• Welcome! The TrekBBS is the number one place to chat about Star Trek with like-minded fans.
    If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

The Motorcycle Cop (Spoilers, maybe)

Never even occured to me that it may be a robot. Although his "citizen" bit was a bit weird.

Eh, if you figure that it is 300 years in the future then imagine the evolution of Miranda Rights. If the cop talked to the "citizen" wrong he'd probably be letting him walk because he screwed up the process.

Citizen is also an interesting term. It implies there are non-citizens. But, I guess that could be off-worlders.
 
No way to be sure but it sure as hell looked like one. My question would be since when does Earth (protected domestically and in foreign affairs by starfleet security) suddenly have any cops at all?
"There's a reason we separate military and the police: one fights the enemy of the state, the other serves and protects the people. When the military becomes both, then the enemies of the state tend to become the people."
 
I totally thought it was a bot, especially with that " citizen ! " stuff. And I also thought it was a reference to something else, esp. the face, but I can't remember what. Something Like THX 1138 meets 5th Element or something. Dr Who?? I, Robot? I'm drawing a blank and google image search isn't any help. Hmmm... :confused:
 
I totally thought it was a bot, especially with that " citizen ! " stuff. And I also thought it was a reference to something else, esp. the face, but I can't remember what. Something Like THX 1138 meets 5th Element or something. Dr Who?? I, Robot? I'm drawing a blank and google image search isn't any help. Hmmm... :confused:
Judge Dredd?
 
Never even occured to me that it may be a robot. Although his "citizen" bit was a bit weird.

I don't think he says "citizen" in the movie, only in the trailer (his dialogue and in fact his voice are different). His movie voice is a bit less filtered and I think he addresses Kirk as "son."


You got that backward, he says citizen in the movie, but not in the trailer.
 
He sure had a narrow head if he was a human wearing that mask/helmet and the whole thing was only that wide....
Yeah. Clearly instead of giving a guy a futuristic desert cop outfit who did absolutely nothing outlandish whatsoever, they spent millions upon millions of dollars creating a CGI person. I think you nailed it there.

It was a guy in a suit. No question about it. Even if you ignore the above sarcasm, androids weren't wandering around Earth in that age (and even by TNG they were all but unknown aside from Data), and a robot designed for that sort of duty wouldn't need a damn bike. He'd be the bike.

Use some sense, people.
 
I think it would've been more interesting if the cop were a robot.

But, as has been mentioned, it is Orci's contention that the cop is a human, so I guess I'll subscribe to that.
 
I also want to add that I'm surprised there's not an entry for this character up yet on Memory Alpha.
 
Anyone know if the kid that Kirk passed and waved to while being chased was supposed to be someone?
 
Definitely a human with an advanced helmet/mask in my opinion. His movements and stride was clearly human. He's got a bit of a swagger even. And in the movie his voice sounded a lot less "robotic".

I liked the "citizen" bit. It sounds like they draw inspiration from the French Revolution's moniker for people, which emphasized the equality of all people. A nice departure from the current day's "sir" or "mister".
 
Anyone know if the kid that Kirk passed and waved to while being chased was supposed to be someone?
I had the feeling that he was supposed to be Sam, lil' Jimmy older brother, but it was changed not to confuse the audience about a brother never seen or heard again.
 
Anyone know if the kid that Kirk passed and waved to while being chased was supposed to be someone?
The subject of some little controversy in older threads; most say he called him "Johnny," but I think it's an aborted brother George appearance that didn't make it into the final scenario.
 
I also want to add that I'm surprised there's not an entry for this character up yet on Memory Alpha.

I looked there too ... If this is NuTrek tech, we need to know about it!
According to their plot summary, tho, he's just a "policeman on a flying motorcycle".

Their android article says:
Androids began replacing other forms of robots in the late 22nd century when it became clear that a more lifelike appearance was needed for successful interactions with Humans.

Which means that there were 'other robots' in the mid-22nd century to be replaced ?
Not sure where they're getting that from ... no episode ref.
 
Yeah. Clearly instead of giving a guy a futuristic desert cop outfit who did absolutely nothing outlandish whatsoever, they spent millions upon millions of dollars creating a CGI person. I think you nailed it there.
I wasn't suggesting CGI, or that the character wasn't portrayed by someone in a suit. But someone doesn't have to be male. A woman inside the suit could have provided the narrowness of features necessary to convey 'robot' while a man dubbed the voice in. Or, it is worth noting that fairly remarkable things can be done with simple camera tricks. Remember Gimli?

Also, what do you mean, "androids weren't wandering around Earth in that age"? First, no one said anything about androids - we said "robot". And second, we know that sentient humaniform androids weren't anything approaching common - but that says nothing about non-sentient humaniform robots (entertainment bots, for example, which we're close to having now), or non-sentient non-humaniform humanoid robots (which we definitely have now).

And as for your assertion that he would "be the bike" - studies have been done and will continue to be done on people's psychological reactions to artificial beings in different shapes and sizes. For a robot that assembles part of a Toyota, that isn't so important. But for a law enforcement 'bot, that could play a big role. He might be humanoid for that reason.

And finally, common sense is also usually accompanied by a little common courtesy in how one addresses people. I haven't seen anyone else who seemed to have an actual beef with this discussion. What's yours?
 
I also want to add that I'm surprised there's not an entry for this character up yet on Memory Alpha.

I looked there too ... If this is NuTrek tech, we need to know about it!
According to their plot summary, tho, he's just a "policeman on a flying motorcycle".

Their android article says:
Androids began replacing other forms of robots in the late 22nd century when it became clear that a more lifelike appearance was needed for successful interactions with Humans.

Which means that there were 'other robots' in the mid-22nd century to be replaced ?
Not sure where they're getting that from ... no episode ref.
Off the top of my head, I'm not sure where they're getting that from, either. I would like to see an article about the police officer, though.
 
Never even occured to me that it may be a robot. Although his "citizen" bit was a bit weird.

I don't think he says "citizen" in the movie, only in the trailer (his dialogue and in fact his voice are different). His movie voice is a bit less filtered and I think he addresses Kirk as "son."
He certainly says the line "What is your name?" with a lot more emotion in the trailer then in the movie. In the movie, I sorta immediately accepted the fact that it was a robot; even though he moves like a Human. I'd like to chalk that up to the fact that they obviously didn't have the budget to do yet another great CGI thing and just did the easy route.
 
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top