Weekly SF Babe Poll (Star Trek "Cage" Match)

Most self-respecting (and self-loathing?) Star Trek fans know that there were two different pilots for the original series. The first pilot, entitled The Cage, never aired on TV in its intended original form. NBC executives rejected it, deeming it "too cerebral."

During the course of this pilot, Captain Christopher Pike finds himself in a zoo cage on the desert planet Talos IV, where his captors are attempting to match him up with an ideal mate to repopulate the surface of their war-ravaged globe. That particular scene sets up this week's "Cage" match:

Yeoman J.M. Colt (portrayed by Laurel Goodwin) is a new member of Pike's crew. The Talosians describe her advantages to Pike as "...youth and strength, plus unusually -- strong -- female drives." I'm sure Kirk would approve:

Vina, (portrayed by Susan Oliver) is a woman disfigured in a shipwreck on Talos IV and cobbled together again by the Talosians. She was the bait in the trap set by the Talosians to attract Captain Pike and the Enterprise to their planet. Using their powerful skills of psychic illusion, they make her appear as a beautiful young woman:

Number One (portrayed by Majel Barrett, nee M. Leigh Hudec), is the Enterprise's First Officer. The Talosians describe her virtues to Pike: "The female you call Number One has the superior mind and would produce highly intelligent children. Although she seems to lack emotion, this is largely a pretense; she often has fantasies involving you..." Number One saves Pike from slavery (and, in the process, the Enterprise from destruction). A real woman before her time in SF:

As always, vote up to once a day in the main poll, and check out the Gallery for previous weekly poll winners.

COMING SOON: Runoffs among the 2004 weekly winners, so that we can name the 2004 SF Babe of the Year.

Results (posted 8 February 2005):

Yeoman Colt (Laurel Goodwin) 51% (44 of 86 votes) - WINNER!
Vina (Susan Oliver) 34% (29 of 86 votes)
Number One (Majel Barrett) 15% (13 of 86 votes)

Posted by JohnL at February 1, 2005 06:10 PM