I love this scene! Uhura not only knows how to “rig up a sensor bypass circuit”, she respectfully stands up for herself and her work in response to Spock’s anxious impatience about it getting done. And he not only understands, he compliments her.
Unfortunately, we never fully see exactly what this smock is. She wears it over her uniform to do the work but it’s not clear how much it covers, or where it came from, or why she put it on. I can infer from this, and from her always amazing hair, make-up, and accessories, that Uhura takes pride in her appearance and simply wants to keep the grime of the computer innards off her uniform. But I wish she wasn’t the only one to wear one. Scotty is always crawling around machines in his standard uniform and while I’d love to accept it as a difference in personalities, because of the society we live in, it is easy to universalize as a difference in gender.
The context for this episode is pretty vintage Star Trek: Uhura’s memories are wiped by a rogue supercomputer so Chapel has to reeducate her. But what we get from that absurd set-up is absolutely adorable.
I love the nightie with shoulder bows like she is Cinderella! I love it. The matching baby blue slippers! It’s so adorable I CAN’T. The most fashionable hospital gown EVER. She could go to the prom like that.