star trek the enemy within

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The Enemy Within

• Episode aired Oct 6, 1966

A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed... Read all A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed up to the ship until a problem is fixed. A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two halves: one meek and indecisive, the other violent and ill tempered. The remaining crew members stranded on the planet cannot be beamed up to the ship until a problem is fixed.

• Richard Matheson
• Gene Roddenberry
• William Shatner
• Leonard Nimoy
• DeForest Kelley
• 44 User reviews
• 14 Critic reviews
• See production info at IMDbPro

• Captain James Tiberius 'Jim' Kirk

• Mister Spock

• Yeoman Rand

• (as Edward Madden)

• Lieutenant Nyota Uhura
• (uncredited)

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia The original script called for Spock to karate chop Kirk to subdue him. Leonard Nimoy felt that this would be an uncharacteristically violent act for a peace-loving species like the Vulcans so he came up with a pincer-like grasp on the neck that has since become known as the Vulcan Nerve Pinch and become one of the character's most famous gimmicks.
• Goofs During the showdown between Good Kirk and Evil Kirk on the bridge, Evil Kirk's scratch marks are suddenly shown on the right cheek instead of the left as they had been throughout the episode.

Lt. Cmdr. Leonard 'Bones' McCoy, M.D. : He's dead, Jim.

• Alternate versions Special Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
• Connections Featured in Star Trek Logs: An MTV Big Picture Special Edition (1991)
• Soundtracks Theme From Star Trek Written by and credited to Alexander Courage

User reviews 44

• Aug 4, 2019
• October 6, 1966 (United States)
• United States
• Official Facebook
• Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA
• Desilu Productions
• Norway Corporation
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 50 minutes

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The Enemy Within (episode)

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A transporter malfunction splits Captain Kirk into two people – one good and the other evil, and neither capable of functioning well separately.

• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Production timeline
• 4.2 Story and production
• 4.3 Props and sets
• 4.4 Special effects
• 4.5 Costumes
• 4.7 Continuity
• 4.8 Apocrypha
• 4.9 Preview
• 4.10 Reception
• 4.11 Syndication cuts
• 4.12 Video and DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Also starring
• 5.3 Featuring
• 5.4 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.5 Stunt double
• 5.6 Stand-ins
• 5.7.1 Unreferenced materials
• 5.8 External links

Summary [ ]

During a survey of Alfa 177 , geological technician Fisher slips down a rock, gashing himself badly and smearing his uniform with a strange magnetic type of yellow ore . He beams up to the USS Enterprise for treatment.

Detecting a curious overload in the transporter circuitry, Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott has Fisher decontaminated before reporting to sickbay , but the problems have already begun; the strange ore has altered the function of the transporter.

Next, Captain Kirk beams up from the planet , before the fault is discovered. He apparently materializes normally and Scott escorts the disoriented captain out of the room. Kirk is, in fact, a shadow of himself. Due to this transporter accident , Kirk has been split into two beings. The first that materialized embodies all of Kirk's positive qualities. Moments later, after Kirk and Scott have left, Kirk's evil twin — Negative Kirk — materializes in the transporter chamber.

Act One [ ]

" Don't fight me, Janice! "

" I said give me the brandy! "

Some time passes before the mishap is discovered. Negative Kirk demands Saurian brandy from McCoy in sickbay and proceeds to roam the ship's corridors drunk. McCoy then informs Commander Spock about this, who then consults good Kirk about McCoy's concerns. Kirk shrugs it off, telling Commander Spock that McCoy was just pulling his leg.

Meanwhile, negative Kirk, who is now instinctively consumed by lust for his beautiful Yeoman – Janice Rand – is alone with Rand in her quarters, drunk and amorous. Negative Kirk mentions to her the feelings they've been hiding, claiming she is " too beautiful to ignore, " and " too much woman, " and that they've both been " pretending too long. " Negative Kirk suddenly grabs Rand and shouts," Let's stop pretending! " He pulls her in close, put his arms around her, and mutters, " …Don't fight me, Janice. " He then starts kissing her very aggressively, and as she is forcefully trying to fight back, Negative Kirk pushes her to the floor and attempts to rape her. But she defends herself and leaves a large scratch on Negative Kirk's face. During the struggle, Negative Kirk attacks Crewman Fisher, who was walking by Rand's quarters and saw the attack.

In sickbay, a crying and flustered Rand tells Kirk, Spock and McCoy, that the Captain tried to assault her, an accusation Fisher corroborates. Kirk firmly denies having done so, whereupon Spock deduces that there must be a Kirk impostor aboard the Enterprise .

Act Two [ ]

Negative Kirk has been scratched by Rand

Scotty finds that the yellow ore Fisher beamed up with somehow caused an overload in the transporter. The transporter does indeed work but they dare not use it for risk of duplicating Sulu and the rest of the landing party. Kirk tells Spock that he must inform the crew of what has happened to him, since they deserve to know. Spock, with all due respect, tells Kirk that as he is the captain, he cannot afford to be anything less than perfect in the eyes of the crew. If he does appear so, the crew will lose faith in him – and in turn, he will lose command of the Enterprise . Kirk knows this and wonders why he just forgot it just now. Later, on the bridge , Kirk makes an announcement to his crew from his chair about the impostor aboard. While making the announcement, Negative Kirk is rummaging through the captain's quarters. Kirk informs the crew that the impostor can be identified by scratches on his face, and warns the crew to set the phasers for stun and must not injure the impostor. Negative Kirk angrily destroys the captain's desktop monitor and rants at the top of his lungs " I'm Captain Kirk… I'M CAPTAIN KIRK!!! "

Negative Kirk goes to Kirk's mirror and finds make-up on the table. He applies some of it to his scratches and they are now barely visible. He opens the door to Kirk's quarters and finds Crewman Wilson walking down the corridor near the room. Negative Kirk asks Wilson for his phaser ; Wilson hands it over and is promptly knocked out. Later, both Kirk and Spock in the briefing room try to figure out where Kirk would go on the Enterprise to elude a mass search. Kirk quickly deduces that Negative Kirk is hiding in the lower levels of the ship – the engineering deck. He and Spock head there. In main engineering, a cat and mouse game ensues between the two Kirks and they confront each other near the warp core . Just as Negative Kirk is about to kill Kirk, Spock knocks him out with the Vulcan nerve pinch , but not before Negative Kirk's phaser accidentally discharges and a shot disables the transporter ionizer, making it harder to rescue Sulu and the landing party who are trapped on the rapidly freezing planet.

Act Three [ ]

Meanwhile, on the planet below, the remaining landing party is suffering through the increasingly bitter cold. Attempts to beam heaters and other support devices produce only non-functional duplicates. Kirk speaks to Sulu in the Enterprise 's briefing room, trying to reassure his helmsman, all the while growing more and more unsure of his command abilities. Spock cuts in and tells Sulu to hold on for just a little while longer.

