Vina Vina was a female Human civilian in the 23rd century . She was a crew member on the in 2236 . Her ship was carrying scientist s from the American Continent Institute on an expedition to the Talos star group . The same year , she was the sole survivor when the survey ship crashed on Talos IV . In the aftermath , she was brought back to health by the Talosian s . Vina piqued the Talosians ' interest in the Human species , and this prompted them to lure the to the planet in 2254 , hoping to find a mate for her . They selected Captain Christopher Pike , and through a series of illusions , attempted to induce him to remain on the planet and begin a family with her , in an attempt to learn about Human sexuality and companionship . When the " Enterprise " crew demonstrated that they would prefer death to life in captivity , the Talosians declared Humans unsuitable for their plans to reclaim the surface of the planet . After the crewmembers beam ed up , Vina expressed that she wanted to remain with the Talosians , who then allowed Captain Pike to see that her youthful beauty was an illusion . She explained she had nearly died in the crash and that the Talosians , who had never seen Humans , had had no guide in repairing her smashed body . Hunchbacked , old and ugly , severely scar red , but in good physiological health , she preferred to retain her illusion of beauty on Talos IV rather than live among Humans and die away from the planet . Back aboard the " Enterprise " , Pike told the crew nothing of what he had just seen , saying only that Vina was remaining with the Talosians and that he agreed with her reasons . ( ) Footage of her encounter with Captain Christopher Pike and the crew of the " Enterprise " during the original visit to Talos IV , from 13 years prior , was transmitted from that planet during Spock ' s fictional court martial aboard the same ship in 2267 . Upon the " Enterprise " s return to Talos IV , it was determined that she was still be alive , a fact that had prompted Spock ' s return of the crippled Pike . ( ) Appearances of Vina . As a result of the Talosians ' mind tricks , Vina appeared in several forms during Pike ' s illusions . Appendices . Background information . Vina was played by actress Susan Oliver . Preliminary descriptions . In the first draft story outline of " The Cage " , Vina was initially described as " provocatively lovely , showing [ . . . ] few effects of the ordeal . " In the scripts of " The Cage " , Vina was at first characterized thus ; " " Although her hair is uncombed and awry , her make - shift dress tattered , she is still a remarkably beautiful young woman . Supple , tanned , barefooted , she looks more like a woodland nymph than the survivor of a harrowing ordeal . " " The scripts went on to describe her as having " a graceful young animal quality " , which was highly seductive , and a " spectacular figure . " In an ultimately unused line of dialogue from the scripts , Pike ( named " April " in the first draft and " Winter " in the final draft ) likened Vina , in this form , to a " little animal , " considering how wild she seemed . In regard to when she appears in the simulation of Rigel VII ( which was named Rigel 113 in the episode ' s scripts ) , the installment ' s first draft script described Vina thus ; " " She wears a gown suggesting a medieval era , but torn and stained as if she has been for some time fleeing and hunted . " " In the same scripted scene , the frightened Vina ' s pleas for Pike ( named , at that stage , Robert April ) to save her from a Kalar were initially spoken in Rigelian , until the captain persuaded her to speak in English again , as she had when they first met . In the episode ' s final draft script , Vina was instead scripted to be wearing " a feudal - level dress , [ her ] hair braided and long . " Not only was she no longer referred to as wearing a " torn and stained " garment , but she also spoke English throughout that draft of the script . The silver - colored costume Vina wears mostly through the episode was described as " a simple garment of the Talosian material " in the scripts for " The Cage " . Similarly , the outfit she wears in the parkland near Mojave was described as " casual Earth garb " in the episode ' s scripts . Performance . Initially , Susan Oliver was not of a mind to accept the role of Vina , as the actress , exhausted from a previous filming assignment , was looking forward to a holiday in Hawaii . However , Gene Roddenberry adamantly wanted her for the part of Vina , and to this end , he asked Studio Executive Oscar Katz to put pressure on her . " " Although I ' m usually not that charming with women , I talked her into taking the part , " " said Katz . " " Part of the appeal was that it was going to be very easy . She could knock it off ' just like that ' , " " he added , snapping his fingers . Yet , Oliver ' s part was anything but a snap of the fingers , due to the elaborate makeup sessions she had to undergo in order to show Vina ' s various manifestations . ( " " ) " The Cage " Director Robert Butler stated , " " I remember Susan ' s transformation was certainly laid out and discussed and worked out ahead of time , and then it was very time - consuming to do , of course . " " ( " The Star Trek Interview Book " , p . 100 ) Vina ' s scenes from " The Cage " were filmed on Friday , and between Tuesday and Friday at Desilu Culver Stage 15 , Stage 16 , and on location at the " Arab Village " section of the 40 Acres backlot . Oliver was aware she had to play several incarnations of Vina , including that of the Orion slave girl . " " One of the unique things about this job was I " wasn ' t " really a dancer , " " Oliver recalled . " " They had a choreographer work with me a solid week , every day , before I began filming . There were different facets in this role , and the green girl was most challenging . " " A bit to her surprise , it was not her lack of dancing skills that gained attention , but rather her appearance , when she , for the first time , appeared on set in her Orion slave girl attire . " " The usual ' hi , Suse ' banter was gone ; the guys stood back and stared or averted their eyes as though it were immoral to look at such a woman . There seemed almost a sense of their whispering , ' Wow , Susan ' s not such a nice girl after all , she ' s maybe wild , evil . ' Even before the dance began and I was just standing demurely to the side , this feeling was in the air . Gene has touched on something dark in man ' s subconscious ; one could imagine doing things with a green mate that he would never dare with someone his own color . " " ( " " , issue 135 , p . 78 ) Still , despite experiencing some challenges with the part , Oliver reveled in portraying Vina . " " The show was a very special experience and it was fun to do the wild dance ; It also meant hard work . Believe me , it was not easy to be green , " " she concluded . ( " " , issue 135 , p . 78 ) Apocrypha . Vina ' s mirror universe counterpart was mentioned but did not appear in the short story " The Greater Good " contained in the anthology " Shards and Shadows " . Very similar to in the prime universe , the Talosians had used a distress call to lure the to the planet with the intention of having its captain , , mate with Vina , so as to create a race of Terran slaves . However , Vina was rejected by Pike , as he refused to mate with an " insipid Human female . "