# Spock's Brain - worst episode ever? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 14, 2006, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702 "2006-09-14T15:54:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/41 "2006-09-14T20:47:34Z")
**kingpengvin** writes: > [@](#): > > That Amazing Vulcan Physique His Mighty brain is pulled out and yet he continues to breathe and his heart keeps pounding. How!!! I can allow for the oh he’s alien thing to a point. They guy is half human… And how in Og’s name would it be evolutionaily necessary for Vulcans body to work after their brains have been removed? Few people realize that Vulcans are descended from creatures similar to earthly _chickens_… ---
**Author:** ![want2know](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/50afbb/32.png) [@want2know](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/want2know)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/42 "2006-09-14T20:58:52Z")
At least “Spock’s Brain” has some entertainment value. It has possibly McCoy’s best “bug-eyed” look ever (after he’s been through the brain boost), not to mention great WTF lines (from “Brain and brain…” to “I knew I should never have reconnected his mouth!”). This is more than I can say for some of the aforementioned abominations. _Miri_ --More “bonk bonk” please–especially the writers! _The Way to Eden_ _Who Mourns For Adonis?_ _Bread and Circuses_ _Spectre of the Gun_ I would include _The Gamesters of Triskelion_ , but Angelique Pettyjohn was a guest at the very first Trek convention I attended, so I sorta have an affinity for that episode. I also kinda like _The Omega Glory_ just from a campy standpoint. That being said, the all-time abomination will always be _And the Children Shall Lead_ . At what point did the producers say, “You know who’d be great for the “friendly angel” character? Attorney Melvin Belli!” The worst acting, worst writing, worst everything times 10! ---
**Author:** ![2lazy2pee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/4bbf92/32.png) [@2lazy2pee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2lazy2pee)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/43 "2006-09-14T21:16:16Z")
[QUOTE=wolf\_meister] **Bryan Ecker** I’ll second some of those episodes you chose: • “Plato’s Stepchildren” - Just a bunch of spoiled, lazy, mind-controlling cretins. You _know_ they will get their asses kicked but you hope it would happen about 5 minutes into the episode. [/QUOTE] I’d second “Plato’s Stepchildren” if it weren’t for one thing. It was the perfect episode to slip in TV’s first inter-racial kiss. I don’t think it would have worked in a more serious episode or a different TV series. People accepted Kirk and Uhura kissing because it wasn’t in the context of the mid 20th century, but takes place 300 years in the future. And I’m sure there were a lot of red-blooded males thinking, “You wouldn’t have to force me to kiss Nichelle Nichols.” So having Kirk and Uhura being forced to kiss worked for that. It softened people up for the next inter-racial interaction in a more contemporary and familiar setting. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/44 "2006-09-14T21:44:43Z")
Hey What 11-year-old kid doesn’t want a “teacher”! _No more teachers, no more books, no more teacher’s dirty looks!_ And a remote control Spock! _Kicks ass compared to that Robbie the Robot with the wired control!!_ As well as the lesson on women _the bringers of pleasure and pain!_ ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/45 "2006-09-14T22:14:25Z")
[QUOTE=ouryL] As well as the lesson on women _the bringers of pleasure and pain!_ [/QUOTE] I think it was “pain and delight”, but no matter. I kinda liked _Spectre of the Gun_, and apparently so did the _Red Dwarf_ guys because they rather shamelessly stole from it for their award-winning _[Gunmen of the Apocalypse](http://www.scifilm.org/tv/reddwarf/reddwarf6-3.html)_ episode. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2006, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/46 "2006-09-14T22:18:08Z")
[QUOTE=kingpengvin] Before you say “he was refering to just the ones he met” you must realize he is also dismissing the entire female population of the planet. [/quote] I disagree. [QUOTE=kingpengvin] And how in Og’s name would it be evolutionaily necessary for Vulcans body to work after their brains have been removed? [/quote] I believe it has something to do with Pon Farr. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/47 "2006-09-15T00:20:29Z")
I think the badness of “Spock’s Brain” is just a result of the risk-taking that early SF series were willing to do. The same willingness to go out on a limb that produced ‘City on the Edge of Forever’ also produced “Spock’s Brain.” By the same token, the same willingness to go out on a limb that produced “Demon With A Glass Hand” on The Outer Limits also produced “Cry of Silence” (about a couple stranded on a remote desert road menaced by alien tumbleweeds – you could just hear the producer crying, 'You mean our special effects budget will consist solely of string to tie around tumbleweeds so we can drag them around? Sweet!") So they take their chances – sometimes they win big, sometimes they Spock’s Brain. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/48 "2006-09-15T02:47:29Z")
