Latest Posts by andyrg099 - Page 2

just finished city on the edge of forever and i know we all talk about "by his side, as you always have been and always will be" yeah yeah yeah i too choked on raw yearning when she said that but

EVEN WHEN HE DOESN'T SAY IT, HE DOES?

insane. it's about captain but also about love. this line is the original version of "officer when he's angry with you and detective when he's not" -- love, as loyalty or devotion or service or care or effort or any of the numerous behaviors we come to associate with spock, underlies every instance he ever calls him captain, and here, we see with edith that he even means it when he doesn't. "if I let go of a hammer on a planet that has a positive gravity, I need not see it fall to know that it has in fact fallen" he need not even call him by name to know that everything he DOES is a revelation of care!!!!!!! calling him captain as a love confession, my god. who needs romance when we have duty.

I can't get over how beautiful the name "The City on the Edge of Forever" is.

I want it tattooed. I want it engraved in my soul. I want it to be a painting I can hang in my room and stare it all day long

the devil in the dark is a great episode for sooooo many reasons but something i particularly love is its characterization of kirk & spock, especially how the story juxtaposes their initial attitudes vs. their actions as well as juxtaposing them against one another. for most of the episode, kirk is very firmly situated in the command role: he’s laser-focused on his goal of eliminating whatever has been killing the miners. he has a plan & he sticks to it. he can’t afford to entertain ideas about capturing the creature for scientific study rather than killing it, because that introduces more risk to his crew. his mission is to protect as many lives as possible, full stop.

however, when he sees the horta in that cave, his first instinct isn’t to shoot. he’s wary of course, brandishing a phaser for his own safety, but he’s also curious & gentle. he studies her with wonder shining in his eyes. his movements mirror her own—he immediately picks up on the fact that she isn’t necessarily hostile towards him, & in response, he slowly, carefully, sets aside his own hostility as well. he speaks to her, makes little jokes. he watches her in perpetual amazement & intrigue, very cautiously extending a metaphorical hand to say, i don’t want to hurt you. it’s a big leap from “your orders are shoot to kill,” & that reveals a lot about kirk. he’s a good commander, he knows how to handle a dangerous situation while minimizing risk to his crew, but he’s also curious. kind. optimistic. gentle. in the heat of the moment, when he’s the only one at risk, his basic instinct doesn’t say fight, it says listen.

meanwhile, spock is immensely intrigued by the horta; he regrets that it will most likely be necessary to kill her in order to protect themselves. he spends most of the episode speculating on the fascinating science of a silicone-based life form. he even (very subtly) challenges kirk’s order by telling the security team to capture the creature if possible. he isn’t eager to use force, because he simply isn’t that kind of person—he’s curious by nature, like kirk. so it seems a great shift when, upon hearing that the horta is near kirk, he shouts through the communicator, “kill it, captain! kill it!”

realizing that kirk is in danger is like flipping a switch. the way he carries himself changes in an instant. urgency flares to life in his eyes & voice. as wild with it as a vulcan can get. freezing in place, then breaking into a run, calling out, forgetting rank. to him, the most preferable—the most logical—course of action is not to explore why the horta has not attacked the captain yet; rather, it is to eliminate the threat to kirk as soon as possible.

in a way, they represent both a reversal & a mirror of each other in this episode. kirk is a decisive & capable fighter, but his instincts steer him towards gentler things. spock prioritizes scientific inquiry & discovery, but it all appears inconsequential when his friend’s life is on the line. they balance each other, complement each other. it’s why they’re such a good command team. it’s why they fall so easily into such a deep bond. both of them, ultimately, act from a place of love.

Call OG Star Trek corny all you want. Because yeah. But it's also like-

"Here is a rock slug. It is literally different from Earth life on the molecular level. It is killing people. It's obviously played by a stagehand wearing a rug. Except it's not an it. It's a she. She's a mother, and she's lived here far longer than man has lived on her native planet. She lives alone with eggs that haven't hatched, which the miners thing are just worthless rocks. Her mission is one of love as well as vengeance. She feels anger and pain and joy. She doesn't have a voice but she can be felt. Through understanding her, both her species and mankind can benefit. Through understanding, we can achieve peace."

