Red Shirt Volunteer

Hey Chunderfish,

Glad to hear it wasn't just my imagination.

Hockey (on ice, not grass) is the most fun to play and watch. I was always better at soccer but had more fun swinging a stick. Baseball, basketball and American football all put me to sleep with the stoppages in play and pointless time-outs.

Karate is great for getting in shape and maintaining self-discipline but gets a bit boring once you've done the drills for the umpteenth time. I still practise at home when I need to focus myself or take my mind off a problem, though I gave up on my dojo a year and a half ago.

I don't know why, but I've always been more impressed with the Klingon ships.

I'd always assumed some form of democratic process existed, yet it all just seems too idyllic. Hints were certainly dropped during DS9's run that dissenters were not unheard of, but they always struck me as a fringe group while the moral core of humanity, based in the principles of the Federation, remained unchallenged by the majority. I suppose a large part this was a result of the sweeping generalisations Picard made. I won't get into whether I agree or disagree with the value system he referred to (especially noteworthy examples abound in "First Contact"), but there was always a degree of arrogance to the way he would proclaim the virtues of his own civilisation. When people begin to extol their own values like this, I wonder at times if they can continue to better themselves or if they make themselves subordinate to those values.

The original question came to me in light of recent discussions on the Romulans in the Ent. forum as I wondered what effect the war, expected by many fans, with an alien race might have on uniting people as well as the upcoming Russian election that President Putin is predicted to win in a landslide. Well, enough rambling. I though I would explain this last bit a little more, but I'm sure someone will work out what I'm driving at.

It seems somewhat odd to me how everyone on Earth supports Starfleet and the Federation. There always seems to be an external threat such as the Klingons, the Romulans or the Borg, but I seriously doubt humanity will ever be so united as to put aside all ethnic/linguistic/cultural differences.

You could say the UT solves the language issue, but it's just not realistic because there is an underlying assumption in any tech used for translation that people think the same way and all ideas can be understood by all cultures. The whole thing seems beyond belief to me at times, though it's nice to think it might actually happen.

The only way I can conceive it is if we assume the Federation has created at totalitarian form of government. What do you think?

I think they might merge the "two" timelines, assuming there are two, and so the events happening in the Ent. timeline will be true for that crew whereas we the viewers, looking back on it from a TOS/TNG or onward perspective, should not know about those events, but will.

Red Shirt, I like your proposed settings.  There is one setting I'd like to see.  It would really be more like a different kind of phaser tho... basically, what would you think of a phaser that could make something cold?  It'd be good for turning a wall to ice and then shattering it.  Just a thought I had when I was very young.  What do you think?

Of course, Captain Bolivar, there could always be a "Phase Inverter Mode" for making a frappuccino on those nasty desert planets.

I don't know, maybe I just had my head too close to the screen but I noticed the other week that T'Pol had two eyebrows. One angled up and supposed to be showing (the Vulcan one) and the other the obviously bad make-up job that failed to conceal Jolene Blalock's real eyebrows. Perhaps a rookie has been hired in a cost-cutting measure to do the make-up.

Pointed Sideburns aare cool !!!!!!!!

I know. If only I could convince the rest of the world.

I think tbey need more settings. Here are a few I propose:

- shave (for a Rikerish beard)

- trim (just for sideburns)

- toast (obviously for food, but possibly for torture)

- exfoliate (for those in a dry climate)

- boil water

- function as TV remote control (infra-red)

- pointer (handy for presentations, especially if someone nods off - you could just switch to the next setting)

- sting (a very weak stun setting)

- remove mole/tattoo/etc.

- clean (for the soles of shoes)

- de-ice (for Canadians in winter)

- defrost

- engrave

- weld

- and, last but not least, melt (useful for a fondu).

Because hey, let's face it, they make the thing do whatever they need it to when it suits them. Why not make it more functional? They really need to release a manual for picky fans.

No. I did for a while but felt like a Paramount yes-man while it was on. There are way cooler ones out there. If you think about it, would they ever have Trek wallpaper on a computer in Trek? No.

I have a band in my hat and a drum in my ear. Heh heh heh.

Hope nobody hurt themselves reading that.

I agree, RSV!  Remember how Archer was clinging for dear life in the launch bay when Silik opened the space doors to escape in "Cold Front"?  I think the show needs to give us more decompression scenes from the interrior's point of view to show us that 22nd century ships don't have hulls that are as strong as those in Kirk and Picard's eras.

Yes, there's something about a decompression scene that makes me tingle.

Yes, I do know the difference. I know it well, which is precisely why I pointed that out for you - just think of it as being corrected or helped (as you said).

