Star Trek: Into Darkness

Last night we saw Star Trek: Into Darkness. Basically, it was amazing. For now, I'm not going to mention any details or reveal any plot points or character moments or anything of the sort. However, I will say what the experience meant to me. It meant a lot. A whole lot.

Actually, I spent the first forty-five minutes or so crying at the fact that this whole thing was even happening. I get that a lot of people don't like the Abrams reboot but I'm not one of those people. Lens flairs and all, I love the new movies. I've spent a lifetime with Star Trek and I've spent every single day since January 1st watching and writing about Star Trek. The experience has reminded me just how bereft I was when Enterprise went off the air, how terrible it felt to not have any Star Trek coming, to believe that maybe Star Trek was over and they weren't ever going to make anymore. But now they have, and in doing so, they've done something wonderful.

These movies have mythologized the characters that we have known and loved since the 60's. Like Sherlock Holmes or Superman, multiple incarnations of Kirk, Spock, and McCoy means that they can live beyond their original scope. They can exist again and again, each time refreshing themselves for new generations and through those re-imaginings, they become more universal. The ideals of Star Trek--the high value placed on curiosity, loyalty, exploration, tolerance, and kindness--can be passed from one generation to the next, each time delivered in a updated and appealing format. And, the good news is, if you don't like the reboots, you can ignore them.  No one has erased all our cherished series. They still exist and they're more accessible than ever. You can go sit down in your living room and watch them over and over again and pretend these new movies don't exist. But that's not what I'm doing. I saw the 2009 Star Trek eight times in theaters and I plan on doing much the same thing with Into Darkness.

The movie is fast, smart, crammed with references to known Trek, and pretty much overflowing with heart. All the characters have great moments and the Kirk/Spock/McCoy relationship is deepened. Cumberbatch is awesome. The Enterprise is beautiful. New additions to the classic effects and sounds are perfect.

Anyway, now I'm going to paraphrase one line from the film--a line that I feel pretty much sums up how I feel about these reboots. It's out of context and I don't find it even remotely spoilery but, just the same, I'll put this quote after the following picture and you can feel free to skip it and come back to this post later:

"The Captain's Oath is a call for us to remember who we once were and who we must be again."