In its first pilot episode, Star Trek: The Original Series revealed some dark truths about Captain Christopher Pike's (Jeffrey Hunter) most recent mission. Before Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) took over command of the USS Enterprise, Captain Pike sat in the captain's chair on the iconic ship. As established in Star Trek's original pilot, "The Cage," Pike had an entirely different crew aboard his Enterprise, aside from his science officer, Spock (Leonard Nimoy). In "The Cage," Pike answers a distress call from Talos IV only to learn it had been a trap set by the Talosians.
Upon beaming down to the planet, Pike meets a beautiful young woman named Vina (Susan Oliver) before the Talosians imprison the Enterprise captain. As Number One (Majel Barrett) leads a rescue mission, the Talosians present Pike with various illusions to convince him to stay. The powerful Talosians have tapped into Pike's mind and their illusions reveal some interesting information about Pike's last mission. In one of the manufactured scenarios, Pike finds himself on Rigel VII, a planet he had apparently visited two weeks previously.
"The Cage" Reveals How Captain Pike Killed Someone Directly Before Star Trek Began
Pike's First Mission To Rigel VII Ended In Disaster
In the illusion of Rigel VII, Captain Pike faces off against a Kalar warrior as Vina urges him on, saying: "You have to kill him as you did here before." Pike does not want to perform for the Talosians, but he has no choice but to kill the warrior to protect himself and Vina. Although Vina had not been there when Pike originally visited Rigel VII, the captain mentions that the situation begins just as it did then. Prior to the events of "The Cage," Captain Pike led a mission to Rigel VII that went bad, forcing him to kill at least one soldier.
Earlier in "The Cage," Pike spoke with the Enterprise's doctor, Dr. Phil Boyce (John Hoyt), revealing that three crew members were killed and seven injured during the Rigel VII mission. Pike blames himself for the attack, saying that he "should have smelled trouble," but Boyce assures him there was very little he could have done. This mission affects him so much that Pike considers resigning from Starfleet. The revelation confirms a dark truth about this original vision for the Star Trek universe – proving from the outset that there was always more to the stories than innocent adventure.
What Star Trek Has Revealed About The Rigel VII Mission Before "The Cage"
Captain Pike Revisited Rigel VII In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
Set after "The Cage" but prior to the events of Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds follows Captain Pike (Anson Mount) and his Enterprise crew. In Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 4, "Among the Lotus Eaters," Captain Pike and his crew revisit Rigel VII, revealing more about what happened on their previous mission. Pike soon learns that his yeoman Zac Nguyen (David Huynh) had survived and had accidentally been left behind when the crew made a hasty retreat. In violation of the Prime Directive, Nguyen then declared himself ruler over a group of Kalar.
While investigating the planet, Pike and the landing party also learn that an asteroid orbiting Rigel VII has properties that cause memory loss. Those who remain on or near the planet long enough begin to lose their memories, soon forgetting their entire identities. Thankfully, Pike retains enough of himself to know that something is wrong, and he subdues Nguyen and later removes the asteroid causing the memory loss. This allows the Kalar to retain their memories and begin reestablishing their culture. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds may have reinvented the character of Captain Pike, but the show still drew from the unaired Star Trek: The Original Series pilot.
