Let's talk "Spock's Brain"

[Nerys Myk]

"The Ultimate Computer"

 

[Phaser Two]

"Operation — Operate!"

 

[The Salt Umpire]

Well we can't blame Spock because he was (literally) out of his Vulcan mind.

 

[CoveTom]

Apparently some of it was Roddenberry telling Freiberger that Shater was the lead and not Nimoy.

Well, I mean, he was. Nimoy and Kelley played important roles. But Shatner was still the lead.

 

[Ssosmcin]

Well, I mean, he was. Nimoy and Kelley played important roles. But Shatner was still the lead.

Oh I never said Roddenberry was wrong.

 

[publiusr]

Ironically, A.I. is getting more brain-like, as per some phys.org computer stories.

I could see something like Helva, the Ship Who Sang, coming from there.

Now if they had left Spock alone and got Bill Gates…that’s an ick on many levels.

 

[Laura Cynthia Chambers]

What if the characters had had to miniaturize and enter Spock's brain to reattach it?

 

[Rowdy Roddy McDowall]

What if the characters had had to miniaturize and enter Spock's brain to reattach it?

The antibodies will have a field day with Chekov.

 

[J.T.B.]

^People would think, "Wasn't this already done, but with Raquel Welch?"

 

[Rowdy Roddy McDowall]

^People would think, "Wasn't this already done, but with Raquel Welch?"

But this time it's the wig which drives the antibodies berserk.

 

[Oddish]

I still say the civilization was pretty well doomed. Doubling your population, and having the new arrivals possess zero survival skills... it might work in a relatively prosperous commune, but not with pure hunter-gatherers.

Realisticslly, the people who know how to survive (the men) either cut the unskilled group loose and care for themselves, or try to carry the extra weight and collapse under it.

 

[Candleicious Ghost]

I loved your post Laura..

I honestly think there's no logical way to make the whole missing brain thing work.

The thing with this episode is that it's to me just one of those off the wall fun episodes that happen in every show, and you just roll with it and have fun with it..

 

[Talos IV]

The worst episode has always been "And the Children."
...
"Spock's Brain" is a fun but unserious outing, with some chills, some laughs, some cheesecake, some cool shots (rear-screen on the bridge, prop close-ups), and a fantastic music score..."

Agree completely. Now I appreciate it as one of the few third-season episodes that has much of the "fun" energy of the first two seasons (unlike many third-season outings that are talky, plodding, badly directed and downright bleak in tone).

 

[FredH]

It's as much a product of it's time as the black & white Flash Gordon serials.I love the thing.

The 1936-40 Flash Gordon serials, a few slight creaks aside, are great. Just saying.

 

[publiusr]

What if the characters had had to miniaturize and enter Spock's brain to reattach it?

Donald Pleasance sabotages everything while Kirk hits on Raquel, but McCoy gets to use a thruster suit inside V'ger/Spock.

 

[Qonundrum]

Okay, let's take a crack at this.

Well, it's not one of me faves, but maybe after taking some amphetamines, quaaludes, other 70s drugs, and a gallon or two of coffee?

Making it Spock's brain that gets removed makes it more understandable that he can survive the operation, having Vulcan anatomy which could have any number of characteristics that Humans don't have, so we can understand it's likely why he manages to live until he can be sustained by tech. Also, the technique is informed by alien tech.

Yeah, the fantastical elements of Spock's otherworldly origin is a huge leverage point, as much it is a really big thing to hinge a story on, especially for suspension of disbelief and buying into this notion (TOS has managed to do that before, but if it weren't for Spock - e.g. "Kirk's Brain", it wouldn't have worked at all...).

Indeed, my favorite moment of the story hasn't anything to directly do with him (when the bridge crew discuss the possible why and where of it all... behind that shiny new rear-screen projection that was (a) really cool, (b) complete with neat and lively camera angles for which season 3 managed to eke in from time to time despite the budget issues so much thanks to the directors who went above and beyond! (but I digress), and (c) sadly didn't seem to get used ever again...)

Further, removing Spock from the equation temporarily means the crew believes they have to figure out what happened without his insight to guide them (until they find the machine his brain's connected to). There's a time limit to retrieve him, so the clock's ticking and they're significantly hampered by his mental absence.

When in doubt, chuck in the countdown cuckoo clock tv trope where, in exactly ___ minutes or hours or nanoseconds*, it all goes kaput. Unless subverted by some gimmick to temporarily reset it, which - now come to think of it - rarely happens so there's some free plotting poo right there...

* thank you, Mister Data​

Removing anyone else's brain: I suppose the person would be declared dead and a funeral would be held, or perhaps delayed because the crew feels the dead man should be buried with his brain, at the very least. Then when they find there's a chance to restore the dead person, they'd jump at the chance. If it was Kirk, that would leave Spock in command. It couldn't be McCoy's because you'd need another doctor to perform the operation, so a guest star.

But that'd be boring. Just like if they made "Space 1999" but focusing the show on everyone on Earth instead of the moonbase**.

** Not that I'm about to editorialize, but:​

One thing this episode does is it requires Spock and McCoy to work together to save Spock's life. They complement each other.

No episode of Trek has a bad scene between those two. Not even during the most flagrant campy comedy outings (e.g. "I, Mudd")

The episode's "Teacher" is also interesting concept, preceding or being potential influences for concepts like how "The Matrix" had people being programmed in the simulator to do anything (and even then it's not an immunity/get-out-of-plot-free power-up.) IMHO, "Spock's Brain" is misguided but not entirely "terrible" save for a handful of bad moments or attempted levity that don't land (e.g. the vocal chords, but once they find Spock's gooey innards the episode feels more like it's trying to wrap things up - no pun intended. Possibly to distract from the flawed idea that a human brain would be better than computerized automation for glorified HVAC control (both warm gooey brain and cold computer chips have logical places).)

When absolutely nothing else, I always go to Allison's channel as she has a field day with a lot of the perceived and/or genuinely bad episodes:

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[PatB1974]

I thought it was a fun episode, and just try not to put too much thought into HOW it all worked.

 

[Ssosmcin]

But that'd be boring. Just like if they made "Space 1999" but focusing the show on everyone on Earth instead of the moonbase**.

** Not that I'm about to editorialize, but:​

You're not wrong.

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