Synopsis: In a shuttle accident an alien being saves Lt. Spock’s life, but also makes him fully human.
This episode can be seen as an illustration of what it is like for a neurodivergent individual who is trying to fit into a neurotypical society.
In “Charades” Lt. Spock and Nurse Christine Chapel are in a shuttle heading toward the Kerkhovian moon in the Vulcan System when they encounter a rupture in space time and enter a vortex. There is an accident. The shuttle is retrieved and thanks to the Kerkhovian entities both Spock and Chapel survive the accident, however in saving Spock they inadvertently made him fully human. This is particularly bad timing because Spock’s betrothed, T’Pring, has arranged for her family to come aboard the Enterprise for a ritual engagement dinner. Captain Christopher Pike hails the Kerkhovians to ask for their assistance to restoring Spock to his original composition, but is told that remediations have been made and that that is the end of it. However, Chapel takes a shuttle to plead with the Kerkhovians to return Spock back to his original self. Meanwhile, Spock’s mother, Amanda Grayson, comes aboard to help him through the rituals, although, without his Vulcan half, Spock will be forced to basically fake it using a pair of prosthetic ears, hoping that Chapel will be able to come through with a remedy before he is asked to mind meld, something he cannot falsify. Chapel does return with a cure and gives it to Spock in time for him to successfully complete the ritual. However, T’Pring is concerned that Spock did not feel able to tell her the true nature of his condition, and asks for some time apart. Then Chapel comes to see Spock and they kiss.
In this episode, Spock, who is now 100% human and is forced to pretend that he is half-human and half-Vulcan, can be seen to be experiencing what neurodivergent individuals face when trying to fit into a neurotypical society. In the happy ending, Spock returns to his half-Vulcan self, which is what everyone involved in the ritual expected. For neurodiverse individuals however, we are still forced to mask until our culture is ready to accept us for who we really are.
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