“The Devil In The Dark” is a good episode for showcasing the ideals which Star Trek strives to embody. There are some interesting “Jaws” like moments when, before we see the episode’s monster, we’re subjected to a more psychological kind of horror by way of everyone’s reactions surrounding the dozens of murders. But the episode is clumsy in terms of plausibility, and it stumbles with its pacing and preaching as it reaches its conclusion. The result is to make “The Devil In The Dark” a memorable, and yet less than average episode – one whose value diminishes with repeat viewings.

The strength of the episode’s opening half is its mystery: who, or what, is murdering dozens of workers on a mining colony. It’s interesting that the episode opens on the colony, focusing on the miners and their plight – instead of on the Enterprise, with Kirk receiving a distress call. And, too, the sense of danger and suspense is heightened with the arrival of the Enterprise, and of Spock, Kirk and McCoy at the colony itself. The three Enterprise officers are very thorough in their investigations and yet, while they are there, more deaths occur. The effect is to emphasize the danger, and terror, the miners feel. And the episode does a strong job of playing to the fear of the unknown, allowing the viewers to empathize with the miners’ predicament.

Unfortunately, with such a strong buildup, the appearance of the creature itself is horribly ridiculous. Unlike the silly man-in-a-lizard-suit in “Arena,” this episode makes the appearance of the alien an integral part of the narrative. In other words, we didn’t need to be scared by the Gorn in the same way we are meant to be frightened by the creature, known as a Horta. As such, once you know what the creature looks like (essentially a really fluffy down comforter), the suspense of the opening scenes evaporates. To further drive the nail into the suspense coffin, we learn that the creature is actually a highly intelligent mother who was, simply, protecting her eggs – and is otherwise very docile and benign.

What this does do, however, is provide for the episode’s greatest strength: its commentary about the need for people to be tolerant of others – no matter how different they may appear. Additionally, the discovery of the Horta as a life form falls perfectly in line with the series’ tag line: “to seek out new life.” At this level, the episode works very well, particularly with the back-and-forth discussions between Kirk and Spock regarding the need to safeguard both the economic importance of the colony as well as the scientific importance of discovering a new, silicon-based, life form. Indeed, Kirk and Spock share some of the episode’s best scenes.

Spock’s mind meld is also very well done … up to a point. Through his mental connection to the Horta, we learn of her nature and her purpose and her intelligence. Unfortunately, the scene itself is much, much too long. For a moment there, I wasn’t sure whether I was watching Spock or Deanna Troi. And that’s not a good thing. Yes, Spock’s performance was better than anything Troi tried to accomplish – but the scene was just as annoying due to length, rather than acting. I do concede that, at the very least, this scene was punctuated by McCoy’s exclamation, “I’m a doctor, not a bricklayer!”

“The Devil In The Dark” makes a lot of correct decisions early on. But along the way, the pacing and suspense simply fall apart. The whole subplot about the missing reactor part was entirely superfluous. And the angry-mob-miners were just a nuisance. Coupled with the overly long mind-meld and blanket monster, the episode loses a great deal of credibility and respect which is shame, considering its central message is a worthy one.

Filed under: Original Series