Amok Time
When a secluded Spock begins treating visitors violently, Kirk confronts his first officer and discovers only a journey to Vulcan will satisfy certain biological instincts and restore Spock's health.
Spock fans, this is our episode. Not all of Vulcan's secrets are revealed, but a distinct alien culture is established. It's fitting too that one of the series's best scripts includes a 15-minute fight. (Including the lead-up.) But this is not your typical wrestling match for Kirk, who seems particularly slow to catch onto it being to-the-death and overconfident in facing an opponent who's already whupped him. Still, the rematch is exciting, and the music and weapons - now firmly imbedded in pop culture - still have an impact. However goofy the guards and artifacts might be, T'Pau restores all dignity. T'Pring and Stonn aren't very interesting, and it's not hard to see why Spock wouldn't want to stay. Fight aside, the best scenes are those early on, possessing a gravity and intensity rare in TOS. Kirk wants to help his friend, Spock doesn't want to be a burden, but the pon farr won't let either alone. The ritual itself has been criticized as - ahem - illogical, but I would agree with McCoy that it's the Vulcan release of emotion and desire they otherwise surpress. They remain the show's most complex and convincing race.
Spock Saves the Day: Not really.
Oops: The results of Spock's actions are best summarized by the man himself. "I have killed my captain and my friend."
Developments: We'll start with the personality. As pon farr sets in, Spock is angry and irritable as never before. He literally throws Chapel and her soup out, smashes a console, and seriously threatens McCoy. Unlike Kirk's deliberate verbal assault in This Side of Paradise, none of these actions are meant as provocative. We see Spock trying to calm himself, steadying his shaking hands and strumming his lyre, to no avail. His pleas to Kirk ("Lock me away, I do not wish to be seen ...") are also atypical to say the least. Yet his confiding in the captain and doctor also strengthens their friendship.
Once they arrive on Vulcan, the viewer learns more about the planet and people. Up to now we've assumed their "ancient passions" were indeed things of the past. But here, now, they clearly continue, though veiled in secret ceremony and concentrated into a seven-year biological cycle. Spock has every right to protest Kirk's involvement in the bizarre koon-ut-kal-if-fee ritual, and doesn't want to fight him. But again, when forced to fight, he is victorious, and would indeed have killed Kirk had it not been for McCoy's ruse. It says much that the second Spock thinks Jim is dead, he snaps out of pon farr. We then get to hear "Live long and prosper" for the first time, with a poignant reply. It's clear Spock, throughout this ordeal, only cared about one thing, one person: and he is gone. But ah! A deception. The "Kirk's alive!" scene is a complete 180° turnaround for the Vulcan, with big smile. This episode gives us a sustained look at Spock's planet of origin, but his home is the Enterprise.