- "Do you know about being with somebody? Wanting to be? If I had the whole universe, I'd give it to you, Janice. When I see you, I feel like I'm hungry all over. Do you know how that feels?"
- ―Charlie Evans
| "Charlie X" | |
|---|---|
| Series Star Trek Season 1, Episode 2 | |
| |
| Air date | September 15th, 1966 |
| Writers | D.C. Fontana |
| Director | Lawrence Dobkin |
| Producers | Gene Roddenberry; Robert H. Justman; John D.F. Black |
| Starring | William Shatner; Leonard Nimoy |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous "The Man Trap" |
Next "Where No Man Has Gone Before" |
"Charlie X" is the second episode of season one of the American science fiction television series Star Trek. It was directed by Lawrence Dobkin and written by D.C. Fontana, based upon a story treatment by Gene Roddenberry. It first aired on NBC on September 15th, 1966. In this episode, Captain Kirk is instructed to pick up a teenage boy named Charlie Evans from the crew of the survey ship Antares. Having lived a sheltered life, Charlie is socially inept and unsure of how to deal with his budding emotions - especially as they pertain to Yeoman Rand. Teenage puppy love however quickly becomes a dangerous bid for control as Kirk and the rest of the crew of the Enterprise come to find out that there is more to Charlie Evans than meets the eye.
Synopsis[]
Stardate: 1533.6-1533.8
The starship Enterprise meets up with the cargo vessel Antares where they beam aboard Captain Ramart, his first officer Tom Nellis and a seventeen-year-old boy named Charlie Evans. Ramart explains to Enterprise captain James T. Kirk that they found Evans marooned on the planet Thasus. Evans' closest known relatives are on Colony Alpha V, which is on the Enterprise 's current route, so Kirk agrees to transport him. Ramart and Nellis look nervous, agitated and simultaneously relieved at the thought of getting rid of Charlie, but as they talk, Evans gives them a meaningful stare. Suddenly, Ramart and Nellis' expression changes and they begin telling Kirk about how wonderful a boy Charlie Evans is and that it was a pleasure to have him on the Antares. Ramart and Nellis beam back to their ship.
Charlie is anxious to see the rest of the ship, but Kirk tries to keep him calm, telling him that he wants him to get a physical in sick bay first and that he will have quarters set up for him. Yeoman Janice Rand enters the transporter room and Kirk tells Charlie that she will show him to his quarters. Rand is the first female that Charlie has ever seen and even blankly asks Kirk, "Is that a girl", to which Kirk smiles and replies, "Yes, Charlie. That's a girl". Evans is immediately smitten with Yeoman Rand.
Doctor McCoy gives Charlie Evans a thorough examination in sick bay and gives him a 4.0 (100% healthy) rating. Charlie tells McCoy that Captain Kirk is not like Captain Ramart. He tells him that the people on the other ship did not like him and that he desperately wants people to like him.
Charlie wanders about the corridors of the Enterprise. He comes upon two technicians, one of whom slaps the other on the backside, signifying a job well done. Charlie mentally files this scene for use later. He then approaches Yeoman Rand and provides her with a gift. Rand is flattered, but a little surprised and asks Charlie where he acquired it. Charlie eludes the question, citing that he just wants to be with her. Rand tells him to meet up with her in the rec room when she is off-duty. He then gives Rand a pat on the bottom, just like he had seen earlier. Rand later reports this impropriety to Captain Kirk who has to tactfully explain to the boy why such behavior is inappropriate.
On the bridge, Kirk tries to figure out what to do about Charlie. He instructs Bones to give him tips on adolescence. Bones tells him that the boy needs a guide and a father figure. Spock cannot figure out how Charlie was able to survive on Thasus for so long without food.
Spock jams out.
Later, many of the ship's crew members gather in the rec room. Spock plays a Vulcan lyre and Nyota Uhura prances about the room singing a song that has everyone smiling and laughing. Charlie enters the room and stands behind Yeoman Rand who is playing cards. Uhura continues singing, but her next song uses Charlie Evans as its subject, and he begins to feel as if she is intentionally mocking him. Without warning, Uhura suddenly goes mute. Charlie then makes the moves on Yeoman Rand. He tries to impress her with various card tricks and even makes one card suddenly appear inside her tunic. He then alters three of the cards so that they all bear Rand's face upon them.