McCoy: Well, that's the second time man's been thrown out of paradise.

Kirk: No, no, Bones. This time we walked out on our own. Maybe we weren't meant for paradise. Maybe we were meant to fight our way through. Struggle, claw our way up, scratch for every inch of the way. Maybe we can't stroll to the music of the lute. We must march to the sound of drums.

Spock: Poetry, Captain. Non-regulation.

Kirk: We haven't heard much from you about Omicron Ceti Three, Mister Spock.

Spock: I have little to say about it, Captain, except that for the first time in my life I was happy.

---

This might legitimately thee most beautiful ending of any episode of Star Trek ever made. The dialogue, as per usual from Dorothy Fontana, is exquisitely written, and it's performed perfectly by all three.

But I find it especially interesting that Ralph Seninsky chose to cut to Spock while Kirk is talking about how "we must march to the sound of drums", because while it's a philosophy that Kirk wholeheartedly agrees with, this episode seems to show that it's one that Spock has taken onto himself - his self-made purgatory. To Kirk, marching to the sound of drums is the only way to find true happiness. To Spock, marching to the sound of drums is the life that he has chosen, and for it he must sacrifice happiness.

But I also find it additionally interesting, as Spock plays a Vulcan harp/lyre/lute. It's almost as if Kirk's poetical philosophizing is speaking directly to various parts of who Spock is as a person. Perhaps he cannot stroll to the music of the lute, but that does not mean he cannot embrace that music all while marching to the beat of the drum.

Like I said earlier, I feel like Spock genuinely did grow after this episode because he does seem to embrace an appreciation for beauty after this more than he had before, and this is the final moment showing that. In his own way, Kirk is telling Spock that he does not have to give up the former in order to achieve the latter. And in his own way, in response, Spock gently denies that.

And it's heartbreaking, and beautiful, and amazing in every way

It's so interesting how Kirk's idea of paradise is so different from most other people's idea of paradise. And that's partly because he's not under the influence of the spores, but Spock indicating "belonging" being a true Eden is extremely in character for him, so I don't think it's just that.

So for Kirk, it is unthinkable to stagnate - to not take life by the fists and refuse to let go until he gets everything out of it that he can. And it's a characterization that continues all through the movies - when he's promoted to admiral and begins stagnating, that's the closest to hell that he's ever been. It makes him feel old, worn out, like he's got one foot in the grave.

To Kirk, the idea of paradise isn't about mere contentment; for him it's about constantly reaching out for something more, because if you do that you will find paradise in all of the different things you can find

Watched Star trek tos episode 25 "This side of paradise" recently, and I am still thinking about how after Kirk manages to snap Spock out of the spore's influence, Spock says: "The spores are gone... I don't belong anymore."

And I don't see anybody talk about this part because it gets overshadowed by the part at the end where Spock says the has a responsibility to the man on the bridge (Kirk). And I also loved that part, but as an autistic women that really relates to Spock, this one line hit me so hard. Spock never feels like he belongs, not with the humans, not with the vulcans, and because of the spores he finally fit in with everybody. He is not his real self here, and it's good that the influence of the spores is eventually broken, but I understand so well how sad he is at losing that feeling of belonging.

This scene is always in my mind

They make me sick get them out of my head NOW!

Kirk: You mean to tell me your people just walk into a disintegration machine when they're told to?

Don't make comparisons to Tarsus IV, don't make comparisons to Tarsus IV, don't make comparisons to Tarsus IV

Is this why Kirk is so instantly, adamantly, ready to disrupt this entire culture?

He's the survivor of a genocide, and I can't imagine that the thousands of people murdered by Kodos walked quietly, willingly, obediently to their deaths. Like those who walk into the disintegration machines, their deaths were painless, but they are all still dead.

And now Kirk is watching the same thing happen, only on a much larger scale. And it lacks the terror, the fighting, the starvation, the horrors that stain his early childhood, and because of that it continues.

No wonder he's almost gleeful when he threatens to give them the horrors of war - because he knows from personal experience that even the threat of that, even the memory of that, even the echo of what was or what might be - it's enough to make it stop.