Negative Kirk is screaming while being restrained on a bio-bed in sickbay, in pain from his body functions having been weakened from the duplication process. Kirk takes Negative Kirk's hand, tells him not to be afraid and to use his mind, rather than his savagery. McCoy takes Kirk aside for a brandy. Kirk realizes through McCoy that he needs his negative side of himself back but does not want it back. McCoy assures his captain that all Humans have a dark side to them and that his strength of command lies in his negative self.

" He's dead, Jim. "

Finally, Scott and Spock believe they have isolated and repaired all the damage. Spock contacts Kirk and asks him to come down to the transporter room. An Alfa 177 canine test animal , previously split, is sent through to see if it will reintegrate. Spock and Scott subdue the fierce canine with a hypospray and place it beside its good self on the transporter pad. Spock and Fisher place the two canines on the transporter pad and Scotty energizes. " If this doesn't work, I don't know what will, " Scotty says. The good and fierce canines become one again, but it rematerializes dead from the shock from having suddenly had its two halves reintegrated forcefully.

Act Four [ ]

Negative Kirk recovers in sickbay while Sulu contacts Kirk from the planet, just before he succumbs to the extreme cold. Kirk decides to release his evil half and have both of them go through the transporter, but Negative Kirk attacks and overpowers Kirk in sickbay and dresses in Kirk's wraparound tunic. Later, heading to the bridge, Negative Kirk, pretending to be the good Kirk, runs into Janice Rand outside a turbolift and explains to her that the transporter malfunctioned, and that the animal part of him was in her cabin with her during the attempted rape. Negative Kirk, again posing the good Kirk, also points out that the evil Kirk scratched his face to make them more alike. Arriving on the bridge, Negative Kirk orders navigator Lieutenant John Farrell to take the ship out of orbit and abandon Sulu along with the landing party, callously asserting that they cannot be saved. At this point, the good Kirk appears on the bridge with McCoy. At first, Farrell and the others are confused as to which one is the good Kirk, but soon Negative Kirk collapses under the strain – screaming and crying " I want to LIVE! " before falling into Kirk's arms.

Later, both Kirks are taken to the transporter room to be reintegrated as one being. Spock handles the transporter console and promises Kirk that he will take command of the Enterprise if the procedure is unsuccessful. Spock energizes the transporter and the two Kirks disappear. After a few tense moments, Spock materializes Kirk back in the transporter chamber as one person. To Spock and McCoy's relief, the much more confident Captain Kirk steps off the pad and orders that the landing party be rescued immediately. Sulu and the others are beamed back aboard, frostbitten but alive.

On the bridge, Rand awkwardly tries to explain to Captain Kirk what his impostor told her about what had happened and when she tries to elaborate further, Kirk simply thanks her and walks away. When Rand hands a PADD to Spock to sign, the first officer says to her, " The, uh, impostor had some interesting qualities, wouldn't you say, yeoman? " She takes the PADD and stylus from him and walks away in a huff as Kirk orders that the Enterprise lift out of Alfa 177's orbit to continue its mission .

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), 2266

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Oh! Captain! You startled me! Is there something that you… can I help you, Captain? " " Jim, will do here, Janice. " " Ooohhh… " " You're too beautiful to ignore… Too much woman. We've both been… pretending too long. "

" You can't afford the luxury of being anything less than perfect. If you do, they lose faith, and you lose command. "

" I'm Captain Kirk. I'M CAPTAIN KIRK!!! "

" And what is it that makes one man an exceptional leader? We see here indications that it's his negative side which makes him strong, that his evil side, if you will, properly controlled and disciplined, is vital to his strength. "

" If I seem insensitive to what you're going through, captain, understand: it's the way I am. "

Sulu on Alfa 177

" Do you think you might be able to find a long rope somewhere and lower us down a pot of hot coffee? " " I'll see what we can do. " " Rice wine will do if you're short on coffee. "

" Any possibility of getting us back aboard before the skiing season opens down here? "

" He's like an animal. A thoughtless, brutal animal. And yet it's me. Me! "

" We all have our darker side. We need it! It's half of what we are. It's not really ugly. It's Human. "

" The intelligence, the logic. It appears your half has most of that. And perhaps that's where man's essential courage comes from. "

" Being split in two halves is no theory with me, doctor. I have a Human half, you see, as well as an alien half, submerged, constantly at war with each other. Personal experience, doctor. I survive it because my intelligence wins over both, makes them live together. "

" Janice! Hello. The animal part of me came to your cabin. He even scratched me to make us look more alike. I'd like a chance to explain it to you. You don't mind if I come to your cabin later? " " No, sir. "

" Can half a man live? "

" I want to live! "

" I've seen a part of myself no man should ever see. "

" The… impostor had some… interesting qualities, wouldn't you say, yeoman? "

Background information [ ]

Production timeline [ ].

• Story outline by Richard Matheson : 4 April 1966
• Revised story outline: 22 April 1966
• First draft teleplay by Matheson: 25 April 1966
• Revised first draft teleplay: 19 May 1966
• Second draft teleplay: 31 May 1966
• Revised teleplay by John D.F. Black : 6 June 1966
• Final draft teleplay by Gene Roddenberry : 8 June 1966
• Additional revisions: 11 June 1966 , 15 June 1966
• Day 1 – 14 June 1966 , Tuesday – Desilu Stage 10 : Ext. Alfa 177 surface ; Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Transporter room
• Day 2 – 15 June 1966 , Wednesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Transporter room
• Day 3 – 16 June 1966 , Thursday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Kirk's quarters , Bridge
• Day 4 – 17 June 1966 , Friday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Sickbay , McCoy's office
• Day 5 – 20 June 1966 , Monday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Sickbay
• Day 6 – 21 June 1966 , Tuesday – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Engineering , Corridors , Janice Rand's quarters
• Day 7 – 22 June 1966 , Wednesday (Half Day) – Desilu Stage 9 : Int. Corridors , Briefing room
• Score recording: 14 September 1966
• Original airdate: 6 October 1966
• First UK airdate 13 April 1970

Story and production [ ]

• Writer Richard Matheson 's main influence on writing this episode was Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde , as he envisioned Robert Louis Stevenson 's classic story put in a science fiction context. He eventually came up with the idea of the transporter causing a man to be split into two halves. [1]
• The subplot of Sulu and three other crewmembers stranded on the planet was not present in Matheson's original script, and was added in staff re-writes. Matheson did not like the idea, as he had an aversion to B-stories in general, believing they slowed stories down. He explained, " My script stayed entirely with Bill [Shatner] having this trouble of his two selves, on the ship […] They added a whole subplot about people down on the planet, ready to freeze to death, because they have [a] transporter functioning problem […] I stuck entirely with Bill." [2]
• The last two scenes of Act One are switched in order from what appears in the script. In the teleplay, Kirk and Spock learn about the assault of Janice in sickbay, then head to the transporter room, where they are faced with the discovery that the transporter is creating duplicates. The act ends with Scotty suggesting, " We don't dare beam up the landing party. If this should happen to a man… " and Kirk exclaiming, " Oh, my God! " In the episode itself, the sickbay scene follows the one in the transporter room, and the act ends with Spock declaring, "There's only one conclusion – we have an impostor aboard. " Director Leo Penn was known to reorganize scenes when he deemed them to be more dramatic in a different order from what was scripted. [3]
• In the final draft and the revised final draft of this episode's script, McCoy mused that part of "the Human condition" was having "an enemy within."
• Grace Lee Whitney once recounted that, while shooting the scene when a distraught, tearful Janice Rand accuses Captain Kirk of trying to rape her, William Shatner slapped her across the face to get her to register the proper emotion. [4] As they shot the rape scene days earlier, Whitney couldn't get into the same emotion successfully, and it was Shatner's "solution" to the problem. ( The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy , p. 94)

