Spock Spock – full name generally considered unpronounceable to Human s – was a male Human / Vulcan hybrid who became one of the most distinguished and respected figures in the United Federation of Planets . ( ; ; ) As a Starfleet officer in the 23rd century , he served aboard the starship as science officer under Captain Christopher Pike , as first officer and science officer under Captain James T . Kirk , and as the commanding officer of the " Enterprise " during its tenure as a training vessel . In the 24th century , Spock became an adviser to the leadership of the Federation and a celebrated ambassador on their behalf . He disappeared in 2387 after saving the Federation from a supernova that destroyed Romulus and caused the creation of the alternate reality . ( ; ; ; ) Spock died on New Vulcan in 2263 of the alternate reality . ( ) Childhood . Spock was born on January 6 , 2230 in the city of Shi ' Kahr on the planet . His mother was Amanda Grayson , a Human school teacher , and his father , Sarek , was a Vulcan scientist and diplomat . ( ; ; ; ) For a time , Spock grew up alongside his half - brother , Sybok ( the son of Sarek from a previous mate ) until Sybok was ostracized for rejecting Vulcan principles of logic and choosing to embrace emotion . ( ) Spock ' s mixed parentage caused difficulties throughout his early life . His own father , despite having married a Human woman , was somewhat ambivalent about his son ' s half - Human nature at his birth . For her part , Amanda watched Spock ' s stiff - lipped anguish caused by torment at the hands of other Vulcan children , who repeatedly attacked and teased him to provoke emotional responses , knowing that his " Human half " was suffering . ( ; ; ; ) After Sarek and Amanda fostered a Human child , Michael Burnham , Spock and Burnham were often read to from " Alice ' s Adventures in Wonderland " by Amanda . ( ; ) As a child , Spock was betrothed to T ' Pring , in accordance with traditional Vulcan marriage procedure . ( ) In 2237 , at the age of seven , Spock decided ( prematurely , and without parental knowledge or approval ) to undertake the " kahs - wan " maturity trial in the Vulcan wilderness in an attempt to prove himself . His pet " sehlat " , I - Chaya , tagged along against his master ' s wishes , and defended Spock from the attack of a carnivorous , venomous " le - matya " . The intervention of an older cousin saved Spock from the " le - matya " , but I - Chaya was left badly wounded . Faced with the stark choice of a painfully extended life or a peaceful release for I - Chaya , Spock logically opted for the latter . That decision marked his choice of following in the philosophies of Surak : logic and emotional control . " Many years later , in 2269 , the accidental creation of an alternate timeline created a universe where Spock was killed in his childhood . Using the Guardian of Forever , Spock returned to the Vulcan of his youth and assumed the role of Selek , the nearly - forgotten cousin who saved his life during the " kahs - wan " ordeal . " ( ) After Burnham ' s graduation from the Vulcan Science Academy , Sarek was forced to choose between Burnham and Spock on who should join the Vulcan Expeditionary Group . Sarek chose Spock over Burnham , but he came to regret this decision , as Spock joined Starfleet , instead . Sarek had given Spock his first lessons in computer s and had set him on a path of science , therefore Spock ' s preference to pursue a scientific carrer in Starfleet caused a rift between him and his father that kept them from speaking to each other for eighteen years . ( ; ) Starfleet career . Spock was commissioned as a Starfleet officer in 2250 with the serial number S 179 - 276 SP , and he held an A7 computer expert classification . By 2254 , Spock was assigned to the . The starship and its namesake were his home for forty three years , until 2293 . ( ; ) As a science officer under the command of Captain Christopher Pike , Spock was wounded in the leg when Pike ' s landing party was attacked on Rigel VII in 2254 . As the ship proceeded to the Vega colony for medical care , a radio wave distress call forced Pike to divert the ship to Talos IV . Still limping , Spock joined a landing party that transported to the barren surface of the planet , where Talosian s captured Pike ; he was the first of the ship ' s crew to realize that the Talosians had powerful illusory abilities . Spock ' s final report , along with Pike ' s , recommended a ban on visitation to the planet . Starfleet ' s General Order 7 supported that judgment . ( ) On Earth briefly in 2261 , Spock met Leila Kalomi . Although she declared a love for Spock , his Vulcan control prevented him from showing any emotion in return until the spores on the planet , Omicron Ceti III , infected him . Under their influence , he became peaceful and happy , but Captain Kirk infuriated him , thus killing the spores and returning him to reality . ( ) Spock ' s service under Pike ( eleven years , four months , and five days ) inspired considerable respect and loyalty from the young officer . In 2267 , Spock risked his life and career for the sake of his former captain . ( ) The five - year mission . 2265 . After Pike ' s promotion to fleet captain , James T . Kirk assumed command of the " Enterprise " in 2265 , with Spock as his First Officer . An early mission , attempting an extra - galactic probe , was disastrous . Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell , a close friend of the new captain , developed enhanced psionic abilities when the " Enterprise " encountered an energy barrier at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy . Spock examined the tapes of an earlier ship , the , that had encountered the same barrier and was destroyed . As Mitchell ' s powers increased geometrically , Spock believed he had become extremely dangerous and feared that he would destroy the ship . Spock therefore advised Kirk to either strand Mitchell on the uninhabited , desolate world of Delta Vega , in order to isolate him from galactic civilization , or kill Mitchell before it was too late . Kirk hesitated , and initially attempted the former , but the scope of Spock ' s concerns were eventually borne out , and Kirk was forced to kill Mitchell . ( ) 2266 . The " Enterprise " repelled the first Romulan incursion of Federation space in over a century on stardate 1709 . 2 . Spock and the bridge crew became the first Starfleet officers to make visual contact with Romulan s , who finally revealed their Vulcan - like appearance to Starfleet . Lieutenant briefly suspected Spock of being a Romulan agent until Spock saved his life in the course of battle . ( ) 2267 . Spock kidnapped Fleet Captain Christopher Pike , his former commander , and hijacked the " Enterprise " . Pike had been crippled when a baffle plate ruptured during an inspection of an old Class J starship and was confined to a wheelchair , unable to speak . Spock wanted to return him to Talos IV , where they had visited years earlier ; he wished to return Pike to the Talosian s there so he could enjoy the rest of his life in an illusory reality and would not have to continue enduring his disability . After a lengthy inquiry into the matter , and in light of the Talosian - provided images , Kirk allowed Pike to beam down . Commodore Jose I . Mendez also dropped all charges against Spock . ( ) While commanding an away mission aboard the " " on stardate 2821 . 5 , the shuttlecraft crashed on the surface of Taurus II . Giant hostile creatures killed two crewmembers while the shuttle was stranded there . Spock , aided by Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott , eventually launched the shuttle . Knowing that it could not break free of the planet ' s gravity , Spock ignited the shuttlecraft ' s remaining fuel , using it as a flare . The gamble paid off ; it alerted the " Enterprise " , which turned around and rescued the team . ( ) After being thrown back in time to Earth of 1969 and interacting with that planet ' s US Air Force , Spock was able to recreate a time warp with a slingshot maneuver around the sun . ( ) Later , when Kirk was court - martialed for causing the death of Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Finney , Spock proved that Finney had altered the " Enterprise " s computer tapes to frame Kirk . ( ) Spock , along with Kirk , helped disable a computer that controlled the lives of a civilization on Beta III and allowed no free thought or creative thinking . ( ) Spock helped Kirk to retake the " Enterprise " after Khan Noonien Singh , a 20th century Augment dictator whom the " Enterprise " s crew had found in stasis , commandeered the starship . Spock flooded the ship with gas , disabling Khan and his followers . ( ) On stardate 3192 . 1 , Spock and Kirk were taken prisoners on Eminiar VII , which had been at war for over five hundred years with the planet Vendikar . Computers fought the war virtually so that the destruction of actual warfare did not devastate the two worlds , thus preserving both civilizations . Whenever the computer registered a hit , the affected citizens reported to a disintegration chamber and were vaporized . When the " Enterprise " entered orbit around Eminiar VII , it became a legitimate target for Vendikar . The war computer soon declared that a tricobalt satellite explosion had destroyed the " Enterprise " ; as a result , Eminiar officials expected the crew to report to the disintegration stations . They abducted Kirk and Spock to ensure compliance , but the two escaped captivity and destroyed the computers on Eminiar VII . With the threat of a real war looming over the inhabitants of both planets , Spock and Kirk sought to negotiate a peace between Eminiar VII and Vendikar . ( ) Later , on the mining planet Janus VI , an unknown creature was killing miner s there . After locating the creature , Spock mind - melded with it ; he discovered that the creature was called a Horta and determined that its killing of the miners was an attempt to protect its young . The miners had been unintentionally killing the Horta ' s offspring by destroying silicon nodules which were really the creature ' s eggs . Spock negotiated a pact between the Horta and the miners : The miners would leave the eggs alone and the Horta , in turn , would help the miners locate valuable minerals . ( ) Spock and Kirk later became trapped on Organia , a planet of medieval culture , during a Klingon occupation of the planet . The Klingons wanted to use Organia as a base in their war against the Federation . The Organian council refused the Federation ' s help , and after the Klingon s invaded and took control of Organia , Kirk and Spock had civilian identities imposed on them , with Spock being given the identity of a merchant . They then became involved in sabotage . After the Klingons captured them , the Organians set Spock and Kirk free . Just as war began to break out , the Organians revealed themselves to be powerful energy beings , once humanoid but now evolved . They neutralized both sides weaponry and stopped the war . ( ) On stardate 3134 . 