone: Lethe. "I love my work."
30	* CriticalPsychoanalysisFailure: Dr. Adams turns the tables on the institution's supervisor, turning him into a neurotic wreck who hands the keys over to the patient. And that's just the start...
31	* CutPhoneLines: When Dr Adams forces Kirk to hand over his communicator, Kirk tries to call for help instead, but the forcefield prevents his signal going through.
32	* DescriptionCut:
33	** "This is a potentially violent case." Cut to crewman MuggedForDisguise.
34	** Van Gelder is raving about the neural neutralizer -- cut to Adams explaining the device, which he dismisses as a harmless failure.
35	* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: For some reason, Kirk tells ''Spock,'' who appears to be at the science station, to "take us out of here, warp factor one."
36	* EmotionsVsStoicism: Spock says "Where there is no emotion, there is no motive for violence."
37	* EmptyShell: Adams uses the Neural Neutralizer to render people into mindless servants.
38	-->'''Van Gelder:''' He can reshape any mind he chooses. He used it to erase our memories, put his own thoughts there. He was surprised it took so much power. We fought him, remember? But we grew so tired, our minds so blank, so open, that any thought he placed there became our thoughts. Our minds so empty like a sponge, needing thoughts, begging. Empty. Loneliness. So lonely to be sitting there empty, wanting any word from him.
39	* ExpositoryPronoun: Van Gelder and Spock both refer to themselves as "we" during the mind meld.
40	* {{Expy}}: The Neural Neutralizer works a lot like TheLudovicoTechnique from ''Literature/AClockworkOrange''.
41	* FakeMemories: Adams can empty a person's mind and implant new memories or attitudes there. Needless to say such a technique can be used not only to [[BrainwashingForTheGreaterGood remove traumatic memories that lead to crime or mental illness]], but also to [[MadScience adjust a prisoners' personality or memory according to Adams' whim]].
42	* FamedInStory: Kirk is an admirer of Dr Adams who has revolutionised the penal system, though he's never met the man. To his credit when investigating Bones suspicions, Kirk maintains a proper level of skepticism even though Helen shares this admiration.
43	* FauxAffablyEvil: Adams seems so charming and polite at first. [[WineIsClassy He makes a toast]] [[ThePowerOfLove to "love and warmth"]], but it's only a MaskOfSanity.
44	* FreakOut: Dr. Van Gelder has the [[ChewingTheScenery mother of them all]]. Screaming, raving, crazy eyes, violent outbursts. He shouts "I am not a criminal!" Incidentally, the actor needed a four-day reprieve after this emotionally-taxing role.
45	* GildedCage: Kirk points out to Bones that modern mental institutions may as well be vacation resorts. Bones replies "A cage is a cage, Jim."
46	* GirlOfTheWeek: Dr. Helen Noel. She was one InUniverse too, as the captain had an after-party fling with her that he hasn't followed up on.
47	* GoMadFromTheIsolation: The fate of Dr. Adams, who is alone in the brainwashing room when the power is suddenly turned on again. The lack of any mental stimulation at all--because there's no-one manning the console--makes his brain shut down completely.
48	* HeroicWillpower: Kirk apparently has this or something similar, judging by Adams' comment about the strength used on him without effect having broken down Van Gelder.
49	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Adams has his mind emptied by his Neural Neutralizer when it comes back on at full intensity without anyone at the controls to give him instructions.
50	* HumanMail: Van Gelder, though he's wearing a breathing mask while in the crate.
51	* ImADoctorNotAPlaceholder: Dr Noel knows nothing about hyper-voltage power circuits as she's not an engineer. Though the line is not delivered straight as the TropeNamer is not present.
52	* ItsTheOnlyWay
53	** Van Gelder urges Spock to proceed with the mind meld, despite being warned that it could be dangerous for a human. He knows it's the only way to reveal the truth, since every time he tries to just say what happened, he experiences terrible pain.
54	** Realising that Dr Adams is hardly going to tell him the truth if there is something wrong with the neutralizer, Kirk decides to try it out on himself.
55	** Kirk sends Helen down the air shaft to CutTheJuice even though she knows nothing about megavoltage power systems and could get killed short-circuiting the wrong wire. She decides that [[FateWorseThanDeath anything is better than waiting to be treated by Dr Adams]].
56	* KarmicDeath: Adams dies by having his mind completely wiped [[HoistByHisOwnPetard by the same machine that he used on Van Gelder and Kirk.]]
57	* KissingUnderTheInfluence: While something happened in the past with Dr. Noel, Kirk only kisses her now because the suggestion was planted within his mind by the device.
58	* LiteraryAllusionTitle: From ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'': "Or art thou but a dagger of the mind, a false creation proceeding from the heat-oppressed brain?"
59	* TheLudovicoTechnique: The moment Kirk leaves the room after discussing the neural neutralizer, the operator cranks up the intensity and tells the inmate inside that he must forget everything that he's heard, or he will experience intense pain the more he tries to remember it. This technique was used on Van Gelder, as we see him cringing in agony every time he tries to remember his name or what was done to him.
60	* MadDoctor: Dr. Tristan Adams went a little too [[BrainwashedAndCrazy happy]] with his machine for rehabilitating mental patients.
61	** Van Gelder at first, who is trying to battle his own psychological damage to warn Kirk and the crew of what's going on down on the planet below.
62	* TheMainCharactersDoEverything: Dr. Helen Noel is one of the Enterprise's psychiatrists. So, [[PlotHole why isn't Bones assisted by any of them]] for the puzzling case of Van Gelder?
63	* MaleGaze: The audience gets a nice look at Helen's cleavage as she's crawling down the air vent.
