• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Ethan Peck's Spock

G

Gracewood

Lieutenant Junior Grade
Red Shirt
I find it a little hard to believe that Ethan's Spock grows up to be Nimoy's Spock.
I found Peck's Spock fascinating to watch. what I don't fully accept is a guy like Peck's Spock with his attitude in discovery grows up to be the Stone cold Nimoy's pure Vulcan logic spock who only lets his emotions slip once in a while. Ethan's Spock feels more like the exact copycat of Quinto's Spock. Both Spock feel more like characters who balance logic and emotion, being a Vulcan and acknowledging their humanity.

Ethan's Spock growing up to be Nimoy's Spock does not match up well when you watch this scene from TNG.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Data talks about Spock abandoning his human side to choose only the vulcan ways. Spock replies he almost feels envious of Data being immune to any human traits though hold no regrets of abandoning his humanity to completely embrace being a full vulcan. Discovery just doesn't set the narrative for Nimoy's Spock. It is easier to buy Peck's Spock as an another alternate reality Spock like Quinto's Spock than a young TOS Spock who grew up to be Nimoy's Spock
 
Last edited:
After the events of Discovery Spock experiences a LOT of things. Those experiences continued to change him. So just because he's one way at the end of season 2 (where he's still super young. He's in his mid to late 20s I believe. Basing this off Michael being in her early or mid 30s) doesn't mean he can't and won't change. Spock we see in TOS is even different from how he is in the films which also is different from how he is in TNG and he's changed again in Star Trek 2009.

I think this is one of the things that makes Spock perhaps THE best character in Trek. He's always growing and changing and we get to see that change over multiple series and films from his childhood until his death and even with an alternate version.
 
Gracewood said:
I find it a little hard to believe that Ethan's Spock grows up to be Nimoy's Spock.
I found Peck's Spock fascinating to watch. what I don't fully accept is a guy like Peck's Spock with his attitude in discovery grows up to be the Stone cold Nimoy's pure Vulcan logic spock who only lets his emotions slip once in a while. Ethan's Spock feels more like the exact copycat of Quinto's Spock. Both Spock feel more like characters who balance logic and emotion, being a Vulcan and acknowledging their humanity.

Ethan's Spock growing up to be Nimoy's Spock does not match up well when you watch this scene from TNG.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Data talks about Spock abandoning his human side to choose only the vulcan ways. Spock replies he almost feels envious of Data being immune to any human traits though hold no regrets of abandoned his humanity to completely embrace being a full vulcan. Discovery just doesn't set the narrative for Nimoy's Spock. It is easier to buy Peck's Spock as an another alternate reality Spock like Quinto's Spock than a young TOS Spock who grew up to be Nimoy's Spock
Click to expand...
I mean, can you believe the brash skirt-chaser from Tapestry grows up to be the Picard we meet at Encounter at Farpoint some 40 odd years later?

Between the 27 year old Spock we last see on Discovery and the 138 year old Spock in your clip lie 111 years of new experiences and encounters to shape him. Frankly, I'd be much more concerned if he were depicted as a static character who never changed.
 
I don't think Spock was all that stoic in TOS. He maintained a serious face but he was snarky.

I've always admired Nimoy's performance because he was able to maintain a veneer of stoicism while also displaying a lot of passion and humor. A lot of actors playing Vulcans play their characters very flat. I've always thought that Tim Russ was a bit too flat while Jolene Blalock found a Nimoy-esque balance.
 
Different actors are always going to approach a role differently. It's one of those things where you suspend disbelief.

Saavik between STII and III and Zefram Cochrane between TOS and FC are far bigger and harder to explain changes than Spock.
 
Honestly, reflecting on season two, I'd be okay if they replaced Peck. He seemed decent as hipster Spock, but when they put him in the uniform and clean-cut, it just totally blew the illusion.

I think Harry Treadaway (Narek from Picard) would make a good Spock.
 
BillJ said:
Honestly, reflecting on season two, I'd be okay if they replaced Peck. He seemed decent as hipster Spock, but when they put him in the uniform and clean-cut, it just totally blew the illusion.

I think Harry Treadaway (Narek from Picard) would make a good Spock.
Click to expand...


he was only in uniform for like 5 minutes and shaved. He did look better with the beard.
 
Nimoy's Spock was very charming. People assume because he didn't smile a lot that he had no sense of humor but he was far from the stoic character he's often known as. Peck is playing a "The Cage" era Spock and is in keeping with the less Vulcan like version of that time. As said above Spock changed constantly throughout Star Trek as did many of the characters. If we get a Pike series and Spock is laughing and singing show tunes by the series finale then you'd have a point but he's where he should be as of the Season 2 finale of Discovery. Quinto is playing a different character with different experiences and can go in whatever direction the writers want so I don't think it's even worth comparing his development to Nimoy's Spock.
 
