Why didn't they...

[Franklin]

I have to agree with BillJ. I remember thinking why didnt spock radio/subspace ahead to warn starfleet. Maybe it was because Spock was emotionally compromised?

Good point.

And as I posted above, the scope of what just happened would've been beyond the belief of a lot of people. The techonology that destroyed Vulcan was from the late 24th century and it was cutting edge even for that time.

I mean, can you imagine Kirk's message to Starfleet?
"This is Captain James T. Kirk of the Enterprise. Vulcan has just been destroyed by black hole created by a Romulan ship from the 24th century. The Romulan's name is, Nero. He's heading to Earth in his mining vessel. He will use a drilling device to inject something called red matter into the Earth's core. That's how he creates the black hoe. You don't have long to react. Arm your defenses. We are in pursuit. Kirk, commanding, Enterprise, out."
Starfleet's response? "Yeah. Right. Who is this, really?"

 

[BillJ]

I have to agree with BillJ. I remember thinking why didnt spock radio/subspace ahead to warn starfleet. Maybe it was because Spock was emotionally compromised?

Good point.

And as I posted above, the scope of what just happened would've been beyond the belief of a lot of people. The techonology that destroyed Vulcan was from the late 24th century and it was cutting edge even for that time.

I mean, can you imagine Kirk's message to Starfleet?
"This is Captain James T. Kirk of the Enterprise. Vulcan has just been destroyed by black hole created by a Romulan ship from the 24th century. The Romulan's name is, Nero. He's heading to Earth in his mining vessel. He will use a drilling device to inject something called red matter into the Earth's core. That's how he creates the black hoe. You don't have long to react. Arm your defenses. We are in pursuit. Kirk, commanding, Enterprise, out."
Starfleet's response? "Yeah. Right. Who is this, really?"

But that message isn't sent in a vacuum. Starfleet already knows that Vulcan is experiencing unusual seismic activity. Then they lose contact with the Fleet sent to Vulcan and lose contact with Vulcan itself. Add to the fact that it is a Cadet sending the message and neither the Captain or First Officer.

Starfleet would know something was up.

Hell... they should have known something was up the moment they lost contact with their fleet.

 

[Jeri]

The question is: why didn't they show someone sending a message to Starfleet? They didn't show it, because sending a message wouldn't have made any difference to the plot.

I think anyone would look astonished to see the drill next to their classroom, even with a warning. They had no idea where Nero was going to drill once he got to Earth, and it wouldn't matter. San Francisco was symbolic.

 

[Anticitizen]

I have to agree with BillJ. I remember thinking why didnt spock radio/subspace ahead to warn starfleet. Maybe it was because Spock was emotionally compromised?

Good point.

And as I posted above, the scope of what just happened would've been beyond the belief of a lot of people. The techonology that destroyed Vulcan was from the late 24th century and it was cutting edge even for that time.

I mean, can you imagine Kirk's message to Starfleet?
"This is Captain James T. Kirk of the Enterprise. Vulcan has just been destroyed by black hole created by a Romulan ship from the 24th century. The Romulan's name is, Nero. He's heading to Earth in his mining vessel. He will use a drilling device to inject something called red matter into the Earth's core. That's how he creates the black hoe. You don't have long to react. Arm your defenses. We are in pursuit. Kirk, commanding, Enterprise, out."
Starfleet's response? "Yeah. Right. Who is this, really?"

It sounds almost as silly as a subspace message as it does as a movie plot!

 

[BillJ]

The question is: why didn't they show someone sending a message to Starfleet?

Which becomes a valid question the moment they introduce the fact that they are unable to contact Starfleet as a major plot point.

 

[Jeri]

It's not a plot point; it's a line of dialog.

 

[BillJ]

It's not a plot point; it's a line of dialog.

It was a line of dialog that drove Spock's course of action. Sounds like a plot point to me.

 

[Jeri]

A plot point would have some significance in the story; sending a message has none.

 

[BillJ]

A plot point would have some significance in the story; sending a message has none.

Except for showing that the characters have some common sense.

 

[Cyke101]

Just some tidbits to throw in:
-- No one on the Enterprise knows that Pike gave Nero defense command codes. It could be they would think Earth would simply detect Nero coming and that would be sufficient to engage Earth's defenses to hold off Nero until the Enterprise gets there.
I mean, the Starfleet Command is orbiting Earth. That space station has to be miles across itself, and contain Starfleet's state of the art technology, including defenses. They had to think Earth is one of the most secure places in the galaxy.

Actually, I think this really was addressed on the bridge, by Sulu (I believe), but it was still conjecture when coming up with a plan. The crew had to operate their mission under the assumption that because Nero had Pike, that Nero would have the security codes, too.

Or I could be horribly horribly wrong, too. That's always a possibility

 

[Nerys Myk]

Why not just assume the message was sent and it doesn't change a damn thing?

The fannish "one line of dialog" would make X better would reduce most movies to an endless stream of single lines of plot slowing/halting exposition.

 

[BillJ]

Why not just assume the message was sent and it doesn't change a damn thing?

The fannish "one line of dialog" would make X better would reduce most movies to an endless stream of single lines of plot slowing/halting exposition.

Whether that one line of dialog hurts, helps or has no impact, no one will ever know. To me it was simply an oversight that I noticed (they need to contact the fleet yet don't use the equipment at a Starfleet installation). But more exposition would've only helped this film. This is Star Trek not Short Attention Span Theater.

 

[Nerys Myk]

There are "needed" lines of dialog that could "help" every Trek film or episode. Lets not pretend that Star Trek has never had this "problem" in the past.

 

[BillJ]

There are "needed" lines of dialog that could "help" every Trek film or episode. Lets not pretend that Star Trek has never had this "problem" in the past.

I agree.

 

[Jeri]

A plot point would have some significance in the story; sending a message has none.

Except for showing that the characters have some common sense.

Not showing it doesn't indicate they have no common sense; it indicates it's not important to the plot. And not showing it doesn't mean it wouldn't have been done.

 

[GhostFaceSaint]

A plot point would have some significance in the story; sending a message has none.

Except for showing that the characters have some common sense.

Not showing it doesn't indicate they have no common sense; it indicates it's not important to the plot. And not showing it doesn't mean it wouldn't have been done.

I agree with you Jeri, the message doesn't need to be obvious like what I watched in Voyager and Enterprise, it was insulting to me as an intelligent viewer watching Enterprise having the show preach all the time its messages which were outright stated or painfully obvious; can't we think for ourselves and discern the message on our own just fine. Just because this movie had no outright stated message doesn't mean it didn't have subtler meanings, which was better for the story being told in it.

 

[Jeri]

GFS, I enjoyed your post , but we're talking about a literal message, like a communiqué. A sub-space message.