It's no secret that Leonard Nimoy is a huge fan both of Zachary Quinto himself and also of his portrayal of Spock. So who are we to argue? Well, we're fans and we have every right to comment. Where Spock of the original series would rather die than show emotion, this new version will fly into a rage if you dare say anything nasty about his mommy. In the 60's incarnation, the time of the reboots, we see several instances where Spock's emotions are drawn to the surface and on each occasion this emotion threatened his life in some way. This was a man who once killed his own Captain and best friend, or thought he had, and showed nothing more than calm acceptance and a mild despondency. Upon finding Jim alive he allowed himself a brief flash of emotion only to instantly return to Vulcan logical analysis. Other episodes include the Captain's supposed demise and on each occasion Spock is logical, calculating and emotionless. And this is when it's his long-time friend. The delivery of Nimoy's lines is invariably perfect in tone and inflection with the odd eyebrow flick saying more than most actors could manage with a monologue. Not to say that Spock couldn't be funny or sarcastic, but he was very rarely emotional. Then we get to the floppy haired, whiny, greetin' faced Spock of Zachary Quinto. On some occasions and in some scenes he does well but as usual it is not the fault of the actor, it's the writers and director who are to blame for this emotional wreck. In "The Immunity Syndrome" a ship carrying hundreds of Vulcans was destroyed, Spock felt this and it affected him but he got over it. New Spock seems to be so affected by the loss of his planet and his mummy that he has become markedly more human than our original hero. What happened to Vulcan's controlling their emotions? Spock's struggle with his human half seems to have been lost. "Into Darkness" contains scenes of Spock being angry, insubordinate with an Admiral, having arguments with his girlfriend in public as well as explaining his emotions to Uhura in front of others. He reacts correctly to his own impending death but when Jim Kirk, a man he has known for about half an hour and doesn't even like or respect, dies, he starts crying his eyes out, screams Khan's name and runs off to get revenge. Can any fan picture Leonard Nimoy's Spock of the original series doing any of that? He's not Spock anymore, at least not as we know it.
I.T. Consultant, technophile and Doctor Who fan. I like to talk about tech, take films apart and make excuses for Doctor Who's continuity errors. No other show has the power to make me feel like a big kid.
