Ruminations on "The Naked Time"

[Middle Earther]

I'm working my way through TOS again. Just started and am watching them in the DVD order, which is the order they were aired. I had forgotten how impressive The Naked Time was, especially as a way of getting to know the characters close to the beginning of the series. The brilliance of the disease was how it revealed the private fears and fantasies of each main character.

Kirk's attachment to the ship and that wonderful line towards the end "No beaches to walk on."

Spock's struggle with emotions: "I never told my mother I loved her."

The scene with Christine and Spock made me appreciate both actors even more. (I miss Majel Barrett even more now ) The turmoil that Spock was going through - what a novel idea that must have been for first time viewers. I actually can see where nuSpock comes from when you watch this.

The Sulu sword segment almost goes without saying, but Uhura! Sulu refers to her as "fair lady" and Uhura goes "Sorry, neither!"

Any other thoughts on this brilliant episode?

 

[Christopher]

^Actually Sulu calls her a "fair maiden" and she says "Sorry, neither." Which is funnier, because one of the definitions of "maiden" is "virgin."

 

[Middle Earther]

^Actually Sulu calls her a "fair maiden" and she says "Sorry, neither." Which is funnier, because "maiden" implies "virgin."

You're right that is funnier!

 

[Cakes488]

That really is a fantastic line...see everybody she did say more than hailing frequencies open LOL LOL. I'm not sure if I mentioned this today...but I really like that show Star Trek.

 

[KeepOnTrekking]

I liked how the disease never seemed to affect Scotty who always seemed obsessed with saving his ship. Maybe no one ever touched him?? Or the ship was his obsession?

McCoy stayed driven trying to find an antidote for the disease. Maybe he was still obsessed with trying to find a cure for his dying father against incredible odds??

 

[Christopher]

More likely neither of them caught the infection. Scotty was too busy working, and McCoy presumably observed precautions once it was determined what was happening. Besides, no disease affects everyone at the same rate, or at all.

 

[Middle Earther]

I do like the idea that Scotty is so obsessed with the Enterprise - that he has the disease and acts no differently! Kind of like how the Klingon in TWT could insult the captain, but got punched in the face for insulting the ship!

 

[Brutal Strudel]

I absolutely adore this episode! "Jim, when I feel friendship for you, I'm ashamed."

EDIT: Notice that, when he leaves the bridge in the movie, Quinto's Spock perfectly duplicates Nimoy's broken-hearted lurching walk.

 

[Nebusj]

Any other thoughts on this brilliant episode?

Something amazingly easy to miss if you haven't been primed to look for it: this episode plays out pretty nearly in real time. That is, when they say something is twelve minutes on-screen, it does take about twelve minutes for the audience to see it happen. Usually there's some eliding of time between editing cuts, and that doesn't happen here. It really is naked time.

(This also makes McCoy's work finding an antidote all the more amazing, since he got it worked out in barely enough time to get the lab started running.)

 

[Christopher]

If the episode really were in real time, though, you'd finish watching it three days before you started...

 

[Hofner]

A bit off-topic but here's something I noticed a while ago, maybe others have noticed too.. The TOS crew seemed to do a lot of time travelling. Not just that, but they seem to keep losing time as they time travel.

After the events of "The Naked Time" they're subjectively or biologically two or three days older than their chonological age. In COTEOF, Kirk and Spok aparently spent between a week and a month, McCoy less, in the past and Scotty said they were only gone for a moment. Once again they're biologically older than their chonological years.

In Star Trek IV, same thing, the crew appeared to be gone only a moment when they time travelled.

Man, when Kirk reached his 50th birthday he must've looked and actually was 80. But it may explain a bit. I've heard the events of TMP took place maybe about 3 years after the events of TOS yet the crew looks about ten years older. Now you know why.

Robert

 

[stoneagepunk]

I do like the Naked Time for the reasons that have been mentioned.
Especially Spock's emotional outburst and the scene with Christine.