# Battle Royale: Your Favorite Star Trek Movie!



## Xaios (Oct 21, 2010)

So, I've been re-watching all the Star Trek movies lately (believe it or not, I actually *like* Star Trek V), and most of them strike me as being just great.

For my money though, despite how much praise has been lauded on Wrath of Khan, First Contact, and the reboot, my favorite is Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. It's got a great plot and more of a human element than any of the other Star Trek movies. Not to mention, it has Christopher Plummer. 

So, tell us which is your favorite Trek and why.


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## synrgy (Oct 21, 2010)

My vote is Generations, mostly for nostalgic reasons. Plus, I'm part of the minority that believes Picard > Kirk.


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## Customisbetter (Oct 21, 2010)

I'll be honest, I have only seen the latest one.


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## Xaios (Oct 21, 2010)

synrgy said:


> My vote is Generations, mostly for nostalgic reasons. Plus, I'm part of the minority that believes Picard > Kirk.



I didn't realize it was a minority, because I'm also in that group.


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## synrgy (Oct 21, 2010)

Shit. I just noticed the 'reboot' among the list. That movie was FUCKING AWESOME. I don't know that it's been out long enough to make me feel like I would have voted differently, but I thought it worth mentioning that after I realized it was part of the list, I *definitely* thought about it. Sylar as Spock = WIN.


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## Explorer (Oct 21, 2010)

Which Next Gen movie is the one where they completely tossed out the Prime Directive? By definition, that was *FAIL*.

However, I've never been a fan of TNG, because they needed to create at least 2 characters to fulfill the roles of any one of the classic Trek characters. 

For me, it's a toss up between Wrath of Kahn and the new reboot.


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## synrgy (Oct 21, 2010)

Explorer said:


> Which Next Gen movie is the one where they completely tossed out the Prime Directive? By definition, that was *FAIL*.



Can't say I know off-hand, but I presume it'd be 'First Contact', since there was time travel involved. Any time (in any story, ST or otherwise) time travel is used as a plot device, all previously established rules go right out the window.

Funnily enough, the same plot device is what made the recent reboot actually WORK. Go figure.


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## Bobo (Oct 21, 2010)

Oh come on, no one voting for Kahn!?!?!


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## cyberwaste6996 (Oct 21, 2010)

I voted reboot...I'm actually a little suprised it's winning. I wonder if they are still thinking of having Khan in the sequel.


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## Explorer (Oct 21, 2010)

Fuck it... I had refrained from voting because I felt strongly about two of them, but I've gone with Khan.

I realised, upon analysing a few things I don't like about certain versions of Trek, that I prefer something where the plot doesn't rely on having superior technology. Khan and the reboot manage to avoid feeling like everyone should be shot who is sitting around on the Battle Lounge.... *laugh*


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## Daemoniac (Oct 21, 2010)

I'm not going to vote, because I think it's unfair to the other movies as I've only seen the reboot, but I did really thoroughly enjoy it.

I may, however, be able to borrow all the movies from a friend which would be cool. I'll see how I go


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## josh pelican (Oct 22, 2010)

I thought this would be about Battle Royale before I read the whole title.


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## Xaios (Oct 22, 2010)

Explorer said:


> Which Next Gen movie is the one where they completely tossed out the Prime Directive? By definition, that was *FAIL*.



I think the one you're talking about is Insurrection, where Star Fleet is involved in the forced relocation of the small population of a planet in order to take advantage of the healing properties of the its atmosphere/rings. The admiral who was in charge reasoned that the Prime Directive didn't apply because the people they were relocating weren't indigenous to the planet, so the Enterprise crew went rogue on their asses.


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## Explorer (Oct 22, 2010)

Actually, I was talking about the TNG one where the Enterprise crew handed over warp drive technology to people in the past, and gave all kinds of hints of what was to come.

I'm glad the reboot is seeing much love here. It was a genuinely good movie, not necessarily reliant on knowing the series.


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## Xaios (Oct 22, 2010)

Explorer said:


> Actually, I was talking about the TNG one where the Enterprise crew handed over warp drive technology to people in the past, and gave all kinds of hints of what was to come.
> 
> I'm glad the reboot is seeing much love here. It was a genuinely good movie, not necessarily reliant on knowing the series.



This, indeed, then was Star Trek: First Contact. Methinks you may have misunderstood a bit of the plot. The crew of the Enterprise traveled back in time to stop the Borg, who themselves traveled back in time to stop humanity's first contact with an alien race in order to eliminate humanity in the future. Before the borg ship was destroyed, it had managed to damage the warp-capable ship that Zefram Cochrane had already built and were planning to launch the next day. In order to maintain the timeline, the Enterprise crew revealed their origins to Cochrane (and inadvertantly to another character as well) so that they could expedite repairs on Cochrane's ship. They merely fixed what was already there that was damaged by the borg attack, they didn't give the past-humans any new technology. Also, their "hints of what was to come" were extremely vague. Beyond the fact that they would make first contact with the Vulcans in 24 hours, they only really said "you're making the world a better place."

