Editing Spock's Brain

{{Use American English|date=October 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox television episode
| series = [[Star Trek: The Original Series]]
| image = Leonard Nimoy William Shatner Spock's Brain Star Trek 1968.JPG
| caption = On Kirk's command, Spock grabs Kara's wrist to deactivate her bracelet.
| season = 3
| episode = 1
| airdate = {{Start date|1968|9|20}}
| production = 061
| writer = [[Gene L. Coon|Lee Cronin]]
| director = [[Marc Daniels]]
| music = [[Fred Steiner]]
| photographer = [[Gerald Finnerman|Jerry Finnerman]]
| guests = 
* [[Marj Dusay]] as Kara
* Sheila Leighton as Luma
* James Daris as Morg
| prev = [[Assignment: Earth]]
| next = [[The Enterprise Incident|The ''Enterprise'' Incident]]
| episode_list = List of Star Trek: The Original Series episodes
| season_article = Star Trek: The Original Series season 3
}}

"'''Spock's Brain'''" is the [[Star Trek: The Original Series season 3|third season]] [[premiere]] episode of the American [[science fiction]] television series ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series|Star Trek]]''. Written by [[Gene L. Coon]] (under the pseudonym ''Lee Cronin'') and directed by [[Marc Daniels]], it was first broadcast on September 20, 1968.

During the episode, an alien female played by [[Marj Dusay]] beams aboard the ''Enterprise'' and, after incapacitating the rest of the crew, surgically removes [[Spock]]'s [[brain]]. Captain [[James T. Kirk|Kirk]] and the crew have just hours to locate and restore it before Spock's body dies.

Widely regarded as the worst episode of the series, it was the first to air after NBC moved the show from 8:30&nbsp;p.m. to [[Friday night death slot|10 p.m. on Friday nights]].

==Plot==
The [[United Federation of Planets|Federation]] [[starship]]  ''[[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)|USS Enterprise]]'', under the command of Captain Kirk, encounters an alien ship, from which a mysterious woman beams onto the ''Enterprise'' bridge. She stuns the entire crew then examines each of them, taking particular interest in the [[Vulcan (Star Trek)|Vulcan]] First Officer Spock. When the crew awakens, Chief Medical Officer [[Leonard McCoy|Dr. McCoy]] finds Spock in [[sick bay]] with his brain surgically removed. Because of his unusual Vulcan physiology, Spock's body can be kept alive in this state, but for no more than twenty-four hours, giving Captain Kirk that much time to recover his stolen brain.

The ''Enterprise'' follows the alien ship's ion trail to the sixth planet of the [[Sigma Draconis]] system, a harsh world in the middle of an [[ice age]]. A band of male inhabitants attack the landing party, and a captured attacker warns Kirk about the "others", also known as "the givers of pain and delight". Kirk asks about the females of his kind, but is met only with bewilderment.

The landing party is joined by Dr. McCoy, accompanied by Spock's mobile body, controlled by a device McCoy has fashioned. The party travels deep underground and encounters a woman named Luma. When questioned, Luma shows the mentality of a child. Spock's voice is heard through a [[Communicator (Star Trek)|communicator]], but before the conversation goes further, Kirk and his party are captured. The party is brought before the leader of the women, Kara, the same woman who appeared on the ''Enterprise'' bridge. Kirk demands to know what they have done with Spock's brain, but Kara claims she does not understand what a brain is, exclaiming "Brain and brain! What is brain?"<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wright |first1=Victoria |title=Trekette: Brain And Brain! What Is Brain?! |url=https://treknews.net/2011/04/12/trekette-brain-and-brain-what-is-brain/ |website=TrekNews |date=April 12, 2011 |publisher=TrekNews.net |access-date=December 7, 2020 |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415025802/https://treknews.net/2011/04/12/trekette-brain-and-brain-what-is-brain/ |url-status=live}}</ref> As they try to explain the function of a brain, she realizes that what they are seeking is the "Controller", on which the underground civilization is completely dependent.

The landing party escapes and follows Spock's signals to a control room where his brain has been placed. Kara tells them that the skills needed to remove a brain were provided by a machine called the "Teacher", and that knowledge so obtained lasts no more than three hours. McCoy decides to use the Teacher himself, and then quickly begins the procedure to restore Spock's brain. McCoy's new knowledge begins to fade before the operation is complete, but Spock provides assistance after McCoy reestablishes Spock's ability to speak.