64	* TheMcCoy: Helen takes on this role while down on the colony, while Kirk takes on [[TheSpock a more detached, questioning persona]] in response.
65	* MeaningfulName: Lethe is the name of the river of forgetfulness in Greek myth. Tantalus was sent to Tartarus for murdering his son and punished by being never allowed to eat or drink. And isn't it funny that the girl Kirk met at a Christmas party was named "Noel"?
66	* MentalFusion: Spock mind-melds with Van Gelder to pick information from his troubled mind.
67	* MindControlDevice: A "hospital" basically zombifies people with a hypno-spinny-thingy. Trying to remember what happened to you, let alone tell others, causes increasing pain and eventually death.
68	* MindMeld: Bones insists that Spock use "an ancient Vulcan technique" to look into Van Gelder's mind and get to the truth. Spock is reluctant to try a meld because it's a very private matter to the Vulcan race. Furthermore he has never used it on a human before and [[DangerousForbiddenTechnique it could be dangerous]] -- ironic when considering its casual use in later years.
69	* MoreHypnotizableThanHeThinks:
70	** When Kirk tries out the Neural Neutralizer, he has no idea he blanked out for a second when it was turned on until Noel tells him.
71	** When Spock is about to start the mind meld, he assures Bones that it's not hypnotism and he won't be affected just by observing.
72	* MuggedForDisguise: Dr. Van Gelder knocks out a RedShirt and steals his jumpsuit in an attempt to fit in. [[ImposterForgotOneDetail It doesn't work for long]] because he's wearing an Engineering uniform in the wrong area of the ship, and so is spotted during the security alert when everyone else has gone to their stations.
73	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Kirk decides to secretly try out the neutraliser himself. This turns out to be a mistake as Dr Adams catches him there and [[YouKnowTooMuch decides to use it for real]].
74	* NotWhatItLooksLike: Spock rushes to Kirk's rescue [[TrueCompanions without even waiting for a security team]], and is not impressed to find him smooching one of his own officers.
75	* PenName: Writer S. Bar-David is a pen name for Shimon Wincelberg. He incorporated several references to Jewish parables into the screenplay.
76	* PressurePoint:
77	** Dr. Van Gelder is felled by Spock applying the Vulcan neck pinch. Averted earlier when Gelder karate-chops the transporter crewman, and Kirk later chops a mook.
78	** Rather than a purely-telepathic act as portrayed in later years, the Vulcan mind-meld seems a lot more complex. It initially involves Spock manipulating pressure points on Gelder's face to affect his nerves and blood vessels, to induce a relaxed state susceptible to a MentalFusion. He tells Van Gelder he should feel a strange euphoria and a floating sensation.
79	* ProfessorGuineaPig: Invoked to explain Van Gelder's condition; however Bones refuses to believe this explanation and demands that Kirk investigates the matter.
80	* PsychoPsychologist: Dr. Tristan Adams
81	* RedShirts: They get off easy in this ep. Two get karate chopped, one gets put in a chokehold until he passes out. It's possible that Dr. Van Gelder wasn't far gone enough to murder and just knocked them out for a while.
82	* ShmuckBait: Dr Adams adopts a concerned, friendly persona to allay Kirk's suspicions, even letting him keep his phaser when Kirk was about to hand it over as per regulations.
83	* ShoutOutToShakespeare: The title comes from the soliloquy of ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'' ("A dagger of the mind, a false creation").
84	* SilentSnarker: The [[http://tos.trekcore.com/hd/albums/1x09hd/daggerofthemindhd229.jpg face Spock makes]] when Noel and Kirk say hello and he realizes he's meeting yet another of his Captain's exes. Which is nothing to his reaction when he bursts into the asylum, phaser at the ready, only to find Kirk planting a kiss on her ([[{{Brainwashed}} although that last wasn't exactly Kirk's fault]]).
85	* StabTheScorpion: Helen backs off in alarm as a BrainwashedAndCrazy Kirk advances towards her. Turns out he's actually spotted the [[AirVentEscape air vent]] she's standing in front of.
86	* SuggestiveCollision: When the elevator drops faster than expected, Kirk and Helen SecurityCling.
87	* TeleportInterdiction: The Tantalus penal colony has a security force field which must be deactivated to allow beaming up or down. The RedShirt gets teased for forgetting that.
88	* TestedOnHumans: Dr Adams is delighted at having had two 'normal' subjects (Kirk and Van Gelder) to test his machine on.
89	* ThatWomanIsDead: Lethe's response when asked WhatAreYouInFor The real reason would be she could not recall her original life thanks to being brainwashed.
90	* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Spock gets a rare heroic example when he turns on the power, with no way of knowing that it would also turn on the mind control machine with the villain of the week still inside.
91	* WhatDidYouExpectWhenYouNamedIt: Tantalus Penal Colony, because why wouldn't you name your mental hospital after a Myth/ClassicalMythology figure who's most famous for being subjected to everlasting torment. To be fair, it's the name of the planet, but why did they call the planet that in the first place?
92	* WhatTheHellHero: With Van Gelder safely StrappedToAnOperatingTable, Kirk just wants to [[SomeoneElsesProblem dump him back on the penal colony]] while Bones wants to [[ForScience study his medical condition]]. Van Gelder tells them both off for their attitude.
93	* WoundedGazelleGambit: After being pulled away from the high-voltage power control, Noel mimes the classic "swooning damsel" pose. When the orderly moves to apprehend her, she kicks him into the live wires with both feet.
94	* TheXOfY: The "Dagger of the Mind".

Context Recap / StarTrekS1E9DaggerOfTheMind