I’m your nerd host, Chris Hardwick
Nerdist is a place where we nerds come together and share the nerdery that we find. It's also my home to various elements of the Nerdist Empire. You might recognize me from TV. You don't realize that's where you know me from, but it is. You think you went to college with me or I look like your cousin's friend, but that is not the case. At one time or another you stumbled upon me on your moving picture box in such cerebral gems as MTV's "Singled Out" and Noam Chomsky's "Shipmates." and so much more...
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Something I thought of while watching the episode toward the end:
The Organians stop a conflict between the Federation and the Klingons by heating their weapons so that they can’t be used. While it seems like a lame power for a super powerful race, it makes sense in a way. They are a race that has evolved far beyond humanity, so they likely look at the two sides the way we look at single celled organisms. Their response is as simple as, “Look how this specimen reacts to heat negatively.” To do anything more complex would just seem unnecessary toward a race so simple.
So that’s twice Ken’s freaked out at a suggestion that struggle is endemic to human existence.
I don’t know what causes it, but remind me never to question his right to chemically-induced space spore bliss.
Regarding Kirk’s shifting stances from diplomat to soldier, if we need to reconcile them I wonder if we can make a case for this being a study in being a solider, following orders, etc.
When Kirk’s mission is more open-ended and he’s on his own judgement, he is more likely to seek the peaceful solution as that is his mandate. However, in a state of war, he shifts to the soldier mentality and follows the ethos of the Federation more strictly.
So the arc is not just Kirk learning a lesson about war on behalf of the Federation, but also perhaps being shown exactly how far he shuts his normal judgement down . Is he just being a good soldier, or is he welcoming dropping some of the responsibilities and focusing on something simple in a conflict?
You guys missed the point that the mere presence of violent beings such as the Humans and the Klingons is painful to their species. The presence of war like attitudes and violence throughout the galaxy would threaten their peace. And despite of this and their distaste for interference the Oregonians still take that step to prevent a situation that will engulf the entire Galaxy and threaten their lives.
War is stupid and it hurts more then just the two sides.
Maybe you could have used music from Information Society for this episode.