ST Recap: Tomorrow is Yesterday - also, a momentary squee regarding comic books and a mini-contest
First, and most importantly:
OMG, FLIST. Why did none of you tell me about the Star Trek/Doctor Who comic book crossover? Bad Flist! Go to your rooms!
(Also, OMGWANT. Actually, I could make the argument that I need this comic in order to fully do justice to the Star Trek Rewatch. Yes. Absolutely. that sounds reasonable. Who wants to mail it to me in Unknown Location?)
Moving on....
There is something about sci-fi that makes people want to time travel. That's one explanation, anyway. Other explanations would involve producers wanting to put futuristic characters into modern-day dress/locations in order to save on production costs, but that would be a very jaded view.
(Accurate, perhaps, but still jaded.)
You therefore expect that an episode involving the Star Trek crew finding themselves in the 1960s would be one of those introspective and self-commenting type of shows. You don't expect it to be as hysterically funny as it turns out to be.
Summary: When the U.S.S. Enterprise is thrown into a time warp, it ends up orbiting Earth in the 20th century. However when the Enterprise accidentally destroys a fighter plane, Kirk must think up a plan to return it's captain to Earth without being discovered.
Oh, TrekCore. Why the Grammar!Fail? Sigh. Fine. Mini-contest, I suppose. First person to spot the grammatical error in that summary gets a cross-stitch bookmark of your choice.
I managed to watch this episode before Bill did. Then, because of the wonders of time zones, ended up being online while he watched it himself. Thus I ended up getting instant messages as Bill hit various points within the show. It made for very entertaining instant reactions to some of the more entertaining bits of the episode, but it didn't lead to much meta-type discussion of various points, which is half the fun sometimes.
What made this even better, however, was that this particular episode was probably the most camptastic one I've seen yet - in fact, I think it ranks right up there with Shore Leave and the Tribble Episode as being one of the funniest I've ever seen. It wasn't because of the actual plot, either - oh no. It was because of all the other little tidbits within.
First, however, let's get some of the obvious out of the way:
Requisite Shippy Commentary. "Shippy" being oh-so-appropriate this week.
I like to think I'm a die-hard romantic. I enjoy romantic comedies, I like pairing characters off with each other, and there's nothing more I want out of a fandom but to produce stories in which people go off and get married and have lots of sex and babies. (Generally in that order, as I'm also somewhat traditional.)
Bill, however, has put me to shame, because I swear he can pull Spock/Uhura goodness out of a single glance. Half the time, the glance doesn't even have to be in the right direction.
Bill: Ooh - some Spock-Uhura action! She totally just gave him a look like she was disappointed he didn't show more concern.
Then, Bill also thinks that Kirk was flirting with the pilot, and that this flirting made Spock jealous. Of course, he might be right - sometimes it's a bit tricky figuring out when Spock is jealous, and when he's just being staid and unemotional.
But regardless of any of this, Spock/Uhura and Spock/Kirk were completely overshadowed by....Kirk/Computer. I know it's a long-standing joke that captains are in love with their ships...but oh my.
Bill: Dude, the computer is flirting with Kirk in this one.
Me: The computer nearly made me fall off the couch.
And because you have to hear it to believe it.....
We only thought the movie plots were original
SPOCK: Whiplash propelled us into a time warp, Captain. Backward.
Bill: Spock just basically outlined the plot of the reboot film!
And then, of course, there's how they get back:
SPOCK: Mister Scott and I both agree that the only possible solution is the slingshot effect, like the one that put us here. My computations indicate that if we fly toward the sun, seek out its magnetic attraction, then pull away at full power, the whiplash will propel us into another time warp.
CHRISTOPHER: Slingshot effects are fine for you people. How do you propose to return the Sergeant and me?
SPOCK: Logically, as we move faster and faster toward the sun, we'll begin to move backward in time. We'll actually go back beyond yesterday, beyond the point when we first appeared in the sky. Then, breaking free will shoot us forward in time, and we'll transport you back before any of this happened.
Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
This is Why A Klingon Eventually Took Over Security
Okay, so I know in theory, there's a security staff aboard the Enterprise. But sometimes, it sure doesn't seem like it.