0 , Spock and Kirk traveled back in time using the Guardian of Forever to retrieve Dr . Leonard McCoy . McCoy had entered the time portal and somehow changed history . Spock discovered that McCoy changed history by saving the life of Edith Keeler , a social worker who , in the altered timeline , led a pacifist movement that delayed the United States of America ' s entry into World War II , thus allowing Adolf Hitler to win the war . Spock persuaded Kirk that allowing Keeler to die in an auto accident was only way to restore the timeline . ( ) Near the end of the year , a Denevan neural parasite that destroyed the colony on Deneva also attacked Spock . He submitted to an experiment that destroyed the creature inside him but also left him blind . However , the blindness was only temporary due to an inner set of eyelids that all Vulcans possess . ( ) In late 2267 , the " Enterprise " encountered a probe called " Nomad " that had destroyed multiple star system s and their inhabitants . Spock mind - melded with the probe and discovered that it was an old Earth probe originally tasked with seeking out new life . Somehow damaged in space , it had merged with an alien probe on a mission to sterilize " imperfect " biological organisms from soil . These two missions had merged into sterilizing or improving anything that was not " perfect . " Using its own logic against it , Kirk destroyed the probe . ( ) On stardate 3219 . 8 , an alien cloud creature took control of a shuttlecraft carrying Spock , Kirk , and Federation diplomat Nancy Hedford , landing it on a deserted planet . On the planet ' s surface , they found Zefram Cochrane , the inventor of Earth ' s warp drive . History records Cochrane ' s death as having occurred decades ago . The cloud creature , which Cochrane called the " Companion " , had discovered him and managed to keep him alive and young . The creature had brought the three Starfleet officers to be companions for Cochrane . When Spock tried to repair the shuttlecraft , the Companion stopped him . The situation was resolved when the Companion joined with Hedford , who was dying from an incurable disease , and cured her . Hedford / The Companion remained on the planet with Cochrane . ( ) 2268 . In 2268 , Spock and other crewmembers of the " Enterprise " encountered Harry Mudd stranded on a planet of android s . The androids wanted the " Enterprise " to escape the planet and serve Humans so that they would not have to explore space . Kirk , Spock , and the rest of the crew eventually managed to overload the androids ' central control , causing the chief android , Norman , to have a nervous breakdown . ( ) While traveling to a peace conference on Babel , Spock was reunited with his parents . There was still much friction between Spock and his father , Sarek . When Sarek was accused of the murder of another delegate , the Tellarite Gav , it was revealed that he was ill with a cardiac defect , which made it unlikely that he could have committed the crime . Dr . McCoy was then tasked with performing surgery on Sarek for this defect . It was then discovered that Orion s were responsible for the murder , and Spock made himself available for a blood transfusion for his father ' s surgery because they shared the same rare blood type , T - negative . Recovering in sickbay , Sarek and Spock made peace with each other , even playfully teasing Spock ' s mother , Amanda . ( ) On stardate 4523 . 3 , Spock helped foil a Klingon plot to poison quadrotriticale earmarked for the Federation world Sherman ' s Planet while at the same time trying to clear the " Enterprise " of a fast - breeding alien species called tribble s . ( ; ) Spock later visited Sigma Iotia II , whose inhabitants had modeled their society on the gangster era of Earth ' s 1930s . An earlier starship had left behind a book about gangsters from Earth ' s 20th century that the imitative Iotian s had used as a blueprint for their society . Spock played the part of one of the bosses of the main syndicate , " The Federation , " and helped Kirk unite the two warring bosses into a form of government . ( ) Spock , along with the " Enterprise " , encountered a space amoeba that destroyed entire star system s . The , sent to investigate the phenomenon , was destroyed , and Spock felt the Vulcans on the ship dying . In order to gain information on the creature , Spock piloted a shuttle into the amoeba and found that it was about to reproduce by fission . Spock subsequently destroyed the creature with an antimatter bomb . ( ) Spock ' s body was later taken over by Henoch , one of three survivors of an ancient civilization that had destroyed itself . The three had become energy beings to survive , and wished to build androids to house their minds . Henoch , the rival of fellow survivor Sargon , refused to relinquish Spock ' s body and attempted to kill Sargon . He himself was killed with the help of Spock ' s consciousness and Thalassa , Sargon ' s wife . ( ) Spock came in contact with various other worlds in the early part of 2268 . He was captured by Ekosian s , who had based their society on that of Nazi Germany and tortured him to obtain information about the " Enterprise " . John Gill , a Federation historian , had visited Ekos and attempted to use the efficiency of Nazi Germany to bring stability to the planet . ( ) Spock battled Kelvan s who tried to take over the " Enterprise " in order to return to their homeworld in the Andromeda Galaxy , and helped Kirk stop Ronald Tracey , a Federation captain interfering in the planet Omega IV ' s societies by arming the Kohm s against the Yang s . He also battled the government of a planet where a Rome - like civilization had never fallen and gladiatorial games still took place in the planet ' s modern era . ( ) Later the same year , Spock ' s brain was stolen by an alien race to help power a computer that controlled its society and provided for all its needs . McCoy was able to reconnect Spock ' s brain to his body with the same technology used to remove it . ( ) Spock , along with Kirk , later stole a cloaking device from the Romulans . As part of the plan to retrieve the device , he pretended to kill Kirk and romanced the craft ' s commander in order to gain her trust , initially intending only to carry out his mission , but finding out he experienced actual feelings for the beautiful , brilliant commander . After Kirk returned to the craft disguised as a Romulan and stole the device , Spock stalled the Romulans long enough for the device to be installed in the " Enterprise " . The ship escaped with the cloaking device and the Romulan commander on board , who made a pact with Spock to keep their mutual feelings for the other a secret . ( ) Spock later saved Kirk and a tribe of transplanted Native American s when he helped save their planet from an asteroid by activating a deflector beam on the planet Amerind . ( ) He allowed the Medeusan Kollos to take over his body so that the alien could guide the " Enterprise " back into the galaxy after a mad Larry Marvick had driven it into an uncharted region . The Medeusans were a highly intelligent species , but their bodies were grotesque in form – so much so that gazing upon a Medeusan would cause instant insanity in humanoid s . However , it is said that telepathically viewing a Medeusan ' s mind , as Spock did , is quite a beautiful experience . ( ) Spock helped save an landing party from the Melkotian s who had , as punishment for trespassing , forced them to relive the infamous gunfight at the OK Corral in a recreation of Tombstone , Arizona . ( ) He also helped redirect an artificial asteroid , " Yonada " , from colliding with the Federation planet Daran V . ( ) Spock took command of the " Enterprise " when a spatial interphase trapped Kirk between universes . Despite a Tholian attack from Commander Loskene , Spock and the " Enterprise " crew managed to retrieve Kirk and escaped from the Tholian spun restrictive energy web . ( ) A race of psychokinetics later captured Spock , Kirk , and McCoy . The aliens forced them to take part in dangerous games and unwanted love affairs . ( ) After hyper - accelerated aliens took over the " Enterprise " , they hyper - accelerated Kirk to take as a hostage . Spock managed to receive a warning from Kirk and became hyper - accelerated himself , but carried an antidote with him . He and Kirk stopped the aliens , and retook the ship . ( ) Spock was part of a landing party aliens were using to test the worthiness of an empathic race . A super nova was going to destroy their planetary system , and the aliens wanted to see if their race should be saved . After the aliens tortured Kirk , Spock and McCoy , the empath , Gem , healed them . Impressed by this , the aliens saved her planet . ( ) 2269 . In early 2269 , Spock and Kirk took a new medicine that could cure mental illness to a Federation mental facility . However , under the leadership of former Starfleet captain Garth of Izar , inmates had taken over the facility . Garth captured Spock and Kirk , putting their lives in danger . Spock escaped and found Kirk but Garth , who had developed shapeshifting powers , had assumed Kirk ' s identity . Spock determined the real Kirk from the impostor and subdued Garth , giving him medication that helped his mental illness . ( ) In the same year , Spock was part of a landing party that found a Human named Flint . He found masterpiece paintings and original classical music . Flint admitted that he had been Brahms and Leonardo da Vinci on Earth , and that he was an immortal being . ( ) Spock helped Kirk negotiate a peace treaty between two societies on the planet Ardana . He also became attracted to Droxine , the daughter of Plasus , the ruler of Ardana ; he referred to her as a work of art and even discussed " pon farr " with her . However , nothing ever came out of the relationship . ( ) The Excalbian s forced Spock and Kirk into a battle between good and evil to study Human concepts . The aliens created images of people who possessed " good " qualities , such as Abraham Lincoln and Surak , against " bad " people such as Colonel Green and Kahless . ( ) Spock , Kirk and McCoy entered a time portal , and were stuck in different past eras of the planet Sarpeidon , which was about to be destroyed by an exploding sun . Spock and McCoy traveled into the planet ' s ice age , where they met Zarabeth , who had been sent there as punishment . Even though McCoy was dying from the cold , Spock wished to remain with the woman with whom he had fallen in love , since , in this time period , he had emotions . Eventually , he discovered the portal door and saved McCoy . ( ) After Janice Lester secretly transferred her consciousness into Kirk ' s body and his consciousness into her body , she attempted to kill Kirk and assume his captaincy . However , Spock managed to expose her and helped to re - transfer Kirk ' s consciousness into his body . ( ) Later the same year , the Federation , aware of Spock ' s familiarity with mind - link s , offered him an assignment to work with Medeusan Ambassador Kollos . Spock , however , turned down the assignment with the ambassador due to his life on the " Enterprise " . ( ) Spock joined a landing party that beamed down to inspect the second planet of the Taurean system . There , he became affected by the glandular secretion of the female members of Theela ' s species who inhabited there , who were known for controlling the male mind . This drained Spock of his " life force , " causing him to age at a rate of ten years per day . Spock escaped the females of the planet and contact the " Enterprise " . An all - female security detachment led by Lieutenant Uhura eventually recovered him and the landing party . By using their molecular pattern stored in the transporter system , Spock and the others were returned to their previous ages . ( ) On a mission to the planet Phylos , Spock was captured by Stavos Keniclius , an Earth scientist who planned to clone Spock and make an army of Spock clone s to enforce an era of peace throughout the galaxy . His first clone , Spock Two , possessed all of the original ' s memories , abilities , and sense of logic . However , the cloning process left the original Spock near death . Since Spock Two possessed his progenitor ' s sense of logic , he mind meld ed with him and restored his mind , most likely transferring his katra back into the original Spock . The original Spock proposed that Spock Two remain on Phylos to help Keniclius rebuild the Phylosian society . ( ) " V ' ger " crisis . After completing the " Enterprise " s five - year mission of exploration , Spock chose to return to his home planet of Vulcan . As a result of his occasional displays of emotion during his " Enterprise " missions , he decided to undergo the " kolinahr " ritual to purge himself of the last vestiges of emotion . However , Spock felt the arrival of a big consciousness ; he aborted this training and resumed his Starfleet career both for personal reasons and to help Rear Admiral Kirk during the " V ' ger " incident . His reputation remained excellent , with Commander Will Decker stating that he was " well aware of Mr . Spock ' s qualifications " when Spock offered to again serve as science officer ; within three hours he helped Chief Engineer Scott repair the " Enterprise " s malfunctioning warp drive . ( ) Feeling that the consciousness would answer for his quest , he broke into an airlock and stole a thruster suit . He exited the ship and proceeded to the next chamber of the mechanism , witnessing a planet populated by living machines . There , he attempted a mind meld and he realized " V ' ger " s quest . Knocked unconscious by the enormous power of " V ' ger " during the meld , Spock was recovered in open space by Kirk . Later , Spock was in sickbay being treated for neurological trauma . He informed Kirk that " V ' ger " was a lifeform of its own , seeking answers to its questions ; specifically " " Is this " all " that I am ? Is there nothing more ? " " Grasping Kirk ' s hand while lying on a biobed , Spock told Kirk that the simple feeling of touching another was something beyond " V ' ger " s comprehension . Spock later accompanied Captain Kirk , Decker , and Dr . McCoy to the heart of " V ' ger " , guided by the Ilia probe . The group discovered that " V ' ger " was actually the 20th century NASA probe " Voyager 6 " . Spock deduced that the old probe was found by the living machine inhabitants of a planet located on the other side of the galaxy and they built the mammoth vessel so it could fulfill " Voyager " s simple programming , " " learn all that is learnable . " " Spock told Kirk that " V ' ger " had to evolve , as its knowledge had reached the limits of the known universe . Spock informed McCoy and the others that other dimensions and higher levels of being could not be proven logically , therefore " V ' ger " was incapable of believing in them , needing the Human quality to leap beyond logic . Decker chose to merge with " V ' ger " and Kirk , McCoy , and Spock escaped shortly thereafter when it and Decker evolved into another dimension . Afterwards , Spock chose to remain on the " Enterprise " rather than return to his homeworld , telling Kirk that his task on Vulcan was completed . ( ) Death and resurrection . Sometime after the " V ' ger " incident , Spock was promoted to captain and assigned to Starfleet Academy , where he trained cadet s on the " Enterprise " , which had been retired from active service . In early 2285 , Spock , while on a training mission , ceded command of the " Enterprise " to Admiral Kirk during a mission that involved keeping the Genesis Device from Khan Noonien Singh . When Kirk and the " Enterprise " defeated Khan he armed the device . Spock repaired the " Enterprise " s plasma conduit s – in a severely irradiated portion of engineering – in order to save the crew . He saved the ship , but sacrificed his own life in the process . Following his funeral service , Kirk gave Spock a " burial by sea " by firing Spock ' s body into space inside a torpedo casing . ( ) When Spock ' s coffin landed on the surface of the , the radiation emanating from the planet caused his cells to regenerate . Meanwhile , Kirk and the rest of the " Enterprise " s senior staff disobeyed Starfleet orders so that they could retrieve Spock ' s body , and discovered that he had been reborn as a child ( and was quickly aging to adulthood ) , but whose mind was a complete blank . On Vulcan , Spock ' s living body ( now at the age it had been when he died ) was reunited with his " katra " ( the Vulcan soul ) , which Spock himself had placed in Dr . Leonard McCoy prior to his death . ( ) After his " katra " and body were re - integrated , Spock began training for three months with the help of his mother Amanda to bring his knowledge and intellect back to where it had been before he died . Answering many complicated questions at rapid fire during his memory test , Spock had difficulty answering the question " " How do you feel ? " " , something he felt was irrelevant , though his mother disagreed . Returning back to Earth aboard the with his " Enterprise " crewmates to offer testimony in their defense to the Federation Council , Spock and the crew discovered that the planet was under siege by a mysterious alien probe , which was causing critical damage to Earth ' s oceans . Analyzing the transmission the probe was producing , Spock concluded that the probe was transmitting the songs sung by whales specifically humpback whale s . Spock informed Kirk that the humpback whales had been extinct since the 21st century and suggested the crew travel back through time and acquire humpback whales from the past . Spock ' s calculations from memory for the slingshot effect around Sol proved instrumental in the " Bounty " s successful journey back to the year 1986 . Upon the landing of the cloaked Bird - of - Prey in Golden Gate Park , Spock teamed up with Kirk and together they set off in search of humpback whales , discovering George and Gracie at the Cetacean Institute in Sausalito . Arriving at the institute , Spock jumped into the water tank containing the whales and mind melded with Gracie , discovering she was very pregnant . Later , time traveling back to 2286 with the whales and cetacean biologist Gillian Taylor , Spock and the rest of the crew saved Earth once again by releasing George and Gracie into the San Francisco Bay from the sunken " Bounty " . The whales successfully communicated with the probe and it left Earth ' s solar system . After the dismissal of all charges to the crew of the " Enterprise " , save for Kirk , Spock spoke to his father Sarek and asked him to relay a message to his mother – that he felt fine . Spock went on to serve as a Starfleet officer for many more years aboard the new . ( ) The " Enterprise " - A . Prior to the launch of the new " Enterprise " , Spock was recruited to test the new brig as he was the most intelligent and resourceful person the designers could find . However , despite his ingenuity , he failed to escape . ( ) Spock joined Kirk and McCoy for shore leave at Yosemite National Park and observed Kirk climbing El Capitan with his levitation boots . He saved Kirk ' s life when he slipped and fell off of the mountain , grabbing his ankle just seconds before he was to be killed by the impact . Later , Spock told Kirk and McCoy that before leaving the " Enterprise " - A , he had studied all the details involving " camping out " and roasted a marshmallow over a fire . Spock ' s shore leave was interrupted when Commander Uhura brought the shuttlecraft " " to the trio ' s campsite to bring them to the " Enterprise " as the transporters were malfunctioning . Upon the " Enterprise " s mission to Nimbus III to resolve a hostage situation , the newly demoted Captain Kirk retained Spock as his first officer . He served in this capacity during the " Enterprise " strike team ' s rescue mission to Paradise City on Nimbus III . Spock discovered that his long lost half - brother Sybok had been the leader of the Galactic Army of Light , the group responsible for capturing the three diplomats . Later , Sybok hijacked the " Enterprise " and ordered that it be brought through the Great Barrier , something thought to be impossible . During the subsequent voyage in the shuttle " " to the mythical , Spock tried to console his brother when they could not initially find " " on the surface . Shortly thereafter , the landing party encountered the supernatural being when it presented itself to them . Later , learning of the malevolent nature of the being calling itself " God " , Sybok sacrificed his life to save Spock and his friends from it . Spock and McCoy were beamed up to the " Enterprise " through the recently repaired transporter system , leaving Kirk alone . The transporter was severely damaged when Klaa ' s Bird - of - Prey fired on the " Enterprise " . Spock saved Kirk ' s life from the entity by commandeering the Bird - of - Prey with the help of General Korrd and firing on it with the Klingon ship ' s weapons . Later , in the " Enterprise " - As observation lounge , Spock reflected on the loss of his brother . Kirk told him that he had lost a brother once , but he was fortunate in that he got him back . Returning to Earth , Spock resumed his shore leave in Yosemite with Kirk and McCoy , this time playing " Row , Row , Row Your Boat " on his Vulcan lute . ( ) In 2293 , Spock was chosen to be the Federation ' s special envoy to the " Gorkon Initiative " as it was he who opened secret talks with Chancellor Gorkon following the Praxis disaster . Spock later committed Captain Kirk to the negotiations with the Klingon Empire . During Kirk and McCoy ' s subsequent trial and imprisonment for the assassination