Star Trek: Action-packed baton pass

(tags Star Trek, movie)

As a self-professed Star Trek fan, I admit to not watching the later iterations of canon. For example I haven't seen Enterprise the TV series or the last couple of movies with the Next Generation cast. But it's hard to get excited about all the logical inconsistencies. I completely watched Star Trek Voyager on DVD and the ending was the last straw.

So I didn't have much enthusiasm for seeing this latest movie, Star Trek (2009). I mean come on, they did a reboot on TV and it fizzled. I didn't bother watching trailers. I did skip the discussions on Slashdot, just in case. Then the reviews come in. Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes show a better-than-expected favorable reception. It makes headlines pulling in money. Friends and virtual aquaintances that I know who aren't as nerdy as I am about Star Trek give it a thumbs up. Oh, okay let's check this out.

Star Trek opened the last week of May in Japan, after being out 3 weeks in most English speaking countries. I watched it today, on the 3rd day, to an early morning half-filled theatre. The couples around me were elderly, with one of the doods smelling of urine while the others smelled of fresh smokes. At least in Japanese theatres people don't heckle, but I really hate those old people who have breathing problems.

Then the movie began. I was surprised. I didn't expect [spoiler] to be there. I was floored. I laughed at the in-jokes. I was totally elated. Tears in my eyes (but usually I get emotional with any movie, bah). I wanted to see this movie a second time in the theatre. This was the Trek movie that I wanted to see.

At least on the surface.

I cannot and do not want to remove the years of watching The Original Series, Next Generation, Deep Space 9, Voyager. I've been to Trek conventions, bought some goods, even own complete DVD series sets (oh no Blu-Ray is out). I am a fan, I want to believe in its universe. But this is not the old, familiar Trek. This is a new Trek. I remember the baton passing from Captain to Captain in the Star Trek Generations movie. All I felt was "yeah, enough of Kirk".

The new trajectory doesn't have anything to do with science fiction or philisophical grunting ("There are four lights!"). It's pure action. Don't get me wrong, I love action. Well, it's like going to Chuck E Cheeze's expecting pizzas and arcade games, but getting hamburgers and bumper carts. Well if this is the new Trek, I like it. But I do I miss the old taste.

My post-movie review started with vague reflection, followed by stale Slashdot-hosted discussions. There they opened all the plot holes and other dissatisfying things that had been gnawing at my skeptical brain. I considered giving ST a break, that because this is a new Trek, some of those nitpicks about 24th century technology usage should be jettisoned. Or that this is a character development and motivation movie, not a "human condition" movie. In the end though, ST is the new city built on the ruins of the old one. We must raize it to save it. You can see that people lived here before, but they have nothing to do with the way we live now.

Oh well, at least the computer graphics were stellar. Let me loose inside that eye candy store. And the next movie is already in development. I'd like to see that one in the theatre, too. But I rather put the money that was on a copy for home into some SF magazines and novels. I wouldn't go so far as to say ST killed movie SF, but I won't label this new Trek as my kind of SF.

What. Oh, yeah go see it, it's a summer blockbuster movie.