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Wolf in the Fold (TOS episode)
Encyclopedia
"Wolf in the Fold" is a second-season episode of Star Trek: The Original Series
. It is episode #43, production #36, and was broadcast on December 22, 1967. It was written by Robert Bloch
, and directed by Joseph Pevney
.
Overview: A series of bizarre murders points to Mr. Scott
as the prime suspect.
3614.9, the starship
USS Enterprise
arrives at Argelius II, a planet with a Middle-Eastern cultural influence primarily dedicated to peaceful hedonism
. Ship's Captain James T. Kirk
, chief medical officer Dr. Leonard McCoy
, and chief engineer Montgomery Scott
, beam down for some shore leave.
Scotty is attracted to a belly dance
r named Kara and invites her to walk down a fog-shrouded alley. Shortly thereafter, Kara is stabbed to death and Scotty, in shock, is holding the murder weapon. His are the only fingerprint
s on the knife, but he claims to have no memory of the event. Dr. McCoy had previously diagnosed Scotty with a mild concussion, caused by a female crew member aboard the Enterprise. McCoy had already concluded that Scotty has developed a resentment towards women, and that distrust could manifest itself in murder.
Hengist, the Chief Administrator of Argelius II, demands that Scotty be locked up suggesting he may murder again if left unsupervised. Prefect Jaris suggests that Kirk seek the advice of his wife Sybo who is an Argelian empath
. Kirk agrees, but he wants Scotty monitored by a tricorder
and orders Lt. Karen Tracy to beam down and administer the test. Kara's father mentions another suspect: Kara's former fiancé Morla, who, unlike most Argelians, is extremely jealous and fought with Kara. Morla is brought in for questioning but he claims he had nothing to do with the killing; he actually left the cafe where she danced in order to maintain his composure.
Lt. Tracy begins testing Scotty. Suddenly, screams ring out and the others find Tracy stabbed to death and Scotty once again in shock. Hengist claims that Scotty must be the killer, as there is no way into that room except through the room in which the others were setting up for Sybo's seance.
Jaris and his wife Sybo insist on continuing and Sybo falls into a deep trance. She senses a great evil and cries out several names: "Beratis", "Kesla", "Redjac", all names for an ancient entity that has intense hatred for the life of women. The room goes black, Sybo screams and when the lights come Sybo is fatally stabbed, lying in Scotty's arms.
Kirk has everyone beamed back to the Enterprise so that the computers can analyze Mr. Scott's testimony of innocence. The computer confirms that both Scotty and Morla know nothing about the murders. Scotty insists however, that he felt the presence of a cold, evil creature during Sybo's meditation.
The computer confirms such a creature could exist, but would be incorporeal, existing as formless electromagnetic impulses. The computer cites the creatures of Alpha Carina V who subsist on the emotion of love
. It also suggests that the creature may take a solid form at will, as the miletus cloud creature of Alpha Madoris that can change from gaseous to solid forms. Spock
believes this "Redjac" to be an entity that gains nourishment from the fear of its victims.
Kirk decides to run the names spoken by Sybo through the computer. The machine returns information that Beratis (of Rigel IV), and Kesla (of Deneb II), are names given to the unresolved identities of serial killers on those worlds. It also identifies Redjac as "Red Jack", the name of the elusive 19th Century Earth serial killer Jack the Ripper
.
The computer goes on to say that Redjac may have been responsible for other killings, both on Earth (seven women in Shanghai
, China
, Earth, in 1932; five similar murders in Kiev
, U.S.S.R., Earth, in 1974) and other planets; there were eight murders of women in the Martian Colonies in 2105 and ten murders of women in Heliopolis, Alpha Eridani II in 2156. Spock notes that all these locations lie sequentially between Argelius and Earth.
The computer adds that the Beratis killings took place on Rigel IV less than one solar year ago, and that the knife used in the killings matches knives crafted by the indigenous Hill People of Rigel IV's Argus River region. This implicates Mr. Hengist, who is from Rigel IV. Mr. Hengist becomes nervous and denies the evidence points to him. He flees the room, but Captain Kirk subdues him. Dr. McCoy discovers the man is dead, announcing the death by saying, "He's dead, Jim."
Suddenly, the ship's computer system goes haywire and Hengist's distorted laughter is heard throughout the ship. He makes threats that they can never catch him and that they will all die. Spock believes the Redjac entity has taken over the ship through its computer and that the entity will become stronger by feeding off the crew's growing fear.
