The Enterprise Incident-Who did Kirk piss off to get that job??

[Marsden]

quoting the posts above:

>mission
>unlikely
>don't make sense
>shields
>problems
>Picard

That's why Kirk and Spock are Starfleet command officers and you aren't.

I thought you were spelling out an acronym, unless mudspp means something, but I washed out of the academy.

 

[Nebusj]

quoting the posts above:

>mission
>unlikely
>don't make sense
>shields
>problems
>Picard

That's why Kirk and Spock are Starfleet command officers and you aren't.

I thought you were spelling out an acronym, unless mudspp means something, but I washed out of the academy.

Well, clearly you did, if you're willing to casually toss off an insult to the whole Mudspp Sodality of Free Worlds like that. Gads, somebody get the Diplomatic Corps over there fast before they get really cranky over this.

 

[Nerys Myk]

quoting the posts above:

>mission
>unlikely
>don't make sense
>shields
>problems
>Picard

That's why Kirk and Spock are Starfleet command officers and you aren't.

I thought you were spelling out an acronym, unless mudspp means something, but I washed out of the academy.

You'll have a bright future in the merchant service. Ask for Merrick.

 

[Dale Sams]

So at the mission briefing when they got to the part about, "Spock, you'll seduce the Romulan commander and give Kirk about an hour to find the cloaking device."

1. Did Kirk go, "Ha! Shoe's on the other foot now!"

2. Is Spock the kind of guy that would make uncomfortable, or would he just raise an eyebrow, look at Kirk and say "Captain, are you familiar with IDIC?"

 

[Nerys Myk]

I assume Spock was just supposed to "buddy up" with who ever was commanding the Romulans. That it was a woman, slightly changed the game plan.

 

[T'Girl]

4. Able to be patched into the Enterprise's deflector/shield system by Scotty in a relatively short period of time, especially given that he had no time to prepare because he was out of the loop for most of the mission

We could argue that Starfleet only ever launched the mission because they had inside information about all these facts.

Prior to the mission, Scotty might have wondered why that piece of equipment with the circular socket was installed in engineering and tied into the defector system.

 

[Ithekro]

Or they had done some training on cloaking devices, but not had a practical element.

 

[Commishsleer]

Okay, so sure, the shields aren't up unless there's a reason, if that was the meaning. They've have been known to go up automatically when another ship enters their vicinity.

But then the shields go down, unless there's a specific reason to keep them up. With Picard Trek, it's often difficult to tell because Picard skilfully avoids prolonged fights, but Kirk Trek prominently features the ship in combat with lowered shields in, say, "Balance of Terror":

- When heading into danger, approaching a ship that has just made a series of surprise attacks, Kirk orders weapons armed but not shields raised
- When the plasma weapon is fired at them, Kirk still doesn't order shields raised, a sage move considering shields did no good for the outposts
- When the Romulans use the nuclear mine, shields aren't mentioned as a factor
- While we could attribute all that equally well to Kirk constantly keeping shields up, there's the period of "silent running" in between, speaking against such a possibility

In "Errand of Mercy", Kirk orders full shields (or deflector screens) on approach to Organia yet effortlessly beams down moments later. In "Arena", Kirk repeatedly has to tell Sulu to keep shields up during combat. And so forth. Specifically, transporting takes priority over shielding in many a plot.

The cloaking device being:

1. Relatively easy to find on the Romulan ship
2. Relatively easy to disconnect from the Romulan ship
3. Small and light enough for Kirk to pick up and carry
4. Able to be patched into the Enterprise's deflector/shield system by Scotty in a relatively short period of time, especially given that he had no time to prepare because he was out of the loop for most of the mission, and
5. Actually working on Enterprise when they hit the ON switch

stretches my suspension of disbelief to the breaking point.

We could argue that Starfleet only ever launched the mission because they had inside information about all these facts. Keeping Scotty out of the loop was the truly daft part, but I guess the writers wanted Doohan's excellent "baffled and distressed" acting added to the soup.

Timo Saloniemi

Yes maybe intelligence reports and counter intelligence reports got Kirk/Spock the information they needed to carry off the mission.

I wonder on the practicality of the Neutral Zone though. How come 3 ships were at the exact location that the Enterprise crossed the Neutral Zone? How big is the Neutral Zone anyway? I imagine it would be at least 10s of light years long. Do they have ships stationed along every bit of the zone waiting for crossings or did the Romulans also get some (bad) intelligence?

 

[Melakon]

Just watched this again. I still don't understand why Spock's communicator wasn't confiscated the moment he arrived on the Romulan ship, which conveniently allowed him to later contact Kirk, who for all he knew, was still on the Enterprise.

 

[Ithekro]

Perhaps Romulan intelligence has failed them one too many time about Starfleet technology. Though it is similar to 22nd century tech in shape and size.

