The Great Links has a couple of weeks of Trek out in the world to catch up on. This edition has a lot of stuff on Trek going up against other fandoms and franchises, from Star Wars to Browncoats to Furries. We also find out which ‘hot’ celebs are and are not Trek fans. Plus CBS are the ones that dealt it, in their latest promotional viral video.
Trekkies were here first
Film.com has rated the Five Most Rabid Fanbases, and of course Trekkies are on the list, ranked as "Fallen But Not Forgotten." The site notes:
The Trekkies were a cult before the World Wide Web existed, and when the great evil was invented, they spread and gathered like little ginger children. These people are like the Triads of the geek legion. They’ve been around for centuries it seems (or since the ’60s at least). During the height of Star Trek’s popularity they’d probably be the kings of the castle. If there was a Geek Council, they would have the most politicians in their pocket, that sort of thing. But it’s been a long time since Trek ruled the science-fiction world.
Others named are fans of Joss Whedon, Lord of the Rings, Twilight and Harry Potter, with Star Wars fans only getting honorable mention.
Trekkies on geek hierarchy
Film.com aren’t the only folks looking at how Trekkies compare to other fanbases. The folks at BunchingShuttlecock.com have put out a Geek Hierarchy chart, and Trekkies did not fare well.
Find your spot on the geek chart
Solo v Kirk
Starpulse.com thought they could determine the outcome of a classic geek showdown argument in their ‘Ready, Set, Fight: Han Solo vs. Captain Kirk.‘ They broke down into categories with Kirk winning in hand-to-hand and for allegiances, Solo winning in Sidekick and Sidearm and the Falcon v. Enterprise coming to a draw. In the end they couldn’t determine a winner, and they were right in their final assessment:
Probably the only thing we can all agree on is that no matter how far this argument is broken down, in the end no “Star Trek” fan will ever admit Han Solo could defeat James Kirk and vice-versa. The tension between the two fan bases will always persist.
We know who would win, even if Han shot first
Quote of the week
I grew up watching Doctor Who. I’m of the Star Wars generation; I love science fiction. Star Trek: The Next Generation, Battlestar Galactica – love ’em.
– John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness of the BBC’s Torchwood)
[Dose.ca]
Capt. Jack hearts Capt. Picard
Bonus quote of the week
None. I have a boyfriend, and I don’t watch Star Trek.
– Paris Hilton
asked which Trek character she would want to have a fling with
[Metro.co.uk]
Paris, you may not be a fan,
but that does appear to be a tribble on your butt
Video of the week: CBS cuts the cheese
Did you know that there is a whole sub-genre of mashup videos dedicated to fart jokes? Well there is, and the amazing thing is that CBS Corporation, the license owners of the Star Trek franchise, actually thought it would be a good idea to get in on the flatulence funnies to promote their online Trek episodes.
QuickLinks
- The Chicago Tribune Pop Machine blog ponders Is it better to be a TV series based on a movie or vice versa, citing Star Trek as one of its examples.
- Freep.com cites The Office’s Rainn Wilson’s Star Trek The Animated Series T-Shirt as evidence of Letting his geek flag fly.
- io9 list Star Trek as one of Sci-Fi’s Greatest Space Builders
- Ben Stiller may be watching it on his iPod in Tropic Thunder, but that didn’t stop the Philadelphia CityPaper.net Critical Mass blog from nominating the Gorn v Kirk "Arena" showdown in its ‘worst fight scene week‘
I would take umbrage with Paris’ comment about having a boyfriend and thus not watching Trek, but I know that if I were seeing someone I would be hanging around here way, way less often. I would probably be checking in once a day.
As for John Barrowman, has anyone noticed that he kind of looks like Karl Urban, to the pint that they could be brothers?
Han Solo vs. Jim Kirk? Well, there are both great however I’d give my 12 points for the incomparable Kirk-Fu. No doubt about that. :)
As to the Kirk/Gorn fight – I must admit it’s not the Fight of the Century, but imo it’s only because the Gorn is…just…too…slow…for…our…Jim-Boy. Jim’s more convincing when he’s given the chance to do things fast and furious. :D
As a Star Trek fan i will believe Kirk will win over Han Solo.
Any fans on here who went to Vegas. If I did not meet any of you then I apologise and hope to meet you in 2010 when I head back to Vegas.
Was there any on here that I did meet?
I was the one in the frilled shirt at the thursday night pary and the one Malcolm McDowell said he did not understand when I asked him a question.
1, I think Paris’ was making two separate statements about which Trek character she’d like to have a fling with – none because a) she already has a boyfriend, and b) she doesn’t watch Star Trek and so doesn’t know any of the characters! lol.
Kirk vs. Solo?