Bill: We need to make sure you don't escape, so we're going to dress you just like us and leave you alone to wander the ship.
I mean, really, you're walking down the corridor, and you see this guy dressed in regulation uniform. OF COURSE you don't pay any attention, because he looks exactly like you do, down to the hairstyle. Surely Kirk could have found something else for poor Christopher to wear, which also might have indicated that perhaps this guy is best not left alone with the weaponry in the transporter room.
Then again, the crew does learn that lesson. Eventually.
Bill: Oh, *now* we're going to prevent the 20th century guy from seeing the ship.
Bill: As opposed to giving him a uniform and free run.
Poor guy. This is clearly the worst nightmare he's ever had in his entire life. Particularly since a little bit later, he nearly faints when introduced to the food replicators.
Seriously, it's a wonder that the Klingons didn't kill off the humans when they first interacted.
I wonder how that conversation went, when Worf made his aspirations known to Starfleet?
Starfleet: Welcome, Worf! We're so happy to have a Klingon on staff! What would you like to do?
Worf: Your security is horrible and full of holes. A child could pierce your defences and wipe you out in mere seconds. You have had numerous breaches and allowed your prisoners to run amok, making yourselves an utter disgrace in the eyes of the Klingon Empire.
Starfleet: Yeah, we should work on that. So....did you want to work in medical?
Worf: Hand over the red shirt, moron.
Starfleet: Okay.
(Incidentally, we're about four episodes away from our first introduction to the Klingons. This ought to be all sorts of interesting.)
Technology, or Lack Thereof
Okay, I know we're working with the 1960s version of what the future would have in store, and that there are entire books out there about the science of Trek and how all these things could actually work....but oh my. Sometimes, the future the writers envisioned is just so wrong it's laughable. Poor writers.
And besides which, some things are just so basic. I mean, the patents for what would eventually be known as cruise control were filed in the 1950s. The idea that a vehicle could maintain speed without any interference or assistance by humans was already around. So the idea that a computer could control the speed and direction of the Enterprise wasn't all that far-fetched. But none of this is brought up for discussion - in fact, it's taken as a quid pro quo that Sulu will handle the navigation himself.
Bill: We couldn't lock our course into the computer? Seriously?
Bill: We have to fly through time and space on manual?
Bill: If there's any pilot you want for a time warp, it's George Takei.
(I particularly like the grimace on Kirk's face, as though he's waiting for the filming to end. Or perhaps he's constipated. Hard to tell.)
Bill: They need a good River Song.
Hmm. There's a thought. I mean, what does the Doctor look for in his companions? Youth (George Takei was 30 when Star Trek premiered, bit on the old side for a companion but far from the oldest), a good attitude (check - Sulu was clearly loving being on the surface), ability to defend oneself (note his fencing ability), interest in the world around him (Sulu has a rotating list of interests), and sexual chemistry (George Takei). And Sulu certainly knows his way around a ship.
There are definite possibilities there. Somewhere, I'm sure, there is a fantastic (possibly OT3) fic where the Doctor picks up Sulu and Jack and the three of them have fantastic adventures across the universe. It would be awesome.
And Speaking of Timey-Whimey....
Really, the only problem I had with the episode was with a small plot point regarding the time travel. In order to return to its normal time, the Enterprise whips around the sun, right? Leaving aside the actual science of whether or not this would work, the Enterprise plans to use this slingshot effect to return its two stowaways to their normal time as well, at the exact moment in which they left it.
Sure, fine, great. Sounds flaweless, right? Yeah. Almost. Except for one tiny little detail:
According to ST, by returning the stowaways to the exact moment they left, this effectively erases all memory of what has just happened to them. Essentially, history is rewritten.
Bill: So they beamed Christopher back to himself? What's up with that?
Me: EXACTLY.
Me: IT MAKES NO SENSE.
Bill: If this never happened, what's the aircraft doing up looking for a UFO anyway?
Me: They REWROTE HISTORY.
Bill: Wow, this is very wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey.
