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Whom Gods Destroy: Directed by Herb Wallerstein. With William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, Steve Ihnat. Kirk and Spock are taken prisoners by a former starship captain named Garth, who now resides at, and has taken over, a high security asylum for the criminally insane.
- (3.2K)
- Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
- Herb Wallerstein
- 1969-01-03
A Star Trek episode where Kirk faces a shape-shifting madman who wants to conquer the galaxy. Learn about the plot, the title, the reception, the censorship and the releases of this episode.
- Summary
- Memorable Quotes
- Background Information
- Links and References
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Teaser
Kirk and Spock beam down to the Elba II asylum with a revolutionary new medicine to treat the inmates' mental disorders. They are met in the asylum control center by Dr. Cory, the governor of the penal colony. He explains that in order to maintain security they are under a transport shield, and so he laughingly won't take "no" for an answer on his invitation to Kirk and Spock to dinner. He also explains that the colony has just increased the number of fourteen inmates by one, and that new inm...
Act One
After Spock is stunned by Garth with a phaser and dragged away by the Andorian and Tellarite, Kirk is placed into the holding cell with the real Dr. Cory. Garth demands to be called "Lord Garth" and talks about destroying his enemies. Destroying the medicine, he is intent on taking command of the USS Enterprise, seeking vengeance against his former crewmembers, planning to hunt them all down. He instantly morphs into Kirk in front of the real Kirk and goes to the control room. When he leaves,...
Act Two
Realizing that he can't board the Enterprise without the countersign, Garth returns to Dr. Cory's cell and renews his dinner invitation for Kirk and Spock but states that Governor Cory is not on the guest list, an intentional oversight, as Garth puts it. They all proceed to an elaborate feast with the inmates providing the entertainment, including a seductive dance by Marta, the Orion inmate seen earlier. Kirk and Spock whisper to each other the idea of causing some sort of distraction which...
"How can we be powerful enough to wipe out a planet and still be so helpless?" 1. - McCoy, to Scott "We are going to take the Enterprise. Do you hear me? We aregoing to take her if I have to shatter every bone in Captain Kirk's body." 1. - Garth, to his followers "Why can't I blow off just one of his ears?" 1. - Martato Garth, on Spock "I may have ...
Story and script
1. The title is based on an anonymous Greek proverb often wrongly attributed to Euripides, and quoted by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in The Masque of Pandora: "Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad." 2. The story outline was produced 26 July 1968. In the first draft script (5 September 1968) Garth of Titan threw the asylum guards out into the poisonous atmosphere. The conditions inside the asylum were also more graphic, with inmates displaying symptoms of various mental illnesses. Pr...
Cast
1. In the episode, Garth is stated to have already been a famous Starfleet Captain when James Kirk was at Starfleet Academy, and was known as the "Hero of Axanar" which was a battle established to have taken place sometime in the mid 2250s, approximately 15 years prior to the episode. The script notes also called for Garth to be an "aged starship captain in his late 40s or mid 50s," thus implying that Garth is perhaps fifteen to twenty years older than Kirk. Actor Steve Ihnat was in fact thre...
Costumes
1. Garth's uniform appears to be the same one worn by Commissioner Ferris in "The Galileo Seven". It also appeared in the second season episodes "Wolf in the Fold" and "Journey to Babel", worn by background extras. However, Garth wears the outfit with one silver boot and one gold boot. Garth's furred robe is the same one worn by Anton Karidian in "The Conscience of the King". 2. The dress Marta wears in the Teaser was originally worn by an Tantalus Colony inmate played by Jeannie Malone in "D...
Starring
1. William Shatner as Kirk
Also starring
1. Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock And 1. DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy
Guest stars
1. Steve Ihnat as Garth 2. Yvonne Craig as Marta 3. James Doohan as Scott 4. George Takei as Sulu 5. Nichelle Nichols as Uhura 6. Richard Geary as Andorian 7. Gary Downey as Tellarite And 1. Keye Luke as Cory
Kirk and Spock are captured by a former Starfleet hero who has gone insane and plans to take over the Enterprise. Learn about the plot, the characters, the production and the themes of this classic episode of Star Trek: The Original Series.
Find out who starred in the 1969 Star Trek episode Whom Gods Destroy, directed by Herb Wallerstein and written by Lee Erwin and Jerry Sohl. See the full list of actors, producers, composers, and other crew members on IMDb.
Kirk and Spock are captured by a madman who can shape-shift and take over the Enterprise. They must stop him from destroying the galaxy and killing Kirk.
May 19, 2018 · Kirk and Spock are captured by a shapeshifting madman who was once a starship captain. The episode explores the themes of insanity, ambition and peace in the Star Trek universe.
"Whom Gods Destroy" is the fourteenth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek. Written by Lee Erwin and directed by Herb Wallerstein, it was first broadcast on January 3, 1969.