Props and sets [ ]

Scott and Fisher with scanner

• The scanning device used by Scott to scan the ore on Fisher's uniform appears to be a modified Nuclear-Chicago Model 2586 "Cutie Pie" radiation detector. [5] This Feinberger reappeared in " The Naked Time ", " The Doomsday Machine ", and " Obsession ".

Spock and Kirk in engineering

• A shot, showing two extras ( Frank da Vinci and Ron Veto ) in red technician jumpsuits (and Veto holding the aforementioned "Cutie Pie" prop) in the engineering set was filmed, but cut from the episode. It was probably filmed as an insert shot for scenes at engineering. [6]
• The gauzy, red-bordered triangular set piece behind which the evil Kirk emerges briefly in engineering during the hunt scene appears to have been left over from the early briefing room as seen in " The Cage " and " Where No Man Has Gone Before ".
• The unit that Negative Kirk accidentally phasers in engineering was recycled as the housing for the main circulating pump for the PXK pergium reactor in " The Devil in the Dark ".

Special effects [ ]

A sketch that Matt Jefferies did for the "Sulu heats rock" sequence

Shatner's photo double Don Eitner on set

• This is the only appearance of the showering phaser effect, used when Sulu heats the rock to provide warmth for himself and the other stranded on Alfa 177.
• There are two split-screen effects used: after Negative Kirk is neck-pinched by Spock; and in sickbay when Kirk takes the hand of his evil counterpart. All other instances of the two Kirks appearing in the same shot were achieved using stand-ins, who kept their faces turned away from camera: Eddie Paskey , who doubled as both Kirk and Negative Kirk; and stunt performer Don Eitner during the scene where Negative Kirk attacks Kirk in sickbay.

Costumes [ ]

• At the start of the episode when Kirk is beamed up from Alfa 177, both he and his evil counterpart are missing the Enterprise insignia on their uniforms. Lieutenant Farrell is also missing his insignia at some points during the episode (and also in a shot recycled from this episode in " Mudd's Women "). The Star Trek Compendium (3rd ed., p. 35) suggests that the insignia were removed every time the uniforms were cleaned (union rules required them to be cleaned daily); and during production of this episode, someone forgot to replace the insignia on Kirk and Farrell's uniforms.
• The first season version of the captain's wraparound tunic was created for this episode, with the original purpose of differentiating Kirk from Negative Kirk. It reappears in " Charlie X " and " Court Martial ", and in Kirk's briefcase in " This Side of Paradise ". The tunic was constructed of wool crêpe fabric, in contrast to the velour of the standard duty tunics.
• Although Nichelle Nichols does not appear in this episode, her voice is heard on the intercom in several scenes.
• Frank da Vinci and Ron Veto together had a deleted scene in this episode.
• Edward Madden previously played an Enterprise geologist in " The Cage ".

Continuity [ ]

• This episode marks the first time on screen that Kirk is duplicated in some form or fashion. This repeats again through " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ", " Whom Gods Destroy ", " The Survivor " and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
• Spock's log entry in this episode calls himself "Second Officer Spock", however, in "Court Martial" the computer lists him as "First Officer Spock" and from then on is referred to as a "first officer" until his return in Star Trek: The Motion Picture as simply science officer .
• This was the first episode to be produced to show the Vulcan nerve pinch , as well as the first time McCoy says " He's dead, Jim ." Leonard Nimoy objected to the script's directive that Spock "kayoes" Negative Kirk on the head, so he improvised the neck pinch on the spot and demonstrated it on William Shatner for director Leo Penn. ( Star Trek Encyclopedia  (3rd ed., p. 550)) The script's original directive survives to this day in the James Blish adaptation of this episode (in the book Star Trek 8 ) as Blish only had access to the scripts and not to the finished episodes.
• The transporter was depicted as the only mode of transport between a planet and the ship because this episode was written and filmed before the existence of the hangar deck and shuttlecraft were established, even though both of these locations are clearly built into the studio model of the Enterprise as seen in the episode. As the lack of a shuttlecraft was almost immediately pointed out as a plot error, production and writing staff later stated that perhaps the shuttlebay was simply out of service for repairs during this episode, which would explain why the crew did not use shuttles to rescue their comrades ( Star Trek Compendium [ page number? • edit ] )
• This episode establishes that the phaser two unit consists of a phaser one unit fitted into a pistol mount. Sulu can be seen doing this just before he phasers the rocks for warmth. This procedure is not seen in any other episode.
• In the sequence of aired episodes, this is the first episode where we see or hear the new middle initial for James Kirk. "Captain James T. Kirk" is briefly visible as Negative Kirk enters Kirk's quarters. The initial was first spoken in " Mudd's Women ", but that episode aired after "The Enemy Within".
• In the latter part of the scene where the two Kirks appear together on the bridge, a close-up shot of the Negative Kirk shows the scratches on the right side of his face, although wider shots (and all earlier scenes) showed they were on the left side. This was due to the shot being reversed during editing. Director Leo Penn and cameraman Jerry Finnerman mistakenly filmed the close-up out of axis, breaking the 180-degree rule, and editor Fabien Tordjmann could only help by reversing it, hoping the audience wouldn't notice the resulting continuity error. ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One , 1st ed. p. 157)
• A reaction close-up shot of Spock on the bridge is recycled from " The Naked Time ". The same shot was used again in " The City on the Edge of Forever ".

Apocrypha [ ]

• In the novel Foul Deeds Will Rise , the duplication witnessed here is documented as 'the Alfa Effect', with another character duplicating the effect to give herself an alibi for various murders (One of her appears in public while the other commits the crimes), claiming to have adjusted the balance so that both duplicates share the same personality traits as opposed to the imbalance witnessed here (although the duplicates do demonstrate a divergence later, with one being more violent while the other accepts their failure).
• A cat version of "The Enemy Within" was featured in Jenny Parks ' 2017 book Star Trek Cats .