Oh wow, now there’s a question. It might have to be broken down into categories. :P
Ship-to-Ship Combat: Well, I’m not sure if Solo’s classic “listing lazily to the left” maneuver would be able to shake the Enterprise, and I’m not sure if Kirk would be able to fool Solo into falling for the Corbomite Maneuver. In ship-to-ship combat, it might be a stalemate.
Hand-to-Hand Combat: Solo could never match Kirk’s chops to the collarbone. I think Kirk wins this one.
Phaser vs. Blaster Combat: Phasers are not as clumsy or random as a blaster . . . and blasters can’t vaporize people. That, and you never really see Kirk miss. Kirk wins.
Getting the Ladies: Kirk, hands down. Well, he was better at gaining their affections, anyway. But Solo, I think, understood women just a LITTLE more than Kirk.
Smarts and Cunning: Solo wins. Kirk could never get out of the tight spots Solo did without the ideas of his crew around him. Solo, living up to his name, could take care of himself.
Away Missions: Solo made it into the Death Star, and back out again, without losing a single nameless Redshirt.
Nerf Herding: Solo. Definitely Solo. But Kirk could beat him at Tribble rustling.
In the end, they are apples and oranges. No real need to compare them, except that it’s kinda fun. :)
Paris Hilton DOES NOT WATCH STAR TREK ! , yes more reason to watch this great show !
#6 – Yes, lol
That made me crack up. True though. lol
If Paris Hilton watched more Star trek and shagged fewer gold diggers maybe her Dad wouldn’t have to suffer the horor of knowing every person he meets have probably seen his daughter all growed up.
#5 – Solo was a Nerf Herder, that’s for sure… HAHA! But no one ever saw a Nerf, so I suppose Kirk wins that one after all. We actually SAW the effects of Kirk’s Tribble rustling.
My morning was going great until you pasted that crusty thing on my monitor. There isn’t enough water/alcohol solution on the planet to wipe that residue off the screen.
Thanks a bunch :(
Paris — “a” boyfriend?
John Barrowman. Yowza. I really like his character and that show!
As for Geekdom. Trek may no longer be the leader, but it was the trailblazer in so many ways. And I’d still put my money on Trekkers outlasting all the newbie fandoms. We are like cockroaches.
Haha!
Love that comment under Hilton’s pic :-D
Why do we even care if Paris Hilton watches Star Trek or not?
Anyway…as an unbiased Star Trek AND Star Wars fan I’d have to go with Captain Kirk over Han Solo. Why? Kirk is a much better hand-to-hand combatant and an excellent military strategist. Solo is a smuggler and a cocky pilot but he’s not a really good fighter.
Now if the question was Kirk vs Obi-Wan…well, that’d be a different story.
#12 I loved what was under the tribble
Not commenting on Paris. The only way I could stand to be within 200 miles of that woman is if she was green and I was severely drunk and high. I have my own personal feelings about this individual, so I will try to remain silent.
Moving on, then.
Trekkies have been around for half of the TV’s lifetime. And we aren’t going to let some [EXPLETIVE] like Paris Hilton say otherwise. Since I can’t say anything nice about her, I will comment later.
Ok.The falcon was fast but if the enterprise hit the falcon with just one photon torpedo then the falcon would be space junk that scotty could not fix.Hand to hand. That might be a draw as both are good fighters.paris with a boyfrend or is that girlfrend. I believe she goes both ways.On star trek vs star wars. Lets see. Trek has 5 tv series and hundreds of books and 10 and soon to be 11 movies Oh and one animated as well. Countless games and Gadgets. Star wars has 7 movies with the 7th being the animated. Lots of books and new animated show coming up and many games and such. On sheer scope Star trek wins because of the sheer scope of all things trek. star wars will be a 2nd runner up. then 3rd would probly be babylon 5 and then battlestar galactica.Dr who would be next as it has had 2 series and several books and then maybe buck Rogers in the 25th century. If you Want to see a real Space battle. Go to Space Battles.com and you can Watch the Star trek ships Fight Star wars ships and even see babylon 5 ships Fight Star trek ships. Or watch B5 Trek and wars ships with an assist from Battlestar Galactica All fighting one another With some pretty good cgi. Or just hit Youtube and type in Star trek Vs Star wars and it will All be there for you.
Since the fart video was done by CBS – does that mean that it is canon?
The farts lacked resonance and variety.
Timing was good though.
#17 I guess you could say it is cannon farter.
kirk vs. han solo?
two of my fav space cowboys, one the picture of organised professionalism and the other an outlaw
who cares about a fight, a poker game with those two, malcolm reynolds and kara thrace would be tops in my book…
as long as i didnt have any $ on the table!
The vid was deleted :(
Why on earth does anyone care what Paris Hilton thinks? She is a poster child for Hollywood’s 21st centry idiocracy. I don’t care if she does or doesn’t like Trek; she’s an unremitting idiot, and I can’t fathom why she continues to get airtime….
