History Recap / StarTrekS2E5TheApple

* JustFollowingOrders: Averted; Kirk is angsting over his dead men, but Spock points out he's following Starfleet orders to investigate the planet. Kirk however points out that Starfleet allows him the discretion to modify those orders according to circumstances. This forshadows his later decision to break the PrimeDirective on [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight his own initiative]].

** Averted with Chekov and Landon, who are seen HoldingHands and smooching whenever they have a private moment.

* {{Adorkable}}: Spock has a rare moment of it when asked his opinion on how the aliens breed when the need arises. He ''really'' doesn't want to talk about it.

* ActionGirl: Yeoman Martha Landon knows judo (though this is likely to demonstrate [[IWasBeatenByAGirl how inept the Vaalians are at fighting]]) and is the only redshirt on the planet to get out of this episode alive.[[note]]In David Gerrold's ''The World of Star Trek'', Nichelle Nichols spoke about confronting Roddenberry with portrayals of herself and other female crewmembers as clinging and helpless; that they would know all kinds of self-defense techniques and be able to take care of themselves.[[/note]]

* CargoCult: A misplaced AI has found its way on this planet and now the natives believe it's a god. Either that, or it's the remnant of an older, much more advanced civilization that has crumbled leaving the natives we see as the only survivors.

* DawnAttack: Akuta tells the villagers to kill Strangers when the sun returns in the morning. However they're already awake by then, having gone to investigate when Spock realises the villagers have gone missing. Maples is the only one taken by surprise.

* DumbassHasAPoint: Akuta, while not necessarily dumb - just naive and a product of extreme isolation, points out that Kirk's promise not to harm him ring hollow if you just ''struck in the face'' mere seconds before. So Kirk instead promises not to do it again.

* FrequentlyBrokenUnbreakableVow: Never interfere...unless the celibate natives run around in loinskins worshiping a papier-mache dinosaur head.

* PerfectPacifistPeople: [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed]] with the aliens: They have lived for millenia, a simple yet sustainable diet, yet live in bamboo huts, and are (at least initially) very friendly. However, they are completely dependent on Vaal - the AI that they believe to be a god, have no idea how to express attraction to another (it's implied that they haven't even so much as ''shook hands'' with one another) because Vaal forbade it, and produce no children - partly because they don't need to...again because of Vaal. It's eventually subverted when Vaal teaches them how to kill - introducing (well, apart from Kirk punching Akuta) violence into the society.

* FlowerInHerHair: The women of this planet wear lots of flowers in their hair. [[RealMenWearPink The men wear wrist corsages.]]

!!Tropes for this episode include:

* PantyFighter: Landon does a high judo kick that verifies she's wearing regulation matching panties to go with her RedShirt.

* TheTalk: When Landon asks how the aliens could figure out reproduction, Kirk foist the question on Spock who appears reluctant to discuss a basic biological process. Later when the natives ask Kirk directly, he just says they'll figure it out themselves.

* AttackAtDawn: Akuta tells the villagers to kill Strangers when the sun returns in the morning. However they're already awake by then, having gone to investigate when Spock realises the villagers have gone missing. Maples is the only one taken by surprise.

* IComeInPeace: Kirk is [[AFatherToHisMen angry because three of his men have been killed]], so when he sees a GiantMook lurking in the bushes spying on them he sneaks up and throws a mighty punch, only to be surprised when [[PerfectPacifistPeople Akuta bursts into tears]]. Kirk then changes tactics to this trope, promising not to strike Akuta again. He uses the line later on Vaal, who is not impressed.

* ActionGirl: Yeoman Martha Landon knows judo and is the only redshirt on the planet to get out of this episode alive. Though this is likely to show [[IWasBeatenByAGirl how inept the Vaalians are at fighting]].[[note]]In David Gerrold's ''The World of Star Trek'', Nichelle Nichols spoke about confronting Roddenberry with portrayals of herself and other female crewmembers as clinging and helpless; that they would know all kinds of self-defense techniques and be able to take care of themselves.[[/note]]

* BeingWatched: Justified as Spock uses his tricorder to detect Akuta nearby. Also with all their food provided for them, it's not like the natives have an incentive to learn stalking skills to hunt game.

* MadeOfExplodium: The rocks on this planet. (Possibly just Vaal trying to keep out any threats to its existence.)
** In the scene where the natives are feeding Vaal, they're actually [[EatDirtCheap throwing rocks]] down its throat into whatever furnace lies inside. Spock earlier suggests the rocks may be a useful power source, so it appears they're a volatile form of solid fuel.

* WhatMeasureIsAMook: Averted; Kirk is distraught over the deaths of his men, and speaks of knowing

* PlotArmor: Spock's got it in this episode, surviving an attack by something that killed a RedShirt outright. ''Twice.''

* IComeInPeace: Kirk is angry because three of his men have been killed, so when he sees a GiantMook lurking in the bushes spying on them he sneaks up and throws a mighty punch, only to be surprised when [[PerfectPacifistPeople Akuta bursts into tears]]. Kirk then changes tactics to this trope, promising not to strike Akuta again. He uses the line later on Vaal, who is not impressed.

* AlienNonInterferenceClause: Spock's argument for letting the natives be.

* TheTalk: When Landon asks how the aliens could figure out reproduction, Kirk foist the question on Spock who for once is ridiculously reluctant to discuss a basic biological process. Later when the natives ask Kirk directly, he just says they'll figure it out themselves.

* ActionGirl: Yeoman Martha Landon knows judo and is the only redshirt on the planet to get out of this episode alive.[[note]]In David Gerrold's ''The World of Star Trek'', Nichelle Nichols spoke about confronting Roddenberry with portrayals of herself and other female crewmembers as clinging and helpless; that they would know all kinds of self-defense techniques and be able to take care of themselves.[[/note]]

* WritersCannotDoMath: Or perhaps "Special Effects People Cannot Do Math". When the ''Enterprise'' phasers attack Vaal, an exterior shot of the ship clearly shows two red beams diverging at a significant angle. At that distance, for one of the beams to hit the planet, the other almost certainly has to miss it entirely. However, the phaser beams which hit the [[CargoCult "god"]] do so no farther than perhaps a meter from one another.
** This is geometry, which is a kind of math.

** They can detect humanoid life with their sensors, so probably just picked the spot near the largest concentration.

* AIIsACrapShoot: This one has a bad case of AGodAmI.

* WhoWantsToLiveForever: Played with. The people of Vaal are immortal, but in turn for stagnation and lack of choice. They do not create, or think or feel. The PowerTrio debate on whether this is a borderline-FateWorseThanDeath or not.
* WritersCannotDoMath: Or perhaps "Special Effects People Cannot Do Math. When the ''Enterprise'' phasers attack Vaal, an exterior shot of the ship clearly shows two red beams diverging at a significant angle. At that distance, for one of the beams to hit the planet, the other almost certainly has to miss it entirely. However, the phaser beams which hit the [[CargoCult "god"]] do so no farther than perhaps a meter from one another.