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[startrekappreciation-blog]

After long consideration as to what my first post should be, I have decided on sharing something light-hearted, yet not without controversy. I have heard from multiple people that the choice of returning characters accompanying Kirk on the Enterprise-B in “Generations” (Chekov and Scotty) was unsatisfying. We all know that the real reason for that is the fact that William Shatner, Walter Koenig and James Doohan were the only TOS actors willing to reprise their roles for that film, and while I can see why one would want to see the old big trio (Kirk, Spock and Bones) back together, I don’t really think it would’ve made much sense considering where most of the characters were at the time. You see, it’s likely that Starfleet faced the same problem in-universe as Paramount faced in reality: people unwilling or incapable of coming back. Starfleet had a new and shiny flagship, wanted to turn it into a spectacle and having celebrities present is sure as shit the way to do it. Sadly, most of them declined the invitation.

Spock, for example, has probably just left off on his first mission in his new job as ambassador for which he left Starfleet, so they can’t even order him to do it. McCoy most likely turned in his commission as soon as the Enterprise-A was put out of service, as he was already pretty sick of Starfleet in “The Motion Picture” and the only thing that kept him doing his job was knowing that Jim Kirk needed him. Sulu, at this point, has several things going against him: he’s been Captain of the Excelsior, a prestigious position on a prestigious ship which is doing its thing far far away from earth. You can’t call a guy like that just to have him be there to look pretty as your new toy does like the least impressive maiden voyage imaginable. Also he hasn’t been aboard the Enterprise-A until the very end (again because of the Excelsior job), and thus hasn’t been associated with the name “Enterprise” in quite a while now. I don’t quite know what happened to Uhura, since the last time we ever see Nichelle Nichols in the franchise is the previous movie “The Undiscovered Country”, but she’s probably retired as well. 

Now, the only ones left are Janice Rand and Dr. Chapel. Those two have been absent even longer from the Enterprise than Sulu (last time we see them serving under Kirk is over 10 years prior in “The Motion Picture”) and they have never even been members of the senior staff. Rand has also been promoted to first officer on the Excelsior, so she has a similar situation as that of her Captain. So there’s really only three people left and why did they return? Well, Chekov is the youngest member of the old senior staff, so his career is probably still going. He hasn’t even been promoted past Commander, judging by the rank insignia and without a ship to serve on at the time, he was simply ordered to attend the maiden voyage by Starfleet Command.

Scotty and Kirk however, have basically the same problem. While they are both retired, retirement isn’t really for them. We can see that for Scotty in the TNG episode “Relics” and for Kirk in this very movie. Everything he does (especially in the opening scene) tells us that he can’t accept that his glory days are over. He’s been struggling with getting old for more or less six previous films, after all. All of that implies that these guys probably jumped at the chance to get back in their uniforms.

Now only one question remains: Why do Kirk, Scotty and Chekov seem more friendly with each other than ever before? The real world explanation for this is of course that the scene was originally planned to have Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley instead of Doohan and Koenig and was barely rewritten when Nimoy and Kelley refused. That means we’ll need another in-universe answer and it seems quite simple to me, because I think the reason for their behaviour is identical to the reason for their return. They’re the only three members of the old guard who are still invested in going on. Kirk and Scotty were always friendly with each other even during TOS and serving together for several decades is certainly a bonding experience. Thus, in the months between mothballing the Enterprise-A and going on the maiden voyage, they probably met up a lot, reminiscing about the good old days, followed by Kirk and Scotty pestering Chekov about information on everything he’s up to in Starfleet (which might not be much), to get the feeling that they’re still as up to date and relevant as they used to be.

(Good lord, this turned into a fucking essay. I am so sorry, but I hope you enjoy my headcanon)

[startrekappreciation-blog]

About this account

One wouldn't assume that content which comes from a person with a username like this would need any introduction. Yet, I'd still like to explain my motivation for starting this. In the last few years, fan discourse almost everywhere has turned vile and toxic to an extreme degree. I'm not saying this kind of interaction is anything new and I will surely go into more detail about how this came to be and whatnot, but at a later date. I remember reading a particularly disgusting magazine article from around 2008 during the wait for the 11th Star Trek movie, in which everyone who wasn't around during the 1960s to watch the first run of TOS was called a fake fan and not worthy of watching anything from the franchise. I have been watching Star Trek since basically forever. The first thing I have ever consciously seen on TV was the intro to Voyager and have been in love with the franchise ever since. Of course I agree that constructive criticism is necessary and can see the flaws within Star Trek; death threats, however, don't fit my definition of a good critique. This is why I have decided to create positive and just overall enjoyable content about my favourite franchise on this page (even the parts of it that aren't universally beloved or even ones that I don't like as much), so if you're sick of discourse that makes you feel like someone threw acid in your face, maybe you've come to the right place

Live long and prosper, Jolan tru and Qapla'