The Cage
- Episode aired Oct 4, 1988
- TV-PG
- 1h 3m
Capt. Pike is held prisoner and tested by aliens who have the power to project incredibly lifelike illusions.Capt. Pike is held prisoner and tested by aliens who have the power to project incredibly lifelike illusions.Capt. Pike is held prisoner and tested by aliens who have the power to project incredibly lifelike illusions.
- Number One
- (as M. Leigh Hudec)
- Bridge Crewmember
- (uncredited)
- Bridge Crewmember
- (uncredited)
- The Kalar Warrior
- (uncredited)
- Talosian
- (uncredited)
- Transporter Chief Pitcairn
- (uncredited)
- Third Survivor
- (uncredited)
- First Talosian
- (voice)
- (uncredited)
- Dr. Theodore Haskins
- (uncredited)
- Enterprise Geologist
- (uncredited)
- Survivor
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter the pilot aired, the studio told Gene Roddenberry to get rid of the guy with the ears, Mr. Spock. But Roddenberry wanted an alien presence on the bridge and had to fight to keep the character.
- GoofsAs Pike retreats up the stairs from the warrior on "Rigel VII", you can see the blade of his spear bend as it pushes against the warrior's chest.
- Quotes
Captain Christopher Pike: The point is that this isn't the only life available. There's a whole galaxy of things to choose from.
Dr. Boyce: Not for you. A man either lives life as it happens to him, meets it head-on and licks it, or he... turns his back on it and starts to wither away.
Captain Christopher Pike: Now you're beginning to talk like a doctor, bartender.
Dr. Boyce: Take your choice. We both get the same two kinds of customers - the living... and the dying.
- Alternate versionsSpecial Enhanced version Digitally Remastered with new exterior shots and remade opening theme song
- ConnectionsEdited into Star Trek: The Menagerie: Part I (1966)
- SoundtracksStar Trek Theme (Original TV Series Version)
(uncredited)
Yet Roddenberry's vision yielded a story that overcame the plastic and wooden sets and the hastily put together special effects, to give us our first look into his "Star Trek Universe"--a futuristic united Earth, which has finally been put right enabling mankind to set out for the stars.
We're so accustomed to that ST Universe by now, that we may forget how truly visionary it was for 1965: A giant warp-powered starship that looked truly futuristic and beautiful, not some cliche rocket shape. The bridge, the very model of a well-designed command center, to be eclipsed only by the sets of "2001: A Space Odyssey" three years later. The transporter. A female second-in-command and a mixed-gender crew. And most important of all, believable, multi-dimensional characters who are supported by all that futuristic technology and special effects, rather than playing second fiddle to them. Roddenberry's staunch insistence on believable characterization was what separated all the Star Trek series from any other sci-fi series--and is what has enabled the Star Trek franchise to last nearly 40 years.
While the Captain Pike character didn't survive into the second pilot or the series, it also represented a fascinating departure from the TV heroes of most past TV series--something you might see in a big-budget first-run movie rather than a TV pilot film. Pike is depressed and just plain burned out from the constant strain of command, and he is seriously contemplating resigning from Starfleet altogether because he just can't take it anymore. Like any harried, burned-out white-collar worker of today, he has unrealistic dreams of just going home at a young age to retire early, or maybe starting his own business, or anything to get him out of that captain's chair. The adventure he has in "The Cage" acts as his redemption, giving him a live demonstration of Dr. Boyce's statement that no matter how tempted a man may be to pack it in and give up on life, he must find a way to meet life on its own terms, not run from it and hide in daydreams of a life that in the end isn't really for him.
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Star Trek the Original Series: The Cage
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro