The Jihad
Kirk and Spock are recruited to an elite team that must recover a stolen artifact, lest it begin a religious war. It's being held on an unstable volcanic planet, and the team might have a traitor.
This feels much more like a sword and sorcery epic than science fiction, since our captain and Vulcan have companions, embark on a quest, and seek the Grail - or, the Soul of the Skorr. (Which, you'll forgive us, looks rather like floating, glowing toilet paper.) However, it fails to create the wonder of even a D&D novel. We've even seen all the aliens before, and none are distinct individuals. Lara doesn't interest Kirk at all, and we can't blame him. He also says he "already has a lot of green memories." We don't doubt it. The sabotage could be seen a mile away, though everyone in this party seemed pretty shifty. The plan to "cure" Tchar of his "madness" falls back into the TOS habit of blaming evil deeds on insanity. With more time and character development this could be a worthwhile journey, but its too fleeting as is.
Spock Saves the Day: Spock fights Tchar in freefall, and keeps the party focused during lava attacks.
Oops: Lara doesn't like Vulcans, and prefers humans. Neither Kirk nor Spock inform her of his mixed heritage.
Developments: Spock reveals his more sensitive side as he tells Lara, when asked if he quotes anything besides statistics, that "poetry and philosophy do not seem appropriate here." He also trains with Kirk in weekly zero gravity combat situations, as a well-rounded individual.