Dr. McCoy tranquilises everyone on the ship and Spock neutralizes Redjac's control of the ship's computer by ordering it to compute to the last digit the value of π
. As their fears fade, Redjac weakens and must return to Hengist's body. Kirk has him rushed to the transporter room
. He beams Hengist, and Redjac with him, out into the depths of space.
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
. It is episode #43, production #36, and was broadcast on December 22, 1967. It was written by Robert Bloch
Robert Bloch
Robert Albert Bloch was a prolific American writer, primarily of crime, horror and science fiction. He is best known as the writer of Psycho, the basis for the film of the same name by Alfred Hitchcock...
, and directed by Joseph Pevney
Joseph Pevney
Joseph Pevney was an American film and television director.-Biography:Pevney was born on September 15, 1911 in New York City, New York.He made his debut in vaudeville as a boy soprano in 1924...
.
Overview: A series of bizarre murders points to Mr. Scott
Montgomery Scott
Montgomery "Scotty" Scott is a Scottish engineer in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by James Doohan in the original Star Trek series, Scotty also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Relics", and in numerous...
as the prime suspect.
Plot
On stardateStardate
A stardate is a date in the fictional system of time measurement developed for Star Trek, commonly heard at the beginning of a voiceover log entry such as "Captain's log, stardate 41153.7...
3614.9, the starship
Starship
A starship or interstellar spacecraft is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel....
USS Enterprise
Starship Enterprise
The Enterprise or USS Enterprise is the name of several fictional starships, some of which are the focal point for various television series and films in the Star Trek franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. It is considered a name of legacy in the fleet...
arrives at Argelius II, a planet with a Middle-Eastern cultural influence primarily dedicated to peaceful hedonism
Hedonism
Hedonism is a school of thought which argues that pleasure is the only intrinsic good. In very simple terms, a hedonist strives to maximize net pleasure .-Etymology:The name derives from the Greek word for "delight" ....
. Ship's Captain James T. Kirk
James T. Kirk
James Tiberius "Jim" Kirk is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. Kirk was first played by William Shatner as the principal lead character in the original Star Trek series. Shatner voiced Kirk in the animated Star Trek series and appeared in the first seven Star Trek movies...
, chief medical officer Dr. Leonard McCoy
Leonard McCoy
Leonard "Bones" McCoy is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by DeForest Kelley in the original Star Trek series, McCoy also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and in numerous books,...
, and chief engineer Montgomery Scott
Montgomery Scott
Montgomery "Scotty" Scott is a Scottish engineer in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by James Doohan in the original Star Trek series, Scotty also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Relics", and in numerous...
, beam down for some shore leave.
Scotty is attracted to a belly dance
Belly dance
Belly dance or Bellydance is a "Western"-coined name for a traditional "Middle Eastern" dance, especially raqs sharqi . It is sometimes also called Middle Eastern dance or Arabic dance in the West, or by the Greco-Turkish term çiftetelli...
r named Kara and invites her to walk down a fog-shrouded alley. Shortly thereafter, Kara is stabbed to death and Scotty, in shock, is holding the murder weapon. His are the only fingerprint
Fingerprint
A fingerprint in its narrow sense is an impression left by the friction ridges of a human finger. In a wider use of the term, fingerprints are the traces of an impression from the friction ridges of any part of a human hand. A print from the foot can also leave an impression of friction ridges...
s on the knife, but he claims to have no memory of the event. Dr. McCoy had previously diagnosed Scotty with a mild concussion, caused by a female crew member aboard the Enterprise. McCoy had already concluded that Scotty has developed a resentment towards women, and that distrust could manifest itself in murder.
Hengist, the Chief Administrator of Argelius II, demands that Scotty be locked up suggesting he may murder again if left unsupervised. Prefect Jaris suggests that Kirk seek the advice of his wife Sybo who is an Argelian empath
Empathy
Empathy is the capacity to recognize and, to some extent, share feelings that are being experienced by another sapient or semi-sapient being. Someone may need to have a certain amount of empathy before they are able to feel compassion. The English word was coined in 1909 by E.B...
