Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 1701

[T'Cal]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

sbk1234 said:
Of course, once it appeared on screen, it WOULD be canon...

So true! That's the good thing about this era; only so much is known. Was it established in a live-action series that April was a captin of the Enterprise? No. But, was it ever established that he wasn't? No again. Also, if the script calls for a Starfleet captain or admiral in some role, why not have it be Robert April? The general audience might not pick up on this so it adds and takes away nothing for them. For the Trek fanbase, probably most would think it's cool. That's a win/win in my book. If a plotline was never addressed in a previous Trek movie of series, then JJA can fill in a blank and make it canon.

 

[exalted one]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

People seem to think that the audience is stupid.

No, the audience really doesn't NEED to be explained who is April and who is Pike. They are just some military types, Kirk's superordinates - one is named Pike, rank of captain, who is also Kirk's instructor at Academy; other one is named April, rank of admiral, who is also an old pal of Kirk's father. That's all the audience needs to know.

Of course we could also pretend that Kirk has no superordinates at all and he's a captain-autodidact who got the Enterprise as a gift from Santa Claus. But honestly, I'll take Pike and April over Santa Claus anyday.

 

[EyalM]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

Wasn't April a commodore, and not an admiral?

 

[Therin of Andor]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

EyalM said:
Wasn't April a commodore, and not an admiral?

Depends on which ST comic or novel tie-in you're reading, and where it is in the timeline. April was ambassador-at-large in "The Counter-clock Incident", but wearing a Starfleet dress uniform. It was mentioned in the episode he had been a commodore but, as of the ST movies era, the rank of commodore had seemingly fallen into disuse (reflecting 20th naval practice, IIRC).

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

EyalM said:
Wasn't April a commodore, and not an admiral?

They're basically the same thing. What used to be called Commodore is now a one-star Admiral (Rear Admiral, lower half).

 

[The Wormhole]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

Niemz said:
Robert T. April is not canon...

Since he's in the Encyclopedia and the Chronology, books which only draw upon canon material, then he must be canon.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

^ Both books contain lots of speculative non-canon material, and the Okudas mark it as such. They specifically asked GR if he approved of them breaking the 1989 "what is canon" guideline about TAS (in two places), and GR was happy to let them include April ("The Counter-clock Incident" and GR's own original ST premise), plus some details about Spock's childhood and home planet (from "Yesteryear").

 

[Blip]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

I think I'm going to start a new thread, entitled:

"Bones1864 has to reply in at least one of the new threads that he has started, instead of simply littering the forum with his personal wishlist"

Seriously, haven't we seen enough of these yet, Bones?

 

[Kegek]

Re: April

The film may not say Pike is the first captain, just the captain - Kirk's immediate predecessor. That's fine by me, that's fine by the viewing public, and that's even fine by the canonista (who will have plenty of other reasons to loathe the film).

An appearance of April that isn't a very small role will needlessly complicate things, and will feel redundant and forced anyway. Admiral Janeway, anyone?

 

[Franklin]

Re: April

Given we know nothing of the careers of Captain April and Captain Pike (at least before "The Cage"), and given there's a rumor of a teaser that shows the Enterprise being built. Well --

Maybe there can be a scene where Captain April is in command of the Enterprise as she's being fitted out. Pike, who desperately wants command, finagles it from a sympathetic admiral.
Pike goes aboard the Enterprise and breaks the news to April. April may stay on as XO if he wants to. In a snit, April declines and storms off the Enterprise.

There. Something for everyone. We not only see April as the first captain of the Enterprise, but we also see how Pike got command.

Of course, I'll admit all but April storming off mad may be a bit derivative.

 

[Matango]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

Blip said:
I think I'm going to start a new thread, entitled:

"Bones1864 has to reply in at least one of the new threads that he has started, instead of simply littering the forum with his personal wishlist"

Seriously, haven't we seen enough of these yet, Bones?

Sadly no.. I'm afraid that Shatner Saturday Night Live sketch was meant for people like him....

 

[Aragorn]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

It'll be a Crimson Tide coup where Pike and Spock overthrow April's command and take over the ship.

 

[Admiral Buzzkill]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

April isn't "canon," and thus far there's no indication that he appears as a character in this film. Of course he might be mentioned, which would make him canonical.

 

[cultcross]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

^ I could see a namedrop happening actually. It would be subtle enough that it's just a random name to the general viewer but a nice nerdgasm for those who get the reference.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Re: Trek 11 : Admiral Robert T. April has to command t he 17

cultcross said:
^ I could see a namedrop happening actually. It would be subtle enough that it's just a random name to the general viewer but a nice nerdgasm for those who get the reference.

The Enterprise-B went with the "next Tuesday" gag. maybe they'll reuse the joke and the line will be "next April"!

I can't wait for Pike to use his communicator during a dangerous landing party mission and say, "... Pike out".