spock in star trek

Starfleet career

Starfleet academy.

During his time at Starfleet Academy, Spock had Onafuwa for Fundamentals of Quantum Stochastics and several other advanced courses. He was commissioned as a Starfleet officer in 2250 with the serial number S 179-276 SP and held an A7 computer expert classification. Later in life, he wrote a memoir about the challenges he faced at Starfleet Academy, titled The Many and the One . ( PIC : " The Star Gazer "; ST : " Q&A "; TOS : " The Enterprise Incident ", " Court Martial ", " The Ultimate Computer ")

In the alternate reality, Spock began programming the Kobayashi Maru scenario in 2254. The writers of the film Star Trek stated, in the movie's audio commentary , that they felt this event overlapped with the prime reality and that Kirk also met Spock at a hearing after he cheated on the test. According to the script for Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , after taking the Kobayashi Maru test for the third time, Spock said to Kirk that his solution would not have occurred to a Vulcan mentality . [2] This would have implied that Kirk and Spock knew each other since the late 2250s , and that Spock was at the Academy. As it was, this information was not in the theatrical or director's cut of the film . Furthermore, Spock was to have been depicted as a Starfleet cadet in two undeveloped productions: Star Trek: The First Adventure and a story suggested for inclusion in ENT Season 4 . (For more information, see Reappearances .)

Early postings and assignments

One of Spock's early assignments was to the USS Kongo . ( SNW : " Memento Mori ")

Serving under Christopher Pike

Arrival on the enterprise.

Spock and Lieutenant Una Chin-Riley in a turbolift shortly after his arrival.

In 2253 , Spock was assigned to the USS Enterprise under the command of Captain Christopher Pike . When Ensign Spock was first transported aboard the Enterprise , he bonded with the ship's first officer , Lieutenant Una Chin-Riley (who preferred to be known simply as "Number One"). When they became trapped in the turbolift while on their way to the bridge, Spock asked Una many questions and the two opened up to each other. ( ST : " Q&A "; SNW : " Among the Lotus Eaters " display graphic )

By 2254 , he was promoted to lieutenant . ( TOS : " The Cage ")

Spock's promotion to lieutenant can only be extrapolated by comparing his rank in "Q&A" (ensign) with that in "The Cage" (lieutenant).

Rescuing Pike from the Talosians

Spock in 2254

Later that year, Lt. Spock was wounded in the leg when Pike's landing party was attacked on Rigel VII .

As the ship proceeded to the Vega colony for medical care, a radio wave distress call forced Pike to divert the ship to Talos IV . Still limping, Spock joined a landing party that transported to the barren surface of the planet where Talosians captured Pike.

He was the first of the ship's crew to realize the Talosians had powerful illusory abilities. Spock's final report, along with Pike's, recommended a ban on visitation to the planet. Starfleet's General Order 7 supported that judgment. ( TOS : " The Cage ", " The Menagerie, Part I ", " The Menagerie, Part II ")

At one point during the filming of "The Cage", Gene Roddenberry intended for Spock to appear in an installment which was to be filmed later but set before "The Cage". In that episode, Spock would have been depicted injuring his leg. Roddenberry, as a way to set the story up, asked Spock actor Leonard Nimoy to limp on-screen during "The Cage". Nimoy complied with that request but the planned episode was never filmed, leaving the reason for Spock's leg wound as somewhat of a mystery. [3] (X)

Searching for the Red Angel

Spock in 2257

Following the end of the Federation-Klingon War in 2257 , Spock took an unspecified leave of absence from Starfleet. He had accumulated a number of months during the five-year mission which, according to Pike, took a toll on the whole crew as well as Spock. Upon reviewing Spock 's personal log entries on the Enterprise , Michael Burnham learned that Spock had been having visions ever since he was a boy, and that he had had premonitions of the mysterious red bursts that the USS Discovery was likewise investigating, which Spock believed were related to his childhood visions of "the Red Angel." ( DIS : " Brother ")

Spock followed his visions to an unknown planet where he encountered the Red Angel. Through a mind meld , he discovered that it was a Human but one clad in a suit far beyond 23rd century technology. Through the meld, he received a vision of the destruction of Earth , Vulcan , Andor , and Tellar , and began experiencing time non-linearly. ( DIS : " If Memory Serves ") He decided to have himself committed to the psychiatric unit on Starbase 5 . In doing so, he requested that Starfleet not inform his family about the matter, including his father and foster sister. While there, he was observed to display acutely emotional dissociation and extreme empathy deficits. When he was told the red bursts had occurred as he had predicted, Spock broke out of the facility, disabling three of his doctors with Vulcan nerve pinches and fleeing on a shuttlecraft . ( DIS : " New Eden ", " Point of Light ", " If Memory Serves ")

Starfleet subsequently claimed that Spock had murdered his doctors and made finding him a priority. The USS Discovery and Section 31 became involved in the search. Aware he was being pursued, Spock abandoned his shuttlecraft in the Mutara sector and secretly returned to Vulcan. There, his mother hid him in a sacred crypt where katra stones shielded him from telepathic searches. Spock had become delusional and incoherent, unable to bear the experience of viewing time non-linearly, and repeated the First Doctrines of Logic and a sequence of numbers over and over. Burnham convinced Amanda to take her to Spock, but Sarek followed Burnham and convinced her that the best way to help Spock was to hand him over to Section 31. Burnham took Spock to the Section 31 ship NCIA-93 where Captain Leland promised he would help repair Spock's mind. However, Philippa Georgiou warned Burnham that Leland intended to extract Spock's memories using a process that would destroy his mind. At Georgiou's suggestion, Burnham overpowered her and took Spock from the Section 31 ship in a shuttlecraft. ( DIS : " Saints of Imperfection ", " Light and Shadows ")

Burnham realized that, since Spock's mind had regressed to childhood, the sequence of numbers he had been repeating was reversed due to his L'tak Terai . In the opposite order, the numbers represented the coordinates for Talos IV . Burnham thus set a course for that planet. There, the Talosians and Vina agreed to help heal Spock and subsequently projected illusions to the pursuing NCIA-93 to allow Burnham and Spock to escape to the USS Discovery which was commanded by his old friend Captain Christopher Pike while the USS Enterprise was down for repairs. ( DIS : " Light and Shadows ", " If Memory Serves ")

Stopping Control

Spock subsequently joined the Discovery 's ongoing mission to investigate the red bursts , discovering that Control had framed Spock for murder ( DIS : " Project Daedalus ") and helping to trap the Red Angel on Essof IV . To everyone's surprise, the Red Angel was revealed to actually be Gabrielle Burnham , Michael Burnham 's mother who was long believed to be dead. While attempting to prevent Control from wiping out all life in the galaxy after gaining full sentience, Gabrielle had discovered that Spock was the only one capable of truly perceiving her and her purpose. However, an effort to beam Gabrielle into their time permanently failed and resulted in the Red Angel suit and Gabrielle getting pulled back into the 32nd century , unable to return due to Gabrielle's time crystal being destroyed. ( DIS : " The Red Angel ", " Perpetual Infinity ")

When the decision was made to send Discovery into the future in order to prevent Control from ever getting its hands on the Sphere data, Spock decided to accompany his sister on the one-way trip. During the Battle near Xahea , Spock helped to guide Burnham's use of the second Red Angel suit from a shuttlecraft, but his engines were damaged and he couldn't return to the ship with her. With Discovery too badly damaged to risk lowering its shields to beam him onboard, Spock was forced to remain behind in 2257 . Burnham promised to send the seventh red burst to signal her brother that they had successfully made it and offered him some final words of advice. Spock told Burnham that he loved her, a sentiment that she returned, before Spock had the USS Enterprise beam him out. From the Enterprise bridge, Spock witnessed Burnham successfully lead Discovery through the wormhole to the future. ( DIS : " Such Sweet Sorrow ", " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ")

Return to Starfleet

Spock in 2258

After the battle against Control , Spock returned to his position as science officer aboard the Enterprise in 2258 . He was sworn to secrecy, along with the rest of the crew of Pike's starship, to never again speak the name of his adoptive sister or the ship she served on aloud in public again. Four months after the Discovery 's departure, the seventh red burst appeared near Terralysium , confirming to Spock that his sister had made it to the future. ( DIS : " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ")

In 2259 , T'Pring, his betrothed, proposed marriage to him, which he accepted. ( SNW : " Strange New Worlds ")

Later that year, the pirate Captain Angel , lover of Spock's half-brother Sybok, came aboard, manipulating Spock at an attempt to free Sybok from the Ankeshtan K'til Retreat he was currently confined to. Angel ultimately took control of the Enterprise and tried to blackmail T'Pring into releasing Sybok, using Spock as leverage. Spock and Christine Chapel foiled her plans by pretending to be in love with each other and temporarily ending his betrothal to T'Pring. They renewed their bonding afterwards. ( SNW : " The Serene Squall ")

When an alien consciousness from the Jonisian Nebula brought the fairy tale The Kingdom of Elysian to life on the Enterprise , Spock was used for the character of the Wizard Pollux . He didn't remember the events after the ship was returned to normal. ( SNW : " The Elysian Kingdom ")

Spock was part of a mission to the USS Peregrine , which had made a crash landing on Valeo Beta V . Inside the ship, confronted with young Gorn who had just hatched and hunted the landing party, Spock allowed himself to give into his unchecked emotions and rage to provoke and draw out the Gorn. Afterwards, he had still trouble controling his anger as well as his pain and that his mind was weak, but was assured by Christine Chapel that it was not a weakness, but him being Human. ( SNW : " All Those Who Wander ")

Meeting Leila Kalomi

On Earth briefly in 2261 , Spock met Leila Kalomi . Although she declared a love for Spock, his emotional control prevented him from reciprocating until 2267 when he was infected by the spores on Omicron Ceti III . Under the spores' influence, he became peaceful and happy but Captain James T. Kirk infuriated him, which killed the spores and returned him to normal. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

Spock's service under Pike (eleven years, four months, and five days) inspired considerable respect and loyalty from the young officer. In 2267, Spock risked his life and career for the sake of his former captain. ( TOS : " The Cage ", " The Menagerie, Part I ", " The Menagerie, Part II ")

Serving under James T. Kirk

Lieutenant Commander Spock in 2265

After Pike's promotion to fleet captain , Kirk assumed command of the Enterprise in 2265 , with Spock as his first officer. An early mission proved disastrous when Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell , a close friend of the new captain, developed enhanced psionic abilities when the Enterprise encountered an energy barrier at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy .

Spock and Kirk in 2265

Spock examined the tapes of an earlier ship, the SS Valiant , that had encountered the same barrier and was destroyed. As Mitchell's powers increased, Spock believed he had become extremely dangerous and feared that he would destroy the Enterprise . He therefore advised Kirk to either strand Mitchell on the uninhabited and desolate Delta Vega to isolate him from galactic civilization or kill Mitchell before it was too late. Kirk hesitated but initially attempted the former, but the scope of Spock's concerns were eventually borne out and Kirk was forced to kill Mitchell. ( TOS : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

In the final revised draft of the script for "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (dated 8 July 1965 ), Spock's final line of the episode was to have featured him admitting he had "hated every minute of being logical about" the treatment of Gary Mitchell. [4] This line of dialogue, however, wasn't used.

The Enterprise repelled the first Romulan incursion of Federation space in over a century on stardate 1709.2. Spock and the bridge crew became the first Starfleet officers to make visual contact with Romulans who finally revealed their Vulcan-like appearance to Starfleet. Lieutenant Stiles briefly suspected Spock of being a Romulan agent until Spock saved his life in the course of battle. ( TOS : " Balance of Terror ")

Spock kidnapped Fleet Captain Pike and hijacked the Enterprise . Pike had been crippled and was confined to a wheelchair, unable to speak, as a result of an accident. Spock wanted to return him to Talos IV ; he wished to return Pike to the Talosians there so he could enjoy the rest of his life in an illusory reality and would not have to continue enduring his disability. After a lengthy inquiry into the matter, and in light of the Talosian-provided images, Kirk allowed Pike to beam down. Commodore Jose I. Mendez also dropped all charges against Spock. ( TOS : " The Menagerie, Part I ", " The Menagerie, Part II ")

While commanding an away mission aboard the Galileo on stardate 2821.5, the shuttlecraft crashed on the surface of Taurus II . Giant hostile creatures killed two crewmembers while the shuttle was stranded there. Spock, aided by Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott , eventually launched the shuttle. Knowing that it could not break free of the planet's gravity, Spock ignited the shuttlecraft's remaining fuel to use it as a flare. His gamble paid off; it alerted the Enterprise which turned around and rescued the team. ( TOS : " The Galileo Seven ")

Spock in command of the Enterprise after the Metrons abduct Kirk

After being thrown back in time to Earth of 1969 and interacting with that planet's US Air Force , Spock was able to recreate a time warp with a slingshot maneuver around the sun. ( TOS : " Tomorrow is Yesterday ")

Spock being questioned at Kirk's trial in 2267

When Kirk was court-martialed for causing the death of Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Finney , Spock proved that Finney had altered the Enterprise 's computer tapes to frame Kirk, by beating the computer at chess four times in a row, something which would ordinarily be impossible. ( TOS : " Court Martial ")

Spock confronts Landru with Kirk

Spock, along with Kirk, helped disable Landru , a computer that controlled the lives of a civilization on Beta III and allowed no free thought or creative thinking. ( TOS : " The Return of the Archons ")

Spock helped Kirk to retake the Enterprise after Khan Noonien Singh , a 20th century Augment dictator whom the Enterprise 's crew had found in stasis , commandeered the starship. He flooded the ship with gas, disabling Khan and his followers. ( TOS : " Space Seed ")

On stardate 3192.1, Spock and Kirk were taken prisoners on Eminiar VII which had been at war for over five hundred years with Vendikar . Computers fought the war virtually so that the destruction of actual warfare did not devastate the two worlds, thus preserving both civilizations. Whenever the computer registered a hit, the affected citizens reported to a disintegration chamber where they were vaporized. When the Enterprise entered orbit around Eminiar VII, it became a legitimate target for Vendikar. The war computer soon declared that a tricobalt satellite explosion had destroyed the Enterprise ; as a result, Eminiar officials expected the crew to report to the disintegration stations. They abducted Kirk and Spock to ensure compliance, but the two escaped captivity and destroyed the computers on Eminiar VII. With the threat of a real war looming over the inhabitants of both planets, Spock and Kirk negotiated a peace between Eminiar VII and Vendikar. ( TOS : " A Taste of Armageddon ")

On the mining planet Janus VI , an unknown creature was killing miners there. After locating the creature, Spock mind melded with it. He discovered that the creature was called a Horta and determined that its killing of the miners was an attempt to protect its young. The miners had been unintentionally killing the Horta's offspring by destroying silicon nodules which were really the creature's eggs. Spock negotiated a pact between the Horta and the miners: The miners would leave the eggs alone and the Horta, in turn, would help the miners locate valuable minerals. ( TOS : " The Devil in the Dark ")

Spock is forced to use a destructive measure in order to protect the Federation

Spock and Kirk later became trapped on Organia during a Klingon occupation of that planet. The Klingons wanted to use Organia as a base in their war against the Federation. The Organian council refused the Federation's help, and after the Klingons invaded and took control of Organia, Kirk and Spock had civilian identities imposed on them, with Spock being given the identity of a merchant . They then became involved in sabotage. After the Klingons captured them, the Organians set Spock and Kirk free. Just as war began to break out, the Organians revealed themselves to be powerful energy beings. They neutralized both sides weaponry and stopped the war. ( TOS : " Errand of Mercy ")

On stardate 3134.0, Spock and Kirk traveled back in time using the Guardian of Forever to retrieve Dr. Leonard McCoy who had entered the time portal and somehow changed history. Spock discovered McCoy saved the life of Edith Keeler who, in the altered timeline, led a pacifist movement that delayed the United States of America 's entry into World War II , thus allowing Adolf Hitler to win the war. Spock persuaded Kirk that allowing Keeler to die in an auto accident was only way to restore the timeline. ( TOS : " The City on the Edge of Forever ")

A neural parasite attacking Spock

Near the end of the year, a Denevan neural parasite that destroyed the colony on Deneva also attacked Spock. He submitted to an experiment that destroyed the creature inside him but also left him blind. However, the blindness was only temporary due to an inner set of eyelids that all Vulcans possessed. ( TOS : " Operation -- Annihilate! ")

Commander Spock in 2267

In late 2267 , the Enterprise encountered a probe called Nomad that had destroyed multiple star systems and their inhabitants. Spock mind-melded with the probe and discovered it was an old Earth probe originally tasked with seeking out new life. Somehow damaged in space, it had merged with an alien probe on a mission to sterilize "imperfect" biological organisms from soil. These two missions had merged into sterilizing or improving anything that was not "perfect." Using its own logic against it, Kirk destroyed the probe. ( TOS : " The Changeling ")

On stardate 3219.8, an alien cloud creature took control of a shuttlecraft carrying Spock, Kirk, and Federation diplomat Nancy Hedford , landing it on a deserted planet. There, they found Zefram Cochrane , the inventor of Earth's warp drive who was believed to have died decades ago. The cloud creature, which Cochrane called the " Companion ", had discovered him and kept him alive and young. The creature had brought the three Starfleet officers to be companions for Cochrane. When Spock tried to repair the shuttlecraft, the Companion stopped him. The situation was resolved when the Companion joined with Hedford, who was terminally ill, and cured her. Hedford/The Companion remained on the planet with Cochrane. ( TOS : " Metamorphosis ")

At some point around Spock's fourth year on the Enterprise , he was offered an assignment with Medusan Ambassador Kollos which he turned down, as he claimed that he " was unable to accept, " as his " life is here, " aboard the Enterprise . The assignment, instead, went to Miranda Jones . ( TOS : " Is There in Truth No Beauty? ")

In 2268 , Spock and other crewmembers of the Enterprise encountered Harry Mudd stranded on a planet of androids . The androids wanted the Enterprise to escape the planet and serve Humans so that they would not have to explore space. Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the crew eventually managed to overload the androids' central control by acting in a illogical manner, causing the chief android, Norman , to have a breakdown. ( TOS : " I, Mudd ")

While traveling to a peace conference on Babel , Spock was reunited with his parents. There was still much friction between Spock and his father. When Sarek was accused of the murder of another delegate , it was revealed that he was ill with a cardiac defect which made it unlikely that he could have committed the crime. McCoy was then tasked with performing surgery on Sarek while in a space battle with an enemy ship. It was then discovered that Orions were responsible for the murder, and Spock made himself available for a blood transfusion for his father's surgery because they shared the same rare blood type , T-negative . Recovering in sickbay , Sarek and Spock made peace with each other, even playfully teasing Amanda. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ")

On stardate 4523.3, Spock helped foil a Klingon plot to poison quadrotriticale earmarked for Sherman's Planet while at the same time trying to clear the Enterprise of a fast-breeding alien species called tribbles . ( TOS : " The Trouble with Tribbles "; DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ")

Spock later visited Sigma Iotia II whose inhabitants had modeled their society on the gangster era of Earth's 1930s . An earlier starship had left behind a book about gangsters from Earth's 20th century that the imitative Iotians had used as a blueprint for their society. Spock played the part of one of the bosses of the main syndicate, "The Federation," and helped Kirk unite the two warring bosses into a form of government . ( TOS : " A Piece of the Action ")

Spock sensing the terrible deaths of an entire Vulcan crew

Spock, along with the Enterprise , encountered a space amoeba that destroyed entire star systems . The USS Intrepid , which was sent to investigate the phenomenon, was destroyed, and Spock felt the Vulcans on the ship dying. In order to gain information on the creature, Spock piloted a shuttle into the amoeba and found that it was about to reproduce by fission. He subsequently destroyed the creature with an antimatter bomb. ( TOS : " The Immunity Syndrome ")

Spock's body was later taken over by Henoch , one of three survivors of an ancient civilization that had destroyed itself. The three had become energy beings to survive and wished to build androids to house their minds. Henoch, the rival of fellow survivor Sargon , refused to relinquish Spock's body and attempted to kill Sargon. He himself was killed with the help of Spock's consciousness and Sargon's wife Thalassa . ( TOS : " Return to Tomorrow ")

Ekosian Nazis capture Spock

Spock came in contact with various other worlds in the early part of 2268. He was captured by Ekosians who had based their society on that of Nazi Germany and tortured him for information about the Enterprise . John Gill , a Federation historian , had visited Ekos and attempted to use the efficiency of Nazi Germany to bring stability to the planet. Toward the end of the encounter, it was found out that Gill was drugged by his deputy Melakon. Through the use of the mind meld, Spock helped bring Gill to almost full wakefulness. ( TOS : " Patterns of Force ")

Spock battled Kelvans who tried to take over the Enterprise in order to return to their homeworld in the Andromeda Galaxy . He helped Kirk stop Ronald Tracey , a Federation captain interfering in Omega IV 's societies by arming the Kohms against the Yangs . He battled the government of a planet where a Rome -like civilization had never fallen and gladiatorial games still took place in the planet's modern era. ( TOS : " By Any Other Name ", " The Omega Glory ", " Bread and Circuses ")

Spock's mindless body equipped with a neural stimulator after the Eymorgs stole his brain

Later the same year, Spock's brain was stolen by the Eymorgs to help power the Great Teacher that controlled their society and provided for all their needs. McCoy was able to reconnect Spock's brain to his body with the same technology used to remove it. ( TOS : " Spock's Brain ")

Spock, along with Kirk, stole a cloaking device from the Romulans. As part of the plan to retrieve the device, he pretended to kill Kirk in self-defense and romanced the craft's commander in order to gain her trust. He initially intended only to carry out his mission but experienced actual feelings for the beautiful and brilliant commander. After Kirk returned to the Romulans' craft disguised as a Romulan and stole the device, Spock stalled the Romulans long enough for the device to be installed in the Enterprise . The ship escaped with the cloaking device and the Romulan commander on board, who made a pact with Spock to keep their mutual feelings for the other a secret. ( TOS : " The Enterprise Incident ")

Spock later saved Kirk and a tribe of transplanted Native Americans when he helped save their planet Amerind from an asteroid by activating a deflector beam. ( TOS : " The Paradise Syndrome ") He allowed Kollos to take over his body so that he could guide the Enterprise back into the galaxy after a mad Larry Marvick had driven it into an uncharted region. The Medeusans were a highly intelligent species but their bodies were grotesque in form – so much so that gazing upon a Medeusan would cause instant insanity in humanoids. However, it was said that telepathically viewing a Medeusan's mind, as Spock did, was quite a beautiful experience. ( TOS : " Is There in Truth No Beauty? ")

Spock helped save an landing party from the Melkotians who had, as punishment for trespassing, forced them to relive the infamous gunfight at the OK Corral in a recreation of Tombstone , Arizona . ( TOS : " Spectre of the Gun ") He also helped redirect Yonada from colliding with Daran V . ( TOS : " For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky ")

Spock took command of the Enterprise when a spatial interphase trapped Kirk between universes. Despite a Tholian attack from Commander Loskene , Spock and the Enterprise crew managed to retrieve Kirk and escaped from the Tholians' energy web. ( TOS : " The Tholian Web ")

A race of psychokinetics later captured Spock, Kirk, and McCoy. The aliens forced them to take part in dangerous games and unwanted love affairs. ( TOS : " Plato's Stepchildren ")

After hyper-accelerated aliens took over the Enterprise and hyper-accelerated Kirk to take as a hostage, Spock managed to receive a warning from Kirk and became hyper-accelerated himself but carried an antidote with him. He and Kirk stopped the aliens and retook the ship. ( TOS : " Wink of an Eye ")

Spock was part of a landing party that aliens were using to test the worthiness of an empathic race. A supernova was going to destroy their planetary system, and the aliens wanted to see if their race should be saved. After the aliens tortured Kirk, Spock, and McCoy, the empath Gem healed them. Impressed by this, the aliens saved her planet. ( TOS : " The Empath ")

Spock attempting to differentiate between two almost identical Kirks in 2269

In early 2269 , Spock and Kirk took a new medicine that could cure mental illness to a Federation mental facility. However, under the leadership of former Starfleet captain Garth of Izar , inmates had taken over the facility. Garth captured Spock and Kirk, putting their lives in danger. Spock escaped and found Kirk but Garth, who had developed shapeshifting powers, had assumed Kirk's identity. Spock determined the real Kirk from the impostor and subdued Garth, thus giving him medication that helped his mental illness. ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ")

In the same year, Spock was part of a landing party that found a Human named Flint . He found masterpiece paintings and original classical music. Flint admitted that he had been Johannes Brahms and Leonardo da Vinci on Earth , and that he was an immortal being. ( TOS : " Requiem for Methuselah ")

Spock with Droxine

Spock helped Kirk negotiate a peace treaty between two societies on Ardana . He also became attracted to Droxine , the daughter of Plasus , the ruler of Ardana; he referred to her as a work of art and even discussed pon farr with her. However, nothing ever came out of the relationship. ( TOS : " The Cloud Minders ")

The Excalbians forced Spock and Kirk into a battle between good and evil to study Human concepts. The aliens created images of people who possessed "good" qualities, such as Abraham Lincoln and Surak , against "bad" people such as Colonel Phillip Green and Kahless . ( TOS : " The Savage Curtain ")

Spock, Kirk, and McCoy entered a time portal, and were stuck in different past eras of Sarpeidon which was about to be destroyed by an exploding sun. Spock and McCoy traveled into the planet's ice age where they met Zarabeth , who had been sent there as punishment. Even though McCoy was dying from the cold, Spock wished to remain with the woman with whom he had fallen in love since, in this time period, he had emotions. Eventually, he discovered the portal door and saved McCoy. ( TOS : " All Our Yesterdays ")

After Janice Lester transferred her consciousness into Kirk's body and his consciousness into her body, she attempted to kill Kirk and assume his captaincy. However, Spock managed to expose her and helped to re-transfer Kirk's consciousness into his body. ( TOS : " Turnabout Intruder ")

Spock (left) along with McCoy, rapidly aged on planet

Spock with Klingons from the IKS Klothos

Spock joined a landing party that beamed down to inspect the second planet of the Taurean system . There, he became affected by the glandular secretion of the female members of Theela's species who inhabited there, who were known for controlling the male mind. This drained Spock of his "life force," causing him to age at a rate of ten years per day. Spock escaped the females of the planet and contacted the Enterprise . An all-female security detachment led by Lieutenant Nyota Uhura eventually recovered him and the landing party. By using their molecular pattern stored in the transporter system, Spock and the others were returned to their previous ages. ( TAS : " The Lorelei Signal ")

Spock Two performing a mind meld on Spock

On a mission to Phylos , Spock was captured by Stavos Keniclius who planned to clone him and make an army of Spock clones to enforce an era of peace throughout the galaxy. His first clone, Spock Two , possessed all of the original's memories, abilities, and sense of logic. However, the cloning process left the original Spock near death. Since Spock Two possessed his progenitor's sense of logic, he mind melded with him and restored his mind, most likely transferring his katra back into the original Spock. The original Spock proposed that Spock Two remain on Phylos to help Keniclius rebuild the Phylosian society. ( TAS : " The Infinite Vulcan ")

Purging emotions

After completing the Enterprise 's five-year mission of exploration, Spock chose to return to his home planet. As a result of his occasional displays of emotion during his Enterprise missions, he decided to undergo the kolinahr ritual to purge himself of the last vestiges of emotion. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

V'ger crisis

Two and half years after leaving Starfleet, Spock felt the arrival of a vast consciousness. He aborted his kolinahr training and resumed his Starfleet career both for personal reasons and to help Rear Admiral Kirk during the V'ger incident. Spock's return to Starfleet amazed former colleagues and others but his reputation remained excellent, with Commander Will Decker stating that he was "well-aware of Mr. Spock's qualifications" when Spock offered to again serve as science officer. Within three hours, he helped Scott repair the Enterprise 's malfunctioning warp drive . ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

Commander Spock in the 2270s

This film was one of the few instances in which Spock was not second in command or a commanding officer for that matter. Since Decker had a temporary grade reduction from captain to executive officer, this left Spock to serve only as a science officer without the dual responsibility of a first officer.

