Stardate: 3468.1
Captain’s log. Lieutenant Carolyn Palamas, the ship’s archaeology and anthropology officer, hands in a report to Kirk on the Pollux star system that they’re exploring. Scott then invites Palamas to coffee. The engineer is obviously smitten with her, though McCoy cautions that she’s not as smitten with him as he with her. They then have a conversation about how some day she’ll find the right man and leave the service, because naturally that’s the only possible option for a woman. And then I hit the pause button so I can go throw up and be grateful that it’s not 1967 anymore.
Classic Star Trek and rape (with spoilers) 22 December, 2020 - 08:10
With so few significant new movie releases to follow, I have taken to some strange pasttimes, including the viewing of old classic Star Trek episodes. I was struck by two obscure episodes in particular. One is Who Mourns for Adonais?, and the other is Metamorphosis, both from early in the second (and best) season.
In Adonais, a crazed being, who is in fact the ancient Greek God Apollo, seizes control of the ship and of a landing party, consisting of Kirk and a few others, including a beautiful Lieutenant Carolyn Palamas. In due time Apollo “takes” her, with her degree of actual compliance being highly uncertain (the whole ship and landing party are under constant threat of death). Kirk and the others encourage her to court him further, and then to reject him, to weaken his spirits, which leads to his eventual loss of control. It is Carolyn’s cleverness that saves them, she has been through emoti