of Gorkon , Spock took command of the " Enterprise " and the murder investigation . Later , he led the rescue mission of Kirk and McCoy from Rura Penthe and helped stop an assassination attempt on the Federation President . Though this mission was successful , Spock blamed himself for endangering Kirk and the consequences that followed , a guilt that lasted 75 years . ( ; ) Diplomatic career . In 2293 , on the suggestion of his father , Spock opened a dialog with Gorkon in the hopes of initiating peace talks . He recommended an alliance between the Klingon Empire and the Federation at the Khitomer Conference , and Gorkon agreed to negotiate . His recommendation produced a major dispute because the Federation viewed Klingons as outlaws who built their empire through violence and brutality . Despite seemingly insurmountable odds , an alliance was nevertheless forged , bringing peace and stability to the Alpha Quadrant that had not existed for two hundred years . security officer Tuvok , a young man at the time who initially opposed the alliance , later noted that " " Spock ' s suggestion , so controversial at first , proved to be the cornerstone of peace . " " ( ; ) Also during the Khitomer Conference , Spock opened up negotiations with Ambassador Pardek of Romulus in an attempt to unify Vulcan and the Romulan Star Empire . ( ) Spock and Sarek publicly disagreed over issues involving the Cardassians , leading to a rift in their relationship . ( ) In his later years , Spock went into semi - retirement , choosing to act as a Federation ambassador ( much as his father had done ) . In 2368 , Spock undertook a secret personal mission to Romulus , unauthorized by the Federation Council or Starfleet . As he knew it would be risky , he preferred not to involve others and wrapped up his affairs . There he acted to facilitate Romulan - Vulcan reunification , avoiding contact with the rest of the Federation as he was reluctant to risk anyone ' s life but his own on such a mission after the near - fatal consequences to Kirk and McCoy in their involvement in the Khitomer conference . Captain Picard met Spock on Romulus and informed him of his father ' s death . Before Picard ' s departure , the two mind - melded , allowing Spock to realize the depth of his father ' s feelings for him . ( ) In 2369 , Spock was involved in an incident of " cowboy diplomacy " in which Deanna Troi was temporarily kidnapped to help with the defection of three Romulans , including Vice - Proconsul M ' ret , to the Federation . ( ) When an unknown person was beamed on board the in 2370 , told a few junior officer s that he heard that this was Ambassador Spock . ( ) In 2387 , when a star threatened to go into a massive supernova , Romulus faced destruction . Ambassador Spock promised to save Romulus and formed a plan which involved injecting red matter into the star , thus creating an artificial black hole which would consume the star . Piloting the " " , an advanced spacecraft equipped with red matter , Spock proceeded to the star to carry out his mission but , before he could , the star went supernova and destroyed Romulus . With other worlds threatened with destruction , Spock continued his mission and successfully created a black hole which consumed the supernova . Before he could escape , however , the Romulan mining vessel " Narada " , commanded by Nero , intercepted him . Nero blamed Spock for Romulus ' destruction and was bent on revenge . The black hole eventually pulled in the " Narada " and the " Jellyfish " . ( ) Involvement in the alternate reality . Spock emerged from the black hole in the year 2258 of the alternate reality . Since Nero had emerged twenty - five years earlier , Spock was immediately intercepted by the " Narada " upon his arrival . Both Spock and the " Jellyfish " were captured by Nero , who had been waiting for him . Spock ' s life was spared by Nero , although Nero marooned Spock on , where he could witness the destruction of from the planet ' s surface . After Nero used some of the red matter from the " Jellyfish " to create a black hole in Vulcan ' s planetary core , Spock watched helplessly from Delta Vega as his homeworld was destroyed . Shortly thereafter , Spock rescued a Starfleet officer from a hengrauggi , only to discover that the young officer was himself , that era ' s having marooned him on the planet for mutiny . The elder Spock was surprised that Kirk was not captain of the " Enterprise " . When Spock heard from Jim that Captain had been captured , Spock knew that it was the deeply troubled Romulan Nero . Through a mind meld , Spock explained to Kirk ( who initially hadn ' t believed a word of the old man ' s tale ) his presence in this time period and the reasons behind Nero ' s actions . He then walked with Kirk to the Starfleet Delta Vega outpost , where they met . Using Scotty ' s equation for transwarp beaming ( which Scott had not actually figured out yet ) , Spock was able to transport Kirk back to the " Enterprise " , along with Scott . When asked why he would not come with them , Spock stated that his other self must not know of his existence , implying that it could cause some kind of temporal paradox . Also , knowing his younger self would never take the course of action that could stop Nero but that Kirk would , Spock instructed Kirk to use Regulation 619 to force his younger self to give up command to him by proving he was emotionally compromised . Spock informed Kirk that he knew his younger counterpart was emotionally compromised due to the destruction of his homeworld . Kirk ultimately followed his advice and , by emotionally manipulating Commander Spock , managed to take command of the " Enterprise " . After the " Enterprise " defeated the " Narada " and Nero , the elder Spock returned to Earth . There , he met his less - than - surprised younger self ( while Kirk had kept his word , his word was no match for even the intellect of the younger Spock , as he had figured out who Kirk ' s mysterious benefactor must be ) and convinced him to remain in Starfleet . He also explained that the reason he had not returned to the " Enterprise " with Kirk to explain things was that he had not wished to deprive Kirk and Spock of the chance of working together and developing the friendship they were destined to have . He then wished his younger self good luck , and walked away . Afterwards , Spock witnessed the official promotion of Jim Kirk to captain of the USS " Enterprise " , repeating what he knew the crew would say before launch , apparently commiserating on his own experiences as a member of the crew of the " Enterprise " . He left with an intention to establish a Vulcan colony . His attempts to convince his younger self succeeded and the younger of the two Spocks returned to the " Enterprise " to act as Kirk ' s first officer . ( ) A year later , Spock was living on New Vulcan , having made a solemn vow not to further interfere with history by keeping information about his experiences confidential . However , when the younger Spock contacted him from the " Enterprise " s bridge for information regarding of the new reality , the old Spock felt obligated to break his vow . He responded that Khan was the most dangerous adversary the Enterprise had faced , and that it had required a great sacrifice to stop him . Ironically the younger Kirk of this reality later made the same sacrifice Spock himself had made when facing Khan in the prime reality to save the crew of the Enterprise , though the younger Spock was able to revive the younger Kirk with Khan ' s blood . ( ; ) In 2263 , Spock passed away of natural causes on New Vulcan . After his death , a small cache of personal items Spock had managed to retrieve from the " Jellyfish " was turned over to the younger Spock , including a photograph of the prime universe ' s bridge crew of the from around 2287 , illustrating to the younger Spock that his destiny was to serve alongside James Kirk , Leonard McCoy , and the others , for decades to come . ( ) Physiology . Although half Human , Spock ' s physiology retained most of its Vulcan characteristics such as the green blood , the placement of his liver , ( ) his strength , ( ) telepathic abilities , ( ) and his greater lifespan ( ; ; ; ) when compared to the average Human . However , it should also be noted that the life he lived was still about forty years shorter than the average Vulcan , who generally lived to be around two hundred years old . His father Sarek , for example , was 203 at his death . ( ; ; ; ) His Human characteristics were obvious when Sarek was in need of a blood transfusion and concern over donating his hybridized blood would be a danger to Sarek ' s full Vulcan physiology . ( ) The other instance where his Human side was evident happened during the final stages of his Kolinahr ritual acceptance . While on Vulcan performing the ritual , the " V ' Ger " probe approached proximity and its own emotional instability affected Spock ' s Human emotional side which he worked so hard to repress . ( ) Spock ' s Human side was also present when spores affected him on Omicron Ceti III . ( ) Like most Vulcans , he experienced " pon farr " neurochemical imbalance at least every seven years until the symptoms were remedied through ritual mating or " kal - if - fee " ( dueling ) . If not dealt with , a Vulcan could die within eight days of the first symptoms . Spock experienced " pon farr " at least twice , once performing the " kal - if - fee " with Kirk ' s assistance , once mating with Saavik while physiologically a youth as a result of his regeneration by the Genesis Device . Both successfully relieved his symptoms of " pon farr " s neurochemical issues . ( ; ) As of Vulcan rituals concerning death , Spock was able to transfer his " katra " into someone that was close to him – such as a family member – who could then transfer the " katra " into a large repository on Vulcan . In his case , he picked Dr . McCoy as a host for his " katra " when he decided to expose himself to fatal warp core radiation in order to restore warp power to the " Enterprise " . His corpse regenerated when his torpedo casing casket was shot towards the Genesis planet and was subjected to the Genesis cycles that rapidly evolved all life on the planet . ( ; ) After Spock received a mind meld from Captain Picard , he seemed to have accepted his Human side . He admitted to being emotionally compromised and showed some emotions when he dealt with Nero destroying Vulcan in the alternate timeline and dealing with his younger self . ( ; ) On his Human side , Spock once implied he had an ancestral relationship to British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle . ( ) Personal interests . Spock carried a lifelong interest in art , literature , poetry , music ( especially the Vulcan lute and the piano ) , and three - dimensional chess . ( ; ) He disliked Italian food , possibly because like most Vulcans , he was a vegetarian . ( ; ; ) Relationships . James T . Kirk . Spock presumably first met Kirk when the latter succeeded Christopher Pike as captain of the " Enterprise " in 2265 . After the death of Gary Mitchell , Spock ' s detached and logical analysis was relied on by Kirk as a supplement to his own intuitive and impulsive nature . Their official relationship deepened into a friendship of mutual respect and love that was , without a doubt , the most important relationship of both Spock and Kirk ' s life . As Edith Keeler observed of Spock ' s place in the world , " " You ? At his side . As if you ' ve always been there and always will . " " ( ) Kirk once described his Vulcan friend as " the noblest half of myself " and declared that Spock ' s immortal soul " is my responsibility , as surely as if it were my very own . " Kirk even told Spock ' s father that he would never realize how important Spock was to him , and declared that , despite losing the " Enterprise " and his son , had he not tried to rescue his friend , " " the cost would have been my soul . " " ( ) The polywater intoxication that affected the " Enterprise " crew in 2266 led to a difficult encounter between Spock and Kirk . When Spock was urgently required by his commanding officer , an anguishedly reflective Spock was found by Kirk , Spock regretting his inability to express love even for his mother . Trying to bring the first officer around to the moment , Kirk slapped him . Spock ' s reaction was flat and revelatory , " " Jim , when I feel friendship for you , I ' m ashamed . " " Struck again , Spock responded in kind , sending Kirk backwards over a table . ( ) Spock was sympathetic to Kirk ' s plight after the transporter divided the captain ' s personality into opposite aspects . He referred to his own halves , " submerged . . . constantly at war with each other . " Spock believed that Kirk could survive such a contest intact , and urged him to embrace the part of himself that , seemingly ugly , was crucial to his personality and captaincy . ( ) After Kirk discovered emotional rage was the key to nullifying the effect of the Omicron pod plant s , his first step in retrieving his crew was to taunt Spock into anger . Anticipating the result of a Vulcan ' s strength pitted against him , Kirk wielded a pipe for protection . After calling him an " elf with a hyperactive thyroid " and saying he belonged " in the circus , right next to the dog - faced boy , " Spock indeed lost control , nearly killing Kirk before regaining control of himself . ( ) In 2267 , Spock began his " pon farr " mating cycle , and behaved bizarrely aboard the " Enterprise " . Kirk called Spock " the best first officer in the Fleet " and " an enormous asset to me " as he pled with Spock to explain his actions . When told that taking Spock to Vulcan was against Starfleet orders , Kirk fired back , " " I owe him my life a dozen times over ! Isn ' t that worth a career ? " " Joining him on Vulcan for his marriage ceremony , Kirk was drawn into T ' Pring ' s scheme to marry another , and forced to fight Spock to the death . McCoy , knowing Kirk was endangered , faked Kirk ' s death , and the marriage was not consummated . Spock , despondent that he had murdered his captain , was thrilled at the sight of Kirk alive , exclaiming , " " JIM ! " " which McCoy delighted in needling Spock about , once he gained his composure . ( ) Kirk ' s understanding of Spock had an enormous impact on the parallel mirror universe , visited after a transporter accident in 2267 . As Kirk ' s party prepared to return to their proper universe , Kirk implored the to re - examine his role in the fascistic Terran Empire , insisting , " " One man can make a difference . " " Mirror Spock ' s consideration of those words led to his rise to dominance and reform of the Empire , with drastic consequences . ( ; ) When Kirk was trapped in spatial interphase during a rescue operation in Tholian space , Spock ordered the " Enterprise " to maintain its position in an effort to retrieve him , in spite of the danger the Tholians presented and the disruptive nature of the local space . After Kirk ' s assumed death , Spock and McCoy viewed the " last orders " Kirk had prepared . He urged Spock to use all the Vulcan disciplines at his disposal , tempered with intuitive insight . Kirk believed Spock had the latter qualities , but should they elude him , he was urged to seek out McCoy . ( ) Kirk once commented to Captain Garth that he and Spock were " brothers " . Spock merely responded , " " Captain Kirk speaks somewhat figuratively , and with undue emotion , but what he says is logical and I do , in fact , agree with it . " " ( ) When Dr . Janice Lester , a former lover of Kirk ' s , took over Kirk ' s body , Spock performed a mind meld on Kirk while he was trapped in Lester ' s body . Spock believed Kirk was Lester before anyone else , and when Lester as Kirk ordered his execution , he continued to stand by his friend . ( ) At the end of the " Enterprise " s five - year mission , a period marked by his frequent loss of emotional control , Spock chose to leave Starfleet and his friends , to pursue the Kolinahr discipline of logic on . His return to the " Enterprise " during the " V ' ger " threat was a cold event , without acknowledgment of his past friendships . In " V ' ger " s aftermath , Spock finally achieved equilibrium , able to express his friendship for Kirk without the influence of aliens or illness , and notably lacking any threat of physical violence . In 2285 , Spock was calmly able to tell Kirk , " " You ' re my superior officer . You are also my friend . I have been and always shall be yours . " " ( ; ) Spock ' s sacrifice of his own life , to save the " Enterprise " from Khan ' s detonation of the Genesis Device , deeply affected Kirk . At his funeral , Kirk could only bring himself to say of Spock , " " Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels , his was the most . . . Human . " " ( ) The revelation that Spock ' s " katra " , his living spirit , survived in the tormented mind of McCoy , led Kirk to risk his career , and in turn , his crew ' s . He first asked Admiral Harry Morrow for permission to retrieve Spock ' s body from the Genesis Planet , to bring it , and McCoy , to Vulcan . Kirk insisted that any chance to save Spock ' s soul was his responsibility , " " as surely as if it were my very own . " " His request declined , he told his crew , " " the word is No . I am therefore going anyway . " " With the help of Uhura , Scotty , Sulu and Chekov , Kirk rescued McCoy from confinement and commandeered the " Enterprise " from Earth Spacedock . The renegade mission would see the death of Kirk ' s ship , and his son . Finding Spock ' s body re - animated by Genesis , Kirk brought him and McCoy , to Vulcan for the " fal - tor - pan " ( re - fusion ) ritual . The first person Spock recognized was Kirk : " " Jim . Your name , is Jim . " " ( ) During their homecoming from Vulcan , and eventually their trip to 1986 , Kirk tried to remind the resurrected Spock , suffering from memory loss , of their friendship and past adventures together . After Kirk and the crew ' s trial , Spock told his father , his " associates " were his friends . ( ) In 2287 , Spock accompanied Kirk and McCoy on a camping trip together at Yosemite National Park , which abruptly ended when Spock ' s half - brother , Sybok , diverted the " Enterprise " to Nimbus III . After their adventure on and Sybok ' s death , Kirk referred to Spock once again as his " brother " , and told him and McCoy that they were his real family . ( ) When Spock later entered the alternate reality , he told of their deep friendship , despite the fact that had marooned Kirk on . Before returning Kirk , along with , to the ( revealing to this Scotty an advancement in transporter technology over a century before his prime counterpart perfected it ) , Spock – who in this reality had designed the " Kobayashi Maru " simulation and openly begrudged Kirk outsmarting it – was reminded that this could be viewed as " cheating " , to which he replied that an " old friend " – namely , Kirk – had taught him how to cheat . Later , when Spock Prime spoke to his own alternate reality counterpart about that universe ' s Kirk , he explained that he had resorted to a level of subterfuge in order to inform both men of the necessity of their friendship , both to themselves and to others . Spock Prime explained , " " I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together , of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize . " " ( ) Leonard McCoy . The relationship between Spock and Dr . Leonard McCoy seemed a little strained at times on McCoy ' s part because of his taunts about Spock ' s green blood and lack of emotion . However , there was an obvious respect and friendship among James T . Kirk , Spock and McCoy . McCoy , in fact , was one of the two friends Spock requested to join him in his marriage ceremony . ( ) While he would rarely do so without provocation , Spock was also quite capable of turning the tables on the doctor . During Kirk ' s court - martial , after an astonished McCoy discovered him in the briefing room playing chess against the ship ' s computer , Spock casually allowed him to assume the worst ( to the point of thanking him after the furious doctor had said he was " The most cold - blooded man I ' ve ever known " ) , waiting until he reached the door to reveal that he had been victorious in four consecutive games – since the computer , whose account of the incident was the main evidence against Kirk , was programmed to be unbeatable , this proved that it had been tampered with ( something only Kirk , Spock , and the " dead " Commander Finney were authorized to do ) , and cast doubt on the credibility of its account , keeping the trial going long enough to discover that Finney was , in fact , alive . Later that year , after the " Enterprise " crew had defeated the androids on planet Mudd ( beings almost Vulcan - like in their lack of emotion and their " logical , pragmatic " thinking ) , McCoy told Spock that he must be quite unhappy to see that " poor , illogical " Humans were able to fairly defeat them , Spock responded that this was quite satisfactory , as " nobody " needed him and his logical ways as much as a ship full of humans . ( ) Sybok . Sybok , Spock ' s elder half - brother , encountered Spock on Nimbus III in 2287 , shortly before Sybok hijacked the for his quest to find in the Great Barrier . Spock had remained silent on the subject of his brother for decades , not even telling Kirk until Sybok had already taken control of the " Enterprise " . At first , Spock was extremely distant from him , but following Sybok ' s death , he realized what he had lost . ( ) T ' Pring . At age seven , Spock was bonded to T ' Pring in a family - arranged Vulcan ceremony described in Human terms as " less than a marriage , but more than a betrothal . " When Spock experienced his " pon farr " of 