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May 11, 2009 02:10 PM
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You're going to need to see Star Trek a second time just to catch all the cameos and Trek in-jokes. Here's our guide to the greatest, and most annoying, easter eggs in Trek.
Besides the obvious red shirt slaying and tip-of-the-hat to Sulu's half naked fencing there were a lot of other super quick Trekkie and J.J. moments.
Hey Its What's-His-Face:
The film is stuffed with plenty of Trekkie cameos, and here are some members of the Federation you really shouldn't miss:
Possibly the most annoying Trek cameo, which completely and totally takes you out of the moment, would be Tyler "Madea" Perry sitting on as Admiral Richard Barnett. I have absolutely no idea what he was saying during the film, because I was too busy trying to figure out what the hell he was doing there. He Ted Dansoned my Academy trial moment, and I'm none too pleased about it.
It's been reported all over that Greg Grunberg, the man who is in just about all of Abrams' creations as a good luck charm, was cut out as Kirk's stepdad. But you can still hear him when Kirk is a little boy, over his vintage car's Nokia phone.
Another Abrams alum lurking in the movie is Amanda Foreman, who actually played Grunberg's sweetie in Abrams 90s TV series, Felicity. You may remember her as the uber goth roommate to Keri Russell. Blink and you'll miss her on the bridge.
But my personal favorite cameo was none other than Paul McGillion from Stargate. First off, putting other genre people in this flick is a great little shout out to fans of other long-running franchises, plus he looked awesome telling all the young students what to do. Picture via Trek Movie.
Nods To The Original:
The Centaurian Slug Versus the Ceti Eel:
It's not a continuity error, just an example of the diversity of the universe. The creature that Nero slams into Pike's face isn't the Ceti Eel, its the Centaurian Slug. They're different things entirely, but it's a nice little shout out to Khan and poor Chekov.
Pike's Final Ride:
In the end of the film you see Bruce Greenwood's Captain Pike in a Wheelchair sporting a flashy new uniform. Clearly the wheelchair is a nod to the original series episode, "The Menagerie," where Pike ends up horribly scarred, paralyzed, and his only means of communication are light-flashes in the front of his ride. We asked actor Greenwood about this, and if he was nervous about what'll happen to his pretty face in future Star Trek movies. "It's an echo for sure. [Laughs] No, [I didn't think about the face] not until you mentioned it. I thought my face would be okay. I think I have every expectation that I will remain recognizable for some period [Laughs]."
Science Academy
One big question that was answered in the new Star Trek was why Spock declined to enter the Vulcan Science academy. Orci explained that this was an important question they tried to answer as a nod to the original series. It also helps fill in some of the emotional turmoil Spock was going through, as we watch him being reminded over and over again that most the people he grew up around believed his half Vulcan, half human bloodline to be inferior.
Orion Slave Girls Free To Join Star Fleet:
Roberto Orci confirmed our suspicions that the Orion Slave Girl was no longer a slave, since she was in Star Fleet Academy, "She wasn't a slave, when we made our list we knew we had to have a green girl." Can you see her shiny green face among the other students?
Tribble:
Orci also wanted us to keep our ears and eyes alert when we first meet Scotty, apparently there's a Tribble cooing atop Scottys desk.
The Admiral's Dog:
As you probably already noticed, the whole reason Scotty is banished to Delta Vega is because he tried to transport Admiral Archer's dog... and the dog is still out there, somewhere. A nice nod to the last time someone tried to make a Star Trek prequel.
Kobayashi Maru:
Not exactly a hidden gem, but it was pretty exciting to watch how the whole "cheating on the Kobayashi Maru" test went down. Particularly because Kirk is such a dick during the whole thing.
Groan Worthy Product Placement:
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Ok they weren't too horrendously obvious, but you have to do a gigantic-eye roll when you hear Uhura order three Budweiser CLASSICS and then cry out Slusho! It's to much pop culture, aren't-we-clever referencing done in one scene, in my opinion. The Bud shout out was most likely a nod for letting the crew film in their beer plant, located in Van Nuys, California, for the engineering section of the Enterprise. But, thankfully, the product placement was few and far between. The Nokia cell phone ad was a mere second long.
Catch Phrases:
Of course, you're not going to make a Star Trek movie with out referencing some of the characters' classic catch phrases. Everybody has their little shticky moment, from Karl Urban's eye-rolls to the way Kirk leans in the captain's chair, they're all there. In fact, in the beginning of this "Who's Who On The Crew" clip, you can enjoy Simon Pegg doing Scotty's infamous one-liner.
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What else did you guys see?
Send an email to Meredith, the author of this post, at meredith@io9.com.
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