65
votes
Accepted
Why did Spock Prime suggest Kirk take command of the USS Enterprise from young Spock?
There are a couple of reasons why Spock Prime would have told Kirk to take command:
Spock Prime didn't know of Jim Kirk's altered past
Spock Prime was genuinely surprised to see Kirk was not the ...
- 6,582
63
votes
Accepted
How did Kirk manage to get Captaincy of the Enterprise despite just graduating from Academy?
This is fully explained in the film's official novelisation and subsequent (canon) comic serial #13. Simply put, Kirk was granted the full captaincy for two main reasons:
His mentor (e.g. the person ...
- 677k
52
votes
Accepted
In Star Trek (2009), was Chekov actually wrong for calling Spock "Commander" instead of "Captain"?
Commander and Captain are (in current Naval practice) both ranks, but "Captain" is also a job. One can be "the Captain" (commanding officer) without holding the rank of Captain (...
- 36.8k
46
votes
Why do the Starfleet cadets get away with assaulting Kirk in a bar without being disciplined?
Because Captain Pike decided, for better or worse, to give them a break.
As he is portrayed in the Abrams-era films, Captain Pike is a firm but nice guy. If "Cupcake" (as he has come to be known) ...
- 111k
38
votes
Accepted
Why do they use shuttles in Star Trek even for short distances?
Per my answer here
In-universe
This is (sorta) covered in the film's official novelisation. The ship is being supplied with a wide range of consumables at far shorter notice than was expected. ...
- 677k
36
votes
When Nero marooned Spock why didn't Spock go to Scottie's science lab sooner?
This answer involves a speculative leap.
After landing on the planet, the escape pod informs Kirk of the location of the outpost:
COMPUTER VOICE: Location: Delta Vega. Class-M planet. Unsafe. ...
- 25.7k
35
votes
Why do the Starfleet cadets get away with assaulting Kirk in a bar without being disciplined?
Who said they weren't?
In TNG era we see several instances of cadets being disciplined for various actions, notably the flight accident when a cadet was killed. So, we know that discipline does ...
- 69.1k
35
votes
Accepted
What was Pike's Dissertation?
Listen to the line again:
For my dissertation, I was assigned the USS Kelvin.
He was not assigned to the USS Kelvin. He was assigned the topic of the USS Kelvin. His dissertation likely discussed ...
- 30.5k
33
votes
Did 9/11 have any effect on the Star Trek franchise?
Star Trek Films
Damen Lindelof advises of the 9/11 inspiration in Star Trek (2009), used to build the new film franchise:
On fallout "ripple effect" of the destruction of Vulcan
While ...
- 10.5k
32
votes
Accepted
Do we know exactly where Kirk will be born?
Real World
According to the Humboldt Travel Journal, the decision to commemorate Riverside, Iowa as the birthplace of James Kirk was originally intended to act as a tourist attractor. After the ...
- 677k
31
votes
Accepted
Why is the Star Trek 2009 reboot called a reboot?
This actually seems to be a label applied by fans and media. The writers do not consider it a reboot.
Back in 2009, they did this interview, where they said,
"We couldn't imagine not having this ...
- 134k
28
votes
How did Kirk manage to get Captaincy of the Enterprise despite just graduating from Academy?
Unfortunately, there is no way to correlate this plot contrivance to any real world logic.
Kirk's graduation was on hold pending the inquiry: In the real world,
he would not have yet been granted a ...
- 5,425
26
votes
Why do the Starfleet cadets get away with assaulting Kirk in a bar without being disciplined?
Because this is a world where a hot head cadet who hasn't even finished the academy can be promoted directly to Captain and given the flagship of the fleet. Hot head cadets are highly prized, ...
- 1,083
23
votes
Accepted
In Star Trek, why doesn't time travel always lead to alternate realities?
This was (kinda) explained in the Voyager episode "Relativity". In short, time travel does indeed result in a wide range of paradoxes, some relatively benign, others dramatically catastrophic. It's ...
- 677k
23
votes
Why is the cut on young Spock's lip red and not green if Vulcans have green blood?
Within the scene, you can see green blood on the lip.
(Click to enlarge)
I have not found an image of the scab you are talking about, but it is possible that the blood changes color as it becomes ...
