7 Life Lessons from Star Trek

I'm a bit of a Star Trek fan.  But I have it under control now...honest!

Yes, I admit when I was young I would use my lego set to create an arsenal of phasers neatly arranged on my window shelf...set for stun of course!  And yes, my friends and I would practice the Vulcan Neck Pinch on each other because, after all, it hurt pretty good and maybe, just maybe, we could get it to work after all; then we'd be famous.  And of course I could discuss the reasons why a 1 to 1 ratio, dilinthium focused matter / anti-matter annihilation was necessary for optimal warp field entry with the best of them.  (How else were we ever going to coax our engines past Warp 4???)

Some things you grow out of...some you don't. 

So when I saw David Borgenicht's article in the Huffington post "7 Life Lessons I learned from Star Trek" I realized he was on to something.  So with proper citation to Mr. Borgenicht, I'd like to reprint those seven lessons at Beyond the Pale because...well...I pretty much agree with everyone of them*.

1.The best way to travel is to boldly go where no one has gone before. This is true for vacations, for self-exploration, for life itself. If you want your days filled with adventure, laughter, love, learning and the occasional mind-meld, follow this route.

2.The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few--or the one. Sometimes you must make great sacrifices for the greater good. And, like the Genesis device, it will all come back around.

3.Expressing your emotions is a healthy thing. Sure, McCoy seemed angry all the time when exclaiming, "Dammit, Jim! I'm a doctor not a mechanic/bricklayer/soothsayer," but he knew that by expressing his anger and frustration it wouldn't get the best of him and he could then perform at his peak capacity.

4.When estimating how long a job will take, overestimate--and when you do better your captain will always be impressed. Replace the word "captain" with "teacher" or "mom/dad" and you'll see what I mean. Sure, Mr. Scott might have been telling the truth--maybe it would take six hours to get the warp engines back online in the heat of the battle. Or maybe he was padding things so he looked good. Either way, when the engines did come back on line, everyone was happy.

5.Wearing red makes you a target. This is true of cars, dresses and, most especially, shirts. Red gets you noticed--which is good if you want to be noticed, bad if you don't want to end up vaporized.

6.When you don't know what to say, pause. It will give you the time to figure it out. Or at the very least, you'll sound like you're being thoughtful. "But....Spock.....why?"

7.The most powerful force in the universe is friendship. It's more powerful than phasers, photon torpedos, even more powerful than the force itself. With friends, you can accomplish any task, escape any perilous situation, defeat any enemy--and you get to laugh together when it's all over.*

* Actually (Steve here again) I'm still going to give "the most powerful force in the Universe" to God...but friendship is a nice runner up :)

Star Trek at 45!

On September 8th 1966 a lttle TV show named Star Trek debuted for the first time on NBC.  It told the tale of the crew of the Starship Enterprise's journey to explore strange new worlds,  seek out new life and to boldly go where no Man has gone before.  (That is until some Einstein changed it to "where no one has gone before"; which musters about the same emotional impact as Ben Stein muttering "Bueller...Bueller..."

Debuting at a time when black Americans were expected to sit to the rear of a bus and women were largely seen on TV coming out of the kitchen with a casserole in their hand, Star Trek broke convention by featuring a black female senior Communications officer.  Add to the multicultural crew a Russian navigator during the height of the Cold War and an Oriental helmsmen and you see why the debut of Star Trek has always been seen as groundbreaking for network TV. 

For years in the 1970's and early '80's UHF Channel 50 in Detroit would broadcast reruns of  Star Trek every Saturday and Sunday evening.  By the time I was 10 I knew all 79 episodes like the back of my hand.  Later I would close my eyes at the beginning of a show and try to guess which episode it was from Kirk's opening "Captain's Log".  Yep, I was a Star Trek geek and and it only followed that my closest friends would be Star Trek geeks. 