What makes SB truly horrible is Bjo Trimble’s (sp) efforts at getting Trek renewed for a third season. We may have had the first seven year run if they’d produced another _City on the Edge of Forever_ or _Amok Time_. But no, they had _Spock’s Brain_ and were canceled. BTW, the thinking cap is lifted from _The Forbidden PLanet_ which I would have remade for the _Enterprise_ pilot. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/49 "2006-09-15T02:56:16Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] BTW, the thinking cap is lifted from _The Forbidden PLanet_ which I would have remade for the _Enterprise_ pilot. [/QUOTE] It was remade into the NX-01 by the addition of grape bubble gum and fire ants. And now you know … the REST of the story. Bonk bonk! On the head! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/50 "2006-09-15T03:18:48Z")
[QUOTE=NoClueBoy] It was remade into the NX-01 by the addition of grape bubble gum and fire ants. [/QUOTE] It is the quintessential Trek episode. [Link](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049223/) A Star Cruiser is sent to remove the colonists on Altair IV; the only survivors are Dr. Morbius and his daughter. They don’t want to leave. The protagonists are the ship’s commander, J.J. Adams, his XO and the ship’s doctor played BTW by Warren Stephens who played Rojan in the TOS episode By Any Other Name. Fire ants? ---
**Author:** ![Manatee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/50afbb/32.png) [@Manatee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manatee)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/51 "2006-09-15T06:13:57Z")
Lots of talk of bad episodes and some discussion upthread of sexism and no mention of “Turnabout Intruder”? ---
**Author:** ![Pushkin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ee59a6/32.png) [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/52 "2006-09-15T08:37:48Z")
Talk of _Spectre of the gun_ and _The Alternative Factor_ remind me of how when all else fails, Trek episodes can always win me back with those barren alien landscapes. Those that are always against a dark purple sky, with a cold wind blowing and that spangly wind noise, especially with that eerie background music TOS did so well. Not that I dislike these episodes, I like SOTG and AF is alright (probbaly because I’ve not really seen it that often) I laugh at Eden, [Charles Napier](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Napier_%28actor%29) as a hippy? Funny how that’s never mentioned in any articles about his hard man image in the movies and TV 😃 ---
**Author:** ![chowder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@chowder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chowder)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/53 "2006-09-15T10:49:01Z")
I thought “The Trouble with Tribbles” was pathetic. Load of coloured oversized dust bunnies 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/54 "2006-09-15T11:56:44Z")
> [@](#): > > • “Plato’s Stepchildren” - Just a bunch of spoiled, lazy, mind-controlling cretins. You know they will get their asses kicked but you hope it would happen about 5 minutes into the episode. This episode features one of my favorite “lack of series continuity” items: they discover that if you inject yourself with a chemical common enough to be in a standard Federation medikit, you’ll gain **the power of telekinesis** , apparently with no ill effects. Never mentioned again. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/55 "2006-09-15T13:27:49Z")
I can see you’ve all managed to repress [The Conscience of the King](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conscience_of_the_King_%28TOS_episode%29). What could be worse than a Shakespearean acting troup travelling at warp speed? ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/56 "2006-09-15T13:39:30Z")
Have you heard about the latest Star Trek movie? It’s about the attempts of the increasingly-aging crew of the _Enterprise_ to stay regular on a synthetic space diet, in order to “boldly go.” It’s called _Spock’s Bran_. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/57 "2006-09-15T13:48:56Z")
[QUOTE=Baldwin] This episode features one of my favorite “lack of series continuity” items: they discover that if you inject yourself with a chemical common enough to be in a standard Federation medikit, you’ll gain **the power of telekinesis** , apparently with no ill effects. Never mentioned again. [/QUOTE] I can’t remember the exact explanation, but the drug injected worked as a catalyst to something in the food and air. It did not give TK on its own. Jim ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/58 "2006-09-15T14:21:14Z")
[QUOTE=Patty O’Furniture] I can see you’ve all managed to repress [The Conscience of the King](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conscience_of_the_King_%28TOS_episode%29). [/QUOTE] That was a good episode. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/59 "2006-09-15T15:24:26Z")
[QUOTE=chowder] I thought “The Trouble with Tribbles” was pathetic. Load of coloured oversized dust bunnies 😃 [/QUOTE] Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winnuh! Don’t forget that it encourages animal cruelty. Instead of spaying/neutering 'em and giving 'em to orphans or something, they just beam them on to the Klingon ship. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2006, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702/60 "2006-09-15T15:44:50Z")
[QUOTE=Tuckerfan] Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winnuh! Don’t forget that it encourages animal cruelty. Instead of spaying/neutering 'em and giving 'em to orphans or something, they just beam them on to the Klingon ship. [/QUOTE] So you’re saying that Klingons are just animals? Kinda harsh, don’t you think? 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/spocks-brain-worst-episode-ever/372702.md?page=4)