YMMV / Star Trek S1 E13 "The Conscience of the King"

• Canon Fodder: According to The Autobiography of James T. Kirk, the relief ship that comes to Tarsus IV was the newly-commissioned Enterprise under Captain Robert April. This helped fuel young Kirk's desire to join Starfleet.
• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • "In a Mirror, Darkly" reveals (via a barely visible screen) that Hoshi Sato was among the 4,000 killed by Kodos.
  • When Spock says Kodos had his own theories about eugenics, Bones replies that he wouldn't be the first. This episode is before we learn about Khan and the Eugenics Wars, which makes McCoy's comment darker than was probably originally intended.
• He Really Can Act: In a departure from his usual Large Ham style, William Shatner showcases some brilliantly subtle acting in this episode, really driving home how deeply affected Kirk is by what he witnessed.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • The Simpsons has made it somewhat more difficult to be suitably grave about the possibility that the villain is the notorious Kodos in disguise.
  • Kodos' Start of Darkness involved him losing most of their food supply, so he divided the population in half (for eugenic reasons however rather than chance) and exterminated one half. This wiped out exactly 50% of the colony, but he got away with it and later became a Retired Monster who dies after his sins catch up to him. One can't help but think of Thanos.
  • Star Trek: Deep Space Nine cast member René Auberjonois frequently shared an amusing anecdote about his experiences watching the original Star Trek. During the scene where Riley's drink is secretly poisoned, the unseen assassin is using what we now recognize as a Windex-style spray bottle (which was invented around the time of this episode's airing). He mused about how such bottles are now ubiquitous, yet appeared perfectly futuristic at the time. Of course, this isn't implausible in universe, as it's quite believable that an industrial lubricant might be applied in that way.
• Older Than They Think: Themes: Ron Moore is a fan of this episode, particularly the way Kirk wavers between his ethics and thirst for vengeance ("There's a stain of cruelty on your shining armor, Captain"). "The brooding tone and the morally ambiguous nature of the drama fascinated me and definitely influenced my thinking as to what Trek could and should be all about." Likewise, in his re-imagined version of Battlestar Galactica, Moore named the prison barge Astral Queen after the ship commanded in this episode by Captain Daily.
• Ron the Death Eater: Kodos frequently gets the "make the villain even more villainous" version of this treatment in fan works, especially those set in the reboot universe. Whereas the episode depicts him as a particularly twisted (and repentant) Well-Intentioned Extremist, these fan works often depict him as not only a Manipulative Bastard using the situation of the famine to his own benefit^note though one can argue enacting a culling based on one's own theories showcases he did use the situation for his own benefit to some extent, it's not quite the same as what's depicted in these works, which generally involve a lot more active manipulation of the situation on Kodos' part, but also a sadistic monster who reveled in the pain he caused. While there's no denying that Kodos canonically committed an unspeakable atrocity, there's no indication that he, for instance, deliberately caused the famine to create a situation where he could put his principles into effect, delayed calling for help in order to ensure the death of the "unworthy" and/or extend his own time in power, was in possession of secret stores of food the entire time that would have been enough to feed the entire colony, or delighted in torture and murder (including of children) — all of which are common attributes of the character in fan works.
• Squick: Isn't it just a trifle odd that father and daughter were playing a married couple? True, Lord and Lady Macbeth don't have any big romantic moments (she spends much of their time together belittling his manhood) but still! It becomes more so when you note his daughter is unhealthily attached to her father.
  • From the company's side of things, it's likely that it was just a case of casting their most established actors in the most prominent roles, and that given the aforementioned lack of any romantic scenes, they just didn't think much of it one way or the other. But that doesn't mean Lenore might not have been enjoying the fantasy a little too much.
• Theiss Titillation Theory: Lenore wears a mink micro mini when she visits the bridge of the Enterprise. Her other outfits (barring her Ophelia costume) are a strange blend of Greek chiton, Indian sari and early flower child.
• Vindicated by History: This episode was among the lowest in ratings during the first season, mainly due to the fact that it was "too talky" with no action scenes, and didn't feature any "monster" or "sci-fi gimmick". Hence, it was decided not to give it a repeat broadcast. Now, it's considered one of the show's best episodes.

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