WHENEVER THE KLINGONS SHOW UP IN THE REBOOTED STAR TREK MOVIES, I WOULD LOVE THEM TO GO WITH THE TECHNOLOGY THEY USED IN AVATAR. I WOULD LIKE TO SEE TALLER ( 8-10 FEET ) BRAWNY...MORE SAVAGE KLINGONS THAN THE ONES WE'VE ALL COME TO KNOW. I ALWAYS SAW KLINGONS MORE LIKE PITBULLS. WELL...AT LEAST STAR TREK PRIME ( THE UNIVERSE WE ALL KNOW PRIOR TO THE REBOOT) GOT THEIR ATTITUDES DOWNRIGHT. ALSO IT WOULD BE CLEVER TO MAKE THE BIRD OF PREY MORE OF AN ATTACK STARSHIP. WHAT DO I MEAN BY THIS ? WELL...WE KNOW IT GOT IT'S ARNAMENT; TORPEDOS, DISRUPTERS, CLOAKING DEVICE, BUT WHY NOT PUT CLAWS AND TALONS ON THE THING. IT WOULD BE COOL TO SEE A BIRD OF PREY ACTUALLY RIP INTO A FEDERATION STARSHIP...TAKING OUT CHUNKS OF THE HULL WITH IT'S TALONS OR CLAWS. PLUS THIS WOULD SHOW THE KLINGONS DON'T HAVE TO ALWAYS RESORT TO STEALTH MODE. THEY COULD GET UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL. I FOR ONE WOULD LOVE TO SEE A SCENE WHERE THE NEW BIRD OF PREY ATTACHES ITSELF TO THE SAUCER SECTION OF THE ENTERPRISE, AND WATCH AS IT'S TALONS OR CLAWS BURROW DEEP INTO THE SHIP...TAKING SEVERAL CREWMAN INTO SPACE. I DON'T KNOW GUYS...IT'S JUST A DIFFERENT KIND OF VISUAL I'M LOOKING FOR. SOME OF YOU MAY THINK IT'S STUPID, BUT...HEY...IT'S AN IDEA.
Siskoone, I don't know if you are aware of it, but typing in all caps comes across as yelling on the internet. Please do not do it. It's rather distracting to read posts when they are yelled. Thanks!
THEY DID SOMETHING LIKE THIS IN THE SECOND SEASON OF BUCK ROGERS WHEN THEY INTRODUCED THE CHARACTER "HAWK" AND HAD HIM CRIPPLE ENEMY SHIPS BY GRIPPING THEM-- ... Oh dear, sorry about that. Not only is PKTrekGirl right that all-caps is generally perceived as shouting, but, more importantly, it's hard to read. A traditional mix of upper and lower case characters makes it much easier for the reader to gauge where ideas start and stop and allows you to express yourself better. Siskoone, break yourself of the uppercase habit immediately -- you're compromising the very ideas you want to share. People will not only turn away from poorly expressed ideas without entertaining them (a common problem here at TrekBBS to begin with), but they'll also assume unpleasant things about your intellect as well. Anyway, that does nothing to address your idea. As I started to say, there was a character in the second season of Buck Rogers who attacked other spacecraft in almost exactly the manner you describe. Admittedly, it could be rendered much more believably today then back in the early 1980s. I'm not a big fan of the idea, though, because it introduces a lot of stress to the ship that physically engages, too. More than likely, the claws and talons would tear and twist off and cause structural damage to the attacking ship ... and that's assuming such a ship could even get close enough to attack, having to charge in through phaser and photo torpedo attacks and then breach shields before finally reaching the hull. But I love the idea of bigger Klingons. Several years ago, I began putting together notes for a revamped Star Trek idea that included newer ideas in science and science fiction. I changed the Vulcans and Andorians in subtle ways, added a post-singularity culture to humanity, and made the Klingons enormous beasts, much as you describe, ruled by intelligent parasites that attached themselves to the backs of the beasts. Klingons don't retreat because that would expose the parasites. In summary, I love the idea of rendering all the aliens of Star Trek recognizable, but even more ... alien.
Wow...at least we love the idea of making the Klingons bigger and meaner. But the parasites on their backs...i don't know...prehaps if you explain more about that...Is it like the Trill species ? Anyways, your point is taken about the talons/ claws on a rebooted Bird of Prey. But the fun with sci-fi is not everything has to be logical. Who's to say these new Bird of prey starships isn't contructed out of a powerful alloy able to perform the sort of feats i mentioned. ( not to mention; take the stress)I didn't know about the Buck Rogers comparison. I remember Hawk with his ship, but i can't recall the episode you mentioned. I do support your idea for the klingons though...maybe we can all get a poll going or something. With technology today, we should be seeing more 'alien' species in Star trek than the humanoid varity they continue to supply.
Fruitless in my efforts to find a good clip for your review, I did find this funny blog entry that illustrates what Hawk's ship did. I don't remember it looking very convincing, even for the time, but special effects back then were different ... they weren't realistic, they were a sort of icon that gave you a rough idea what was going on. I loved the model work done in Buck Rogers. A lot of it was very beautiful. "But the fun with sci-fi is not everything has to be logical." See, this is where you and I part company. No, not literally, I'm not walking out on your discussion, but I think it's very important for science fiction to make sense. Once you start jettisoning that, you move closer and closer to fantasy. Star Trek did that a little too often for my tastes, especially as time went on, but it was at its best when it went the other direction. And if we're sitting here daydreaming about what we'd like to see next, don't we really want to see the movie be the best it can possibly be? Sure, keep the imagination and excitement, but also keep it logical and as scientifically accurate as possible.
The link to Hawk's ship was really cool. I still think it could work for a revamped bird of prey. I got to thinking, the talons would only be used when a federation ship has been immoblized. It wouldn't make sense for The bird of Prey to use the talons if the other ship was at warp or at impulse. So maybe it's plausible. I would still like to hear your treatment on the klingons with the parasites on their backs. So what would you like to see for the second star trek movie ?