" Jim, this simple feeling is beyond V'ger 's comprehension. "

Spock's attitude towards his colleagues was far different from when he had served with them during the five-year mission. Wishing to rid himself of any personal attachments to Starfleet, he no longer considered any of the crew to be his friends and barely acknowledged them upon his return except where his duties demanded it. Feeling that the consciousness would answer for his quest, he broke into an airlock and stole a thruster suit . He exited the ship and proceeded to the next chamber of the mechanism, witnessing a planet populated by living machines. There, he attempted a mind meld and he realized V'ger 's quest. Knocked unconscious by the enormous power of V'ger during the meld, Spock was recovered in open space by Kirk. Later, he was in sickbay being treated for neurological trauma. He informed Kirk that V'ger was a life-form of its own, seeking answers to its questions; specifically " Is this all that I am? Is there nothing more? " Grasping Kirk's hand while lying on a biobed , Spock told Kirk that the simple feeling of touching another was something beyond V'ger 's comprehension.

Spock later accompanied Kirk, Decker, and McCoy to the heart of V'ger , guided by the Ilia probe . The group discovered V'ger was actually the 20th century NASA probe Voyager 6 . Spock deduced that the old probe was found by the living machine inhabitants of a planet located on the other side of the galaxy and they built the mammoth vessel so it could fulfill Voyager 's simple programming, " learn all that is learnable ." Spock told Kirk that V'ger had to evolve, as its knowledge had reached the limits of the known universe.

Spock informed McCoy and the others that other dimensions and higher levels of being could not be proven logically and V'ger was therefore incapable of believing in them, needing the Human quality to leap beyond logic. Decker chose to merge with V'ger , and Kirk, McCoy, and Spock escaped shortly thereafter when it and Decker evolved into another dimension. Afterwards, Spock chose to remain on the Enterprise rather than return to his homeworld .

Spock's direct encounter with V'ger showed him that purging his emotions and operating on pure logic would not answer his questions but would simply create new ones. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture )

Death and resurrection

Sometime after the V'ger incident, Spock was promoted to captain and assigned to Starfleet Academy where he trained cadets on the Enterprise which had been retired from active service.

The death of Spock in 2285

In early 2285 , Spock, while on a training mission, ceded command of the Enterprise to Kirk during a mission that involved keeping the Genesis Device from Khan Noonien Singh . When Kirk and the Enterprise defeated Khan, he armed the device. Spock repaired the Enterprise 's warp drive in a severely irradiated portion of engineering in order to save the crew. He saved the ship but sacrificed his own life in the process. Following his funeral service, Kirk gave Spock a "burial by sea" by firing Spock's body into space inside a torpedo casing. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Spock, resurrected on Mount Seleya

Spock's coffin landed on the surface of the Genesis Planet . The radiation emanating from the planet regenerated his cells. Spock was thus reborn as a child but quickly aged to adulthood. However, his mind was a complete blank. Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise 's senior staff disobeyed Starfleet orders so that they could retrieve Spock's body. On Vulcan, Spock's living body, now at the age of his death, was reunited with his katra which Spock himself had placed in McCoy prior to his death via mind meld. ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

After his katra and body were re-integrated, Spock trained for three months with the help of his mother to bring his knowledge and intellect back to where it had been before he died. Answering many complicated questions at rapid fire during his memory test , he had difficulty answering the question " How do you feel? ", something he felt was irrelevant, though his mother disagreed. Returning back to Earth aboard the HMS Bounty with his Enterprise crewmates to offer testimony in their defense to the Federation Council , Spock and the crew discovered that the planet was under siege by a mysterious alien probe which was causing critical damage to Earth's oceans and subsequently Earth's ecosystem. Analyzing the transmission the probe was producing, Spock concluded that the probe was transmitting the songs sung by whales , specifically humpback whales . Spock informed Kirk that the humpback whales had been extinct since the 21st century and suggested the crew travel back through time to acquire humpback whales. Spock's calculations from memory for the slingshot effect around Sol proved instrumental in the Bounty 's successful journey back to the year 1986 .

Spock, with Kirk in San Francisco in 1986

Upon the landing of the cloaked Bird-of-Prey in Golden Gate Park , Spock teamed up with Kirk and together they set off in search of humpback whales. The pair discovered George and Gracie at the Cetacean Institute in Sausalito . Spock jumped into the whales' tank and mind melded with Gracie, discovering she was pregnant . After traveling back to 2286 with the whales and cetacean biologist Gillian Taylor , Spock and the rest of the crew saved Earth once again by releasing George and Gracie into the San Francisco Bay from the sunken Bounty . The whales successfully communicated with the probe and it left Earth's solar system . After the dismissal of all charges to the crew of the Enterprise , save for Kirk, Spock spoke to his father and asked him to relay a message to his mother: That he felt fine. Spock went on to serve as a Starfleet officer for several more years aboard the new USS Enterprise -A . ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

In Star Trek III: The Search For Spock , Kirk honors Spock, after his death, in a toast with Kirk's senior staff in his apartment on Earth. "To absent friends" is the same toast Picard gave in Data 's honor after his death in Star Trek Nemesis . This is a traditional naval toast.

The Enterprise -A

Prior to the launch of the new Enterprise , Spock was recruited to test the new brig as he was the most "intelligent and resourceful person the designers could find." However, despite his ingenuity, he failed to escape. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Spock joined Kirk and McCoy for shore leave at Yosemite National Park and observed Kirk climbing El Capitan with his levitation boots . He saved Kirk's life when he slipped and fell off of the mountain, grabbing his ankle just seconds before he was killed by the impact. Later, Spock told Kirk and McCoy that before leaving the Enterprise -A, he had studied all the details involving "camping out" and roasted a marshmallow over a fire . Spock's shore leave was interrupted when Commander Uhura brought the shuttlecraft Galileo to the trio's campsite to bring them to the Enterprise as the transporters were malfunctioning.

Spock says goodbye to his half-brother Sybok

Upon the Enterprise 's mission to Nimbus III to resolve a hostage situation, Kirk retained Spock as his first officer. During the Enterprise strike team's rescue mission to Paradise City on Nimbus III, Spock discovered his long-lost half-brother Sybok had been the leader of the Galactic Army of Light , the group responsible for capturing the three diplomats. Sybok hijacked the Enterprise and ordered that it be brought through the Great Barrier . During the subsequent voyage in the shuttle Copernicus to the mythical Sha Ka Ree , Spock tried to console his brother when they could not initially find " God " on the surface.

Shortly thereafter, the landing party encountered the supernatural being when it presented itself to them. Learning of the malevolent nature of the being calling itself "God", Sybok sacrificed his life to save Spock and his friends. Spock and McCoy were beamed up to the Enterprise through the repaired transporter, leaving Kirk alone. The transporter was severely damaged when Klaa's Bird-of-Prey fired on the Enterprise . Spock saved Kirk's life from the entity by commandeering the Bird-of-Prey with the help of General Korrd and firing on it with the Klingon ship's weapons. Later, in the Enterprise -A's observation lounge, Spock reflected on the loss of his brother. Kirk told him that he had lost a brother once, but he was fortunate in that he got him back. Returning to Earth, Spock resumed his shore leave in Yosemite with Kirk and McCoy, this time playing " Row, Row, Row Your Boat " on his Vulcan lute . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

In 2293 , Spock was chosen to be the Federation's special envoy to the "Gorkon Initiative" as it was he who opened secret talks with Chancellor Gorkon following the Praxis disaster. Spock later committed Kirk to the negotiations with the Klingon Empire. During Kirk and McCoy's subsequent trial and imprisonment for the assassination of Gorkon, Spock took command of the Enterprise and the murder investigation. He led the rescue mission of Kirk and McCoy from Rura Penthe and helped stop an assassination attempt on the Federation President. Though this mission was successful, Spock blamed himself for endangering Kirk and the consequences that followed, a guilt that lasted seventy-five years. ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ; TNG : " Unification II ")

One version of the Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country 's script would have revealed that Valeris was Spock's daughter with Saavik, also named Saavik after her mother. [5]

Diplomatic career

Captain Spock (2293)

In 2293, on the suggestion of his father, Spock opened a dialog with Gorkon in the hopes of initiating peace talks. He recommended an alliance between the Klingon Empire and the Federation at the Khitomer Conference , and Gorkon agreed to negotiate. His recommendation produced a major dispute because the Federation viewed Klingons as outlaws who built their empire through violence and brutality. Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, an alliance was nevertheless forged, bringing peace and stability to the Alpha Quadrant that had not existed for two hundred years. Tuvok , who initially opposed the alliance, later noted that " Spock's suggestion, so controversial at first, proved to be the cornerstone of peace ." ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ; VOY : " Alliances ")

Also during the Khitomer Conference, Spock opened up negotiations with Ambassador Pardek of Romulus in an attempt to unify Vulcan and the Romulan Star Empire . ( TNG : " Unification I ", " Unification II ")

Picard stated in the episode " Sarek " that, as a lieutenant, he had briefly met with Sarek at the wedding of the latter's son. Episode writer Ira Steven Behr recalled that caution was still in place during early Star Trek: The Next Generation about dealing with characters from Star Trek: The Original Series , thus it was only implied that the son in question was Spock. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion , 2nd ed., p. 127) In the novel Vulcan's Heart , it was the wedding of Spock and Saavik, in 2329 , and Lt. Picard, not really knowing why he was there, spent most of it in the company of one of the few other Humans in attendance, Leonard McCoy.

Ambassador Spock in 2368

Spock and Sarek publicly disagreed over issues involving the Cardassians , leading to a rift in their relationship. ( TNG : " Unification I ")

In his later years, Spock went into semi-retirement, choosing to act as a Federation ambassador, much as his father had done. ( TNG : " Unification I ")

Reunification attempts

In 2368 , Spock undertook a secret personal mission to Romulus , unauthorized by the Federation Council or Starfleet. As he knew it would be risky, he preferred not to involve others and wrapped up his affairs. He acted to facilitate Romulan-Vulcan reunification , avoiding contact with the rest of the Federation as he was reluctant to risk anyone's life but his own on such a mission after the near-fatal consequences to Kirk and McCoy in their involvement in the Khitomer conference. Captain Jean-Luc Picard met Spock on Romulus and informed him of his father's death. Before Picard's departure, the two mind-melded, allowing Spock to realize the depth of his father's feelings for him. ( TNG : " Unification I ", " Unification II ")

In 3189 , a recording of Spock made on stardate 45825 while on Romulus was retrieved from the personal files of Admiral Picard and viewed by Michael Burnham and Cleveland Booker . ( DIS : " Unification III ")

"Cowboy diplomacy"

In 2369 , Spock was involved in an incident of " cowboy diplomacy " in which Deanna Troi was temporarily kidnapped to help with the defection of three Romulans, including Vice-Proconsul M'ret , to the Federation. He also had a message sent back to the Federation indirectly through the defector DeSeve . ( TNG : " Face Of The Enemy ")

When an unknown person was beamed on board the USS Enterprise -D in 2370 , Ben told a few junior officers that he heard that this was Ambassador Spock. ( TNG : " Lower Decks ")

In the novel Star Trek: The Motion Picture , it was mentioned in the footnote that James T. Kirk heard of rumors about an affair with Spock, something he denied: " I was never aware of this lovers rumor, although I have been told that Spock encountered it several times. Apparently he had always dismissed it with his characteristic lifting of his right eyebrow which usually connoted some combination of surprise, disbelief, and/or annoyance. As for myself, although I have no moral or other objections to physical love in any of its many Earthly, alien, and mixed forms, I have always found my best gratification in that creature woman . Also, I would dislike being thought of as so foolish that I would select a love partner who came into sexual heat only once every seven years. "

In 2380 , Ensign Beckett Mariner asked Ensign Brad Boimler if he knew who Spock was, to which Boimler answered, "I think I know who Spock is." ( LD : " Second Contact ")

The Red Matter incident

Spock arrives too late to prevent Romulus' destruction

In 2387 , Romulus faced destruction when its sun threatened to go into a massive supernova . After a synth attack on Mars destroyed the Federation fleet being assembled to evacuate Romulus, Spock formed a plan which involved injecting red matter into the star, thus creating an artificial black hole which would consume the star instead. Piloting the Jellyfish , an advanced spacecraft equipped with red matter, Spock proceeded to the star to carry out his mission. Before he could, the star went supernova and destroyed Romulus. With other worlds threatened with destruction, Spock continued his mission and successfully created a black hole which consumed the supernova. Before he could escape, however, the Romulan mining vessel Narada , commanded by Nero , intercepted him. Nero blamed Spock for Romulus' destruction and was bent on revenge. The black hole eventually pulled in the Narada and the Jellyfish . ( Star Trek , PIC : " Remembrance ")

In the script of Star Trek , Spock was established as having seen "the beginning" of the supernova and its destructive effects. His mission to stop the supernova was a kamikaze run, as Spock did not plan on returning, and actually underwent "a ritual ceremony of a Vulcan Kamikaze pilot" (involving " tea , sipped inside the Ark ") before leaving Vulcan. Also, Spock purposely created a second, smaller black hole that he deliberately used to escape by traveling back in time. [6] In the final version of the film , it is unclear if he saw the supernova prior to approaching it in the Jellyfish , Spock was beginning his return journey when Nero intercepted him, and he was accidentally pulled into the black hole, of which there was only one.

Though brought up to embrace a Vulcan way of life that he would eventually commit to as a young man, Spock's encounter with V'ger had a profound impact on his personal philosophy. From that point forward, Spock began to further embrace his Human half and more readily explore the influences and impacts of Human emotion, though he continued to temper his outward expressiveness. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , Star Trek )

Spock's self-sacrifice to save the Enterprise from Khan formed the basis of Starfleet's The Needs of the Many holographic training drill , while the rescue of his resurrected self from the Genesis Planet was the basis for the Escape from Spacedock drill. Both simulations were in use by 2381 . ( LD : " I, Excretus ")

Kirk's old bar on Starbase 25 still had Kirk and Spock's names scratched into the counter top as of 2381. ( LD : " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers ")

Spock was known as " Sprok " to Enderprizians , and was " well-known for his words so wise ", including the phrase " most illogical. " ( PRO : " All the World's a Stage ")

By 2399 , Spock would become known as "The Great Spock". ( PIC : " The End is the Beginning ")

His work towards reunification eventually led Romulans to settling on Vulcan and beginning to merge their society with the Vulcans, later renaming the planet to Ni'Var centuries after Spock's disappearance. However, they eventually left the Federation after the Burn . After reaching Federation Headquarters in 3189 , a year after her arrival from 2257 , Michael Burnham learned of her brother's achievements and viewed a recording of Spock talking to Jean-Luc Picard . Despite Ni'Var's separation from the Federation, Burnham's status as Spock's sister opened the chance for her to negotiate for the SB-19 data. ( DIS : " Unification III ") While onboard the ISS Enterprise , Burnham stared nostalgically at the science station and commented to Cleveland Booker that it had been her brother's station on the USS Enterprise . ( DIS : " Mirrors ")

Spock's legacy further extended into the alternate reality. It was he who located New Vulcan, a new homeworld for the Vulcans following the loss of their old one. ( Star Trek ) Following his death, alternate reality Spock originally planned to resign his Starfleet commission and continue the work the ambassador began on New Vulcan. However, after seeing a photograph of the prime reality Enterprise crew that was among old Spock's personal effects, alternate Spock changed his mind, having come to the conclusion that for now, his destiny lay with his crewmates. ( Star Trek Beyond )

Involvement in the alternate reality

Spock witnesses the destruction of Vulcan

Spock emerged from the black hole in the year 2258 of the alternate reality . Since Nero had emerged twenty-five years earlier , Spock was immediately intercepted by the Narada upon his arrival. Both Spock and the Jellyfish were captured by Nero who had been waiting for him. Spock's life was spared by Nero, although Nero marooned him on Delta Vega where he could witness the destruction of Vulcan from the planet's surface. After Nero used some of the red matter from the Jellyfish to create a black hole in Vulcan's planetary core , Spock watched helplessly from Delta Vega as his homeworld was destroyed.

As of 5 November 2007 , the script of Star Trek did not include Spock witnessing the destruction of Vulcan. [7]

Spock realizes whose life he just saved

Shortly thereafter, Spock rescued a Starfleet officer from a hengrauggi , only to discover that the young officer was James T. Kirk himself, that reality's Spock having marooned him on the planet for mutiny . The elder Spock was surprised that Kirk was not captain of the Enterprise . When Spock heard from Kirk that Captain Christopher Pike had been captured, Spock knew that Nero was responsible, describing the Romulan as "particularly troubled." Through a mind meld, Spock explained to Kirk his presence in this time period and the reasons behind Nero's actions.

An ultimately omitted line of dialogue from the script of Star Trek would have established that Spock, prior to scaring a hengrauggi away in the movie, was already familiar with that species of animal. [8]

Spock with Kirk on Delta Vega

He then walked with Kirk to the Starfleet Delta Vega outpost , where they met Montgomery Scott . Using Scott's equation for transwarp beaming (which Scott had not actually figured out yet), Spock was able to transport Kirk back to the Enterprise along with Scott. When asked why he would not come with them, Spock stated that his other self must not know of his existence, implying that it could cause some kind of temporal paradox. Knowing his younger self would never take the course of action that could stop Nero but that Kirk would, Spock instructed Kirk to use Regulation 619 to force his younger self to give up command to him by proving he was emotionally compromised. He informed Kirk he knew his younger counterpart was emotionally compromised due to the destruction of his homeworld. Kirk followed his advice and, by emotionally manipulating the alternate Spock, managed to take command of the Enterprise .

Spock meets himself

After the Enterprise defeated the Narada and Nero, the elder Spock returned to Earth. There, he met his less-than-surprised younger self (while Kirk had kept his word, his word was no match for even the intellect of the younger Spock, as he had figured out who Kirk's mysterious benefactor must be) and convinced him to remain in Starfleet. He also explained the reason he had not returned to the Enterprise with Kirk to explain things was that he had not wished to deprive Kirk and Spock of the chance of working together and developing the friendship they were destined to have. He then wished his younger self good luck and walked away.

In ultimately omitted dialogue from the script of Star Trek , Spock additionally told his alternate reality counterpart that he and Kirk were " Opposing yet complimentary opposites, " and went on to say, " It was that balance between us – I should say you and Kirk – that often made the impossible, possible. " His heart heavy, Spock admitted, however, that he was "in no position to judge," and that his own actions had "robbed" the younger Spock of much. Moments later, Spock Prime advised his younger self, " The world you've inherited lives in the shadow of incalculable devastation… but there's no reason you must face it alone. " [9]

" Thrusters on full… "

Afterwards, Spock witnessed the official promotion of Kirk to captain of the USS Enterprise , repeating what he knew the crew would say before launch, apparently commiserating on his own experiences as a member of the crew of the Enterprise . He left with an intention to establish a Vulcan colony . His attempts to convince his younger self succeeded and the younger of the two Spocks returned to the Enterprise to act as Kirk's first officer. ( Star Trek )

Spock also planned to help start a new Vulcan Science Academy, due to the destruction of Vulcan and the elimination of the old version of that organization. [10]

Spock warns his younger self just who the Enterprise is up against

A year later, Spock was living on New Vulcan, having made a solemn vow not to further interfere with history by keeping information about his experiences confidential. However, when the younger Spock contacted him for information regarding Khan Noonien Singh , the old Spock felt obligated to break his vow. He responded that Khan was the most dangerous adversary the Enterprise had faced, and that it had required a great sacrifice to stop him.

Ironically, the younger Kirk later made the same sacrifice Spock himself had made when facing Khan in the prime reality to save the crew of the Enterprise , though he was revived. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ; Star Trek Into Darkness )

Final death

Ambassador Spock: 2230.06-2263.02

Spock passed away of natural causes on New Vulcan on January 2, 2263 .

Having been born in 2230 in his own timeline, Spock would be around 161 years old at the time of his death if the time travel in 2387 through the black hole was in very short time and it led him to the same month in 2258. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise "; TAS : " Yesteryear "). However, the obituary document published upon his passing reflected the paradoxical nature of his temporal journey by stating his lifespan as "2230-2263," as if he died at the same age of his younger alternate reality counterpart.

Spock and his comrades, 2287

After his death, a small cache of personal items Spock had managed to retrieve from the Jellyfish was turned over to the younger Spock, including a photograph of the prime reality's bridge crew of the Enterprise -A from around 2287 , illustrating to the younger Spock that his destiny was to serve alongside Kirk, McCoy, and the others for decades to come. After struggling at first with whether or not to leave Starfleet in light of the elder Spock's death, this inheritance caused the younger Spock to change his mind and remain with his friends instead. ( Star Trek Beyond )

In the script of Star Trek , Spock was to "appear to be 75 earth-years old" at the age of 157. [11]

The death of Ambassador Spock was written into Star Trek Beyond in memory of the actor who played him, Leonard Nimoy , who had died shortly beforehand. Including Nimoy in the film was appreciated by Zachary Quinto , who portrayed the younger Spock and stated about the tribute, " I think people will see where it's coming from, and it's coming from a place of love. I felt it was very important that we acknowledge it, and I think Simon Pegg and Doug Jung , who co-wrote the film together, did a beautiful job of finding a way to fold it in. " ( Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 , p. 32)

Alternate timelines and realities

Alternate neutral zone incursion.

Commander Spock in an alternate 2266

In an alternate timeline where Captain Christopher Pike avoided his crippling fate, Spock was his first officer on the USS Enterprise in 2266 during the Neutral Zone Incursion . Having been brought from 2259 by his future self to see the consequences of his actions, Pike enlisted Spock's help to make sense of his presence in the future and what he was meant to do there. During the following confrontation with the Romulans, Spock worked on repairing the weapons systems on the Enterprise and was severely injured, leaving him in a state similar to the Pike of the correct timeline. Spock's prognosis was grim and even if he survived, he was unlikely to ever be the same again. As a result, Spock could not take part in causing reunification between the Vulcans and Romulans and Pike came to believe that he had exchanged his own fate for Spock's. ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

After showing his 2259 self the future, the Christopher Pike of the alternate timeline revealed that he had learned from the Boreth monks that in every timeline where Pike changed his own fate, Spock died as a result. Because of this, in all of those futures, Spock couldn't go on to do the great things that he was meant to do which would change the fate of the galaxy. ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ")

Alternate 2259

Captain Spock in an alternate 2259

In an alternate timeline where Vulcan was at war with the Romulan Star Empire, where by 2259, Spock held the rank of captain and commanded the Sh'Rel .

During an engagement with the Romulans, the Sh'Rel was damaged and he requested United Earth Fleet Captain James T. Kirk of the UEF Enterprise for assistance. Kirk however refused as United Earth had their own problems with the Romulans and could not afford to fight a war on two fronts. ( SNW : " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow ")

Anything but canon scenarios

First contact day party.

Spock providing entertainment for the First Contact Day party

According to an anything but canon account, Spock provides entertainment for a First Contact Day party . The duty originally was assigned by the captain of the USS Enterprise to Lieutenant Hemmer , the chief engineer , however he turned it over to Spock, since Spock actually was both Human and Vulcan ; and therefore a better choice considering the holiday was intended to be a celebration based upon the first meeting between those two species .

Spock begins with a blooper reel that he had compiled featuring clips of many of the biggest bloopers in Starfleet. Most of the bloopers that had occurred aboard the Enterprise , including a gruesome transporter malfunction , that Chapel, Number One, Nyota Uhura and many others that were present found to be more disturbing than humorous, and finally Uhura tells him that he needed to tone it down a little. She explained that it doesn't have to involve such big bloopers, because those aren't funny at all, especially when death resulted from it. She told him that bloopers should be smaller than that, like when someone accidentally runs into a door that doesn't open in time, or when someone mispronounces his name as " Spork ."

Spock believed that he finally got the idea of what she was trying to say, even though it seemed pretty clear that he still didn't fully understand the concept of humor in the same way that they did. He decided to play one last video in the hopes of making them laugh . It involved an ensign with space diarrhea who, while running, slipped on a freshly mopped floor, which caused him to slam his genitals into the mop , before pooping his pants right then and there. Uhura told him that was the perfect blooper. Spock was finally pleased with his success, and grabbed a mop and chased Hemmer with it, to demonstrate to the crew a "live blooper." ( VST : " Holiday Party ")

Klingons destroy the Enterprise

Spock, minutes before his death

In another anything but canon account, Spock was present on the bridge while the ship was under the command of another captain , while ship was under attack by several Klingon battle cruisers .

During the scenario, Spock reported to the captain that their weapons were disabled and their shields were down. The captain then informed Spock that he knew of a way out. After hearing this, Spock further updated the captain, informing him that their warp and impulse engines were also offline. The captain then turned to Spock, and uttered a figure of speech that compounded the situation by offending a number of the bridge crew. As the misunderstandings continued, Spock interrupted to suggest that the captain avoid the use of figures of speech until they were free of the impending doom. The captain continued to trip over his own tongue, as Spock updated the captain that the hull was breached , and the next shot woulf finish the ship off. As the captain continued on his tangent, the Enterprise exploded killing Spock and the rest of the crew. ( VST : " Skin a Cat ")

Jam session on the bridge

Spock on the viewscreen along with McCoy, Scott, and Kirk

During another anything but canon account, a Post Mainframe Acid-Cardassian Ten Forwardcore jam session broke out on the bridge, during which, scenes appeared on the viewscreen that used sound effects for the song, such as the hum of the transporter when Spock, Kirk, Scott, and McCoy transported wearing life support belts .

Other clips on the viewscreen corresponded with the song lyrics and showed Spock putting his hands around two Klingon's shoulders , as if they were his " buddies ". That was followed by a clip of Spock during the time Nurse Chapel feigned "accidentally" sat down on his lap after she used Harry Mudd 's love crystals on him. A final clip of Spock and Kirk helping one another from slipping in an icy corridor, looped to appear as if they were dancing . ( VST : " Walk, Don't Run ")

Although half Human, Spock's physiology retained most of its Vulcan characteristics such as the green blood, the placement of his liver, ( TOS : " The Apple ", " A Private Little War ") his strength, ( TOS : " The Naked Time ", " This Side of Paradise ", " Operation -- Annihilate! ") telepathic abilities, ( TOS : " Dagger of the Mind ", " A Taste of Armageddon ", " By Any Other Name ") and his greater lifespan ( TOS : " The Deadly Years "; TAS : " The Lorelei Signal "; TNG : " Unification II "; Star Trek ) when compared to the average Human. However, it should also be noted that the life he lived was still about forty years shorter than the average Vulcan, who generally lived to be around two hundred years old. His father Sarek, for example, was 203 at his death. ( Star Trek Beyond ; ENT : " Broken Bow "; TNG : " Sarek "; TNG : " Unification II ")

His Human characteristics were obvious when Sarek was in need of a blood transfusion and concern over donating his hybridized blood would be a danger to Sarek's full Vulcan physiology. ( TOS : " Journey to Babel ") The other instance where his Human side was evident happened during the final stages of his Kolinahr ritual acceptance. While on Vulcan performing the ritual, the V'ger probe approached proximity and its own emotional instability affected Spock's Human emotional side which he worked so hard to repress. ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture ) Spock's Human side was also present when spores affected him on Omicron Ceti III . ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

Like most Vulcans, he experienced pon farr neurochemical imbalance at least every seven years until the symptoms were remedied through ritual mating or kal-if-fee (dueling). If not dealt with, a Vulcan could die within eight days of the first symptoms. Spock experienced pon farr at least twice, once performing the kal-if-fee with Kirk's assistance, once mating with Saavik while physiologically a youth as a result of his regeneration by the Genesis Device . Both successfully relieved his symptoms of pon farr 's neurochemical issues. ( TOS : " Amok Time "; Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

As of Vulcan rituals concerning death, Spock was able to transfer his katra into someone that was close to him – such as a family member – who could then transfer the katra into a large repository on Vulcan. In his case, he picked Dr. McCoy as a host for his katra when he decided to expose himself to fatal warp core radiation in order to restore warp power to the Enterprise . His corpse regenerated when his torpedo casing casket was shot towards the Genesis planet and was subjected to the Genesis cycles that rapidly evolved all life on the planet. ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan ; Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Spock was also written to die and be resurrected in the ultimately undeveloped TOS episode " Shol ".