Preview [ ]

• The preview contains a Captain's Log recorded solely for the preview, but based on one from the finished episode: " Captain's log, stardate 1672.9. Due to the malfunction of the ship's transporter, an unexplained duplicate of myself exists. "

Reception [ ]

• Actress Grace Lee Whitney was very unhappy about the last scene of this episode, in which Spock asks Yeoman Rand , " The impostor had some very interesting qualities, wouldn't you say, yeoman? " In her autobiography, she wrote: " I can't imagine any more cruel and insensitive comment a man (or Vulcan) could make to a woman who has just been through a sexual assault! But then, some men really do think that women want to be raped. So the writer of the script (ostensibly Richard Matheson – although the line could have been added by Gene Roddenberry or an assistant scribe) gives us a leering Mr. Spock who suggests that Yeoman Rand enjoyed being raped and found the evil Kirk attractive! " ( The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy , p. 95)
• Despite this, Whitney enjoyed this episode. " I liked 'The Enemy Within' because seeing Captain Kirk act in that fashion challenged me as an actress. " ( Starlog #105, April 1986 , p. 49) Several years later she echoed those sentiments, stating " I love "The Enemy Within" because it gave me a chance to really react and act with Bill Shatner. I love it! I loved the whole concept of him breaking into two characters because that really was what Kirk and Rand were about. There were two sides of Kirk and two sides of Rand. Rand was there to be of service to him but she was also in love with him. But she knew she mustn't go over-go the boundaries. " ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One , p. 159)
• James Doohan stated that he thought William Shatner 's performance in this episode was " pretty okay. " ( Beam Me Up, Scotty , p. 132)
• Director Leo Penn also praised Shatner's performance. " William Shatner's a very good actor and gave a very good performance… I had a good time on that show. " ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One , 1st ed. p. 159)
• Richard Matheson elaborated, " I thought Bill Shatner was brilliant. I loved what he did. He carried the whole thing. I was a little sorry that Roddenberry put so much emphasis on the crew being stuck on the planet […] But I liked it and I was very satisfied with the production value. " ( These Are the Voyages: TOS Season One , 1st ed. p. 159)
• Roddenberry picked this as one of his ten favorite episodes for the franchise's 25th anniversary. ( TV Guide , August 31, 1991 [ page number? • edit ] )
• When first screened in the United Kingdom in 1970, the BBC partially edited the episode, specifically the scene where the evil kirk attacks Janice. The cuts remained until the 1992-94 repeat run. [1]

Syndication cuts [ ]

During the syndication run of Star Trek , the following scenes were typically cut from broadcast:

• Extended scene of Scott preparing to beam Kirk up to the ship.
• A longer conversation between Spock and Kirk about Negative Kirk demanding brandy from McCoy.
• Extended scene of Negative Kirk in Rand's quarters.
• Additional segments of discussion with Rand and Fisher in sickbay.
• Extra dialogue between Kirk and Spock, followed by another scene showing the two entering engineering to look for Negative Kirk.
• Longer reports from Sulu on the surface of the planet, including a split scene of Sulu speaking to Kirk, then a shot of the Enterprise in orbit, followed by Kirk's reply.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original US Betamax/VHS release: 28 February 1985
• Original UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 3 , catalog number VHR 2244, release date unknown
• US VHS release: 15 April 1994
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 1.2, 8 July 1996
• Original US DVD release (single-disc): Volume 2, 17 August 1999
• As part of the TOS Season 1 DVD collection
• As part of the TOS Season 1 HD DVD collection
• As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Alternate Realities collection
• As part of the TOS Season 1 Blu-ray collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• William Shatner as James T. Kirk

Also starring [ ]

• Leonard Nimoy as "Mr. Spock "

Featuring [ ]

• DeForest Kelley as "Dr. McCoy "
• Grace Lee Whitney as "Yeoman Rand "
• George Takei as " Sulu "
• James Doohan as " Scott "
• Edward Madden as " Fisher "
• Garland Thompson as " Wilson "
• Jim Goodwin as " Farrell "

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Nichelle Nichols as Uhura (voice only)
• Eddie Paskey as Leslie
• Communications officer
• Sciences technician 1
• Sciences technician 2
• Section chief (voice only)

Stunt double [ ]

• Don Eitner as the body double for William Shatner

Stand-ins [ ]

• William Blackburn as the stand-in for DeForest Kelley
• Frank da Vinci as the stand-in for Leonard Nimoy
• Jeannie Malone as the stand-in for Grace Lee Whitney
• Eddie Paskey as the stand-in for William Shatner

References [ ]

abort control circuit ; Alfa 177 ; Alfa 177 canine ; alter ego ; animal ; announcement ; annoyance ; answer ; assignment ; autopsy ; bank ; base cycle ; bed ; body ; body function panel ; " Bones "; burnout ; bypass circuit ; cabin ; casing ; circuits ; coadjutor engagement ; coffee ; communication line ; compassion ; confusion ; consciousness ; Constitution -class decks ; courage ; decontamination ; degree ; dizziness ; duty officer ; Earth ; easel ; engineering ; engineering deck ; evil ; exposure ; eye ; face ; fear ; feeling ; force of will (aka strength of will ); frost ; frostbite ; full postmortem ; geological technician ; good ; hand ; hand phaser ; hostility ; hotline ; Human ; impostor ; impulse engine ; intellect ; intelligence ; kiss ; landing party ; leader ; leader circuit ; logic ; love ; lust ; magnetism ; main circuit ; make-up ; microtapes ; mind ; mirror ; name ; neck ; opportunity ; ore ; overload ; painting ; phaser weapon ; plan ; pot ; protoplaser ; power generator ; quality ; quarters (cabin); rape ; rice wine ; risk ; rock ; room ; room service ; rope ; Saurian brandy ; savage ; search ; search party ; second officer ; section ; section chief ; ship's manifest ; shock ; skiing season ; specimen ; specimen case ; specimen gathering mission ; status report ; store ; temperament ; surface temperature ; survival procedure ; sympathy ; synchronic meter ; temperature ; terror ; theory ; thermal heater ; time sheet ; training program ; tranquilizer ; transporter ; transporter circuit ; transporter malfunction ; transporter technician ; transporter room ; transporter unit ; transporter unit ionizer ; truth ; unconsciousness ; vacation ; velocity balance ; violence ; Vulcan nerve pinch ; " watching the store "; week ; wild man ; will ; yellow

Unreferenced materials [ ]

Churchill, Winston ; Heaven ; Hell ; malingerer ; nuclear energy ; nurse maid ; power plant ; rattle ; traffic signal ; Truman, Harry S.

External links [ ]

• "The Enemy Within" at StarTrek.com
• " The Enemy Within " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " The Enemy Within " at Wikipedia
• " "The Enemy Within" " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• ↑ https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/star-trek-looking-back-at-the-bbcs-ban-and-censorship/
• 1 Nick Locarno
• 2 Sito Jaxa
• 3 Old Friends, New Planets (episode)

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Spock's comment at the end of 'The Enemy Within'

Discussion in ' Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series ' started by Destructor , Jan 21, 2010 .