2267 , he succumbed to the madness of the " plak tow " mating instinct . The " Enterprise " diverted to Vulcan in time to consummate the marriage . Accompanied by Kirk and McCoy , Spock arrived at his family ' s ancient " koon - ut - kal - if - fee " site for the wedding ceremony officiated by the matriarch T ' Pau . Unexpectedly – but within the bounds of Vulcan tradition – T ' Pring demanded the challenge of " kal - if - fee " , forcing Spock to earn the right to marry his bride through victory in personal combat . Rather than her prospective consort Stonn , T ' Pring chose Kirk as her champion . Unwilling to appear weak or disrespectful in front of the legendary T ' Pau , Kirk agreed to fight his first officer . Between rounds using the " lirpa " and " ahn - woon " weapons , T ' Pau belatedly revealed the combat was " to the death , " and it became clear that Kirk had little chance against Spock in the throes of his blood fever . McCoy intervened , deceptively dosing Kirk with a drug that simulated his death . Spock ' s " plak tow " subsided after his apparent victory . Appalled at the turn of events , Spock calmly questioned T ' Pring ' s decisions . T ' Pring admitted her distaste for Spock ' s growing fame among Vulcans , and her mutual attraction to Stonn . By her logic , choosing Kirk meant neither victor would claim her in the end , and she would have her life with Stonn . Spock acknowledged her way of thinking , referring to it as " flawless " . T ' Pring , for her part , was honored , but Spock advised Stonn that he would find that " " having . . . is not so pleasing a thing after all . . . as wanting " . " After returning to the " Enterprise " , McCoy revealed Kirk ' s clandestine survival . A rare show of extreme emotion came from Spock when he exclaimed " " JIM ! " " with a beaming smile . ( ) Christine Chapel . When the Psi 2000 intoxication infected the crew of the " Enterprise " in 2266 , Nurse Christine Chapel admitted her love for Spock , who was thereupon emotionally shocked . Her love for him was an ongoing issue , but never interfered with her professional duties . ( ) Chapel once housed Spock ' s consciousness to keep him from being destroyed by Henoch . They were later forced by powerful telepaths to kiss each other , but neither enjoyed the forced situation . ( ) While under the spell of Harry Mudd ' s love potion , Spock became infatuated with Chapel , and was willing to fight for her love . However , the potion eventually wore off and then Chapel , as a side effect of the drug , seemed to hate Spock for a brief time . Spock commented to Mudd that a few brief moments of love being paid for with several hours of hatred is scarcely a bargain . ( ) Leila Kalomi . On stardate 3417 , Spock was infected by Omicron spore s while on Omicron Ceti III by Leila Kalomi , who was serving as the Omicron colony ' s botanist . The spores broke down Spock ' s emotional control , and he confessed his love for Kalomi . Their time together was short - lived , however , as Kirk deduced a method of destroying the spores with intense emotion and induced anger in Spock . Once free from the spores , Spock freed Kalomi and the rest of the planet from their influence . He later reflected that his time with Kalomi was the first time in his life at which he had felt happy . ( ) Memorable quotes . " " Live long and prosper . " " " " I happen to have a Human thing called an adrenaline gland . " " " " That does sound most inconvenient , however . Have you considered having it removed ? " " " " Very funny . " " " " Try to cross brains with Spock , he ' ll cut you to pieces every time . " " " " I am endeavoring , ma ' am , to construct a mnemonic circuit using stone knives and bearskins . " " " " I have never understood the female capacity to avoid a direct answer to any question . " " ( ) " " A curious creature . Its trilling seems to have a tranquilizing effect on the Human nervous system . Fortunately , of course , I am . . . immune . . . to . . . its . . . effect . . . " " " " Fascinating . " " ( To Alice 27 ) " " I love you . " " ( To Alice 210 ) " " However , I " hate " you . " " " " But I am identical in every way with Alice 27 ! " " " " Exactly . That is exactly why I hate you ; because you are identical . " " " [ The androids violently malfunction . ] " " " Fascinating . " " " " Logic is a little , tweeting bird , chirping in a meadow . Logic is a wreath of pretty flowers that smell bad . " " ( ) " " Nowhere am I so desperately needed as among a shipload of illogical Humans . " " ( ) " " On my planet , ' to rest ' is to rest , to cease using energy . To me , it is quite illogical to run up and down on green grass , using energy instead of saving it . " " ( ) " Enterprise " to signaller on planet ' s surface . Identify self . " " ( Reads answer ) " " Hip , hip , hurrah . . . ' and I believe it ' s pronounced ' Tally ho ' . " " ( ) " " Fascinating ' is a word I use for the unexpected . In this case , I should think ' interesting ' would suffice . " " " " I have been , and always shall be , your friend . " " " " Jim . Your name is " Jim . " " " If I were Human , I believe . . . my response would be ' Go to Hell . ' If I were Human . " " " " Interesting . " " " " Billions of lives lost , because of me , Jim , . . . because . . . I failed . " " " " Thrusters on full . " " " " Space : the final frontier . These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise . Her ongoing mission : to explore strange new worlds , to seek out new lifeforms and new civilizations ; to boldly go where no one has gone before . " " Kirk and Spock . " " Have I ever mentioned you play a very irritating game of chess , Mr . Spock ? " " " " Irritating ? Ah , yes : one of your Earth emotions . " " " " Your illogical approach to chess does have its advantages on occasion , captain . " " " " I prefer to call it ' inspired ' . " " " " As you wish . " " " " You ' d make a splendid computer , Mr . Spock . " " " " That is very kind of you , captain ! " " " " So , we ' re stranded here , in the middle of a Klingon occupation army . " " " " So it would seem . Not a very pleasant prospect . " " " " You have a gift for understatement , Mister Spock . It ' s not a very pleasant prospect at all . " " " " You didn ' t really think I was going to beat his head in , did you ? " " " " I thought you might . " " " " You ' re right . " " " " Well , Mr . Spock , if we can ' t disguise you , we ' ll find some way of explaining you . " " " " That should prove interesting . " " " " My friend is obviously Chinese . I see you ' ve noticed the ears . They ' re actually easy to explain . " " " [ Long pause . ] " " " Perhaps the unfortunate accident I had as a child . " " " " The ' unfortunate ' accident he had as a child . He caught his head in a mechanical . . . rice picker . " " " " Don ' t grieve , Admiral . It ' s logical . The needs of the many . . . outweigh . . . " " " " The needs of the few . " " " " Or the one . I never took the " Kobayashi Maru " test , until now . What do you think of my solution ? " " " " The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few . " " " " You know , coming back in time , changing history . . . that ' s cheating . " " " " A trick I learned from an old friend . " " " Spock wears a total of nine medals in 2269 , not counting the IDIC medal he wore in " Is There in Truth No Beauty ? " It is likely he accumulated a great many more decorations by the time of his eventual retirement in the late 2290s . " Appendices . Background information . Performers . Spock was played by Leonard Nimoy in nearly all of the character ' s television and cinematic appearances . The Genesis - regenerated versions of Spock at nine , thirteen , seventeen , and twenty - five years of age in were portrayed by Carl Steven , Vadia Potenza , Stephen Manley , and Joe W . Davis , respectively . Spock ' s screams in that film were provided by Frank Welker . The young Spock from was voiced by Billy Simpson . Carey Scott recorded some dialogue for a younger Spock in , but his scenes were cut . And while Nimoy portrayed the elder Spock in the film , was played by Zachary Quinto ( who reprised the role in and ) , as well as briefly by Jacob Kogan , who portrayed Spock as a young boy . Nimoy reprised the role of Spock for a cameo in . A deleted scene from " Star Trek " featured a newborn Spock , portrayed by Jenna Vaughn . As Spock ' s birth would have occurred before the universe split , technically , she would have been the only performer to portray both Spock Prime and his alternate reality counterpart , as well as the only " actress " ever to play Spock . Name . Jane Wyatt , who played Spock ' s mother Amanda Grayson , was once asked by fans at a convention what Spock ' s first name was . She replied , perhaps jokingly , " " Harold " " . However , the question itself was flawed , since the episode makes it clear that " Spock " is Spock ' s personal name . On the other hand , Spock ' s family name has never been established in canon . In the episode , Leila Kalomi says to Spock , " " You never told me if you had another name , " " to which he replies , " " You couldn ' t pronounce it . " " D . C . Fontana – who was considered the " Vulcan expert " of the TOS behind - the - scenes staff and who created such details as the fact that Spock ' s father was an ambassador and his mother a school teacher – revealed , in an issue of the fanzine " Spockanalia " , that she had intended his family name to be " Xtmprsqzntwlfd " , but since this is unpronounceable , there wasn ' t really any way to get this said in dialogue during an episode . Since the release of the film , the original reality version of Spock is now often referred to on websites and other media as " Spock Prime " , to differentiate from the alternate reality version of the character . From concept to series . From the start of thinking Spock up , Gene Roddenberry knew he wanted the character to be partly alien , and that he wanted Leonard Nimoy to play the role . Roddenberry later explained , " " I made [ Spock ] a half - caste , because I remember thinking a half - breed Indian would be a lot more interesting than a full - blooded Indian or white , because he ' s going to be tugged in many different directions . " " ( " Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before " , p . 