After Spock received a mind meld from Captain Picard, he seemed to have accepted his Human side. He admitted to being emotionally compromised and showed some emotions when he dealt with Nero destroying Vulcan in the alternate timeline and dealing with his younger self . ( TNG : " Unification II "; Star Trek )

Spock playing three-dimensional chess

On his Human side, Spock once implied he had an ancestral relationship to British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle . ( Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Personal interests

Spock carried a lifelong interest in art, literature, poetry, music (especially the Vulcan lute and the piano), and three-dimensional chess . ( TOS : " Requiem for Methuselah ", " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", " Charlie X ", " The Cloud Minders ", " Court Martial "; TAS : " The Jihad ", " The Magicks of Megas-Tu ") He disliked Italian food, possibly because like most Vulcans, he was a vegetarian . ( TOS : " All Our Yesterdays "; TAS : " The Slaver Weapon "; Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

Relationships

Friendships, james t. kirk.

Lt. Kirk and Lt. Spock meeting for the first time in 2259

Spock first met Kirk aboard the Enterprise in 2259 , when it was under command of Fleet Captain Christopher Pike . ( SNW : " Lost in Translation ")

In 2265 , after the death of Gary Mitchell , Spock's detached and logical analysis was relied on by Kirk as a supplement to his own intuitive and impulsive nature. Their official relationship deepened into a friendship of mutual respect and love that was, without a doubt, the most important relationship of both Spock and Kirk's life. As Edith Keeler observed of Spock's place in the world, " You? At his side. As if you've always been there and always will. " ( TOS : " The City on the Edge of Forever ")

Spock with Kirk and McCoy

Kirk once described his Vulcan friend as "the noblest half of myself" and declared that Spock's immortal soul "is my responsibility, as surely as if it were my very own." Kirk even told Spock's father that he would never realize how important Spock was to him, and declared that, despite losing the Enterprise and his son, had he not tried to rescue his friend, " the cost would have been my soul. " ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

Spock's first ever scene with Kirk, in " Where No Man Has Gone Before ", was not included in that episode's first draft script. In ultimately unused dialogue from that scene in the final revised draft of the teleplay (dated 8 July 1965 ), Spock concluded a sentence for Kirk, who later predicted Spock might someday learn to enjoy his "bad blood."

The polywater intoxication that affected the Enterprise crew in 2266 led to a difficult encounter between Spock and Kirk. When Spock was urgently required by his commanding officer, an anguished and reflective Spock was found by Kirk, Spock regretting his inability to express love even for his mother. Trying to bring the first officer around to the moment, Kirk slapped him. Spock's reaction was flat and revelatory, " Jim, when I feel friendship for you, I'm ashamed. " Struck again, Spock responded in kind, sending Kirk backwards over a table. ( TOS : " The Naked Time ")

Spock was sympathetic to Kirk's plight after the transporter divided the captain's personality into opposite aspects. He referred to his own halves, "submerged… constantly at war with each other." Spock believed that Kirk could survive such a contest intact, and urged him to embrace the part of himself that, seemingly ugly, was crucial to his personality and captaincy. ( TOS : " The Enemy Within ")

Spock comes into conflict with Kirk over destroying a Gorn starship

After Kirk discovered emotional rage was the key to nullifying the effect of the pod plants ' spores , his first step in retrieving his crew was to taunt Spock into anger. Anticipating the result of a Vulcan's strength pitted against him, Kirk wielded a pipe for protection. After calling him an "elf with a hyperactive thyroid" and saying he belonged "in the circus, right next to the dog-faced boy," Spock indeed lost control, nearly killing Kirk before regaining control of himself. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

Kirk holding Spock after his encounter with a Denevan neural parasite

In 2267 , Spock began his pon farr mating cycle, and behaved bizarrely aboard the Enterprise . Kirk called Spock "the best first officer in the Fleet" and "an enormous asset to me" as he pled with Spock to explain his actions. When told that taking Spock to Vulcan was against Starfleet orders, Kirk fired back, " I owe him my life a dozen times over! Isn't that worth a career? " Joining him on Vulcan for his marriage ceremony, Kirk was drawn into T'Pring's scheme to marry another, and forced to fight Spock to the death. McCoy, knowing Kirk was endangered, faked Kirk's death, and the marriage was not consummated. Spock, despondent that he had murdered his captain, was thrilled at the sight of Kirk alive, exclaiming, " JIM! " which McCoy delighted in needling Spock about, once he gained his composure. ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

Kirk's understanding of Spock had an enormous impact on the parallel mirror universe , visited after a transporter accident in 2267 . As Kirk's party prepared to return to their proper universe, Kirk implored the mirror Spock to re-examine his role in the fascistic Terran Empire , insisting, " One man can make a difference. " Mirror Spock's consideration of those words led to his rise to dominance and reform of the Empire, with drastic consequences. ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror "; DS9 : " Crossover ")

When Kirk was trapped in spatial interphase during a rescue operation in Tholian space, Spock ordered the Enterprise to maintain its position in an effort to retrieve him, in spite of the danger the Tholians presented and the disruptive nature of the local space. After Kirk's assumed death, Spock and McCoy viewed the "last orders" Kirk had prepared. He urged Spock to use all the Vulcan disciplines at his disposal, tempered with intuitive insight. Kirk believed Spock had the latter qualities, but should they elude him, he was urged to seek out McCoy. ( TOS : " The Tholian Web ")

Spock making Kirk " forget " about Rayna Kapec

Kirk once commented to Captain Garth that he and Spock were "brothers". Spock merely responded, " Captain Kirk speaks somewhat figuratively, and with undue emotion, but what he says is logical and I do, in fact, agree with it. " ( TOS : " Whom Gods Destroy ")

When Dr. Janice Lester , a former lover of Kirk's, took over Kirk's body, Spock performed a mind meld on Kirk while he was trapped in Lester's body. Spock believed Kirk was Lester before anyone else, and when Lester as Kirk ordered his execution, he continued to stand by his friend. ( TOS : " Turnabout Intruder ")

Spock with Kirk aboard the Enterprise again in the 2270s

At the end of the Enterprise 's five-year mission, a period marked by his frequent loss of emotional control, Spock chose to leave Starfleet and his friends, to pursue the kolinahr discipline of logic on Vulcan. His return to the Enterprise during the V'ger threat was a cold event, without acknowledgment of his past friendships. In V'ger 's aftermath, Spock finally achieved equilibrium, able to express his friendship for Kirk without the influence of aliens or illness, and notably lacking any threat of physical violence. In 2285 , Spock was calmly able to tell Kirk, " You're my superior officer. You are also my friend. I have been and always shall be yours. " ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

Kirk and Spock, together on Kirk's birthday

Spock's sacrifice of his own life, to save the Enterprise from Khan's detonation of the Genesis Device , deeply affected Kirk. At his funeral, Kirk could only bring himself to say of Spock, " Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most… Human. " ( Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

The revelation that Spock's katra , his living spirit, survived in the tormented mind of McCoy, led Kirk to risk his career, and in turn, his crew's. He first asked Fleet Admiral Morrow for permission to retrieve Spock's body from the Genesis Planet , to bring it, and McCoy, to Vulcan. Kirk insisted that any chance to save Spock's soul was his responsibility, " as surely as if it were my very own. " His request declined, he told his crew, " the word is No. I am therefore going anyway. "

With the help of Uhura, Scott, Sulu, and Chekov, Kirk rescued McCoy from confinement and commandeered the Enterprise from Spacedock One . The renegade mission saw the death of Kirk's ship as well as his son. Finding Spock's body re-animated by Genesis, Kirk brought him and McCoy, to Vulcan for the fal-tor-pan (re-fusion) ritual. The first person Spock recognized was Kirk: " Jim. Your name, is Jim. " ( Star Trek III: The Search for Spock )

During their homecoming from Vulcan, and eventually their trip to 1986 , Kirk tried to remind the resurrected Spock, suffering from memory loss, of their friendship and past adventures together. After Kirk and the crew's trial, Spock told his father, his "associates" were his friends. ( Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home )

Spock in an attempt to save Kirk's life at Yosemite National Park

In 2287 , Spock accompanied Kirk and McCoy on a camping trip together at Yosemite National Park , which abruptly ended when Spock's half-brother, Sybok, diverted the Enterprise to Nimbus III . After their adventure on Sha Ka Ree and Sybok's death, Kirk referred to Spock once again as his "brother", and told him and McCoy that they were his real family. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

When Spock later entered the alternate reality , he told the James T. Kirk of that reality of their deep friendship, despite the fact that the alternate Spock had marooned Kirk on Delta Vega . Before returning Kirk, along with Scott's counterpart , to the USS Enterprise (revealing to this Scott an advancement in transporter technology over a century before his prime counterpart perfected it), Spock – who in this reality had designed the Kobayashi Maru simulation and openly begrudged Kirk outsmarting it – was reminded that this could be viewed as "cheating", to which he replied that an "old friend" – namely, Kirk – had taught him how to cheat.

Later, when Spock Prime spoke to his own alternate reality counterpart about that universe's Kirk, he explained that he had resorted to a level of subterfuge in order to inform both men of the necessity of their friendship, both to themselves and to others. Spock Prime explained, " I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together, of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize. " ( Star Trek )

According to the script for "The Wrath of Khan", after taking the Kobayashi Maru test for the third time, Spock said to Kirk that his solution would not have occurred to a Vulcan mentality. This would have implied that Spock had known Kirk since the late 2250s, and that Spock had attended Starfleet Academy. As it was, this information was not in the theatrical or director's cut of the film. In the film Star Trek , the alternate Spock programmed the scenario and leveled charges of cheating against Kirk.

Another scripted but never executed moment was when, in the first draft script of Star Trek Generations , Spock's role as an ambassador was discovered by Kirk, who learned it from Picard and replied, " Spock's an Ambassador ? What have things come to…? I can see I'm needed in your century. "

In an ultimately unused line of dialogue from the script of the aforementioned film Star Trek , Spock made reference to Kirk Prime upon reacting to the Kirk of the alternate reality clearly looking confused by a particular regulation . In reply, Spock said, " Yes. I forget what little regard you had for such things. " [12]

Leonard McCoy

The relationship between Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy seemed a little strained at times on McCoy's part because of his taunts about Spock's green blood and lack of emotion . However, there was an obvious respect and friendship among James T. Kirk , Spock, and McCoy. McCoy, in fact, was one of the two friends Spock requested to join him in his marriage ceremony. ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

While he would rarely do so without provocation, Spock was also quite capable of turning the tables on the doctor. During Kirk's court-martial, after an astonished McCoy discovered him in the briefing room playing chess against the ship's computer, Spock casually allowed him to assume the worst (to the point of thanking him after the furious doctor had said he was " The most cold-blooded man I've ever known "), waiting until he reached the door to reveal that he had been victorious in four consecutive games – since the computer, whose account of the incident was the main evidence against Kirk, was programmed to be unbeatable, this proved that it had been tampered with (something only Kirk, Spock, and the "dead" Commander Finney were authorized to do), and cast doubt on the credibility of its account, keeping the trial going long enough to discover that Finney was, in fact, alive.

Later that year, after the Enterprise crew had defeated the androids on planet Mudd (beings almost Vulcan-like in their lack of emotion and their "logical, pragmatic" thinking), McCoy told Spock that he must be quite unhappy to see that "poor, illogical" Humans were able to fairly defeat them, Spock responded that this was quite satisfactory, as nobody needed him and his logical ways as much as a ship full of Humans. ( TOS : " Court Martial ", " I, Mudd ")

In an ultimately unused line of dialogue from the final draft script of " Charlie X ", Spock voiced a statement of approval about McCoy, saying, " Occasionally the doctor does associate himself with a scientific fact. "

In the first draft script of Star Trek Generations , Spock's first line of dialogue, while in a very small turbolift with McCoy as they traveled to the bridge of the USS Enterprise -B , was to tell him, " I haven't felt this close to you in years. "

Christopher Pike

Spock and Pike developed a mutual respect and fondness for one another during their service aboard the Enterprise ; Pike at one point expressed how important Spock was to him, a feeling Spock reciprocated. ( SNW : " A Quality of Mercy ") Spock's loyalty to Pike went even so far as to risk court martial in 2267 to kidnap his disabled former captain and bring him to Talos IV to live a life of illusion and happiness. ( TOS : " The Menagerie, Part I ", " The Menagerie, Part II ")

Sybok, Spock's elder half-brother, encountered Spock on Nimbus III in 2287 , shortly before Sybok hijacked the Enterprise -A for his quest to find Sha Ka Ree in the Great Barrier . Spock had remained silent on the subject of his brother for decades, not even telling Kirk until Sybok had already taken control of the Enterprise . At first, Spock was extremely distant from him, but following Sybok's death, he realized what he had lost. ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

Michael Burnham

Michael Burnham was Spock's adoptive sister after her parents' presumed deaths. When she first met him, a very young Spock shut his bedroom door on her after greeting her with a holographic drawing of a dragon screaming. Over time, Spock and Michael grew closer and Spock grew to idolize his older adoptive sister. However, feeling that she placed her adoptive family in danger from logical extremists who targeted her due to being Human, Michael decided to run away. Spock tried to persuade her otherwise, telling her that he "loved her" and would run away with her. To push Spock away, Michael insulted him by calling him a "half-breed" who was "incapable of love." While well meaning, her insults deeply hurt Spock who shunned his Human half in response and grew to no longer trust people. Over the years, Michael tried to make amends, but Spock showed no interest in reconnecting.

After they both grew up and entered Starfleet, they rarely talked to each other. Eventually Spock and Michael were forced to come to terms with each other after the Federation-Klingon War. Michael searched for a missing Spock after meeting his commanding officer, Captain Christopher Pike of the USS Enterprise . Eventually finding her brother, she was dismayed to find Spock suffering from a mental breakdown due to an encounter with a time traveler. She was able to help restore Spock's mind with the help of the Talosians, but this did not resolve the animosity between the siblings as they clashed several times with Spock blaming her for causing the Federation-Klingon war and calling her out on her habit of assuming responsibility for all the wrongs in the universe. Eventually, the two came to terms with their respective short-comings and eventually grow closer as they worked together to solve the mystery of the Red Angel.

When Burnham needed take Discovery to the future in order to avoid Control having access to the Sphere information stored in the ship's memory, Spock volunteered to help her. Unfortunately, while helping Burnham prepare, Spock's shuttle was badly damaged. Both distraught that they could not be together in the future, they shared a bittersweet farewell and Spock was transported away after one last "live long and prosper." ( DIS : " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ")

In the months following Discovery 's disappearance, Spock was unnerved that they had not received a signal to indicate that Discovery had arrived safely in the future. When the signal arrived, Spock found peace. ( DIS : " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ")

Burnham and Book watch a holo-recording of Spock

In 3189 , Michael Burnham watched a recording of Spock. She told her boyfriend Cleveland Booker that since she had arrived in the 32nd century , she hadn't bothered researching history to find out the type of man that Spock eventually became. But she was proud of who he had became, and she was happy he had found a way to reunify the Vulcans and Romulans. ( DIS : " Unification III ")

Spock with T'Pring in 2267

At age seven, Spock was bonded to T'Pring in a family-arranged Vulcan ceremony described in Human terms as " less than a marriage, but more than a betrothal. " ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

T'Pring formally proposed marriage to Spock in 2259 , but the two had not been married by 2267. ( SNW : " Strange New Worlds ")

When Spock experienced his pon farr of 2267 , he succumbed to the madness of the plak tow mating instinct. The Enterprise diverted to Vulcan in time to consummate the marriage. Accompanied by Kirk and McCoy, Spock arrived at his family's ancient koon-ut-kal-if-fee site for the wedding ceremony officiated by the matriarch T'Pau . Unexpectedly – but within the bounds of Vulcan tradition – T'Pring demanded the challenge of kal-if-fee , forcing Spock to earn the right to marry his bride through victory in personal combat. Rather than her prospective consort Stonn , T'Pring chose Kirk as her champion.

Unwilling to appear weak or disrespectful in front of the legendary T'Pau, Kirk agreed to fight his first officer . Between rounds using the lirpa and ahn-woon weapons, T'Pau belatedly revealed the combat was "to the death," and it became clear that Kirk had little chance against Spock in the throes of his blood fever. McCoy intervened, deceptively dosing Kirk with a drug that simulated his death.

Spock's plak tow subsided after his apparent victory. Appalled at the turn of events, Spock calmly questioned T'Pring's decisions. T'Pring admitted her distaste for Spock's growing fame among Vulcans, and her mutual attraction to Stonn. By her logic, choosing Kirk meant neither victor would claim her in the end, and she would have her life with Stonn. Spock acknowledged her way of thinking, referring to it as "flawless". T'Pring, for her part, was honored, but Spock advised Stonn that he would find that " having… is not so pleasing a thing after all… as wanting ."

After returning to the Enterprise , McCoy revealed Kirk's clandestine survival. A rare show of extreme emotion came from Spock when he exclaimed " JIM! " with a beaming smile. ( TOS : " Amok Time ")

Christine Chapel

Spock and Christine Chapel met when she was assigned to the Enterprise in 2259 along with Doctor Joseph M'Benga . ( SNW : " Strange New Worlds ")

Spock kissed Christine in a ruse to prevent T'Pring from handing over Sybok to the pirate angel

When the pirate Angel took over the Enterprise , Angel took Spock and Christine Chapel hostage in an effort to get T'Pring to hand over a prisoner that was Angel's lover. To prevent the prisoner transfer, Spock and Christine Chapel engineered a ruse where Spock and Christine had developed romantic feelings for one another and kissed in front of Angel and T'Pring. ( SNW : " The Serene Squall ")

During Chief engineer 's Hemmer 's funeral , Chapel consoled Spock as he was feeling emotions such as rage and pain. Spock didn't want her to follow him but did so anyway and Chapel ended up hugging him. ( SNW : " All Those Who Wander ")

Spock and Chapel entered into a relationship for some time after his engagement with T'Pring ended due to him not confiding in her that he was transformed into a full Human and stripped of his Vulcan genes. The relationship reached its conclusion when Chapel was accepted into Roger Korby 's fellowship . ( SNW : " Charades ", " Subspace Rhapsody ")

Spock with Christine Chapel, being emotionally influenced by the Psi 2000 intoxication

When the Psi 2000 intoxication infected the crew of the Enterprise in 2266 , Chapel admitted her love for Spock, who was thereupon emotionally shocked. Her love for him was an ongoing issue, but never interfered with her professional duties. ( TOS : " The Naked Time ")

Chapel once housed Spock's consciousness to keep him from being destroyed by Henoch . They were later forced by powerful telepaths to kiss each other, but neither enjoyed the forced situation. ( TOS : " Return to Tomorrow ", " Plato's Stepchildren ")

While under the spell of Harry Mudd 's love potion , Spock became infatuated with Chapel, and was willing to fight for her love. However, the potion eventually wore off and then Chapel, as a side effect of the drug, seemed to hate Spock for a brief time. Spock commented to Mudd that a few brief moments of love being paid for with several hours of hatred is scarcely a bargain. ( TAS : " Mudd's Passion ")

Leila Kalomi

On stardate 3417, Spock was infected by Omicron spores while on Omicron Ceti III by Leila Kalomi , who was serving as the Omicron colony 's botanist. The spores broke down Spock's emotional control, and he confessed his love for Kalomi. Their time together was short-lived, however, as Kirk deduced a method of destroying the spores with intense emotion and induced anger in Spock.

Once free from the spores, Spock freed Kalomi and the rest of the planet from their influence. He later reflected that his time with Kalomi was the first time in his life at which he had felt happy. ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

When visiting the planet Sarpeidon Spock got trapped in in the planet’ ice age in the past with Dr. McCoy. When there Spock began to act like the Vulcans of that time period and started to act emotional. There he fell madly in love with her. Eventually McCoy realized what was happening and they were eventually able to escape back to their time period without Zarabeth . ( TOS : " All Our Yesterdays ")

A hologram of Spock was created by the Romulans in 2368 for Sela to use to give a false address to the Federation . It was known by the title " Spock One ". ( TNG : " Unification II ")

During Dal 's setup of the Kobayashi Maru scenario aboard the USS Protostar in 2383 , he requested that the computer select the best officers on his behalf, which included a holographic version of Spock, from the TOS era , as a member of his command crew. ( PRO : " Kobayashi ")

Spock's head on a holographic amalgamation of four other Starfleet officers

The head that resembled Tucker was attempting to freeze the playback of a holographic program that featured Neelix watching a holonovel that was one of many "silly stories " he saw on his PADD . The program seemingly froze, but then Tucker noticed he wasn't actually Tucker, but a strange monstrous combination of the aforementioned Starfleet officers .

• 2230 : Born in ShiKahr on Vulcan
• 2247 – 2250 : Cadet at Starfleet Academy
• Between 2250 and 2253: Assigned to the USS Kongo
• 2253: Assigned to the USS Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike
• Takes a leave of absence from Starfleet following the Federation-Klingon War
• Assists the USS Discovery in solving the mystery of the Red Angel
• 2258 : Returns to service aboard the Enterprise .
• 2259 : Becomes engaged to T'Pring
• 2268 : Is offered an assignment with Medusan Ambassador Kollos .
• 2270: Resigns from Starfleet and returns to Vulcan to undergo the Kolinahr ritual
• 2270s : Returns to Starfleet to help with the V'ger crisis
• Between the 2270s and 2285: Appointed captain of the USS Enterprise
• Dies on the USS Enterprise
• Transfers his Katra to Leonard McCoy
• Is resurrected on the Genesis planet
• Transfers to the USS Enterprise -A
• 2287 – 2293 : First officer/science officer of the USS Enterprise -A
• Resigns from starfleet
• Becomes a Federation ambassador
• Begins attempts to reunify the Romulan and Vulcan people
• 2387 : Attempts to stop a star from destroying Romulus and ends up pulled into a black hole and transferred to an alternate reality.
• 2258 ( alternate reality ): leads the surviving members of the Vulcan people to start a new colony on New Vulcan
• 2263 (alternate reality): Dies on New Vulcan. The age must be around 161 if the time travel in 2387 through the black hole was in very short time and it led him to the same month in 2258.

Memorable quotes

" Is there a valuable question in your arsenal? " " Yes. Do you actually think the beard is working? "

" History will not provide an answer to your query, doctor. Instead you should be asking me, 'How is it I can remember tomorrow?'"

" This will go easier if you answer me. Or it could go harder. " " I beg to differ. Say goodbye, Spock. " (Spock raises his hand in the Vulcan salute) " Goodbye, Spock. "

" Greetings, captain. " " Spock. Are you all right? " " Much better for seeing you in person, sir. Even if we are riding into danger. " (Spock smiles) " Is that a smile I see on your face?" " I believe it is. Yes. " " Well, Welcome to Discovery . "

" I don't suppose the Red Angel offered you any advice on how to handle a situation like this. " " No. But my limited experience as a fugitive suggests only one course of action. " " And what is that? " " We run. "

" I happen to have a Human thing called an adrenaline gland. " " That does sound most inconvenient, however. Have you considered having it removed? " " Very funny. " " Try to cross brains with Spock, he'll cut you to pieces every time. "

" I am endeavoring, ma'am, to construct a mnemonic circuit using stone knives and bearskins. "

" I have never understood the female capacity to avoid a direct answer to any question. " ( TOS : " This Side of Paradise ")

" A curious creature. Its trilling seems to have a tranquilizing effect on the Human nervous system. Fortunately, of course, I am… immune… to… its… effect… "

(To Alice 27) " I love you. " (To Alice 210) " However, I hate you. " " But I am identical in every way with Alice 27! " " Exactly. That is exactly why I hate you; because you are identical. " [The androids violently malfunction.] " Fascinating. "

" Logic is a little, tweeting bird, chirping in a meadow. Logic is a wreath of pretty flowers that smell bad. " ( TOS : " I, Mudd ")

" Nowhere am I so desperately needed as among a shipload of illogical Humans. " ( TOS : " I, Mudd ")

" On my planet, 'to rest' is to rest, to cease using energy. To me, it is quite illogical to run up and down on green grass, using energy instead of saving it. " ( TOS : " Shore Leave ")

"Enterprise to signaler on planet's surface. Identify self. " (Reads answer) " 'Hip, hip, hurrah…' and I believe it's pronounced 'Tally ho'. " ( TOS : " The Squire of Gothos ")

" 'Fascinating' is a word I use for the unexpected. In this case, I should think 'interesting' would suffice. "

" I have been, and always shall be, your friend. "

" Jim. Your name is Jim."

" If I were Human, I believe… my response would be 'Go to Hell.' If I were Human. "

" Billions of lives lost, because of me, Jim because… I failed. "

" Thrusters on full. "

" Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise . Her ongoing mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new lifeforms and new civilizations; to boldly go where no one has gone before. "

Catchphrases

" Fascinating. " ( Star Trek: The Original Series )

" Live long and prosper. " ( Star Trek: The Original Series )

" Interesting. "

" The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. "

Kirk and Spock

" Have I ever mentioned you play a very irritating game of chess, Mr. Spock? " " Irritating? Ah, yes: one of your Earth emotions. "

" Your illogical approach to chess does have its advantages on occasion, captain. " " I prefer to call it 'inspired'. " " As you wish. "

" You'd make a splendid computer, Mr. Spock. " " That is very kind of you, captain! "

" So, we're stranded here, in the middle of a Klingon occupation army. " " So it would seem. Not a very pleasant prospect. " " You have a gift for understatement, Mister Spock. It's not a very pleasant prospect at all. "

" You didn't really think I was going to beat his head in, did you? " " I thought you might. " " You're right. "

" Well, Mr. Spock, if we can't disguise you, we'll find some way of explaining you. " " That should prove interesting. "

" My friend is obviously Chinese. I see you've noticed the ears. They're actually easy to explain. " [Long pause.] " Perhaps the unfortunate accident I had as a child. " " The 'unfortunate' accident he had as a child. He caught his head in a mechanical… rice picker. "

" Don't grieve, admiral. It's logical. The needs of the many… outweigh… " " The needs of the few. " " Or the one. I never took the Kobayashi Maru test, until now. What do you think of my solution? "

" You know, coming back in time, changing history… that's cheating. " " A trick I learned from an old friend . "

Awards and achievements

Spock in dress uniform 2267

• Twice decorated with the Starfleet Award of Valor ( TOS : " Court Martial ")
• Vulcanian Scientific Legion of Honor ( TOS : " Court Martial ")
• The Vulcan IDIC ( TOS : " Is There in Truth No Beauty? ")
• An A-7 computer expert classification ( TOS : " The Ultimate Computer ")
• Innovator of time travel methodologies: the warp drive cold start and the "slingshot" maneuver ( TOS : " The Naked Time ", " Tomorrow is Yesterday ")
• Twice recommended for commendations by Captain Kirk. ( TOS : " Space Seed ", " The Immunity Syndrome ")

Spock's personnel file

Spock wears a total of nine medals in 2269 , not counting the IDIC medal he wore in "Is There in Truth No Beauty?" It is likely he accumulated a great many more decorations by the time of his eventual retirement in the late 2290s .