. Kirk agrees, but he wants Scotty monitored by a tricorder
Tricorder
In the fictional Star Trek universe, a tricorder is a multifunction handheld device used for sensor scanning, data analysis, and recording data.Three primary variants of the tricorder are issued in Star Trek's Starfleet...
and orders Lt. Karen Tracy to beam down and administer the test. Kara's father mentions another suspect: Kara's former fiancé Morla, who, unlike most Argelians, is extremely jealous and fought with Kara. Morla is brought in for questioning but he claims he had nothing to do with the killing; he actually left the cafe where she danced in order to maintain his composure.
Lt. Tracy begins testing Scotty. Suddenly, screams ring out and the others find Tracy stabbed to death and Scotty once again in shock. Hengist claims that Scotty must be the killer, as there is no way into that room except through the room in which the others were setting up for Sybo's seance.
Jaris and his wife Sybo insist on continuing and Sybo falls into a deep trance. She senses a great evil and cries out several names: "Beratis", "Kesla", "Redjac", all names for an ancient entity that has intense hatred for the life of women. The room goes black, Sybo screams and when the lights come Sybo is fatally stabbed, lying in Scotty's arms.
Kirk has everyone beamed back to the Enterprise so that the computers can analyze Mr. Scott's testimony of innocence. The computer confirms that both Scotty and Morla know nothing about the murders. Scotty insists however, that he felt the presence of a cold, evil creature during Sybo's meditation.
The computer confirms such a creature could exist, but would be incorporeal, existing as formless electromagnetic impulses. The computer cites the creatures of Alpha Carina V who subsist on the emotion of love
Love
Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
. It also suggests that the creature may take a solid form at will, as the miletus cloud creature of Alpha Madoris that can change from gaseous to solid forms. Spock
Spock
Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by Leonard Nimoy in the original Star Trek series, Spock also appears in the animated Star Trek series, two episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation, seven of the Star Trek feature films, and numerous Star Trek...
believes this "Redjac" to be an entity that gains nourishment from the fear of its victims.
Kirk decides to run the names spoken by Sybo through the computer. The machine returns information that Beratis (of Rigel IV), and Kesla (of Deneb II), are names given to the unresolved identities of serial killers on those worlds. It also identifies Redjac as "Red Jack", the name of the elusive 19th Century Earth serial killer Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper
"Jack the Ripper" is the best-known name given to an unidentified serial killer who was active in the largely impoverished areas in and around the Whitechapel district of London in 1888. The name originated in a letter, written by someone claiming to be the murderer, that was disseminated in the...
.
The computer goes on to say that Redjac may have been responsible for other killings, both on Earth (seven women in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Earth, in 1932; five similar murders in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, U.S.S.R., Earth, in 1974) and other planets; there were eight murders of women in the Martian Colonies in 2105 and ten murders of women in Heliopolis, Alpha Eridani II in 2156. Spock notes that all these locations lie sequentially between Argelius and Earth.
The computer adds that the Beratis killings took place on Rigel IV less than one solar year ago, and that the knife used in the killings matches knives crafted by the indigenous Hill People of Rigel IV's Argus River region. This implicates Mr. Hengist, who is from Rigel IV. Mr. Hengist becomes nervous and denies the evidence points to him. He flees the room, but Captain Kirk subdues him. Dr. McCoy discovers the man is dead, announcing the death by saying, "He's dead, Jim."
Suddenly, the ship's computer system goes haywire and Hengist's distorted laughter is heard throughout the ship. He makes threats that they can never catch him and that they will all die. Spock believes the Redjac entity has taken over the ship through its computer and that the entity will become stronger by feeding off the crew's growing fear.
Dr. McCoy tranquilises everyone on the ship and Spock neutralizes Redjac's control of the ship's computer by ordering it to compute to the last digit the value of π
Pi
' is a mathematical constant that is the ratio of any circle's circumference to its diameter. is approximately equal to 3.14. Many formulae in mathematics, science, and engineering involve , which makes it one of the most important mathematical constants...
. As their fears fade, Redjac weakens and must return to Hengist's body. Kirk has him rushed to the transporter room
Transporter (Star Trek)
A transporter is a fictional teleportation machine used in the Star Trek universe. Transporters convert a person or object into an energy pattern , then "beam" it to a target, where it is reconverted into matter...
. He beams Hengist, and Redjac with him, out into the depths of space.
