Killing (spoiler) made sense

[Docbrown777]

I don't think I am the only person but I felt more sadness and was upset with Amanda Grayson dying then I was Vulcan being destroyed. That sounds weird I know. It is like me saying, "All of Canada was destroyed? Did they get Elisha Cuthbert out safe?!?! They did? Ok, I'm fine then."

Now as upsetting as that is if you step back it makes sense. Cause Kirk lost his Dad to the new timeline and now Spock has lost his mother. Plus, if my feelings in the first paragraph are true for the majority of us (and I kind of think they are) then we would not as fans (hardcore or casual) felt the emotion the writers wanted us to feel just by Vulcan being destroyed. "Oh Vulcan is destroyed? They saved Spock's parents and the high counsel? Ok, I'm fine then."

So there. That's my thoughts on that.

 

[fresh]

Agree completely

 

[bdb]

I think they are just setting up the next series.

Coming this fall, the first ever Star Trek sitcom!

Winona Kirk + Sarek = The Sarek Bunch!

Watch Spock deal with his annoying step bothers Jim and Sam!

Watch Jim play pranks on his stuck-up Vulcan brother Spock.

I can't wait to see what happens when Jim and Spock get into Sybok's "wacky tabacky"!

 

[RoJoHen]

I tend to agree, actually. I was shocked that they blew up Vulcan, and I realize that it sucks, but Amanda's death was a lot more depressing.

 

[Docbrown777]

OMG, that would be great!!! An entire movie where Kirk and Spock try to get their parents to hook up with each other.

 

[Mr. B]

I guess it makes sense in the context of destroying Vulcan which was completely senseless.... of course her presence at the Vulcan culture thingy made no sense.

 

[Flamegrape]

It was sad seeing Vulcan destroyed and Amanda killed. Even worse was the realization that it was totally unnecessary for rebooting the franchise.

 

[borgboy]

When they showed Amanda while Vulcan was being attacked, that was when I was really emotionally involved. I liked what was doen with her bond with Spock, and putting her in peril made me a lot more emotionally involved in Vulcan's fate.
Her death, with Vulcan's destruction cemented that the new movie was definitely forging new territory and that anything could happen.
Also, her death resulted in a stronger bond between Spock and Sarek, and caused Spock to become more open to his emotions, and thus more open to Uhura.

 

[MvRojo]

It was sad seeing Vulcan destroyed and Amanda killed. Even worse was the realization that it was totally unnecessary for rebooting the franchise.

It was necessary story-wise though. There needed to have been stakes involved and if the villain does nothing besides talk about how they're going to destroy a planet (like Shinzon), there's not much drama.

 

[Peter the Younger]

It was sad seeing Vulcan destroyed and Amanda killed. Even worse was the realization that it was totally unnecessary for rebooting the franchise.

It was completely necessary, to give the tragedy a personal dimension.

 

[Flamegrape]

When they showed Amanda while Vulcan was being attacked, that was when I was really emotionally involved. I liked what was doen with her bond with Spock, and putting her in peril made me a lot more emotionally involved in Vulcan's fate.
Her death, with Vulcan's destruction cemented that the new movie was definitely forging new territory and that anything could happen.
Also, her death resulted in a stronger bond between Spock and Sarek, and caused Spock to become more open to his emotions, and thus more open to Uhura.

It was completely necessary, to give the tragedy a personal dimension.

It was necessary story-wise though. There needed to have been stakes involved and if the villain does nothing besides talk about how they're going to destroy a planet (like Shinzon), there's not much drama.

I suppose it fits the function of advancing the plot. I can understand that. I just don't understand why such an important element of the Trek universe had to be obliterated. The same thing could have been accomplished if Nero decided to test his method of planet destroying on some planet that wasn't in the canon. It could have been a planet populated with nine billion pretty butterfly people with an ancient culture that could have been tragically wiped out. And then on to Vulcan. But destroying Vulcan right off the bat? I just don't see how that had to be inevitable.

I was expecting drastic changes. And I was prepared to poke fun at old-timer fans for complaining. But I didn't expect the genocide of the Vulcan race. Now I find that I'm one of the ones complaining. Yet I'm torn. Apart from the issue of Vulcan and Amanda, I really loved the movie!

They just could have done something different. Accomplished the same effect in a different way.

 

[Nick Ryder]

Well it was shocking to say the least, I didn't think they would actually go through with it, but now that they did, it will be interesting to see how the Federation and the universe reacts to that event. I mean, who knows at the end of say a Trilogy, I can see elder Spock lamenting

"For loss of my home, we gained peace. A peace we have fought hard for, and all it took was going back in time to a crucial point... and destroying a people to do it."

