Wrath of Khan questions

[Erekose]

OK - my take on it below:

1) Sensors are inoperable due to the Mutara Nebula. They don’t know where each other are. Why not Just look out the window? Clearly sensors are worse at "sensing" than basic eyesight is. Look! There they are!

I interpret this as long range sensors being inoperable - the immediate vicinity is fine which is why they can “see” each other when they nearly collide. Perhaps this view isn’t called sensors?


2) Why does a Vulcan funeral feature an English song played by Scottish bagpipes?

I think this is linked to the next answer but in short it is just a traditional Starfleet funeral.

3) And isn't it a bit harsh just shooting Spock out the nearest torpedo tube rather than taking him home and informing his family? I bet that was an awkward conversation when the got back to Vulcan and/or Earth.

Remember at this point in the films Spock hasn’t resolved his issues with Sarek. As Kirk knows this, he wants to give him a hero’s funeral (the equivalent of a vikings funeral but entering the atmosphere of the Genesis Planet creating the fire rather than arrows) rather than the debacle of a funeral Kirk expects him to get back on Vulcan.

 

[Erekose]

And a couple more:

4. How did Khan recognize Chekov (as he stated when they met at the beginning of the movie) when Chekov wasn't even part of the USS Enterprise crew at the time of "The Space Seed," the episode which introduced Khan and his genetic supermen?

Remember the Enterprise is a big ship so maybe it just wasn’t Chekov’s rotation on the bridge but Khan saw him in passing elsewhere? He could easily have found his name when searching the computer archive.

5. Don't Kirk and Spock know that "homemade codes" are frowned upon when discussing classified information in the clear - such as their impromptu "hours seem like days" comment when discussing how long it will take to repair the Enterprise? And if Khan's so smart, why didn't he pick up on it?

This is just for the audience so that we know what’s really being said Either that or they made it so obvious that Khan wouldn’t understand because he’d be looking for something more complex? Besides they kind of told Khan what he wanted to believe (i.e. the Enterprise was badly damaged) so maybe he was happy to take it at face value (his ego overwhelming his intellect!).

 

[Umbran]

Best Trek film. But I digress. Answer me these questions three.

1) Sensors are inoperable due to the Mutara Nebula. They don’t know where each other are. Why not Just look out the window? Clearly sensors are worse at "sensing" than basic eyesight is. Look! There they are!

2) Why does a Vulcan funeral feature an English song played by Scottish bagpipes?

3) And isn't it a bit harsh just shooting Spock out the nearest torpedo tube rather than taking him home and informing his family? I bet that was an awkward conversation when the got back to Vulcan and/or Earth.

P.S. These aren't really questions.

Yeah, but let us answer them anyway, and see if that's fun.

1) As I recall, both ships were massively understaffed and/or in distress. Posting people at all the windows to be able to call fire was probably not an option. In addition, space is really big, and the number of windows on those ships was not - you might not even have portholes at the right locations. Having a window in every stateroom was a Next Gen thing. Check out how few interior shots on TOS had portholes....

2) It wasn't a Vulcan funeral. It was a Star Fleet Funeral.

3) Harsh? No. The Enterprise crew had been his chosen family for decades at this point.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

1) I think the advantage of the sensors is that they can feed directly into the targeting system for your guns. Eye Balls at windows don't.

2) I figure it was Scotty's own contribution. Kirk gave a speech, Scotty provided musical support. Maybe if he hadn't stepped up, Uhura could have sung Amazing Grace.

3) I think that's basically the space equivalent of burial at sea, and probably considered appropriate for Starfleet Officers.

 

[Ratskinner]

Best Trek film. But I digress. Answer me these questions three.

1) Sensors are inoperable due to the Mutara Nebula. They don’t know where each other are. Why not Just look out the window? Clearly sensors are worse at "sensing" than basic eyesight is. Look! There they are!

View attachment 98322

2) Why does a Vulcan funeral feature an English song played by Scottish bagpipes?

3) And isn't it a bit harsh just shooting Spock out the nearest torpedo tube rather than taking him home and informing his family? I bet that was an awkward conversation when the got back to Vulcan and/or Earth.

