What is the Vulcan nerve pinch? All about Mr.Spock’s legendary technique to immobilize enemies in Star Trek, explained

While Mr. Spock always chooses logic to handle issues aboard the USS Enterprise, his unique combat move to immobilize the enemy, referred to as the Vulcan nerve pinch, has become one of the more famous aspects of the Star Trek universe. It is a fighting technique that Vulcans use to render a target unconscious by applying limited pressure at the base of the neck.

After the episode The Enemy Within on The Original Series was aired, the martial arts technique generated quite a bit of curiosity among the Trekkies. Leonard Nimoy who plays Mr. Spock came up with the combat move. The Vulcan nerve pinch went on to become a vital part of the wider Star Trek universe.

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Original of the Vulcan nerve pinch

As a species, Vulcans heavily relied on logic and reason above everything else. Leonard Nimoy believed that Mr. Spock, who is half Vulcan, did not engage in anything violent and preferred to use rationality to solve problems. However, occasions do arise where he is forced to confront unwanted intruders.

Before filming ‘The Enemy Within’, Nimoy told director Leo Penn that Mr. Spock had a detailed understanding of the human anatomy and he would know exactly how to apply pressure on the nerve to immobilize them.

While speaking to Barbara Frum on CBC The Day It Is in 1969, Nimoy revealed,

“I devised the Spock pinch.”

According to him, the script needed Mr. Spock to attack someone but he felt that an evolved species like his would not resort to violence and thus he came up with the technique. He said,

"This man is an alien, we don't know anything about aliens. We can say anything we want, we can make the audience believe anything we want about an alien. Let's use our imaginations. The man could have a very special knowledge of the human anatomy that hasn't been discovered yet, or he may have some special power that only Vulcans have.”

Once the producers saw it, they were on board with the unique idea and made it a part of his legacy. He added,

“It became kind of a traditional thing and we had great fun with it. And I avoided what I consider physical violence ... it was a merciful way of knocking out an enemy."

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The use of Vulcan nerve pinch in the Star Trek Universe

In Season 1 episode 5 titled ‘The Enemy Within’ of The Original Series, due to a transporter error, Captain James T. Kirk (played by William Shatner) is split into two - good and evil. Mr. Spock uses the Vulcan nerve pinch to render the evil Captain Kirk unconscious.

While most Vulcans use this technique, it is established that with a more precise understanding others can attempt it too. Star Trek Universe will go on to use the move in several instances.

In Season 2, episode 23 titled ‘The Omega Glory’ in The Original Series, Mr. Spock tries to teach the move to Captain Kirk. However, they fail. In Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Dr. Leonard McCoy (played by DeForest Kelley) attempts to use the move but fails as well.

There have been a few other occasions where the technique has been successfully carried out by a non-Vulcan. Capitan Jean-Luc Picard (played by Patrick Stewart) attempted the technique successfully. In the episode titled Starship Mine, in season 6 and episode 18 of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Captain Picard uses the technique to disable the mercenary Devor (played by Tim Russ) acting as a technician on USS Enterprise-D.

Michael Burnham (played by Sonequa Martin-Green) has also been able to use the nerve pinch. In Season 1 of Star Trek: Discovery episode 1 titled ‘The Vulcan Hello’ Michael will use the technique against Captain Philippa Georgiou (played by Michelle Yeoh). Michael was adopted by a Vulcan family as a child and thus she knows the technique.

We also see an alternate universe version of Captain Kirk (played by Paul Wesley) use the Vulcan nerve pinch in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Season 2, episode 3 titled ‘Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow’. The captain uses the Vulcan nerve pinch on a civilian. He says that he learnt it from his Vulcan cellmate in a Denobulan prison.

In Star Trek: Nemesis, we see android Data (played by Brent Spiner) use the Vulcan nerve pinch to take out a guard. Changeling Odo (played by René Auberjonois) in Deep Space Nine also successfully used the move.

Trekkies come to learn that the technique works on animals as well. In the Star Trek Animated Series episode titled ‘Yesteryear’ Mr. Spock uses it on a ferocious animal referred to as Le-matya.

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Does it work in real life?

One of the questions that often comes up is - can the Vulcan nerve pinch work in real life? After years of people trying to replicate it, it can be concluded that it does not. This is entirely fictional.

In The Making of Star Trek published in 1968, Stephen E. Whitfield and Gene Roddenberry shared that the pinch will stop blood and electric signals from reaching the brain. While in the real world, this may not make sense, in Star Trek, it is one of the more effective tools.

Because of its popularity, there have been several references to the technique in other shows as well including Phineas and Ferb, iCarly, and even The O.C.

Star Trek was created by Gene Roddenberry. The Original Series aired on NBC from 1966 to 1969. Today, the Star Trek universe comprises movies, spinoff shows, comics, and animated series.

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