Additional references were listed on his personnel file in " Among the Lotus Eaters ".

Appearances

• " The Cage "
• " Where No Man Has Gone Before "
• " The Corbomite Maneuver "
• " Mudd's Women "
• " The Enemy Within "
• " The Man Trap "
• " The Naked Time "
• " Charlie X "
• " Balance of Terror "
• " What Are Little Girls Made Of? "
• " Dagger of the Mind "
• " The Conscience of the King "
• " The Galileo Seven "
• " Court Martial "
• " The Menagerie, Part I "
• " The Menagerie, Part II "
• " Shore Leave "
• " The Squire of Gothos "
• " The Alternative Factor "
• " Tomorrow is Yesterday "
• " The Return of the Archons "
• " A Taste of Armageddon "
• " Space Seed "
• " This Side of Paradise "
• " The Devil in the Dark "
• " Errand of Mercy "
• " The City on the Edge of Forever "
• " Operation -- Annihilate! "
• " Catspaw "
• " Metamorphosis "
• " Friday's Child "
• " Who Mourns for Adonais? "
• " Amok Time "
• " The Doomsday Machine "
• " Wolf in the Fold "
• " The Changeling "
• " The Apple "
• " Mirror, Mirror "
• " The Deadly Years "
• " I, Mudd "
• " The Trouble with Tribbles "
• " Bread and Circuses "
• " Journey to Babel "
• " A Private Little War "
• " The Gamesters of Triskelion "
• " Obsession "
• " The Immunity Syndrome "
• " A Piece of the Action "
• " By Any Other Name "
• " Return to Tomorrow "
• " Patterns of Force "
• " The Ultimate Computer "
• " The Omega Glory "
• " Assignment: Earth "
• " Spectre of the Gun "
• " Elaan of Troyius "
• " The Paradise Syndrome "
• " The Enterprise Incident "
• " And the Children Shall Lead "
• " Spock's Brain "
• " Is There in Truth No Beauty? "
• " The Empath "
• " The Tholian Web "
• " For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky "
• " Day of the Dove "
• " Plato's Stepchildren "
• " Wink of an Eye "
• " That Which Survives "
• " Let That Be Your Last Battlefield "
• " Whom Gods Destroy "
• " The Mark of Gideon "
• " The Lights of Zetar "
• " The Cloud Minders "
• " The Way to Eden "
• " Requiem for Methuselah "
• " The Savage Curtain "
• " All Our Yesterdays "
• " Turnabout Intruder "
• " Beyond the Farthest Star "
• " Yesteryear "
• " One of Our Planets Is Missing "
• " The Lorelei Signal "
• " More Tribbles, More Troubles "
• " The Survivor "
• " The Infinite Vulcan "
• " The Magicks of Megas-Tu "
• " Once Upon a Planet "
• " Mudd's Passion "
• " The Terratin Incident "
• " The Time Trap "
• " The Ambergris Element "
• " The Slaver Weapon "
• " The Eye of the Beholder "
• " The Jihad "
• " The Pirates of Orion "
• " The Practical Joker "
• " Albatross "
• " How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth "
• " The Counter-Clock Incident "
• Star Trek: The Motion Picture
• Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
• Star Trek III: The Search for Spock
• Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
• Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
• Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
• Star Trek Into Darkness
• Star Trek Beyond (picture only)
• " Unification I "
• " Unification II "
• DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations " (archive footage)
• " Brother "
• " New Eden " (archive voice footage)
• " Light and Shadows "
• " If Memory Serves "
• " Project Daedalus "
• " The Red Angel "
• " Perpetual Infinity "
• " Through the Valley of Shadows "
• " Such Sweet Sorrow "
• " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 "
• " Unification III " (archive footage)
• " Stormy Weather " (picture only)
• " Q&A "
• " Ask Not "
• " No Small Parts " (picture only)
• " An Embarrassment Of Dooplers " (picture only)
• PRO : " Kobayashi " (hologram; archive audio)
• " Strange New Worlds "
• " Children of the Comet "
• " Ghosts of Illyria "
• " Memento Mori "
• " Spock Amok "
• " Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach "
• " The Serene Squall "
• " The Elysian Kingdom "
• " All Those Who Wander "
• " A Quality of Mercy "
• " The Broken Circle "
• " Ad Astra per Aspera "
• " Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow "
• " Among the Lotus Eaters "
• " Charades "
• " Lost in Translation "
• " Those Old Scientists "
• " Under the Cloak of War "
• " Subspace Rhapsody "
• " Hegemony "
• " Skin a Cat "
• " Holiday Party "
• " Holograms All the Way Down " (background hologram)
• " Walk, Don't Run " (archive footage)

Background information

Spock was played by Leonard Nimoy in the vast majority of the character's television and cinematic appearances. The Genesis -regenerated versions of Spock at nine, thirteen, seventeen, and twenty-five years of age in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock were portrayed by Carl Steven , Vadia Potenza , Stephen Manley , and Joe W. Davis , respectively. Spock's screams in that film were provided by Frank Welker .

The young Spock from TAS : " Yesteryear " was voiced by Billy Simpson . Carey Scott recorded some dialogue for a younger Spock in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier , but his scenes were cut . Spock is also portrayed by an unknown infant in that film. And while Nimoy portrayed the elder Spock in the film Star Trek , his younger alternate reality adult self was played by Zachary Quinto (who reprised the role in Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek Beyond ), as well as briefly by Jacob Kogan , who portrayed Spock as a young boy. Nimoy reprised the role of Spock for a cameo in Star Trek Into Darkness . Liam Hughes portrayed a young Spock in the Discovery episode " Brother " while Ethan Peck voiced the adult version of the character in the same episode. Peck also played the character in subsequent episodes of Star Trek: Discovery , Star Trek: Short Treks , and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .

A deleted scene from Star Trek featured a newborn Spock, portrayed by Jenna Vaughn . As Spock's birth would have occurred before the universe split, technically, she would have been the only performer to portray both Spock Prime and his alternate reality counterpart, as well as the only actress ever to play Spock.

Jane Wyatt , who played Spock's mother Amanda Grayson , was once asked by fans at a convention what Spock's first name was. She replied, perhaps jokingly, " Harold " [13] However, the question itself was flawed, since the episode " Journey to Babel " makes it clear that "Spock" is Spock's personal name.

On the other hand, Spock's family name has never been established in canon . In the episode " This Side of Paradise ", Leila Kalomi says to Spock, " You never told me if you had another name, " to which he replies, " You couldn't pronounce it. " D.C. Fontana – who was considered the "Vulcan expert" of the TOS behind-the-scenes staff and who created such details as the fact that Spock's father was an ambassador and his mother a school teacher – revealed, in an issue of the fanzine Spockanalia , that she had intended his family name to be "Xtmprsqzntwlfd", but since this is unpronounceable, there wasn't really any way to get this said in dialogue during an episode.

The Pocket TOS book Ishmael gives Spock's full name as "S'chn T'gai Spock". This name was also used on a poster for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds at the Mission Chicago Trek Convention, but CBS said that it was "incorrect" the next day and had the posters replaced. [14]

Since the release of the film Star Trek , the original reality version of Spock is now often referred to on websites and other media as "Spock Prime", to differentiate from the alternate reality version of the character.

From concept to series

From the start of thinking Spock up, Gene Roddenberry knew he wanted the character to be partly alien, and that he wanted Leonard Nimoy to play the role. Roddenberry later explained, " I made [Spock] a half-caste, because I remember thinking a half-breed Indian would be a lot more interesting than a full-blooded Indian or white, because he's going to be tugged in many different directions. " ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , p. 15)

Gene Roddenberry also wanted Spock's appearance to be very similar to typical portrayals of Satan the Devil. " I did purposely give him a slight look of the 'devil' because I thought that might be particularly provocative to women, particularly when his nature contrasted so greatly to this, " Roddenberry stated. [15]

The following character biography appeared in Roddenberry's original, 1964 series pitch Star Trek is... (and was reprinted in The Making of Star Trek ) [ page number? • edit ] :

In the revised first draft script of " The Cage " (dated 6 October 1964 ), Spock was described thus; " The only exception to the familiar types represented by the crew, Mister Spock is of partly alien extraction, his reddish skin, heavy-lidded eyes and slightly-pointed ears give him an almost satanic look. But in complete contrast is his unusual gentle manner and tone. He speaks with the almost British accent of one who has learned the language in textbooks. " The episode's revised final draft script (dated 20 November 1964 ) excluded mention of the "reddish skin" but otherwise remained the same. Later in the script, one of Spock's statements was directed to be delivered in an "excited" manner.

Gene Roddenberry thought up the unemotional aspect of Spock. Roddenberry explained, " As I created him, I said to myself, 'If I could just get rid of the emotions that plague me and work things out logically… ah , the things I could do! " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 11/12, p. 47) Casting Director Joseph D'Agosta added, " On the Spock character, the only guidelines I had were that he had to be thin, and a good actor with no emotion. He was a cold, calculating, logical person. Humor was not even considered at that time. " ( The Star Trek Interview Book , p. 213)

Actor Martin Landau (Commander John Koenig of Space: 1999 ) was an early casting consideration for the character of Spock in TOS. This was before the role went to Leonard Nimoy.

In spite of studio request to get rid of "the guy with the ears," Gene Roddenberry insisted on keeping the character through both pilot episodes of the series. ( Leonard Nimoy: Star Trek Memories ; Mind Meld: Secrets Behind the Voyage of a Lifetime )

According to Leonard Nimoy, he felt the need to play the character as more emotional when Jeffrey Hunter was playing the internalized Christopher Pike, as opposed to William Shatner 's portrayal of Captain Kirk. ( Mind Meld: Secrets Behind the Voyage of a Lifetime ; et al.) Also, there was room for Spock's emotional detachment when the similarly emotionless character of Number One was discarded along with Pike, after " The Cage ". ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , p. 15)

NBC 's early- 1966 publicity booklet gave this bio for Spock (reprinted in Inside Star Trek: The Real Story ):

The unemotional quality of Spock's persona was extremely appealing to Leonard Nimoy. " What immediately intrigued me was that here was a character who had an internal conflict, " Nimoy observed. " This half-Human, half-Vulcan being, struggling to maintain a Vulcan attitude, a Vulcan philosophical posture and Vulcan logic, opposing what was fighting him internally, which was Human emotion. There was a dynamic there to work with from an acting point of view. " ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , p. 15)

Gene Roddenberry recognized Spock as a team effort. " I'll take credit for formulating Spock and guiding the character, " he said, " then give as much credit to Leonard Nimoy for making it work, and also credit to the writers who kept it going in many story situations. " [16] On the other hand, Roddenberry proclaimed, in a letter to Isaac Asimov , " It's easy to give good situations and good lines to Spock. " Roddenberry also thought it was easier to write Spock than it was to write McCoy. [17] Nonetheless, the depiction of Spock was still to be further developed as the show began. Recalling the character's genesis, TNG Producer Robert Lewin noted, " Spock was not the hero that he became during the early part of the first series. " ( The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years , p. 71)

The series writers' guide (third revision, dated 17 April 1967 ) gave the following description of Spock ( Star Trek: The Original Series 365 ):

Season 2 salary issue

In the spring of 1967 , before production began on Star Trek 's second season , Leonard Nimoy and his agent got into an argument with the producers regarding the actor's salary (Nimoy felt it unfair that series star William Shatner was paid US$5,000 per episode, while he was only paid US$1,250). The agent wanted US$3000 per episode for his client, and would settle with US$2,500. However, a misunderstanding resulted in the agent believing that Mission: Impossible stars had at least US$11,000 salaries, so he suddenly demanded US$9,000 for Nimoy. The studio, of course, refused. Nimoy threatened to leave the series if the dispute was not solved.

In response to Nimoy's threats, Desilu executive Herb Solow asked Casting Director Joseph D'Agosta to compile a list of possible "Vulcan replacements", in case negotiations went unresolved. Three lists were made of actors who were deemed suitable for the role of Spock:

"A" List: Mark Lenard , William Smithers , Liam Sullivan , Lloyd Bochner , Joe Maross , Donald Harron , Edward Mulhare , James Mitchell , Michael Rennie , Peter Mark Richman , Charles Robinson , Chris Robinson , Stewart Moss , David Canary , John Anderson , David Carradine

"B" List: Anthony James , Perry Lopez , George Bachman , Alan Bergmann , Lee Kinsolving , Blaisdel Makee , Bill Fletcher , Henry Darrow , Anthony George , Curt Lowens , Jacques Denbeaux , Maxwell Reed

"C" List: Lawrence Montaigne , Ron Hayes , Patrick Horgan , Paul Mantee , Bruce Watson , Robert Yuro , Richard Evans , Joseph Ruskin , Ted Markland , Lee Bergere , John Rayner

In reality, these lists were only a psychological ploy to put pressure on Leonard Nimoy and his agent. The only two actors considered as possible replacements were Mark Lenard and Lawrence Montaigne (ironically, both of them appeared as Vulcans in the second season, Lenard playing Spock's father, Sarek).

Eventually, Desilu (at the insistence of NBC ) and Nimoy settled with US$2,500 per episode, plus US$100 for additional expenses, a better billing, a better merchandising deal, and more script input. However, when Montaigne was cast as Stonn in " Amok Time ", his contract had an option of recalling him to be cast as Spock, "just in case." ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , pp. 317-324)

Animated depictions

For approximately half an hour while Star Trek: The Animated Series was in early development, a boyhood version of Spock was considered for inclusion as a regular character in the upcoming series, along with other child equivalents of the series' main characters. ( The Art of Star Trek , pp. 42 & 43)

While initially developing TAS : " Yesteryear ", D.C. Fontana realized she wanted to feature Spock in the story, since he had always been her favorite main character and was the focus of her favorite episodes from the ones she had written for Star Trek: The Original Series , such as " This Side of Paradise " and " Journey to Babel ". ( Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before , p. 56) She was excited by the prospect of showing "part of what made Spock Spock," delving into his backstory in "Yesteryear". ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 97)

Reappearances

The notion of Spock suffering racial prejudice, alluded to in TAS : " Yesteryear " and the film Star Trek , was shared by the unmade prequel Star Trek: The First Adventure , in which Spock first met Kirk when he was defended by him from bullies at Starfleet Academy.

Gene Roddenberry once distributed a memo to the TNG writing staff which declared that, due to financial considerations, it would probably be impossible for Leonard Nimoy to ever guest star on that series as Spock (though Roddenberry also suggested Sarek appearing in a guest star role as an alternative). ( The Making of Yesterday's Enterprise , p. 22)

In an interview with TrekMovie.com 's Anthony Pascale in July 2007 , Leonard Nimoy explained that he felt Spock had been superfluous in the script of Star Trek Generations and that that was why he had chosen not to appear in the film. Nimoy initially proclaimed, " There was no Spock role in that script, " then elaborated, " There were five or six lines attributed to Spock […] but it had nothing to do with Spock. They were not Spock-like in any way. I said to Rick Berman , 'You could distribute these lines to any one of the other characters and it wouldn't make any difference.' And that is exactly what he did. There was no Spock function in the script. " [18]

In a memo he wrote Manny Coto (on 20 August 2004 ), Michael Sussman suggested that both an elderly Spock and a young version of the character be featured in a story covering an episode or two from the fourth season of Star Trek: Enterprise , if Leonard Nimoy was interested in appearing. As Sussman proposed, the older depiction of Spock would have been portrayed, in a framing story, by Nimoy, while the young Spock would have been played by another actor (a technique inspired by the portrayal of Indiana Jones in a two-parter from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles called "Mystery of the Blues", which features not only a young version of Jones, but also a middle-aged Jones, played by Harrison Ford ). In the same memo, Sussman envisioned Spock in the 24th century, as a "distinguished and retired Ambassador," being visited by a young Vulcan/Human hybrid who sought advice for balancing the two halves of his own personality. The elderly Spock then began recounting an adventure that took place in the early 23rd century, in which he, as a Starfleet cadet, assisted a middle-aged T'Pol , learning, in the process, "some lesson which helped him choose his own path in life." Sussman went on to suggest that a lot of new details about Spock could be divulged in the story, possibly including that, in his young adulthood, he had been torn between life as a diplomat (like his father) and a Starfleet career. The memo continued by proposing that Spock's mission include the now-aged other senior officers from Enterprise NX-01 , and be "a secret and possibly illegal TBD mission." However, this Spock story ultimately wasn't developed. [19]

Roberto Orci , a co-writer of the film Star Trek , wrote the Spock character as being essential to that film's narrative without considering a back-up story, had Leonard Nimoy turned down appearing in the film. He recalled Nimoy raised an eyebrow at the idea of the destruction of Vulcan . [20] Commented J.J. Abrams , " Leonard was a dream to work with. He was always incredibly encouraging and excited about what he was seeing. He had a couple of thoughts, but he loved everything related to his role […] He was happy to see Spock look so damn good! " ( Star Trek: Costumes: Five Decades of Fashion from the Final Frontier , p. 240) Abrams also stated, " It's a big deal for him to come back and play this part again. I don't think it's something he expected to do. Directing him as Spock for the first time was as surreal a moment as I've had. It was preposterous, but wonderful. " ( Empire , issue 234, p. 126)

After the making of the film Star Trek , Leonard Nimoy retired (again) from acting and publicly stated that he did not intend to return to the role of Spock again, as he felt that to do so would be unfair to Zachary Quinto. Nimoy even went as far as to say, " I definitely will not be in Star Trek 2," and, " I think I can be definitive about the fact that I will not be in it. " ( SFX , issue #200, p. 68) However, it was eventually confirmed that he would indeed be returning to the role of Spock for the sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness . [21] [22] Regarding how J.J. Abrams invited him to make a cameo appearance in the film, Nimoy recalled, " He just said, 'Would you come in for a couple of days and do me a favor.' " Whereas Nimoy had declined to cameo in Star Trek Generations because he felt Spock's part in that movie had been too general, Nimoy was persuaded that Spock had such a specific role in Star Trek Into Darkness that he was willing to accept the part. Addressing why he had claimed not to be in the film, Nimoy, who was very pleased that the truth of his involvement was kept secret, initially said, " I was asked time and time again if I was in the movie, and I managed to avoid answering without lying. " He laughed, but was then reminded that he had flat-out denied being in the film and replied, " Maybe I was confused. Of course, speaking, if you'll pardon me, logically, I wouldn't know if I was in the movie until I saw the movie. " [23] His cameo marked Nimoy's final appearance as Spock and his final role overall prior to his death in February 2015 .

In 2017, Star Trek: Discovery producer Akiva Goldsman said that Spock would not be seen on Discovery . [24] However, two years later, Spock did appear in Discovery's second season , played by Ethan Peck.

Other language voice actors

An excerpt from the German version of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ; Weicker, voicing Spock, saying, " Wenn ich ein Mensch wäre, wäre meine Antwort mit großer Wahrscheinlichkeit: Fahr zur Hölle!… Wenn ich ein Mensch wäre. " English: If I were Human, I believe my response would be 'Go to Hell!'… If I were Human.

Herbert Weicker was a German stage and voice actor who is widely associated with Spock, since he voiced this character in all German translations of episodes and films with the exception of the first run of Star Trek: The Animated Series .

Similarly, Czech television and film dubs have almost uniformly featured the late Jiří Plachý in the role of Spock, specifically, in the dubs of the TV appearances in Star Trek: The Original Series , Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , as well as in the six TOS era films and the first two Kelvin Timeline films. Zdeněk Junák dubbed the younger alternate reality Spock of the Kelvin Timeline films, while Lukáš Hlavica voiced Spock in the Czech dub of Star Trek: The Animated Series .

Slovak film and television dubs of Spock have included Štefan Kožka for the six installments of the TOS era film series, Ivan Letko for Spock's appearances on Star Trek: The Next Generation , as well as Marián Slovák as an older prime timeline Spock and Filip Tůma as a younger alternate reality Spock in the first Kelvin Timeline film.

Spock became one of the most enduring symbols of Star Trek . Accounting for the character's popularity, Gene Roddenberry stated, " I think that everyone was so smitten with Mr. Spock because he stood for loyalty and reliability. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 11/12, p. 47)

The popularity of Spock was one factor that motivated Leonard Nimoy into demanding a salary increase for the second season of TOS. " By this time, Leonard's popularity had convinced him of what he already knew: He had the most important role, " Herb Solow observed. In a memo Gene Roddenberry sent Gene L. Coon (on 1 April 1967 ), Roddenberry mentioned Spock having generated "considerable mail volume and public adulation" during the first season. ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , pp. 317 & 319) NBC likewise regarded Spock and Nimoy as the most popular part of the original Star Trek series, and believed that losing them would be very unflattering. The popularity of the character was thus influential in Leonard Nimoy's continuation in the part. ( Inside Star Trek: The Real Story , p. 324)

Roberto Orci has cited Spock as his favorite character. [25]

Casting Leonard Nimoy as an elderly version of Spock in the film Star Trek gave irate fans pause, caused them to stand down, and even won them over. ( Empire , issue 234, p. 126) However, William Shatner has been disapproving of how Spock is portrayed in that movie and its sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness , commenting, " I thought the two Spock appearances were gratuitous. J.J. [Abrams] wanted to pay homage to Spock I guess, but he didn't offer anything to the plot […] I told Leonard, 'You know that you're old when you go back in time and you're still old.' " (" Empire Presents 50 Years of Star Trek " supplement, p. 15)

Spock is referred to as a lieutenant commander in " Court Martial ", though the final draft and revised final draft of that episode's script instead referred to him as a full commander . The Star Trek Chronology listed Spock as having been promoted from lieutenant commander to full commander following "Court Martial". However, in a captain's log entry made by Kirk in " The Menagerie, Part I ", Spock is still identified as a lieutenant commander, as he is again in " Tomorrow is Yesterday ". Spock was first referred to as a commander in " Amok Time ". Throughout all his appearances on The Original Series , Spock wore the rank stripes of a full commander.

Near the end of the Star Trek: Discovery episode " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 ", Spock dons his Starfleet uniform for the first time in that show, wearing lieutenant junior grade stripes. However, in the earlier episode " Project Daedalus ", Spock identifying himself as a lieutenant . "Lieutenant" is the proper way to address lieutenant junior grades as well as full lieutenants, however, Spock was stating his own rank while being questioned by Admiral Cornwell and thus would have used his full rank. In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , Spock was still identified as a lieutenant and wore the correct insignia.

Spock was the inspiration for the Decepticon scientist, Shockwave, from the "Transformers" franchise. Comic book writer Bob Budiansky, who gave Shockwave his name and personality, described the character as "my attempt to take Spock from Star Trek and make him into a Decepticon." [26]

A portion of this article was paraphrased into first person and used as the content of Spock's memoir The Many and the One in PIC : " The Star Gazer ". [27]

Barbara Hambly 's novel Ishmael gives Spock's unpronounceable full name as "S'chn T'gai Spock," with "S'chn T'gai" apparently being the family name as opposed to the personal name. The ebook Seasons of Light and Darkness also uses this name.

According to Diane Duane 's novel Spock's World , Spock was a descendant of Surak .

The novelization of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home states that during the exile of the Enterprise command crew on Vulcan, Spock and McCoy underwent a series of mind melds facilitated by T'Lar to ensure that any lingering parts of the other's personalities were transferred back to the right person. In the days following Kirk and the Enterprise command crew saving Earth from the destructive effects of the whale probe, McCoy went to see Spock, who was temporarily staying at the Vulcan embassy on Earth and expressed worry that any punishment handed down by the Federation might not let him participate in future mind melds if needed. Spock assured McCoy that the fal-tor-pan was complete, and no further mind melds were needed. Spock told McCoy the two would always retain a smart part of each other in their minds.

Spock briefly reactivated his Starfleet commission , with the rank of admiral , during the Dominion War , according to Spectre , a novel on whose writing William Shatner collaborated with Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens .

In the novel Crossover , Spock and several unificationists were captured by the Romulan Empire. He was ultimately rescued by Montgomery Scott, Commander Riker , Data , and Geordi La Forge aboard the USS Yorktown that Scott stole from a Starfleet museum using the shuttle he was given by Picard to control the Yorktown 's computer. After believing Scott dead for 75 years, Spock was momentarily startled to see him behind the transporter controls, but quickly regained his control. Scott promised to explain how he reached the 24th century later to Spock.

In the novel The Fire and the Rose , Spock began to lose his emotional control after hearing of the death of Captain Kirk , and eventually returns to Gol to take Kolinahr training again. Spock ultimately succeeded and became truly emotionless, a situation that neither Sarek nor Amanda agreed he should have tried to do. Amanda in particular, felt Spock had rejected his Humanity and therefore in some measure, her by extension. Spock's lack of emotion also ultimately alienated McCoy when he came to ask Spock to stand with him at his wedding to Tonia Barrows and Spock refused. Ultimately, after Amanda's death in a shuttle accident and Spock seeing Sarek grieve for Amanda (which surprised Spock as he mistakenly believed Sarek to have also been a student of Kolinahr ) , and when Spock realized that he can't grieve for Amanda and that he didn't even miss her, he sought McCoy out on Earth to help him engage in an ancient Vulcan ritual to reverse the Kolinahr , allowing Spock to feel emotions again. This accomplished, Spock rebuilt his relationship with McCoy, was able to grieve for his mother and Captain Kirk, and once again found the balance and peace between his Vulcan and Human halves, allowing him to have emotional control again without rejecting his emotions.

In the novel Provenance of Shadows , Spock, having been contacted by McCoy's wife Tonia Barrows , and told that McCoy was taking a turn for the worse, went to see McCoy because he had regretted that he didn't get to see either Kirk or his mother once more before their deaths, and he was not going to make that mistake this time. Spock did spend the day with McCoy and planned to return the next day, but as he left McCoy's house, Spock was left with the impression he would never see McCoy alive again. Spock's feelings are proved correct as McCoy does die peacefully in his chair on the porch that same evening before Spock can return, with Tonia by his side, reflecting on his life and the good work he's done and his family and friends.

In the novel Vulcan's Forge , Spock commanded the science ship Intrepid II in 2294 , a year after Kirk was lost in the Nexus . Within the story, Uhura was Spock's first officer and McCoy his chief medical officer .

Other novels set after Star Trek VI established that Picard was at the wedding of Spock and Saavik met Sarek.

In the novel Yesterday's Son , Spock found out that he had a son with Zarabeth , whom she had named Zar.

In the game Star Trek: Armada , Ambassador Spock was sent aboard a Galaxy -class starship to mediate a treaty between the Klingon and Romulan empires on Romulus. The Borg intercepted this ship and assimilated him. The USS Enterprise -E traveled two days back in time to make sure he reached the peace conference. The plan succeeded, resulting in Romulan and Klingon ships being dispatched to assist the Federation in defending Earth.

