Third Annual Interplanetary Search for Spock Day

So today is the Third Annual Interplanetary Search for Spock Day. This was a holiday created by one of the RUF students. The point is to watch 'Star Trek III: The Search for Spock' and record your stream of consciousness thoughts, then post it to some public forum. So a note for my dad: I'm not crazy. I promise this has legitimate promise for becoming the next big national holiday. Also, you're going to have to watch the movie for this to make any sense.

And so it begins...

Paul just told me you don't have to write your thoughts every year... lame.

Also, it's been a while since I have seen any of the Star Trek movies... I've kind of forgotten what happened in the last movie. So, I can't remember why Spock died.

I always get goosebumps when I hear the little Star Trek intro. It reminds me of my childhood.

Oh hey, there's Spock in the space casket! I found him! That was easy.

I think DeForest Kelley has the best name: two shades of green in his name!

Yay for Christopher Lloyd!

We're watching the credits... and this is the part that I start thinking about the deep, lingering issues of space travel. If you are traveling through time, why don't you age?

I love Scotty! "You'll fix the barn door until the horses come home." What?

A heroes welcome for what? I can't remember what happened before.

Captain Kirk is so sad. This brings to mind the question of deep male friendships, and how even twenty-some odd years ago you would see more of a willingness to display emotions for one another. I'm not so sure how that would be received anymore. Thoughts?

Klingons! Christopher Lloyd does not make a very convincing Klingon, in my opinion.

Oh, that dude is a mercenary... and that girl's gonna die.

I always get the timeline of Star Trek and forget that for the longest time, Klingon's were the bad guys. And the the Borg entered the picture... and I guess that you had to make it seem like it was possible to make peace with the bad guys at some point. So I always expect the Klingon's to be peaceful.

Where do spaceships go when they are retired?

Security Alert! Who is in Spock's quarters? Who wanted in? And why did they just put yellow security tape on the door? You'd think that in the course of time, we'd find a better way to seal things off than security tape.

Shatner's going crazy! Oh, Kirk, I mean. And Bones is possessed by the ghost of Spock. Shatner was always crazy.

No more Enterprise? Oh no! Don't look down on the age of that boat.

Ain't no controversy like a galactic controversy. Especially when talking about it is forbidden.

What was the Genesis device? Moons are dead? Depositing life forms? Whatever we see fit? What about ice crystals?

Why are the Klingons speaking English now? And what exactly are they plotting to do?

I've never understood the problem of being human. I rather like it. The Vulcans are too cold and infuriatingly logical. But seriously, ths seems to be a really interesting issue of the philosophy of Star Trek. Human beings are too emotional, too irrational. Is it better to be human? Or to be so controlled?

Really, how can there be no more Enterprise?

Spock's dad seems a little too demanding. "How could you not do that thing that you didn't know to do?"

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few or the one." The loss of the individual to the community. Admittedly, there may times where this is true. But it seems to downplay the unique importance of each person.

Hmm... "everything that he was, everything that he knew... is lost." And yet, death is not the end for our person. Not for our bodies, not for our souls.

So this movie is basically about the reunion of our souls and bodies. Yeah... common grace: we understand that death is in someway unnatural, the body and soul are separated. And something needs to be done to bring them back together.

So... I don't like space slugs.

And is Spock supposed to be like Jesus? Except he is the one with the problem...

Dr McCoy just walked into the Star Trek equivilent to the Star Wars Mos Eisley cantina. Hearing Nemoy's voice in DeForest Kelley's face is weird. And that alien guy needs to take some elocution lessons from Yoda.

Yeah... McCoy is definitely not a Vulcan.

Snow on planet Genesis.

I like Kirk in a leather jacket. But he's got a popped collar... that's too much.

"Don't get smart tiny." Oh my goodness, this seems like a rip off of A New Hope.

You know what, Lieutenant, never tell a woman she's old.

Wait... now I'm confused, too, about who Uhura really liked in the original Star Trek.

