The behavior of some of the 7 highlights the idea that Starfleet is only kinda-sorta-military. I can imagine they would have been given a reprimand and some sort of punishment by Kirk after he read the reports, but I'm not so sure about a full-on court martial. Starfleet personel questioning orders isn't all that uncommon ... especially because it makes for better television.
Mr. Boma and "The Galileo Seven"
- Thread starter Joanna McCoy-Kirk
- Start date
I'll add that when I say Starfleet was only "kinda sorta military", it isn't so much a statement about the fictional Starfleet, but about the way Hollywood tends to write about the military. A bunch of "yes sirs" and "yes ma'ams" doesn't necessarily make for interesting viewing, or offer insights into the human condition. You need that friction and argument to make the drama that make sci-fi interesting for most adults.
You get something very similar in Space Patrol: The Fantastic Adventures of the Spaceship Orion (which premiered in Germany a week or two after Star Trek premiered in the U.S.) - or maybe even more so. I've read that the idea of underlings questioning authority was actually more the policy of the German military in the 1960's due to their unfortunate history of "just following orders", but even then, it would make for a pretty chaotic organization in real life if it went to the extent that it did in either fictional organization.
P.S. - If you haven't watched Space Patrol, you might want to give it a try. It's pretty good, and fun to compare and contrast with Star Trek since they are contemporaries.
You get something very similar in Space Patrol: The Fantastic Adventures of the Spaceship Orion (which premiered in Germany a week or two after Star Trek premiered in the U.S.) - or maybe even more so. I've read that the idea of underlings questioning authority was actually more the policy of the German military in the 1960's due to their unfortunate history of "just following orders", but even then, it would make for a pretty chaotic organization in real life if it went to the extent that it did in either fictional organization.
P.S. - If you haven't watched Space Patrol, you might want to give it a try. It's pretty good, and fun to compare and contrast with Star Trek since they are contemporaries.
Yeah. STVI did a decent job of giving everybody in the cast something to do.
The same applied to Spock, who frequently insulted humans on every conceivable level, yet he was never reprimanded for it.
Indeed. That pile of wrongheaded garbage was not even worth a single screening.
Dude! That's so cool you're familiar with Orion! Our West German correspondent covered the show when it came out last year:
https://galacticjourney.org/tag/space-patrol-orion (obviously, spoilers)
Our gang's reaction to the episode ranged from alloyed enjoyment (specifically mitigated by the crew being jerks) to utter loathing. I noted that, not only were they insubordinate, but they were wrong. Spock was right every step of the way.
He's half Human, so he gets a pass. Just like I get to make Jewish jokes, and you don't (unless you're Jewish, in which case, mazel tov).
Can Spock be racist against himself anyway?
I think we all know that McCoy doesn't hate Spock and doesn't think humans are superior to every other race. You know Spock invited McCoy to his wedding and McCoy kept Spock's secrets and that's a big deal.
I see in Galileo 7 that Spock wasn't perfect but he was calm and had a plan to get them out of their situation. Could he have been more reassuring to his peeps yes but they're Starfleet Officers for goodness sake not a bunch of civilians. I suppose we just saw McCoy and Boma bitching amongst themselves which is understandable so officially McCoy didn't do anything wrong. Still if I were a commanding officer I wouldn't want McCoy in my team. Boma was the only one who openly spoke out against Spock until the end. So he's the only one who's going to get a court-martial or reprimand.
Spock suppressed the human side so much that he felt he could ignore that and stand in often harsh judgement of them.
Yes. Bigotry against oneself is actually a thing. A lot of homophobes, especially in the 80s, were actually deep closeted homosexuals. They "hated" (for lack of a better word) themselves so much they took it out on others.
https://www.psychologicalscience.or...self-esteem-show-more-signs-of-prejudice.html
When people are feeling badly about themselves, they’re more likely to show bias against people who are different. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, examines how that works.
https://www.rainbow-project.org/internalised-homophobia/
Internalised homophobia and oppression happens to gay, lesbian and bisexual people, and even heterosexuals, who have learned and been taught that heterosexuality is the norm and “correct way to be”. Hearing and seeing negative depictions of LGB people can lead us to internalise, or take in, these negative messages. Some LGB people suffer from mental distress as a result.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-weird-science-of-homophobes-who-turn-out-to-be-gay
The Daily Beast
2017 has been a banner year for the armchair psychological theory that anti-gay public figures are secretly gay themselves.