Now, I get that the Enterprise was moving backwards in time, and this would reverse the memories of some people as well - but the people on the Enterprise shouldn't have been affected. After all, Kirk and the rest of them kept their memories of the time, so theoretically, the stowaways should have retained their memories as well. (Although perhaps in the case of the security officer, he was happy enough to no longer have them.) And unlike Kirk, I don't think Christopher would have been a threat; had he tried to report his time aboard the Enterprise, no one would have believed him anyway, and he was smart enough to know not to harp on something that he couldn't prove and would mark him as somewhat unstable.
And, of course, as Bill points out: had the folks on Earth never seen the Enterprise, they would have never sent Christopher up to investigate, so there wouldn't have been a plane for him to return to anyway. Thus erasing the Enterprise from the timeline in that instance creates a paradox, which the writers either failed to see or failed to address. Either way, the entire concept is completely illogical.
And besides, I'm pretty sure that at one point, Spock was able to modify someone's memory using his Vulcan Mind Meld. The writers can come up with a brilliant method of time travel (which was so awesome, it became the basis for one of the movies), but they can't think of a simple fix like that?
On the production side of things
You know, I realize some of this is moot, but honestly, how many times do we have to light only Kirk's eyes?
Bill: It's OK when we beam down, we don't need to dress like we belong or anything.
Bill: Dude, I think the props people decorated air defense comand with their bowling trophies.
Me: Probably.
Also, there's a trophy in there that looks very similar to the current Air Force memorial. COINCIDENCE???
There are no reasons for these caps, except I like them
Kirk: I know you are, but what am I?
And we'll have fun fun fun 'til my Daddy takes the star ship away.....
Enterprise in orbit
In Conclusion
Without a doubt, one of the more camptastic episodes. We had time travel, we had Kirk getting arrested prior to being beaten up, we had plot points of future movies. We had some majorly shippy stuff going on, literally speaking, and Scotty and Sulu both got to be awesome. All told, excellent episode.
Tune in next time when I recap "Court Martial", in which we have some fabulous earrings, a lawyer with a fabulous C.V., and a distinct lack of Law & Order music. And theoretically a winner to the TrekCore Grammar!Fail Contest.
OMG, FLIST. Why did none of you tell me about the Star Trek/Doctor Who comic book crossover? Bad Flist! Go to your rooms!
(Also, OMGWANT. Actually, I could make the argument that I need this comic in order to fully do justice to the Star Trek Rewatch. Yes. Absolutely. that sounds reasonable. Who wants to mail it to me in Unknown Location?)
Moving on....
There is something about sci-fi that makes people want to time travel. That's one explanation, anyway. Other explanations would involve producers wanting to put futuristic characters into modern-day dress/locations in order to save on production costs, but that would be a very jaded view.
(Accurate, perhaps, but still jaded.)
You therefore expect that an episode involving the Star Trek crew finding themselves in the 1960s would be one of those introspective and self-commenting type of shows. You don't expect it to be as hysterically funny as it turns out to be.
Summary: When the U.S.S. Enterprise is thrown into a time warp, it ends up orbiting Earth in the 20th century. However when the Enterprise accidentally destroys a fighter plane, Kirk must think up a plan to return it's captain to Earth without being discovered.
Oh, TrekCore. Why the Grammar!Fail? Sigh. Fine. Mini-contest, I suppose. First person to spot the grammatical error in that summary gets a cross-stitch bookmark of your choice.
I managed to watch this episode before Bill did. Then, because of the wonders of time zones, ended up being online while he watched it himself. Thus I ended up getting instant messages as Bill hit various points within the show. It made for very entertaining instant reactions to some of the more entertaining bits of the episode, but it didn't lead to much meta-type discussion of various points, which is half the fun sometimes.
What made this even better, however, was that this particular episode was probably the most camptastic one I've seen yet - in fact, I think it ranks right up there with Shore Leave and the Tribble Episode as being one of the funniest I've ever seen. It wasn't because of the actual plot, either - oh no. It was because of all the other little tidbits within.
First, however, let's get some of the obvious out of the way:
Requisite Shippy Commentary. "Shippy" being oh-so-appropriate this week.