- 216k
21
votes
How did they choose exactly same looking young actors in "Star Trek" (2009)?
The short answer... they didn't.
The long answer (which does't include SFX beyond "hair and make up").. they chose actors to fit the characters for Kirk (Corn fed Iowa farm boy), Spock (Tall dark &...
- 13.4k
21
votes
In Star Trek, why doesn't time travel always lead to alternate realities?
Time travel is rarely, if ever, handled consistently in any sci-fi series. That said, most of the time either A) a new timeline is created, B) the characters (either in the new timeline, or crossing ...
- 5,194
20
votes
How did Kirk manage to get Captaincy of the Enterprise despite just graduating from Academy?
There isn't a good answer. It makes no sense. It is completely absurd. Yes, he saved the Federation. But so what? You give him a medal for that. You build him a statue. You name a bridge after him. ...
- 1,083
20
votes
Accepted
Which timeline is Picard set in?
Picard is set in the original Prime timeline
As Kurtzman told GamesRadar: "[Picard is] in the Prime timeline, we're not in the Kelvin timeline. But the thing that was interesting about that movie ...
- 51.4k
19
votes
Why was Vulcan destroyed as a plot line?
Leonard Nimoy said that JJ Abrams did this in order to "reinvigorate the franchise":
"I don't remember when JJ. told me he was planning to destroy Vulcan,
but I started crying immediately. I've ...
- 10.6k
17
votes
How did Kirk manage to get Captaincy of the Enterprise despite just graduating from Academy?
Because Starfleet made a mistake.
Kirk's actions against Nero show courage and enterprise and all that good stuff, which goes a long way towards saying he could be a good Captain, in the future, once ...
- 12.2k
16
votes
Why is the Star Trek 2009 reboot called a reboot?
Doctor Who in 2005 sort of continued where the classic series left off.
Star Trek 2009 is basically rewriting the Star Trek history. Instead of a complete reboot Abrams split the timelines. In one of ...
- 641
14
votes
Accepted
How does First Contact occur in the alternate timeline (from Star Trek 2009)?
First contact would have happened exactly as it historically happened in the prime universe. On April 5, 2063 Zefram Cochrane made his first warp flight, alerting the Vulcans and the rest is history. ...
- 66k
14
votes
Accepted
Do the Q Exist In the Abrams Star Trek Universe?
The (canon-ish) IDW Star Trek Ongoing comic series The Q Gambit featured Q meeting the crew of the "Alternate Universe" Enterprise.
- 677k
13
votes
Accepted
In "Star Trek" (2009), why does one of the Vulcan science ministers state that Spock's application to Starfleet was logical but "unnecessary"?
Spock's path has been laid out even before he joined Science Academy.
This is a plot point in Star Trek: Discovery.
SAREK: I have created in her a being of exquisite logic to rival the best of our ...
- 8,025
12
votes
Accepted
Why so much Red Matter?
In-universe
The Vulcans don't seem overly keen to have a potentially world-ending substance sitting around in their science facility. Spock and LaForge note (in the Countdown prequel comic) that the ...
- 677k
10
votes
Why is the Star Trek 2009 reboot called a reboot?
Despite what the writers might claim, it is a reboot because they pretty much rewrote the history of Star Trek to suit how they felt they would like to make their movie, rather than fitting it into ...
- 6,708
10
votes
Accepted
Why would Uhura's linguistic skills matter?
Uhura received a battlefield promotion because she was able to distinguish Romulan from Vulcan (despite their linguistic similarities) and can translate signals directly, without waiting for the UT to ...
- 677k
10
votes
Accepted
Did Abrams make any Star Trek references in The Force Awakens?
Yes.
Unkar Plutt is played by Simon Pegg, who portrays Scotty in the new Star Trek films.
Additionally, as @Valorum mentioned, over a hundred cast and crew worked on both movies.
slashfilm.com ...
- 66.7k
10
votes
When Nero marooned Spock why didn't Spock go to Scottie's science lab sooner?
There are many explanations possible here. The fine details are simply not part of the movie.
How do you know Spock hadn't already been traveling towards that outpost? For all you know, he was taking ...
- 8,741
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