JJ Abrams’ reboot of the storied Star Trek franchise meets its match in the form of myself and the Doctor from Speakeasy Podcast, in which we deftly pick apart the minor plot inconsistencies, such as every single thing that happens. However, we do love the film (even if it does feel like $150 million dollar fan fiction aimed at lens flare aficionados) so we fawn over the actors and effects and compare it to the original series and movies. But we also expose the ugly specter of racism and alcoholism in Starfleet (speaking of which: take a drink every time someone abandons his post as captain!).
Errata: Thruout the film, I stupidly call the Narada the Naruto. Also, grog rations were ended by the British navy in 1970. And the one where Kirk angers Spock with insults is “This Side of Paradise” and not “Shore Leave”. (Those are all mine. The Doctor’s “facts” are all “true”.)
Start the commentary with the Paramount logo just faded out, on the countdown. (91 MB)
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
According to ‘The Kobayashi Maru’ novel, Kirk cheated. But, he cheated by adding his future reputation, a factor the test did not consider. It’s egotistical, but not the simple-minded cheating we have in this movie.
You also comment on Vulcans being an endangered species. Romulans are Vulcan separatists. They are the same species. And, since it seems like everyone can interbreed in Star Trek, maybe it’s even less important. 🙂