The Friendship of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy
Kirk, Spock, and McCoy have got to be one of the greatest friendship trios to grace the small and large screen. Of course for a very long time I mistakenly thought Star Trek was a duo of Kirk/Spock. However not to discount Kirk/Spock's importance. Because the one thing that makes Kirk/Spock/McCoy so lovely is the fact that not only is there a strong unified trio, there are also 3 very distinct duos that come out of this trio.
Kirk/Spock- There is very little that I can say about this that hasn't been said before. Like Holmes/Watson there are tons of fics of this pairing. And although Nimoy compared Kirk/Spock to the Lone Ranger/Tonto, I actually think Holmes/Watson works very well. Their relationship is based on extreme loyalty. Spock is highly intelligent, a great fighter, and would probably be an amazing captain and yet he is completely and utterly loyal to Kirk. I think Kirk and Spock understand each other without even having to speak.
Really there are so many great moments obviously Spock's death scene in movie II and Kirk sacrificing everything to bring him back but there are also tons of scenes in the original TV series. Such as Edith Keeler seeing Spock and saying he belongs at Kirk's side or Kirk's smile when he realizes Kirk is not dead (and Spock doesn't smile often to put it mildly) and I've always been partial to this little moment
That being said while I love Spock/Kirk unlike Holmes/Watson I disagree it is the center relationship of Star Trek, it is only one piece of the pie. I discount any fandom notion that discounts McCoy. So moving on
Kirk/McCoy
Kirk and McCoy is probably the least popular duo of the trio, at least if we are talking TOS. The pairing seems to have found a new life with the reboot movies. However I actually think TOS Kirk and McCoy have a very beautiful relationship that often gets overlooked by fandom. If Spock is like Kirk's other half, then McCoy is Kirk's conscious. McCoy as a doctor doesn't just heal the physical wounds on the ship but the emotional ones as well. In that way McCoy is very much Kirk's confessor. Kirk can tell McCoy anything. However McCoy has another important role for Kirk. Many people are confused why McCoy as the Chief Surgeon is often seen on the bridge. In fact he isn't just seen on the bridge but often right behind Kirk. McCoy doesn't just listen to Kirk but has free range to tell Kirk what he feels (and what he feels is not always in agreement with Kirk). I think that is an important part of their relationship that McCoy can tell Kirk the good and the bad. McCoy (even more than Spock) often refers to Kirk as Jim and Jim of course has his own special nickname for McCoy...Bones showing the comfortable familiarity these two have.
My favorite scene between them and probably my favorite quote of the series.
Spock/McCoy
Spock and McCoy while not quite as popular as Kirk/Spock is definitely far more popular than TOS Kirk/McCoy. In fact I would say after Kirk/Spock it is a secondary strong favorite. However there is a group of people who just don't understand this relationship at all.
Spock and McCoy disagree a lot. Sometimes those disagreements are just banter but sometimes they are true arguments. For some people characters that disagree and argue as much as Spock & McCoy can't possibly care about each other. Well of course I disagree very strongly with this because there is so much in the actual series that contradicts this silly thought. But I don't even need the series since both the creators and actors of the series have said various things that agree with my interpretation.
As it is Spock and McCoy have a more tumultuous relationship than either Spock/Kirk or McCoy/Kirk but it is very much in the veins of we might fight all the time but we actually really like each other. They were verbal sparring partners (mainly on topics of logic vs emotion) with a strong undercurrent of friendship and respect. Watching the development of Spock/Mccoy in episodes like The Immunity Syndrome and The Tholian Web was a big reason I became a fan of TOS and I began watching other episodes to find more Spones as they say.
For supposed enemies, Spock and McCoy are awfully concerned about the other one, always running to the other's aid and worrying about them. Although I don't think its a question at all that they care about each other in the series the movies develop their relationship even further with Spock entrusting his soul to McCoy and McCoy saying to an unconscious Spock that he doesn't think he can bear the thought of losing him again....
I can't decide on one Spock/Bones scene, there are so many great ones so I will just stick with these video which has many great scenes
And now the Trio Itself
But here is the thing while I love all these duos I can only see Spock/Kirk/McCoy ultimately as a trio. I could never leave one of the three out. After all Spock, McCoy and Kirk were meant to be a representation of the perfect whole: with Spock being on the side of logic, McCoy the side of emotion and Kirk being the balance of the two. I also like to think of them as mind, heart, and soul. Or you can see them as logos, pathos, and ethos, and so forth. It's the dynamic and chemistry of the trio that I love so much and they are definitely better together than apart.
As much as I think movie V is not a very good film, I love the strong themes of friendship in it. The trio are joined at the hip for the entire movie, they go on vacation together, and even acknowledge that they are family, and then Kirk makes a speech that he won't die if he is with Spock and Mccoy, so many cute moments you just have to ignore the rest of the movie lol
There is also the Empath which I mentioned before as the ultimate trio episode where you Kirk, Spock, and McCoy all willing to sacrifice themselves for the other (with McCoy making the ultimate sacrifice and then Kirk and Spock being all over him).
Of course there are plenty of other trio moments as it is often Spock/Kirk/McCoy going down to some planet together but I think these are the best examples.
Also lovely is the main trio were definitely good friends. Nimoy compared them to brothers. Although opposite of the fictional trio Nimoy & Shatner has some "sibling rivalry" and it was De who was like an older brother to them listened to them both but never took sides and was the balance between the three.