Spock in Star Trek: Countdown

In the comic series Star Trek: Countdown , leading up to Star Trek , Spock was aided in his attempts to help convince the Vulcans to provide the Romulans with the red matter necessary to stop the impending supernova explosion by Jean-Luc Picard , who was now Federation Ambassador to Vulcan, as well as by a restored Data , who was now captain of the Enterprise -E. Also, the comic established that Geordi La Forge had designed the Jellyfish , which Spock used to drop the red matter into the supernova. Just after the Jellyfish and the Narada were pulled through the black hole and into the alternate reality, the black hole finished collapsing and the Enterprise arrived in the area finding no indication anywhere that Spock managed to escape. Presuming Spock to be dead, Picard said that he hoped his friend's soul did indeed live long and prosper.

In the novelization of Star Trek , after Kirk told Spock that Dr. McCoy , Sulu , Chekov , and Uhura – all but one of the group of officers who had once been willing to throw away their careers to save him – were all serving on the USS Enterprise (taking McCoy's presence for granted when following the confirmation of the other three), Spock suggested to Kirk that their meeting, and the way the crew was already coming together, was the work of the timeline attempting to "fix" itself. As for the one person not yet aboard the ship, he had been well aware that Scotty was stationed at the outpost, which he had visited on occasion for supplies – though it wasn't clear whether they had actually met – but he had a made a point of keeping his distance. This self-imposed isolation was the only reason that he happened to be at the right place with a torch as the hengrauggi wrapped its tongue around Kirk's leg, which struck him as yet more evidence to support his theory – Kirk's arrival made it clear that the three had converged there for a reason, since he could give Scott the basics of his own invention, and therefore return Kirk to the Enterprise , with a way to take his rightful place in command (seeing that the young officer was obviously unaware of Regulation 619, he admitted to having forgotten how insignificant such things had been to the Kirk he knew so well), and hopefully be able to minimize the damage to the timeline.

In the comic series Star Trek: Spock: Reflections , the events leading up to Countdown were detailed. He traveled to Veridian III after Picard sent him a message following the events of Star Trek Generations explaining what really happened to Kirk regarding his "death" on the USS Enterprise -B to retrieve his body where he brought him back home to Earth to be reburied at the Kirk family farm in Iowa . Spock explained to Picard how Kirk did the same for him, at a terrible cost and that he needed to be equal to Kirk's sacrifice. Picard then tells Spock that he would be welcomed to return to Starfleet duty, in any capacity, but Spock planned to return to Romulus to continue his work. Picard asks whether arrangements can be made to make Spock's presence there official, but Spock declined, saying he has always led "a life of solitude and duty". As Spock remembers how he once worked with remarkable friends and comrades, he tells Picard to treasure those times in his own life, since they will someday end. They exchange the Vulcan salute and Picard walks away, but turned back to see Spock still standing quietly by his friend's grave.

Leonard Nimoy and Zachary Quinto also lent their voices to Star Trek Online ; Nimoy reprised his role as Spock and narrated key events to players, while Quinto voices a Mark VI Emergency Medical Holographic program who helps the player though the tutorial level.

The 2013 virtual collectible card battle game Star Trek: Rivals was using Nimoy's picture for card #103 "Ambassador Spock".

The Star Trek: Ongoing story arc Legacy of Spock focuses on his place in the alternate reality 's new Vulcan settlement . Though initially blamed in part for the ultimate destruction of Vulcan, he is ultimately revered for his dedication to his people and receives a monument that is still standing 3,000 years later. Unlike the other monuments, which are massive, his is life-size, reportedly because he felt to make it any larger would not be "logical".

The Doctor offering Spock a jelly baby

In the third issue of the Doctor Who crossover comic Assimilation² , Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scott investigate a Federation archaeological team on the planet Aprilia III on stardate 3368.5, which had lost contact with Starfleet. Upon landing in the shuttlecraft Galileo , they are greeted by project manager Jefferson Whitmore, who assures them that all is well and gives them a tour of the facility, but Kirk finds the staff suspiciously calm, which Spock agrees with as by Human standards, the research team seemed remarkably placid and unemotional. The team later return to the facility after dark where they meet the Fourth Doctor , assuming he's a member of the research team and he helps them break the electronic lock with his sonic screwdriver and then offers Spock a jelly baby . Together, they infiltrated the facility. There, they find the researchers standing catatonically, with small cybernetic devices in their ears. It is discovered they were under the control of the Doctor's enemies, the Cybermen . A battle ensues and Spock and Scotty use their phasers on two Cybermen, while Kirk and the Doctor handle the Cyber-Controller . The Doctor then uses gold dust to clog up the Controller's respiration, allowing Spock to fire his phaser and destroying it. After the Cybermen are defeated and the Doctor slips quietly away, Spock assures Kirk there are no signs of anymore Cybermen on the planet, but Kirk arranges for a permanent garrison of Starfleet Security personnel to protect the researchers just in case.

In Star Trek Cats , Spock is depicted as an Oriental Shorthair cat .

In the Star Trek: Picard novel The Last Best Hope , Spock left Romulus in the early 2380s , believing there was nothing more he could achieve in the face of the predicted Supernova, but not without taking as many survivors as his small ship can carry with him. He was later contacted by now-Admiral Jean-Luc Picard when his journey brought him to an unplanned rendezvous with the USS Verity .

Spock appears in the video game Star Trek: Resurgence , where he comes aboard the USS Resolute to assist in stopping a crisis between the Hotari and the Alydians.

External links

• Spock at Wikipedia
• Spock at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Spock at the Star Trek Online Wiki
• 2 Daniels (Crewman)
• 3 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)

Every actor who has played Spock on 'Star Trek'

The saga of spock.

Ever since we saw the USS Discovery rendezvous with the USS Enterprise in the season one finale of "Star Trek: Discovery," fans have been frantic to find out more. We have since learned that Capt. Christopher Pike (to be played by Anson Mount) is at the helm of the ship made famous by "Star Trek: The Original Series," and this cosmic encounter is set in the "Star Trek" timeline before the events of the original series episode "The Cage," which means that somewhere on the NCC-1701 is a certain celebrated Vulcan science officer. With bated breath we waited; who would be cast as Spock? In August, "Discovery" representatives announced that Ethan Peck would appear in the role. Peck will be the ninth actor to have portrayed Spock either on television or in a film — and just in case you can't remember them all, here's the complete list. (Movie and TV credits are via the "Star Trek" fan reference site Memory Alpha and IMDb .)

Leonard Nimoy

• "Star Trek: The Original Series" (1966-1969) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: The Animated Series" (1973-1974) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: The Next Generation" — "Unification" parts I & II (1991) … as Ambassador Spock
• "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" (1979) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" (1982) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock
• "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek V: The Final Frontier" (1989) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country" (1991) … as Capt. Spock
• "Star Trek" (2009) … as Spock Prime
• "Star Trek: Into Darkness" (2013) … as Spock Prime

Billy Simpson

• "Star Trek: The Animated Series" — "Yesteryear" (1973) … as Young Spock

Carl Steven

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 9

Vadia Potenza

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 13

Stephen Manley

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 17

Joe W. Davis

• "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" (1984) … as Spock, age 25

Jacob Kogan

• "Star Trek" (2009) … as young Spock

Zachary Quinto

• "Star Trek" (2009) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: Into Darkness" (2013) … as Mr. Spock
• "Star Trek: Beyond" (2016) … as Mr. Spock

• "Star Trek: Discovery" (2019) … as Mr. Spock

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Why Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Spock Is Different From TOS

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• Ethan Peck's portrayal of Spock in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds establishes a unique version of the character.
• Peck's Spock addresses specific elements from The Original Series while adding new depth to the character.
• Peck's Spock showcases his struggles among other Vulcans and his tendency towards interpersonal mistakes.

The following article contains spoilers for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2, now streaming on Paramount+.

More than any other character, Mr. Spock has been the poster child for the Star Trek franchise , starting the first pilot and continuing all the way up to the ongoing Star Trek: Strange New Worlds series. Leonard Nimoy brought him to life so marvelously, that for a long time the idea of another actor playing the role was inconceivable. Even the Kelvinverse movies brought Nimoy in for a cameo when Zachary Quinto took over the role, giving the new actor his blessing while establishing firmly that they are two distinct variants of the character.

Actor Ethan Peck -- who plays Spock on Strange New Worlds after first taking up the role in Star Trek: Discovery -- doesn't have that option. He plays a younger version of Nimoy's take on the character, in keeping with Strange New Worlds' status as a prequel. That means everything he does must feed into what Spock becomes on The Original Series : necessitating the need to emulate Nimoy. Yet, Peck has very quickly established his own unique version of the character, which differs from his predecessor in key ways. It allows the actor to find fresh wrinkles in a figure that Star Trek fans thought they knew by heart.

RELATED: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Cast and Character Guide

Leonard Nimoy's Spock Sets Boundaries for Strange New Worlds

Quinto's take on Spock benefits from his variant status. The Kelvinverse gives him new details to play off of, most notably the destruction of Vulcan and his love affair with Nyota Uhura . The differences are easily explained as the creation of an alternate universe, letting Quinto find his take on Spock without having to emulate Nimoy. Peck faces the same challenge, but without the benefit of being a variant.

Peck's version of Spock can't stray too far from the contours of Nimoy's performance without risking continuity errors -- a danger both Strange New Worlds and Discovery work overtime to avoid. Instead, he looks at the experiences that helped shape Spock into his "older" self on The Original Series . This gives Peck a destination to work towards, allowing Strange New Worlds to select an intriguing starting point and evolve from there. Thankfully, Nimoy's performance in the Star Trek pilot "The Cage" (set before Strange New Worlds ) is short on details and leaves a lot of room for interpretation.

RELATED: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Cast Gets High Praise From Paul Wesley

Ethan Peck's Spock Addresses Elements from The Original Series

Many of Spock's challenges in Discovery and Strange New Worlds address specifics about his status in The Original Series . For example, Nimoy's Spock shares a mysterious bond with Christine Chapel, who clearly cares deeply for him and even makes romantic overtures on occasion. The series never gives any strong reasons for her behavior, only that he's important to her. Similarly, Spock's betrothal to the Vulcan T'Pring plays a key role in The Original Series Season 2, Episode 5, "Amok Time," in which he's forced to return to Vulcan to set his affairs in order and almost kills Captain Kirk in the process.

Strange New Worlds uses both elements to create a love triangle. The series opens with T'Pring and Spock engaged , and struggling to make a long-distance relationship work. That becomes doubly complicated when Spock and Chapel develop feelings for each other. Their pairing ultimately terminates the engagement, and remains very much in question as of the end of Season 2. All of this feeds into their open but unresolved feelings on The Original Series , as well as T'Pring's antagonism in "Amok Time."

Such subplots work by providing new details about Spock's behavior and relationships in The Original Series. In the process it paints Peck's Spock as more impulsive that Nimoy's, as well as struggling to fit in among his fellow Vulcans. T'Pring's insufferable parents from Season 2, Episode 5, "Charades" are object proof of this. It also shows Spock as being more prone to interpersonal mistakes, especially with his human crewmates, which is a far cry from the certainty and detachment that Nimoy's Spock displays. That in turn, better explains some of Spock's behavior in The Original Series, such as his coldness towards Chapel and his unwillingness to discuss T'Pring with Kirk. The differences in Peck's Spock deliberately reflect the man that he becomes.

RELATED: Strange New Worlds: One Vulcan Can Help Spock on His Emotional Journey

Ethan Peck's Spock Is More Troubled and More Human Than Leonard Nimoy's

Peck's Spock also has a carefully chosen introduction, which gives the character a starting point from which to grow. It pulls less from The Original Series than from Star Trek: The Animated Series . Season 1, Episode 2, "Yesteryear" reveals the details of Spock's upbringing. His peers often bully him over his human half, and his father is cold and distant, even for a Vulcan. Similarly, Season 1, Episode 9, "Once Upon a Planet" reveals that Spock's mother read Alice in Wonderland to him as a child. This forms a key connection to his adopted sister Michael Burnham, who herself has fond memories of Amanda reading the story to her.

All of that serves to set up Peck's Spock as perhaps his furthest from who he becomes in The Original Series . The actor debuts in the role in Discovery Season 2, Episode 1, "Brother," as Spock is pursuing the visions of the Red Angel. Michael finds him utterly lost and close to insanity, then slowly brings him back from the brink. He and Christopher Pike's Enterprise help the Discovery defeat Control and launch it on its journey centuries into the future. That leaves Spock mourning his sister's absence, which in turn confronts him with his human half. This, too, makes for a big break from Nimoy's performance.

By the time The Original Series events take place, he has all but subsumed his human side: identifying as Vulcan and even encountering prejudice from his human crewmates over it. (Ironically, Spock was envisioned as the only alien aboard the Enterprise in The Original Series , though that has since been retconned.) Strange New Worlds contrasts that with a Spock who struggles to keep his emotions in check at times. In addition, Spock himself experiences humanity in "Charades" when aliens accidentally remove his Vulcan DNA. That helps further define Peck's Spock as distinctive, while opening the door for further development as Strange New Worlds continues .

All episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds are now streaming on Paramount+.

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022)

Spock's Entire Backstory Explained

When it comes to Star Trek laymen, Captain James T. Kirk gets all the love. But die-hard Trekkies are all about Spock. 

Where Kirk was a space-faring brawler with a galactically large libido, Spock was a character after the typical nerd's own heart. The half-Vulcan Starfleet officer could disable an opponent with a well-placed pinch, but he was much more likely to use deductive reasoning and logic to sort out his problems. Couple that fan favorite with Leonard Nimoy's incredible gift for conveying the emotions of a pathologically logical outsider, and it's no wonder that Spock has endured for as long as the fictional universe itself. 

The constant allure of Trek and each generation's desire to return to Starfleet's endless story-generating capabilities means there are always greenhorns and redshirts coming to Trek for the first time. With decades of lore to digest, getting a grip on a character like Spock can be difficult. So, we've put together a bit of a primer on a character who's lived long and prospered throughout Trek 's many incarnations.

To understand Spock, you've got to understand Vulcans

When any newcomer first starts watching Star Trek , their first question is probably, "Why does Spock look like that?"

Well, Spock is half-human, half-Vulcan, and he was born on the planet Vulcan (pictured) in the 23rd century. The Vulcans, along with the humans of Earth, are one of the four founding groups of the United Federation of Planets, so Spock grew up in a civilization under the sway of this intergalactic government. His mother was a human schoolteacher who came from Earth and lived on Vulcan with Spock's father, Sarek. The couple met and fell in love while Sarek was performing his duties as a Vulcan ambassador to the Federation. With both parents dedicated to the public good, Spock's eventual career path as a space-traveling peacekeeper for the Federation makes a good bit of sense, though that decision was far off from Spock's early years in the city of ShiKahr. In fact, given how poorly he was treated as a young boy, it's a wonder the drive for civil service survived.   

As a child, Spock was an outsider

Spock had an incredibly difficult time in his childhood , being roundly mocked and ridiculed for his half-human heritage on the almost entirely homogeneous planet of Vulcan. The Vulcan children around him liked to provoke him and then ridicule him for responding emotionally, a faux pas in the logic-based society of Vulcan. Spock's father had a full-blooded Vulcan son named Sybok, and Sarek initially looked at his half-human son with barely disguised revulsion. Through considerable effort, Spock would come to suppress his emotions in the Vulcan way, while his fully Vulcan half-brother would become a revolutionary against the cold logic of his people, due to a deep-seated belief in the concept of Heaven. 

Becoming his indefatigably logical self took time and work, however, and Vulcan schoolchildren were more than willing to make his job harder. As if that wasn't enough, Spock suffered from dyslexia. He inherited the condition from his mother's side of the family, and she worked extensively with Spock to teach him how to read and avoid further stigmatization. 

Spock proved himself as a young boy

Spock didn't take long to reach his limit. He was unusually emotional for a Vulcan, and the insistent prodding only made it worse. As such, Spock had a chip on his shoulder from a very early age, hoping to prove his doubters wrong and fully belong in Vulcan society. Vulcan's harsh code of logical living and extreme belief in problem-solving permeated every aspect of their society, including their rituals that marked the beginning of adulthood. 

For example, every young Vulcan had to go through the kahs-wan , a ritual that required young Vulcans to live in the desert for ten days without food, water, or weapons. The Vulcans believed that such self-reliance was a bulwark against getting too soft and that it provided a connection to the planet's ancient warrior past. Spock took the test for the first time at the age of seven, pushed to get it over with due to his treatment by full Vulcans. But he very nearly died in an attack by a large mountain lion, only being saved by his pet I-Chaya . His companion animal was badly mauled by the beast's venomous claws, and Spock had to decide whether to fight to save it or let it die. 

Given the agony that I-Chaya was feeling, Spock felt that he should let his friend die, though it caused him great pain. At that moment, Spock dedicated himself to the Vulcan way of thinking. He would follow the teachings of the Vulcan philosopher Surak, who preached logic and emotional control as the foundation of a life well-lived.

How Vulcans adopted logic and reason

In spite of their mistreatment of a young and moody Spock, Vulcans weren't always so dedicated to reason. Much like Earth, they spent centuries at war with one another. They developed atomic weapons around the time of 300 AD , and war threatened all life on their planet. In this time, the philosopher Surak created a monastery in the Vulcan desert and began teaching that all the world's ills were due to a failure to suppress emotion and think logically. His followers began to spread his message throughout Vulcan where it was met with open hostility from certain groups. Yet another war raged between adherents of Surak's logic-first worldview and people who believed in the rule of emotion. An atomic blast in one of these wars killed the philosopher, turning him into a martyr. 

Eventually, the logicians won out, with holdouts leaving Vulcan to go and found the Romulan Empire , a noted enemy of the Federation throughout Star Trek 's run. Other Vulcans became nomads who took a heretical stance toward Surak's teachings that would eventually line up with Spock's life. They felt that controlling emotion didn't mean outright suppression but rather allowing yourself to feel and then tamping it down. 

Spock's complicated relationship with his sister

Centuries after the logic-based "Time of Awakening," the emotions of early Vulcans had been largely forgotten. This led Spock's own father to view his son's weakness for the illogical with contempt. And though he did his best to hide it, it was clear from Spock's actions that he could tell how his father thought of him. He would act out even after taking his test of maturity, disappearing into the wilderness for days at a time without telling his father where he went. 

Around the same time, his family adopted a fully human daughter after two visiting scientists died on Vulcan. The curiously named Michael Burnham came to live with them, and Spock instantly felt attached to this new outsider. He followed the older girl around, even as her presence on the planet stirred up danger. Extremist believers in Vulcan philosophies began to target Burnham, and she tried to run away so that her new family wouldn't be harmed in any planned attack. 

While trying to find her, Spock was visited by a spirit he called "the Red Angel," which told him where to find Burnham. This inexplicable paranormal event would have a lasting impact on Spock, as it fell outside of the realm of his logical beliefs and still accurately led to Burnham. However, when Spock found his sister, Michael deliberately insulted him, taking aim at his most vulnerable attributes in order to keep him away from her and out of danger. Their relationship never recovered. 

A momentous decision and a dysfunctional family

Spock's relationship with his father became even more strained after Michael graduated from the Vulcan Science Academy. She attempted to join Vulcan's analogue to Starfleet, the Vulcan Expeditionary Group (VEG), and caused a minor scandal. No non-Vulcan had ever served, but out of respect for Spock's father, the VEG brass let the decision rest with him. However, if they allowed Burnham in, she would be the only member of his family to serve in the VEG. So, Sarek had to choose between a place for Spock or his adopted human daughter. 

He chose Spock. 

Unfortunately, his son didn't want to be a member of the VEG. He declined in order to attend Starfleet Academy on Earth, hoping to become a scientist on a Federation space vessel. Squandering the honor that his father set aside for him broke their already tense relationship, and neither man spoke to the other for 18 years. 

Spock winds up on the Enterprise

Spock left the Starfleet Academy as a distinguished student of computers, and he was assigned to the Enterprise under its then-commander Christopher Pike. Spock served the commander well, helping to get him off of the planet Talos IV after their landing party was attacked by the freaky looking Talosians. And even though he'd suffered a leg injury in a previous mission, Spock managed to help a captured Commander Pike and the rest of the landing party back on to the Enterprise . 

Interestingly, the Talosians made use of a weapon that tricked their adversaries via projected visions. While the cool and calm Spock made no mention of it to his shipmates, he believed that they might be the same species as the Red Angel that he'd encountered as a child. Along with Pike, he filed a report that urged the rest of the Federation to steer clear of the Talosians ... while personally noting that he would return. 

The time he 'turned' on Starfleet

Spock took a vacation from Starfleet at the end of a war between the Klingons and the Federation. He'd been on duty for five straight years at the time, but rather than return home to Vulcan, the science officer opted for a bit more research. The encounter on Talos had been gnawing at his brain, and he had to know if they were the source of his seemingly illogical visions. Against the Federation's own orders, he personally went to Talosian space. 

He came across a " Red Angel " and found out that they were merely advanced humanoids wearing suits whose technology was beyond current comprehension. He attempted a Vulcan mind-meld with the advanced alien and saw visions of the destruction of all major Federation planets in the future. The super-advanced humans he thought were angels had moved beyond experiencing time in a linear fashion, and the effect on Spock broke him mentally. 

His logical and ordered brain couldn't deal with the jumble of non-linear time. He had enough composure to check himself into a psychiatric hospital, but he awoke in a confused state and knocked his doctors unconscious with a Vulcan nerve pinch. The attack on Federation doctors made Spock a criminal, and Starfleet began tracking him down. He hid out on Vulcan, being protected by his mother as his condition worsened. 

Spock returns to the fold

After hiding out on Vulcan, Spock was barely cognizant and just kept repeating a jumble of numbers and several tenets of Surek's logical principles. Eventually, his family realized he was spouting the coordinates of Talos IV but in a disordered way due to his dyslexia. They took Spock there and convinced the Talosians to heal him. In order to keep him from snapping back into the experience of non-linear time, all members of the Enterprise were banned from ever mentioning the name of his sister.

Spock continued to serve on the Enterprise , getting in over 11 years of experience on the bridge of the famed ship. He stayed on even after Commander Pike was promoted, and Spock became an officer under Captain James T. Kirk. In fact, the Vulcan was on board the Enterprise when they became the first Federation members to encounter Romulans in over 100 years. Because of Romulans' shared history with the Vulcans, Spock looked considerably similar to the hostile aliens. At least one Starfleet officer believed that Spock might be an enemy agent, but his continued exemplary service and selflessness put these fears to rest. 

Kidnapping Pike

Spock became a fugitive one more time during his service to Starfleet. He was attempting to help his former captain live out his best possible life on the world that caused them both so much trouble. See, Commander Pike had been permanently disabled, left in a semi-vegetative state in a body-encompassing wheelchair that only allowed him to communicate via beeping. But because of the Talosian ability to create false realities, Spock believed he could give Pike a full life by taking him to the planet and allowing them to create an illusion for him. 

Unfortunately, visiting Talos IV was entirely forbidden for Federation members. So, Spock kidnapped Pike and took control of the Enterprise , piloting the stolen ship toward an illegal visit. Though his actions were criminal, Spock was able to convince Kirk to allow the transport of Pike. The former commander was beamed down to the planet to live out his life in a peaceful vision, and the charges against Spock were dropped.

Spock almost became a monk

At the end of another five-year stint on the Enterprise , Spock felt himself fraying at the edges. He'd moved far from his belief in logic, and now, he believed he should return to Vulcan to live the life of a Surakian monk. He retired from Starfleet and joined a monastic order to complete a revered process on Vulcan known as kolinahr . It was a years-long training that was meant to purge adherents of all emotion to reach a state of pure logic. 

Spock had completed most of the stages of the process, only to fall just short of the final level of logical enlightenment. See, just as he was about to reach his final plane of logic, he detected an impossibly powerful threat in the galaxy and reacted to it emotionally. As his attempt to achieve kolinahr was ruined, he felt that the Federation was in grave danger and returned to Starfleet. 

Spock's feelings were correct. The Earth was facing down the possibility of being destroyed by the V'ger, a life form the size of Earth's entire orbit, capable of generating more power than thousands of starships. With Spock's help, the Enterprise crew discovered that V'ger was an extremely advanced creature built around a Voyager space probe that was attempting to establish contact with humanity. Starfleet captain Will Decker sacrificed himself to meld with V'ger and keep it from destroying Earth in its attempts. As a result, the creation evolved into a higher plane of existence and disappeared. 

Spock makes the ultimate sacrifice

After the whole incident with V'ger, Spock was promoted to captain, and he became a professor for Starfleet. He trained prospective cadets on a decommissioned version of the Enterprise . This peaceful life of running simulations and keeping young would-be officers in line was agreeable to Spock, but his old buddy, James Kirk, chafed at the idea of being away from the frontier. And right about then, that's when things started to get exciting.

During a routine training run with Starfleet cadets, the Enterprise was set upon by an old rival. Khan Noonien Singh, a genetically enhanced ex-dictator, had broken free of his space exile. The former prince of a centuries-old regime on Earth that believed in eugenics, Khan was a superhuman with incredible cunning and strength. He hoped to use a machine that could terraform an entire planet to forcefully create a new home for himself and his abandoned soldiers, and he also hoped to kill his arch-enemy, Kirk.

However, as the two enemies were facing off, Spock ceded control of the Enterprise to Kirk and ultimately gave his life to save the ship in the course of their battle with Khan. He exposed himself to a deadly level of radiation to work on the vessel and keep it from imploding, with his irradiated corpse being inadvertently launched onto a newly formed planet that resulted from the terraforming machine's explosion. 

The Vulcan becomes a space diplomat

After the terraforming machine was destroyed, its life-forming waves soaked a nearby planet, which, luckily, is where Spock's body ended up. As a result, Spock was brought back to life, though he lost a lot of his memories and intellect. He trained quickly to get himself back to the level of an experienced officer and eventually became a diplomat for Federation interests. Though Vulcans were logical and rule-followers by nature, Spock frequently leaned toward his human side. He used his advanced reasoning abilities and his willingness to flaunt the rules to broker deals between the Federation and its greatest enemies. 

During his time as a representative of the Federation, he created treaties between the United Federation of Planets and the Klingons. At the time, the Federation believed that they couldn't overcome their differences with the Klingons, assuming the warrior race was too violent to become an ally. However, Spock was able to push for a truce and end two centuries of conflict between the two empires. He also attempted to create peace between the Romulans and Vulcans, doing so entirely in secret and without Federation backing. He was unsuccessful. 

The death of Spock

Spock died of natural causes in the year 2263. Of course, his life was anything but normal, due to various deaths, wormhole-assisted time travel, and alternate realities. After all, the original Spock was born in 2230, died in 2285, was revived, and eventually died in an alternate reality 161 years after he was born. And how did he wind up there? Well, Spock attempted to stop the Romulan sun from exploding with the help of "red matter," but he failed. As a result, the sun obliterated the Romulan homeworld and created a black hole, sucking up both Spock and his Romulan enemy, Nero.

The two were sent back in time, thus creating a parallel dimension known as the Kelvin Timeline . Here, Prime Spock helped his younger Kelvin counterpart defeat Nero and deal with a new version of Khan Noonien Singh. But all good things — including good Vulcans — must come to an end, and Spock eventually passed away in this alternate timeline. Still, the character continually pops up in new installments in the Star Trek  franchise . It's likely that Spock will be around as long as we continue to make Star Trek properties. Though he'd hate it, we're too emotionally attached to let him go. 

Ethan Peck is Ready to Beam Up

Star Trek 's newest Spock has been on a journey to become "worthy" of the iconic role. Now, he's a changed man.

