Star Trek: TOS, S1E5 - The Enemy Within

      The episode starts out with Sulu holding some king of horned-lion-dog with antennae and a scaled spine. He's cute and rocking the costume but no preamble is given. We're not told what the creature is, if it's indeed a dog, or why it was shoehorned in the episode. Alas, the nameless horned-lion-dog looks on as Sulu and Kirk complain about how the planet they're on will become unbearably cold. Clearly the animal isn't phased and we end up seeing him a lot more in the episode yet he never gets identified. He is simply horned-lion-dog.

        An injured crewman beams up with some kind of yellow ore residue on him that effects the transporters. When Kirk beams up and exits stage left with Scotty, a second Kirk follows who is apparently evil by his over exaggerated facial expressions. Evil Kirk literally creeps around creature-like, becomes drunk on Saurian Brandy, and tries to force himself on yeoman Rand. She claws him and luckily escapes to report what happened. Spock and Good Kirk deal with her report insensitively, insinuate she's lying initially, and then relent that there's likely an imposter. Rand is left to stumble off injured and in tears without a second glance her way. It's a cold scene that feels dated and insensitive to the issue. My heart actually breaks for Rand and the trauma she will carry with her after. 

       Evil Kirk hides in the Captain's quarters, which no one thought to check, and we find out the same double transporter issue happened with the horned-lion-dog! There's a good and evil version as well but even Good Kirk isn't his full self. On the planet, Sulu and the away team are about to freeze to death. I'd guess it's because the blankets they're using are as thin as sheets and they aren't even attempting to find shelter. Bad Kirk is subdued in battle and McCoy studies him to try and fix the duplication process. 

      "Good" Kirk shows more sensitivity and compassion for Evil Kirk than he does for yeoman Rand which had me befuddled. Apparently, Good Kirk and Evil Kirk have to be reunited as one even though Good Kirk doesn't want that. McCoy gives a heavy handed lecture about how all humans have two sides to them that are needed for balance. No one talks about providing counseling or much needed shoreleave for yeoman Rand. Scotty tries to fix the transporter issue which ends up with horned-lion-dog being dead. So much for Scotty's idea.  

      According to Spock, horned-lion-dog died of "blind terror" which he hypothesizes won't happen to Kirk because he can "think". McCoy screams that Kirk can't risk himself on a "theory". No one tell him that that's exactly what Star Trek captains do in every other series. Awkward, McCoy. Sulu is still spending his energy melodramatically reporting sad monologues to the captain via communicator. This drives Good Kirk to force Evil Kirk to go through the transporter again. Evil Kirk overpowers Good Kirk and takes his green shirt which confuses everyone for some reason. I wish I were making that up. Evil Kirk runs into yeoman Rand and eludes that he wants to meet her privately later, clearly with plans to attempt to assault her again. This exchange is chilling and adds salt in the episode's glaring wounds. 

        Evil Kirk - with heavily applied eyeliner and mascara - is confronted on the bridge by Good Kirk who convinces him that they will only live if they are combined again. The transporter fix is successful and Kirk is returned to normal. Sulu and the away team get saved from turning into the Jack Nicholson icicle from The Shining. The episode ends with more Kirk self-pity and zero concern for the continued well being of yeoman Rand. She even makes a comeback in the last scene and APOLOGIZES for not knowing Kirk had an evil transporter twin. Once again, I'm not making the audacity of this scene up. Rand, the victim, ends up apologizing and Spock even jokes with her about the "qualities" of the Evil Kirk. All in all, this episode had glaring issues and definitely wouldn't be seen reflected in the more sensitive and enlightened writing of today. The true tragedy here is yeoman Rand, how badly the episode's writer treated what could have been a powerful character arc, and a misguided lesson on human duality that missed the mark. This is easily my least favorite episode of the series.