I went to see Star Trek Beyond again the other day and I noticed something that I hadn’t before: the escape pods on the bridge of the Enterprise were specifically called Kelvin pods. At every other point, crew referred to escape pods until the bridge crew specifically began to evacuate. We saw the pods after ejection: escape pods were larger, presumably could fit multiple crew members (going by previous Trek history, really, and the size and number that we glimpsed), and had to be got to. The Kelvin pods were streamlined, single person carriers and built straight into the walls of the bridge. Accessible from any point in that space, effectively. 

‘Kelvin pods’ or their equivalent haven’t been seen before in Star Trek (as far as I know) and definitely have never been referred to before in the Kelvin timeline. The USS Kelvin bridge crew had to leave the bridge to evacuate, and George Kirk had no point of escape after he set the ship on its fatal collision post. Given the name of these pods, it’s safe to say that these were installed after that incident to ensure that no Starfleet officer would ever have to go down with his ship in that way. Had there been pods in the bridge, George Kirk would have been likely to survive.

And I think that this is a thought that occurred to Kirk as he stood there, watching his ship be ripped apart too logn after the last of his crew (darling Checkov) had abandoned ship. As he lingered and made that decision to go. To live. To save his crew like his father would. 

I noticed this when I saw it and remembered thinking what a beautiful little piece of world building it was.

It’s a very casual kind of way to remind the audience, not only the reaching effect of the Kelvin incident in-world, but also how hard it is for Jim Kirk to escape the circumstances of his birth.

There he is, able to get his crew to safety and follow them off the ship because of something that was created to prevent what his father had to do. In a way it’s George Kirk getting Jim off a crashing ship all over again.

Moments of Kirk’s Befuddlement at Spock’s Behavior

There is just enough of William Shatner in Pine’s Kirk to bring a tear to my eye.

Well done, Mr. Pine. Well done.

Proof that Jim was on Tarsus IV in the reboots

Or at least my interpretation of said “proof.”

*cracks knuckles*

So, because I love making things as angsty for Jim as humanly possible, I’ve found a kernel of proof that Jim did in fact experience Tarsus.

Granted this kernel literally lasts a couple of seconds, but it counts. That’s why it’s a kernel.

Anyway.

In the Daystrom scene when they higher ups are discussing the London attack, the first thing they have up on their screens is John Harrison’s bio. We know from interviews and such that the bio information on that screen is the same as the bio information in the STID app. This app has the following information:

Obviously the important part is in that first paragraph.

Now, when everyone is in the room and first has access to this info when Marcus is starting the meeting, we are shown a second long (or so) shot of Jim looking at his screen. He double takes at the information, then looks up, immediately seeking out Spock.

Spock is already looking at him. Not at Marcus. He’s looking at Jim. As if Spock has read the information on his own screen, knows about Tarsus IV and Jim’s connection to it, and is looking to Jim in question, asking if John Harrison’s information is truly accurate. And by the look on Jim’s face, something is wrong, and they both look away, waiting to hear more information.

This assumes that Spock somehow already knows that Jim was on Tarsus IV, but I don’t think this is very far-fetched. When Spock choked Jim on the bridge, there was skin-to-skin contact. Imagine what was going through Jim’s mind in that moment. Imagine if that wasn’t the first time in his life he’s been strangled, or more generally, close to death. Imagine that Tarsus IV was on his mind and Spock picked up on it. Imagine that after the events of that movie, they talked about it, and that’s how they started forging their path to friendship.

Am I assuming a lot here? Abso-fucking-lutely. But I think it’s pretty good reasoning and tbh there’s nothing to explicitly refute it.

And I gotta have my Tarsus IV fix ;)

To all the gatekeeping white guys out there:

James T. Kirk is not your Everyman. He’s not your own self-insert male power fantasy. He’s not your generic heterosexual protagonist who’s “too cool to care” about the rules and regulations that come with his high-risk/high-responsibility job. He’s not your depthless heroic leading man who sees women as commodities and kills his enemies without a second thought. 

James T. Kirk is the embodiment of optimism for the future. He’s proof that if people could be a bit kinder, a bit softer, a bit more careful with how they treat others, that the world may one day end up churning out a man like him. He’s been through horrible, unspeakable things in his life, and he survived through it all to become the well-rounded, multi-layered, compassionate character you refuse to actually see and understand. He isn’t someone who acts on impulse due to a lack of care or regard for consequences—in fact, that couldn’t be further form the truth. When he does act on impulse, it’s because he cares too much. He wears his heart on his sleeve, and he isn’t afraid to show the ones he loves that he really is with them till the ends of the universe. That’s a promise to them that he could never break, because he is—above all else—a man of his own word. 

James T. Kirk wasn’t designed to be relatable. He was designed to be inspirational.

yah he’s cute but does he captain his own starship? does he love his starship more than anything? would he blow up his starship that he loves more than anything in order to save you? these are the real questions

this is the closest thing i have seen that could be mirrorverse kirk. an actual bitter hatred smirk. 

Friendly reminder that teenage Jim Kirk probably had this same dead look in his eyes for months after Tarsus IV.

oh wow thank you

"He is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen and it’s not about his face, but the life force I can see in him. It’s the smile and the pure promise of everything he has to offer. Like he’s saying, ‘Here I am world, are you ready for so much passion and beauty and goodness and love and every other word that should be in the dictionary under the word life?’. Except this boy is dead, and the unnaturalness of it makes me want to pull my hair out with Tate and Narnie and Fitz and Jude’s grief all combined. It makes me want to yell at the God that I wish I didn’t believe in. For hogging him all to himself. I want to say, ‘You greedy God. Give him back. I needed him here.’”

Kirk repressed a smile. “See? We’re getting to know each other.”

Spock straightened slightly. “It would be foolish to say that continuing contact does not beget familiarity - however intemperate that contact has been on occasion.” Stepping back, McCoy whispered to the newcomer Scott. “Which is a Vulcan way of saying that they might, just might, come out of this as friends - if they don’t kill each other first.”

(Star Trek - Alan Dean Foster)