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When Ethan Peck was cast as Spock, Star Trek ’s legendary science officer, two extraordinary things happened. First, he nearly blacked out. Then, he embarked on a journey of “profound evolution” to become someone worthy of wearing those iconic pointy ears. The pursuit of living up to Spock changed him—made him more confident, more deliberate, more considered. Four years after his fateful debut, the imposter syndrome has worn off, but the journey of becoming remains ongoing. “I’m still trying to grab the Vulcanism in myself,” he tells Esquire .

Peck is the third actor to shave his eyebrows and suit up as everyone’s favorite Vulcan; the late Leonard Nimoy originated the role in Star Trek: The Original Series , then passed the baton to Zachary Quinto for J.J. Abrams’ three Star Trek films. Peck joined Paramount’s ever-expanding Star Trek universe in 2018, when Spock figured into season two of Star Trek: Discovery as the estranged brother of protagonist Michael Burnham. Spock and his reimagined Enterprise colleagues made such a splash on Discovery that fans clamored for a spin-off—and got their way, luckily for the rest of us. This spring, that long-awaited series arrived in the form of Strange New Worlds , a back-to-basics return to the episodic storytelling of The Original Series , set during the captaincy of Christopher Pike (Captain Kirk’s predecessor). Strange New Worlds is the best Trek outing in years: uplifting, optimistic, and gloriously retro, it’s a character-driven series where each episode pairs a top notch sociocultural story with some good, clean, spacefaring fun.

Part of the secret sauce behind Strange New Worlds is, of course, Spock. Peck has nailed everything fans know and love about this legendary character, from his arch formality to his bone-dry humor, while also boldly going where no one has gone before. For the first time ever, viewers get a peek into Spock’s sex life; in one standout episode, a soul-sharing ritual gone wrong sees Spock and his fiancée swap bodies, leading them to profound insights about duty and sacrifice (and, of course, some funny hijinks). But Peck doesn’t want too much credit for his rendition of the role. “I don’t feel like I have any ownership over Spock,” he tells Esquire. “I’m just a custodian.”

A lifelong science fiction fan and a deep, scholarly thinker, Peck has been thrown into the deep end of a multi-decade phenomenon—and come out the other side grateful and changed. He Zoomed with Esquire to discuss all things Star Trek , from what it’s like wearing the Vulcan eyebrows to how he ended up on an ocean cruise full of Trek fans. This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Esquire: What was your relationship to Star Trek before you joined the franchise?

Ethan Peck: I'm a big science fiction fan, but in my younger years, I somehow avoided or overlooked Star Trek . Then I became a big fan of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek movies. I remember the very first time I saw the posters. Each character looked so developed and thrilling. I thought, “I wish I could do something like that.” Now I'm on Star Trek. It's crazy, but it’s exactly where I want to be in terms of genre.

ESQ: What are some other meaningful science fiction touchpoints for you?

EP: It started with Golden Age science fiction books. I recall reading Isaac Asimov’s The End of Eternity when I was around twelve years old—that was really seminal in terms of how I perceive the universe, and the bigger philosophical quest it sent me on. From a young age, Akira was huge for me, too. It asks so many big questions. It’s an allegory for the threat of nuclear war and the mass destruction we can wreak on ourselves, but it also asks: what is consciousness? That was the first time I'd been exposed to those ideas in a way that I could begin to understand. Of course, 2001: A Space Odyssey made a huge impact, too. Oftentimes a book comes out before a movie, but with 2001: A Space Odyssey , Kubrick reached out to Arthur C. Clarke and said, "I want to create the quintessential science fiction film. Will you help me?" The script was actually completed before the book. I remember reading the book and thinking, “I wish hadn't seen the movie so I could create my own imagery for this,” only to discover that it came out after. I love that book.

ESQ: When you first auditioned for Discovery , how did you feel about stepping into the iconic role of Spock?

EP: When I first auditioned, I didn’t even know what I was auditioning for. The project had a code name, so I was blissfully unaware. We knew that it was code for Star Trek , but I had no idea what the role was. I assumed it was something small. By the time I learned what the role was after two auditions, I was quite frankly terrified. I was terrified of the audition, but also of the need to live up to this mythical icon, as Spock has become. I blacked out the very last audition—I barely remember what I did. After getting the part, I was still terrified. I felt unworthy of it. I felt I had so much personal growth to undergo in order to fulfill the needs of this character. Spock is such a vast-minded person—he’s otherworldly, hyper-intelligent, and has great integrity. I’m constantly working to live up to him.

ESQ: What’s been your experience of joining and navigating this robust fandom?

EP: The conventions are surreal. You have a big group of people who love the concepts, the ideals, and the openness that Star Trek is a vessel for. They’re sometimes marginalized for different reasons, and they find a lot of commonality among one another. That’s a beautiful and incredible thing. I've been plugged into something much bigger than me. I don't feel like I have any ownership over Spock; I'm just a custodian. People come to me at these conventions, and it's almost like they want confirmation of some sort—to be seen by this character and this universe. They're not there to see Ethan. They're there to see Spock, and I just happen to be a representative of this character at this one point in time. These people are so thrilled and excited and moved by the world that we are a part of as actors, and they come with such vulnerability—that’s very special and unique. In the year after Discovery ’s second season, I did thirteen conventions that culminated in Star Trek: The Cruise , which was wild. I kept thinking, “Wow, I get to have this experience. I get to see these people in this light and in under these circumstances.”

ESQ: I need to hear more about Star Trek: The Cruise .

EP: It's everything I've just described, but hyper-condensed and intensified, because you're on this floating skyscraper. I think there were around 2500 to 3000 guests on the ship, with about 30 "talents," as they refer to us. I would walk out of my little suite, which is basically a room with two double beds, and people would say, "Ethan Peck?" You're there with everybody. It’s mostly a celebration of the community that Star Trek has created, which is infused with the show's ideals and vision and optimism.

ESQ: Now that you've played Spock across multiple television shows, what keeps you coming back to him?

EP: I'm still trying to grab the Vulcanism in myself. I felt that I was called to undergo profound evolution to serve the needs of this character, because he’s just so extraordinary. I've been pushed to develop in ways that maybe I wouldn't have if I hadn't been cast in this role. I was cast in 2018, but I'm only just starting to feel like, “I’m here, and I’m doing this, and I'm capable of it.” I still have doubts about that sometimes because there's so much nuance to the character. That challenge is what brings me back. I don't see that it ever would get old or stale or known to me, because the writers keep presenting me with new challenges for this character, and I'm on my toes constantly.

ESQ: What are some of these ways that Spock has driven you to develop?

EP: He challenges me to be more confident. To have more useful thoughts. I found that I spent a lot of time thinking about ways in which I wasn't worthy or good enough, and that wasn’t useful. Spock would never have these thoughts—he would never think about something that doesn't have great utility. That rubbed off on me in the best way, though I’m still on that journey of weeding out toxic and circuitous thinking. I see Spock as a monument in motion, because he’s so pure and pristine in his decision-making, his actions, and his philosophy. As an artist and a person, that feels like a very worthy pursuit, to be in search of Spock.

ESQ: I feel like there’s a book here: The Spock Guide to Self-Help .

EP: It would be a bestseller. CBS should probably think about that.

ESQ: How did you approach making your Spock distinct from the previous iterations of the character?

I'm still trying to grab the Vulcanism in myself.

EP: I’m still figuring that out. I'm so fundamentally different from Leonard Nimoy and Zachary Quinto, so I don't think I have to do too much work to differentiate myself, because I’m inseparable from my work. Another one of the reasons I knew I had to develop personally was because I needed to become greater and more myself to distinguish the character. Leonard Nimoy is inimitable; he brought certain qualities that I can observe and attempt to internalize, but I can't impersonate him, because that would be such a misstep. I had to understand the character and what he meant to me personally. What I bring to Spock is the impression that I have of him, which is unique to me, I think. I hope, anyway.

ESQ: Strange New Worlds finds a lot of new shades in Spock. Within the first fifteen minutes of Episode One, he's falling into bed his fiancée, T’Pring. Spock has had romances, but now, for the first time ever, he has a sex life. What was that like, to be the actor who gets to take him there?

EP: It was really scary, because there's no blueprint for that. Unfortunately, Leonard Nimoy is not alive to offer me any guidance or advice. Those moments are quite terrifying, because I'm treading into the unknown, and I'm captaining whatever ship is taking me there—albeit with a huge amount of support from the people that I work with. During my preparation for that scene, I thought, “What's too human? What's too sexual? What's too Vulcan? What's weird enough? What's so weird that it doesn't feel relatable to viewers?” That discussion was ongoing with Akiva Goldsman, who directed the episode, and Gia Sandhu, who plays T'Pring. It was a very careful and cautious process.

ESQ: Another shade you bring out in Spock is his capacity for humor. How do you make this guy who has no sense of irony or sarcasm so funny?

EP: A lot of that has to do with the writing. It’s always funny to see Spock in a situation where you think, “Oh no, this is going to be bad for Spock. He's going to do something awkward and goofy and strange.” When he comes into conflict with his own social constructs, that presents a lot of possibilities. For example, there’s a moment where Captain Pike smacks Spock on the shoulder, and he's mystified by the idea of someone touching him. The writers do such a great job of putting him in humorous situations and allowing him to be jocular.

ESQ: How has your grandfather Gregory Peck's legacy figured into how you approach your own work as an actor?

EP: I didn’t know him very well. Ten or fifteen years ago, I wanted to reject the part of me that comes from him, because I felt so undeserving of that pedigree. There’s nothing I did to earn a position in my family tree—I could have been born anywhere. That’s something I ruminate on quite a lot, and now, I feel extremely lucky to be a part of this family, because it does come with perquisites. I think the greatest gift from my grandfather is the possibility of huge success. A lot of people are born into families that don't have this level of recognition, so to attain that seems like an impossible, otherworldly thing. For me, that level of respect and public appreciation felt achievable. In terms of success, it’s given me an openness to the strange or the weird. I’m so proud of being on this show. I can't believe it. I feel so lucky to be a part of Star Trek and to be Spock; that feels like a really big achievement. I can trace that sensation of success back to being born into this family.

ESQ: In the series premiere of Strange New Worlds , we learn about World War III on Earth. Humanity tore itself apart in its own hubris, with thousands of species and hundreds of thousands of lives lost. Star Trek has provided half a century’s worth of commentary on human society, but what does Strange New Worlds have to say about our current moment?

EP: There's a useful scientific analogy called the Great Filter. I'm probably not going to speak very knowledgeably about it because I'm not a scientist. Essentially, civilization will obtain a level of technological development that enables us to destroy ourselves, and that point in time becomes a filter. Will we destroy ourselves, or will we evolve beyond that primal warring state? I think that’s where we’re at. When you look at the news, it's just people killing people because of ideas. People are so afraid of other people's ideas. Strange New Worlds reminds us, “Be careful about your fear, and about the violence that your fear inspires.” That’s a message we can never hear often enough.

One of my buddies always says, "We're just monkeys, man." There's a hopelessness about where we're at, because the behavior of destroying ourselves and killing one another has become so redundant. Strange New Worlds is trying to highlight the tragedy of that, and it's begging us to move beyond it—to move forward, to unite and combine our energies, to be curious about what more is out there.

ESQ: I’ve got just one last question for you—the question every actor playing Spock has to answer. What’s it like walking around with these eyebrows?

EP: I honestly don't even think about it. My friends will say, "Oh man, your eyebrows are so fucked up.” I'm sure other people are thinking, "What's going on with your face?" But I don’t even care. It’s all so worth it.

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Den of Geek

How Star Trek: Discovery Fulfills Spock’s Franchise Legacy

All of your burning Star Trek: Discovery Spock questions, answered as logically as possible.

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This Star Trek: Discovery article contains MAJOR spoilers for “Unification III,” and spoilers for Picard .

Michael Burnham has returned to her home planet Vulcan in an attempt to recover some data from a Vulcan and Romulan alliance she never thought was even possible. If this sounds like the beginning of an epic title crawl in a Star Wars movie, you’re not far off. In Discovery Season 3, Episode 7, “Unification III,” the Trek franchise has delivered one of its most epic and generation-spanning episodes in a very long time. We always knew Star Trek: Discovery ’ s status as both a prequel and a sequel to TOS and TNG was tricky, but for fans everywhere, it was hard to believe these time-jumping tricks could ever result in an episode this heartfelt and straight-up cool.

And yet, if the USS Discovery’s visit to the planet Ni’Var had you scratching your head, or running to Google to figure out how everything fits in, there are a few very logical answers to what’s going on here. But, that doesn’t mean these answers are simple. When there’s this much time travel involved – plus multiple, specific Star Trek shows and movies — it’s bound to get a little complicated. Let’s untangle the Vulcan-Romulan web, shall we?

Is “Unification III” a sequel to The Next Generation episodes “Unification I” and “Unification II”? 

Short answer: Yes! In 1991, during  Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 5, the two-part episode “Unification” featured the return of Leonard Nimoy as live-action Spock to the small screen for the first time since The Original Series . And, not counting archive footage in DS9 ‘s “Trials and Tribble-ations,” prior to Discovery , this TNG two-parter was the only appearance of Spock on a Trek TV series after the end of The Animated Serie s in 1974.

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In 1991, Nimoy’s Spock was strictly relegated to appearing in the Trek feature films, and in fact, his final performance as Spock, was also in 1991, in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . Because Nimoy co-developed the story for The Undiscovered Country , he felt strongly about promoting the film through a crossover on TNG. This is why Spock gives a speech to Picard about committing Captain Kirk to a peace mission in “Unification II.” At the time, Nimoy and the Trek franchise were giving a small preview of what was going to happen in The Undiscovered Country , which was, arguably, the origin of Spock’s journey to becoming an ambassador. (Something that is funny that people forget, is that at the time this episode aired, there was a rumor that Captain Kirk would die in The Undiscovered Country . And nothing Spock says in “Unification II” confirms or denies that!)

So, what does that have to do with the Romulans? Well, if it’s been a while since you’ve seen “Unification I and II” the story is all about Picard and Data trying to track down Spock after the Federation believes he’s gone rogue. This is why Discovery , the Vulcan president, says Spock “left” the Federation. He did! Of course, he didn’t leave it to defect. He left it to live on Romulus and help bring together the Vulcans and the Romulans. 

Wait. Didn’t Spock leave Romulus — before it blew-up — and travel back in time and meet Chris Pine?

Yes! Old Spock did leave Romulus and, eventually die in the past of an alternate dimension. In Discovery , Admiral Vance says that the reunification of Vulcans and Romulans “took centuries after [Spock’s] death.” This, however, is a presumed death. As far as Vance knows, Spock died sometime in 2387, trying to pilot his experimental ship, the Jellyfish , to use red matter to stop the Romulan supernova. In Star Trek 2009 , Spock tells Kirk (Pine) — via mind-meld — that he promised the Romulans that he would try to save their planet. Presumably, Spock had been living on Romulus this entire time. In other words, Spock started living on Romulus in 2368 ( TNG ) and flew his red matter spaceship to try and save them in 2387 (flash “backs” in Star Trek 2009 ). So, this means that in just 19-years, Spock’s teaching made a big enough difference to eventually get the Vulcans and the Romulans to hang-out together sometime before the events of 3188. 

When did the planet Vulcan become Ni’Var?

It’s not exactly clear. We know that Ni’Var left the Federation 100 years prior to 3188, but it seems likely that the integration of Vulcans and Romulans was underway a long time before that happened. Could it have been as early as the 25th century? Sometime after the events of Star Trek: Picard ? Maybe. After 2387, we know the Romulans literally don’t have a home, and by 2399 ( Picard Season 1 ) there’s a loose government called The Romulan Free State. That said, several parts of Romulan culture seem more open to peace simply because things aren’t going so great. Could the Romulan emigration to the planet have happened sometime fairly quickly after Picard Season 1? It’s possible! In fact, considering we see the Romulan Qowat Milat order in “Unification III,” it feels possible that Picard Season 2 could show us the beginnings of the planet Vulcan becoming “Ni’Var.” Then again, it’s also possible this whole Ni’Var business didn’t start until several centuries after Picard , too. There are 930 years between Discovery Season 2 and Discovery Season 3. But, that’s still 789 years between Picard and Discovery Season 3. A lot could have happened.

Okay, how the hell does this recording of Spock even exist?

IRL, we totally understand where Michael’s brief Spock clip comes from. It’s from “Unification II,” and it’s Spock talking to Picard. But, in-universe, why does this holographic recording exist? There’s really only one answer: Picard must have been recording Spock nearly the entire time they were on the mission. The speech Michael Burnham views is (mostly) from the very end of “Unification II,” in which Spock says: “The union of the Vulcan and Romulan people will not be achieved by politics diplomacy will not be achieved by politics or diplomacy — but it will be achieved.” Spock says this to Picard, while Data is watching. So, it feels possible that Data was recording the entire conversation for the purposes of the mission. After all, Picard and Data were on a covert mission for Starfleet, meaning it isn’t insane that they would have recorded it. When Burnham accesses the file, the computer says “coordinates redacted” but also that it’s from the personal files of “Admiral Jean-Luc Picard.” So, Picard is the source, the coordinates were the planet Romulus, and somehow Picard recorded this convo, maybe with Data’s help, or maybe some other way.

There is one small wrinkle in all of that. The first part of the speech that Michael listens to actually happens in a different part of “Unification II” than the second. When Spock says “closed minds have kept these two worlds apart,” this happens way earlier in the episode when, still dressed as a Romulan, Picard and Spock have some soup together. So, this recording is actually two recordings from Picard during his covert mission, which means Data as the primary holographic recording device is probably out since Data wasn’t there during the Picard-Spock soup debate. 

This leaves only two explanations: Picard had a secret recording device on his person, that allowed all of his convos with Spock to be stored and recorded. But there’s a more fun answer.

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Picard is an android now—remember? 

At the end of Star Trek: Picard Season 1 , all of Jean-Luc Picard’s memories are transferred into a new Synth body, meaning, effectively, Picard’s memories have now been stored using technology. This fact actually creates a pretty easy way for a holographic file of Picard’s eyewitness memory to exist. He wasn’t recording anything at the time with technology, but later, at some point, Picard pulled out a few memories from his new robot brain and turned those into holographic recordings. Considering all the stuff that Picard has seen and his interest in preserving history, this feels legit. Jean-Luc Picard would totally turn his actual memories into curated holographic recordings. And he might do it for the very reason Burnham accesses the files in Discovery . Picard, like Spock, wanted the truth to survive. Even if it meant pulling those memories out of his robot brain, and copying them onto a 25th-century memory stick.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 is streaming now on CBS All Access.

Ryan Britt is a longtime contributor to Den of Geek! He is also the author of three non-fiction books: the Star Trek pop history book PHASERS…

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Published Sep 27, 2016

Creating Star Trek's First Alien: Mr. Spock

Fred Phillips designed Spock’s famous pointed ears for the original pilot episode “The Cage.” Fourteen years later, during the production of Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Phillips cast his two thousandth Spock ear.

While familiar today and seemingly a simple makeup design, Gene Roddenberry recalled in The Making of Star Trek (1968) that it look a lot of tries to get it right.

"We had to try a lot of different types of ears on Leonard to get the right ones, one that looked real. We had them too big, too flat, too pointed, and so forth. So Leonard came in four or five days in a row and tried on these different kinds of ears. We would then shoot test footage and view them the next day in the projection room."

The longer it took to find the right pair of ears, the more jokes were made among the production crew about the alien makeup design. Eventually, even Leonard Nimoy began to doubt whether it was right to begin with.

"This Spock part was beginning to look to him like he’d be playing a freak with ears. He wound up by saying, 'I’ve decided I don’t want the part.'"

"Well, after all that we had gone through, and with only a few days left before shooting, and I’m certain Spock can be a meaningful and challenging role, now comes the problem of talking Leonard out of this. We must have argued for at least half an hour. I was desperately trying to convince Leonard that there is dignity in Spock and for the actor portraying him. But there had been too many comments and remarks about the pointed ears. Nimoy was unconvinced."

"Finally the only thing I could think of to say to him was, 'Leonard, look, believe me. I make this pledge to you. If by the thirteenth show you still don’t like the ears, I will personally write a script in which you will get an ear job and go back to normal.' He looked at me for a minute and then practically fell down on the floor laughing. Suddenly the ears had been put back in proper perspective. And that was the end of that problem."

Which still left the problem of applying the proper makeup. Associate producer Bob Justman recalled the complicated process in Herbert and Yvonne Fern Solow’s Star Trek Sketchbook ( 1997).

"The theory was that, once the molds were made, duplicate ears could be cranked out when needed and glued onto Leonard’s ears. Easier said than done. Once a pair of them had been painstakingly attached and colored to match the rest of Spock’s yellowish complexion, that was it for that pair. And when they were removed (a painful and time consuming process for Leonard, since they were attached with spirit glue and could be removed only with the use of strong solvent), they couldn’t be saved for use the next time. New day, new ears. And the rubber being used wasn’t dependable. The makeup lab had to cast pair after pair of ears until a good set was made. Later, when the series was filmed, Charles Schramm of the MGM makeup department would use an improved latex formula and crank out ears on an assembly-line basis."

It still took an hour and a half every day before filming to apply the ears. Justman recalled in The Making of Star Trek how he played a little joke on Nimoy about the problem.

"Before we started the second season, I put Leonard on, telling him I could solve the ear problem for the whole second season. I said, 'Leonard, I think I’ve come up with the answer to the ear problem. You’re going to be able to save all that time in makeup. No more being uncomfortable, no more pain, no more problems. You can just get regular makeup and everything will be perfect.' And he says, 'Yeah, what is it Bob?' And I said, 'We’re going to send you to a plastic surgeon and we’re going to point your ears. When the series is finished, we’ll pay to have them put back to normal!' I almost had Leonard convinced that it would be much easier, much less painful. The more I talked, the more he began to listen and sort of nod his head. You could almost hear the thought going through his mind, 'You know… it would possibly be much better…' At that point I couldn’t keep a straight face any longer and broke up. That’s when Leonard realized that I was putting him on and he cracked up, too."

The second stage was the creation of Spock’s characteristic Vulcan eyebrows. This required Phillips to shave the outside halves of Nimoy’s actual eyebrows during each makeup session. Phillips filled in the shape of the new eyebrows with an eyebrow pencil, then painted over those lines with spirit gum. The spirit gum was used to attach short lengths of yak belly hair, which Phillips cut from long stands, blending the small tufts into what remained of Nimoy’s own eyebrows. The final stage of the process involved applying base makeup and adding shading to ensure that shadow contours would be seen even under the bright lights of the shooting stage.

As the series began production, the use of Spock’s pointed ears was cause of great controversy between the Star Trek production team and the television network. “In 1965, the NBC Sales Department was concerned,” recalled Herb Solow, Desilu executive in charge of Star Trek at the time. “It was as if they believed that, after Satan had been cast out the the Garden of Eden, he was reincarnated as actor Leonard Nimoy and cast into Star Trek as science officer Spock, a pointed eared, arched eyebrowed ‘satanic’ Vulcan alien.” NBC feared its advertisers and local stations would be targets of a religious backlash protesting this “devil incarnate.”

“It took several weeks for us to learn the extent to which NBC Sales had gone to disguise Spock’s ‘satanic’ pointed ears,” says Solow.

NBC had sent a very attractive Star Trek sales brochure to its station affiliates and advertisers. Close scrutiny showed, however, that an artist working for the NBC Sales Department had airbrushed Spock’s pointy ears round in all the photographs.

In order to placate the network, which was strongly advocating the use of regular ears and eyebrows on the Spock character — a move that would have seriously undermined the concept that an alien was serving onboard the Enterprise — the Star Trek production team decided to “tell NBC what they wanted to hear” in agreeing to greatly reduce Spock’s visibility in the show for the first thirteen weeks while actually proceeding without limitations on the use of the Vulcan first officer.

“The first four episodes to air featured Mister Spock in varying degrees,” according to Solow. “But by the time the fifth show was ready to air, ‘Spockmania’ had erupted and NBC’s anti-Spock campaign came to a grinding halt. Desilu’s mailroom was bulging with huge sacks of fan mail, most of which was addressed to Mister Spock.”

Nick Ottens is the man behind the Forgotten Trek website. The site bills itself as "the largest resource about the production and behind the scenes of Star Trek ." Online since 2002, it features concept art, photographs and interviews, some of which has never been published before.. or until now. Be sure to visit the site at Forgotten Trek and keep an eye on StarTrek.com for future pieces from the site's archive.

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Commander S'Chn T'Gai Spock is the deuteragonist of Star Trek: The Original Series, its animated sequel series and the first six Star Trek motion pictures. He returns as a minor character in Star Trek: The Next Generation and a major protagonist in the prequel TV Series, Star Trek: Discovery and its spin-off, Strange New Worlds.

Spock was portrayed by the late Leonard Nimoy in the TV series Star Trek , the first six films, the 2009 film Star Trek , and in its sequel Star Trek Into Darkness . Zachary Quinto portrayed Spock's alternate reality counterpart in the 2009 film and its sequels. Ethan Peck portrayed Spock in the second season of Star Trek: Discovery and reprised the role in the series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . In the episode Spock Amok when he and T'Pring had accidently switched bodies, Spock was portrayed by Gia Sandhu until Dr. M'Benga returned them both to their proper bodies.

• 1.1 Early Life
• 1.2 Early Career
• 1.3 2270s-2280s
• 1.4 First Death and Rebirth
• 1.5 Mid 2280s through 2300
• 1.6 24th Century
• 2.1 Kelvin Timeline
• 2.2 First Splinter Timeline
• 2.3 A Quality of Mercy
• 5 Navigation

History [ ]

Early life [ ].

Spock was a Human/Vulcan hybrid who became one of the most distinguished and respected figures in the United Federation of Planets in his lifetime. He was born on Vulcan in the Earth year 2222, the son of Sarek and Amanda Grayson. In keeping with Vulcan tradition he was born on a cave, with the priestess T'Lar attending Amanda and delivering Spock.

Grayson's family had a genetic disposition towards dyslexia. As a result Spock developed L'tak Terai as a young child, which was the Vulcan equivalent of dyslexia. While Sarek felt that Vulcan schools would help, Amanda disagreed and took it upon herself to ensure that Spock had the support he needed.

Due to his mixed Vulcan and human heritage, Spock suffered from bullying at the hands of other Vulcan children, who taunted him over his mother and human heritage. While Spock tried to not show any emotion, Amanda knew that he was deeply affected by the harassment he suffered.

At the age of seven Spock took it upon himself to perform the kahs-wan - or Vulcan test of maturity early. He was nearly killed when attacked by a le-matya, but Spock's pet sehlat I-Chaya fought the creature and both I-Chaya and Spock were saved by a man who called himself Selek - who was a future version of Spock who traveled back in time to prevent his death during the kahs-wan ritual. I-Chaya was mortally wounded and further treatment would only prolong his suffering. Rather than let I-Chaya suffer Spock made the logical decision to allow a Vulcan healer to euthanize I-Chaya. Spock brought I'Chaya back home and had him buried on the family grounds. These events marked a significant turn in Spock's development into the man he would become.

When Spock was about eight years old, Sarek and Amanda took in a human girl named Michael Burnham after her father was killed in a Klingon raid and her mother disappeared. Spock eventually warmed up to his foster sister before she intentionally broke off the relationship, feeling that in the long term it would harm him. Spock and Burnham would not resolve their differences for many years.

During Spock's childhood, Sarek and Amanda also took in Spock's half brother Sybok when Sybok's mother died. The two were raised as brothers until Sybok broke into the Hall of Ancient Thought to steal the katra of his mother and travel to Sha-ka-ree, a crime for which Sybok was forever exiled. By the mid 2250s Spock had not spoken to his brother in over a decade and did not know for sure if Sybok was even still alive or not.