Deleted my earlier post cuz upon rewatch I realized Kirk did not leave the room the second Khan called him physically and mentally inferior. Dude has thicker skin than that.

It isn’t until Khan says that “we,” will live great in this new world that Kirk understands/gets confirmation of Khan’s intentions to remove everyone who he sees as lesser/an obstacle and continue conquering and rushes out.

Kirk can live with people thinking he’s inferior.

What he can’t live with is people imposing that belief on others. The tyranny. Which is why he left and tried to lock Khan in that room.

That said the tarsus IV stuff still works to add to Khan and Kirk’s rivalry cuz you have the product of eugenics vs self made captain who was nearly murdered in a genocide for being seen as less valuable.

Spock realizing "You'd make a splendid computer, Mr. Spock" is one of the bestest things anybody told him. I'M FEELING UNWELL. JAMES T. KIRK I'M TIRED OF YOUR EQUAL PARTS FLIRTING AND TEASING. JUST TELL THE MAN YOU LOVE HIM.

Spock's speech defending Kirk in Court Martial (S1 E20)

Spock: "The computer is inaccurate, nevertheless" Shaw: "Why do you say that?" Spock: "It reports that the jettison button was pressed before the red alert" Shaw: "In other words it reports that the captain reacted to an extreme emergency that did not then exist" Spock: "And that is impossible" Shaw: "Is it? Where you watching him the exact moment he pressed the jettison button?" Spock: "No, I was occupied, the ship was already on yellow alert" Shaw: "Then how can you dispute the finding of the log?" Spock: "I do not dispute it. I merely state that it is wrong" Shaw: Oh? on what do you base that statement?" Spock: "I know the captain. He is-" Shaw: "Please instruct the witness not to speculate" Spock: Leutenant, I am half Vulcanian. Vulcanians do not speculate. I speak from pure logic. If i let go of a hammer on a planet that has positive gravity i need not see it fall to know that it has, in fact, fallen" Shaw: "I do not see what-" Spock: "Gentlemen, Human beings have characteristics just as inanimate objects do. It is impossible for captain Kirk to act out of panic or malice. It is not his nature" Shaw: "In your opinion" Spock: "Yes, in my opinion"

I know that the fandom treats Arena like a joke (rightfully so) but I think it’s an untapped market for spirk shippers. Nobody talks about Spock practically drooling over kirks “impeccable logic” ON THE BRODGE while he builds that stupid fucking canon.

“City on the edge of forever” this and that but Like Guys ignore the rubber lizard guy and let’s focus on the fact that Spock just casually murmurs “good good” in front of all of his coworkers??? and none of them question is???? somebody needs to write a fic I stg

Balance of Terror is probably, up to that point, Kirk in his most perilous situation. It is full battle mode where if he makes so much as one wrong move, he risks death. Not too mention potential war against an enemy that he knows little to nothing about. Thus, for the vast majority of the episode, we have Kirk in Full On Captain Mode... except for one scene.

It's been hours now since the battle against the Romulans has started. At this moment, the Enterprise is a sitting duck and all that they can do is wait. Which gives Kirk plenty of time with his thoughts and in turn, his doubts. Doubts that he cannot let anyone see under any circumstances. Even when Rand, his personal Yeoman who has seen him at his best and worst, comes to see if he needs anything, the mask stays put. There's no point in bombarding her with what he's feeling internally and freak her out. That's not a luxury that he's allowed.

Well... save for one person.

As soon as McCoy walks in and Rand leaves? Kirk is noticeably more at ease. You can even see Rand realize it and leave, allowing McCoy to help the Captain when she clearly isn't going to get anywhere.

It's only then that Kirk feels comfortable talking and letting his doubts be visible. It's the one vulnerable moment that he lets show in the episode, feeling the pressure as his men to look at him and the fear of what happens if he's wrong. If you think back to The Corbomite Manuver we had a similar moment where McCoy tried to talk to Kirk, but while Kirk was at more ease, he didn't want to hear it nor did he let himself really open up. He doesn't even use Bones then, which sure it's probably because they hadn't thought of the nickname yet, but in-show you can interpret it as Kirk remaining in professional mode even to the guy who has it in his job description to see to his mental health.

