Thursday, May 07, 2015

17 to 01: Dagger of the Mind

In this episode, Derek and I differ on whether the misogyny on this episode goes too far or if it doesn't go too far enough, debate whether Dr. McCoy has a real medical degree, and tell of stories untold.

The condition was called strabismus. I didn't know it. I wasn't even close.

5 comments:

SkilTao said...

Kirk referring to prison colonies as "prison resorts" was interesting, because I recall hearing similar comments along those lines in real life a decade or two ago; related, I wonder if some of what you're reading as misogny is supposed to be tension over the validity of psychiatry as a scientific field.

I'd forgotten that (as the evil director is evily pouring his evil drinks into evil glasses) the show makes a point of focusing the "why should people live with unbearable memories" point on Noel.

I think the teleporters only have orbit-to-surface range. An interplanetary relay may be feasible, but interstellar is a bit out there.

It's interesting that the writers let Kirk keep his weapon, and managed to keep it irrelevant through the rest of the plot.

VanVelding said...

"if some of what you're reading as misogny is supposed to be tension over the validity of psychiatry as a scientific field."

Yeah, that's a pretty good point. Star Treks' treatment of mental health doesn't get non-ridiculous until 90% of the way through DS9. :(

Remember that one time a Ferengi made a transporter that could transport someone light years away virtually undetectably through shields? That's not related to the discussion of transporter relays (you're right about that), but wow, that's a game-changing technology we never saw again, y'know?

I didn't notice the thing about the phaser, but yeah, props to this episode for not having a fight at the end.

SkilTao said...

I do NOT remember that. Could he have been using Dominion technology? Maybe future-scotty stole it from him, told future-spock the equation, and that's where the Abrams-verse movies get it from.

VanVelding said...

IIRC, the technology was known to Picard offhand and The Federation had already started and abandoned researching it, not because it was impossible, but because it was inefficient and dangerous.

So it's not even like a huge secret or a special technology abandoned by a 100,000 year-old civilization; it's just a thing no one does because.

VanVelding said...

...but it does explain some Abramsverse things.