I like to think I'm a die-hard romantic. I enjoy romantic comedies, I like pairing characters off with each other, and there's nothing more I want out of a fandom but to produce stories in which people go off and get married and have lots of sex and babies. (Generally in that order, as I'm also somewhat traditional.)
Bill, however, has put me to shame, because I swear he can pull Spock/Uhura goodness out of a single glance. Half the time, the glance doesn't even have to be in the right direction.
Bill: Ooh - some Spock-Uhura action! She totally just gave him a look like she was disappointed he didn't show more concern.
Then, Bill also thinks that Kirk was flirting with the pilot, and that this flirting made Spock jealous. Of course, he might be right - sometimes it's a bit tricky figuring out when Spock is jealous, and when he's just being staid and unemotional.
But regardless of any of this, Spock/Uhura and Spock/Kirk were completely overshadowed by....Kirk/Computer. I know it's a long-standing joke that captains are in love with their ships...but oh my.
Bill: Dude, the computer is flirting with Kirk in this one.
Me: The computer nearly made me fall off the couch.
And because you have to hear it to believe it.....
Click to viewWe only thought the movie plots were original
SPOCK: Whiplash propelled us into a time warp, Captain. Backward.
Bill: Spock just basically outlined the plot of the reboot film!
And then, of course, there's how they get back:
SPOCK: Mister Scott and I both agree that the only possible solution is the slingshot effect, like the one that put us here. My computations indicate that if we fly toward the sun, seek out its magnetic attraction, then pull away at full power, the whiplash will propel us into another time warp.
CHRISTOPHER: Slingshot effects are fine for you people. How do you propose to return the Sergeant and me?
SPOCK: Logically, as we move faster and faster toward the sun, we'll begin to move backward in time. We'll actually go back beyond yesterday, beyond the point when we first appeared in the sky. Then, breaking free will shoot us forward in time, and we'll transport you back before any of this happened.
Sounds familiar, doesn't it?
This is Why A Klingon Eventually Took Over Security
Okay, so I know in theory, there's a security staff aboard the Enterprise. But sometimes, it sure doesn't seem like it.
Bill: We need to make sure you don't escape, so we're going to dress you just like us and leave you alone to wander the ship.
I mean, really, you're walking down the corridor, and you see this guy dressed in regulation uniform. OF COURSE you don't pay any attention, because he looks exactly like you do, down to the hairstyle. Surely Kirk could have found something else for poor Christopher to wear, which also might have indicated that perhaps this guy is best not left alone with the weaponry in the transporter room.
Then again, the crew does learn that lesson. Eventually.
Bill: Oh, *now* we're going to prevent the 20th century guy from seeing the ship.
Bill: As opposed to giving him a uniform and free run.
Poor guy. This is clearly the worst nightmare he's ever had in his entire life. Particularly since a little bit later, he nearly faints when introduced to the food replicators.
Seriously, it's a wonder that the Klingons didn't kill off the humans when they first interacted.
I wonder how that conversation went, when Worf made his aspirations known to Starfleet?
Starfleet: Welcome, Worf! We're so happy to have a Klingon on staff! What would you like to do?
Worf: Your security is horrible and full of holes. A child could pierce your defences and wipe you out in mere seconds. You have had numerous breaches and allowed your prisoners to run amok, making yourselves an utter disgrace in the eyes of the Klingon Empire.
Starfleet: Yeah, we should work on that. So....did you want to work in medical?
Worf: Hand over the red shirt, moron.
Starfleet: Okay.
(Incidentally, we're about four episodes away from our first introduction to the Klingons. This ought to be all sorts of interesting.)
Technology, or Lack Thereof
Okay, I know we're working with the 1960s version of what the future would have in store, and that there are entire books out there about the science of Trek and how all these things could actually work....but oh my. Sometimes, the future the writers envisioned is just so wrong it's laughable. Poor writers.
And besides which, some things are just so basic. I mean, the patents for what would eventually be known as cruise control were filed in the 1950s. The idea that a vehicle could maintain speed without any interference or assistance by humans was already around. So the idea that a computer could control the speed and direction of the Enterprise wasn't all that far-fetched. But none of this is brought up for discussion - in fact, it's taken as a quid pro quo that Sulu will handle the navigation himself.
