History YMMV / StarTrekS1E13TheConscienceOfTheKing

** ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' cast member Creator/ReneAuberjonois frequently shared an amusing anecdote about his experiences watching the original ''Star Trek''. During the scene where Riley's drink is secretly poisoned, the unseen assassin is using what we now recognize as a Windex-style spray bottle (which was invented around the time of this episode's airing). He mused about how such bottles are now ubiquitous, yet appeared perfectly futuristic at the time.

* OlderThanTheyThink: Themes: Creator/RonMoore is a fan of this episode, particularly the way Kirk wavers between his ethics and thirst for vengeance ("There's a stain of cruelty on your shining armor, Captain"). "The brooding tone and the morally ambiguous nature of the drama fascinated me and definitely influenced my thinking as to [[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine what Trek could and should be all about.]]" Likewise, in his re-imagined version ''[[Series/BattlestarGalactica2003 Battlestar Galactica]]'', Moore named the prison barge ''Astral Queen'' after the ship commanded in this episode by Cpn. Daily.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "make the villain even more villainous" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* OlderThanTheyThink: Themes: Ron Moore is a fan of this episode, particularly the way Kirk wavers between his ethics and thirst for vengeance ("There's a stain of cruelty on your shining armor, Captain"). "The brooding tone and the morally ambiguous nature of the drama fascinated me and definitely influenced my thinking as to [[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine what Trek could and should be all about.]]" Likewise, in his re-imagined version ''[[Series/BattlestarGalactica2003 Battlestar Galactica]]'', Moore named the prison barge ''Astral Queen'' after the ship commanded in this episode by Cpn. Daily.

** ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' cast member Rene Aubejonois frequently shared an amusing anecdote about his experiences watching the original ''Star Trek''. During the scene where Riley's drink is secretly poisoned, the unseen assassin is using what we now recognize as a Windex-style spray bottle (which was invented around the time of this episode's airing). He mused about how such bottles are now ubiquitous, yet appeared perfectly futuristic at the time.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Kirk dodges behind Karidian as Lenore shoots the phaser. Was it simply out of instinct/reflex with no plan beyond that, [[FridgeHorror did he do it intentionally]] to use Karidian as a HumanShield, or was the shot just a [[SpecialEffectsFailure botched attempt]] to make it look like Karidian performed a HeroicSacrifice?

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain UpToEleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's often depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's often depicted in these works, which often involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.

* RonTheDeathEater: Kodos frequently gets the "take the villain up to eleven" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the [[Film/StarTrek2009 reboot]] universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and [[TheAtoner repentant]]) WellIntentionedExtremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a ManipulativeBastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit[[note]]though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he ''did'' use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's often depicted in these works, which often involve a lot more manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part[[/note]], but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy", was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including [[WouldHurtAChild of children]]) -- all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.