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The Practical Joker (TAS episode)
Encyclopedia
Plot outline
When the U.S.S. EnterpriseUSS Enterprise (NCC-1701)
The USS Enterprise, NCC-1701, is a fictional starship in the Star Trek media franchise. The original Star Trek series depicts her crew's mission "to explore strange new worlds; to seek out new life and new civilizations; to boldly go where no man has gone before" under the command of Captain James...
is attacked by three Romulan
Romulan
The Romulans are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek universe. First appearing in the original Star Trek series in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror", they have since made appearances in all the main later Star Trek series: The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager...
D-7 class battlecruisers, Kirk takes the ship into a nearby gaseous energy field to hide.
The cloud affects the Enterprise computer and it begins to play practical joke
Practical joke
A practical joke is a mischievous trick played on someone, typically causing the victim to experience embarrassment, indignity, or discomfort. Practical jokes differ from confidence tricks in that the victim finds out, or is let in on the joke, rather than being fooled into handing over money or...
s on the crew, making glasses leak
Dribble glass
A dribble glass is a drinking glass that has holes hidden in the etched design.The purpose of a dribble glass is for pranks. When a person tilts the glass to take a drink from this glass, he ends up spilling the liquid on his clothing as the drink trickles through the holes.The dribble glass was...
and utensils turn to rubber, and covering decks with ice. As these practical jokes become more and more dangerous, McCoy, Uhura, and Sulu get trapped in the Enterprise's malfunctioning holodeck
Holodeck
A holodeck, in the fictional Star Trek universe, is a simulated reality facility located on starships and starbases. The first use of a "holodeck" by that name in the Star Trek universe was in the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, "Encounter at Farpoint", although a conceptually...
.
In this episode, the holodeck made its first appearance in the Star Trek series and is simply called a "rec room." No episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek: The Original Series
Star Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
showed any form of a holodeck. The holodeck was reintroduced in the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Star Trek: The Next Generation is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry as part of the Star Trek franchise. Roddenberry, Rick Berman, and Michael Piller served as executive producers at different times throughout the production...
.
Eventually the computer plays a practical joke on the Romulans, tricking them into attacking a gigantic ship-shaped balloon. The infuriated Romulans give chase and Kirk tricks the computer into re-entering the cloud, restoring the original programming. The cloud has the same effect on the ship computers of the pursuing Romulans, allowing the Enterprise to depart.