Whether at his captain's side or rocking a goatee in a parallel universe, Mr. Spock is at the very heart of Star Trek. When season 2 of The Original Series began, fans looked forward to discovering more about this unique Vulcan/human hybrid. As the USS Enterprise and her crew continued on their five-year mission, Spock used his abilities to safely neutralize his foes and find solutions to problems that threatened the Enterprise. So, let's take a look back at three times his Vulcan abilities wowed viewers in TOS season 2!
1. Mirror Spock's mind meld with Dr. McCoy ("Mirror, Mirror")
When an ion storm tosses Captain Kirk, Dr. McCoy, Scotty, and Lt. Uhura into a wild mirror universe where aggression and assassinations are the norm aboard the ISS Enterprise, they meet a mirror version of Spock, who wears a goatee and is not above zapping crewmembers into a fetal position with their own agonizers. He's as logical as the Spock in the landing party's universe, only there's this terrible edge of menace to him. He also says to Security Chief Sulu that, "My operatives would avenge my death, and some of them are Vulcans." Sulu's look of terror and fear tells us all we need to know about what happens in this universe when Vulcans come looking for you.
When Dr. McCoy stays behind for a moment to treat Mirror Spock after he's injured in hand-to-hand combat with Kirk and the others, Spock comes to quickly, puts McCoy's wrist in a Vulcan "death grip" of sorts, and asks why Kirk let him live. When McCoy clams up, Mirror Spock locks him into a mind meld and discovers the truth about the swap. It's a startling moment that tips the scales and hints at the range of Spock's telepathic abilities.
2. Attempted telepathic contact with another species ("By Any Other Name")
When Kirk, Spock, and a few redshirts beam down to an uncharted planet to answer a distress call, they're greeted by the Kelvans, aliens from the Andromeda Galaxy who seek to conquer other worlds. When the Kelvans imprison the landing party inside a cave and the female of the Kelvan group, Kelinda, guards the entrance, Spock attempts to reach out to her with his telepathy and coax her into the cave. However, Kelinda proves herself the stronger telepath as she tosses Spock like a girl playing with a beach ball.
Even though the contact is brief, Spock's telepathic ability allows him to see the Kelvans' true form, which is far from human, and use that against them once they return to the Enterprise. One of my favorite moments is Scotty getting blitzed with Tomar, and his accent just gets thicker with every shot!
3. Sensing the death of 400 Vulcans ("The Immunity Syndrome")
Spock's reputation as a telepath grows in this episode where, on the way to shore leave, he senses the death of over 400 Vulcans on a science vessel named the Intrepid. His expression, which was a combination of shock, terror, and that of a pole-axed bull, makes it obvious that he felt the entire ship die, despite the distance between him, Enterprise, and the Intrepid.
When McCoy asks Spock if he's sure about what he'd felt, the Vulcan appears borderline emotional as he snaps, "I've noticed that about your people, doctor. You find it easier to understand the death of one than the death of a million." It's obvious this experience with the galaxy-eating space amoeba creature shook Spock to his very core! Also, McCoy yelling, "Shut up, Spock, we're rescuing you," while Spock pilots an ailing shuttlecraft through the creature, as well as McCoy's "so-there" nod is one of the best moments of the season!
By the end of season 2, it's obvious that Mr. Spock's telepathic powers are still growing and changing. Which moments were your favorite from our list? Be sure to share your thoughts and comments with us on the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages. And the third installment in our Mr. Spock thrilled Trekkies with his Vulcan powers series is coming soon!