 

[Flamegrape]

Well it was shocking to say the least, I didn't think they would actually go through with it, but now that they did, it will be interesting to see how the Federation and the universe reacts to that event. I mean, who knows at the end of say a Trilogy, I can see elder Spock lamenting

"For loss of my home, we gained peace. A peace we have fought hard for, and all it took was going back in time to a crucial point... and destroying a people to do it."

Either that or Old Spock, New Spock, T'Pol, and Tuvok join forces and shoot a red matter-fueled Genesis torpedo through a wormhole that's slingshot around a sun with a transwarp drive and make Vulcan reappear. Stranger things have happened in sci-fi. And this Trek ain't our daddy's Trek.

And so on.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I haven't gotten over Vulcan being gone. It's quite incomprehensible.

So, no, Amanda's death did not have more impact on me.

 

[borgboy]

If a planet full of butterfly people had died we wouldn't still be talking about it.
Vulcan's destruction opens up all kinds of character development and future plots. Sticking too close to the status quo wouldn't have ocreated nearly as many oprotunities. I'm fascinated to find out what will happen with the surviving Vulcans next.

 

[Awesome Possum]

When they showed Amanda while Vulcan was being attacked, that was when I was really emotionally involved. I liked what was doen with her bond with Spock, and putting her in peril made me a lot more emotionally involved in Vulcan's fate.
Her death, with Vulcan's destruction cemented that the new movie was definitely forging new territory and that anything could happen.
Also, her death resulted in a stronger bond between Spock and Sarek, and caused Spock to become more open to his emotions, and thus more open to Uhura.

It was completely necessary, to give the tragedy a personal dimension.

It was necessary story-wise though. There needed to have been stakes involved and if the villain does nothing besides talk about how they're going to destroy a planet (like Shinzon), there's not much drama.

I suppose it fits the function of advancing the plot. I can understand that. I just don't understand why such an important element of the Trek universe had to be obliterated. The same thing could have been accomplished if Nero decided to test his method of planet destroying on some planet that wasn't in the canon. It could have been a planet populated with nine billion pretty butterfly people with an ancient culture that could have been tragically wiped out. And then on to Vulcan. But destroying Vulcan right off the bat? I just don't see how that had to be inevitable.

I was expecting drastic changes. And I was prepared to poke fun at old-timer fans for complaining. But I didn't expect the genocide of the Vulcan race. Now I find that I'm one of the ones complaining. Yet I'm torn. Apart from the issue of Vulcan and Amanda, I really loved the movie!

They just could have done something different. Accomplished the same effect in a different way.

Because it wouldn't have fit in with Nero for one thing. Remember that he blamed Spock for the deaths of his wife, child, and people. So he let Spock feel the same pain that he felt.

Plus if they had just blown up some random planet it wouldn't mean anything to the audience. We know Vulcan and seeing it destroyed hurt. Can you honestly say you would feel the same about some random other planet.

I think I saw some interview with the writers where they said that the aftermath will be dealt with on some level and is basically 9/11 for Starfleet. Even mentioning that it could lead to a war with the Romulans.

 

[Praetor]

I think they are just setting up the next series.

Coming this fall, the first ever Star Trek sitcom!

Winona Kirk + Sarek = The Sarek Bunch!

Watch Spock deal with his annoying step bothers Jim and Sam!

Watch Jim play pranks on his stuck-up Vulcan brother Spock.

I can't wait to see what happens when Jim and Spock get into Sybok's "wacky tabacky"!

You know, that was almost exactly what I thought after it was certain Amanda was really most sincerely dead...

Amanda's death was one of the few moments in the movie when I was actually, genuinely surprised. It was compounded by the fact that they'd gotten a name actress such as Winona Rider to play her, and by the fact that Winona did such a good job imbuing Amanda with the same earnest sweetness that Jane Wyatt gave "prime" Amanda.

 

[JonWes]

I was so saddened by Amanda's death. It really did make the destruction of the planet (which is a bit hard to wrap your head around, emotionally) really hit home for the audience. I think destroying Vulcan was a bold move. It's one that saddened me greatly but really made me feel like ANYTHING could happen in this new iteration.

 

[Dark Gilligan]

The deaths of George Kirk and Amanda were meant to bookend each other, making Nero's atrocities very personal ones for Jim and Spock. More importantly it showed us that all bets were off, that this truly was the beginning of a new unwritten future. But as long-time fans we felt Amanda's death because we knew her, and her death made it personal for us too. We knew Vulcan. The impact would have been all but non-existant if they'd gone with unkowns instead.

 

[adm58]

I was so saddened by Amanda's death. It really did make the destruction of the planet (which is a bit hard to wrap your head around, emotionally) really hit home for the audience. I think destroying Vulcan was a bold move. It's one that saddened me greatly but really made me feel like ANYTHING could happen in this new iteration.

Yes. Exactly. Thank you.

Competes with the end of Star Trek II in terms of impact. Spock is gone. Kirk feels young again.