Mudd's Passion
- FIRST SHOWN (US)
- 10 November 1973
- ON
- NBC
- STARDATE
- 4978.5
- DIRECTED BY
- Hal Sutherland
- PRODUCTION NO.
- 22008
WRITTEN BYWritten by Stephen Kandel
Harry Mudd is back, peddling a love potion to lonely miners, and when Nurse Chapel is tempted to try it on Spock, the con man sees his chance.
Red alert: the full plot, ending included. Haven't watched yet?REVEAL SYNOPSIS
The Enterprise tracks Harry Mudd to the mining colony of Motherlode, where he is selling love crystals to the miners. Spock exposes the act, revealing that Mudd's alluring assistant is really a Rigellian hypnoid, and Mudd gives himself up rather than face his angry customers. Aboard the ship he persuades Nurse Chapel to try a crystal on Spock, then uses her phaser and identity card to escape, taking her hostage in a shuttlecraft bound for a nearby planet. To everyone's surprise the potion works. Spock falls for Chapel, and broken crystals spread the effect through the ship's air, leaving the crew giddy with affection. On the planet, Kirk and Spock find Mudd and Chapel menaced by enormous rock creatures, and Kirk uses the remaining crystals on the creatures to distract them long enough for a rescue. The potion wears off, leaving headaches and hostility behind, and Mudd records a confession.
- 01Roger C. Carmel returns, uncredited, as Harry Mudd. It is the con man's third and final on-screen appearance, after “Mudd's Women” and “I, Mudd”.
- 02Writer Stephen Kandel also wrote Mudd's two live-action episodes, and returned to the animated series with “The Jihad”.
- 03Carmel was the third original series guest actor to reprise his role in the animated series, following Mark Lenard and Stanley Adams.