Without their Controller, Kara fears for the women's existence, but Kirk assures her that the men and women can learn to survive together on the surface.  Much to McCoy's dismay, Spock recites a protracted history of the culture of Sigma Draconis VI.

==Production==
Although the episode's story and teleplay were formally attributed under [[Writers Guild of America West]] rules to former ''Star Trek'' producer [[Gene L. Coon]] (who specifically wrote its germinal pitch; initial story outline; and a sequence of first, second and revised second draft teleplays) under his "Lee Cronin" pseudonym (intended to telegraph his dissatisfaction with the final episode [while likely also attenuating potential career setbacks from his propinquity to the work] in a manner analogous to the [[Alan Smithee]] and [[Cordwainer Bird]] pseudonyms), incipient showrunner [[Fred Freiberger]] contributed a revised story outline in between Coon's first and second drafts that radically altered the gestation of the episode. Thereafter, the final draft teleplay was written by Freiberger-era story editor [[Arthur H. Singer]]. Freiberger finally contributed a revised final-draft teleplay and additional page revisions during the production period.

In Coon's April 1968 story outline, Spock's brain is taken by a group of Nefelese antagonists (led by a male named Ehr Von) during a survey of the surface of an asteroid. There is no reference to the Teacher. Upon making contact with Spock's brain, Kirk instructs the brain to go into the slon porra, a Vulcan state of complete mental control. Although McCoy studies advanced Nefelese medical techniques that ultimately enable the restoration of Spock's body (in tandem with his preexisting knowledge of Vulcan and human medicine), this is done without any human–machine interface. Additionally, upon the completion of the surgery, Spock experiences side effects due to the reversal of several nerve endings, forcing him to laugh when he wants to sneeze; these complications (constituting a soupçon of Coon's characteristic levity) are ultimately surmounted through his mental discipline.

== Reception ==
The episode is generally regarded by fans, and those who took part in its production, as the worst episode of the series.<ref name="Inside Star Trek The Real Story">{{cite book|author=[[Herbert Franklin Solow|Herbert Solow]], [[Robert Justman]]|title=Inside Star Trek The Real Story|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|year=1997|location=June|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/402 402]|isbn=0-671-00974-5|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/402}}</ref> [[William Shatner]] described it as one of the series' worst episodes, calling the plot a "tribute" to NBC executives who slashed the show's budget and placed it in a bad time slot.<ref name="memories">Shatner, William (date unknown). ''Star Trek: Memories''. Memoir.</ref><ref name="uptillnow">Shatner, William (date unknown). ''Up Till Now''. Full general autobiography.</ref> [[Leonard Nimoy]] wrote: "Frankly, during the entire shooting of that episode, I was embarrassed —a feeling that overcame me many times during the final season of ''Star Trek''."<ref name="iamspock">Nimoy, Leonard (1995). ''I am Spock''. p.115.</ref>

Zack Handlen, of ''[[The A.V. Club]]'', gave the episode a "D" rating, describing the writing as bad and repetitive and the direction as weak. He added that it had its funny moments and some parts had "a lumpy B-movie charm".<ref name="AVClub">{{Cite news |last=Handlen |first=Zack |title="Spock's Brain"/"The Enterprise Incident" |publisher=[[The A.V. Club]] |date=December 4, 2009 |url=https://www.avclub.com/star-trek-spocks-brain-the-enterprise-incident-1798207604 |access-date=September 5, 2010 |archive-date=August 18, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100818010501/http://www.avclub.com/articles/spocks-brainthe-enterprise-incident,36001/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

In his book ''What Were They Thinking? The 100 Dumbest Events in Television History'', author David Hofstede ranked the episode at No. 71 on the list.<ref>{{cite book|author=David Hofstede|title=What Were They Thinking? The 100 Dumbest Events in Television History|publisher=[[Back Stage Books]]|year=2004|pages=57–58|isbn=0-8230-8441-8}}</ref>