Bill: We couldn't lock our course into the computer? Seriously?
Bill: We have to fly through time and space on manual?
Bill: If there's any pilot you want for a time warp, it's George Takei.
(I particularly like the grimace on Kirk's face, as though he's waiting for the filming to end. Or perhaps he's constipated. Hard to tell.)
Bill: They need a good River Song.
Hmm. There's a thought. I mean, what does the Doctor look for in his companions? Youth (George Takei was 30 when Star Trek premiered, bit on the old side for a companion but far from the oldest), a good attitude (check - Sulu was clearly loving being on the surface), ability to defend oneself (note his fencing ability), interest in the world around him (Sulu has a rotating list of interests), and sexual chemistry (George Takei). And Sulu certainly knows his way around a ship.
There are definite possibilities there. Somewhere, I'm sure, there is a fantastic (possibly OT3) fic where the Doctor picks up Sulu and Jack and the three of them have fantastic adventures across the universe. It would be awesome.
And Speaking of Timey-Whimey....
Really, the only problem I had with the episode was with a small plot point regarding the time travel. In order to return to its normal time, the Enterprise whips around the sun, right? Leaving aside the actual science of whether or not this would work, the Enterprise plans to use this slingshot effect to return its two stowaways to their normal time as well, at the exact moment in which they left it.
Sure, fine, great. Sounds flaweless, right? Yeah. Almost. Except for one tiny little detail:
According to ST, by returning the stowaways to the exact moment they left, this effectively erases all memory of what has just happened to them. Essentially, history is rewritten.
Bill: So they beamed Christopher back to himself? What's up with that?
Me: EXACTLY.
Me: IT MAKES NO SENSE.
Bill: If this never happened, what's the aircraft doing up looking for a UFO anyway?
Me: They REWROTE HISTORY.
Bill: Wow, this is very wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey.
Now, I get that the Enterprise was moving backwards in time, and this would reverse the memories of some people as well - but the people on the Enterprise shouldn't have been affected. After all, Kirk and the rest of them kept their memories of the time, so theoretically, the stowaways should have retained their memories as well. (Although perhaps in the case of the security officer, he was happy enough to no longer have them.) And unlike Kirk, I don't think Christopher would have been a threat; had he tried to report his time aboard the Enterprise, no one would have believed him anyway, and he was smart enough to know not to harp on something that he couldn't prove and would mark him as somewhat unstable.
And, of course, as Bill points out: had the folks on Earth never seen the Enterprise, they would have never sent Christopher up to investigate, so there wouldn't have been a plane for him to return to anyway. Thus erasing the Enterprise from the timeline in that instance creates a paradox, which the writers either failed to see or failed to address. Either way, the entire concept is completely illogical.
And besides, I'm pretty sure that at one point, Spock was able to modify someone's memory using his Vulcan Mind Meld. The writers can come up with a brilliant method of time travel (which was so awesome, it became the basis for one of the movies), but they can't think of a simple fix like that?
On the production side of things
You know, I realize some of this is moot, but honestly, how many times do we have to light only Kirk's eyes?
Bill: It's OK when we beam down, we don't need to dress like we belong or anything.
Bill: Dude, I think the props people decorated air defense comand with their bowling trophies.
Me: Probably.
Also, there's a trophy in there that looks very similar to the current Air Force memorial. COINCIDENCE???
There are no reasons for these caps, except I like them
Kirk: I know you are, but what am I?
And we'll have fun fun fun 'til my Daddy takes the star ship away.....
Enterprise in orbit
In Conclusion
Without a doubt, one of the more camptastic episodes. We had time travel, we had Kirk getting arrested prior to being beaten up, we had plot points of future movies. We had some majorly shippy stuff going on, literally speaking, and Scotty and Sulu both got to be awesome. All told, excellent episode.
Tune in next time when I recap "Court Martial", in which we have some fabulous earrings, a lawyer with a fabulous C.V., and a distinct lack of Law & Order music. And theoretically a winner to the TrekCore Grammar!Fail Contest.