Of course there have been new incarnations of the show but none have ever replaced the iconic characters made famous by William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy and Co.  As much as we may have liked The Next Generation I don't imagine when JJ Abrams rebooted the series a couple years back there was any discussion whether they would be recasting a young Picard rather than a young Kirk.

But all of that pales to the fact that when Star Trek premiered in that September evening of 1966 I was 4 days old.

Yep, I'm as old as Star Trek. 

Over time as the show celebrated key anniversary years (15, 25, 35) with retrospective reflections and highlight interviews with cast and crew I was always reminded how old I was.  So when I saw promotions for the 45th anniversary I was suddenly like, "Ugh, am I really going to be 45 years old !" 

Somehow the 25th anniversary was much more exciting to me.

Anyhow...Happy Birthday Star Trek!  Won't be long before we're both celebrating 50!

Saw Star Trek Last Weekend

Well, I saw Star Trek in China last weekend and …what can I say…WOW! First, I have to add that the normal travel time into downtown Qingdao is normally 1 ½ - 2 hours. Because of Friday night traffic and missing a ferry, it took us 3HOURS to reach the movie theater. When we arrived though, all became well though. For me, Star Trek has always been a group activity so I invited the boarding students in our charge as well as the school’s principal and family.

Wow, what can I say!

J.J. Abrams did what few thought were possible. He applied a couple defibrillator pads, motioned his detractors to stand back and yelled, “Clear!” as he shot about 20,000 volts into a tired, worn out franchise. And 20,000 volts is what you feel from the first seconds of the movie. Gone are the preachy utopian sermons and the annoying reminders that mankind has somehow “evolved” beyond the primitive nature found in the 20th Century. This Star Trek is gritty, faced paced, and despite being set primarily in space, remains refreshingly “earthy.” You know when the beautiful Lt. Uhura is first introduced ordering some “Bud Lights” from a bartender, this isn’t going to be your father’s Star Trek.

The story itself was the weakest element of the film. An uneven plot revolves around a distraught Romulan (Eric Bana) who vows revenge on Mr. Spock and the Federation after his world and family are destroyed. Why exactly he holds these parties guilty is never fully explored but it does allow Bana to yell and grunt a lot.

However it’s the seeing of the characters we have come to know and love, reincarnated for a new generation, that is the real element that makes Star Trek shine. Each character seems to channel the actors that made their character an icon, without becoming a parody themselves.

Chris Pine becomes the young James T. Kirk and navigates the thin line needed to embody the future captain of the Enterprise…without becoming William Shatner. Zachary Quinto fills the boots of Mr. Spock with a likeness of Leonard Nimoy that bordered on scary. Tammy and I’s favorite character though was Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy played by Karl Urban. He was the cranky, yet loyal friend who breathed real fun into the ensemble cast.

The Starship Enterprise, under J.J. Abrams expert hand, was a feast for the fan’s eye. He invoked the 60’s motif of the TV series while re-imagining it for the 2000’s audience. The colors, sounds, and heck, over all feel gave me goose bumps on a number of occasions. And all though the phrase, “Where no man has gone before”, was replaced by the boringly neutered, “Where no one has gone before, it was nice to see the mini-skirts and go-go boots of the female crew members were not sacrificed on the altar of political correctness.

The cherry on the top of this delicious sundae was the inclusion of Leonard Nimoy as the elder Mr. Spock who returns from the future to help the Enterprise crew. At various times in the past there has been a passing of the baton from the previous generation to the new. In both 1991’s Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country and 1994’s Generations, there was a farewell to the old guard yet deep down, we all knew they would return at some point in some capacity. When I saw the aged Nimoy give the Vulcan hand salute in this newest film, I thought, “This truly is the end.” With some of the original cast members having passed on, and the remaining becoming frightfully old, I sadly realized I would be seeing this generation of my beloved characters for the very last time. But the sendoff given by J.J. Abrams film couldn’t have been more respectful…or more exciting.

