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Easily one of the best episodes from the original
Star Trek series, "Amok Time" was written by the novelist Theodore Sturgeon, who came up with a story about a Vulcan mating cycle that occurs every seven years and drives the normally stolid, logical, pointy-eared humanoids wild. When Spock (Leonard Nimoy) is suddenly caught in the grip of
pon farr, a crazy-making urge to mate, he sets a course for his home planet despite orders to the contrary from Captain Kirk (William Shatner). Kirk comes around, however, and accompanies Spock and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) to Vulcan, where Spock is to wed T'Pring (Arlene Martel) in an arranged marriage. But T'Pring formally rejects Spock, forcing a duel in which the captain must participate or let Spock die. There's high drama galore in this one, beginning with Spock's feverish savagery and extending to the fascinating complexity of Vulcan rituals, set against the eerie emptiness of the planet's landscape. For good measure, there's also the startling sight of Kirk and Spock fighting it out to the death. Supporting performances are terrific, including that of Celia Lovsky (the real-life wife of Peter Lorre) as the matriarch T'Pau. This is also the episode that gave birth to the split-fingered Vulcan salute (inspired by Nimoy's memories of the kohanin blessing at Jewish temples) and the phrase "live long and prosper." One of
Trek's more highly charged episodes, you can feel a certain spontaneous energy here--indeed, some of the more inspired actors even made up their own lines.
--Tom Keogh
From the Back Cover
Spock becomes irrational when he is possessed by an overwhelming mating urge, and Kirk must fight him to the death on the planet Vulcan.
TREK TRIVIA
Celia Lovsky (T'Pau) was a star in her native Hungary but moved to the states so her husband could pursue his career. Her husband: celebrated actor Peter Lorre. To perform the Vulcan salute (introduced in this episode by Leonard Nimoy), Lovsky had to hold her hand in the correct form below the camera, then raise it quickly before she lost the position!
When Spock is supposed to be "deep in the plak tow", note that Leonard Nimoy is seen casually in the background, apparently unaware that he is on camera.
