I read it before also. Kinda ruined the experience for me. How about you?
Twenty-eight years ago today...
- Thread starter Admiral Buzzkill
- Start date
I read it before also. Kinda ruined the experience for me. How about you?
^ Not at all. My friends were all jealous - because I understood about Will Decker's New Human movement experience, Ilia's pheromones, Kirk's wife dying in the transporter, and so many other bits that made the movie's storyline flow!
Only that wasn't his wife.
In earlier drafts of the script, that woman was the original navigator, not Vice Admiral Mrs. James Kirk. It's why Ilia arrives on the Enterprise relatively late, apparently as a new arrival.
Still, that Shatner was married to the actress who played Chief DiFalco makes this anecdote rather amusing in retrospect.
trevanian
Rear Admiral
You sure about that? Admiral Ciani was in IN THY IMAGE, the draft that GR wrote, and while she may have been absent from Livingston's version (I don't recall), I'm pretty sure she is in both GR's SF intro (the racing in from the beach to Starfleet stuff) and in the transporter accident.
EDIT ADD ON: I'm referring to the draft GR did after HL did his (HL's is in that PHASE II book, while the GR one was available through various sources in the 80s.) This was before the version nobody seems to have read, the Bob Collins version with the really cool ending.
EDIT ADD ON: I'm referring to the draft GR did after HL did his (HL's is in that PHASE II book, while the GR one was available through various sources in the 80s.) This was before the version nobody seems to have read, the Bob Collins version with the really cool ending.
Nope...it was visually so VERY different from what I had in my head, the film was an entirely different experience. I wasn't even ruined by the Vejur reveal.
(That was a nice sort of TWIST that might be relevant to the people of the day ... I remember BOTH Voyager launches and their follow-ups--there were only TWO, BTW, but for the movie overall it was only a small part of it and not the whole magilla, IMO.)
Was Livingston already attached to the script when it was a TV pilot? Because IIRC that's the version in the book, which I have read. I'm more liable to believe that the navigator was the original other person, because it still makes more sense in contrast - the rest of the Enterprise's senior staff appear to have been onboard the ship for some time (aside for Kirk who strongarms his way back into command and Spock who jumps onboard), so Ilia's relatively late arrival is rather jarring without that context. Not to mention nobody seemed to know who she was until she came onboard, envinced by Uhura's surprise when she says 'She's Deltan, Captain', all of which points to the idea that she is a recent addition.
She was originally called Alexandra Keys, IIRC, and she and Kirk are swimming nude in the opening scenes of "In Thy Image" when he gets the summons to HQ. I think it was The God-Thing who once said something about "Ciani" being Italian for "key".
I've never seen a version of ITI or TMP where a navigator previous to Ilia is killed off; Ilia is replacing Chekov - his old role made vacant by Chekov's move to Security. An easter egg for Chekov's fans.
Chapel's lines about Ilia's headband suggest that she had already met Ilia, but this could easily have been at the pre-flight medical examination by the CMO, perhaps even weeks or months before: a behind-the-scenes scene not needed in the movie. Ilia was definitely not a last-minute replacement for one of the people killed in the transporter.
There would have been a whole team of navigators, anyway; it's not as if being one short would delay the ship's launch, or that Deltan qualities are essential (such as Kirk insisting on a Vulcan at the Science station). DeFalco was Chief of Department, anyway, and she ultimately steps in when Ilia gets taken by Vejur. The fact that Shatner's (then) real-life wife played Chief DeFalco adds to people's misremembering.
It's in the Reeve-Steven's Phase II book, which contains two scripts in full, one of which is "In Thy Image".
And the stuff about there being a whole team of navigators more able to replace the dead navigator than Ilia, well... explain to me where the team of science officers were. They had nobody to replace Sonak, but were lucky to get Ilia at such short notice.
Well, of course, the director wasn't using the background that Roddenberry added to the novelization.
Who's surprised? Uhura is almost gleeful to watch Kirk and Sulu's reactions. They simply haven't met her in person yet, and may never have experienced Deltan pheromones. Chapel's not surprised; she's already met Ilia. Decker is surprised Ilia has been posted, but he's also been very busy preparing the ship.
No Vulcans. "I'd still like a Vulcan..." Kirk said.
Making Decker do double duty was part of Kirk's wacky frame of mind all through the first half of the film. Kirk's previous science officer doubled as first officer; he's testing Decker's mettle. Hell of a time to do it, but that was Kirk in TMP.
Ironically, I found this thread today on December 23, exactly 28 years to the day that I saw TMP in the theater for the first time.
For some strange reason back in 1979, the movie didn't open here in Cleveland until two weeks later (Friday, Decembe 21). Had something to do with the film not being available for pre-screening for the theater owners, or some such nonsense.
Nonetheless, it didn't hamper my enjoyment, nor did reading the novelization in one sitting a month earlier (working for Waldenbooks at the time, I was in a perfect position to buy the book the day it arrived in the store).
Great memories. I need to make time to sit down and watch my Director's Edition DVD again.
For some strange reason back in 1979, the movie didn't open here in Cleveland until two weeks later (Friday, Decembe 21). Had something to do with the film not being available for pre-screening for the theater owners, or some such nonsense.
Nonetheless, it didn't hamper my enjoyment, nor did reading the novelization in one sitting a month earlier (working for Waldenbooks at the time, I was in a perfect position to buy the book the day it arrived in the store).
Great memories. I need to make time to sit down and watch my Director's Edition DVD again.
