The uniforms are a little different. You can even see Sulu’s giant zipper on his collar

Uhura is in gold again

“What am I a doctor or a moon shuttle conductor?” -Bones                      I don’t know what that means

Baily: “We’ve got phaser weapons, I vote we blast it”                              Kirk: “I’ll keep that in mind Mr. Baily, if this becomes a democracy”

Even though a good portion of the episode is the Enterprise staring down a spinning cube, the specifics of everything going on shows off Kirk’s command presence nicely

Kirk: “Aren’t you the one that says a little suffering is good for the soul?”                                                                                                          Bones: “I never say that.”

“In chess, when one is outmatched the game is over. Checkmate.”       -Spock

“Not chess, Mr. Spock. Poker.” -Kirk

Rand is in this one

I like that Kirk bluffs, and in general this episode provides a great characterization of Kirk, but the actual bluff is a little silly. There is also a bit of a plot hole in how much Balok knows about Enterprise and Earth’s history

A little Clint Howard

It was a strange move having Baily stay with Balok