Last edited:
Terok Nor said:
Nimoy's Spock was very charming. People assume because he didn't smile a lot that he had no sense of humor but he was far from the stoic character he's often known as. Peck is playing a "The Cage" era Spock and is in keeping with the less Vulcan like version of that time. As said above Spock changed constantly throughout Star Trek as did many of the characters. If we get a Pike series and Spock is laughing and singing show tunes by the series finale then you'd have a point but he's where he should be as of the Season 2 finale of Discovery. Quinto is playing a different character with different experiences and can go in whatever direction the writers want so I don't think it's even worth comparing his development to Nimoy's Spock.
Click to expand...

He sang and laughed in the short trek with number 1. I think it will be a good idea to have a Pike series with Peck's Spock, just to see how the character keeps evolving to the Nimoy's Spock we knew and loved.
 
I think Ethan Peck is doing a great job...playing a Vulcan who is coincidentally named Spock but has zero attributes of Nimoy's Spock in TOS. He absolutely comes across perfectly as Sarek's son (Sarek, as played by James Frain, not by Mark Lenard). He's an interesting character and he's a good actor. But I'm not buying at all that he's the same guy as TOS Spock.

Now with that said, since I have always viewed DSC as its own thing, there's really no reason why Ethan Peck's Spock should 'evolve' into the Spock we've known for 50+ years. To adopt an attitude of "well, it's ok that these characters act completely different, because it's ten years before TOS and they'll all eventually change into those guys from that '60's show" is, in my opinion, disrespecting the work that the producers of DSC are putting into their show. I'm done trying to compare DSC to TOS, because it's a pointless endeavor. My only caveat is that I wish CBS initially had the guts to call their new show a reboot, which they chose not to do. So if they decide that they want to take Ethan Peck's Spock in a new direction, I say, bravo. I just hope they don't pander to a bunch of whiny internet fanboys and decide to change their tactics.
 
Last edited:
I liked Peck's portrayal a lot. He brought a lot of edge, humor, and "humanity" to the role...while basically taking on one of the most difficult re-castings possible in the television and film industry.

I found Peck's portrayal to be closer to my expectations for the character than Quinto's portrayal.

And I like Quinto's portrayal.
 
Vger23 said:
I liked Peck's portrayal a lot. He brought a lot of edge, humor, and "humanity" to the role...while basically taking on one of the most difficult re-castings possible in the television and film industry.

I found Peck's portrayal to be closer to my expectations for the character than Quinto's portrayal.

And I like Quinto's portrayal.
Click to expand...

I think Quinto's spock brought more humor because quinto's spock was unintentionally funny, Good example is when Bones asked him if he gave his girlfriend a tracking device and he looked somewhat embarrassed and horrified or when Quinto's spock tried to explain the metaphor of horse whipping to Bones in the first film or when he told pike the complexity of human pranks escapes him after Pike promoted Jim to first officer in the movie.

haha, Quinto's Spock made me laugh a lot. Peck's spock not so much, I don't think i laughed at anything peck's spock said aside from when he implied Michael could be dramatic person.
 
Last edited:
Vger23 said:
I liked Peck's portrayal a lot. He brought a lot of edge, humor, and "humanity" to the role...while basically taking on one of the most difficult re-castings possible in the television and film industry.

I found Peck's portrayal to be closer to my expectations for the character than Quinto's portrayal.

And I like Quinto's portrayal.
Click to expand...
I thought Peck did a great job way better than I expected.
As for Quinto he was good too but his Spock was poorly written
 
Gracewood said:
Its unfair to say he was poorly written. Quinto was in movies with less time to flesh out his character. Peck was on tv with more time to do so.
Click to expand...
I just felt like they used the Spock loses control thing a bit too much but I could be wrong as itsbeen a while since Ive seen them
 
Not a big fan of Peck or Quinto. But I do prefer Quinto. He seemed to bring a similar “weirdness” to Spock that Nimoy did.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Laura Cynthia Chambers
Trek stereotypes
2
Replies
29
Views
1K
Kamen Rider Blade
Kamen Rider Blade
B
Where did the “logic” in the logical Mister Spock come from?
2 3
Replies
55
Views
2K
Christopher
Christopher
carcinoGeneticist
Data and Spock
Replies
15
Views
850
WarpTenLizard
WarpTenLizard
ananta
  • Poll
Saavik I vs. Saavik II?
2 3 4
Replies
60
Views
2K
CoveTom
C
M
Musical Memories: Spock and Uhura Friendship fic
Replies
0
Views
707
Marie Nomad
M
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top