When most fans think about Star Trek’s original crew and the challenges they faced, they may think of Kirk, Spock, or even McCoy as the bravest of them all, but in truth, few aboard Enterprise were as courageous as Nyota Uhura. Bright, intelligent, and talented, Uhura was much more than the Enterprise’s communications officer, so let’s look at a few times where she stepped in and stood up for the needs of the Enterprise and her crew.
1. Fighting the thralls and refusing to obey the Providers on Triskelion
In “The Gamesters of Triskelion” (S02E16), Kirk, Uhura, and Chekov are transported away to a world called Triskelion, a place where beings from all over the galaxy are collected and forced to fight each other for the pleasure of the Providers, who gamble over the outcomes. Once captured, Uhura fights off Lars, a thrall “chosen” for her, and then refuses to harm another thrall who’s unarmed. She proves that she’s no damsel (although Chekov’s wide-eyed innocence and fear of Tamoon may put him in this role!)
2. Pushing her fear aside in the Mirror universe
When Kirk, Uhura, Scotty, and McCoy find themselves transported to a mirror universe in the aptly titled “Mirror, Mirror” (S02E04,) Kirk devises a plan to find out more about what they’re dealing with and tells Uhura to go to the bridge, where he’ll meet her in a few moments. Uhura tells Kirk she’s frightened, but Kirk bolsters her courage by telling her, “You’re the only one who can do it.” She puts her fear aside then and puts a courageous foot forward.
The bridge is a viper’s nest of mistrust, ruthlessness, and deadly competition as officers scheme and murder to step up in rank. Sulu is the worst of them, (that scar they gave him still creeps me out,) and Uhura plays a game of cat and mouse with him that could easily get her killed. She protects herself and helps Kirk and the others return to their own universe by disarming Marlena when she tries to stop them from leaving. I hope she got a commendation after that mission!
3. Taking care of “Mr. Adventure.”
In Star Trek III, The Search for Spock, Uhura assists Kirk and the others with hijacking the Enterprise out of space dock, and a young, bold ensign tells her they’re working at the “hind end of space,” and that she probably doesn’t mind because her career is “ winding down.” The look she gives this kid would have made me regret I’d spoken!
A few minutes later, Uhura forces Mr. Adventure, as she names him, into a closet so the rest of the bridge team can take the Enterprise out of Space dock. They couldn’t have done so without her assistance and bravery.
Can you think of other moments where Uhura truly stood out? Visit our social media pages and drop us a comment! We’d love to hear your thoughts.