Never mind the long-running jokes and memes about Mike Pence covering up some secret homosexual identity. There have been actual examples this year of outspoken anti-LGBT figures exhibiting behavior that seems to contradict their political ideology.
It reminds me of European Jews who felt guilty of...something...during World War 2.
Something to the effect of "You hear endless, negative propaganda, and you start to believe it."
Who is not homosexual outside of the (admittedly very funny) pilot episode of Harvey Birdman.He does look like Race Bannon…
Sorry, but with my screenname, I just HAD to chime in on this one.
I hadn't watched this episode for several years, but this thread prompted me to watch it again last night.
Yes, Boma and McCoy criticized Spock's leadership, but I don't think they ever disobeyed a direct order. Is that justification for court martial? I guess it could be argued they were disrespecting the rank, but I don't think court martial is justified. If it is, then both of them should have been judged, not just Boma.
Yes, Boma and McCoy criticized Spock's leadership, but I don't think they ever disobeyed a direct order. Is that justification for court martial? I guess it could be argued they were disrespecting the rank, but I don't think court martial is justified. If it is, then both of them should have been judged, not just Boma.
I never thought of that, but it's realistic that he wasn't there, because he was obviously on the outs with Spock and Scotty. I don't think he'd be hanging out with them on the bridge, where his job does not put him.
And as for the laughing, Don Marshall dodged a bullet by skipping that cringe-fest.
Well, yeomen are on the bridge in the normal course of their duties far more often than random blueshirts...plus Boma is probably avoiding Spock as much as he can for a while.
C'mon.
"You're not going to admit that for once in your life you acted on a genuine human emotion?" (or words to that effect)
"No sir."
"Mr Spock: you're a stubborn man."
"Yes sir."
Last edited:
Yyyyyyyeah. That scene is not my favorite, but last time I rewatched it, it wasn't nearly as bad I remembered. Oddly, the main offenders are my two favorite actors in the series (closely followed by Nimoy), Shatner and Doohan. Shatner sells his bellylaughing really poorly until he reaches his chair (he's fine after that), and Doohan is doing all sorts of contortions by the turbolift that just look really silly.
Of course, the main problem is that the bridge crew is engaging in a bring-the-house-down laughfest when Latimer and Gaetano are stone cold dead.
Interestingly, I misremembered that Boma was on the bridge for the wha ha ha ending, sort of like how Jaeger sits at the Sulu-vacated helm (!) at one point during the Squire of Gothos simply because he has some dialogue to deliver. But Boma isn't there. I like to think he was cooling his heels in the brig.
If there were no Leonard Nimoy and no Land of the Giants, Don Marshall would have been great as a human First Officer and Science Officer. He was second in command on LotG, and supposedly racist America didn't bat an eye. The audience was fine with it.
Remember Whoopi Goldberg's oft-told story of how excited she was to see "a black lady on TV, and she ain't no maid!"? If Don Marshall had been the co-star— a guy who sometimes took command— on a show as good as Star Trek, the black audience would have been transfixed, and white America none the worse for it. The show's social advancement credentials would have been more real and less about lofty lines of dialogue and self-congratulation at Star Trek conventions. A lot more black kids would have wanted to study science, with a role model like that.
We got a great series with Nimoy, but it's something to think about.
Remember Whoopi Goldberg's oft-told story of how excited she was to see "a black lady on TV, and she ain't no maid!"? If Don Marshall had been the co-star— a guy who sometimes took command— on a show as good as Star Trek, the black audience would have been transfixed, and white America none the worse for it. The show's social advancement credentials would have been more real and less about lofty lines of dialogue and self-congratulation at Star Trek conventions. A lot more black kids would have wanted to study science, with a role model like that.
We got a great series with Nimoy, but it's something to think about.
...and don't forget the third victim, O'Neill, from the search party.
I forgot about poor Ensign O'Neal (note spelling from the transcript): "got a spear through the body before we even knew they were around.
" I don't think this was the same Lieutenant O'Neil who went coward in The Return of The Archons since that would be after The Galileo Seven based on production order, airdate and even stardate. (...unless McCoy raised another red shirt from the dead. 
)