40th anniversary remastering
This episode was remastered in 2006 and first aired on March 10, 2007 as part of the remastered 40th Anniversary original series. It was preceded two weeks earlier by "The Paradise Syndrome" and followed three weeks later by "The Tholian Web". Video and audio have been digitally restored, and the episode features the all-CGI USS Enterprise that is standard among the revisions. Other changes to this episode include:- Argelius II was given a more realistic look. There were no major changes to the rest of this episode.
Non-Canon Sequel Stories
This episode has spawned two different sequel adventures in comic books.- The first was a comic adventure published in 1985. This adventure was set between the third and fourth Star Trek films. In it the Enterprise crew, now on the U.S.S. Excelsior, face Redjac a second time. The creature acts against type and uses a female host, Lieutenant Nancy Bryce (a character created for the comic book), to commit its murders. A way is found to free Lt. Bryce and destroy the entity once and for all.
- The second was a comic adventure of Star Trek: The Next GenerationStar Trek: The Next GenerationStar Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
. This story assumed the preceding comic adventure never happened. In it the crew of the Enterprise-D face Redjac. Having provoked a planetwide war, Redjac transfers himself into the Enterprises computer and creates an 1880s style London in the holodeck, abducting various crewmembers to act as his victims. DataData (Star Trek)Lieutenant Commander Data is a character in the fictional Star Trek universe portrayed by actor Brent Spiner. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek...
, in his Sherlock HolmesSherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
persona, rescues some of the crewmembers before confronting Redjac face-to-face. Redjac is tricked into facing WorfWorfWorf, played by Michael Dorn, is a main character in Star Trek: The Next Generation and in seasons four to seven of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. He also appears in the films based on The Next Generation. Worf is the first Klingon main character to appear in Star Trek, and has appeared in more Star...
in single combat, which focuses all his energy into one location, allowing the crew to transfer him into a storage pod and trap him on a distant moon.
Background Information
- This episode derives from a short story by screenwriter Bloch, titled "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper," published in 1943 in the magazine Weird TalesWeird TalesWeird Tales is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine first published in March 1923. It ceased its original run in September 1954, after 279 issues, but has since been revived. The magazine was set up in Chicago by J. C. Henneberger, an ex-journalist with a taste for the macabre....
. In the story, two men discuss a history of serial murder, and speculate that the Ripper may be a practitioner of occult arts whose murders are sacrifices to keep him eternally young.
- Around the same time that Bloch was writing this episode, he was asked by Harlan EllisonHarlan EllisonHarlan Jay Ellison is an American writer. His principal genre is speculative fiction.His published works include over 1,700 short stories, novellas, screenplays, teleplays, essays, a wide range of criticism covering literature, film, television, and print media...
to write a sequel of sorts to "Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper," extending the Ripper into the future. The story, "A Toy for JulietteA Toy for Juliette"A Toy for Juliette" is a short story by Robert Bloch from Harlan Ellison's Dangerous Visions, about Jack the Ripper, being pulled into a dystopic future by a sadistic femme fatale and her mysterious grandfather. There, she attempts to seduce him, only for Jack to find a knife underneath a pillow...
," was published in the landmark Dangerous VisionsDangerous VisionsDangerous Visions is a science fiction short story anthology edited by Harlan Ellison, published in 1967.A path-breaking collection, Dangerous Visions helped define the New Wave science fiction movement, particularly in its depiction of sex in science fiction...
anthology in 1967. Ellison wrote a continuation of Bloch's story for the same anthology, "The Prowler in the City at the Edge of the WorldThe Prowler in the City at the Edge of the World"The Prowler in the City at the Edge of the World", is a short story from Harlan Ellison's 1967 anthology, Dangerous Visions, in which he presents a collection of several different views of science fiction and fantasy, through 34 authors...
."
- The entity's description bears a striking similarity to the Horla from Guy de Maupassant'sGuy de MaupassantHenri René Albert Guy de Maupassant was a popular 19th-century French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents....
short horror story "Le HorlaThe Horla"The Horla" is an 1887 short horror story written in the style of a journal by French writer Guy de Maupassant.American horror writer H. P...
". The story had been adapted for the film Diary of a MadmanDiary of a Madman (film)Diary of a Madman is a 1963 horror film directed by Reginald Le Borg and starring Vincent Price, Nancy Kovack, and Chris Warfield.The screenplay, written by producer Robert Kent, is an adaptation of Guy de Maupassant's short story "Le Horla" , written in 1887...
a few years before the Star Trek episode was produced.