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ichayalovesyou · 2 years

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(Re)Discovering A Strange New Spock: “The Menagerie” (1x11, 1x12)

Previous: The Corbomite Maneuver

Next: The Conscience of A King

A meta anthology where I re-examine TOS, especially Spock, in light of the new information Discovery & Strange New Worlds has revealed about him to us.

Hoooooo BOY! This one is gonna be an absolute DOOZY. If any episode(s) from TOS were drastically recontextualized by the events of Discovery & Strange New Worlds it’s this particular pair.

I actually had a bit of an older piece of meta discussing theories about this episode after having rewatched The Cage, If Memory Serves, Through The Valley of Shadows, A Quality of Mercy and then these two if anybody wants to see the homework I did on this episode in particular. Tl:dr a lot of the footnotes/theories from that will be in here in a bit more polished and elaborated of a format.

Brace yourselves, this’ll be a long one! Onto the analysis!

Captain Pike’s Condition

There’s a few things that we can glean from the opener of this episode that I think people tend to forget when Chris’s condition gets addressed in a meta narrative way.

It’s a lot more than him being wheelchair bound and in need of a speech aid.

Chris has been in intensive care for months, when he’s taken to the Enterprise he needs 24/7 medical supervision. Any serious emotional upset could potentially put him in a coma. He’s canonically inplied to be in a lot of pain and is easily exhausted. The chair is confirmed to be life support and the only thing between him and his DNA unraveling to a terminal degree. Hence it’s limited capacity for mobility and as a speech aid, the device is prioritizing other things.

He survived severe exposure to delta radiation where two cadets in the same room died. Something I theorize may have to do with Una considering how she spared herself and La’an from warp core radiation, the chimeric antibodies still being in La’an afterward. If Una did something similar for Chris it may have been the difference between death and a very difficult but endurable life.

What Spock is trying to offer Chris is a chance at drastically improving his quality of life. “There’s surviving, and then there’s living.” Talos IV isn’t exile. It’s pain killers, it’s better mobility and speech aids than what Starfleet medicine can currently provide. Chronic medical problems can make leaving your house, or a planet, difficult. Chris being able to thrive on Talos IV whatever way he chooses. with various means of making life more livable. While leaving the planet being difficult to achieve beyond the planet’s confines isn’t all that different.

However indelicate and dramatic Spock’s attempt at helping Chris may be, I don’t think it’s out of some sort of unnuanced ableism.

Two Lights Means “No.”

When the triumvirate arrives, Pike dismisses Kirk & McCoy but allows Spock to stay. Which is no surprise given their relationship.

What does intrigue me however is “You know why I’ve come Captain.”

It implies that Spock had intentions to take Pike to Talos IV prior to the incident. Which makes sense considering Spock had the same foreknowledge as Chris has, if not as directly. Not only that but Spock made a game plan and Pike knows about it.

I also keep thinking about how Pike ends up in a medical facility on Starbase 11 of all places. The one space station that just so happens to be the closest to Talos IV. Which is something that Spock couldn’t have controlled, but Chris potentially could have. Which leads me to the following theory:

If Memory Serves is not the last time we will see Talos IV, I think it will be visited or at least discussed again in SNW. That plans may even be made between Spock & Pike about getting Pike there after the accident somehow. Then something unforeseen either pushing the time table forward (as in while Spock is still serving on Enterprise) or farther back (as in not immediately after the accident).

When Pike cuts him off by refusing, Spock’s response isn’t “I know you don’t want to go but logically blah blah blah”

It’s acknowledging he will be putting himself, his career, and his relationship with Jim at serious risk by doing this for Chris.

Knowing what we already do about Pike, he’s continuing to put the well-being of others above his own. Even when “well” is an extremely strong word for how he’s doing. Pike doesn’t want to risk the reason he allowed this to happen to him getting sabotaged because Spock wants to do something for his sake.

Unfortunately however, Pike taught his boy a little too well. It’s time for Spock to return a small amount of the kindness Pike showed him. With all the compassion of a Human being, and all the stubbornness of Vulcankind.

Kirk’s Faith in Spock, McCoy’s Thoughts on Spock in Private

Up until the evidence begins to weigh Jim down is incredibly defensive of Spock. Bordering on denial at the notion that he would ever be capable of betraying him, only in private to McCoy does he confide his budding doubts.

What does McCoy do in this situation? Defend Spock! He sees him how many people (especially people who have affection for him) see him, operating under the assumption that he Vulcans are honest. Which is hilarious when you consider Spock is the biggest liar between the three of them.

He then goes on to confirm what I knew he knew about Spock from the get go. McCoy is acutely aware of Spock’s utter loathing and rejection of his human side. He even admits to being more emotional and going off half-cocked, but believes Spock incapable of it.

Honestly I think McCoy will find himself liking and being annoyed by Spock in equal measure a lot more. After how he is proved right (Spock us as vulnerable to emotions like love and sentimentality as the rest of us) and proved wrong (Spock’s a liar and even a loose canon) in this episode.

Is This The Real Life? Or Is It Just Fantasy?

Spock seemingly managing to hardwire the ship to kill everyone if they undo the autopilot to Talos IV. It just doesn’t seem like a very Spock thing to do even under these circumstances where he allows the needs of the one to outweigh the many.

The entire fake-out court martial was done as a test for Kirk. However Spock does seem greatly taken aback at the idea of Kirk being punished for his actions as well. Which implies that either Spock is a very good actor, or didn’t know the Commodore was an illusion either. Which could mean that the Talosians were testing both Kirk & Spock for reasons unknown. Unless!