It's worth noting that, until the reboot was released in 2009, Star Trek: First Contact was the single best reviewed Star Trek movie of them all, even more so than Wrath of Khan.


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## MaxOfMetal (Oct 22, 2010)

Generations. 

I was a child of TNG.


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## Xaios (Oct 22, 2010)

MaxOfMetal said:


> I was a child of TNG.



Me too. I prefer TNG as a show compared to to the original series, but I believed the TOS movies were better.

Plus, they didn't give Kirk a very good death.

Actually, they gave him an awesome death, except he didn't die, and came back only to die again in a craptastic manner.


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## slapnutz (Oct 30, 2010)

Man the results make me feel old... even though i grewup during Voyager.

I went for 4 coz its the funniest ST movie. .."double dumbass to you!"

However, I would say 1st Contact was my favourite "solid" ST movie.


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## petereanima (Nov 2, 2010)

_KAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHN!!!!!_


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## eaeolian (Nov 2, 2010)

Kahn, though to be fair I haven't seen the reboot yet.


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## Mexi (Nov 4, 2010)

I still watch TNG pretty often so I'm a big picard fan over kirk. I also have a deep nostalgia for First Contact b/c it was the first trek movie my dad took me to go see in the theatres. I did enjoy the reboot a lot though.


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## technomancer (Nov 4, 2010)

eaeolian said:


> Kahn, though to be fair I haven't seen the reboot yet.



I'm with you... and I have seen the reboot. Not bad, but I'm really tired of super-uber-powerful big scary spacecraft that must be stopped. Romulan, Klingon, whatever it's another big fucking uber-ship with a doomsday weapon


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## Xaios (Nov 4, 2010)

technomancer said:


> I'm with you... and I have seen the reboot. Not bad, but I'm really tired of super-uber-powerful big scary spacecraft that must be stopped. Romulan, Klingon, whatever it's another big fucking uber-ship with a doomsday weapon



Oh come now, what kind of space opera would it be if the future of mankind weren't at stake? 

Let's examine the evidence.

*Things that would destroy humanity in Star Trek movies:*
 
1) Star Trek: The Motion Picture - V'Ger
2) Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - Genesis Device (If Khan had decided to use it as such)
3) Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home - Whale Probe
4) Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country - Bird of Prey that can fire while cloaked/Full Scale War with the Klingons
5) Star Trek: First Contact - Time-travelling Borg
6) Star Trek: Nemesis - Thalaron Radiation emitting super ship
7) Star Trek - Black Hole Device

Heck, arguably all the best Star Trek movies (except Nemesis, which wasn't very good) featured giant, world-destroying superweapons prominently in their plots.


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## Bobo (Nov 4, 2010)

The new one was cool, but nowhere near the charisma of most of the older films. I mean there can not be a best Star Trek movie that doesn't star Kirk. Reboot THAT!!!


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## Xaios (Nov 5, 2010)

Bobo said:


> The new one was cool, but nowhere near the charisma of most of the older films. I mean there can not be a best Star Trek movie that doesn't star Kirk. Reboot THAT!!!



Uh, it does have Kirk. He's just not played by Shatner.


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## Rev2010 (Nov 5, 2010)

Definitely Khan, but I also love IV and First Contact. I've been a huuuge Star Trek fan since I was a teenager.

Not to offend anyone but I can't understand how so many people like the new one so much. It felt so rushed, the plot was ridiculous, and so many of the movies points were unbelievable and flawed. I'm not talking scifi unbelievable because hey it's Star Trek. But come on, Kirk gets promoted to first officer just like that, like no one else is in line and he wasn't even supposed to be on board in the first place. But Nero getting stuck back in time... he could've just saved Romulus himself then. I just don't get it.


Rev.


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## synrgy (Nov 5, 2010)

Rev2010 said:


> post about the new film



I think it's a choice, really. As in, we can choose to buy the ticket and just take the ride, or choose to look at it objectively. I chose the former, and thought it was an awesome ride. For me, as each decade passes, it gets harder and harder to relate to the original cast and the situations their characters experienced, and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the same characters being brought up to speed with things we can relate to in our current environment.

Going the objective route, Trekkies have been shooting holes in Star Trek plots since day one. I wouldn't say any one of the Star Trek movies is more or less plausible than another, relatively speaking.

