Not your father's Star Trek
Last night, I took my niiban to see Star Trek. Her review? "Wow. I've got to start watching this show!" I can practically hear the pooka-pooka of the TiVo in her hand as she queues up Original Series episodes to watch with her mother.
As a child, I loved Star Trek. When I married, I married into a family whose religion was Star Trek. The books I read on vacations at my mother-in-law's house were Star Trek. In college, I used to fly my toddling ichiban around the room to the Next Generation theme. Those of you that know me personally know that my family life is far from traditional. The things that draw my family together often involve some form of garb, costuming or cosplay. Ren Faires, anime conventions and geeky movie premieres are serious family events in my household, powerful juju that is not to be mucked about with.
For last night's premiere, I managed to get advance tickets to the IMAX screen at the Smithsonian Annex near my house. Only yesterday did I realize that would put us under the same roof as the shuttle Enterprise to watch the maiden voyage of a rebooted Enterprise franchise. My little one wasn't thrilled at the idea of staying up late to watch some movie from Dad's prehistoric past, but she got to bring a friend, so it would be survivable. When the Trek garb started coming out, though, she caught a bit of the excitement. We were a mixed group of friends and family, not ultra-serious Trekkies, but with enough garb between us to have everyone in some version of a Star Fleet uniform. Niiban's buddy also caught the growing wave of sentimentality when she put on a homemade burgundy Next Gen command-style sweatshirt.
The lines were long, even with advance tickets, and the seating chaotic, but eventually we were all seated in front of an immense screen, surrounded by a few hundred reasonably hard-core Trek fans. From the start, this movie had big-budget Hollywood effects and orchestral themes. The memory of every chapter of the last 40 years of Star Trek was honored, but this was a story cut from wholly new cloth.
This Star Trek is a reimagining of the original universe and crew, but for today's audience. All of your favorite characters are there, but edgier. There's little Shatner in the new Kirk, plenty of Nimoy in the new Spock. Uhura shines in a way that could never happen on a 1969 TV show. Chekov is a big visual departure from Koenig, but the extra-campy Russian accent plays well and my niiban kept exclaiming, "He's so cuuuuute!" My babies know math geeks on sight. A personal treasure for me was the casting of Simon Pegg as Scotty. A few weeks ago, in a trailer, I must have seen the Chekov character for a second and thought he was Scotty. I felt a twinge of disappointment and thought to myself, "You know who would make an amazing Scotty? Simon Pegg!" Needless to say, he's a scene-stealer and will surely be a fan favorite.
For my family, this Star Trek did not disappoint. It was powerful juju. It was a roller-coaster ride, it was visceral, it was a time for my family to bond in wonderment, hope and creativity. It wasn't the Star Trek that was written for my father. This is the Star Trek that was written for my daughter. It is a special joy to have lived through the 40 years between them.
As a child, I loved Star Trek. When I married, I married into a family whose religion was Star Trek. The books I read on vacations at my mother-in-law's house were Star Trek. In college, I used to fly my toddling ichiban around the room to the Next Generation theme. Those of you that know me personally know that my family life is far from traditional. The things that draw my family together often involve some form of garb, costuming or cosplay. Ren Faires, anime conventions and geeky movie premieres are serious family events in my household, powerful juju that is not to be mucked about with.
For last night's premiere, I managed to get advance tickets to the IMAX screen at the Smithsonian Annex near my house. Only yesterday did I realize that would put us under the same roof as the shuttle Enterprise to watch the maiden voyage of a rebooted Enterprise franchise. My little one wasn't thrilled at the idea of staying up late to watch some movie from Dad's prehistoric past, but she got to bring a friend, so it would be survivable. When the Trek garb started coming out, though, she caught a bit of the excitement. We were a mixed group of friends and family, not ultra-serious Trekkies, but with enough garb between us to have everyone in some version of a Star Fleet uniform. Niiban's buddy also caught the growing wave of sentimentality when she put on a homemade burgundy Next Gen command-style sweatshirt.
The lines were long, even with advance tickets, and the seating chaotic, but eventually we were all seated in front of an immense screen, surrounded by a few hundred reasonably hard-core Trek fans. From the start, this movie had big-budget Hollywood effects and orchestral themes. The memory of every chapter of the last 40 years of Star Trek was honored, but this was a story cut from wholly new cloth.
This Star Trek is a reimagining of the original universe and crew, but for today's audience. All of your favorite characters are there, but edgier. There's little Shatner in the new Kirk, plenty of Nimoy in the new Spock. Uhura shines in a way that could never happen on a 1969 TV show. Chekov is a big visual departure from Koenig, but the extra-campy Russian accent plays well and my niiban kept exclaiming, "He's so cuuuuute!" My babies know math geeks on sight. A personal treasure for me was the casting of Simon Pegg as Scotty. A few weeks ago, in a trailer, I must have seen the Chekov character for a second and thought he was Scotty. I felt a twinge of disappointment and thought to myself, "You know who would make an amazing Scotty? Simon Pegg!" Needless to say, he's a scene-stealer and will surely be a fan favorite.
For my family, this Star Trek did not disappoint. It was powerful juju. It was a roller-coaster ride, it was visceral, it was a time for my family to bond in wonderment, hope and creativity. It wasn't the Star Trek that was written for my father. This is the Star Trek that was written for my daughter. It is a special joy to have lived through the 40 years between them.