Swedish synthpop band [[S.P.O.C.K]] featured "Mr. Spock's Brain" on their 1993 album "Five Year Mission".<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.discogs.com/de/SPOCK-Five-Year-Mission/master/754643|title = S.P.O.C.K – Five Year Mission|website = [[Discogs]]| date=September 13, 1993 |access-date = September 9, 2020|archive-date = August 17, 2022|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220817033921/https://www.discogs.com/de/master/754643-SPOCK-Five-Year-Mission|url-status = live}}</ref>

The rock band [[Phish]] performs a song entitled "Spock's Brain".<ref name="AVClub-2">{{Cite news|title=Mike Gordon Busts Out Spocks Brain In NYC|publisher=[[Jambase]]|date=March 2, 2014|url=http://www.jambase.com/Articles/120889/Mike-Gordon-Busts-Out-Spocks-Brain-In-NYC|access-date=March 2, 2014|archive-date=March 2, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140302231145/http://www.jambase.com/Articles/120889/Mike-Gordon-Busts-Out-Spocks-Brain-In-NYC|url-status=live}}</ref>

The episode was referenced in ''Modern Principles: Microeconomics'' by [[Tyler Cowen]] and Alex Tabarrok of [[George Mason University]] as an example of how it is virtually impossible to have a [[command economy]], in that not even Spock's brain could run an economy.<ref>Cowen, T & Tabarrak, A, ''Modern Principles, Macroeconomics, 2nd Edition'', pg. 14</ref>

Star Trek co-producer [[Robert H. Justman]]  recalled in the book ''Inside Star Trek The Real Story'' that he was the person who suggested that Spock's brain, after being rescued by the ''Enterprise'' crew, actually "takes over during surgery and instructs Dr. McCoy exactly how to go about reinserting it back where it came from&nbsp;- inside Spock's skull".<ref name="Inside Star Trek The Real Story"/>

As of 2023, the episode has an [[IMDb]] weighted score of 5.6/10.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708449/|title = Spock's Brain|website = [[IMDb]]|date = September 20, 1968|access-date = September 15, 2021|archive-date = October 24, 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211024215907/https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708449/|url-status = live}}</ref>

In 2012, ''[[The A.V. Club]]'' ranked this episode as one of top ten "must see" episodes of the original series.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/10-must-see-episodes-of-star-trek-1798232845|title=10 must-see episodes of Star Trek|last=Handlen|first=Zack|website=TV Club|date=August 15, 2012 |access-date=June 29, 2019|archive-date=June 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190629124959/https://tv.avclub.com/10-must-see-episodes-of-star-trek-1798232845|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, [[Wired (magazine)|''Wired'']] magazine ranked this episode one of the top ten most underrated episodes of the original television series, noting that despite it being regarded as the worst episode it occupies a special place in ''Star Trek'' lore.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2013/05/underrated-star-trek-episodes/|title=10 of the Most Underrated Episodes of the Original Star Trek Series|author=WIRED Staff|date=May 15, 2013|magazine=Wired|access-date=July 9, 2019|issn=1059-1028|archive-date=October 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191002095907/https://www.wired.com/2013/05/underrated-star-trek-episodes/|url-status=live}}</ref> However, they also suggested this episode was skippable in their binge-watching guide for the original series in 2015.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2015/01/binge-watch-star-trek-tos/|title=WIRED Binge-Watching Guide: Star Trek|last=McMillan|first=Graeme|date=January 28, 2015|magazine=Wired|access-date=July 24, 2019|issn=1059-1028|archive-date=December 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181229121433/https://www.wired.com/2015/01/binge-watch-star-trek-tos/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2016, [[Syfy]] included this episode in a group of ''Star Trek'' franchise episodes they felt were commonly disliked but "deserved a second chance".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/10-most-hated-star-trek-episodes-deserve-second-chance|title=The 10 most hated Star Trek episodes that deserve a second chance|last=Roth|first=Dany|date=July 20, 2016|website=SYFY WIRE|access-date=July 18, 2019|archive-date=July 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190718220028/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/10-most-hated-star-trek-episodes-deserve-second-chance|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2017, this episode was rated the third-worst episode of all episodes of the Star Trek franchise, including the later series but before ''[[Star Trek: Discovery]]'', by [[Screen Rant|''ScreenRant'']].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://screenrant.com/star-trek-worst-episodes-ever-all-time/|title=15 Worst Star Trek Episodes Of All Time|date=May 22, 2017|website=ScreenRant|access-date=June 8, 2019|archive-date=June 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608155534/https://screenrant.com/star-trek-worst-episodes-ever-all-time/|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2018, CBR included this episode in a list of ''Star Trek'' episodes that are "so bad they must be seen".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-episodes-bad-must-watch/|title=Star Trek: 20 Episodes So Bad They Must Be Seen|date=December 12, 2018|website=CBR|access-date=June 8, 2019|archive-date=December 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181213125346/https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-episodes-bad-must-watch/|url-status=live}}</ref>  A ranking of every episode of the original series by [[Hollywood.com|''Hollywood'']] placed this episode 78th out of 79 episodes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.hollywood.com/tv/ranking-star-trek-original-series-79-episodes-best-worst-59094091/|title=Ranking All 79 'Star Trek: The Original Series' Episodes from Worst to Best|last=Blauvelt|first=Christian|date=May 18, 2013|website=Hollywood.com|access-date=June 8, 2019|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304065047/http://www.hollywood.com/tv/ranking-star-trek-original-series-79-episodes-best-worst-59094091/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[CBS News]] listed "Spock's Brain" as one of the worst in the original series.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/the-best-and-worst-original-star-trek-episodes/|title=The best (and worst) original "Star Trek" episodes|website=www.cbsnews.com|date=September 3, 2016 |access-date=June 8, 2019|archive-date=June 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608174817/https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/the-best-and-worst-original-star-trek-episodes/|url-status=live}}</ref> Digital Fox ranked "Spock's Brain" as the number-one worst episode of all Star Trek up to 2018.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.digitalfox.media/explained/5-of-the-worst-star-trek-episodes-ever/|title=The Worst Star Trek Episode of Each Star Trek Series|last=Heller|first=Leejay|date=June 16, 2018|website=Digital Fox|access-date=June 8, 2019|archive-date=June 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608195456/https://www.digitalfox.media/explained/5-of-the-worst-star-trek-episodes-ever/|url-status=usurped}}</ref>