Destructor Commodore Commodore

Watched 'The Enemy Within' last night (am loving TOS on Blu-ray, am discovering the show all over again) and while it was absolutely ridiculously great (Shatner's acting! The cute dog-alien! Wimpy Kirk! Rapey Kirk!), I must say that Spock's final line kinda creeped me out. So basically, Rand was nearly raped by evil Kirk, and Spock goes to her: "So hey, that evil Kirk had some pretty interesting qualities, am I right Yeoman?" What did he mean by that? To be charitable, in his Vulcan way he was saying that isn't it interesting that such evil lies in our normally lovely Captain. But to be less charitable, it sounded more like he was saying: "You kinda liked being attacked like that, didn't you?" Would be interested in hearing alternate opinions on this.  

cwnorma Lieutenant Red Shirt

Why be charitable, Spock's contempt for what he considered to be the worst attributes of humanity were often on display. If not with a remark then a raised brow... I think that given a 1960s sensibility you have nailed the implications.  

Admiral Buzzkill Fleet Admiral Admiral

Yeah, it was a ham-handed and confused attempt by the writer to tease the character with "now you know that the Captain secretly lusts after you just like you do him." Fail.  

Kegg Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

Dennis said: ↑ Yeah, it was a ham-handed and confused attempt by the writer to tease the character with "now you know that the Captain secretly lusts after you just like you do him." Click to expand...

T'Bonz Romulan Curmudgeon Administrator

Dennis said: ↑ Yeah, it was a ham-handed and confused attempt by the writer to tease the character with "now you know that the Captain secretly lusts after you just like you do him." Fail. Click to expand...

UncleRogi Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

I must agree that this is a relic of the time the show was produced; a woman leaving the kitchen was begging for attention, so let's leer and make crude jokes. Don't get me wrong, I'm red blooded American Male, but I never saw the functionability of tiny skirts on a starship. Is this a place one really wants all the males distracted?  

Hambone Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

Knowing Nimoy's integrity as an actor and his careful "guarding" of his Spock character, I'm surprised he agreed to deliver this line. I suppose at this relatively early period in the life of the series, the character wasn't fully developed yet, and actors are actors, after all...he got to deliver the episode's punch line.  

He may not have taken it very seriously - you'd be surprised by how much "conscious-raising" has gone on about rape and sexual assault in America over the last five decades. Thoughtful people may always have recognized what the issue here was, but for all of the bleating about "political correctness" these days folks sometimes don't realize how careless individuals can be in their attention without sustained periods of social focus on such things. Rape victims were routinely treated badly and with suspicion during police investigations and at trial in just these respects (and often still are).  

Timo Fleet Admiral Admiral

To be sure, later writing is in synch with the idea that Vulcans would be male chauvinists all. Naturally Spock, trying to out-Vulcan all Vulcans, would take that art to ultimate heights. Timo Saloniemi  

scotpens Professional Geek Premium Member

UncleRogi said: ↑ . . . Don't get me wrong, I'm red blooded American Male, but I never saw the functionability of tiny skirts on a starship. Is this a place one really wants all the males distracted? Click to expand...

A beaker full of death Vice Admiral Admiral

Destructor said: ↑ it sounded more like he was saying: "You kinda liked being attacked like that, didn't you?" Click to expand...

A beaker full of death said: ↑ How many times in older movies do you see a woman literally fighting off a man only to give in lustfully as he kisses her? Click to expand...

A beaker full of death said: ↑ That's exactly what he was saying. There are many women like that -- especially in Roddenberry's mind, but also in reality. And certainly in movies of the day. How many times in older movies do you see a woman literally fighting off a man only to give in lustfully as he kisses her? Click to expand...

Tralah Wasting Time Until May 2009 Fleet Captain

Some women do have those types of fantasies, but there's a very fine line between fantasy roleplay between consenting partners agreed upon and discussed ahead of time and actually being attacked for real. Spock's line is an unfortunate relic from that time period.  

Tralah said: ↑ Some women do have those types of fantasies, but there's a very fine line between fantasy roleplay between consenting partners agreed upon and discussed ahead of time and actually being attacked for real. Click to expand...

plynch Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

A beaker full of death said: ↑ Disagree. Rand wanted to be taken hard. Art imitating life for Whitney. Click to expand...

There've always been a couple of people around this forum who think it's funny to joke about what happened to Whitney. Maybe it's based in some anxiety about the fact that the assailant, connected with the studio and/or the show, has remained unnamed.  

Brutal Strudel Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

Kegg said: ↑ Dennis said: ↑ Yeah, it was a ham-handed and confused attempt by the writer to tease the character with "now you know that the Captain secretly lusts after you just like you do him." Click to expand...

plynch said: ↑ A beaker full of death said: ↑ Disagree. Rand wanted to be taken hard. Art imitating life for Whitney. Click to expand...

scotpens said: ↑ plynch said: ↑ A beaker full of death said: ↑ Disagree. Rand wanted to be taken hard. Art imitating life for Whitney. Click to expand...

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Star Trek: The Enemy Within

7 comments:

‘The Enemy Within’ has always been one of my absolute favorite episodes. Richard Matheson’s script pretty much established the evil double staple as we know it, which is a given since a lot of today’s TV writers all likely grew up watching Star Trek and were influenced by it. There’s certainly something kinda wonderful about William Shatner’s entire performance throughout. As Nasty-Kirk he takes it all the way up to 11 and beyond into realms few actors have ever gone before, while as Nice-Kirk he’s so perfectly understated to be almost comatose. The only sour spot was everyone’s rather insensitive reactions to the attempted rape of Rand. As progressive as Star Trek was in some areas it was also uncomfortably typically of it’s time in others.

OMG Billie -- you remember the Mad parody as well!?! I love that you referenced that scene! It sticks in my mind so clearly -- with Kirk's head at his waist, and nooooo torso in-between. Yarrrgh, simultaneously disturbing and hilarious, the perfect admixture of Trek and those guys from MADison Avenue. (It also came to mind when I saw Trek Movie #1, with the transporter accident at the beginning... Mad Magazine did it first!) You're right on the money I think about this episode's powerful influence. The concept of duality is so key; their leveraging of it here, especially using a HERO (and in the 1960's, that was a pretty darn clear archetype you didn't mess with, at least on tv), made it resonate with real intensity. One of the things that hit my young mind at the time, was that Kirk wasn't good then bad then good, nor was he possessed by bad and then overcame it-- he was BOTH good and bad, and both sides were really him. And, once recombined, he would be good and bad at the same time, together, always. And knew it. Kinda that whole taoism versus aristotelianism (istic-atic-expi-ali-dosis) thing, isn't it. Nothing is just one thing -- every thing is everything, to an extent. Simultaneous multiplicity... and now everyone in me needs a drink. (Well, two are teetotallers, and one is already drunk and giggling.) Definitely shows up all over the place in our beloved series -- Good and Evil Willow ("we love you both, but in verrry different ways"); Xander and XanderPrime; Buffy and fill-in-the-blank (BuffyBot, Faith, BuffyFaith, et al); Good and Evil Angel; Wes Before and After; everyone in Dollhouse (especially Alpha but esPECIALLY Echo) the whole Battlestar Cylonetics thing... and I could go on. No, really; stop me, this is your only hope. Wonder though if part of this ep's resonance isn't also due to that poor little dog being dead, Jim, once recombined -- that was seriously heart-breaking for a kiddo. I mean, knock off all the red shirts you want, but don't hurt those space doggies! (Or cats for that matter, later on in the series.)