I was expecting a fart clip of a frantic Captain Kirk asking about a sickly-sweet smell. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LAA9SK2sM4
this is my favorite video ever! go watch..it’s only 18 seconds long and hilarious.
re: Paris Hilton.
Happily Married, slowly assimilating my wife to Trek (She’s enjoying the series, keeps my Inner Geek in check, and had fun at Comic-Con and the Trek Convention in Vegas).
Ironic considering her family’s hotel hosted Star Trek: The Experience for 10+ years :-)
Kirk and Solo would beat the hell out of each other, start laughing, and then go pick up some Power Converters at Toschi Station.
On the other hand… what of a chess battle between Chewie and Spock? :-)
#26 You have a great point on Spock and chewie haveing a chess game. But I think Spock would win and then Chewie would try and rip the poinfs off spocke ears before spock would give him the Vulcan Neck Pinch.
#26 – Don’t you mean they would pick up some hot green or blue alien babes from some distant planet? I suspect Solo is a bit of a ladies man; not as much as Kirk of course.
Captain Kirk would win over Solo in a “how many woman can you pick up” contest.
Primitive laser weapons won’t even scratch Enterprise shields!
Paris Hilton is only good for one thing. Her “home video” proved that. She’s an idiot of the highest order.
5. Cato the Llama – August 20, 2008
Kirk vs. Solo?
Yeah but who’s more scruffy-looking?
I don’t care for the term “Trekkie”. I absolutely *hate* the term “Trekker”. I prefer “Trek fan”.
Eh…where I’m from they’ve shortened it to “nut” a long time ago. I’ve gotten used to it.
Waitwaitwaitwaitwaitwaitwait.
Wait.
SOLO won in the SIDEKICK category?
Are they insinuating that CHEWBACCA is a better sidekick than SPOCK? *MY* SPOCK?
Those stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking….
That fart video was alright, but this one has better timing and noises:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBGIQ7ZuuiU
Oh, damn it ta’ lowley bloody hell!!!
I had ta’ read through that whole blasted Hierarchy Chart becuz “furries” wuzn’t until tha’ end o’ it!
What? Ye’ said find tha’ type o’ “geek” I am, right?
Arrrrrrrr…
Kirk as an Ocelot, lol!
Oh dear, Paris! At least watching Star Trek doesn’t give you sexually transmitted diseases! :p
We forgot about “peakers” at least that is what my friends called me when I watched “Twin Peaks”.
Trek Vs. Wars? Not even close.
1st. The Big E could fit the Falcon inside her hanger bay, and since the phasers were powered by channeling the Matter/Antimatter reactor directly thru the phaser couplings, the Falcon wouldn’t stand a chance. For that matter neither would a super star destroyer or the death star, as neither had shields powerful enough to stop photon torpedoes. (Besides the easy way to blow up the death star would be to beam in a matter/antimatter bomb like in Obsession, which ripped half of the planets atmosphere away…)
2nd. As far as the ladies go, that one goes to kirk as well. Didn’t Sulu say it best on SNL when he said, (to paraphrase) “….we never get any because he (Kirk) takes them all, even the ugly ones!!!” LOL!! Good Luck Han….
Gotta love Saturday Nite Live!!
Until Next Time,
FM!!
I got a message for Li’ll Miss Hilton:
Get a Life!
I mean, you’re dressed as a BUNNY? And your LIFESTYLE–
I mean, HOW OLD ARE YOU? WHAT’VE YOU DONE WITH YOURSELF?
C’mon, Paris, what–you must be almost twenty or something– have you ever… NOT kissed a guy?
Just GROW THE HECK UP!!! There’s a whole WORLD out there!
This concludes my statement.
Jim Kirk would get a hell of a surprise if he ever ran into Captain Jack Harkness! :D
I’m a huge Trek fan- but Solo would mop the floor w/ Kirk.
But if you want a true bad-ass, I think a young Bill “Husker” Adama could frack ’em both up. He fought a freakin’ cylon while in free-fall. That, my friends, is tough.
John Barrowman is dreeeeeeamy. *sigh*
John Barrowman looks nothing like Tom Cruise. Until he laughs.
At that point, we’re talking Salt Vampire quality transformation. Or Garth of Izar. I’m serious. Go look.
Oh, and Miss Hilton has obviously been visiting the Shore Leave Planet. With the money her Daddy made off the Star Trek Expereience.
Paris
“if u give me a part in the next STmovie I’ll abortion whatever i’m carrying donated by whoever”
Hilton
thanks her quote
it really validates my time here
The indie movie “Free Enterprise” had a whole sketch/dialogue based on the Solo/Kirk issue, and it was hilarious. :)
Thanks to my bad habit of reading super hero comics most of the time and reading Star Wars and Trek novels, I’m pretty darn low. Good things I’m not into furry crap.
Kirk’s not an oeclot
Bald Egeal….. with a bad hairpiece….. but not an oeclot
;-)
That’s a joke son….