How to survive a Star Trek horror episode: 'Catspaw'
A dead crewman delivers a warning through his own mouth in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Catspaw." Jackson has returned from Pyris VII without an apparent physical cause of death, while Scotty and Mr. Sulu remain missing below. And Captain James T. Kirk cannot obey the demand to leave without abandoning the people at risk. "Catspaw" surrounds the rescue with witches, fog, a castle, and a black cat. The imagery suggests supernatural powers, but Halloween decorations do not make the danger harmless. Jackson is dead, and the missing officers have become leverage against their colleagues. Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy beam down and survive by investigating the gap between appearance and capability. The captors manipulate matter and minds but misunderstand the humans they threaten. Discovering the limits of those powers matters more than deciding whether to call them magic.…