When it comes to Matheson, one thing I've noticed is that, like Stephen King, he is more interested in putting an "everyman" character into a situation and seeing how they react rather than the scientific plausibility of if and how something could happen. The biggest example is the novel "Bid Time Return" which is better known as "Somewhere in Time." It makes no good sense that a man can travel in time just by willing himself to do so...but it happens in the book and the novel uses it to explore some other things. Same thing here--oh, magic yellow dust makes the transporter go wonky. Ok, sure let's go with that. As long as we split Kirk in two and can explore that aspect of things it's all good. And I think part of the lack of shuttlecraft is that it removes the dilemma facing Kirk and since this episode was produced fourth, they may not have decided to use them just yet.

Michael, that's a good observation about Matheson. You're right. I've read a good amount of his stuff, and I always tend to react to his work emotionally, so it's easy to leave logic behind.

I watched this episode over and over as a young girl and teenager and never saw the attempted-rape scene as problematic. At 46 and a mother and educator, I certainly do now! The way Yeoman Rand was treated afterwards was the bigger problem for me; she was forced to sit there with a bunch of men and the very man she accused and basically be called a liar or an hysteric. She was expected to 'get over it' and just deal with the abuse of power and get back to work as if nothing had happened. No one to help her or really even explain it to her. And Mr Spock's final words to her on the bridge were completely out of character and more than vaguely threatening. BUT! I love the episode (apart from all that) and can neatly compartmentalise my misgivings because of the era of production. In fact, I find it all the more fascinating for those reasons.

I find Kirk cradling himself in his arms to be both an nice scene and unintentionally hilarious.

The attempted rape was something that I just didn't get as a kid, but as an adult I have to 100% agree that it was a bad situation that was only made worse by how they treated yeoman Rand afterwards. Far and away my least favorite aspect of this one. Barring that unpleasant portion of this episode, it's very good and I have to say that why I too have soured on Shatner over the years, he nails it here. The dichotomy between the all good and all evil Kirks is both interesting and thought provoking, even toady, and it really makes one think about how we function and deal with our own conflicting emotions on a daily basis.

We love comments! We actively monitor, and feed nasty comments to our cats. It’s never too late to comment on an old show, but please don’t spoil future episodes for newbies.

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The Enemy Within (Episode)

Stardate 1672.1 : A transporter malfunction creates an evil Kirk.

In orbit of Alfa 177 , the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 experiences a momentary transporter malfunction, caused by a magnetic ore accidentally brought aboard. Scotty checks the equipment, finds nothing wrong, and beams aboard Captain Kirk . After they leave the transporter room, a duplicate Kirk materializes. The malfunction has split the captain into two people, each physically identical but mentally and emotionally distinct. The "good" Kirk is compassionate, intelligent, and deliberate. The "bad" Kirk is violent, amoral, and savage.

An animal beamed aboard the Enterprise shortly thereafter is divided into two creatures as well—and after Yeoman Rand accuses the captain of assaulting her, Spock realizes the same has happened to Kirk. The transporter malfunction must be repaired shortly or a stranded landing party, led by Sulu , will freeze to death on the planet's surface.

The captain, meanwhile, is dying—neither half can survive alone. Scotty rigs the transporter to run through the impulse drive , and after capturing the "bad" Kirk, beams both captains down—and back as a single person. The restored Kirk then orders the landing party rescued.

Image Gallery

Surface of Alfa 177

Geological Technician Fisher

Duplicate Kirk

Science Crewman

Transporter Technician Wilson

magnetic ore

phaser heating rocks

transporter controls

Enterprise briefing room

Alfa 177 canine

An attempted rape

Medical uniform

Sign to Yeoman Rand 's quarters

Ship Captain uniform

Vulcan nerve pinch

Related Data

Starring William Shatner

Also Starring Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock

Directed by Leo Penn

Written by Richard Matheson

Created and Produced by Gene Roddenberry

Associate Producers Robert H. Justman and John D.F. Black

Director of Photography Jerry Finnerman

Art Directors Roland M. Brooks , Walter M. Jefferies

Theme Music by Alexander Courage

Music Composed and Conducted by Sol Kaplan

Featuring DeForest Kelley as Dr . McCoy

Grace Lee Whitney as Yeoman Rand

Film Editor Fabien Tordjmann

Assistant to the Producer Edward K. Milkis

Assistant Director Gregg Peters

Set Decorator Carlk F. Biddiscombe

Costumes Created by William Theiss

Post Production Executive Bill Heath

Music Editor Robert H. Raff

Sound Editor Joseph G. Sorokin

Sound Mixer Jack F. Lilly

Photographic Effects Howard Anderson Co.

Script Supervisor George A. Rutter

Music Consultant Wilbur Hatch

Music Coordinator Julian Davidson

Special Effects Jim Rugg

Property Master Irving A. Feinberg

Gaffer George H. Merhoff

Head Grip George Rader

Production Supervisor' Bernard A. Widin

Makeup Artist Fred B. Phillips , S.M.A.

Hair Styles by Virginia Darcy , C.H.S.

Wardrobe Mistress Margaret Makau

Casting Joseph D'Agosta

Sound Glen Glenn Sound Co.

A Desilu Production

In Association with Norway Corporation

Executive in Charge of Production Herbert F. Solow

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The Creative Life Adventure

Living a creative life

Boldly Rewatching the Voyages: The Enemy Within

(Note: If you haven’t read it yet, my introductory post on this Star Trek: The Original Series rewatch is a good place to start.)

Original air date: October 6, 1966

Crew death count: 0 (Yay!)

Bellybuttons: 1

I don’t dwell much on writing or production credits in these reviews, but I feel a comment on “The Enemy Within” writer Richard Matheson is appropriate. He wrote the novel I Am Legend , which gave us the disappointing film adaptation The Omega Man (1971) and the other disappointing film adaptation I Am Legend (2007) (I haven’t seen the first, and possibly best, I Am Legend adaptation, The Last Man on Earth (1964), with Vincent Price). He wrote the classic Twilight Zone episode “ Nightmare at 20,000 Feet ,” which featured William Shatner . In the 1970s, Matheson would write the novel Bid Time Return , adapted for the screen as the tragic romance Somewhere in Time (1978) with Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour , and the screenplay for Steven Spielberg ‘s first feature-length film Duel (1971), adapted from Matheson’s short story of the same name. I first learned of Matheson’s work during my teen years, during repeated attempts to watch late-night showings of The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), adapted from his novel The Shrinking Man . I enjoyed the film, but the TV networks always aired it so late, I consistently fell asleep before the end. To this day, I have not seen the conclusion of The Incredible Shrinking Man . By 1966, Matheson was a widely respected science-fiction writer with considerable experience. This is the kind of talent Star Trek attracted early on.