Back to the point of the original post, it's a pretty interesting special effect, but I think it takes away from the drama. It'd be more dramatic to see someone clinging on for dear life like the last scene in "Aliens." I haven't seen "Azati Prime" yet, but I can imagine what it'll look like.

I was going to be sensitive and not post this, but I just can't help myself.

Some people, like myself, are just as annoyed when people do not use proper English.

Earlier word:

vacum

I take it you meant vacuum, right?

I thought I saw bodies in space too. in one of the DS9 episodes, they show a Klingon vessel under attack, and they show an internal explosion, and a crewman running down the corridorslips, hits the deck, and is sucked out. also, in Nemesis, one of the bridge crew is sucked out.

It's blown not sucked.

What's the difference? This is exactly what irritates me about Trek fans. Look, there are a number of other words that could probably be used to describe what happened, but does it matter as long as the point gets across clearly? Blown, sucked, propelled, pulled from the confines of the ship, yanked off the ship like a weed from a flower bed, plucked from the happy confines of his/her quarters, wrenched into the void, extracted from their warm, fuzzy existence like a misplaced piece of frozen bacon on a veggie pizza... who really cares?

How about he comes back on screen? I mean on the screen on movie night. He'd be a perfect fit for "cheesy movie night." He could ham it up and mock himself in some send-off of a Trek-like film doing a parody of some famous scene.

Absolutely. I've got mine going right now. Just grew them back to a decent length after a shaving mishap last week.

Which one tastes better? I don't like anything too salty.

I think it would be a cheap plot device. Her family has suffered enough and probably doesn't need to go through thinking about her death again. IN MY OPINION, this notion is kind of a sick obsession of Trek fans indicating they value some kind of anal need for completion within the show more than the feelings of real people. It would suffice simply to have a black screen with text dedicating any episode to her memory, perhaps the final ep of the season. It probably should've been done a long time ago (I don't recall if it has been or not). Let her rest in peace and don't drag her family through those memories again.

Hi edmcgon,

I also wanted to say that TMP was just lame, but held back. And, yes, those 3 movies lacked any real threat threat to the crew. Although "Nemesis" seemed to contain one, the fact is that after "First Contact" I think it's impossible for a lot of fans (at least for me) to consider anything, species or natural phenomenon, a threat. After you defeat your arch-enemy, namely the Borg, what is there left to worry about? It's sad but I don't think I can feel any tension whatsoever in another TNG movie.

I have to say I think it was the poor choice of actors to play villains for those 3 movies. Check out the database at startrek.com - they don't even have pics for some of these people! I did think Tom Hardy was good in "Nemesis," but he was unproven and a new character and so not exactly a big draw. Check out the names in the other movies:

TMP: Nobody, but it was the first one so it had nostalgia working for it.

II: Kirstie Alley, Ricardo Montalban.

III: Christopher Lloyd, Mark Lenard.

IV: Theory falls apart here. Well, the whale did some good work.

VI: Christopher Plummer, Kim Cattrall.

Generations: Macolm McDowell.

First Contact: Alfre Woodard, Alice Kriege, James Cromwell.

Picard's right about the Romulans.  It's the crew, not viewers, that can't see them.  The bashers are going to bash no matter what happens, so who really cares what think.  It'd be really interesting to get a look into what the Romulans know about Starfleet and Earth leading up to the conflict.

Yeah, it's correct that we could see them and the crew doesn't have to. I personally don't want them to do that though. That's just my thinking though. They made a point of saying that humans hadn't seen Romulans before Kirk's time so I don't think the audience should see them. It would disappoint me for them to show them.

I'm also not sure how much I want to see them even if it doesn't affect what we expect to happen regarding the history we already know. I'm just wondering if there isn't a way to introduce them without showing too much; for example, scenes filmed in dark rooms where features (facial) aren't clear or shots not showing faces at all or intercepted communications might be some options. Even a conflict with the Andorians that humans don't witness (or witnesses don't survive) could be other options. I'm also not entirely convinced that we haven't seen them already because I think future guy might be Romulan.

Picard's right about the Romulans. It's the crew, not viewers, that can't see them. The bashers are going to bash no matter what happens, so who really cares what think. It'd be really interesting to get a look into what the Romulans know about Starfleet and Earth leading up to the conflict.

Perhaps they will change her hairstyle, it has happend before on Trek series.  I kinda like her hair now compared to the first two seasons.  I also view it as practical, which, I think, Vulcans tend to be.

Yes, it is better now, and I agree that they shouldn't go too over the top with it because they are still serving on a starship. There has to be some practicality to it.