Later, Captain Ramart attempts to contact the Enterprise from his ship. Kirk takes the call on the bridge, but Uhura only picks up static transmission. Charlie is present and cuts off the signal between the two vessels. Kirk orders the crew to scan for the location of the survey ship, but they pick up only debris. The Antares has been destroyed.
Again in the rec room, Kirk and Spock play a game of 3-D chess. They try to figure out what happened to the Antares.
Kirk notes that Charlie seemed to be aware of what happened. Charlie enters the room and Kirk offers to let him play with Spock, then leaves. Spock beats Charlie Evans inside of three moves, which greatly angers him. Spock leaves and Charlie uses his powers to melt the chess pieces.
A frustrated Charlie Evans then goes into the corridor where he runs into Yeoman Rand. Rand introduces Charlie to a young crew member named Tina Lawton. Charlie dismisses Tina’s presence and the girl feels insulted and leaves. Rand chastises Charlie for being so rude. He states that he doesn't care about her and puts further moves on Rand.
Yeoman Rand goes to the bridge and complains to Captain Kirk about Charlie's behavior. She reveals that she is the boy's first real crush. Kirk tells her that he will have another talk with Charlie. He meets with Evans and tries to give him some tips on how to meet girls, but also warns him to leave Yeoman Rand alone.
Kirk decides to participate in some male bonding with the boy. He takes Charlie to the gym and teaches him some tumbling techniques. There is another crew member present, Sam. Kirk and Sam teach Charlie some easy throws, but Charlie is clumsy and unsure of himself. Kirk flips the boy over and Sam begins laughing. Charlie is enraged and growls, "Don't laugh at me!" Suddenly, Sam disappears. Kirk realizes that Charlie is the reason that his crewman seems to have disintegrated. He wants to know what Charlie did, but all he says is that he "is gone". Kirk summons security to take Evans back to his quarters, but Charlie uses telekinesis to thrown the men backwards. He then uses his power to make a phaser disappear. Kirk then cautiously, but calmly instructs Charlie Evans to return to his quarters.
Uhura calls Kirk and tells him that all of the phasers on the ship have disappeared. Kirk then calls for a meeting with Mister Spock and Doctor McCoy. They theorize that Charlie might be a member of the Thasian race. Charlie is then brought to the meeting room. Kirk asks him if he is responsible for the destruction of the Antares. Evans admits his involvement and tells them that he destroyed the ship because the crew members were not nice to him.
Charlie decides that he has had enough and decides to take control of the ship altogether. When Uhura tries to use the communications console, she experiences a severe electric shock. Kirk tries to make a course correction on the ship, but Charlie prevents this as well. Spock too tries to interfere, but Charlie uses his power to force the Vulcan into reciting various lines of poetry. He thinks it’s funny to see Spock make a fool of himself. Kirk orders Charlie Evans to leave his ship and his crew alone.
Charlie leaves the bridge and runs into Tina Lawton again. He looks at her strangely and she asks what is wrong. Charlie then uses his power to turn her into an iguana. Charlie goes to Rand's room and presents a pink flower. She is angry that he entered her room without knocking. Charlie tells her not to ever lock her room again. Rand secretly taps the communicator and their conversation is heard on the bridge. Kirk and Spock rush to her room, but Charlie uses his power to knock them back. Rand slaps Charlie across the face, so he makes her disappear. He then tells Kirk that he has to be nice to him. At this point, Kirk notices that Spock's legs are broken. He tells Charlie that he needs Spock to assist in running the ship and orders him to heal him.
The Thasian appears.
Charlie walks down the hall. He sees a young crewman and turns her into an old crone just to be cruel. He then passes a room where several crewmen are laughing and freezes them in place. One of the women has no face.
Charlie then goes to the bridge again. He corrects the course heading to keep them going towards Colony 5 and tells Kirk what he did. He leaves the bridge and briskly brushes past other crew members. Kirk thinks Charlie might be overtaxing himself by taking control of the ship. He theorizes that if they overload him by turning on every device on the vessel, they might be able to defeat him. Charlie comes back onto the bridge and sits in Kirk's chair. Bones and Spock then activate every device on the ship. Kirk antagonizes him and yanks him out of the chair. Charlie retorts by making him double over in pain. Taking command of all of the ship's systems proves to be overtaxing, just as Kirk and Spock had hoped and Charlie begins to lose control.
