Zarabeth
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Zarabeth |
| Occupation: | |
| Relationships: | with Spock? |
| Fandom: | Star Trek: The Original Series |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Zarabeth is a Sarpeidonian humanoid character who appears in the Star Trek: TOS episode "All Our Yesterdays."
Canon
She was exiled via a time machine, the "atavachron", to her world's ice age as punishment for her family's conspiracy to overthrow a dictator. Spock and McCoy accidentally entered Zarabeth's time era when they attempted to follow Kirk through the atavachron. Unable to locate the portal to return, they were freezing when she appeared and led them to safety. In hopes of staving off her loneliness, she told Spock that the atavachron "changed" those who pass through it, so that they were trapped 5,000 years in the past. Spock began to regress to the behavior of Vulcans at that time, before Vulcan reforms had led them to create a rational society and suppress their emotions. He became more and more emotional, falling in love with Zarabeth, eating meat, and unable to think logically. McCoy guessed the truth, that Zarabeth was the one who could not go back. Convincing Spock of the necessity to continue to look for a way back and to find Captain Kirk, McCoy persuaded Zarabeth to lead them to the time portal. Spock, still reluctant to leave her behind, realized he must return when they heard Kirk's voice through the portal. At the end of the episode, Spock returns to normal, and speaks of the realization that Zarabeth had been dead for 5,000 years.
Pro Novels
A.C. Crispin was a fan who went on to write two tie-in novels published by Pocket Books with a focus on Zarabeth's son.
Yesterday's Son and Time for Yesterday, had the Enterprise crew using the Guardian of Forever to return to Sarpeidon and bring Spock's son Zar into the future, after Zarabeth's death. Zar begins to adapt to life on the ship but is pressured by Spock to behave in a more Vulcan manner. Also, being the parent of an illegitimate child is an embarrassment in Vulcan society; the children are not blamed, but the parents suffer serious social detriments, and this will happen to Spock. Zar finally decides to return to his own world and time period, but in a more temperate environment, where he can be an effective member of the just-beginning Sarpeidonian civilization. Time for Yesterday follows up on his life in that environment.
Crispin was a very frequent and out-spoken contributor to the letterzine, Interstat regarding her books, the quality of tie-in books, and of fandom. Many of these comments can be seen at Fanlore's pages for Yesterday's Son and Time for Yesterday.
Some other reviews of Crispin's books:
Fandom
Zarabeth is featured often in fan works, mostly het and slash.
In heterosexual and even general-audience works, it is commonly assumed that Spock had sex with Zarabeth and fathered a child, usually a son. In slash works, the loss of Zarabeth spotlights Spock's grief and loneliness, which of course, leads to an intimate relationship with Kirk.
Some Fanfiction
- Meat Dreams, a story by JS Cavalcante
- Prophecy of the Universe, an all-Zarabeth zine
- Sarpeidon, a Zarabeth zine
- Giving Thanks, a story by Khiori
- A Change of Season, a story by Charlotte Frost
- Simple Gifts, a novel by Claire Gabriel concerning Zarabeth's great-granddaughter, Dr. Sarah Halstead
- many, many others
An Audio Tape
- Fanzine, a rare Star Trek: TOS "fan-generated magazine on tape" by Shuttlecraft. It is a "45-minute monaural cassette tape with music, dramatic readings, etc." It includes "And Zarabeth Killed a Snowbear."
Some Fanart
from Signe Landon Star Trek Postcards (1976)
from When Le'matyas Sleep, artist is Carol Pierce
from Furaha #5, artist is Joni Wagner
from Hartlines #4, artist unknown
from Warped Space #20, artist is Signe Landon
from Babel #3, artist is Alan Andres
cover of Beta Niobe Revisited, artist is Marty Siegrist
inside art from Beta Niobe Revisited, artist is Gee Moaven
from Half You, Half Me #2, artist is Cheryl Newsome
from Masiform D #7, artist is Martynn
from Prophecy of the Universe, artist is Ann Crouch
from Sahndara #1, artist is Christine Myers
undated art by Gordon Carleton
