# Star Trek Enterprise and Vulcans **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 20, 2004, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370 "2004-06-20T23:30:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Improv\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b3f665/32.png) [@Improv\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improv_Geek)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2004, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/1 "2004-06-20T23:30:11Z")
Alright, so in the original series we had Spock. A totally kickass stoic character. Then on top of it he can mind meld and do the vulcan pass-out grip. But now, what’s her face, while being rather hot for a vulcan - isn’t exactly kick ass. What’s up with that? Anyone? ---
**Author:** ![BraheSilver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecccb3/32.png) [@BraheSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BraheSilver)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2004, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/2 "2004-06-20T23:41:16Z")
Well, Vulcans post-TOS seemed to look up to Spock as an epitome of Vulcan ideals regarding logic and stoicism. It’s kind of like wondering why every American isn’t like Abe Lincoln. ---
**Author:** ![Improv\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b3f665/32.png) [@Improv\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Improv_Geek)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2004, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/3 "2004-06-20T23:50:28Z")
Oh. See I didn’t know that. So yeah, how about them dodgers? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2004, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/4 "2004-06-20T23:56:38Z")
Well, Berman sucks. T’Pol has been doing dope. They try to have a Spock on each Trek series; Data, Dax, Tuvok, T’Pol. Trying to make her a love interest is rather difficult w/o emotions. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/5 "2004-06-21T00:39:36Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Trying to make her a love interest is rather difficult w/o emotions. Insert “Then you haven’t met my \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ then” joke. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/6 "2004-06-21T03:32:32Z")
I understand Spock’s abilities would mostly pop up as the deus ex machina of the week (the original neck pinch being more dignified than just slugging evil-Kirk; a “death grip” that could simulate but not actually cause death, telepathy by touch, telepathy that could go through walls, superior strength, a psychic link with other Vulcans, a deathlike “vacation”, slap me to wake me out of my healing trance, etc.) but the passivity of T’Pau, Tuvok and even Saavik confuses me, since they all seemed more passive and weaker than one would expect. Considering Spock is only _half_-Vulcan (sand thus we assume his abilities are limited compared to full Vulcans), there is no reason full-Vulcan characters should be getting pushed around so much. Oh, well… Vulcan abilities are like warp speed; as effective or ineffective as the demands of a particular episode require. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/7 "2004-06-21T05:28:56Z")
Well, in Enterprise, the Vulcans view mind-melding as totally inappropriate - there’s a rather heavy-handed episode where Vulcans who can mind-meld are compared to AIDS patients and ostracized and discriminated against and whatnot. Dunno if they’ve explained how that changed by Spock’s time. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/8 "2004-06-21T14:10:51Z")
1. T’Pol was the victim of an intensive series of memory suppression rituals to make her forget that she had killed someone while working for the Vulcan Security force. 2. She was infected with a neurological disease when she had a mind-meld forced on her; so far as we know, she still has this disease and some of the damage is irrepairable. 3. She was nearly killed by neurological whatsises by the Trellium-D on that vulcan ship. 4. She has been injecting herself with small quantities of Trellium-D so that she could unleash her emotions in a way that didn’t rely on her shoddy control over them. To sum up, T’Pol is absolutely, no holds barred, batshit crazy. She’s doing the Vulcan equivalent of smoking crack and drinking sterno. She has no control to speak of over her emotions and has been actively trying to release them. The crew of Enterprise have no idea how _very very bad_ this is, and they keep leaving her in control of the ship. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/9 "2004-06-21T17:46:24Z")
> [@Ethilrist](#): > > 1. T’Pol was the victim of an intensive series of memory suppression rituals to make her forget that she had killed someone while working for the Vulcan Security force. What episode is this explained in? I’ve not seen the first two seasons so I’m guessing it would be then since this sounds completely unfamiliar. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2004, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/10 "2004-06-21T18:00:52Z")
It was season 2, episode 7, “The Seventh.” T’Pol’s first job was tracking down Vulcans who had gone undercover and gone native, then bringing them back to Vulcan for deprogramming. One of them objected violently enough to this that she shot and killed him in self-defense. Having been brought up in total pacifist mode, her mind snapped like a twig and she was sent off to a monastery to have all those pesky memories suppressed. When they began to surface due to the stress of being on a shipful of emotional humans, her control began to crack. Madcap antics ensued. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/11 "2004-06-22T00:31:29Z")
> [@](#): > > They try to have a Spock on each Trek series; Data, Dax, Tuvok, T’Pol. Dax?!? You consider Dax DS9’s Spock?! Are you nuts? Dax was airheaded eye candy… 😃 I’d say Odo was more the pragmatic, emotionless, Spock-like alien on that show (although a tad more brooding & bitter). ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/12 "2004-06-22T00:51:16Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Dax was airheaded eye candy… 😃 > I’d say Odo In the first season she was intelligent and avoided relationships. As she an Odo compromised the intelligent/brooding/tough guy, in TNG Worf and Data were strength and intelligence. Worf would have been quite happy in Amok Time. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/13 "2004-06-22T00:53:24Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > Dunno if they’ve explained how that changed by Spock’s time. IIRC, the first time Spock did it, he said something similar. Which would make Spock partially responsible for breaking the taboo. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/14 "2004-06-22T00:54:32Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Worf would have been quite happy in Amok Time. > 🙂 What about “Worf’s Brain”?!?!! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/15 "2004-06-22T01:00:10Z")
> [@Snooooopy](#): > > What about “Worf’s Brain”?!?!! He didn’t notice that it had gone missing. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 1:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/16 "2004-06-22T01:09:42Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > the first time Spock did it, he said something similar. I think in T’Pol’s time it was considered a practice to be akin to sodomy in the 19th century Royal Navy. Spock said is “deeply private” or something like that. It is either an interesting look into the evolution of Vulcan culture, or a typical Berman screw up. ^:)^ ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/17 "2004-06-22T01:11:50Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > T’Pol has been doing dope. She was a bitchy emotional ice queen **long** before she became a “trell” junkie. In fact, in those episodes where they were trying to make her look “more emotional” because she was going through Trellium-D withdrawal, I couldn’t tell the difference. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2004, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-enterprise-and-vulcans/251370/18 "2004-06-22T01:17:00Z")
> [@tracer](#): > > She was a bitchy emotional ice queen. That describes her Vulcan contemporaries. Well, replace “ice queen” with “ass hole” for the males. ^:)^