Kirk provokes Trelane into a duel, and during the fight, he destroys the mirror and damages some strange machinery inside. The bridge crew then beams back to the Enterprise, but as the ship attempts to warp away, the planet Gothos keeps appearing in its path. Kirk finally orders the Enterprise into orbit and decides to beam down. On the planet, Kirk finds Trelane seated on a courtroom bench, dressed in the white wig and robes reminiscent of an English circuit judge. Trelane reads charges of "treason", "conspiracy", and "fomenting insurrection", and then, silencing Kirk's protests, condemns Kirk to death by hanging. Kirk, however, points out that Trelane could find a more stimulating alternative. Trelane suggests that Kirk be prey for a royal hunt, and Kirk agrees in return for the release of his ship. The hunt begins, and Kirk is eventually cornered at the castle entrance, but remains defiant – he slaps Trelane – tells him he has a lot to learn about life and breaks Trelane's sword. Suddenly two energy beings appear and call out to Trelane, ordering him to "come along", and lecturing him for his misbehavior. He then disappears, and the two beings follow after apologizing to Kirk, who returns to the ship. Production Writer Paul Schneider was inspired by seeing children play war, and originally intended the episode to be an antiwar statement. Upon meeting Yeoman Ross, Trelane slightly misquotes Christopher Marlowe's 16th-century play Doctor Faustus: "Is this the face that launched a thousand ships, and burnt the topless towers of Ilium? Fair Helen, make me immortal with a kiss". The actual lines are: "Was this the face that launch’d a thousand ships, And burnt the topless towers of Ilium? Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss!" Reception Zack Handlen of The A.V. Club gave the episode an 'A' rating, describing the episode as "one of TOS's most deservedly iconic hours", and noting it as "wonderfully structured". William Campbell's guest-star role was described as "demanding, energetic, and endlessly delighted with himself." In 2012, they ranked it as one of top-10 "must-see" episodes of the original series. In 2016, SyFy ranked guest star William Campbell's performance as Trelane, as the fifth-best guest star on the original series. In 2018, Collider ranked this episode the 17th-best original series episode. In 2019, the Edmonton Journal ranked this as having one of the top 10 Spock character moments, pointing