The doors!

I wonder who came up with the design model for those space ships?

Warp speed! I love warp speed, it's so pretty. Uh-oh... they've got no gas in the tank to go warp speed. Good morning, Captain. You just got rick-rolled.

Yes, staff meetings are very important.

Oh, now it's a blizzard on Genesis. And there's a wailing banshee on the other side fo the cone-shaped thing. Oh, it's a little boy.

WE FOUND SPOCK!

That was a deeply incredulous woman.

KLINGONS! I forgot about them. Oh, 1984 computer graphics.

She is correct about the enemy attack.

Oh wait... is that Kirk's son? "You changed the rules."

Now it is night on Genesis. But because it is the moon, it has no moon. Where is the light coming from?

Aging in surges. They only have days, maybe hours. This is a bad situation, y'all. And now puberty is going to hit.

The USS Grissom is gone, Chekov. G-O-N-E-gone.

Oh, lady, get out of the cave. This isn't going to go well.

Hand hug! Oh wait, that's not quite a hand hug... more like hand kissing.

Oooh, cloaking devices! And noisy Klingon's don't wake you up?

I saw that half-smile. Admiral Kirk is here to save the day.

Cloaking devices are still in their infancy. Sometimes you can still see the distortion.

Kirk shot first. Do you think George Lucas will go back and edit that out?

What an awesome turn around from Kirk... start all conversations with your back turned.

Surrender? Okay... three prisoners. David and the Vulcan... what an awesome band name.

What a sad way to hear you just lost your son. "You Klingon bastard, you killed my son." Reminds me of "My name is Inigio Montoya, you kill my father. Prepare to die." from 'The Princess Bride'.

Never tell Kirk not to play any tricks... it's what he's known for.

You know how we recently learned that the code for launching nuclear bombs during the Cold War was '0000000'? Well, that self-destruct code was much the same.

Nice trick, Kirk! You kill my son, I kill your general.

I love that the boys are discussing whether or not the blow up scene was correct.

"Turning death into a fighting chance to live."

Spock's going crazy. That was a pretty amazing throw.... out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Spock has a bubble face.

When in doubt, fire!

"It seems, Admiral, that I've got all his marbles." Hahahahaha.

Oh right, there's no other way to get off of Genesis without getting the Klingon to cooperate.

Kirk is waiting... come on, Klingon. Spock's going crazy.

Oh, hey Klingon!

I think the Klingon's idea of what is exhilarating is a little misguided.

Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!

Oh, and now this is going to end like the Lord of the Rings. Yup... bite his toe off. Well, he was right: he killed him.

Oh wow... the planet's burning. It's like a weird mix between bad eschatology and classic sci-fi.

And that friends is why it is always good to know a foreign language.

"Fine, I'll kill you later." Classic. "I lied."

Oh yay! Spock's back! And McCoy's giving him a pretty good what for. I'd be pretty mad if I had someone else's brain in my head. Oh, so very mad.

Oh, they're buddies. That's nice. Why can't men be friends without feeling like it's a weird thing?

Hey Spock's daddy! Nice to see you again.

And then you remember, that planet has been utterly obliterated in the new 'Star Trek' and how will they have Vulcan's in the future?

Fanfare for the departed.

Oh, they look a lot like Egyptians. Michael suggests that this is how we got the pyramids.

Logic is not the ultimate reality in life.

Wait... do Vulcan's have special powers, besides being infuriating and boring?

I'm so confused about what just happened. "Every movie should end with a montage of forehead touching." I agree, Paul.

McCoy's alright!

Spock's in a white robe... one wonder's, is Spock more important than David? Or Kirk's soul?

Bye, Spock. So glad we found you... oh, hey, Spock!

"And you were there! And you were there, and you!"

"The needs of the one outweigh the needs of the many." Well, that doesn't make any sense, either.

There was a ship... Jim...

Cue the music. Group hug!

Sunrise over Vulcan.