Early Career [ ]

In 2249, Sarek was given a choice between having either Spock or Michael Burnham admitted to the Vulcan Expeditionary Fleet. Sarek chose Spock and told Burnham that the Vulcan fleet had rejected her. Spock turned down admission to the Vulcan fleet to pursue a career in Starfleet, leading to an 18 year rift between father and son.

Spock in 2257, following the war.

Shortly after the end of the Federation-Klingon War of 2256-57, Spock took leave from the Enterprise when the mysterious Red Angel began making its presence known to the galaxy. Soon after taking leave Spock checked himself into a psychiatric hospital on Starbase 5. Spock did not remain at the hospital long, apparently killing several people at the hospital before escaping.

Suffering from a mental breakdown due to contact with the Red Angel, Spock was hidden on Vulcan by his mother. Tracking him down, Michael took Spock to Talos IV where the Talosians were able to heal Spock. He revealed to Starfleet that something or someone was on a mission to annihilate all sentient life in the galaxy.

It was soon discovered that Section 31's Control artificial intelligence had gone rouge and was trying to evolve to become fully sentient and kill all sentient life in the galaxy. Having forgiven his foster sister, Spock worked with Burnham and Discovery to keep Control from succeeding in its goals.

Spock initially intended to travel with Burnham 930 years in to the future, to keep the data Control needed to evolve out of Control's hands. When his shuttle was damaged Spock was forced to remain in the 23rd century, and watched as his foster sister and the Discovery entered into a wormhole, disappearing from the current timeline. Before disappearing, Burnham told Spock there was a galaxy of people wanting to reach out to him, and advised him to seek out those who seemed farthest from him and let them guide him.

Spock in 2258.

Following this, Spock was debriefed by Starfleet command. Telling them that Discovery was destroyed, Spock recommended that those involved in the recent events be barred from ever speaking publicly about what happened to his foster sister and Discovery under penalty of treason. Starfleet agreed to take it under advisement. Sarek and Amanda both agreed to never speak publicly of Burnham ever again to honor the sacrifice she and Discovery's crew made.

Once Enterprise was repaired, Spock resumed his duties as science officer on board the Enterprise As a Starfleet officer in the latter half of the 23rd century, Spock served aboard the starship USS Enterprise as science officer under Captain Christopher Pike for over a decade. He then served as first officer and science officer under Captain James T. Kirk .

Briefly transported into the planet Sarpedion's past, Spock fell in love with a woman named Zarabeth - who had been exiled to the past. Their brief relationship resulted in the conception of a son, which Zarabeth had named Zar .

2270s-2280s [ ]

When the Enterprise returned to Earth in 2270 Spock resigned from Starfleet to take up a teaching position at the Vulcan Science Academy. After the death of his childhood friend Sekar at the hands of the ancient Vulcan Mind Lord Zakal Spock decided to undertake the Kolinahr discipline to purge himself of all remaining emotions. For almost three years he labored under the guidance of Master T'Sai and other Kolinahru to achieve a state of total logic. However just as he was about to achieve Kolinahr Spock felt the presence entity V'Ger. T'Sai and the other Masters felt that this was preventing Spock from achieving Kolinahr and said his answers laid elsewhere.

Spock then rendezvoused with the USS Enterprise on her mission to intercept and make contact with V'Ger before it reached Earth. Rejoining Starfleet as the science officer Spock helped Mr. Scott repair the warp drive giving the ship full warp capacity, and gave the Enterprise additional time to intercept V'Ger. As the ship approached V'Ger Spock realized that V'Ger was incomplete and was searching to know if there was more to existence than what it knew. At V'Ger's core Willard Decker merged with Lt. Iila and V'Ger to create a new entity which departed for a higher plane of existence.

After the V'Ger incident Kirk decided it was time to give the refit Enterprise a good shakedown. Mr. Scott informed Spock that they could have him back on Vulcan in four days, but Spock said it was unnecessary as his business on Vulcan was finished. Spock remained on the Enterprise as first officer and science officer for another five year mission under Admiral Kirk. By the mid 2280s the Enterprise 's was retired from active service and was assigned as a training vessel attached to Starfleet Academy. Spock served as commanding officer of the Enterprise during this time following his promotion to Captain.

First Death and Rebirth [ ]

Spock, just before his first death.

Spock met his first death in the feature film The Wrath of Khan . Spock died due to radiation poisoning he suffered in the ship's dilithium crystal chamber, bringing the warp engines back on line so the Enterprise could get out of range of the Genesis Device before it could explode. Before his first death Spock expressed that he did what he did in recognition that the lives of the many Enterprise crew members were more valuable than his own single life. Before Spock had entered the dilithium crystal chamber, he initiated a mind meld with Dr. McCoy, which he used to transfer his katra into McCoy's mind as he knew from the experience of Jonathan Archer that a human mind could temporarily house a Vulcan katra.

A funeral was held following the Battle of the Mutara Nebula a short time later. The night before the funeral Saavik went in to the ship's morgue where she kept vigil over the bodies of Spock and Peter Preston. Spock's body was placed in a torpedo casing, which was fired over the newly formed Genesis Planet. Spock had dictated in his will that his body not be returned to Vulcan if he were to die away from home, and Kirk had decided on firing his casket over the Genesis Planet with the intention that Spock's body be cremated by the heat generated by entry into the planet's atmosphere.

However the gravitational fields were in flux, and instead of crashing into the planet or burning up in the atmosphere the torpedo soft landed on the surface of the Genesis Planet. The remnants of the Genesis wave regenerated his body into that of a small child, that rapidly aged along with the planet as protomatter had been used in the matrix. David Marcus and Saavik found Spock's body on the surface and stayed with him as he rapidly aged. As Spock's body went through the ravages of pon-farr Saavik helped him get through the biochemical imbalances.

Meanwhile, on Vulcan Amanda asked Sarek to go to Kirk and see if Spock had managed to transfer his katra to Kirk before his death. Sarek doubted that his son had managed to transfer his katra given the circumstances that Kirk had described but agreed to at least go to Earth and investigate the possibility. Going to Earth and seeing the Genesis information for himself, Sarek then went to Kirk's San Francisco apartment. Mind melding with Kirk Sarek learned of his son's apparently final moments, but could not find any trace of the katra. Sarek got up to leave, prepared to accept that Spock was truly gone, but Kirk asked him to stay, thinking that it was possible Spock melded with someone else. Reviewing engine room recordings, the pair found that Spock had transferred his katra to Doctor McCoy. Sarek asked Kirk to bring Spock's body and McCoy to Vulcan so the two could "find peace."

Risking their lives and careers Spock's shipmates rescued his body from the Genesis Planet - at that point Spock's body had aged to the same point as he was before his first death.

Going to Vulcan Spock's father Sarek learned that Spock had been regenerated by the Genesis wave. With that knowledge Sarek requested Fal-Tor-Pan , the refusion. The Vulcan priestess T'Lar told Sarek that it had not been performed in many years, and that it was possibly only a legend, but Sarek was insistent. T'Lar transferred Spock's katra back into his living body, resurrecting him. Spock would later write that his own memories of the event were hazy but he remembered seeing Mount Selaya through Dr. McCoy's eyes as the party made the long and exhausting trip up the mountain, the long and hard ritual that took the entire night to transfer his katra back to his own body, and waking up in the morning back in his own body.

Spock, just after Fal-Tor-Pan was completed.

In his first moments after the Fal-Tor-Pan was completed, Spock approached Kirk to inform him that Sarek had told him that Kirk had been his friend who came back for him. He asked Kirk why he had done that, to which Kirk replied that in this case the needs of the one outweighed the needs of the many. Spock asked if the Enterprise was out of danger, to which Kirk confirmed that Spock had saved them all. He then remembered that his friend's name was Jim, and told Kirk that as the Enterprise crew gathered around their resurrected friend.

Over the next three months Spock underwent an intensive retraining program designed in part by his mother to ensure that his knowledge was intact. Because his retraining had been done in a largely Vulcan manner, he was unsure how to respond when asked how he felt by the Vulcan computers, but Amanda assured him that in time he would be able to answer the question. During this time Spock also underwent a series of mind melds with Doctor McCoy to ensure that any residual portions of his personality in McCoy's mind were transferred back to his mind, and that any parts of McCoy's mind existing in Spock's mind were transferred back to McCoy.

At the end of his retraining program Spock decided to return to Earth with his Enterprise shipmates to offer testimony on behalf of them. Enroute to Earth the Whale Probe had arrived looking for the extinct humpback whales, and when it could find none it began devastating Earth in retaliation. Deciding that they would have to travel back in time to retrieve whales, Spock calculated the equations necessary to enter a sling-shot time warp, all from memory. Back in 20th century San Francisco Spock communicated the Enterprise crew's intentions to George and Gracie, and also helped come up with a solution to the decrystalizing Klingon dilithium. The Enterprise crew was able to take George and Gracie aboard before they could be killed by whalers, and brought them back to the 23rd century.

After helping to save Earth from the effects of the probe, Spock testified at the trial held for his shipmates due to their actions in rescuing him. He later assured Doctor McCoy that the transfer of Spock's mind back to his own body was complete, but they would always be connected due to their experiences. When the time came for the Federation Council to render its judgment, Spock elected to stand with his shipmmates and face the same consequences they did. Because of their actions all but one of the charges against them were dismissed by the Federation Council. The remaining charge of disobeying a superior office was directed solely at Admiral Kirk, who was demoted to Captain as punishment. Immediately after the trial Sarek admitted to his son that he was wrong in opposing Spock's joining Starfleet, and that his associates were people of good character. When Sarek asked if he had a message for his mother, Spock said to tell her he felt fine.

Spock, back on active duty in Starfleet.

Spock then returned to active duty in Starfleet, as first officer of the new USS Enterprise under Captain James T. Kirk. Even then he was not quite sure he was ready for duty, but after single-handedly saving the Enterprise from sabotage, he realized that he was himself again and indeed ready for duty.

Mid 2280s through 2300 [ ]

The shakedown cruise did not go as well as hoped, with the new Enterprise suffering a series of system failures and other issues such as a non-operational transporter and a good percentage of the doors on the ship not working. The ship returned to spacedock for repairs and refitting, including the installation of a new bridge module. Spock was asked to help test the new brig systems to ensure people confined could not escape, and he was unable to find a way to escape from the brig. (The designers, however, failed to account for prisoners having outside assistance in escaping from their new design). He then went on leave with Kirk and McCoy, saving the life of Kirk when he fell off a mountain.

Traveling to Nimbus III as part of a mission to resolve a hostage crisis, Spock was reunited with his half-brother Sybok for the first time in many years. This caused a brief rift in the relationship between Kirk and Spock when the latter found himself unable to kill his brother and for not telling Kirk sooner about his relationship with Sybok. Put in the brig with Kirk and McCoy the three tried to escape but as Spock predicted they couldn't escape from the inside. What the designers hadn't counted on was someone using explosives from outside the brig to blast a hole in the wall, as Mr. Scott did, enabling Spock and the others to escape.

Cornered in an observation lounge after sending an emergency transmission, Sybok explored the secret pain that McCoy held of helping his father die. He then helped Spock by exploring the memories of Spock's birth. Spock noted the presence of T'Lar and thought it was appropriate that she had been present both at his birth and rebirth. Sybok revealed that Spock's secret pain had been how Sarek had said he was "so human" when presented with his new son. Despite being freed of their pain Spock and McCoy's friendship with Kirk was still stronger, with the two declining to accompany Sybok and remaining with Kirk as the ship crossed into the Great Barrier at the center of the galaxy.

Arriving at the planet Sha-ka-ree, they found the being on the world was not the God Sybok believed they would find, but a malevolent entity called The One . Spock tried to console his brother, but Sybok realized that his arrogance and vanity had led them to that moment. Sybok sacrificed himself to buy Spock and the others time to escape. Beamed back aboard the Enterprise just as the Klingon bird-of-prey that followed attacked, Spock convinced General Korrd to order the Klingon ship's Captain Klaa to stand down. Boarding the Klingon ship, Spock took the role of gunner and stunned The One before it could kill Kirk. Brought on board the Klingon ship, Kirk told Spock he thought he was going to die, but Spock told him that since he was not alone that was impossible.

For the next several years Spock continued as first officer of the Enterprise . During this time a rift developed between Spock and Saavik over Valeris . Saavik felt Valeris was bigoted and did not want to provide a recommendation to the academy on behalf of Valeris, but did so anyways out of her loyalty to Spock. She then transferred off the Enterprise to put some distance between herself and Spock. Years later, Saavik would unfortunately be proven right about Valeris.

Spock, after helping to save the Khitomer Conference.

In 2293 Spock participated in the first overtures of peace to the Klingons following the explosion of the Klingon moon Praxis. At his father's request he reached out to Chancellor Gorkon , and developed a working dialog with the Klingon leader. Gorkon was assassinated on his way to Earth by a conspiracy of individuals in the Federation, Klingon Empire, and the Romulan Empire who wanted to derail the peace process. Spock and the Enterprise-A crew defeated the conspirators and ensured the signing of the Khitomer accords.

Following his retirement from Starfleet Spock began following in his father's footsteps by focusing on diplomacy. Soon Spock became an ambassador in his own right.

24th Century [ ]

During debates over the Cardassians in 2327 Spock publicly disagreed with his father over how the Federation should proceed. Although Sarek himself did not appear offended, Sarek's new wife Perrin was offended over Spock's actions, and demanded that he either apologize or else consider himself unwelcome in Sarek's home. Spock did not back down, stating he would not trouble them by visiting again. This caused a rift that would last until Sarek's death in 2367.

In his 140s by the 2360s Spock traveled with his father to a conference held in the Neutral Zone with various Klingon , Romulan , and Cardassian diplomats and military officials to discuss the destruction of outposts along the Neutral Zone. (Later the destruction was revealed to be the work of the Borg ). He was recalled home to Vulcan to discuss a newly discovered findings on Vulcan/Romulan history contained within an telepathic recording device, and his father continued the discussions with the other officials.

A few years later Spock went to the heart of the Romulan Empire. On Romulus he helped Romulans who desired peaceful reunification with their Vulcan brethren. Still feeling responsible for what happened to Kirk, McCoy, and the others on the Enterprise-A during the initial overtures of peace to the Klingons, he was unwilling to risk anyone else's life except his own, and undertook the mission on his own.

Spock on Romulus in the 2360s.

Despite the betrayal of Pardek , who Spock had thought of as a friend, he remained committed to helping the Romulan people. He refused to return to the Federation, getting Captain Jean-Luc Picard to accept his reasons for remaining on Romulus. Spock continued to work with the Romulan dissidents in the hopes that some day the Vulcan and Romulan peoples would come together in peace. The time-displaced Montgomery Scott was happy to learn that Spock was still alive, and thought that if no one else could make peace with the Romulans, Spock would be the one person who could.

In the 2380s Spock tried to help prevent the destruction of Romulus, but the Hobrus star destroyed the planet before he could do anything. He was able to use red matter to keep the supernova from doing any more damage, but along with Nero was sucked in to the resulting black hole, which deposited him in the 23rd century.

Alternate Realities and Timelines [ ]

Kelvin timeline [ ].

Nero's actions upon arrival in the 23rd century created an alternate reality. Destroying the USS Kelvin Nero caused the death of George Samuel Kirk, Sr as his son James T. Kirk was born.

25 years after Nero arrived in the 23rd century Spock arrived and was quickly captured by Nero. Nero forced Spock to watch as he used red matter to destroy Vulcan. Afterwards Spock saved the life of a young James T. Kirk after Kirk was marooned on Delta Vega by the alternate reality Spock . Going to the local Starfleet outpost the pair met up with Montgomery Scott, and assisted them in returning to the Enterprise .

After Nero was defeated Spock returned to Earth, where he watched the young Kirk being promoted to Captain and being given command of the Enterprise . Meeting with his younger self Spock advised him to remain in Starfleet, and to become friends with Kirk. He wished the younger Spock good luck before leaving to help establish the Vulcan species on a new home world which would come to be known as New Vulcan.

Initially the Vulcans planned to settle on Ceti Alpha V. Some Vulcans blamed him for the destruction of Vulcan, but listened when he warned them to stay away from Ceti Alpha V and instead settled on the second planet of the Simon-316 star system.

Spock then took a vow to not divulge what he knew, feeling that it would interfere with the natural progression of the new reality. However the younger Spock contacted the elder Spock a year later for advice in defeating Khan Noonien Singh of that reality. Spock warned the young Vulcan that Khan was a very dangerous individual and that defeating him in the prime reality came with a great cost.

An image of Spock from shortly before his 2263 death.

Spock died on New Vulcan in March of 2263, being over 160 years old at the time. After his final death two Vulcans traveled to meet the younger Spock on Yorktown Station, to give him the news and to present him with some of Spock's personal property. Included was a picture of Spock and his shipmates taken sometime before 2293 in the prime reality.

Over the next 3,000 years, Vulcan civilization would flourish on New Vulcan, Spock would come to be revered by the Vulcan people. By the year 5259, a statute of Spock was placed on New Vulcan, unlike many of the surrounding monuments, which were larger than life, this statute was life sized. According to legend, this had been at Spock's request, as he felt a larger than life depiction of him would not be logical.

First Splinter Timeline [ ]

Owing to the Borg firing a temporal beam at the Enterprise-E during its return to the 24th century after stopping the Borg from interfering in first contact between humans and Vulcans, an alternate timeline was created in 2373. This had the side effect of making the Devidians aware of other timelines and how to collapse them to absorb neural energy.

In this timeline Spock fought to help stop the destruction of the prime reality at the hands of the Devidians, along with assisting in determining the means to stop the First Splinter Timeline from ever coming into existence. The Spock of this timeline died in 2387, shortly before Jean-Luc Picard initiated the temporal reversion that stopped the Borg carrying out their sabotage.

A Quality of Mercy [ ]

In one alternate future Pike warned others about the accident that was to happen in 2266 that would have left him totally disabled. In that timeline, when the accident took place no one was killed or even injured. Meanwhile Pike had retained command of the USS Enterprise and did not hand her over to Captain James T. Kirk the previous year. In 2266 Kirk was the commanding officer of the USS Farragut in that timeline. At some unidentified point in the future, the Pike of that reality traveled to Boreth and obtained a time crystal from the monks living there, which he used to travel back in time to warn the prime reality Pike that warning others would lead to disaster.

The future Pike used the time crystal to allow prime reality Pike to experience the disastrous contact between the Federation and the Romulans. Instead of hunting down the Romulan ship as Spock and Ortegas counseled, Pike attempted to talk his way out of the situation. This allowed an ambitious junior officer on the Romulan ship to summon the Romulan armada. Enterprise was able to escape, but it sparked a war between the Empire and the Federation that cost millions of lives. Spock - who had been working on fixing overloaded phaser control circuits - had been seriously wounded in the attack and Nurse Chapel thought even if Spock survived he would never be the same again. As a result Spock was not there in the late 23rd century to help make the initial overtures of peace to the Klingons, nor was he there in the 24th century to help the Vulcan-Romulan reunification process along, and the best chance for peace between the Federation and Romulans was lost. The future Pike warned Pike that no matter what he tried to escape his fate it would result in Spock's untimely death.

Taken back to his native time, the prime reality Pike decided not to warn the families of the cadets about what he had seen in order to preserve the time line, causing that particular alternate timeline to never come to pass.

In the prime reality, Spock was assumed to have died in 2387. Some time after his departure, the Romulan people reunified with their Vulcan cousins on Vulcan, which was eventually renamed Ni'var. By the 32nd century Vulcans and Romulans held Spock in high esteem for helping begin the process to reunify the two peoples, even though Ni'Var had left the Federation by then.

Commander Burnham, learning what became of Spock.

In 3189 Michael Burnham learned that Romulans had been an offshoot of Vulcans. She further learned that her adopted brother had been instrumental in the reunification of the two socities. For the first time she allowed herself to learn what happened to Spock in the years after she had left the 23rd century, and watched video records of Admiral Jean-Luc Picard where Spock was talking about his mission on Romulus, and why he had to help the Romulan people. Burnham was able to use her status as Spock's brother to convince the Vulcans to allow Burnham to present her case as to why Starfleet should be allowed to have their SB-19 alternate FTL system data. While Ni'var's science academy refused to give her the data, Vulcan's prime minister was impressed enough by Burnham to give her the data, which proved vital in helping uncover the cause of the Burn. Realizing that the Burn was not their fault, the people of Ni'var put out diplomatic feelers to the Federation, and in 3190 rejoined the Federation.

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Live Long And Prosper: The 10 Best ‘Spock’ Episodes

It’s been a week since the passing of Leonard Nimoy and we’ve all dealt with his loss in a multitude of ways and through our own stages of grief. However, I think it is safe to say that through this difficult process, we as Star Trek fans, can pay no better homage to Mr. Nimoy than in revisiting the vast body of work he left with the franchise.

The following is a look at my own 10 favorite episodes that focus on Spock. Taste and preference is often subjective, of course, and this list is not meant to be definitive or exhaustive. Rather, it’s a collection of episodes that I feel is the most representative of Spock’s legacy as a character both of the original 1960s television show and in the larger Star Trek universe. It was a wonderful and touching experience selecting and revisiting these episodes and I would love to hear what your personal favorites are in the comments section below.

For the sake of simplicity, this article only covers television episodes that span across three distinct series ( The Original Series , The Animated Series , and The Next Generation ). Additionally, the episodes are not ranked in any sort of authoritative ranking, but rather listed in the order in which they were produced. I know that I left out episodes that many of you would have put into your own list, but that is the beautiful irony of Spock: his impact on Star Trek was so vast that any episode list (even one that went beyond a collection of ten episodes) couldn’t do his character complete justice.

“Galileo Seven” – Season 1, Episode 13



This episode is a standout episode for me because it’s the first time (but certainly not the last time) that the series places Spock in command while under incredibly difficult circumstances. Here, Spock is the ranking officer aboard the shuttlecraft “Galileo” among six other crewmembers including Doctor McCoy and Chief Engineer Scott. Unfortunately the shuttlecraft is forced to make an emergency landing on a planet populated by hostile alien giants. Throughout the course of the episode, Spock is forced to rely on all of his skills, not just his scientific and technical ones, but also his leadership skills in order to ward off the giants’ attacks but also growing dissension among his crew members.

Favorite Quote :

“I am not interested in the opinion of the majority, Mister Gaetano!”

– Spock to Lieutenant Gaetano. It’s a great line that shows the command ability of Spock, the Enterprise’s First Officer, and his prescient recognition that aboard a starship, there is no democracy.

“The Menagerie Parts 1 and 2” – Season 1, Episodes 15 and 16



The only two-part episode in the run of the original Star Trek television series, this episode is a direct call-back to the pilot episode “The Cage” with Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike in command of the Enterprise. Eleven years prior to James Kirk commanding the ship, Spock was aboard the Enterprise as a young lieutenant and coincidentally also the ship’s science officer back then. While aboard, he witnessed Captain Pike encounter a race of alien beings known as the Talosians with powerful telepathic abilities. Years later, after Pike had been left in a crippled, paralyzed state by a freak accident, Spock would remember this encounter with the Talosians to devise a way for his old friend and captain to find some sort of solace from his paralyzed state, even if it meant breaking Starfleet regulations to do so. 

This is a powerful episode that vividly demonstrated that despite Spock’s seemingly cold logical exterior, on the inside, still beat a heart that cared, above all else, for the well-being of his friends and comrades. It’s an excellent foreshadowing of the sacrifice that Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise crew will willingly endure for him in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock .

Favorite Quote :


“Mr. Spock, even if regulations are explicit, you could have come to me and explained.”

“Ask you to face the death penalty too? One of us was enough, captain.”

– Kirk to Spock after the Talosians reveal the truth. Spock’s answer subtly reveals the type of self-sacrifice and selflessness that imbues his character, which will be demonstrated most notably in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .

“This Side of Paradise” – Season 1, Episode 25

In this episode, the Enterprise discovers a planet full of colonists who they initially thought were dead but are in fact thriving because of a mysterious alien spore indigenous to the planet. Here, Spock discovers that an old flame of his, Leila Kalomi, is also alive and present and they rediscover their love for one another. Spock here is emotive in a way that is rarely seen in the series and shows a surprisingly tender and loving side. However, as we learn, this is all a result of the spores and its manipulation of those it actively infects. Although this episode ends with Spock and the rest of the crew breaking free of the spores’ control, it still ends on a bittersweet and melancholy note, for Spock most of all.

“I have little to say about it, captain. Except that for the first time in my life, I was happy.”

– Spock to Kirk, describing his experience on the planet’s surface and with Leila.

“The Devil in the Dark” – Season 1, Episode 26



This episode has a special place in my heart because its message is so thoroughly Star Trek, even before Star Trek was actually a common frame of pop cultural reference. Here a mining colony has specifically requested the Enterprise help them in finding and stopping a mysterious creature that is killing the colony’s workers and threatening the supply and delivery of the colony’s precious minerals to other worlds. The most redeeming factor of this episode is how Spock expertly provides a much needed non-human perspective to the situation. It is he who suggests that there’s perhaps an alternative to killing the creature, called a Horta, and it is he who is eventually able to break down the barriers of communication through a mind-meld with the creature. This allows for the eventual peaceful co-existence between the miners and the Horta. This type of message, one that espouses tolerance, co-existence, and mutual understanding, is one that will survive in many subsequent Star Trek iterations and it all starts here.



Favorite Quote :

“The Horta has a very logical mind. And after close association with humans, I find that curiously refreshing.”

– Spock to Kirk at the end of episode and demonstrating some of that dry, droll wit his character is known for.

“Amok Time” – Season 2, Episode 5



Spock, going through the biological urges for Vulcan sexual mating known as pon farr, returns to his home planet to marry his betrothed, T’Pring, or he will perish. On the surface of the planet, he engages in a ritual intended to have him fight for T’Pring’s hand in marriage. Through a quirk of circumstance and manipulation, Kirk is chosen as T’Pring’s champion and the person with whom Spock has to fight and kill in order to succeed. This episode is a classic one which sets into foundation one of the many key building blocks of what we as fans now recognize as essential pieces of Vulcan culture and mythology. It describes in vivid terms of the complex and raging emotions that lie just underneath the surface of most Vulcans, of which Spock (who is also half-human) faces on an even more poignant and difficult level. It also introduces the character of T’Pau, who we will in a younger incarnation in Season 4 of Enterprise during the “Kir’Shara” trilogy.

“How do Vulcans choose their mates? Haven’t you wondered?”

“I guess the rest of us assume that it’s done… quite logically.” “No. It is not.”

– Spock to Kirk on the nature of pon farr. This is also quite possibly the greatest understatement in the entire series.

“Doomsday Machine” – Season 2, Episode 6

This episode is another great showcase of Spock in command. When the Enterprise responds to the distress signal of its sister ship, the Constellation, they discover only that its skipper, Commodore Matt Decker, is still alive and demonstrating clear symptoms of PTSD. He vows revenge on the alien “Doomsday Machine” that destroyed his ship and crew at all cost. Having been thrust into command with Kirk being stranded aboard the wrecked and drifting Constellation, Spock is on a direct collision course with Decker as the Commodore pulls rank and commandeers the Enterprise. This is just a wonderful episode that demonstrates the Spock’s spine of steel and his impeccable ability to operate and succeed under incredibly difficult circumstances.

“Commodore, I do not wish to place you under arrest.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” (Spock signals the guards forward) “You’re bluffing.” “Vulcans never bluff.”

