• 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!

Happy Kelvin Day

The Wormhole

Fleet Admiral
Admiral
Today is May 14, otherwise represented as 5/14. Or 05/14 if you use Abrams style numbering. The day represented by Kelvin's registry number (NCC-0514), which may or may not be the birthday of JJ's grandfather, for whom the ship was named after. Some say his birthday was May 14, others just that he was born May 1914. For all I know, both could be true.

So let's all take a moment today to recognize our favourite ship from Trek XI's opening scene. With only one nacelle, commanded by the Badass Captain Robau, with George Kirk serving as XO and some weird alien as security officer and of course the infamous and controversial registry number with a leading zero which caused serious ripples in Trek fandom back in 2008 when the first images were released.

Happy Kelvin Day, Trek BBS.
 
Happy Kelvin Day t0 all.

This thread is destined for greatness
U41eah3.jpg
 
This thread prompted me to read up more on the design: http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Kelvin_type

Indeed, this passage:

Devising how the outside of the Kelvin should look was a fairly detailed process. "I did many concepts for the look of the Kelvin," Ryan Church related, "some conservative and some fairly pushed. In the end we figured out that it really had to look a lot more 'traditional Trek.' It's a very simple basic shape." [18] Similarly, J.J. Abrams and Scott Chambliss made it clear to James Clyne that they intended for the Kelvin's interior – in comparison with some of the film's later-era vessels – to be more like traditional Star Trek designs. [19] Chambliss explained, "That is how J.J. [Abrams] and I wanted to start the movie, with 'oh look it is a Star Trek space ship!' and make it really recognizable. Supe it up and make it more lavish, because we had more money, but honor what has come before and make it familiar in a way that old fans would like. But that was also a dramatic ploy on our part, because in doing so, we wanted to create the highest contrast possible for the Enterprise. Because how do you make the Enterprise feel fresh and new, if it looks exactly like something we have seen for the last 40 years? The Kelvin was the contrast we did to hopefully make the Enterprise feel cool and new." [20]

That rationale makes me appreciate the Kelvin that much more. Still, even after 5 years, I still think the ship would've looked better upside down.
 
^Non-canon, but Federation: The First 150 Years gives the class name Einstein for the USS Kelvin.


The Kelvin was a great ship. I loved how used and gritty it looked, like a cross between Star Trek and Alien. I'm also a big fan of it's derivative Newton design with the half-saucer and dual engineering hulls.

I also liked that Into Darkness' Section 31 base in London was located under the Kelvin Memorial Archive. It was nice how everything tied back into the timeline divergence established in ST'09.
 
In my 0pinion the Kelvin is the most perfect ship in Star Trek. Not necessarily the best looking but there isn't a single thing about it I don't like. The design of the ship, the sets, the props, costumes, and then the crew was cool as well.

What I think would be cool would be to have at least one Kelvin movie. sort of like what Marvel and soon Star Wars do where they have multiple movie series at once. so we have the main movies about the Enterprise, and then perhaps one about the Kelvin's first mission.
 
In my 0pinion the Kelvin is the most perfect ship in Star Trek. Not necessarily the best looking but there isn't a single thing about it I don't like. The design of the ship, the sets, the props, costumes, and then the crew was cool as well.

What I think would be cool would be to have at least one Kelvin movie. sort of like what Marvel and soon Star Wars do where they have multiple movie series at once. so we have the main movies about the Enterprise, and then perhaps one about the Kelvin's first mission.

THIS. Kelvin could freely revisit TOS themes and plot elements while Enterprise goes in new directions.
 
Honestly, the only way I see the Kelvin being revisited in the movies, anyway is have a prologue to the movie feature the Kelvin discovering a planet and making first contact with the locals. Then the main storyline involves the Enterprise going to this planet for whatever reasons related to the movie's plot.
 
I'd have loved a Kelvin novel as a prequel to the '09 movie. It's something they could have even done prior to the movie's release.
 
Honestly, the only way I see the Kelvin being revisited in the movies, anyway is have a prologue to the movie feature the Kelvin discovering a planet and making first contact with the locals. Then the main storyline involves the Enterprise going to this planet for whatever reasons related to the movie's plot.
Or events get progressively worse in the Abrams-universe. Vulcan gone. Earth follows, as predicted by Admiral Marcus. Federation crumbling in a devastating war against a Romulan/Klingon alliance using advance tech developed from the Narada.

Unexpectedly, right in the middle of this third film's action - the Enterprise and her crew find themselves thrown back in time to 2233. Kirk is faced with the moral dilemma of assisting the Kelvin and of course, his own particular personal stake in why he might want to do that.

Final scene, home again in the 23rd Century that's celebrating its 50th Anniversary the year this is released.
 
Last edited:
I'd have loved a Kelvin novel as a prequel to the '09 movie. It's something they could have even done prior to the movie's release.

Which I'm surprised wasn't done. After all, the Transformers movies have novel prequels, as do several other big movies. Hell, the Star Wars Prequel movies each had their own novel prequel and sequel. Seems odd nothing like this was done with Trek, especially given Bad Robot's supposed dream of Trek being "transmedia."

Yup. I wonder if anyone pitched a story idea for a book - or a series of books - to Pocket Books and they just didn't bite?

I think I remember one of the authors who hang out in our Trek Lit forum saying he pitched a few ideas to Pocket, one of which was a Kelvin story, but Pocket chose his TOS 5 year mission novel instead.
 
The zer0 thing is getting really 0ld, W0rmh0le.

0Greeting 0citizens 0of 0Universe 0where 0O's 0are 0zeros!

0The 0people 0of 0the 0universe 0where 0every 0word 0starts 0with 0a 0zero 0have 0this 0message 0for 0you; 0You 0Lucky 0Bastards!
 
Happy Kelvin Day!

In my opinion, one of the coolest ships and crews in Trek history, and that is saying something. The Kelvin bridged the gap between the NX-01 and the TOS period very well, and we see the transition of uniforms as well, from the coloring and jumpsuits to more solid color department representation.

It would be great to see a show or a novel spin off for the Kelvin. I know they made one appearance in the IDW comics but that was about it. Really need more.

2ttlcfNm.jpg
 
If you are not already a member then please register an account and join in the discussion!

Sign up / Register


Back
Top