In 2017, ''[[Den of Geek]]'' ranked this episode as the second "best worst" ''Star Trek'' episode of the original series.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-15-best-worst-episodes-of-star-trek-the-original-series/|title=The 15 Best Worst Episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series|website=Den of Geek|date=September 16, 2017|access-date=July 18, 2019|archive-date=March 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200317054107/https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/the-15-best-worst-episodes-of-star-trek-the-original-series/|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Releases ==
The episode was released in Japan on December 21, 1993, as part of the complete season 3 LaserDisc set, ''Star Trek: Original Series log.3''.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=LaserDisc Database – Star Trek: Original Series log.3 [PILF-1711]|url=https://www.lddb.com/laserdisc/00116/PILF-1711/Star-Trek:-Original-Series-log.3|access-date=February 23, 2021|website=www.lddb.com|archive-date=January 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118014404/https://www.lddb.com/laserdisc/00116/PILF-1711/Star-Trek:-Original-Series-log.3|url-status=live}}</ref> A trailer for this and the other episodes was also included, and the episode had English and Japanese audio tracks.<ref name=":0" />

==See also==
* "[[Machine Made]]", a 1951 short story written by [[J. T. McIntosh]]
* [[Brain in a vat]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote|Star Trek: The Original Series#Spock.27s_Brain|"Spock's Brain"}}
* {{StarTrek.com|spocks-brain|"Spock's Brain"}}
*{{IMDb episode|0708449}}
* {{Memory Alpha|Spock's Brain|"Spock's Brain"}}
*[http://trekmovie.com/2007/06/09/spocks-brain-screenshots/#more-717 "Spock's Brain"] Side-by-side comparisons of the remastered version at [[TrekMovie.com]]
*[http://www.chakoteya.net/StarTrek/61.htm Star Trek transcript - Spock's Brain]

{{Star Trek: The Original Series episodes|3}}

[[Category:Star Trek: The Original Series season 3 episodes]]
[[Category:1968 American television episodes]]
[[Category:Fiction about brain transplantation]]
[[Category:Television episodes written by Gene L. Coon]]
[[Category:Television episodes directed by Marc Daniels]]