There are many answers to offer, ones that can lead to discussions concerning the balance of dynamics between the Triumvirate, about Roddenberry’s vision of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy as three aspects of a single person, why it is these three men who are always drawn together despite their differences, and a thing called destiny. Yet we can add one more qualifier – and a very strong one – to the list of what makes the Triumvirate special.

Jim himself said it best:  “I knew I wouldn’t die because the two of you were with me.”

We call this faith.

The faith in Spock and McCoy which Kirk finally gives voice to after decades of knowing them, we have seen develop since their first meeting. “The Tholian Web”, “The Empath”, “The Obsession”, “The City on the Edge of Forever”, “Amok Time”, “Bread and Circuses”, “For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky”, “The Conscience of the King”, “The Paradise Syndrome” – these are just some of the triumvirate-centric episodes in the three seasons of The Original Series. The movies which follow the television show (some decades later) cement Kirk, Spock, and McCoy canonically as a Triumvirate. The common factor between both mediums is this: Kirk, Spock, and McCoy always look out each other, and refuse to give up on one another even when the situation seems impossible. We are shown that as time goes on the three friends only get better at it.

Think on this: How many opportunities were there to lose one of them if it hadn’t been for the other two? How many times have we, as the audience, enjoyed their loyalty, show of caring and support, the teasing and bickering, all of which characterizes a real life friendship? If Kirk, Spock, and McCoy hadn’t been friends, hadn’t trooped into danger together, or engaged in byplay on the bridge that shaped their individual decisions, would we still be celebrating the first Star Trek crew half a century later with the same enthusiasm?

It’s human to desire a special bond with another person. That’s why friendships and romances appeal to most of us. When that bond is magnified threefold, it becomes more special, more beautiful. All that a triad requires to work (the give-and-take, the understanding, the acceptance, including the magic of time) makes it feel impossible to achieve. But hasn’t it already been pointed out that Kirk, Spock, and McCoy can defy the impossible odds when united? Therefore one must conclude that the Triumvirate exists as an example of hope.

So, why the Triumvirate? Simply put, we won’t meet anyone quite like them in real life. That’s why!

Related Posts:

• The Vision Behind SpaceTrio – April 8, 2017
• Which do you love more: TOS or AOS? – September 6, 2017