In this episode we see Spock board the Enterprise for the very first time as a young ensign. There he is greeted by Number One (the first officer under Pike, not to be confused with Picard's first officer or his dog), who has an unusual test for new science officers. She instructs him to ask questions until she is annoyed. She gets more than she bargained for when the turbo lift gets stuck. Stuck in an elevator (and they actually call it an elevator) is a bit of a cliche, but it serves the purpose of these two characters having some extra time to get to know each other. The meat of the conversation goes back to Number One noticing that Spock was smiling when he beamed over. She tells him that if he wants to command, he's going to have to keep his freaky to himself, even if it's painful. He replies, "I have been doing that my whole life, and it is."
Next he throws the conversation back at her and deduces that she must have a freaky side as well. It turns out, her freak is show tunes. She begins belting out "Modern Major General" from The Pirates of Penzance. When she finishes, Spock very coyly begins the chorus and they finish the song together. It's cute, and stupid. But somehow it works. It's wildly out of character for the Spock we know, yet still makes sense because he is young. And he just told us that suppressing things is painful.
The message, I think, is that we all have a freaky side. Personally, I think The Culture Club is wildly underrated for their importance in 80s music and culture, and that "Bye Bye Bye" by INsync might just be the perfect song. But I guess that if I ever want to command a Star Ship, I will need to keep these opinions to myself.
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Published January 30, 2020
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