Uhura picks up a subspace transmission from Thasus. Suddenly, Rand appears on the bridge. The green disembodied image of a Thasian head appears and begins speaking. He apologizes to Captain Kirk for all of the chaos Charlie has wrought and promises to turn everything back to normal. Charlie begs to stay on the Enterprise and passionately states that he does not want to go back with the Thasians. Charlie has an intense emotional breakdown and then disappears in a glowing ball of light.
Cast[]
Principal Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| William Shatner | Captain James T. Kirk |
| Leonard Nimoy | Mister Spock |
Guest Stars[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Robert Walker | Charlie Evans |
Featuring[]
Uncredited cast[]
Note: The following is taken from the full credits list for this entry on IMDB. As it is a website with user-submitted information, some of the data listed here, including character names may be inaccurate.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Bill Blackburn | Lieutenant Hadley |
| Frank da Vinci | Security guard |
| Bob Herron | Sam |
| John Lindesmith | Helmsman |
| Eddie Paskey | Lieutenant Ed Leslie |
| Gene Roddenberry | Enterprise chef |
| Ron Veto | Security guard |
| Laura Wood | Old woman |
Notes & Trivia[]
- This episode was adapted as a short story and the first vignette in the Star Trek 1 novel by James Blish. The title of the story was changed to "Charlie's Law".
- Though it is the second aired episode of Star Trek, it is actually the eighth episode in production.
- This is the first episode of Star Trek written by D.C. Fontana. She writes ten episodes of the series in total, two of which are written under the pseudonym Michael Richards. She writes five episodes of the show from season one. Her next episode is "Tomorrow Is Yesterday".
- First and only known appearance of the Thasians.
- First appearance of Charlie Evans. Charlie returns later in the eighth issue of the Star Trek: Starfleet Acadmy comic book series by Marvel Comics.
- First and only appearance of Tina Lawton.
- First appearance of a Vulcan lyre.
- Series creator Gene Roddenberry makes a cameo appearance as a chef on the Enterprise.
- Nyota Uhura appears to be very good at improvisational lyrical composition. In modern vernacular we call this freestylin'.
Allusions[]
- The poem that Charlie Evans forces Spock to recite is Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven. The line that he quotes is, "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary..."
- Another poetic line that Charlie forces Spock to recite is "There's a – Tiger, tiger, burning bright in the forest of the night." This is from the William Blake poem, The Tiger.
Uhura's song[]
In the first act of this episode, Nyota Uhura sings two stanzas of a song in the rec room called "Oh, On the Starship Enterprise". The first version of the song is performed while Mister Spock provides musical accompaniament with a Vulcan lyre. Uhura creates the lyrics herself, which are a playful if somewhat mean-spirited jab at Mister Spock.
- Oh, on the Starship Enterprise
- There's someone who's in Satan's guise,
- Whose devil's ears and devil's eyes
- Could rip your heart from you!
- At first his look could hypnotize,
- And then his touch would barbarize.
- His alien love could victimize...
- And rip your heart from you!
- And that's why female astronauts
- Oh very female astronauts
- Wait terrified and overwrought
- To find what he will do.
- Oh girls in space, be wary,
- Be wary, be wary!
- Girls in space, be wary!
- We know not what he'll do.
After Charlie Evans enters the rec room, Uhura changes the lyrics to the next part of the song, but keeps the same rhythym and tempo.
- Now from a planet out in space
- There comes a lad not commonplace
- A-seeking out his first embrace.
- He's saving it for you.
- Oh Charlie's our new darling
- Our darling, our darling.
- Oh Charlie's our new darling.
- We know not what you'll do!
Bloopers[]
- Not so much a blooper as it is an irregularity, but this episode contains another rare example of Spock smiling. He seems to really enjoy playing the lyre while Nyota Uhura sings to him. Spock also smiled in a scene from the original unaired pilot episode, "The Cage".
Quotes[]
- Captain Kirk: Charlie, there are a million things in this universe you can have and there are a million things you can't have. It's no fun facing that, but that's the way things are.
- Charlie Evans: What am I going to do?
- Captain Kirk: Hang on tight and survive. Everybody does.
- Charlie Evans: You don't!
- Captain Kirk: Everybody, Charlie. Me too.
....
- Mister Spock: We are in the hands of an adolescent.
....
- Charlie Evans: She's not the same... not like you. She's... she's just a girl. You're... you smell like a girl.
....
- Charlie Evans: Growing up isn't so much. I'm not a man, and I can do anything!
....
- Captain Kirk: There's no right way to hit a woman.
....
- Captain Kirk: He's a boy in a man's body, trying to be an adult with the adolescence in him getting in the way.