10 Most Uplifting Star Trek Moments
In these trying times, a reminder that Star Trek always and will always offer a future full of hope.
There is no need to discuss in any detail what is happening in the world today as there is not a person reading who isn't aware of it. However, sometimes it is hard to see the wood from the trees. If there is one thing that Star Trek has excelled at for fifty five years, it is showing that the future is full of hope and possibility. It has never been a show about hiding from the present but rather it has been a show tasked with a singular purpose - show that humanity has all the tools at its disposal to create the brightest future imaginable.
Across every series, there are moments of pure joy and hope. Each is delivered in its own way according the tone of the shown therein. The darker shows sometimes show the brightest beacons. There is always a common theme - the future that Gene Roddenberry envisaged is one of a Utopia, brighter than everything that came before. But in his series bible, he did say that humanity would go through Hell to get there. Only with the darkest moments could Humans appreciate the light.
This list is a set of examples of some of the brightest lights that Star Trek has to offer. Old and new, these are the moments that help us remember that no matter how dark the night, there is always the dawn
10. Kirk Is Not Dead - Amok Time
To begin this list with an oldie - this moment succeeded where, unfortunately, the JJ Abrams films did not. Leonard Nimoy's Spock epitomised the cold, logical depiction of Vulcans early on in Star Trek. All of the race that followed were based in part off of his portrayal.
From his initial appearance alongside Jeffrey Hunter in The Cage, where the character had not yet been truly defined, Nimoy began to establish who this race were. Zachary Quinto, while a worthy successor, was stymied with a script that had him break this coolness too soon. The entire point of Spock was that he didn't lose his control.
In the second season episode Amok Time (yes, that's the music that's running through your head right now), Spock is overcome with the need to....go home.....and as such his control over his emotions slips more and more as the episode goes on. The ship races back to Vulcan and the now-famous fight between Kirk and Spock takes place, horns blaring, shirts tearing. Spock naturally wins, but with a twist.
The pure moment of joy that erupts when Spock is overcome with his delight in seeing Kirk alive and well at the end is one of the most smile inducing moments that Star Trek has to offer. That's the key element - it was wonderful because of its spontaneity, not in spite of it. It would be a long time again before we saw Spock lose control again, making this piece of joy special in the history of Star Trek.