Date: 28 Dec 2013 08:52 Title: Comfort and Joy (TOS universe - gift to Mackenzie Calhoun, Strider, Gatekeeper and Lil Black Dog in particular)
I really enjoyed this! First of all, I loved seeing my name mentioned as part of the TOS world--yay! I liked the implication that Uhura's kindness somehow provoked Spock's ultimate act of compassion for Captain Pike.
I also like seeing Uhura portrayed as skilled and competent, so her being able to decipher Morse code and use it to communicate with Pike seemed very true to the character we don't get a chance to see much on TOS but we know must exist for her to hold a place of such high authority on a starship.
And it was funny and sweet to see Pike surrounded by a table full of beautiful women, even as Spock was laying his career (and perhaps his life) on the line for him. The juxtaposition was powerful and amusing--a hard combination to strike!
Through Uhura, you treated Captain Pike with dignity, and I appreciated that a great deal. Thank you for this beautiful piece!
Author's Response:
Aw, my thanks to you; this review was a wonderful gift!
I always wondered about what would have happened to Pike if he didn't end up on Talos IV. His mind seemed to be completely unstimulated (more or less an accurate depiction of how things were for the severely disabled in the 1960s). I had the story "When Johnny Got His Gun" very much in mind as I thought this up, and of course the way John communicates in that story is through Morse code. Pike would certainly know this, and Uhura would be able to interpret it.
To allow him to have just a semi-normal kind of a time, listening to a ton of women laughing and telling jokes and eating, even just to hear them ask each other to pass the salt would be an amazing moment for someone so damaged and so ignored and neglected. And, as you said, in the meantime Spock is giving his all. Spock succeeds; Uhura kind of represents the fall-back here.
Date: 20 Dec 2013 02:20 Title: Comfort and Joy (TOS universe - gift to Mackenzie Calhoun, Strider, Gatekeeper and Lil Black Dog in particular)
Thanks so much, Jespah. I love this story. I always felt for Captain Pike, and as Communications officer, it seems natural that Uhura would want to communicate with someone who might not be able to do so, in a conventional sense, and would want to be sure he was included and engaged.
Author's Response:
Oh, I'm so glad! It was just so sad to see him that way, and know that he was so shut-off from things. Without the Talosians, his life would have been rather bleak indeed. I wanted there to be some way that someone saw through to the real Christopher Pike.
Thank you for reading.
Date: 20 Dec 2013 02:00 Title: Comfort and Joy (TOS universe - gift to Mackenzie Calhoun, Strider, Gatekeeper and Lil Black Dog in particular)
A nice little TOS story, some good name checks from season one.
Another nice little story that shows Nyota good side, and what makes the crew of the Enterprise special.
Author's Response:
Thank you!
Date: 19 Dec 2013 17:14 Title: Comfort and Joy (TOS universe - gift to Mackenzie Calhoun, Strider, Gatekeeper and Lil Black Dog in particular)
Thanks, jespah, you nailed Nyota beautifully. I did always get the impression over the years that she was mother to the ship, looking after her brood very subtley and unobtrusively. It just seemed natural that she would be drawn to Pike, and would do all she could to make him feel comfortable, accepted and engaged in the world around him.
Very nice piece showcasing the spirit of the holiday season, and our capacity for goodwill toward one another.
Author's Response:
I thank you. I also felt that, for her, she would find a way to communicate with Pike. That's so much of TOS, that they seek to communicate with those who really can't in any conventional sense. Pike in TOS would be one of those people. It's also about how the actions of one person can change a lot of minds. I do hope Pike was cared for properly before going off with Vina, but in canon you never see any attendant, no one really engaged with him. Without the Talosians, his life would have been rather bleak indeed. I like to think that someone noticed that, and cared enough to try.
Thank you for reading.