The Prisoners (Star Trek: TOS story by Sharon Pillsbury)
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | The Prisoners |
| Author(s): | Sharon Pillsbury |
| Date(s): | 1992 |
| Length: | |
| Genre(s): | slash |
| Fandom(s): | Star Trek: TOS |
| Relationship(s): | Kirk/Spock |
| External Links: | |
Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
The Prisoners is a Kirk/Spock story by Sharon Pillsbury.
It was published in the print zine Counterpoint #6.
Summary
"Taken prisoner after crash landing on an unknown planet, Kirk is used by the master guard who holds him by using Spockʼs safety as leverage."
Reactions and Reviews
1992
What an unusual and very interesting story. And what an unusual attitude for guards and prison wardens to have, yet the explanation of why they were that way was perfectly logical. I believe what I especially liked was the fact that there was no drag to the story. Kirk didn't hug his unhappiness to himself for too long a time, and when it was necessary, Spock didn't cling to his Vulcanism, but opened up for Kirk. A refreshing story. [1]
Avery unusual story, a refreshing twist in everyone's behavior. Being written in first person also helped to make it different. The theory behind the prison camp explained the people in it and their attitude. I found the story almost gripping, as well as well written and worked out. A nice piece of work. [2]
I thought I didn't care for first person present tense. It usually reads too awkwardly, but that was not the case in this story. Flawless writing — clear, non-intrusive. I liked the scenario right off. Kirk and Spock both prisoners (instead of prisoner/rescuer). I appreciated how the society is depicted through only simple hints: not overdone but adequately expressive. Tristan is a good character: I enjoyed the look at Kirk and Spock through his eyes. The Spock POV part regarding Kirk's withdrawal from him was beautifully poignant. That Kirk and Spock didn't speak the language was an effective element. (Clever, of course, for them not to let on how much they really did understand the language.) The mirror was another deceptively simple yet powerfully effective device. It was unusual that the only sex between Kirk and Spock was as seen from Tristan's POV. I loved this story, but wanted it to end in Kirk's or Spock's POV. [3]
1993
This was an interestingly different approach to a captive story. It is told in the first person by the Master Keeper, Tristan, and Spock. Kirk's point of view is never presented.
Kirk and Spock are the prisoners of the title and they are in a work camp on an alien planet. The interest came from seeing them from a fresh perspective -- Tristan's. His character was fully developed and poignantly real.
The author created a believable situation in which Kirk submits to the guard in order to save Spock, but there is a twist. The language barrier created misunderstandings and misreading of reactions that added an unusual slant to the story. Tristan is not an evil monster but he is wrong in almost every supposition he makes about Kirk/Spock.
I thought this was well written and nicely different. [4]
2011
The Prisoners by Sharon Pillsbury is a tale of unrequited love, despair and resignation. Our boys are forced to crash land on a planet where the slightest transgression results in life imprisonment working either in the desert breaking rocks or in the mines where deadly fumes reduce your life span. The governor, himself a prisoner, tries to rule as leniently as he can, but the regime gives him and the guards the right to take any prisoner to bed, and you‘ve guessed it, Jim stands out from the crowd. With the threat of Spock‘s welfare as a lever Jim is forced to allow himself to be used night after night, until.....now read on. [5]
References
- ^ from The LOC Connection #39
- ^ from The LOC Connection #42
- ^ from The LOC Connection #42
- ^ from The LOC Connection #52
- ^ from The K/S Press #173