In the case of “The Enemy Within,” the Enterprise is conducting a specimen-gathering mission on planet Alpha 177. A technician suffers a relatively minor injury and falls into some magnetic ore, which is carried with him when Kirk orders him back to the ship. This wreaks havoc with the transporter. Yet Scott soon beams up Kirk, despite having concerns about the transporter’s operation. When Kirk arrives in a weakened state, Scott escorts him to sickbay, and while the transporter room is unattended, another Kirk shows up. If his wild expression, dramatic lighting, and intense music weren’t enough clues, we quickly establish that the two Kirks are polar opposites. Each seems to know something abnormal has happened, but while Kirk #1 tries to soldier through, Kirk #2 is immediately antagonistic.

A small dog-like creature, presumably an Alpha 177 native, plays a bizarre but essential role. I can’t help but wonder how uncomfortable the real dog felt while forced to wear that ridiculous costume. The dog’s presence is never explained. Since animals are almost never seen on the Enterprise , I can only imagine they captured it for research purposes, which sounds terrifying and very unlike the Federation. Clearly, the dog is really here as a plot device, first to demonstrate what happened to Kirk, and finally as a guinea pig to test the repaired transporter. “The Enemy Within” is the first in a long series of Star Trek storylines about transporters run amok; just as we have surrendered our lives to algorithms that no one fully understands, inhabitants of the Star Trek universe seem resigned to this widespread technology that repeatedly turns on them.

Once on the ship, Kirk #2 immediately pulls a Harvey Weinstein , wandering the ship’s corridors with a carafe of Saurian brandy and heading straight to Yeoman Rand’s quarters. Poor Yeoman Rand. Kirk #2 tells her she’s “too beautiful to ignore…too much woman,” and then tries to rape her. I don’t know how this played in 1966, and I know my younger self didn’t appreciate the scene’s significance, but it is justifiably upsetting to watch today. Thankfully, Rand fends off Kirk #2, and calls for help from a passing crew member when the door to her room opens (thanks heavens for those automatic doors). More on the witness shortly. A piece of abstract art is displayed in Rand’s quarters, positioned on an easel that implies this could be Rand’s own work. It’s a subtle piece of character development that makes me wish Rand had been given a more substantial role in the series.

Clearly, Matheson took a lot of inspiration from Robert Louis Stevenson ’s 1886 novella Strange Ca se of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde . In Stevenson’s story, Henry Jekyll, born into wealth and good health, finds himself living a dual life, a public, respectable man of science and a private, self-indulgent jerk. Jekyll devises the means to literally switch between these personalities, allowing his dark side free reign under a separate identity without burdening his better self with guilt or consequences. He learns the hard way that life is not so simple. Choice is one of the main divergences between Jekyll and Hyde and “The Enemy Within”: Jekyll went in search of a cover story, whereas Kirk has duality forced upon him. The nature of Kirk’s divide, and how to resolve it, is the primary conflict of “The Enemy Within.” Good and evil are the terms commonly used in the dialogue. There are a few other ways to view the split, all hinted at in the episode:

Intellect vs. ignorance: Kirk #1 is able to reason through situations, or, as his ability declines, allow others to help him reason through them. Kirk #2 acts without thinking, and has to go to increasing lengths to cover his tracks, which he does poorly. Kirk #1 can understand the necessity of uniting with his darker self. Kirk #2 literally screams, “I’m Captain Kirk!” and clings to a selfish path, unable to comprehend he’s on the road to self-destruction. Watch as Kirk #2 knocks the books off the shelf in his quarters, rejecting a life of the mind. If asked, Kirk #2 probably couldn’t even explain why he wants to be captain (much as Charlie X probably couldn’t have explained why he so desperately wanted people to like him). He just wants it.

Human vs. animal: Kirk #1 refers to Kirk #2 as “a thoughtless, brutal animal.” This relies on the historic notion that humans are superior to animals simply because we can make speeches and build sports cars. Judging by how much public discourse is in the gutter, and how eagerly we create the tools of our own destruction, one has to wonder if the animals possess the real intelligence. However, this division might hold up better in the 23 rd century, where humans are operating at a higher level than today.

Logic vs. emotion: McCoy tells Kirk #1 he has the logic Kirk #2 lacks. Despite using the terms good and evil, this is the interpretation that Spock seems truly drawn to. More on Spock’s reaction, so critical to this episode, later.

Female vs. male: Women are thoughtful but weak, like Kirk #1, and men are decisive and powerful, like Kirk #2. An offensive concept based on gender stereotypes, but considering the state of affairs in 1966, I have no doubt that it was implied. Note that the rational world of the Federation prefers Kirk #1, while stubbornly clinging to brutality as a necessity of leadership. This theme will be carried to a bizarre extreme in the season three episode “Turnabout Intruder.”

Courage vs. fear: McCoy makes a comment to this effect, that intelligence and logic are the source of “man’s essential courage,” and it is this dichotomy that saves Kirk in the end. The dog doesn’t survive being reunited with its angry self in the repaired transporter. Spock concludes this is because the dog is unable to manage its fear. Kirk #2 is terrified, but Kirk #1, as the one with courage, can survive what the dog couldn’t. It’s important that Kirk #1, the more passive version, is the courageous one, because Kirk #2 is a classic bully, bluster without substance.

Public vs. private: Even before social media, it has always been human nature to present a more civilized face to the public compared to our private lives. Jekyll and Hyde was partly a comment on Victorian England , where the cultured classes devoted considerable attention to public perception while conducting less savory conduct behind closed doors. Robert Louis Stevenson attended the trial of a friend who had been accused of murder. It was discovered that the friend had apparently taken several lives. Jekyll and Hyde was partly Stevenson’s attempt to resolve the paradox of a murderer hiding before his very eyes as a man of good public standing. In “The Enemy Within,” Spock and Kirk #1 both comment on the importance of the captain maintaining a proper image with the crew.

None of these binary constructs holds up perfectly, because the two Kirks are exaggerations for the purpose of telling a story. Clearly, the binary argument is too simplistic. Human consciousness is too complex for a 0 or 1 reduction.

