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Star Trek
THERE IS NOT ENOUGH CAPSLOCK IN THE WORLD TO CONVEY THE DEPTH OF MY SQUEE FOR THIS MOVIE!!!!!!!!!
And I have to profoundly thank everyone on my flist (and friendsfriends, so basically all of fandom on LJ) for being so careful about spoilers. My sum total of knowledge walking into the film was who was playing 2 of the characters, and I have never been so happy to be unspoiled in my whole life.
First, it has to be said: OH MY GOD, YOU KILLED VULCAN! YOU BASTARDS!
I literally sat there with my jaw hanging open for 10 minutes. I couldn't believe they actually went there. And then I convinced myself that they were going to time travel somehow to fix it. I'm still amazed they didn't actually reverse it. *Mourns for my favorite planet in the Federation*
You know this had to be a good movie if they killed off my favorite planet and I still adored it!
Which is not to say that I thought the plot was original or brilliantly written--it was original to the Trekverse, sure, but in some ways it was one enormous cliche after another: I mean, a woman giving birth as the ship is being destroyed? And it turns out she's giving birth to James T. Kirk? Who's going to grow up fatherless and the biggest rebel that ever rebelled? In some ways that's all just one enormous cliche, and yet even though 90% of the time I could predict every twist of the plot, I still loved them and found them deeply emotionally satisfying. Because dammit, James T. Kirk should be born in the middle of an epic battle where his father heroically gives his life to save 800 people, including his newborn son. The film hit all the right emotional notes for me, so I ceased to care if some of the major plot points were heroic cliches, or others involved outright theft from other films (Spock is now apparently either Anakin Skywalker or Leia Organa, I can't make up my mind--if he loses a hand in the next movie I guess that will be decisive).
I can see, what with the playing around with Kirk's backstory, and hooking up Uhura and Spock canonically (more on that later), and BLOWING UP THE BEST PLANET IN THE FEDERATION and all they felt like this movie was not being aimed at hardcore Trekkers--but I was a hardcore Trekker for a long long time (as were the two people sitting behind me in the audience, clearer) and I felt there was a *ton* of fanservice going on. We cheered every time someone said one of their signature lines, or when every core canon character was introduced, or when they played with some previously-established bit of characterization (my absolute favorite was Sulu's line about his expertise in hand-to-hand combat being fencing! hee! but then it turned out that his fencing skills helped save the day!), and I felt like the movie was completely jam-packed with moments like this.
And as a longtime fan of the original series, I had been a little worried about whether I would like the new versions of these characters or not--and I totally did. Hell, I think Chris Pike and James T. Kirk were better cast than in the original (with apologies to Shatner lovers--he always drove me crazy with his particular acting style), and I totally loved Uhura and Spock and Bones and Sulu and Chekov and Scotty.
And damn, Uhura and Spock? PLEASE tell me there is fic for this already, please? Not to mention Uhura/Spock/Kirk threesome fic, and I also would not turn up my nose at Spock/Spock Prime.
And how much did I love it that they got Leonard Nimoy for this movie, AND that he got to stick around and help rebuild Vulcan? OH MY HEART. I have been in love with this man since I was seven years old. I spent most of my adolescence developing elaborate Marysue fantasies about me and Spock, and now there are 2 of them? I want a sequel NOW, please.
I'm going to go see this movie again, for sure, at which time I may attempt some analysis that is more than just squee, but for right now I just think this is the most perfect Star Trek movie in the history of ever!!
And I have to profoundly thank everyone on my flist (and friendsfriends, so basically all of fandom on LJ) for being so careful about spoilers. My sum total of knowledge walking into the film was who was playing 2 of the characters, and I have never been so happy to be unspoiled in my whole life.
First, it has to be said: OH MY GOD, YOU KILLED VULCAN! YOU BASTARDS!
