Chess, Logic, and the Printed Word

TOS: Episode 20: Court Martial

Episode Quick Summary
"Court Martial" opens with Kirk submitting his sworn deposition to a commanding officer of a Star Fleet space colony, Starbase 11. The ship has escaped a serious space storm having suffered serious damage, as well as the death of an officer. After reviewing the deposition in relation to the ship's log, the commanding officer tells Kirk he will have to face a review for potential court martial. Kirk's deposition claims he released a space pod containing the now-dead officer after red alert. The ship's log showed, however, that the pod was released before red alert. On board the planet many members of Star Fleet obviously hold Kirk responsible for the officer's death. The commanding officer asks Kirk to accept a permanent ground assignment, or a court martial trial, urging him to opt out of space duty. Kirk, however, knows he didn't do anything wrong and so demands an official review. For the first time in Star Fleet history, a ship's captain faces general court martial. On board the planet, Kirk encounters a beautiful friend from the past now an attorney ready to recommend the best possible defense in Kirk's case. It turns out his beautiful friend is also his prosecuting attorney.

Kirk facing his trial

Episode Tidbits
A number of friends of mine that work in academics preserve the texts they study as pdf files on their computer. They prefer a digital library to a paper one. Kirk's attorney at law objects to such a practice. Though his office contains a computer complete with all great defenses in human history, he refuses to use it, and instead relies on working directly out of thick, old legal texts. Kirk sees the state of the attorney's office, covered in books, and happily accepts his services. Such action seems a point in favor of Captain Kirk. I couldn't help but appreciate someone with such regard for the printed word.

This episode also treats Captain Kirk as a well-established ladies man, more interested in flirting with past love interests, than in dealing with the seriousness of his court case. Previous episodes have shown his appreciation of a lady love, or have included comments towards women, but have not treated his relationship to women as if it is something automatically understood by the audience. In "Court Martial" this image of Kirk is shifted so that it appears his amorous behavior is well-established, and understood, as well as being character defining.

We also, in this episode, hear Kirk's inestimable record of valor and heroism. It has been heavily established throughout the series that Kirk is an unusual man with many accomplishments. This episode further confirms Kirk's remarkable reputation, but also forces us to question if the repetitive strain of such a life has caused Kirk to make a mistake resulting in the loss of a man's life.

The real star of this episode, has got to be, as always Mister Spock. This episode shows him utilizing his Vulcanian logic to reason through Captain Kirk's personality characteristics in the same manner he would reason through the likely results of external forces on an inanimate object. He demands that it is not speculation that causes him to make such judgment, but instead his own careful study of Kirk's behaviors. "It is impossible for Captain Kirk to act out of either panic or malice." As the episode continues, just as it appears that Kirk will be damned to suffer a guilty verdict Spock challenges the falliability of the computer. Though the mechanical ability of the computer cannot be challenged (and so in that sense the computer is logically infalliable), Spock realizes that the computer can be limited in another sense. By playing repeated games of chess against the computer, and thereby winning those games (which should be impossible; Spock should be able to gain no more than a draw), Spock discovers a weakness in the computer. Again, Kirk is mightier than logic or reason alone. But further, and more importantly, the might and power of humanity is greater than the potential of a machine.

Spock's revelation forces this episode to teach us that even as we are used to, and in various ways dependent on our digital technology, we must remember that it is still meant to be in service to us, rather than us defined by it. We must not, in other words, allow our technology determine for us the terms under which we live. The terms through which we will live our lives are defined by us. We must remember that this is the case, and hold ourselves accountable for the role we allow technology to have in our lives.

This episode also anticipates a difficulty Captain Picard will later face in The Next Generation. Having been court martialed himself, Picard later must continue to work with the ruling officer that ran the trial against him. Kirk must find a way to face his own love interest after she has worked as prosecution against him. But with Kirk's mighty humanity, he finds no difficulty in forgiving, and kissing his prosecuting attorney. If you look close, you get a pretty clear shot of her butt too.