P.S. These aren't really questions.

1) Questioning the rational of anything technical in Star Trek is ... well, I think just saw a rabbit checking his watch.

2) Don't forget an insulting eulogy.

3) My favorite part about the "burial in space" is thinking about some planet with a non-spacefaring intelligent species on it. Apparently the torpedo casing can survive re-entry and crash-landing. I mean, there they are at whatever their equivalent of the Colosseum is and Ka-Bam! There's a shiny black...thing that just came from the heavens....with a frozen dead guy inside. Prime Directive? Well, its not like we intended to mess with them, anyway. That series of Holy Wars and revolutions in cosmology and astronomy are totally not our fault.

 

[Erekose]

3) My favorite part about the "burial in space" is thinking about some planet with a non-spacefaring intelligent species on it. Apparently the torpedo casing can survive re-entry and crash-landing. I mean, there they are at whatever their equivalent of the Colosseum is and Ka-Bam! There's a shiny black...thing that just came from the heavens....with a frozen dead guy inside. Prime Directive? Well, its not like we intended to mess with them, anyway. That series of Holy Wars and revolutions in cosmology and astronomy are totally not our fault.

While this is clearly handwaved I think the idea is that it would’ve burned up in the atmosphere of an ordinary planet but survived because the atmosphere was just forming on the Genesis Planet. I think David mentions this in Star Trek III ...

 

[Umbran]

3) My favorite part about the "burial in space" is thinking about some planet with a non-spacefaring intelligent species on it. Apparently the torpedo casing can survive re-entry and crash-landing. I mean, there they are at whatever their equivalent of the Colosseum is and Ka-Bam! There's a shiny black...thing that just came from the heavens....with a frozen dead guy inside. Prime Directive? Well, its not like we intended to mess with them, anyway. That series of Holy Wars and revolutions in cosmology and astronomy are totally not our fault.

You realize that space is *really* big, right? And that planets, by comparison... aren't? That unless you specifically aim for a planet, you aren't going to hit one just at random? And if you hit one, the chances of hitting one that *just happens* to have an intelligent but non-space-fairing species is not high?

 

[Ratskinner]

You realize that space is *really* big, right? And that planets, by comparison... aren't? That unless you specifically aim for a planet, you aren't going to hit one just at random? And if you hit one, the chances of hitting one that *just happens* to have an intelligent but non-space-fairing species is not high?

Real space, yeah, sure. Gotta degree in physics, even. I wouldn't even worry about it.

Star Trek space, though, its a near guarantee. That space is just lousy with earth-like planets and almost all of them are teeming with intelligent species. Warp-speed and distances and timing work at the speed of drama, there.

 

[Ryujin]

You realize that space is *really* big, right? And that planets, by comparison... aren't? That unless you specifically aim for a planet, you aren't going to hit one just at random? And if you hit one, the chances of hitting one that *just happens* to have an intelligent but non-space-fairing species is not high?

Also in space, nebulae aren't like Earthly cloud banks, but are much more..... nebulous. They're only relatively dense when seen from great distance

In Star Trek space you can't throw a rock without hitting a habitable planet.

 

[Umbran]

Also in space, nebulae aren't like Earthly cloud banks, but are much more..... nebulous. They're only relatively dense when seen from great distance

I know. Graduate education in physics here.

The nebula does not match real universe nebulae. Fine. The question with science fiction is not whether it is technically correct all the time. If that were the question, we'd discard Trek as soon as they turned on a warp drive. The issue with science fiction is, if we take the technical deviations as given, is the story internally consistent?

In Star Trek space you can't throw a rock without hitting a habitable planet.

No. They have FTL drives so that they can specifically cross the vast, empty distances between tiny specks of rocks to seek out habitable worlds. They *very carefully aim* their rocks to hit habitable worlds. And when they miss, they change the direction the rock is flying.

There is a sort of narrative anthropic principle that applies in most of science fiction - the action happens on habitable worlds because more interesting stories happen among people than among airless rocks.