Spock and the Talosians share the same goal, to test Kirk’s faith. In this case, Spock is testing whether Jim’s career is more important to him than Spock or the truth. “Jim, don’t stop me, don’t let him stop me.” Which it is, but an element of trust has been broken between them, something I think takes a couple episodes to fully heal.

Pike In The Courtroom

I find the shift in Pike’s attitude from getting taken aboard to Spock’s fake court martial is intriguing. I wonder how much Pike knows of Spock’s plan and whether or not he can tell the Commodore is a Talosian illusion.

Regardless, he wants the one person who is real in that court room to see what happened to him and to Spock in “The Cage” even as the Talosian sock puppet plays devil’s advocate, very interesting indeed.

Then, when the Talosians remove the vision momentarily, Pike is the first to vote Spock as guilty. Yet allows the record of what happened to him to finish. Maybe as if to see what Kirk will do when faced with an otherwise unanimous choice.

Maybe it was also one last dig at Spock for defying orders. This further implies Pike knew the plan because I highly doubt he’d condemn Spock to death like that on the fly. Not after everything else they’d been through or why they were headed to Talos in the first place.

Then, when the chips are down, even after there are no consequences to Chris saying “no”. No punishment for Spock, and Jim finally understands what’s going on. Pike says “yes” when asked if he wants to go to Talos IV, and thanks Kirk through Spock before Spock leads him away.

Pike has finally let someone else do something compassionate for him instead of the other way around. Taking the advice that he so often gives others which frequently boils down to “let other people trust and be kind to you.” One, final assurance that Spock will be just fine as he moves on to other things. Speaking of which!

Pike Is Still Active Duty (Life Post-Talos)

The Talosians test Kirk, maybe Spock as well, the Commodore is an illusion and Spock (anc possibly Pike) knows that. Pike wants Kirk to see the whole story behind the Talosians. The Talosians want Pike alive and care about both him and Spock’s want.

Yet they’ve conceded to the inevitability of their extinction. Vina is no longer a prisoner. She has chosen to stay and act as a liason to the rare visitor as we see in If Memory Serves. Spock keeps insisting that it’s more complicated than it looks. He confirms they want Pike alive but denies that they want him as a zoo specimen.

And Pike is still an active duty officer and ranking Fleet Captain. The court martial never happened, and General Order 7 is waived for Pike & Spock specifically. Pike has explicit permission to go, and Spock’s charges are dropped.

To me this indicates that the Talosians need Pike for something, something other captive entertainment. As we know, the Talosians don’t seem to particularly enjoy doing things for free, and I’m sure they got their fill from the court drama they imposed on Kirk. Was that really enough?

I think the Talosians may need a Starfleet officer whose already familiar with them and their plights, maybe old, maybe new dangers to them. Spock’s got too many other obligations and Una isn’t present. Which leaves Chris, who has the most to gain from that arrangement.

I would like to think (and maybe it’ll be true) Chris’s career continues covertly as a liason between Talos IV and Starbase 11, continuing his career from a ground posting. If not, the guy deserves a nice retirement after how much he’s already given to the Federation.

Closing Banter w/ The Talosians

After letting Spock see Pike off to Talos IV, the Talosians make an interesting decision as Kirk stares wistfully in Spock’s direction as he leaves.

They show him Vina leaving in her romantic “happily ever after” with her illusory version of Pike. (There’s no way it was real Pike at this point lol, Pike & Spock couldn’t have made it to the transporter room that fast).

“You have your reality, may you find your way as pleasant.”

Man, if we know anything about the Talosians it’s that they love piping hot tea. Even if Spock & Kirk can’t see quite how deeply they care for one another, the Talosians certainly can.

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ichayalovesyou · 2 years

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Not to get all personal and sappy but

It’s so important to me that Spock has/had a good paternal figure in his life through Captain Pike. Not only that but the fact that they’re both like, the Most Character Ever.

Specifically the fact that Spock found one later in life, possibly after convincing himself good father figures might not even exist, at least not for him.

That the road never stopped being rocky with Sarek, his biological dad, because that is very Real.

The fact he gets to find a way to fill that need elsewhere is 🤌🏻💕 perfection! Because that happened to ME, I did that, I found some amazing paternal figures to help me recover from an extremely shit one.

Literally, one of them even used to be my boss at one point, so like, it’s even relatable on the level that Chris is technically Spock’s boss. Regardless, easily, they’re both some of the best people to ever happen to me. Referring to real humans and the Pike/Spock duo.

It’s also so clear that Pike needs Spock too in a lot of ways. Spock is very grounding for him I think, with all that good old fashioned Vulcan logic. Spock’s descretion, his “younger man” POV, his equally matched devotion to Pike’s wellbeing, Chris really obviously needs that.

Especially when you put the burden of Chris knowing his future into perspective and it’s like “if I can’t have good things for myself, at least I can want good things for him” which is relatable to me on both ends as being an older brother and as being a son.

Spock and Pike affect each other so goddamn profoundly, in their lives, in their deaths, in their rebirths. Never gonna get over how beautifully their stories fold out into each other.

It just gets me right in the heart it is SO important to me that it’s happened, and we get to watch it happening in real time. That we’re getting to see it play out through Strange New Worlds.

I know that Pike has a “sad” or at least bittersweet end to his story, but what’s a good tragedy without hope?

I’m never not gonna be grateful for that.

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