– Spock and Decker, as Spock relieves Decker of command

Additional

Gene Roddenberry in his novelization of The Motion Picture noted that Commander Willard Decker in the movie is actually Commodore Matt Decker’s son.

“Journey to Babel” – Season 2, Episode 15

This episode is another standout classic because it establishes so many fundamental elements of Trek canon: introducing the Andorians and the Tellarites as well as Spock’s father, Ambassador Sarek of Vulcan. It is also a pivotal episode, as noted by the episode’s writer, the famed D.C. Fontana, because it was the first time so many aliens were assembled in a single place and time on the series. It establishes the foundation for the tumultuous relationship between Spock and Sarek, which Leonard Nimoy himself stated was a worthwhile allegory for the often rocky relationship that many individuals have with their own parents, often in attempts to navigate and reconcile their own impulses and the expectations of others. And of course, this episode is the genesis of the now-infamous “Andorian Fight Scene!” meme that has now flooded the Internet, most notably on the various weekly shows of Trek.fm.

“You’re human, too. Let that part of you come through.”

– Amanda, Spock’s human mother, pleading with him to save Sarek’s life



Additional Fun Fact :

This episode also provides the first on-screen reference to a Vulcan pet known as a sehlat. Spock’s sehlat will be seen in The Animated Series episode “Yesteryear”, also written by D.C. Fontana.

“The Enterprise Incident” – Season 3, Episode 4

This third season episode has the unique distinction of being only a handful of episodes in The Original Series that directly dealt with the mysterious Romulans. This episode is in many ways, “The Last Temptation of Spock”, in which the alluring Romulan Commander attempts to appeal to Spock’s internal turmoil between his human and Vulcan instincts and get him to switch allegiances away from the Federation and deliver the Enterprise to Romulus. In a wonderful and subtle piece of acting, Nimoy demonstrates a deft spectrum of emotions that range from feelings of romantic attraction and intimacy to deceit and subterfuge. This episode also has the distinction of featuring the first-ever on-screen depiction of a female starship commander.


Favorite Quote :

“Military secrets are the most fleeting of all. I hope that you and I exchanged something more permanent.”

– Spock to the Romulan commander, in the melancholy and emotionally gripping conclusion which has the Romulan commander being detained by Starfleet.

“All of Our Yesterdays” – Season 3, Episode 23



In the penultimate episode of the original series, Spock, McCoy, and Kirk find themselves trapped in a doomed planet’s distant pasts. In my opinion, Leonard Nimoy gives one of his finest performances here with his gradual regression to his emotional self, his conflict with McCoy, and his beautiful but tragically brief relationship with Zarabeth, a fellow exile with them in the past. We’ve seen Spock previously struggle with both his Vulcan and human sides, but this episode demonstrates that Spock’s struggle with emotions is not necessarily a result of a clash between those two sides. Rather, it could be his actual Vulcan side, one that is in a raw and younger stage of development that could be the source. It demonstrates that not all Vulcans are necessarily cold, emotionless, and logical by default and foreshadows a more nuanced take on the race that will be further explored in Enterprise.

“And she is dead now. Dead and buried. Long ago.”

– Spock to McCoy, on Zarabeth, in one of the most gut-wrenching conclusions in the series.

“Unification Parts 1 and 2” – TNG Season 5, Episodes 7 and 8

In 1991, on the heels of the original crew’s cinematic farewell in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , Spock made an appearance on The Next Generation in a much-anticipated two-part episode. Captain Picard is sent by Starfleet to recover Spock, who they believe has defected to the Romulan Empire. This episode is memorable in so many ways: from Sarek’s final on-screen appearance, the uncanny symmetry between Data and Spock demonstrated by their conversation together, and Spock’s comparisons of Picard and Kirk. While it’s safe to say that many fans feel that this two-parter could have been much stronger than what we ultimately saw on-screen, the concluding scene when Spock mind-melds with Picard to finally understand what his father Sarek truly thought of him is a moving and indelible tribute to life-long Trek fans everywhere.

“In your own way, you are as stubborn as another captain of the Enterprise I once knew.”

“Then I am in good company, sir.”

– Spock and Picard



BONUS: “Yesteryear” – The Animated Series, Season 1, Episode 2



In a previous entry, I noted the reference to a sehlat in “Journey to Babel”. In this episode of The Animated Series , we actually get to see Spock’s sehlat named I-Chaya. But more importantly, this episode provides an excellent foundation to many concepts and ideas of Spock’s background and Vulcan society as a whole that would be referenced in later live-action works. Michael and Denise Okuda and even reportedly Gene Roddenberry himself have admitted that of all of the episodes of The Animated Series, this episode is the one that is the closest to being canon.

“Earther! Barbarian! Emotional Earther! You’re a Terran, Spock! You could never be a true Vulcan!” “That is not true! My father…” “Your father brought shame to Vulcan. He married a Human! You haven’t even mastered a simple Vulcan neck pinch yet, Earther!”

– Sofek and Spock, in a scene that clearly foreshadows the events shown in 2009’s Star Trek reboot

photos: CBS Home Entertainment

Will Nguyen lives in the Boston area. You can tweet him at @Will_Nguyen . He’s also a regular contributor to Warp 5, a weekly Enterprise show on Trek.fm, a dedicated podcast network that talks about every aspect of the Trek universe from television, the movies, literature, and everything in between.

Will Nguyen is an avowed Star Trek cosplayer and fan. You can follow Will on Twitter @boomerniner .

March 8, 2015 at 12:20 am

Sniff, sniff. I will miss Leonard Nimoy!!! LLAP

March 14, 2015 at 6:19 pm

Was in the middle of watching Original Series when I heard the sad news, still crying and my heart aches. Agree with the above episodes, thank you for sharing LLAP x

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Star trek reveals the enterprise's new design as a full-fledged warship, star trek changes its iconic tribbles forever, with shock revelation about their biology.

From Star Trek: The Original Series to Star Trek: Discovery , here’s a list of every actor who has played Spock. The iconic half-Vulcan first officer of the USS Enterprise has been a defining character of Star Trek since its inception, so it’s no wonder Spock is a reoccurring character in subsequent installments of the franchise. Though the actors stay in Spock’s characteristic typing, each new version of Spock brings new energy to the role.

The character of Spock is so well defined, it is nearly an archetype of the science fiction genre itself nowadays. Calculating and emotionless but rarely ever cold, Spock manages a balance between his human feelings and practiced Vulcan focus. Using a mastery of pure, objective logic, Spock is a strong leader within the United Federation of Planets , and essential to their objective to discover and interact with unknown civilizations.

Related: Star Trek's New Vulcans Homage Spock & Undiscovered Country Villain Valeris

As iconic as the role of Spock is, only a select few actors have been allowed to fully embody the character. It is typically against Star Trek tradition to reuse or remake characters across series; usually, unique crews feature in each series with the overall focus on the mission rather than individual character arcs. Nevertheless, Spock keeps coming back in various timelines and ages, but who did the best job as the character is up for debate. Here’s every actor who has played Spock in Star Trek , chronologically ordered by appearance.

Leonard Nimoy

Spock was originated by Leonard Nimoy, who played the first iteration of the character on Star Trek: The Original Series . From Spock’s constant composure to the knockout technique, “the Vulcan nerve pinch,” Nimoy determined everything iconic about the character. The actor reprised his signature role many times over his career, appearing as Spock in all six of the original films, briefly in Star Trek: The Next Generation , and the rebooted 2009 Star Trek as well as its sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness .

Nimoy also voiced the character in Star Trek: The Animated Series and on musical albums, notably his premiere work, Mr. Spock’s Music from Outer Space . Receiving three Emmy nominations for his work as Spock, Nimoy was also the only Star Trek cast member to have directed for the series; the films Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home were both Nimoy’s work. Though the actor did star on stage and screen outside the confines of Star Trek , Nimoy’s rendition is so attached to Spock  that the two names are almost synonymous.

Billy Simpson

Billy Simpson became the first of many actors to play Spock in his childhood. Simpson voiced a young Spock in Star Trek: The Animated Series in the episode “Yesteryear.” Simpson’s voice acting career was contained mostly to his youth. Simpson did expand his repertoire significantly, working as the Demented News correspondent on the Dr. Demento Show , a comedy music radio show.

Related: Star Trek Discovery Turns Georgiu Into Mirror Universe Spock

Carl Steven

The first actor besides Nimoy to portray the character, Carl Steven, played a nine-year-old Spock in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock . In The Search for Spock , the crew of the Enterprise attempted to recover and resurrect Spock after his death in the previous film, The Wrath of Khan . Steven had a fairly successful career as a child actor; notably, he was the voice of Young Fred Jones on the cartoon A Pup Named Scooby-Doo  and had a lead role in the sci-fi series Weird Science .

Vadia Potenza

Again featured in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , Vadia Potenza played the thirteen-year-old Spock. Like the other young Spocks in The Search for Spock , this version of the role was used to portray a rapidly aging Spock over the course of the movie. Currently, Potenza works behind the camera, primarily as an editor, on television and short films, including Hotel Impossible .

Stephen Manley

The 17-year-old version of Spock in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was played by Stephen Manley. In The Search for Spock , the young versions of Spock embodied the half-Vulcan’s physical form, but not his mind, as Spock’s spirit had attached itself to Dr. Leonard McCoy, the Enterprise’s chief medical officer. Manley’s work as a youth was somewhat limited, but he continues to professionally act to this day, recently appearing on Tyler Perry's The Haves and Have Nots .

Joe W. Davis

The second-oldest Spock in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was played by Joe W. Davis, who was 25-years-old at the time. Only when Spock’s body could be brought back to his homeworld, Vulcan, could his mind and body rejoin in The Search for Spock , a risky process called fal-tor-pan. Davis went on to appear in only a few further known roles, notably acting as Buddy Holly in Mr. Rock ‘n’ Roll: The Alan Freed Story.

Related: Star Trek Reveals The Federation Knows What Happened To TOS' Spock

Frank Welker

For such a legendary voice actor, Frank Welker’s turn at Spock was incredibly minor; Welker merely performed some of Spock’s screams in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock . Welker is one of the highest-grossing actors of all time, known almost entirely for his voice-acting career. Welker is best known for voicing Fred Jones from Scooby-Doo  since the original 1969 cartoon and has also notably voiced, more recently, Scooby-Doo, lazy cat Garfield, Transformers Megatron, Galvatron, and Soundwave, and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit in the video game Epic Mickey .

Zachary Quinto

Zachary Quinto revitalized the role of Spock in 2009’s Star Trek , reprising this character in the sequels Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek Beyond . Quinto played into the new action-packed approach to Star Trek , bringing focus to Spock’s conflict between powerful emotions and the desire to repress them. Quinto is also known for his role as Sylar, the major antagonist in the superhero drama Heroes , as well as his Emmy-nominated performance in American Horror Story: Asylum . His appearances in Hitman: Agent 47 , Snowden , and Hotel Artemis are all noteworthy as well; Quinto is an excellent actor and brought lots of power to Spock’s traditionally demure role.

Jacob Kogan

Kogan has had a surprisingly varied acting career for someone so young. He got his start appearing on Law and Order and the twisted comedy Wonder Showzen , moving on to receiving critical acclaim for his role as the sinister boy in 2007’s Joshua . Also, in 2009’s Star Trek, Jacob Kogan played Quinto’s younger counterpart in flashbacks. Most recently, Kogan had a major role in the science fiction series The Tomorrow People.

Liam Hughes

The most recent series, Star Trek: Discovery  season 2 finds Liam Hughes playing Spock as a child once more. In Star Trek: Discovery , the USS Discovery’s crew investigates suspicions around a mysterious being, the Red Angel, among solving other crises. Hughes is currently still an active child actor, also appearing in The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina , Supernatural , and The Flash. However, his most major role so far has been in the Hallmark series, When Calls the Heart .

Related:  Star Trek: What Happened To Spock's Vulcan Replacement

Ethan Peck more prominently appears in Star Trek: Discovery , portraying an adult Spock , although a version ten years before he becomes a member of the USS Enterprise. Peck’s Spock also appears in Short Treks , the mini-series of one-off adventures in Discovery ’s canon. Other shows that one might recognize Peck from include 10 Things I Hate About You and Gossip Girl . The grandson of one of the great classic film actors, Gregory Peck, the actor is set to reprise the role of Spock in the coming series, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .

More: Star Trek Discovery: The REAL Reason Spock Never Mentioned Michael

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Leonard Nimoy, best remembered as Mr. Spock on ‘Star Trek,’ dies at 83

Leonard Nimoy, best remembered by “Star Trek” fans as the iconic Mr. Spock, died Friday. He was 83.

His wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, confirmed reports of Nimoy’s death at his Los Angeles home, saying that he succumbed to end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the New York Times reported . Last year, he attributed his declining health to his smoking habit, which he had successfully quit more than 30 years earlier.

For decades on both the “Star Trek” television series and movie franchise, Nimoy played the character of Mr. Spock, a half-Vulcan, half-human science officer who operated under a rigid adherence to logic and helped guide the crew of Starship Enterprise through the galaxy. It was a role that Trekkers, or devout “Star Trek” fans, came to adore. Nimoy won three Emmys for his work on Star Trek and established a life-long role as a science fiction icon.

“The show valued education, it valued teamwork, and it valued loyalty,” Nimoy told PBS’ “Pioneers of Television” in 2010. [“Star Trek”] was forward-looking, always, just by its very nature. And I think those things appealed.”

Leonard Nimoy in character as the iconic Mr. Spock in a third season episode of “Star Trek.” Photo by CBS via Getty Images

Beyond “Star Trek,” Nimoy was a consummate artist who directed film, composed poetry and photography and taught acting.

News of the actor’s death elicited countless reactions from former co-stars and fans alike. President Barack Obama issued a statement Friday afternoon that said, “Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimoy,” and that the president “loved Spock”:

Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimoy. Leonard was a lifelong lover of the arts and humanities, a supporter of the sciences, generous with his talent and his time. And of course, Leonard was Spock. Cool, logical, big-eared and level-headed, the center of Star Trek’s optimistic, inclusive vision of humanity’s future. I loved Spock. In 2007, I had the chance to meet Leonard in person. It was only logical to greet him with the Vulcan salute, the universal sign for “Live long and prosper.” And after 83 years on this planet – and on his visits to many others – it’s clear Leonard Nimoy did just that. Michelle and I join his family, friends, and countless fans who miss him so dearly today.

Former “Star Trek” castmates William Shatner and George Takei remembered the actor on their social pages:

"I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love." -William Shatner http://t.co/U8ZN98tVYp — William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 27, 2015

On Instagram , actor Zachary Quinto, who inherited the role of Spock from Nimoy for 2009’s “Star Trek” film reboot and its 2013 sequel, “Star Trek Into Darkness,” posted a tribute.

my heart is broken. i love you profoundly my dear friend. and i will miss you everyday. may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

NASA also remembered Nimoy in a tweet, praising “Star Trek” for inspiring generations of future NASA workers. Nimoy, alongside many of the original show cast, were on hand in 1976 to dedicate NASA’s space shuttle “Enterprise,” named for the show’s starship.

RIP Leonard Nimoy. So many of us at NASA were inspired by Star Trek. Boldly go… http://t.co/qpeH5BTzQc pic.twitter.com/nMmFMKYv1L — NASA (@NASA) February 27, 2015

Nimoy remained active in his later years, even after his self-proclaimed 2010 retirement from acting. StarTrek.com, in a tribute post today , remembered asking the actor in 2012 if he truly considered himself retired:

“Yeah, I do. I am. Look, I liken myself to a steamship that’s been going full-blast and the captain pulls that handle back and then says, ‘Full stop,’ but the ship doesn’t stop. It keeps moving from inertia. It keeps moving. It keeps moving. It’ll start slowing down, but it doesn’t stop. It doesn’t come to a dead stop. That’s the way I am. I still have a few odds and ends things that I enjoy doing. I don’t want to get up in the morning and have nothing to do that day. That would be boring.”

A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP — Leonard Nimoy (@TheRealNimoy) February 23, 2015

Laura Santhanam is the Health Reporter and Coordinating Producer for Polling for the PBS NewsHour, where she has also worked as the Data Producer. Follow @LauraSanthanam

Justin Scuiletti is the digital video producer at PBS NewsHour.

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The brash James T. Kirk tries to live up to his father's legacy with Mr. Spock keeping him in check as a vengeful Romulan from the future creates black holes to destroy the Federation one pl... Read all The brash James T. Kirk tries to live up to his father's legacy with Mr. Spock keeping him in check as a vengeful Romulan from the future creates black holes to destroy the Federation one planet at a time. The brash James T. Kirk tries to live up to his father's legacy with Mr. Spock keeping him in check as a vengeful Romulan from the future creates black holes to destroy the Federation one planet at a time.

• J.J. Abrams
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• 1.6K User reviews
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• 27 wins & 95 nominations total

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• Trivia In the scene where Kirk is taking the Kobayashi Maru test, he is eating an apple, which is also what he is eating while recounting his tale of taking the Kobayashi Maru test in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982) . (According to director J.J. Abrams in the Blu-ray audio commentary, this was not intended to be a reference to The Wrath of Khan. At one point, he was simply told that lead actors seem cocky eating apples.)
• Goofs After Spock boards the Vulcan ship on board the mining vessel, Kirk is seen walking through some pipes. His Starfleet phaser has switched to a Romulan gun (longer barrel and no lights), before switching back to the Starfleet one again in the next scene. He actually acquires the Romulan gun a few scenes later.

Spock Prime : James T. Kirk!

James T. Kirk : Excuse me?

Spock Prime : How did you find me?

James T. Kirk : Whoa... how do you know my name?

Spock Prime : I have been and always shall be your friend.

James T. Kirk : Wha...

[shakes head]

James T. Kirk : Uh... look... I-I don't know you.

Spock Prime : I am Spock.

James T. Kirk : Bullshit.

• Crazy credits The first part of the closing credits is styled after the opening credits of Star Trek (1966) , where the starship Enterprise blasts off into space as a monologue describes its mission, and then the cast names appear as the famous "Star Trek" theme music plays.
• Connections Edited into De wereld draait door: Episode #4.157 (2009)
• Soundtracks Theme from 'Star Trek' TV Series Written by Alexander Courage & Gene Roddenberry

User reviews 1.6K

• Apr 20, 2009
• If this premise is that an alternate timeline created when Nero traveled back in time, then what happened to James Kirk's older brother, Sam, aka George Samuel Kirk Jr.?
• How can Spock's mother still be alive years later (original series) when she dies earlier on in this movie ?
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• May 8, 2009 (United States)
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• 2.39 : 1 (original ratio)

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Star Trek's George Takei & William Shatner Feud, Explained

How do you untangle a feud that's lasted half a century, spanning the distance of an entire sci-fi franchise and several fictional galaxies? It's a challenge to be sure, but it's clear even to the naked eye that "Star Trek" stars George Takei and William Shatner have a whole lot of baggage. Their distaste for one another is no secret; they've been known to unpack it publicly during interviews, in books, and via social media posts, even decades after they last worked together. Now in their 80s and 90s respectively, the pair still grab headlines for the occasional verbal swipe at one another.

So, what went wrong between Shatner and Takei? It depends on which of the two you ask, but some of the earliest and most complete explanations of their time on "Star Trek" come from Takei's 1994 autobiography "To The Stars." In it, the Hikaru Sulu actor surprisingly notes that he was originally drawn to the "Star Trek" pilot partially due to Shatner's involvement. He'd seen the actor perform in the play "A Shot in the Dark" (Takei had also caught some of Leonard Nimoy's stage work), and described his experience watching Shatner act early on in powerful and positive terms.

Shatner rubbed Takei the wrong way on set

"He radiated energy and a boundless joy in his position," Takei wrote of filming early season 1 "Star Trek" with Shatner, noting that the actor playing Captain Kirk was "the single most compelling presence there, the unmistakable star of the production." While Takei doesn't explicitly explain why his opinion on Shatner changed, it's made clear through a series of fairly subtle anecdotes.

First, Shatner didn't recognize Takei when the pair worked together on an episode of "Chrysler Fever" before "Star Trek" was picked up. The actor described Shatner ignoring his question about if he'd heard any "Trek" news and trying to make up for not remembering Takei with an "aggressive show of fondness" that came across as insincere. He also described some situations where Shatner seemed to make himself the center of attention to the displeasure of the rest of the cast, like when he allegedly forced photographers doing a piece on Nimoy to leave set or, apparently, posed as if he was helping to put out an already-controlled fire on the soundstage in a clear publicity stunt. Basically, the guy just rubbed Takei (and others) the wrong way.

Over the years, Takei became pretty open about his dislike for Shatner in the press, though he often still couched it in compliments of the actor's talents. In 2004, he gave an interview with the Television Academy in which he reiterated that Shatner loved to be the center of attention, often quite literally stealing the spotlight from co-stars by getting shots of other actors cut and replaced with more of himself. By the time of Shatner's Comedy Central roast in 2006, he put it more plainly, proclaiming: "I can finally say what I've waited 40 years to say: f**k you and the horse you rode in on!"

Potential wedding drama reignited the pair's beef

Another source of drama came in 2008, when Shatner posted a YouTube video referencing Takei's wedding, which he did not attend. "There's such a sickness there. It's so patently obvious that there is a psychosis there," he said, according to Wired . "I don't know what his original thing about me was. I have no idea." A People article from the time provided more context, alleging that Shatner's comments were in response to not being invited to Takei's wedding (he and his husband Brad Altman were famously the first gay couple to apply for a marriage license in West Hollywood). "It is absolutely baffling to us because, in fact, we did invite Bill and we didn't hear from him," Takei told Entertainment Tonight, adding that "every time there was something happy to celebrate amongst [the 'Star Trek' cast]...he never showed up."

Shatner piled on in his own 2011 book, "Shatner Rules." The book, which was co-written by Chris Regan and marketed as a sort of trivia guidebook to Shatner's life, features several direct insults towards Takei as well as Shatner's own explanation for the beef. "George buys into the stolen close ups/lines stuff, and he also claims I kept his character from getting his own Federation starship in the movies," Shatner explained, noting that several performers from the show don't like him, citing their cut lines as a reason. "There's been a great deal of enmity between George and me. He's been saying mean things about me for nearly 40 years now. [...] Criticizing me publicly, in every venue imaginable!" Shatner wrote.

Shatner made it weird several times

His comebacks in the book are various and not great. At one point, he recalled Takei saying Shatner has "a big, shiny ego" and retorted that maybe Takei should polish his more. In an imagined response to his Comedy Central Roast (even though he already responded that night, making an off-color joke implying that Takei is always asking to perform fellatio on him), Shatner made a weird joke about Takei committing bestiality. "Well, I went home with my wife that night," he joked. "I did, however, see George walking around later with a bridle and a bouquet of roses, so who knows what happened?" Elsewhere in the book, he invented the acronym LTEBGT, which stands for "Love To Everyone But George Takei."

Things got even weirder at a 2015 "Star Trek" convention in Las Vegas, where Shatner was captured on film repeatedly claiming that Takei is basically a stranger to him. "I literally didn't know him [...] I had no interaction with him whatsoever," Shatner said in a video captured by Morbid Traveler on YouTube . Bizarrely, Shatner insisted that "In the last 50 years, the man has blackened my reputation," all while describing Takei's own role in the show as dismissively as if he were a background actor. He also addressed the wedding fiasco, seeming to imply that he was invited after all. "I don't have any animus towards him. I don't know who he is. I want you to hear this — I do not know who George Takei is. What drives him, what makes him. I have no idea who he is. He invites me to his wedding. I don't know him!"

Takei spoke about the cast fighting to keep their lines

Shatner seems to be telling on himself more than usual here, speaking about a former castmate (for three seasons and six films!), beloved friend of many of his respected colleagues, and trailblazing activist as if he's a rude fan he met on the street. Yet, in-depth cast and crew interviews, including those done for Ben Robinson and Ian Spelling's 2021 book "Star Trek: The Original Series — A Celebration," make it pretty obvious that some people in the "Trek" cast — which included women and actors of color in groundbreaking roles — felt pushed to the margins by Shatner's behavior. "When Sulu's lines disappeared — and they did frequently — I knew why," Takei is quoted as saying in the book. "The others were complaining about the same thing, and we all know what the source was."

Takei spoke convincingly about what it was like to push for other characters on the Enterprise besides Spock and Captain Kirk to have a personality and backstory. "I was aware of who has the power , who gets the most fan mail, which is a measure of your worth," he explained. "So, you make suggestions. You do a little lobbying, maybe suggest that Sulu has a family, or parents, or a love interest. They're not all accepted." If Shatner's weird insistence that he didn't know Takei is key to understanding his perspective on the situation, these statements feel like the key to understanding where Takei himself was coming from. He was an up-and-coming actor who wanted more lines, sure, but he was also an Asian-American man breaking new ground on television — one who vividly remembers watching himself and his castmates lose the chance to speak to America due to their problematic co-star.

The pair still take swipes at each other in the press

Unfortunately, Takei and Shatner haven't made peace over time, and if anything, their insults towards one another have just gotten worse. In 2021, per ScreenRant , Takei spoke at a Broadway play opening about Shatner's expedition to space with Jeff Bezos, saying, "He's a guinea pig, 90 years old and it's important to find out what happens. [...] He'll be a good specimen to study. Although he's not the fittest specimen of 90 years old, so he'll be a specimen that's unfit!"

Shatner was understandably peeved and did his best Don Draper "I don't think about you at all" act in response. "Don't hate George. The only time he gets press is when he talks bad about me," Shatner posted to X at the time ( per SR ). "He claims 50+ years ago I took away a camera angle that denied him 30 more seconds of prime time TV. I'm giving it back to him now by letting him spew his hatred for the world to see!" This subplot of the pair's decades-long feud stretched into the next year, when Shatner told The Times , "I began to understand that [disgruntled former castmates] were doing it for publicity. 60 years after some incident they are still on that track. Don't you think that's a little weird?"

Ironically, Shatner kept the drama going, posting more about it to X two days later. "I do find it sad that a handful of day players who were on set for maybe 20-30 days a year total spent 50+ years creating fantasies to get noticed in the press," the actor posted. After making so many similar statements about Takei before, it's clear that he's shading him and other outspoken "Trek" castmates here, and it's once again a pretty un-self-aware take that minimizes the contributions of his co-stars.

These grudges seem destined to last a lifetime

This particular press cycle ended with Takei's interview with The Guardian a couple weeks after Shatner's continued digs. The actor, by that point 85 years old, at first tried to avoid mentioning Shatner by name, but was ultimately as frank as ever about why the "Star Trek" star ticks him off. He said that no one in the cast got along with the actor, but they were all otherwise tight-knit. It's certainly true that there's ample evidence of discord between Shatner and others on the cast, with Gene Roddenberry once even writing a letter to Shatner and Nimoy saying that they'd "pretty well divided up the market on selfishness and egocentricity."

"I have much more substantial subject matter that I want to get publicity for, so I'm not going to refer to Bill in this interview at all," Takei told the outlet in 2022, adding, "Although I just did." He concluded that Shatner is "just a cantankerous old man and I'm going to leave him to his devices." When asked if the star had always been cantankerous, Takei replied: "He was self-involved. He enjoyed being the center of attention. He wanted everyone to kowtow to him." That pretty much sums it up.

"Star Trek" imagined a brighter future built on collaboration and open-mindedness, but one thing it couldn't account for is the stubbornness of a grudge long-held. Decades into their feud, it seems unlikely that George Takei and William Shatner will ever truly bury the hatchet.