"I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

[Rafterman]

For me that is the essence of it.

Nothing else really matters,not the canon, not the time line, the sets, the props. It comes down to that simple and profound statement.

I was there in the beginning, I watched the premiere episode in Sept. of 66. And through it all that is what I will take with me; "I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

I loved XI, for it captured the essence for me.

 

[erebus]

that was a lovely post. yes, i agree that star trek really is often profoundly poignant when depicting friendship. In fact, i'll even go as far as to say it does it better than anyone else; at least i feel like that when i see it.

I seem to even recall Kirk saying something like 'let me help' being even more important than saying 'i love you'.

 

[Sector 7]

I agree. As a young fan (way back when), I wanted to be a part of a group of loyal friends like the TOS group.

 

[Cakes488]

And if they can really capture the essense of this friendship angle in the next movie...the success that Star Trek will enjoy will be off the frikkin charts.

 

[CaptainWacky]

My eyes teared up and I missed the next five minutes wiping them.

 

[Rackon]

I was there too for that first episode in 1966.

The essence of ST's appeal for me too has always been the relationships among the principals, especially Spock and Kirk (and of course, to a slightly lesser degree, that nagging walking conscience Bones McCoy). Get that right, and the filmmakers are well ahead. It's essential IMO. And XI got it right for me. Kirk, Spock and Bones could not have been cast any better. The writers understood where the story had to go.

Plot, canon, space battles, set dressing et al - I'm not going to say it doesn't matter (well, I'm probably less concerned about canon than most), but the relationships and the storytelling are what draw me to Trek. If Abrams can continue to develop these aspects in the next one, I'll be thrilled. He sure has the right cast - I couldn't be happier with these young actors. I think I saw a quote from the scriptwriters saying that the friendship between Spock and Kirk is the heart of the Trek story as far as they were concerned. So I feel we have every chance that the next one is in safe hands.

But since it was so prominently displayed in XI, I have to admit I loved the eye candy, the visuals were highly seductive. "Absolutely gorgeous" has never been an adjective I've used to describe Trek movie FX before.

 

[PiperMaru22]

I couldn't agree more. I think friendship, especially the one between Kirk and Spock, is at the very heart of what makes Star Trek, well, Star Trek. Friendship is a very important part of the human condition, and Trek captures its depth and potential through many of its characters, but probably best with Kirk and Spock (and even McCoy).

I really felt that in this movie, probably the most when Prime Spock said that beautiful line to young Kirk. Nimoy played that perfectly if you ask me. He really communicated the depth of love and friendship Spock felt towards Jim. It really did choke me up for a bit the first time I saw it.

Besides, didn't the reviewer for the NY Times refer to this new movie as a love story between Kirk and Spock?! (Yes, my inner slasher was happy by those choice of words, but I think the reviewer meant it in a platonic more abstract way.)

 

[Rafterman]

My eyes teared up and I missed the next five minutes wiping them.

I know the feeling.

 

[Rackon]

My eyes teared up and I missed the next five minutes wiping them.

I teared up too. (I even got a little teary during the opening sequence.)

Spock's reveal anchored the movie for me. I think Leonard Nimoy must have one of the most beautiful, humane, lived in faces on the planet. When he said those lines, I felt that Jim Kirk must be the luckiest man in the universe to have a friend like that. And we were lucky to witness it.

 

[RoJoHen]

My eyes teared up and I missed the next five minutes wiping them.

I teared up too. (I even got a little teary during the opening sequence.)

Spock's reveal anchored the movie for me. I think Leonard Nimoy must have one of the most beautiful, humane, lived in faces on the planet. When he said those lines, I felt that Jim Kirk must be the luckiest man in the universe to have a friend like that. And we were lucky to witness it.

Too bad his only response was, "Bullshit."

 

[Koinek]

I actually didn't buy that scene in the movie...actually thought it was the weakest line in it too. Sorry folks.

IMO it didn't have enough of a lead up. Seemed to be a throw-away line (unlike so many of the other references).

 

[Sector 7]

Too bad his only response was, "Bullshit."

