Of all the episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds I’ve seen thus far, this week’s show, episode 1×05, “Spock Amok” is my favorite. It’s a great breather after the intensity and the sadness of “Memento Mori.” We’ve got shenanigans and we’re dangerously close to “hijinks” in this episode. We’re headed for some shore leave this week, so let’s grab a drink and chat about Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode 1×05, “Spock Amok.”
“Amok Time”
The opening of “Spock Amok” is a familiar one. Spock’s nightmare should look familiar to longtime Trek fans. While it’s not exactly the same, it does serve as a bit of foreshadowing to The Original Series episode, “Amok Time.” I love the inclusion of musical cues from that episode as well. While this is Spock’s nightmare, it’s also a great framework for the premise of the episode–Spock’s internal struggle between his Vulcan and human heritage.
Gia Sandhu as T’Pring is doing a great job in this season bringing a bigger story to a legacy character that we have previously only seen in one episode. Watching her and Ethan Peck perform not only as their own respective characters but as each other is great fun. Their deadpan delivery is perfect. Lines like, “Get out of town.” “We are not in a town,” and “I know how a door works,” crack me up every time I watch. I couldn’t deliver those lines without laughing, so props to them for nailing it. I hope we get more humor like this later in the season.
Enterprise Bingo
The B-plot of this episode adds another layer of humor beneath the Freaky Friday plot. With La’an and Una learning that they are “Where fun goes to die,” they have their own brand of fun while figuring out Enterprise Bingo. I enjoy this B-plot because while it’s a lot of fun to see La’an and Una be a bit playful, what it really does is show the audience more of their longstanding friendship. Their closeness has been referenced, but not really seen. This is a great way to show that. From calling “Good Cop/Bad Cop,” to “People are idiots! You’re fun!” it’s these simple things that show the audience their closeness and I am here for it.
Relationship Building
The other thing we get in “Spock Amok” is a closer look at not just T’Pring and Spock’s relationship, but also the relationships among the other members of the crew. We get to see the friendships of some of our main bridge crew. I especially enjoy the mutual sassiness of Ortegas and Chapel. I also love that Ortegas is Chapel’s “wing-woman.” But we also get a closer look at some of the cast we’ve seen just a few times, such as Ensigns Christina and Zier who buddy up to complete Enterprise Bingo. Perhaps the sweetest in this episode is the relationship between Spock and Chapel. Chapel and Spock have a closeness. What is perhaps most interesting in this relationship is that Chapel pushes Spock to embrace his human side. It’s a good thing, but also I think a little bittersweet for Chapel. She’s got a softness for Spock, but she cares too much about him to try to interfere with his relationship.
Speaking of interfering, Ortegas has the right of it–“Never get in the middle of a Vulcan relationship. They will hit you with a lirpa. Trust me. Have you ever fought with a lirpa? I have actual scars.” Now I want THAT backstory!
Final Thoughts
I love character-driven episodes of any show, and “Spock Amok” just nails it on every level for me. And I think the fact that the negotiations between the Federation and the R’ongovians are just the backdrop for the episode is well, “fascinating.” But even though these negotiations are just the “C-Plot” of the episode, they add an extra layer to the theme–“radical empathy.” The R’ongovians just want someone who can see it from their point of view. Pike nails it here, and it’s a skill that everyone on this planet needs to learn. We’d have fewer fights. Let’s all try to have some “radical empathy.”
What did you think of “Spock Amok”? Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
The next episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will air on June 9, 2022, on Paramount+.