Random Thoughts: "Stigma"

[starbase63]

After the post I made at st.com this morning, I took the time to watch "Stigma" again, and you know what? I found a real TOS-type Trek episode. Well acted, social commentary, a humorous B story to lighten the mood.
At least we can now infer one thing, at some point between the time of Enterprise and TOS that Vulcan will undergo a cultural revolution. Uris' comment that there is more intolerance on Vulcan than there was 1000 years ago seems to explain why the Vulcans of Enterprise are so snobby and more-logical-than-thou toward humans. It seems the mind melding minority will not be a minority for long, and have something to do with why mind melding is more common by the time of TOS. Perhaps they are not really a genetic aberration, but the next step in Vulcan species evolution.
Is it just me, or for a few brief seconds did Archer almost become Captain Kirk during his speech to the Vulcan physicians? I don't know about you, but to me that's a good sign.
T'Pol really won't be a pariah among her people, but she will more than likely get a cool reception from Ambassador Soval, who we'll see again next week. I'll be watching for more clues to see if he's a Romulan.
Maybe if T'Pol ends up being Sarek's mother, do you think Skon might be the person who finds the cure to pa'nar syndrome?
Trip's discomfiture at being the object of a married woman's advance's was hilarious. Guess he is a gentleman at heart after all.
Overall, good episode. A few more like it would be a welcome thing.

[gdog243]

I replyed to you on startrek.com, I might as well do it here as well.

Nice spin you put on the Vulcan "Cultural Exchange." I hadn't thought of it that way, but it does make sense. I still didn't like thier arrogence, bigotry, and just plain intolorance at all though. Its just not the sareks, spocks, tuvoks, voricks that I remember and what made the vulcan race so great. Hopefully that is something ENT will address because it deserves changing.

Like I said over at startrek.com, I am so looking foward to seeing this episode again on sunday. I think we have a real winner.

[starbase63]

What you can infer from "Stigma" is that beside the "minority" that there must be other Vulcans like Uris that are seeing that their race is getting out of hand with its attitude toward other races/cultures/subcultures and realize it is not in keeping with the teachings of Surak. Surak taught logic, peace, restraint, IDIC, not bigotry and intolerance.
Something will happen within the next hundred years that will pave the way for the Sareks, Spocks, Tuvoks and other Vulcans we will know later in the grand scheme of Trek. A cultural revolution, or a cultural evolution.
Could it be connected with the Romulan War? Will the Vulcan pig-headedness be a factor in almost loosing the war, and humanity has to save their butts, changing their opinions uf us, and themselves in the process?

[gdog243]

Kind of off topic, but what time period was Pike's and Kirk's. For some reason, I keep thinking that Pike was captain a couple years after the founding of the federation. I know that is wrong though.

[starbase63]

Pike commanded the Enterprise 1701 13 years before "The Menagerie."
According to the Encyclopedia he was captain from 2250 to 2263.