☙ A Reconsideration of “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” as Performed in the Early Travails of the “Star Trek” Repertoire ❧
Collected Impressions from Members of the Order Following Reevaluation
First performed some fifty and nine years past as the second pilot of that curious speculative romance, Star Trek, Where No Man Has Gone Before proved a decisive gambit—pairing a mythic premise with a cast of uncommon command. Judged by our Order with 42 percent offering the mark of A and 57 percent the mark of B, it rests now with distinction at 3.42 upon 4.
The Tale as Told:
The noble vessel Enterprise, venturing beyond the known bounds of the galaxy, encounters the spectral remains of a lost expedition. In passing through a luminous energy barrier, two of its company—Commander Gary Mitchell and Doctor Elizabeth Dehner—are transfigured into beings of dread puissance. What follows is not a contest of arms, but of judgment.
Mitchell, long a friend of Captain Kirk, grows swiftly into something other—his mind exalted, his regard for human frailty evaporated. As his contempt sharpens and his powers deepen, Kirk must confront the ultimate test: whether to preserve his comrade or to preserve humanity from him.
One member of the Order offered this observation:
“Attend to the craft behind the curtain—Ernest Haller, famed for Gone with the Wind, captures the frame with an elegance rare for the televisual stage. And director James Goldstone delivers with solemn flair. It is, indeed, finely made.”
Another remarked with amusement:
“A curious collision of casting—‘Hot Lips’ Houlihan and Frank Poole ascending to godhood—and yet, by some miracle, the alchemy succeeds.”
The production is spare yet cinematic. The geometry of narrow corridors and the barren austerity of Delta Vega reinforce a sense of inescapable doom. Mitchell’s transformation is rendered with both spectacle and unease—his silvered eyes a portent of detachment from mortal things. Dr. Dehner’s quiet arc, from awe to alarm, lends human weight to the tale.
As one member mused:
“The peril here is not simply power—it is wisdom untempered by sympathy. Mitchell does not become a tyrant by knowing too much, but by ceasing to feel the worth of others.”
Final Consideration:
A grim but vital parable, Where No Man Has Gone Before stands as a cornerstone of the Star Trek legendarium. In it lies the great question of command: to choose not what one desires, but what one must. A tale not merely of science, but of the soul.
