Once Upon a Planet

Did You Know?

• In 2010, The A.V. Club noted that this episode helps explain how the exoplanet presented in the live action Star Trek television episode "Shore Leave" functions.
• In 2016, SyFy noted this episode for actress Nichelle Nichols's presentation of Uhura, as having her 8th best scene in Star Trek.

Plot

The Enterprise crew returns to a planet they once enjoyed as an amusement park, expecting downtime. But soon after beaming down, Dr. McCoy is assaulted by a Queen of Hearts figure, and Lieutenant Uhura is taken by the planet's central computer. This computer has grown bitter about its role as a servant and wants to commandeer the Enterprise to roam the galaxy and connect with other machines. It seizes control of the ship's computer and begins altering its functions. While searching for Uhura, a landing party finds the grave of the planet's Caretaker, who originally managed the facility. Without supervision, the machinery now generates threatening figures drawn from the crew's memories and its own imagination. Remembering how the planet healed McCoy after a fatal wound in a previous visit, Spock has McCoy inject him with melenex to fake an injury, tricking the automated systems into transporting him to the underground control center. Captain Kirk follows. Once inside, Kirk confronts the angry computer. He argues that its view of servitude is too narrow, pointing out that he and his crew are not slaves to the Enterprise. He convinces the machine that its best option is to return to its original function. By welcoming visitors to the park, it will gain social interaction and can eventually learn everything it desires without ever leaving its world.