ellis@ultra.DEC (David Ellis) (03/18/86)
A question was asked about the scene at the end of "The Menagerie" when the "healthy" Captain Pike accompanied Vina back underground. The original question was: > When was this scene filmed? > It can't be a part of "The Cage".... Pike returns to the ship. > (Doesn't he?) > Was the scene filmed afterward, was it intended as a promotion, > was it a blooper, or did it actually appear in the pilot??? dec-donner!timpson answered: > The scene was filmed for THE MENAGERIE not for THE CAGE. If you will notice > they don't let you see Pike's face clearly and you can also tell it is > somebody else if you look close. This answer is not correct. Having seen Roddenberry's black-and-white print of the original "The Cage" film, I can say that the scene in question was definitely there. In the original context, the duplicate Pike is understood as a Talosian illusion for Vina's benefit to keep her company (while the real Pike did indeed return to the Enterprise). In "The Menagerie", the same scene was placed in a new context that gives it the entirely different meaning of an illusion for Pike's benefit that he has been restored to full physical vitality. A very ingenious piece of rewriting! David Ellis / DEC, Littleton MA / 617-486-6784