There is also this ,a href="http://ship-manifesto.livejournal.com/62053.html?nojs=1">great manifesto exploring the trio. Of course it is a shipping manifesto but a lot of the stuff can apply to them as friends too. Well I can accept the relationship either way as long as they are together.
Had a hard time deciding what trio video to use but here are a few I like
Kirk/Spock- There is very little that I can say about this that hasn't been said before. Like Holmes/Watson there are tons of fics of this pairing. And although Nimoy compared Kirk/Spock to the Lone Ranger/Tonto, I actually think Holmes/Watson works very well. Their relationship is based on extreme loyalty. Spock is highly intelligent, a great fighter, and would probably be an amazing captain and yet he is completely and utterly loyal to Kirk. I think Kirk and Spock understand each other without even having to speak.
Really there are so many great moments obviously Spock's death scene in movie II and Kirk sacrificing everything to bring him back but there are also tons of scenes in the original TV series. Such as Edith Keeler seeing Spock and saying he belongs at Kirk's side or Kirk's smile when he realizes Kirk is not dead (and Spock doesn't smile often to put it mildly) and I've always been partial to this little moment
Click to viewThat being said while I love Spock/Kirk unlike Holmes/Watson I disagree it is the center relationship of Star Trek, it is only one piece of the pie. I discount any fandom notion that discounts McCoy. So moving on
Kirk/McCoy
Kirk and McCoy is probably the least popular duo of the trio, at least if we are talking TOS. The pairing seems to have found a new life with the reboot movies. However I actually think TOS Kirk and McCoy have a very beautiful relationship that often gets overlooked by fandom. If Spock is like Kirk's other half, then McCoy is Kirk's conscious. McCoy as a doctor doesn't just heal the physical wounds on the ship but the emotional ones as well. In that way McCoy is very much Kirk's confessor. Kirk can tell McCoy anything. However McCoy has another important role for Kirk. Many people are confused why McCoy as the Chief Surgeon is often seen on the bridge. In fact he isn't just seen on the bridge but often right behind Kirk. McCoy doesn't just listen to Kirk but has free range to tell Kirk what he feels (and what he feels is not always in agreement with Kirk). I think that is an important part of their relationship that McCoy can tell Kirk the good and the bad. McCoy (even more than Spock) often refers to Kirk as Jim and Jim of course has his own special nickname for McCoy...Bones showing the comfortable familiarity these two have.
My favorite scene between them and probably my favorite quote of the series.
Spock/McCoy
Spock and McCoy while not quite as popular as Kirk/Spock is definitely far more popular than TOS Kirk/McCoy. In fact I would say after Kirk/Spock it is a secondary strong favorite. However there is a group of people who just don't understand this relationship at all.
Spock and McCoy disagree a lot. Sometimes those disagreements are just banter but sometimes they are true arguments. For some people characters that disagree and argue as much as Spock & McCoy can't possibly care about each other. Well of course I disagree very strongly with this because there is so much in the actual series that contradicts this silly thought. But I don't even need the series since both the creators and actors of the series have said various things that agree with my interpretation.
As it is Spock and McCoy have a more tumultuous relationship than either Spock/Kirk or McCoy/Kirk but it is very much in the veins of we might fight all the time but we actually really like each other. They were verbal sparring partners (mainly on topics of logic vs emotion) with a strong undercurrent of friendship and respect. Watching the development of Spock/Mccoy in episodes like The Immunity Syndrome and The Tholian Web was a big reason I became a fan of TOS and I began watching other episodes to find more Spones as they say.
For supposed enemies, Spock and McCoy are awfully concerned about the other one, always running to the other's aid and worrying about them. Although I don't think its a question at all that they care about each other in the series the movies develop their relationship even further with Spock entrusting his soul to McCoy and McCoy saying to an unconscious Spock that he doesn't think he can bear the thought of losing him again....
I can't decide on one Spock/Bones scene, there are so many great ones so I will just stick with these video which has many great scenes
And now the Trio Itself
But here is the thing while I love all these duos I can only see Spock/Kirk/McCoy ultimately as a trio. I could never leave one of the three out. After all Spock, McCoy and Kirk were meant to be a representation of the perfect whole: with Spock being on the side of logic, McCoy the side of emotion and Kirk being the balance of the two. I also like to think of them as mind, heart, and soul. Or you can see them as logos, pathos, and ethos, and so forth. It's the dynamic and chemistry of the trio that I love so much and they are definitely better together than apart.
As much as I think movie V is not a very good film, I love the strong themes of friendship in it. The trio are joined at the hip for the entire movie, they go on vacation together, and even acknowledge that they are family, and then Kirk makes a speech that he won't die if he is with Spock and Mccoy, so many cute moments you just have to ignore the rest of the movie lol
There is also the Empath which I mentioned before as the ultimate trio episode where you Kirk, Spock, and McCoy all willing to sacrifice themselves for the other (with McCoy making the ultimate sacrifice and then Kirk and Spock being all over him).
Of course there are plenty of other trio moments as it is often Spock/Kirk/McCoy going down to some planet together but I think these are the best examples.
Also lovely is the main trio were definitely good friends. Nimoy compared them to brothers. Although opposite of the fictional trio Nimoy & Shatner has some "sibling rivalry" and it was De who was like an older brother to them listened to them both but never took sides and was the balance between the three.
There is also this ,a href="http://ship-manifesto.livejournal.com/62053.html?nojs=1">great manifesto exploring the trio. Of course it is a shipping manifesto but a lot of the stuff can apply to them as friends too. Well I can accept the relationship either way as long as they are together.
Had a hard time deciding what trio video to use but here are a few I like