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Star Trek: TOS 'Dagger of the Mind' 60th anniversary (Redshirts retro review)

A “humane” prison, a mind‑wiping machine, and the night Star Trek invented the mind meld.
Pictured: Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock in STAR TREK (The Original Series) Screen grab: ©1967 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Pictured: Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock in STAR TREK (The Original Series) Screen grab: ©1967 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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“Dagger of the Mind” first aired on November 3, 1966, and nearly 60 years later, it remains one of Star Trek's earliest and most unsettling examinations of power, control, and the danger of letting others decide who you should be.

The episode is uneven, but Dr. Van Gelder's terror, the neural neutralizer, and the franchise's first Vulcan mind meld make it essential early Trek. With that in mind, the following are five reasons "Dagger of the Mind" is still worth watching today.

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