15 ) Gene Roddenberry also wanted Spock ' s appearance to be very similar to typical portrayals of Satan the Devil . " " I did purposely give him a slight look of the ' devil ' because I thought that might be particularly provocative to women , particularly when his nature contrasted so greatly to this , " " Roddenberry stated . The following character biography appeared in Roddenberry ' s original , series pitch " Star Trek is . . . " ( and was reprinted in " The Making of Star Trek " ) : In the revised first draft script of ( dated ) , Spock was described thus ; " " The only exception to the familiar types represented by the crew , Mister Spock is of partly alien extraction , his reddish skin , heavy - lidded eyes and slightly - pointed ears give him an almost satanic look . But in complete contrast is his unusual gentle manner and tone . He speaks with the almost British accent of one who has learned the language in textbooks . " " The episode ' s revised final draft script ( dated ) excluded mention of the " reddish skin " but otherwise remained the same . Later in the script , one of Spock ' s statements was directed to be delivered in an " excited " manner . Gene Roddenberry thought up the unemotional aspect of Spock . Roddenberry explained , " " As I created him , I said to myself , ' If I could just get rid of the emotions that plague me and work things out logically . . . " ah " , the things I could do ! " " ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 27 , No . 11 / 12 , p . 47 ) Casting Director Joseph D ' Agosta added , " " On the Spock character , the only guidelines I had were that he had to be thin , and a good actor with no emotion . He was a cold , calculating , logical person . Humor was not even considered at that time . " " ( " The Star Trek Interview Book " , p . 213 ) Actor Martin Landau ( Commander of ) was an early casting consideration for the character of Spock in TOS . This was before the role went to Leonard Nimoy . In spite of studio request to get rid of " the guy with the ears , " Gene Roddenberry insisted on keeping the character through both pilot episodes of the series . ( " " ; " " ) According to Leonard Nimoy , he felt the need to play the character as more emotional when Jeffrey Hunter was playing the internalized Christopher Pike , as opposed to William Shatner ' s portrayal of Captain Kirk . ( " " ; et al . ) Also , there was room for Spock ' s emotional detachment when the similarly emotionless character of Number One was discarded along with Pike , after . ( " Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before " , p . 15 ) NBC ' s early - publicity booklet gave this bio for Spock ( reprinted in " " ) : The nonemotional quality of Spock ' s persona was extremely appealing to Leonard Nimoy . " " What immediately intrigued me was that here was a character who had an internal conflict , " " Nimoy observed . " " This half - human , half - Vulcan being , struggling to maintain a Vulcan attitude , a Vulcan philosophical posture and Vulcan logic , opposing what was fighting him internally , which was Human emotion . There was a dynamic there to work with from an acting point of view . " " ( " Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before " , p . 15 ) Gene Roddenberry recognized Spock as a team effort . " " I ' ll take credit for formulating Spock and guiding the character , " " he said , " " then give as much credit to Leonard Nimoy for making it work , and also credit to the writers who kept it going in many story situations . " " On the other hand , Roddenberry proclaimed , in a letter to Isaac Asimov , " " It ' s easy to give good situations and good lines to Spock . " " Roddenberry also thought it was easier to write Spock than it was to write McCoy . Nonetheless , the depiction of Spock was still to be further developed as the show began . Recalling the character ' s genesis , TNG Producer Robert Lewin noted , " " Spock was not the hero that he became during the early part of the first series . " " ( " " , p . 71 ) The series writers ' guide ( third revision , dated ) gave the following description of Spock ( " " ) : Season 2 salary issue . In the spring of , before production began on " Star Trek " s second season , Lenard Nimoy and his agent got into an argument with the producers regarding the actor ' s salary ( Nimoy felt it unfair that series star William Shatner was paid US $ 5 , 000 per episode , while he was only paid US $ 1 , 250 ) . The agent wanted US $ 3000 per episode for his client , and would settle with US $ 2 , 500 . However , a misunderstanding resulted in the agent believing that " " stars had at least US $ 11 , 000 salaries , so he suddenly demanded US $ 9 , 000 for Nimoy . The studio , of course , relented . Nimoy threatened to leave the series if the dispute was not solved . In response to Nimoy ' s threats , Desilu executive Herb Solow asked Casting Director Joseph D ' Agosta to compile a list of possible " Vulcan replacements " , in case negotiations went unresolved . Three lists were made of actors who were deemed suitable for the role of Spock : " A " List : Mark Lenard , William Smithers , Liam Sullivan , , , , , , , Peter Mark Richman , , , Stewart Moss , , John Anderson , " B " List : , Perry Lopez , , Alan Bergmann , , Blaisdel Makee , , Henry Darrow , , , , " C " List : Lawrence Montaigne , , Patrick Horgan , , Bruce Watson , , , Joseph Ruskin , , Lee Bergere , In reality , these lists were only a psychological ploy to put pressure on Leonard Nimoy and his agent . The only two actors considered as possible replacements were Mark Lenard and Lawrence Montaigne ( ironically , both of them appeared as Vulcans in the second season , Lenard playing Spock ' s father , Sarek ) . Eventually , Desilu ( at the insistence of NBC ) and Nimoy settled with US $ 2 , 500 per episode , plus US $ 100 for additional expenses , a better billing , a better merchandising deal , and more script input . However , when Montaigne was cast as Stonn in , his contract had an option of recalling him to be cast as Spock , " just in case . " ( " " , pp . 317 - 324 ) Animated depictions . For approximately half an hour while was in early development , a boyhood version of Spock was considered for inclusion as a regular character in the upcoming series , along with other child equivalents of the series ' main characters . ( " The Art of Star Trek " , pp . 42 & 43 ) While initially developing , D . C . Fontana realized she wanted to feature Spock in the story , since he had always been her favorite main character and was the focus of her favorite episodes from the ones she had written for , such as and . ( " Star Trek - Where No One Has Gone Before " , p . 56 ) She was excited by the prospect of showing " part of what made Spock Spock , " delving into his backstory in " Yesteryear " . ( " " , p . 97 ) Reappearances . The notion of Spock suffering racial prejudice , alluded to in and the film , was shared by the unmade prequel " " , in which Spock first met Kirk when he was defended by him from bullies at Starfleet Academy . Gene Roddenberry once distributed a memo to the TNG writing staff which declared that , due to financial considerations , it would probably be impossible for Leonard Nimoy to ever guest star on that series as Spock ( though Roddenberry also suggested Sarek appearing in a guest star role as an alternative ) . ( " The Making of Yesterday ' s Enterprise " , p . 22 ) In an interview with Trekmovie . com ' s Anthony Pascale in , Leonard Nimoy explained that he felt Spock had been superfluous in the script of and that that was why he had chosen not to appear in the film . Nimoy initially proclaimed , " " There was no Spock role in that script , " " then elaborated , " " There were five or six lines attributed to Spock [ . . . ] but it had nothing to do with Spock . They were not Spock - like in any way . I said to Rick Berman , ' You could distribute these lines to any one of the other characters and it wouldn ' t make any difference . ' And that is exactly what he did . There was no Spock function in the script . " " In a memo he wrote Manny Coto ( on ) , Mike Sussman suggested that both an elderly Spock and a young version of the character be featured in covering an episode or two from the fourth season of , if Leonard Nimoy was interested in appearing . As Sussman proposed , the older depiction of Spock would have been portrayed , in a framing story , by Nimoy , while the young Spock would have been played by another actor ( a technique inspired by the portrayal of in a two - parter from called " Mystery of the Blues " , which features not only a young version of Jones , but also a middle - aged Jones , played by ) . In the same memo , Sussman envisioned Spock in the 24th century , as a " distinguished and retired Ambassador , " being visited by a young Vulcan / Human hybrid who sought advice for balancing the two halves of his own personality . The elderly Spock then began recounting an adventure that took place in the early 23rd century , in which he , as a Starfleet cadet , assisted a middle - aged T ' Pol , learning , in the process , " some lesson which helped him choose his own path in life . " Sussman went on to suggest that a lot of new details about Spock could be divulged in the story , possibly including that , in his young adulthood , he had been torn between life as a diplomat ( like his father ) and a Starfleet career . The memo continued by proposing that Spock ' s mission include the now - aged other senior officers from , and be " a secret and possibly illegal TBD mission . " However , this Spock story ultimately wasn ' t developed . Roberto Orci , a co - writer of the film , wrote the Spock character as being essential to that film ' s narrative without considering a back - up story , had Leonard Nimoy turned down appearing in the film . He recalled Nimoy raised an eyebrow at the idea of the destruction of Vulcan . Commented J . J . Abrams , " " Leonard was a dream to work with . He was always incredibly encouraging and excited about what he was seeing . He had a couple of thoughts , but he loved everything related to his role [ . . . ] He was happy to see Spock look so damn good ! " " ( " " , p . 240 ) Abrams also stated , " " It ' s a big deal for him to come back and play this part again . I don ' t think it ' s something he expected to do . Directing him as Spock for the first time was as surreal a moment as I ' ve had . It was preposterous , but wonderful . " " ( " " , issue 234 , p . 126 ) After the making of the film , Leonard Nimoy retired ( again ) from acting and publicly stated that he did not intend to return to the role of Spock again , as he felt that to do so would be unfair to Zachary Quinto . Nimoy even went as far as to say , " " I definitely will not be in " Star Trek 2 , " and , " " I think I can be definitive about the fact that I will not be in it . " " ( " SFX " , issue # 200 , p . 