Spock breaking up with T'pring for Chapel makes me sad. They could have been so good for each other. And I just now realized: Spock never ends up getting married (that we know of).
Maybe I'm just projecting human emotion, but I feel like that explains some of the more morose/melancholy demeanor seen in his later years. Always put the needs of the many first, even to the very exclusion of his own needs.
T'pring really did deserve better and honestly I really dislike what Spock did. I feel like if it was any other character in any other show we would see this as a major character flaw. But, because he's spock we just kind of let it go.
Well, in the context of a world where stories are being told, Spock always being perfect even when young and figuring this stuff out wouldn't lead to any interesting stories.
Personally, I've seen his story with T'pring as a variation on the very common struggle people who grow up in strict cultures go through. Some of those individuals break away from their cultures, some come to terms with it personally.
Spock's been interesting in that he chooses his Vulcan side ultimately. I think most character stories go the other way--the uptight, rules-following individual breaking away from the rigid culture that nurtured them. Spock in contrast finds a balance.
I did not recall that. Having Googled it, it seems they implied it was Spock, but never explicitly stated it, and never followed up in that later. The only details about it seem to be from a novel, Vulcan's Heart, where Spock had married Saavik.
I will sacrifice my need to walk around the house in my boxers, eating Cheez whizz out of the jar.
