The countdowns

[Trekfan12]

I was watching "The Doomsday Machine" and the scene where Kirk only has a 30 second count down till the engines on the Constellation will blow apart and, hopefully, destroy the Doomsday Machine. I started counting down from when he hit the red button (I never tried to actually do that before) and he would, of course, never make it out of there.

Neither would anyone have survived the countdown in "The Naked Time." When Kirk finds Spock in the conference room and tells him they have 4 mins maybe 5, I had to laugh. They took longer with Kirk and Spock slapping each other around and then Scotty and Spock going to the Engine room to try to get the engines warmed up.

I'm not really trying to be literal here, I was just doing this exercise for fun. I'm trying to remember if there was other episodes with a time constriction in them.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

I remember stop-watching my audio tape of "The Doomsday Machine" in the 1970s and finding the 30 second countdown ran about 90 seconds.

I never checked "The Naked Time," but that one is no problem because you can always say Kirk's five minute estimate was a conservative one, to get Spock moving.

Has anybody timed The Wrath of Khan ("We encoded four minutes")? Regardless, "The Genesis Countdown" is a tremendous piece of film music (as are "The Doomsday Machine" and "The Naked Time," I'm sensing a pattern here).

 

[JonnyQuest037]

There's a time limit for using the transporter at the end of "Mirror, Mirror." I don't think I've ever actually timed it along with the episode, but I think the elapsed time was pretty close.

 

[Marsden]

There's a time limit for using the transporter at the end of "Mirror, Mirror." I don't think I've ever actually timed it along with the episode, but I think the elapsed time was pretty close.

I didn't time it myself, but he has ten seconds and takes about 12.

 

[FormerLurker]

If the timing of the countdown in The Doomsday Machine bothers you, it's easier to view it as all those disparate scenes happening at once, rather than the sequential order we're shown. Each sequence actually takes about the time needed to get Kirk away safely as depicted, but to hype the drama, they show us what everyone is doing without commentary that it's all going on at the same time.

 

[Maurice]

They were aware of this kind of problem when they made TMP, because in Walter Koenig's memoir about the making of the movie he relates how they had him rattle off a bunch of different times for the "orbiting devices" to reach final position so that they would have options in editing.

When I was cutting Act 4 of "The Tressaurian Intersection" I was really aware of this, so when we looped in the captain setting up the countdown we did it for 4 minutes, which is longer than the time which actually passes in the show, so you can assume there's some action that takes place between the cuts.

 

[Trekfan12]

They were aware of this kind of problem when they made TMP, because in Walter Koenig's memoir about the making of the movie he relates how they had him rattle off a bunch of different times for the "orbiting devices" to reach final position so that they would have options in editing.

When I was cutting Act 4 of "The Tressaurian Intersection" I was really aware of this, so when we looped in the captain setting up the countdown we did it for 4 minutes, which is longer than the time which actually passes in the show, so you can assume there's some action that takes place between the cuts.

I just assumed the timing limits or countdowns were pretty arbitrary.

 

[HIjol]

I like the above comments and explanations, but I caution:

It is NOT a "Countdown" unless Sulu does it!

 

[Maurice]

I like the above comments and explanations, but I caution:

It is NOT a "Countdown" unless Sulu does it!

SULU: One minute.

(SILENCE)​

SULU: I knew he would.

 

[Capn Nick]

It would make a fine riddle:

If Kirk sets a countdown for five minutes, and Scotty estimates he will fix something in two hours, which will actually happen first?

 

[JonnyQuest037]

I didn't time it myself, but he has ten seconds and takes about 12.

By TV standards, that's pretty damn good.

 

[Trekfan12]

I like the above comments and explanations, but I caution:

It is NOT a "Countdown" unless Sulu does it!

you're absolutely right. Where is he when I need him (like at work and it's the final 15 mins till I'm outta there )

 

[Trekfan12]

It would make a fine riddle:

If Kirk sets a countdown for five minutes, and Scotty estimates he will fix something in two hours, which will actually happen first?

or one of those unsolvable math problems they threw at us at kids

 

[Vandervecken]

I checked out Assignment: Earth for the countdown to missile warhead impact. The Beta 5 says 2 minutes to impact, then 2 minutes, 22 seconds elapse. Just sayin'.

I think they tried to get it close here, but the bit where Roberta aims the servo and Seven knocks it away costs them some time I think. It is also what justifies Kirk's decision as a bit better than a hunch, though, so no complaints.

For Let This Be Your Last Battlefield I got 47 seconds for 24 seconds elapsed destruct sequence (where Kirk's voice shut it down long enough for him to give the code).

 

[Elder Knight]

Why they won't let Scotty conduct countdowns ...

http://www.trekbbs.com/threads/hey-i-never-noticed-that-before.274883/page-6#post-11249140

 

[Push The Button]

Perhaps we're talking about "star-minutes" and "star-seconds", which of course can be fudged to fit the needs of the story..