Eh, I still think it was a stretch from a narrative standpoint, but I understand it as a business decision. All franchises are ultimately constrained by what the "casual fan" will understand/accept, and Paramount obviously decided that it's gotta be Captain Kirk by the end of the movie. Having said that, I wish the writers would have covered themselves with a bit of a fig leaf. Even if they hung a lantern on it, it would have made me feel better, like: "By special order of the Federation Council, you are hereby commissioned at the rank of Captain, and are ordered to report to Admiral Pike, as his relief." Basically just say, yeah, we know this is nuts, but this is a special case.
(And yeah, I know we can assume that is what happened, but this is a case where they could have bolstered the fan service a little without slowing down the film.)
Roberto Orci noted on TrekMovie that the script is deliberately vague about when Kirk's promotion scene takes place in relation to the rest of the film. My personal interpretation is that Kirk simultaneously held a commission of Lieutenant while a cadet in his final year at the Academy, and that the scene featuring Kirk taking command of the
Enterprise actually takes place at least three years later than the rest of the film -- to give him time to jump another couple of ranks due to sheer awesomeness.
Even if they hung a lantern on it, it would have made me feel better, like: "By special order of the Federation Council, you are hereby commissioned at the rank of Captain, and are ordered to report to Admiral Pike, as his relief." Basically just say, yeah, we know this is nuts, but this is a special case.
Teddy Roosevelt did something similar in 1905, advancing
John J. Pershing four ranks from Captain to Brigadier General. And boy did it piss off those 835 officers he skipped! Not quite the same, I know, but there is a precedent for advancement under unusual conditions.
Fascinating! That's the equivalent of a jump from Lieutenant to Commodore! It's a jump four ranks, though Kirk's was a jump of five (if we assume he held the frank of Ensign, anyway). If Pershing had jumped five ranks as Kirk did, he would have gone straight from Lieutenant to Rear Admiral, Upper Half.
^^^But Kirk was not an experienced officer like Pershing. He was a wet-behind-the-ears kid right outta the Academy. Not the same thing in any way.
True. But, to be fair to Kirk, he
did formulate and execute the successful plan to save Earth, the Federation capital, from an incredibly advanced enemy against whom they had no defense
and save Captain Pike -- a feat that I'm not aware of any officer or cadet in U.S. history equalling in modern terms (i.e., saving Washington, D.C., from an advanced enemy submarine).
I've wondered why anyone would want to serve under Kirk. He was a deliquent who managed to surpass many experienced, respectable officers to get where he was.
1. There is no evidence whatsoever that he was a delinquent during his time at Starfleet Academy. Indeed, his cheating on the
Kobayashi Maru Test is the only instance we know of him violating regulations before the
Narada crisis began.
2. His accomplishment in saving Earth -- and, by the way, the rest of the Federation -- is not exactly inconsiderable.
Preposterous is right; seems like posters have become inured to what saving the planet means.
If he had saved the planet but wasn't even in Starfleet at all, what would that mean? Probably nothing. It's not that people aren't grateful for his actions, his heroism would be acknowledged. His promotion to captain just isn't a believable outcome.
I really don't know that we can say that, given that there's literally never been an equivalent accomplishment in real-world history.