Spock's the best 1st Officer in Starfleet?

[T'Girl]

And someone needs to mention (so I will) that Spock is not the first XO we've seen to have another job. Pike's XO manned the helm.

Number One was at the helm and definitely first officer, too.

The argument could be made that Tyler was the ship's helmsman, based upon what he was doing and regardless of where his console was located, and Number One's console was that of "operations."

What Number One had in front of her was basically a version of Data's console.

 

[Timo]

One could mention Spock's claim that he was the second officer of the ship in "The Enemy Within", or Picard's introduction in "The Battle" of Data as his second in command despite Riker being his First Officer.

Also, I trust people are refraining from mentioning Peter David's famous splitting of the 1st Officer and XO jobs between two characters in his New Frontier graphic-free graphic novels for the sake of decency rather than incompleteness...

Whatever else be said, "Executive Officer" isn't a popular title in Starfleet. Either the superiors and inferiors of Executive Officers hate the term and use any available alternative whenever they can, or then this type of officer isn't part of the usual complement of a starship.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[A beaker full of death]

Read posts #22 and #23.

Already been mentioned, beaker. Didn't you read the other posts?

Sorry. I skim. I'm a skimmer.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Read posts #22 and #23.

Already been mentioned, beaker. Didn't you read the other posts?

Sorry. I skim. I'm a skimmer.

Skimmers are from Star Wars, get out!!!!!

 

[Timo]

Skimmers, flitters, hoppers, what's the difference?

I mean, seriously, what is it? Trek literature uses 'em all, and one could all things like crawlers and rollers. Quite possibly, there's a range of vehicles in use in the Trek universe with distinct means of motion, and these terms are massively more descriptive than the rather incomprehensible "car" or "tank" or "copter" or "plane"... A skimmer would be one of those things seen flying on the Cambridge lawn in "AGT", obviously.

Or then they are just different names for the same thing. Like First Officer and Executive Officer. Although in both cases, that would be quite unsatisfactory.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Nerys Myk]

Relax, cupcake. It was a joke.

 

[LobsterAfternoon]

BTW, slightly off-topic, but I love Timo's idea from earlier in the thread that Spock was some squeaky-clean, ideal officer before he met Kirk. I quite like the idea that a few years of service with Kirk rubbed off on him and got him started on a bit of rule-breaking.

 

[Marcus Porcius Cato]

While "Amok Time" may have been premature, the Enterprise was the only ship of the original 12 Constitution-class ships to return from it's 5 year mission.

Best surviving First Officer, maybe?

Isn't FASA been declared Noncanon by now?

 

[A beaker full of death]

BTW, slightly off-topic, but I love Timo's idea from earlier in the thread that Spock was some squeaky-clean, ideal officer before he met Kirk. I quite like the idea that a few years of service with Kirk rubbed off on him and got him started on a bit of rule-breaking.

I've always liked to think that Spock's "damn you, Sir" in the underrated STV was his absorption of the logic of reactions like Kirk's. After all, how better to get the attention of a Klingon?

 

[Keith1701]

While "Amok Time" may have been premature, the Enterprise was the only ship of the original 12 Constitution-class ships to return from it's 5 year mission.

Best surviving First Officer, maybe?

I agree

 

[Warped9]

I never bought that idea of Kirk's ship being the only one to return. It just doesn't sound credible.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Me neither.

 

[Ronald Held]

I thought it was the only ship to return after3r a 5 year mission with most of its crew surviving?

 

[Pavonis]

Geez, where do people get all these ideas? Where was it indicated, suggested, or even alluded to that Enterprise was the only starship to return from a five-year mission? Who said any other starships were even on five-year missions? It wasn't even discussed in the show!

 

[BillJ]

Geez, where do people get all these ideas? Where was it indicated, suggested, or even alluded to that Enterprise was the only starship to return from a five-year mission?

I'm guessing most people probably get the idea from TMP.

Who said any other starships were even on five-year missions? It wasn't even discussed in the show!

This.

 

[Marsden]

I never bought that idea of Kirk's ship being the only one to return. It just doesn't sound credible.

Maybe that's why it's always the "only" ship in the area, the other's are all ceased to be. I never thought that was credible, either.

As to the OP, Uhura reported that the Starfleet leadership forgave Spock for his transgression and he wasn't to be executed. So, it was probably not widely reported, as the only officer to break the only regulation with the death penalty didn't get any penalty, it's hard to enforce laws after that.

 

[Pavonis]

Please, space is so vast that the Federation could've had hundreds of starships like Kirk's Enterprise and it would still always be the "only one in the area", both because it is the protagonist's ship, and because the chance that any two of these starships would be equidistant from a crisis spot would be nearly zero.

 

[diankra]

T'Pau pulled Spock's ass out of the fire at the end of "Amok Time", but at the end of "The Menagerie", too?

Perhaps the Talosians requested leniency and Starfleet was inclined to grant it since you don't want a race of people who can project illusions pissed off at you?

Thinking about it, the Talos IV death penalty is a bit stupid anyway. It's like putting a big flag on this out of the way planet shouting "Something Important Here."

You could imagine a conversation aboard a Klingon ship.
Klingon 1: Did you know the soft Earthers don't even have a death penalty?
Klingon 2: You're wrong, again. They do. For visiting Talos IV.
Klingon 1: Wonder why? Must be something important. Maybe even some awesome alien technology we could weaponise?
Klingon 2: Oh, interesting. But we can't go there, or the Earthers will execute us!
[Both laugh]
Klingon 1: Setting course now. Engaging cloak.

 

[Pavonis]

And the Talosians would make the Klingons see an empty planet, or worse, one full of tribbles.

 

[Marsden]

Please, space is so vast that the Federation could've had hundreds of starships like Kirk's Enterprise and it would still always be the "only one in the area", both because it is the protagonist's ship, and because the chance that any two of these starships would be equidistant from a crisis spot would be nearly zero.

A great point, and very likely anywhere on the middle to outer reaches of the Federation, but in the middle around Earth and the other Member worlds, I don't buy it. Not saying it isn't possible, just not credible, IMO.

And the Talosians would make the Klingons see an empty planet, or worse, one full of tribbles.

The Klingons would probably wonder why any ship sent there never returns.