68 ) However , it was eventually confirmed that he would indeed be returning to the role of Spock for the sequel , . Regarding how J . J . Abrams invited him to make a cameo appearance in the film , Nimoy recalled , " " He just said , ' Would you come in for a couple of days and do me a favor . " " Whereas Nimoy had declined to cameo in because he felt Spock ' s part in that movie had been too general , Nimoy was persuaded that Spock had such a specific role in " Star Trek Into Darkness " that he was willing to accept the part . Addressing why he had claimed not to be in the film , Nimoy , who was very pleased that the truth of his involvement was kept secret , initially said , " " I was asked time and time again if I was in the movie , and I managed to avoid answering without lying . " " He laughed , but was then reminded that he had flat - out denied being in the film and replied , " " Maybe I was confused . Of course , speaking , if you ' ll pardon me , logically , I wouldn ' t know if I was in the movie until I saw the movie . " " His cameo marked Nimoy ' s final appearance as Spock and his final role overall prior to his death in . Other language voice actors . Herbert Weicker was a German stage and voice actor who is widely associated with Spock , since he voiced this character in all German translations of episodes and films with the exception of the first run of . Reception . Spock became one of the most enduring symbols of " Star Trek " . Accounting for the character ' s popularity , Gene Roddenberry stated , " " I think that everyone was so smitten with Mr . Spock because he stood for loyalty and reliability . " " ( " Cinefantastique " , Vol . 27 , No . 11 / 12 , p . 47 ) The popularity of Spock was one factor that motivated Leonard Nimoy into demanding a salary increase for the second season of TOS . " " By this time , Leonard ' s popularity had convinced him of what he already knew : He had the most important role , " " Herb Solow observed . In a memo Gene Roddenberry sent Gene L . Coon ( on ) , Roddenberry mentioned Spock having generated " considerable mail volume and public adulation " during the first season . ( " " , pp . 317 & 319 ) NBC likewise regarded Spock and Nimoy as the most popular part of the original " Star Trek " series , and believed that losing them would be very unflattering . The popularity of the character was thus influential in Leonard Nimoy ' s continuation in the part . ( " " , p . 324 ) Roberto Orci has cited Spock as his favorite character . Casting Leonard Nimoy as an elderly version of Spock in the film " Star Trek " gave irate fans pause , caused them to stand down , and even won them over . ( ' , issue 234 , p . 126 ) However , William Shatner has been disapproving of how Spock is portrayed in that movie and its sequel , " Star Trek Into Darkness " , commenting , " " I thought the two Spock appearances were gratuitous . J . J . [ Abrams ] wanted to pay homage to Spock I guess , but he didn ' t offer anything to the plot [ . . . ] I told Leonard , ' You know that you ' re old when you go back in time and you ' re still old . " " ( " ' Presents " 50 Years of Star Trek " " supplement , p . 15 ) Observations . Spock is referred to as a lieutenant commander in , though the final draft and revised final draft of that episode ' s script instead referred to him as a full commander ( in the equivalent line of dialogue ) . The listed Spock as having been promoted from lieutenant commander to full commander following " Court Martial " . This was apparently the result of mishearing a captain ' s log entry that Kirk makes in , where Spock is still identified as a lieutenant commander . He is also referred to as a lieutenant commander in and was first referred to as a commander in , indicating the promotion occurred between those two episodes . Somewhat oddly , even when he was a lieutenant commander during the first season , he still wore a full commander ' s stripes . The events of and show Spock having full command of the " Enterprise " , the latter having Spock outrank Kirk as he was in command of the entire mission . However , the events of and show Spock having a lower rank than First Officer . Spock ' s heritage was explored in a book about " Star Trek " science ; it was determined that a Vulcan / Human hybrid is biologically impossible , as Vulcan blood was copper - based , while Human blood is iron - based – copper and iron are chemically incompatible . Apocrypha . Barbara Hambly ' s novel " " gives Spock ' s unpronounceable full name as " S ' Chn T ' Gai Spock , " with " S ' Chn T ' Gai " apparently being the family name as opposed to the personal name . According to Diane Duane ' s novel " Spock ' s World " , Spock was a descendant of Surak . Spock briefly reactivated his Starfleet commission , with the rank of admiral , during the Dominion War , according to " Spectre " , a novel on whose writing William Shatner collaborated with Judith and Garfield Reeves - Stevens . In the novel " Crossover " , Spock and several unificationists were captured by the Romulan Empire . He was ultimately rescued by Scotty , Commander Riker , Data , and Geordi La Forge aboard the that Scotty stole from a Starfleet museum using the shuttle he was given by Picard to control the " Yorktown " s computer . After believing Scotty dead for 75 years , Spock was momentarily startled to see him behind the transporter controls , but quickly regained his control . Scotty promised to explain how he reached the 24th century later to Spock . In the novel " The Fire and the Rose " , Spock began to lose his emotional control after hearing of the death of Captain Kirk , and eventually returns to Gol to take " Kolinahr " training again . Spock ultimately succeeded and became truly emotionless , a situation that neither Sarek nor Amanda agreed he should have tried to do . Amanda in particular , felt Spock had rejected his humanity and therefore in some measure , her by extension . Spock ' s lack of emotion also ultimately alienated McCoy when he came to ask Spock to stand with him at his wedding to Tonia Barrows and Spock refused . Ultimately , after Amanda ' s death in a shuttle accident and Spock seeing Sarek grieve for Amanda " ( which surprised Spock as he mistakenly believed Sarek to have also been a student of " Kolinahr " ) " , and when Spock realized that he can ' t grieve for Amanda and that he didn ' t even miss her , he sought McCoy out on Earth to help him engage in an ancient Vulcan ritual to reverse the " Kolinahr " , allowing Spock to feel emotions again . This accomplished , Spock rebuilt his relationship with McCoy , was able to grieve for his mother and Captain Kirk , and once again found the balance and peace between his Vulcan and Human halves , allowing him to have emotional control again without rejecting his emotions . In the novel " Provenance of Shadows " , Spock , having been contacted by McCoy ' s wife Tonia Barrows , and told that McCoy was taking a turn for the worse , went to see McCoy because he had regretted that he didn ' t get to see either Kirk or his mother once more before their deaths , and he was not going to make that mistake this time . Spock did spend the day with McCoy and planned to return the next day , but as he left McCoy ' s house , Spock was left with the impression he would never see McCoy alive again . Spock ' s feelings are proved correct as McCoy does die peacefully in his chair on the porch that same evening before Spock can return , with Tonia by his side , reflecting on his life and the good work he ' s done and his family and friends . In the novel " Vulcan ' s Forge " , Spock commanded the science ship " Intrepid II " in 2294 , a year after Kirk was lost in the Nexus . Within the story , Uhura was Spock ' s first officer and McCoy his chief medical officer . Other novels set after " Star Trek VI " established that Picard was at the wedding of Spock and Saavik met Sarek . In the novel " Yesterday ' s Son " , Spock found out that he had a son with Zarabeth , whom she had named Zar . In the game " " , Ambassador Spock was sent aboard a " Galaxy " - class starship to mediate a treaty between the Klingon and Romulan empires on Romulus . The Borg intercepted this ship and assimilated him . The " Enterprise " traveled 2 days back to make sure he reached the peace conference . The plan succeeded , resulting in Romulan and Klingon ships being dispatched to assist the Federation in defending Earth . In the comic series " " , leading up to , Spock was aided in his attempts to help convince the Vulcans to provide the Romulans with the red matter necessary to stop the impending supernova explosion by Jean - Luc Picard , who was now Federation Ambassador to Vulcan , as well as by a restored Data , who was now captain of the " Enterprise " . Also , the comic established that Geordi La Forge had designed the " Jellyfish " , which Spock used to drop the red matter into the supernova . Just after the " Jellyfish " and the " Narada " were pulled through the black hole and into the alternate reality , the black hole finished collapsing and the " Enterprise " arrived in the area finding no indication anywhere that Spock managed to escape . Presuming Spock to be dead , Picard said that he hoped his friend ' s soul did indeed live long and prosper . In the of , after Kirk told Spock that , , , and – all but one of the group of officers who had once been willing to throw away their careers to save him – were all serving on the ( taking McCoy ' s presence for granted when following the confirmation of the other three ) , Spock suggested to Kirk that their meeting , and the way the crew was already coming together , was the work of the timeline attempting to " fix " itself . As for the one person not yet aboard the ship , he had been well aware that Scotty was stationed at the outpost , which he had visited on occasion for supplies – though it wasn ' t clear whether they had actually met – but he had a made a point of keeping his distance . This self - imposed isolation was the only reason that he happened to be at the right place with a torch as the hengrauggi wrapped its tongue around Kirk ' s leg , which struck him as yet more evidence to support his theory – Kirk ' s arrival made it clear that the three had converged there for a reason , since he could give Scott the basics of his own invention , and therefore return Kirk to the " Enterprise " , with a way to take his rightful place in command ( seeing that the young officer was obviously unaware of Regulation 619 , he admitted to having forgotten how insignificant such things had been to the Kirk he knew so well ) , and hopefully be able to minimize the damage to the timeline . In the comic series " " , the events leading up to " Countdown " were detailed . Leonard Nimoy and Zachary Quinto also lent their voices to " Star Trek Online " ; Nimoy reprised his role as Spock and narrated key events to players , while Quinto voices an EMH who helps the player though the tutorial level . The virtual collectible card battle game " " was using Nimoy ' s picture for card # 103 " Ambassador Spock " . The " " story arc " Legacy of Spock " focuses on his place in the alternate reality ' s new Vulcan settlement . Though initially blamed in part for the ultimate destruction of Vulcan , he is ultimately revered for his dedication to his people and receives a monument that is still standing 3 , 000 years later . Unlike the other monuments , which are massive , his is life - size , reportedly because he felt to make it any larger would not be " logical " . In " Star Trek Cats " , Spock is depicted as an Oriental Shorthair cat .