Not that McCoy is there just because it's his job, of course.

From what we can tell, McCoy went to Kirk on his own volition. He wasn't called or anything, he went to go make sure that Kirk was doing okay. He's been in Sickbay for the majority of the episode and hasn't exactly been able to make time to go check on the Bridge Crew, especially not Jim. Now that he can, he's just there to let Kirk air out whatever he's been bubbling in for so many hours , as he always does.

But Kirk doesn't need McCoy, his Chief Medical Officer and essentially therapist, right now. And he clearly needs more than a soundboard to vent his feelings to. What Jim needs is Bones, his best friend and confidant. You even have McCoy, once Kirk's done talking, start to go 'Captain I-" before he's cut off, still somewhat in that professional mode (maybe even remembering the last time he spoke out of line in a tense situation ala The Corbomite Manuever). That's not what's needed. Kirk didn't expect an answer, but McCoy stops him. He outright says that he normally doesn't talk to 'a customer' like he is now, which goes to show how much he views Jim as far more than a patient or as the captain of the ship. Kirk is, first and foremost, his friend, and he needs some kind of reassurance right then and there.

And that's exactly what he gives.

MCCOY: But I've got one. Something I seldom say to a customer, Jim. In this galaxy, there's a mathematical probability of three million Earth-type planets. And in all of the universe, three million million galaxies like this. And in all of that, and perhaps more, only one of each of us. Don't destroy the one named Kirk.

Just that bit of assurance and Kirk is good to go. And I think he needed it from Bones specifically. Bones, the one person that Kirk can really be himself around. The one person who he's allowed to be vulnerable around. The one person who has always been there to ease him and help him process his feelings, as we've seen already in episodes like The Enemy Within. And even with McCoy worried himself, even having voiced concern about the gamble that Jim is taking earlier in the episode, he still trusts him and has faith in him. And unlike The Corobomite Manuever where he provoked an argument and had his priorities skewed, McCoy knows what Kirk does and doesn't need right now, and he delivers.

IDK, I just love these two so much and I need to voice it for the world cause dang it, someone has to!

first time i watched tos i felt that kirk was subtly but ardently wooing spock over the course of the five year mission and that spock was gay but kinda didnt get it. but after rewatching the ‘a certain inefficiency’ scene ive decided i was wrong. kirk and spock ARE flirting reciprocally on the fucking bridge no less, and bones mccoy has suffered more than god

?????????

trelane really said punish mr. spock rn and kirk said no, actually, mr. spock gets a gold star.

then trelane said but i don’t like him! and kirk said get off my ship.

theres something so special to me about kirk being incredibly private, unhealthily so, he alone going his way doing what he feels is right. it's exhausting but it's what he's always done, it's what he must do.

but spock and mccoy, they notice there's something wrong, they meet up, try to to find out what it is and how to help.

spock might not know much about human emotions but he knows loneliness and he knows guilt and he would never want jim, his brilliant captain to feel that.

so spock, the cold, emotionless vulcan goes to his quarters and talks to him stern but kindly. he erases his memory, he's always ready to be by his side no matter what.

the both of them would see stars born and die before they'd willingly let anything happen to jim

I like reading Spock analysis because his character is absolutely awesome. Spock is a character that acts like a prim rule follower, but in reality, he has a complex set of internal rules, beliefs, and a strict moral compass. He is not necessarily a good person, depending on the point of view, but he is both empathetic and capable of viewing the bigger picture, and able to act immediately (but never rashly) while following his personal code. He might regret the outcomes, but he will stand by his choices as the best option available at the time. He is so interesting because he is a rebel, if he has to be, or a rule follower, if the rules agree with his code. He is immovable by the moral standards of society. And he doesn't bother making a scene of it, so most people never notice. But Spock only ever does what he believes to be right.

How fucking distraught must Pike have been, to see Spock going against everything, risking his life, seeing how thoroughly Spock had this thought out…

The depth of that love Spock has for him.