Final Verdict: A - This Star Trek goes where no other Star Trek has gone before.

More Star Trek

Trekkies Bash New Star Trek Film As 'Fun, Watchable'

Yes, I know after a stream of postings that have been umm..on the lighter side, you have all been anxiously awaiting the latest entry loaded with cerebral delicacies.

Sorry, but you'll have to wait a bit longer...I've been busy.

Until then, here is a REALLY funny video from "The Onion" for all you Star Trek fans out there.

Star Trek

I can't believe Star Trek is coming out today in the States and I'm not there to see it. I've been reading the news and watching some of the reaction clips on CNN and am SO happy that it has been positively received. Such strong response signals a successful re-birth of a franchise that was, frankly, intertwined with my family and friends growing up.

Nearly every Saturday and Sunday evening in the 1970's Hackman household found my brothers and I (and quite often Mom & Dad) watching the crew of the Enterprise exploring strange, new, worlds. My geekness extended to:

* making lego phasers which were displayed on my bookcase and kept "at the ready" in case of a Romulan sneak attack of my bedroom
* reading every Star Trek novel that came out in the 1980's
* heaping abuse on the first season of The Next Generation
* endless hours of discussing with friends every nuance of the show
* and Yes, I did go to a convention

Seeing Star Trek movies have been sort of a group activity with me and my friends over the years. Living in Qingdao China has made that difficult. I had floated the idea of flying down to Hong Kong to see the new movie but, although my wife has become an amateur Trekkie over the years, the expense of flying to another country to see a movie was quickly nixed by her. :)



Thats when good news arrived! I read online that the cinema here in Qingdao will be showing the new Star Trek movie starting next week. The information is all in Chinese so I printed it out and took it to our Chinese staff to interpret. They were kind enough to call the cinema and discover that although they couldn't confirm it yet, believed they would have some screenings in English!! Hurray!!

I was so excited I invited the whole office staff to join me and I would spring for the tickets of any person that would come with. So, we'll see if next Star Trek comes to China...in English so I can once again join the crew of the Enterprise boldly going where no man has gone before.

Star Trek

On September 8th, 1966 the country heard a now familiar voice proclaim for the first time, "Space, the Final Frontier...these are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise." Four nights earlier I was born. Yes, I'm as old as Star Trek!!

For geeks my age, Star Trek was our defining show. Growing up in Detroit meant a re-run of the show every Saturday and Sunday night. I collected Star Trek books and used my legos to create an arsenal of phasers for my room. Earlier in my Christian walk I always hoped that while other Christians are having "mansions" prepared for them in heaven, I would be given command of the Starship Enterprise and told to explore the galaxy. (I'm not unconvinced that still might not happen :)

Over the years there have been new Star Trek spin-offs with varying levels of success. But ultimately even the fans started to grow weary of yet another alien race with a funky forehead. The Star Trek franchise was like a vineyard that had been over used. The 2002 film Nemesis , although a good film, failed to hit at the box office. There needed to be a rest to allow a very fertile soil to revive.

Enter director J.J. Abrams who was recruited to re-imagine the original Star Trek series with a young Captain Kirk. I have to admit, I'm excited. Abrams is the man who brought us Lost which is one of my favorite shows. He has a way of focusing on human interaction and development that will make Star Trek a hit.

This week, the new trailer was released and I have very high hopes. There are, however, a couple things in the trailer that give me pause for concern:

1) I hate a lot of CGI. There is a tendency to overuse it. Often less is more (Something George Lucas has NEVER learned) The battle clip in the trailer could look cartoonish if not done right.

2) I don't like the obvious overt sex shown in the trailer. There has always been a subtle "sexiness" in Star Trek with some of the characters but it has always been just that...subtle. Overt sex in Star Trek detracts from the show and brings a crassness that I personally don't want to see.

Having said that though, I am SO looking forward to this movie and to once again "boldly go where no man has gone before."