Your Favorite McCoy 'Insult' Said To Spock

First thing I thought of.

 

"You bumbling bucket of bolts!"

No, wait. Wrong 1960s space doctor!

Yep, that does it for me!

 

McCoy's racist (speciesist?) comments towards Spock should have been replicated in the other series. Tuvok I believe could bear The Doctor (he bore Neelix) but T'pol would snap I'm sure.

 

From The Tholian Web

McCoy: ... I just can't believe that you would want Jim's command. But you must know that if you get us out of this situation, they'll pin a medal on your chest and give you command of the Enterprise.
Spock: Doctor, I AM in command of the Enterprise.
McCoy: I would like to remedy that situation.

 

I love this exchange. More of an attempt at condescension than an insult. It dint work out too well. The smirk from Kirk and look on McCoy's face is priceless.

MCCOY: A teddy bear.
SPOCK: Not precisely, Doctor. On Vulcan, the teddy bears are alive, and they have six-inch fangs.

 

In the Star Trek III Storeybook the quote was cleaned up to read "That green-blooded son of a jackrabbit."

 

They tried that with Pulaski and Data, only difference was that by then the idea of one guy getting constant racist barbs thrown at him wasn't quite so acceptable.

 

And that's why the Pulaski/Data thing was different: Pulaski was actually, deliberately being mean to Data - she was taking advantage of an innocent being who couldn't fight back. There was none of the friendly give-and-take like with Spock and McCoy.

 

And on a lighter note, I give you this exchange from "Requiem for Methuselah":

Poor Spock--he just can't win!

 

Only at 3 dimensional chess.

 

I've heard this before and I think it's limited by 21st century foolishness. We are rapidly losing the ability to communicate without accidentally insulting or offending someone somewhere, even if not our intended audience. I think based on what the characters themselves have said that anyone hearing such things as "green blooded hobgoblin" from McCoy would know it's not true prejudice or specism because those things are in the past. These people just don't do that anymore. How many times did anyone on Star Trek act toward someone else in a prejudicial manner besides Stiles reaction after learning Vulcans and Romulans look exactly the same?

Abraham Lincoln referred to Uhura as something I'm not allowed to post and she didn't get upset or angry or start a protest or anything, she accepted it because words can't hurt her. I hope that becomes the reality someday, but I'm not expecting to live to see it.


I think these from The Galileo Seven are good. Not sure if I'd say favorite, though, but very good ones.

 

Great post and thoughts. I dream that we could live in that ideal world and have never understood the bigotry and racism that exists in the world over what seem like some pittances. I won't live to see it and doubt the human race ever fully gets there but even the small steps are better than none or moving backwards.

 

And because Lincoln obviously didn't say that word with any kind of ill intent, and she knew it.

 

Agreed, and Marsden is absolutely right. People get "offended" FAR too much these days. If this nonsense keeps up, pretty soon we won't be able to say hello to each other without some over-sensitive pinhead reacting negatively.

 

I can't imagine a guy going up to an African co-worker and saying stuff like "You dark-skinned son of a bitch!" as something friendly.

 

If they were good friends it would be easy to imagine.

 

What everyone seems to forget is that McCoy is the yin to Spock's yang. Spock is frequently dissing human behavior and emotions. As such Spock's hardly an innocent victim. That's why it works with Spock/Bones and it doesn't work with Pulaski/Data, because in the latter case it's all one-sided.

 

It doesn't help that pretty much everyone is ragging on Humans all the time as being violent savages and all that, but other Aliens are excused for their own attitudes and failings. As such, the series sides more with Spock than McCoy.

 

And despite the various aliens seen having plenty of flaws of their own, they are often ignored so more swipes can be taken at Humanity's expense.

Spock goes on about illogical humans, but you don't see him mentioning Klingon brutality or Romulan viciousness, etc. He acts like they're all an okay bunch EXCEPT for Humans. To say nothing of how Vulcans used to be worse than Humans ever were.