That moment when you ponder loneliness and your first impulse is to give your first officer a yearning stare, making him extremely flustered.

In What Are Little Girls Made Of, there is something so adorable about jim, completely trapped, his only chance to be saved is by possibly planting a false idea into the androids mind, deciding to go with being a prick to spock because that would be so out of character it would warrant looking into

In "what are little girls made of", Christine is certain she knows her fiancé, but Spock knows he's not talking to Jim immediately. While his memories are being transferred to the Jim-android, he repeats "mind your own business mr Spock, I'm sick of your half-breed interference, do you hear?" And when the android repeats that, that's all Spock needs to be certain he's not talking to jim.

Who wrote this script? It's too perfect to be an accident. They're in love your honor

I love that four episodes into production TOS writers decided to reveal that James T. Kirk has an indefensible impulsive immoral evil monster in him, which is a core enough part of his being that it’s actually half of him, and he literally cannot live without it, and that the lesson of the episode was not learning to kill him, but learning to embrace and even comfort him. It makes so much sense that, when he has the choice, he chooses not to kill his enemies. He must look at them sometimes and see his own face.

What if I was all wrong about the "SINNER REPENT" wall writing. What if it isn't a manifestation of the social attitudes of the 1960s (compulsory heterosexuality, gender binary, etc.). What if, like Spock's message of "LOVE MANKIND," Jim's message also speaks to a hidden fear? A fear that is not the breaking of a social taboo (be it a captain's duty and Starfleet regulations, an affair, non-heterosexual love, etc.), but a haunting thought from Jim's past: that he should not be alive, that his continued existence breaks the order of life itself by cheating a certain death. Hence, the use of the words "SINNER REPENT," a phrase that matches how Kodos moralized basic survival needs to justify his eugenics and massacre on Tarsus IV.

You know what else drives me crazy about The Naked Time? This exchange:

It isn't just because of Spock saying, "Jim, when I feel friendship for you, I am ashamed" or "Understand, Jim. I've spent a whole lifetime learning to hide my feelings." Although, that absolutely is part of it, the fact that Spock is locked into his regret over not telling his mother he loved her and his shame at realizing that, despite all his work to adhere to Vulcan principles, he still feels love. It's that gap between duty versus desire, between expectations versus wants, and what remains in spite of the pressure. (I realize his words parallel a love confession in any other context, between any heterosexual couple, and that fandom looks to his shame as a confirmation of internalized homophobia, but the biggest issue for Spock is that love, sorrow, shame--all powerful emotions--still exist for him. He is not a Vulcan if he feels these emotions and gives into them. He is only a half-Vulcan and half-Human, caught between worlds and the judgments and expectations of two very different societies.)

It's because Kirk changes his phrasing of "We've got to risk a full-power start!" to, "We've got to risk implosion!" Implosion, like many words, holds multiple meanings. The intended meaning is "a violent collapsing inwards," the opposite of explosion. But implosion can mean integration, a coming together towards a single center point. We've got to risk coming together. We've got to risk integration. And Spock responds, "It's never been done." They repeat these lines twice. Repetition is a device to call attention in writing. Why have Kirk say they have to risk a full-power start twice before only to change it to implosion and repeat it twice? The two phrases mean something different, but it's important enough to bear repeating. (One could argue it is sloppy writing, or perhaps a case of actors failing to remember their lines, but what are the odds it was either of those, especially with someone as thoughtful as Leonard Nimoy. Either a writer is a professional who understands the power of words, or everything is somehow coincidental, holds no actual meaning, and writers don't think carefully about word choice and meaning, especially in an era where nuance can make or break a story on the screen.)

In the 1960s, during the time of the Hays Code, of course, two men couldn't be together as a couple on TV or in film, not even in space, in a time set centuries beyond our present. But damn if the dialogue can not hint at it, dance around it in plain sight. Again, Kirk and Spock's relationship must exist in the margins, between the lines, encased in nuance and multiple meanings, because to use explicitly clear phrasing would mean it all gets cut.

