1x25 The Devil in the Dark - Star Trek: The Original Series Episode Guide

Star Trek: The Original Series

- Episode 01x25

Episode: 01x25
Title: The Devil in the Dark
Type: Regular Episode
Production Code: 6149-26
First Aired: Mar. 09, 1967

Season 1 » Episode #25 - The Devil in the Dark

Star Trek: The Original Series - 01x25 The Devil in the Dark

Summary: The Enterprise goes to a mining colony where 50 workers have been killed by a creature that can move through solid rock. Shortly after Kirk starts investigating, the creature takes a vital irreplaceable component from the colony's reactor and they have only a few hours to catch or kill the creature and recover the part before everyone must evacuate or die.

Who appeared in this episode?

Mr. Spock

Guest Stars:

Captain James T. Kirk	played by William Shatner
Dr. McCoy	played by DeForest Kelley
Vanderberg	played by Ken Lynch
Scott	played by James Doohan
Appel	played by Brad Weston
Schmitter	played by Biff Elliot
Engineer #1	played by George Allen
Guard	played by Jon Cavett
Giotto	played by Barry Russo

Season 1 / Episode 25: - The Devil in the Dark

Captain James T. Kirk: Well, Mr. Spock, I'm going to have to ask you to get in touch with the Horta again. Tell her our proposition: She and her children can do all the tunneling they want, our people will remove the minerals, and each side will leave the other alone. Do you think she'll go for it?
Mr. Spock: It seems logical, Captain. The Horta has a very logical mind. And after close association with humans, I find that curiously refreshing.

Season 1 / Episode 25: - The Devil in the Dark

Spock: Jim, I remind you that this is a silicon based form of life. Dr. McCoy's medical knowledge will be totally useless.
Capt. Kirk: He is a healer, let him heal.

[More Quotes]

MISTAKES/GOOFS

CHAR: When deciding which of two tunnels to investigate, Kirk tells Spock to take the one on the left, and he'll take the one on the right. But he gestures with his phaser to the exact opposite tunnels.
CONT: When Kirk and the Horta have squared off against each other, and Spock enters, there's a two-angle back-and-forth. When the camera is directly at Kirk, he is kneeling with a phaser in his right hand. When the angle switches to Kirk at left, Spock far center, Kirk is kneeling but with a communicator in his left hand. The change goes back and forth a couple of times.
FAKE: When Kirk is cornered by the Horta in "Devil In The Dark", a shot from behind shows that it is a stunt double leveling his phaser at the monster.

TRIVIA

This episode includes only one actress, who appears for a few seconds and has no lines.
William Shatner was in Florida for his father's funeral while nearly all of Spock's "mind meld" scene with the Horta was shot. His screen double is shown from behind in several of the shots and all of Kirk's "reaction" shots were made after he returned.
The Horta was designed, built, and performed by Janos Prohaska, who reportedly wore the costume into Star Trek producer Gene L. Coon's office. Coon liked the creature so much he wrote Devil in the Dark to feature it.
William Shatner's favorite episode.
The Horta was a re-design of the large microbe from the final episode of the original "Outer Limits" titled "The Probe".