My earlier Weinstein reference is deliberate. Despite Kirk #2’s shocking behavior, the crew is slow to confront the captain, at least as slow as a one-hour TV episode allows. He practically assaults McCoy for the Saurian brandy, which leads to nothing more than a gentle inquiry from Spock, with no follow-up from McCoy. Kirk #2 knocks unconscious the crew member who witnessed the assault of Rand; when that witness steps forward, McCoy hushes him and sends him back to his sickbay bed. In our 21 st century world, we find sexual predators protected by subordinates who are afraid of losing their jobs or having their careers sabotaged. “You know who I am,” is how Kirk #2 challenges his bridge staff late in the episode. This protection sometimes comes from victims, and we see this with Yeoman Rand, who apologizes for accusing Kirk, saying, “I don’t want to get you into trouble.” She goes so far as to say, “I wouldn’t have even mentioned it,” if not for the additional witness (a courageous crew member who doesn’t hesitate to speak up). When Kirk #2 approaches Rand late in the episode and makes a half-hearted apology, with a suspicious suggestion to come to her quarters later, she agrees. What choice does she have? In the final scene, she even seems about to apologize again, to integrated Kirk, knowing that a rapist is part of his personality. This burden of constantly being expected to apologize for the crimes of others was one of the driving forces behind the #MeToo movement.

Predators are also protected by friends who will later claim they couldn’t believe the person they knew was capable of such behavior. How much does this apply to “The Enemy Within?” Spock, having seen the duplicated dog in the transporter room, quickly concludes that there are two Kirks on the Enterprise . This only works with Spock because we know that, despite his friendship with Kirk, he is the one person on the ship capable of putting emotions aside and confronting the truth. Anyone else on the Enterprise should be suspect if they tried to defend Kirk in a similar manner. Which makes it all the more disturbing when Spock, at the end, asks Rand, “The imposter had some interesting qualities, didn’t he, Yeoman?” Spock’s emotional detachment certainly can’t include tolerance of sexual assault.

Just as Jekyll and Hyde couldn’t exist indefinitely in their divided state, so the two Kirks appear to suffer from a progressive condition that affects each differently. Kirk #1 loses his mental faculties while Kirk #2 goes into physical decline. As soon as the dog is beamed up as opposing twins, Kirk #1 seems to realize what has happened, then immediately forgets, until Spock announces the presence of an imposter. Later, Kirk #1 says decisions are becoming “more and more difficult.” Kirk #2, already lacking Kirk #1’s intelligence, suffers physically, driven forward only by an anger that exists solely for its own sake.

Shatner’s acting carries the episode in his ability to distinguish the two Kirks. But Spock’s handling of the situation is also essential to our story. Exploration is job one for the Enterprise , and Spock does exactly this, saying, “We have here an unusual opportunity to appraise the human mind. Or to examine, in earth terms, the roles of good and evil in a man.” Only Kirk’s declining health prevents further study. It’s not just Spock’s intelligence that helps him interpret the situation; he spells out what was already suggested in “ The Naked Time ” (which makes an intriguing double-feature with “The Enemy Within”). He understands Kirk’s situation because his own human and Vulcan ancestry are in constant conflict with each other. This is why he believes Kirk can survive the unification that killed the dog, because Spock nurtures his own logic to win out over darker emotions. Yet it’s Spock’s human tendencies that give him the presence of mind to apologize to Kirk for appearing insensitive. “It’s the way I am,” he says.

So even Spock implies that a little coldness, or darkness, is necessary to a complete life. By now, we’ve repeatedly seen Spock’s rapid calculations in determining the lesser of two evils. Presumably this same quality allows Kirk to make life-or-death decisions. But just how much coldness are we willing to accept as natural? McCoy’s final comments, the message that we are presumably meant to take from the episode, is that this darker side is “human.” Spock and McCoy both conclude that this is part of Kirk’s exceptionalism, the quality that makes him a leader. If they’re right, that this darkness is an evolutionary holdover humanity can’t live without, that is bad news for us. Are we really prepared to accept the tired old excuse that boys will be boys ? Is Yeoman Rand really supposed to keep reporting to Kirk, knowing that deep down inside he harbors a potential rapist? When Kirk #2 (let’s say it again, he’s the sexual predator) cries, “I want to live,” Kirk #1 shouldn’t have to promise, “You will.” I can confess to ogling a fair number of women over the years, and that’s problematic enough. But I never entertained a desire to commit assault, and I’m not a CEO, military officer, or politician. I don’t accept that only predators like Weinstein, or calculating narcissists like Bezos and McConnell, can lead us, because that would certainly make humanity a lost cause. I suspect even Richard Matheson didn’t fully accept this “evil is necessary” line of thinking. It’s no accident that the crew repeatedly refers to Kirk #2 as an imposter. Spock even refers to Kirk #2 as “it” at one point.

Two Bruce Lee statements came to mind while I watched “The Enemy Within.” The first is, “Emotion can be the enemy, if you give in to your emotion, you lose yourself.” Lee didn’t mean that we shouldn’t experience emotions, that would be impossible. He presumably meant that we shouldn’t let transient emotions guide our decision-making. Kirk #2 isn’t just thoughtless, but aggressive in his cruelty. Hyde suffered from equally negative emotions, targeting only those he could easily overpower, a young girl and an old man. Kirk #2 attempts the same when he assaults Rand. Kirk #1 has the ability to reason beyond short-term emotions and has to take charge of their combined fate. While each needs the other, Kirk #1 is clearly more oriented toward long-term survival.

Lee also said, “Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.” Kirk #1 remains adaptable while Kirk #2’s rigidity will be their undoing. Perhaps this offers a more contemporary interpretation of the Kirk divide. Kirk #1 represents humanity’s better nature, open-minded and ready to change with new information and changing circumstances. Kirk #2 represents willful ignorance that will kill them both. Imagine an entire society as inflexible and self-indulgent as Kirk #2, perpetuating systemic racism, climate change denial, and outrageous conspiracy theories.

This interpretation still isn’t a perfect fit because it doesn’t account for Kirk #1’s dependence on Kirk #2. Again, either/or reductionism is insufficient. Life isn’t a zero-sum game. We have to allow for multiple paths forward, and “The Enemy Within” acknowledges this at the end. Spock and McCoy feud over what action to take. Spock urges Kirk to go through the transporter right away, because a landing party, led by Sulu, is freezing on the planet’s surface and needs to return to the ship. McCoy pleads for a full autopsy on the deceased dog, because if Kirk dies in the transporter, the landing party will die anyway. It’s Kirk #1 who understands they are both correct. He will go through the transporter, but instructs McCoy to conduct the autopsy in case a Plan B becomes necessary.

One of Star Trek ’s greatest strengths has always been to demonstrate that the most difficult journey is within ourselves. Sometimes confronting our own shortcomings is the only way forward. As Q reminds us in the TNG series finale “All Good Things…,” the real exploration is “not mapping stars or studying nebulae, but charting the unknown possibilities of existence.” “Evil” Kirk in “The Enemy Within” may be a caricature, but he underscores the necessity of self-awareness. Exploration involves great risk. One of those risks is that in venturing forth to understand others, we may be forced to reckon with our own history. It will be uncomfortable, painful at times, but in doing so we may make unknown possibilities known, and thereby achieve wonders.

Next: Mudd’s Women

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