I haven't seen it in a bit, but from what I remember, Kirk was promoted by an officer who already thought very highly of Kirk, having served with Kirk's father on the Kestrel. It was the same Captain that encouraged him to go out for Starfleet in the first place. He was basically looking for any excuse to promote Kirk because he believed it would bring out the potential he saw in him. I just can't remember his name this second.

As for Nero, I think the issue as I understood it was that they can't really pre-determine where in time they end up whenever they make jumps through time, hence his crew asking the Kestrel's captain for the location of Ambassador Spock, who at that point wasn't even born yet. Also, he didn't seem to think himself a hero so much as leading a life of pure vengeance. Since he can't control where in time he goes, rather than waste his whole life making random jumps to try to save Romulus, he'll just destroy Vulcan (and Spock) whenever he gets a chance. Again, I'm fuzzy on all this cause it's been a while, but that's what I remember.

*edit* Also, I just really like action flicks on the big screen, and this one definitely scratched that itch.


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## Xaios (Nov 5, 2010)

The above post is correct on all points, except the ship was called the USS Kelvin. Where you got Kestrel from, I have no idea. 

Also, it was Captain Christopher Pike who promoted Kirk to first officer, for the reasons listed above. When Spock resigns his commission, Kirk is automatically promoted to Captain, despite still only holding a lower rank, Ensign I believe. This is actually in keeping with naval tradition where the de facto commanding officer of a vessel is automatically referred to as Captain, even if they hold a lower rank.

More interesting fun: In the original pilot episode of Star Trek, "The Cage," Christopher Pike (played by Jeffrey Hunter) WAS the original captain of the Enterprise. However, test audiences deemed that pilot to be too plodding and slow, so they shook things up. Jeffrey Hunter got the axe, and they brought in William Shatner to play Kirk for "Where No Man Has gone Before," which became the true pilot for the series. They managed to incorporate the plot and most of the footage from "The Cage" into another episode, "The Menagerie."


...


I believe at this point, anyone who chooses to do so would be completely justified in questioning my virginity.


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## synrgy (Nov 5, 2010)

Xaios said:


> The above post is correct on all points, except the ship was called the USS Kelvin. Where you got Kestrel from, I have no idea.



 Me either! Maybe Mass Effect 2, or some such.


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## Bobo (Nov 5, 2010)

Xaios said:


> Uh, it does have Kirk. He's just not played by Shatner.



Dang your technicalities!!!!


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## Hollowman (Nov 13, 2010)

I voted for The Voyage Home. it was the funniest and had one of the coolest concepts (back in time to get whales) in the trilogy (2,3,4) as far as Star Trek movies go and I've never seen the last movie don't really want to. but, honestly, I grew up in the 70's and I come from a Sci-Fi loving Family.so, I like them all to some extent.


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## Xaios (Nov 14, 2010)

It would be really cool to see JJ Abrams attempt a loose trilogy for Star Treks XII, XIII and XIV in the same style as Nicholas Meyer and Leonard Nimoy did for Star Treks II, III and IV.


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## pink freud (Nov 14, 2010)

I've never seen any of the Kirk era movies, only the TNG ones and the reboot. I actually just watched First Contact and the reboot today, by coincidence. 

I have mixed feelings about the reboot. It has too much fan-service, too many insane coincidences, and the most cringe-worthy use of a black hole since Stargate used one to create energy.

I think I'll cast my vote for Nemesis, if only because of Data's story.


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## Variant (Nov 15, 2010)

Empire Strikes Back.


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## Xaios (Nov 15, 2010)

pink freud said:


> I've never seen any of the Kirk era movies, only the TNG ones and the reboot. I actually just watched First Contact and the reboot today, by coincidence.
> 
> I have mixed feelings about the reboot. It has too much fan-service, too many insane coincidences, and the most cringe-worthy use of a black hole since Stargate used one to create energy.
> 
> I think I'll cast my vote for Nemesis, if only because of Data's story.



I'd recommend watching all the TOS era Star Trek movies. Even if some of them aren't as good as others (see the "Even Number Rule"), they're all worth seeing once, if for nothing else than to hear William Shatner say "What does God need with a starship?" 

You know, as much as Kirk's mannerisms are parodied in pop culture, aside from the first movie, they're really not that evident. Nicholas Meyer's vision of Star Trek clearly had an effect on Shatner's vision of how Kirk should be played (as well as a large effect on Star Trek as a whole). He became a lot more human, and frankly, a lot more interesting as a character in the movies, and infinitely more watchable. His reactions during **SPOILER** the deaths of Spock and David are actually quite moving, especially to a Trek nerd like me. 



Variant said:


> Empire Strikes Back.



You're treading dangerous waters there, friend-o.


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