I literally sat there with my jaw hanging open for 10 minutes. I couldn't believe they actually went there. And then I convinced myself that they were going to time travel somehow to fix it. I'm still amazed they didn't actually reverse it. *Mourns for my favorite planet in the Federation*
You know this had to be a good movie if they killed off my favorite planet and I still adored it!
Which is not to say that I thought the plot was original or brilliantly written--it was original to the Trekverse, sure, but in some ways it was one enormous cliche after another: I mean, a woman giving birth as the ship is being destroyed? And it turns out she's giving birth to James T. Kirk? Who's going to grow up fatherless and the biggest rebel that ever rebelled? In some ways that's all just one enormous cliche, and yet even though 90% of the time I could predict every twist of the plot, I still loved them and found them deeply emotionally satisfying. Because dammit, James T. Kirk should be born in the middle of an epic battle where his father heroically gives his life to save 800 people, including his newborn son. The film hit all the right emotional notes for me, so I ceased to care if some of the major plot points were heroic cliches, or others involved outright theft from other films (Spock is now apparently either Anakin Skywalker or Leia Organa, I can't make up my mind--if he loses a hand in the next movie I guess that will be decisive).
I can see, what with the playing around with Kirk's backstory, and hooking up Uhura and Spock canonically (more on that later), and BLOWING UP THE BEST PLANET IN THE FEDERATION and all they felt like this movie was not being aimed at hardcore Trekkers--but I was a hardcore Trekker for a long long time (as were the two people sitting behind me in the audience, clearer) and I felt there was a *ton* of fanservice going on. We cheered every time someone said one of their signature lines, or when every core canon character was introduced, or when they played with some previously-established bit of characterization (my absolute favorite was Sulu's line about his expertise in hand-to-hand combat being fencing! hee! but then it turned out that his fencing skills helped save the day!), and I felt like the movie was completely jam-packed with moments like this.
And as a longtime fan of the original series, I had been a little worried about whether I would like the new versions of these characters or not--and I totally did. Hell, I think Chris Pike and James T. Kirk were better cast than in the original (with apologies to Shatner lovers--he always drove me crazy with his particular acting style), and I totally loved Uhura and Spock and Bones and Sulu and Chekov and Scotty.
And damn, Uhura and Spock? PLEASE tell me there is fic for this already, please? Not to mention Uhura/Spock/Kirk threesome fic, and I also would not turn up my nose at Spock/Spock Prime.
And how much did I love it that they got Leonard Nimoy for this movie, AND that he got to stick around and help rebuild Vulcan? OH MY HEART. I have been in love with this man since I was seven years old. I spent most of my adolescence developing elaborate Marysue fantasies about me and Spock, and now there are 2 of them? I want a sequel NOW, please.
I'm going to go see this movie again, for sure, at which time I may attempt some analysis that is more than just squee, but for right now I just think this is the most perfect Star Trek movie in the history of ever!!
no subject
The whole thing brought up memories of the stories I wrote in my 13 year old head, with lots of crying and angst, and Spock being picked on for being different but handling it way cooler than a certain little biracial pudgeball. *koff* I loved the way they rewrote history, I loved the effects--I *loved* that little monster baby James T. Kirk and now, I'm going to really have to dig out my mimeographed fanfiction magazines!
no subject
I agree with you about this being like 80s fanfiction, too--in fact, it reminds me a little of one of the 80s pro novels (which were so fanfic like before TNG came out and they clamped down on everything) where a Kirk and Spock in another universe die in each other's arms while mindmelding. The Spock!Prime/young Kirk mindmeld felt a little like that for me, since clearly Spock!Prime was so happy to see his dead husband there.
Hee! As someone below suggests, Spock!Prime can hook up with youngJim, and that clears the path for young!Spock and Uhura, which I agree with you is a fantastic pairing.
Monsterbaby JamesT was awesome. I totally want to see his stepfather's response to him crashing his car into that canyon. (One of the many Iowa canyons, of course).