One would assume that Starfleet Intelligence aimed Kirk for the proper Klingon designed ships to get the confirmation they needed, plus the new cloaking device.

 

[Mr_Homn]

It's a gunslinger era.

They send the Enterprise for the same reason Kirk goes on away missions: You send your best man for the toughest jobs. You don't send your first officer on away missions just like you don't start your football team with your backup QB in the superbowl. This is the show, baby. Send in the big guns.

 

[Melakon]

It's to remind every one that Shatner, not Nimoy, is the star.

 

[BillJ]

It's a gunslinger era.

They send the Enterprise for the same reason Kirk goes on away missions: You send your best man for the toughest jobs. You don't send your first officer on away missions just like you don't start your football team with your backup QB in the superbowl. This is the show, baby. Send in the big guns.

+1

 

[Nightowl1701]

First you have to assume the Romulans don't just start blasting away as seen in The Deadly Years.

As Kirk himself noted, they wanted to take the Enterprise intact. After besting them twice at that point, having that particular ship as a war trophy would be an invaluable salve on wounded Romulan pride. Plus, as Scott said, they would then know everything there was to know about Federation starships.

Then, having only Kirk and Spock in the know is extremely dangerous. Scotty could have fouled the whole thing up by staging a rescue mission had the Romulans just held onto Spock and Kirk or kept them separate.

From the James Blish novelization:
"Kirk had worked out no way of making so suicidal a move on his part (going into the Neutral Zone) explicable except that of becoming irritable and snappish, as though his judgment had been worn down by fatigue. It was a bad solution. His officers were the best in Starfleet; sooner or later they would penetrate the deception, and conclude that whenever Kirk appeared to be worn down to the point of irrationality, he was operating under sealed orders.
And when the day came when he actually was too tired to know what he was doing, they would obey him blindly anyhow--and scratch one starship."

No doubt Scott had figured it out by the time Kirk gave this order: "If we do not return, the Enterprise must not be taken. If the Romulans attempt it, you're to fight, and if necessary, destroy yourselves. Is that clear?" Any rescue attempt would have ended in that fatal fight, and Scott knew it.

Just watched this again. I still don't understand why Spock's communicator wasn't confiscated the moment he arrived on the Romulan ship, which conveniently allowed him to later contact Kirk, who for all he knew, was still on the Enterprise.

Romulan overconfidence. Communicators aren't weapons. Any attempt to escape would, again, lead to a three-on-one fight the Enterprise was unlikely to win.

It's to remind every one that Shatner, not Nimoy, is the star.

Yet who gets the whole Sean Connery From Russia with Love plotline while Shatner skulks about corridors?

 

[Timo]

As for the Romulans being there to give the Federation starship a warm welcome without delay, the same thing happens in "The Deadly Years". Obviously, Worf is speaking the literal truth when accusing Romulans of being honorless bastards through and through - they blatantly ignore the Neutral Zone rules and keep ships positioned in there, shadowing any UFP assets close to the Zone. Sometimes they wait until the prey enters the Zone (because some Feds are honorless bastards, too), but sometimes they don't - see "The Practical Joker".

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Dale Sams]

And The Way to Eden.

Also FWIW, The Enterprise Incident takes place in Romulan space.

 

[T'Girl]

How come 3 ships were at the exact location that the Enterprise crossed the Neutral Zone?

Because the intent was for the Enterprise to get caught.

 

[Armored Saint]

It's a gunslinger era.

They send the Enterprise for the same reason Kirk goes on away missions: You send your best man for the toughest jobs.

Yup, the OP is looking at the wrong direction. Starfleet command especially chose Kirk and Spock to avoid it turns into a suicide mission. Otherwise, the mission could have cost 800 lifes and caused a lot of political problems.

 

[Dale Sams]

Just watched this again. I still don't understand why Spock's communicator wasn't confiscated the moment he arrived on the Romulan ship, which conveniently allowed him to later contact Kirk, who for all he knew, was still on the Enterprise.

I do. It was the third year.
But still one of the season's best.
Arguably Kirky and Spock are actually in less danger and more control than most other episodes here. We just don't realize this until Act Three.

I used to be really down on the episode because basically, our 'heroes' violated treaty, committed espionage, some serious theft, got a Romulan commander probably executed...and also probably set back women's rights in the Romulan Empire centuries.

But it is very well done. The 'love scenes' drag a bit, but overall quite enjoyable. The HD version even more so with the new FX.

 

[Nightowl1701]

I used to be really down on the episode because basically, our 'heroes' violated treaty, committed espionage, some serious theft, got a Romulan commander probably executed...and also probably set back women's rights in the Romulan Empire centuries.

Sure they did...