In his shoes, as a young smartass, if you were told by an old fart that you were his best friend... would you believe him?
His response brought me back down to Earth. I then realized... this is a friendship that took time to build to that point... and Kirk is not there yet.

 

[RoJoHen]

Too bad his only response was, "Bullshit."

In his shoes, as a young smartass, if you were told by an old fart that you were his best friend... would you believe him?

Absolutely not. That's why the scene is touching and hilarious at the same time.

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

This was the point of the film. There are those who criticize Abrams' directing and Kurtzman & Orci's writing for not being "Star Trek like", but I applaud the writers and director for recognizing what is IN FACT the whole essence of Star Trek -- and that is the character relationships, specifically the friendship between Kirk and Spock.

This friendship is front and center in every good Star Trek TOS film.

Luckily Abrams and the writers didn't listen to many of the trekkies and fall into the trap that Star Trek is about "philosophical ideals", because it is not. Star Trek may have plots that include "philosophical ideals", but those plots are simply vehicles for the characters to interact and exhibit their freindships. Those plots are not the story; they are secondary. The story is friendship.

 

[Phily B]

bUt iN EpIsOdE 5 sEaSoN 2 sPoCk aNd KiRk wHeRe EnEmIeS aNd NoT FrIeNdS

CANON VIOLATION!

 

[Peter the Younger]

Personally, I loved the way the scene played.

 

[erebus]

Too bad his only response was, "Bullshit."

In his shoes, as a young smartass, if you were told by an old fart that you were his best friend... would you believe him?
His response brought me back down to Earth. I then realized... this is a friendship that took time to build to that point... and Kirk is not there yet.

I think PineKirk's incredulity was also based upon his current adversarial relationship with QuintoSpock, and also it was an emotional reaction (QSpock had just dumped him). He does have reason to disrespect old people (his bad relationship with his stepfather), but NimoySpock had just saved his life earlier risking his own against a dangerous animal to do it too.

But i recall a recent interview (the link was on this bbs somewhere) with the writers where they explained a technique of reverse psychology where they would purposefully juxtapose an opposite to 'something' to highlight the gravity of the 'something', because irony rams the message home more effectively than a direct statement.

So thats probably why they juxtaposed a line about profound friendship against that term. But i do appreciate the point about PineKirk's delinquent disrespect for authority - that it is also a factor.

 

[Cakes488]

This was the point of the film. There are those who criticize Abrams' directing and Kurtzman & Orci's writing for not being "Star Trek like", but I applaud the writers and director for recognizing what is IN FACT the whole essence of Star Trek -- and that is the character relationships, specifically the friendship between Kirk and Spock.

This friendship is front and center in every good Star Trek TOS film.

Luckily Abrams and the writers didn't listen to many of the trekkies and fall into the trap that Star Trek is about "philosophical ideals", because it is not. Star Trek may have plots that include "philosophical ideals", but those plots are simply vehicles for the characters to interact and exhibit their freindships. Those plots are not the story; they are secondary. The story is friendship.

I really think that every TOS lover would not argue with you about the characters being central to the story...any story...but I disagree with you saying the plots are not the story....LOL that doesn't make sense

 

[scottydog]

I loved XI, for it captured the essence for me.

Absolutely correct. Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Scotty -- they all would give their life for each other. I've always been drawn to that aspect of trek.

 

[Top41]

For me that is the essence of it.

Nothing else really matters,not the canon, not the time line, the sets, the props. It comes down to that simple and profound statement.

I was there in the beginning, I watched the premiere episode in Sept. of 66. And through it all that is what I will take with me; "I have been, and always shall be, your friend."

I loved XI, for it captured the essence for me.

Word, ditto, quoted for truth--in every way there is to agree with you, I do. That's exactly why this movie worked for me; it was an origin story--the origin story of Kirk and Spock's friendship, which has always been the heart of Star Trek (the original series at least). It's really why I loved this movie.

I teared up at that point, and when Old Spock told Young Spock why he had led Kirk to believe that he had to be the one to convince Young Spock to take on Nero. The line about the friendship that will define both of them really moved me.