Hence, this bit of dialogue. The slaps become Spock catching Kirk's hand and holding it steady--direct sustained contact, a coming together, implosion. Spock is torn between regret and shame and love, while Kirk shouts about the ship being destroyed and ending the lives of the crew, their shared duty to the ship. The dialogue is Spock's turmoil writ large--do what must be done, accept two separate halves becoming a whole (is it Spock's two halves or Kirk and Spock? I'll leave that up to you), or remain apart and give into despair. But Kirk tells him their only chance is to risk implosion, to come together, and they have to take that chance.

Rewatched the Naked Time for Spock in that inner black t-shirt looking hot as fuck Sulu going absolute bonkers fencing and looking pretty Riley being an Irish comedian & performer Spock getting frustrated and angry and raising his voice and continuing being hot LOVE MANKIND Uhura's "Sorry, neither" to Sulu's "I'll protect you fair maiden" Chapel's beautiful bittersweet confession to Spock Spock finally releasing his repressed gay emo self and crying prettily Kirk slapping Spock to get him out of it yet him basically confessing to Kirk and Kirk's whole sad as fuck and iconic monologue and Shatner's funny and amazing acting "loVE" Spock in fact getting out of it thanks to Kirk's slaps and maybe also heartbreak and them successfuly fucking around and finding out going back in time. Absolutely amazing tos experience

I am once again thinking about how in The Naked Time, Spock has an emotional breakdown after contracting the virus and cries about the regret he feels for not loving his human mother vs his shame he feels for his ongoing friendship with Kirk, but before he contracts the virus, Spock finds LOVE MANKIND written on the wall. And it's been written and discussed to death about what it means, I know this, but it's telling that Spock not only loves in spite of his Vulcan upbringing and continued adherence to their customs but that he holds regret and shame deep down inside because the love is still there, regardless.

Whereas Kirk likewise has his virus-induced breakdown over the opposite: his self-inflicted pressure to not love an individual, either due to fear of distraction from duty, losing his position as captain due to the ethical conundrum of "How can a captain date one of their crew?" (no, I do not know the details of how Starfleet manages crew relationships, but I'm assuming rank is an issue, especially where captains are concerned), or even the unspoken taboo of the show's production era, his sexual orientation, hence his focusing on the ship as the only safe and constant outlet for his love. But after this, Kirk finds SINNER REPENT written on the wall, as if to say his altruism isn't the full truth, as if what he desires is what he denies even with the virus lowering his inhibitions.

And like my god. What foils to each other! How damned telling the literal writing on the wall is for them! I am going to eat my fucking sweater!

Can you imagine? Can you IMAGINE? Carrying the pain of loving him so absolutely, so irrevocably, and also the regret of never having truly given yourself to him. So years pass and you just watch him grow old and die, knowing you have a hundred years more to live and yet, you hold onto the pain, because it carries all the memories and emotions that you spent so long denying. In the end, you know that it is the only thing you have of him, an admition, a surrender, too late.

And then you find yourself in another timeline all together, where you and him are so young, so hopeful, but also, so naive, so easily fooled. Now you have to watch yourself pulling away from him all over again, deying everything, pretending not to love or hurt. And you just want to shake that younger version and scream: "You don't have that much time! Stop leaving him behind and hold him while you still can".

But you cannot. This is not your universe, and you have already fucked their lives up so much, how could you also tamper with this? So you step aside and let them discover it in their own time, hoping they have much more than you did. Clinging to the pain and memories once more, all you have left is the hope that someday, when your body is too tired to keep on living, he is waiting for you, and you will never have to be apart again.

In “The Naked Time”, while Spock becomes overwhelmed by his emotions and love to the point of even questioning why he ever lived by Vulcan values, Jim on the other hand goes almost insane over his rejection of love and intense loneliness. This is the most apparent moment in the franchise where we see that to their core, Spock and Jim are narrative foils: no matter how deeply someone looks into their characters, one will always be surrounded by debilitating isolation for the sake of self dependence while the other is so compassionate it borders on self destruction.

However, with the resolution of the episode we see that such traits will always make both Spock and Jim a strong dynamic, as they are paralyzed apart but perfectly balanced together, showing the unity of some of the most well-intended yet corruptible traits of the human condition. In this essay—