Has Chris Pine Yet Earned the Right to Give "THE Monologue"?

[Jackson_Roykirk]

Do you think the "Space, The Final Frontier [blah, blah, blah]..." monologue will be part of this film? I suppose I maybe should first ask “Does it need to be?”

Let’s say for the sake of argument that The Monologue will be part of this film (at the beginning, or wherever). The next question I have would be:
Has Chris Pine ingrained himself enough into the role of James T. Kirk in the minds of the fandom to be able to successfully speak this monologue ("successfully", again, meaning in the minds of the fans)?

Obviously, at the time William Shatner first spoke it, he was not yet iconic. And when Patrick Stewart first spoke it, he was not iconic. However, that was then; this is now. Today it seems many fans would consider it sacrilege for a relative newcomer to speak that monologue in a film. Could there be a "fan backlash" (of sorts) if Pine gives the speech, considering he has not yet reached "Star Trek Icon" status.

Let me clarify my position that I do NOT think Chris Pine needs the “earn” the right, just like Patrick Stewart did not yet earn the right when he first spoke it. I’m just trying to point out how some other fans may view it.

It just seems to me that there will always be some fans who want to find any reason to hate 'AbramsTrek'. I think they could possibly raise a stink if Chris Pine gives the "Space, The Final Frontier..." monologue. The rest of us fans of Star Trek probably don't feel that only icons should be able to give that speech, and would be fine with Chris Pine speaking the lines. The casual fans who just wants to see an enjoyable film probably don't care enough to even consider it being an issue.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I think Vaughn Armstrong should give the monologue, just on general principles. Plus, let's face it, his voice is cooler than Pine's. And VA hasn't yet had a TOS-era role!

(Yes, I shamelessly advocate for this man whenever it suits me. Not only is he my favorite actor of all time, but come on. No one's ever topped him as far as sheer workload goes. 13+ roles? 8 different alien species? Top that! )

 

[Relayer1]

I think it's time for Chris Pine to start 'referencing' The Shat's speech patterns. Not much, not all the time, but a little. The monologue would be ideal...

 

[F. King Daniel]

Pine did record a "Space, the final frontier..." speech for the end of STXI, although they eventually chose to have Nimoy say it. Pine's version is on the DVD, at the start of the gag reel.

 

[Jackson_Roykirk]

I think Vaughn Armstrong should give the monologue, just on general principles. Plus, let's face it, his voice is cooler than Pine's. And VA hasn't yet had a TOS-era role!

(Yes, I shamelessly advocate for this man whenever it suits me. Not only is he my favorite actor of all time, but come on. No one's ever topped him as far as sheer workload goes. 13+ roles? 8 different alien species? Top that! )

I mean no disrespect to your shameless advocacy, but I had to look him up to see who the hell he was (although now I know the face, but I didn't know the actor's name).

By the way, now that I look him up, I see that he and I share a birthday (date, not year -- July 7).

 

[Greg Cox]

Since when do you need to "earn" the right to deliver a monologue? Especially when you're playing Captain Kirk in a Star Trek movie.

Does each new Bond need to earn the right to say "shaken, not stirred"? Does each new Sherlock Holmes have to earn the right to say "The game's afoot!" or "Elementary, Watson"? Will fans rise up in revolt if the new Lone Ranger says "Heigh-yo, Silver!" before becoming iconic? I don't think so.

If an actor is playing Hamlet, he gets to say "To be or not to be." If you're playing Kirk, you get to boldly go where no man has gone before.

I can't imagine this being an issue.

 

[bbailey861]

It's Pine's role - he is Kirk, so let him say those iconic lines. It's only appropriate. I hope this crew is together for a lot more films.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I think Vaughn Armstrong should give the monologue, just on general principles. Plus, let's face it, his voice is cooler than Pine's. And VA hasn't yet had a TOS-era role!

(Yes, I shamelessly advocate for this man whenever it suits me. Not only is he my favorite actor of all time, but come on. No one's ever topped him as far as sheer workload goes. 13+ roles? 8 different alien species? Top that! )

I mean no disrespect to your shameless advocacy, but I had to look him up to see who the hell he was (although now I know the face, but I didn't know the actor's name).

He's the ultimate journeyman Trek actor. His track record in that regard is beyond reproach. He should be given *some* kind of role in an Abramsverse film.

 

[M'Sharak]

...

It just seems to me that there will always be some fans who want to find any reason to hate 'AbramsTrek'. I think they could possibly raise a stink if Chris Pine gives the "Space, The Final Frontier..." monologue.

Those fans were raising a stink before they'd seen so much as a single frame of the last movie - before they even knew who had been cast in the role of Kirk, as far as that goes. Some quite clearly had had their reviews trashing the film written months prior to its arrival in the theaters* (not that they'd have been caught dead paying to get in.) Those fans will always be able to find something to be unhappy about, thus any endeavor to avoid making them unhappy would pretty much be an exercise in futility for Abrams, et al.

Let the filmmakers focus on the job of making a good Star Trek movie, I say, and let the fans sort out however they feel about it when the time comes.

All that said, Pine could very probably do a better take on the monologue than the one we heard in the gag reel. That reading seemed a little flat to me.

.

.

(* You know who you are. )

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

As for who should read the monologue: doesn't necessarily have to be Pine, does it? How about Karl Urban? In character?

"Space, the final frontier. Disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence..."

 

[BillJ]

Pine is playing the captain of the Enterprise, of course he should do it.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Since when do you need to "earn" the right to deliver a monologue? Especially when you're playing Captain Kirk in a Star Trek movie.

If anyone wants to hear Captain Robert April do the monologue, check out James Doohan's narration at the end of the Simon & Schuster Audioworks' abridgement of "Final Frontier" by Diane Carey. Doohan was also the voice of April in Filmation's "The Counter-clock Incident" of TAS.

 

[The Wormhole]

I refuse to accept Pine as Kirk until he does The Monologue. That is Captain Kirk to me.

 

[shapeshifter]

Personally I'd just as soon they don't bother with it all all unless it serves the story somehow.

Someone would have to be living under a rock not to know those lines by now so come on, let the exposition go away. It was said in the first one of the new series, that's enough. IMO.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I refuse to accept Pine as Kirk until he does The Monologue. That is Captain Kirk to me.

And unless he wears contact lenses to give him hazel eyes, goddammit!!

 

[Kelso]

He earned it in the audition room.

 

[Sindatur]

Of course he's earned the right to say it, he won the job as Kirk

 

[Oso Blanco]

"Space, the final frontier. Disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence..."

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Today it seems many fans would consider it sacrilege for a relative newcomer to speak that monologue in a film.

Sucks to be them.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Should they fix the grammar, "Broken Bow"-style? "...to go boldly..." or the traditional "...to boldly go..."?

Should it be "...where no man..." or "...where no one..."?