#04. Opinion.

So, Enterprise is finally ready to launch, although it's hardly in a condition to travel at warp speeds (a warp is a speed measure in ST universe, warp 1.0 is already faster than speed of light and Enterprise's cruiser speed is around 7 to 8 warps. The problem is, while the vessel travels at warp speeds, space is somehow bent around them thus very accurate tuning is vital in using warp drives). Still, Kirk is confident everything's going to be fine until the interception. Spoiler ahead: he is wrong.

Honestly, I'd chicken out in the face of such a threat. Kirk didn't and most of the crew didn't either (a lot of them were sure that having Kirk as a captain was a guarantee that the mission will be a success). That earned them a deep expression of respect from me.

#04. Summary.

The former Enterprise doctor and Kirk's close friend, Bones McCoy, also arrives and is worried about Kirk's condition after all those earth-bound years and his addiction to Enterprise which might affect his performance as the captain.

James T. Kirk gathers everyone in the recreational deck and puts the Epsilon IX record on the big monitor for everyone to see with their own eyes what they were going to deal with.

In a few hours, Enterprise floats out of the space dock and prepares to head towards the Intruder.

#04. Words.

01. bask - наслаждаться
02. fringe - крайность
03. lachrymose - сентиментальный
04. lukewarm - тепловатый
05. snub - относиться с пренебрежением
06. middleman - посредник
07. dwindle - истощаться
08. revenue - выручка
09. roseate - оптимистичный
10. denunciation - порицание
11. stiff - окостеневший
12. ostentation - демонстрация
13. flush - прилив
14. vapor - испарения
15. sallow - болезненный
16. quip - колкость
17. scud - порыв
18. robin - дрозд
19. splendor - величие
20. sheer - полнейший, сущий

#03. Opinion.

The upgraded Enterprise isn't, to be honest, terribly better compared to the original specifications. And the problems already present and the ones to happen along the way really diminish the importance of those upgrades. But more on this later, since I've already finished the book, I'll wait till the story progresses to the point where it really plays out.

The scene of Kirk's arrival lasts almost half an hour without a single word, just shots of him in the shuttle and the Enterprise in the docks. I had to skip it, it was impossible to pay attention to such a boring sequence.

Decker might be as bold as brass while speaking with Kirk, but he's right, the truth is completely on his side. Kirk just wanted the captain's chair back and the Intruder was a nice opportunity to do so, and that's all there is to it.

#03. Summary.

All these years Enterprise was being remodeled and because of the sudden mission it had to accomplish it was being prepared for immediate launch, thus dropping a lot of the important repairs and the fine-tuning. Most of the old crew is happy to see James back, Kirk informs Decker that he's sorry things turned out this way, but Decker quips that Kirk was definitely not sorry, just wishing to command the Enterprise once again. Which was definitely not a misconception.

A transport beam failure happens, resulting in the death of several crew members on the way to Enterprise, one of them being the new science officer. Kirk assigns Decker to the science console in addition to his XO (executive officer, second-in-command) position. A female Deltan (Deltans are a race known to secrete strong pheromones so they had to maintain an oath of celibacy while on starships) navigator, Ilia, arrives on board. She had a relationship with Decker before, so he is glad to see her on board, yet Kirk makes sure that Ilia's oath is intact, which was quite insensitive, but Kirk tried to regain his authority as the captain, even though his position as a legendary person (because of the extraordinary succesful five-year mission) helped a lot to motivate the crew.

#03. Words.

01. falter - заикаться
02. verity - истина
03. legislature - законодательные учреждения
04. waylay - подстерегать
05. starch - церемонность
06. plodding - трудолюбивый
07. reticence - сдержанность
08. turntable - дека, вертушка, проигрыватель (речь о пластинках)
09. innocuous - безвредный
10. grinding - перемалывание
11. murk - мрак
12. drab - однообразный
13. trudge - устало тащиться
14. impinge - вторгаться
15. repercussion - последствия
16. conceivable - потенциальный
17. wangle - уловка
18. concession - признание
19. affluent - обильный
20. hoard - запас

#02. Summary.

I still can't exactly understand why the Intruder's mental waves were only distinguished by Spock (definitely not because of his internal emergency radio, the same as Kirk's) since there are a lot of Vulcans with better telepathy abilities. Maybe something about him being a hybrid was relevant to the Intruder, but it doesn't actually play in the following story. Technically he did receive the same message as Kirk did and thus was the only Vulcan aware of the entity, but then again - seconds later he telepathically shared that message with the Kolinahr masters.

Kirk definitely has an Enterprise addiction, like I have an Internet addiction...

#02. Summary.

Meanwhile, part-vulcan, part-human Spock, former Enterprise (Star Trek: TOS is centered around this particular space vessel, though most primary vessels in ST series are called Enterprise) science officer and one of Kirk's best friends is preparing himself for the ritual of achieving Kolinahr, the state of complete logic and denial of emotions (it is vital to him since Spock, being a half-breed, despises his emotional human half). It is interrupted by some mysterious mental data-pattern calling out to him from space and messing up with his human emotions. The Kolinahr masters tell him that his place is elsewhere and tell him to travel where he needs to (obviously, discarding the entire Kolinahr rite).

Back on Earth, Kirk hurries to the Starfleet command, already being informed that Enterprise is the only ship capable of intercepting the Intruder before it reaches Earth. But since the end of the Enterprise's original mission to explore the universe the ship was handed over to William Decker, a young officer who was recommended at that position by Kirk himself. Still, Kirk manages to convince the Commanding Admiral, Nogura, that he's the right man for this job and thus took control of Enterprise once again, fulfilling his dream of returning to Enterprise as its captain.

#02. Words.

01. daisy - ромашка
02. hose - рейтузы
03. dismay - беспокойство
04. hamstring - подколенное сухожилие
05. calisthenics - пластика, ритмика
06. crinkle - морщина, складка
07. indenture - договор
08. crochet - вязать крючком
09. potholder - держалка для горшков? С текстом 08 и 09 вообще не совпадают, но Лингво на большее не способен...
10. knack - сноровка
11. pout - выпячивание
12. attic - чердак
13. margin - кромка
14. lucrative - рентабельный
15. clapboard - обшивочная доска
16. cinder - испепелять
17. hem - окаймлять
18. allegiance - лояльность
19. coerce - принуждать
20. pledge - клясться

#01. Opinion.

Kirk is back, Scotty is back, Spock is back, Bones is back - everyone is back for a new amazing Star Trek adventure. Even though the original series were sometimes cheesy and old-fashioned (from a modern point of view), the movie was a giant leap in terms of quality compared to generic ST episodes.

Even though the movie itself would better fit in a 40-minute episode rather than 2-hour motion picture (it was horribly stretched out with the help of extremely long, boring scenes and panoramas with ear-hurting soundtracks and strange graphics), the novel version (which I happened to read before I watched the movie and which I'm reviewing in this blog) is much more solid, there are more events and important details and they are nicely distributed along the pages. Honestly, I thought the movie would be better, but it did cut out some interesting characters and a lot, and I do say so, a lot of details.

#01. Summary.

It is the year 2271. An unknown huge cloud-like entity heads towards Earth at a humongous speed and attacks several Klingon (a warfare-centric furry race in the Star Trek universe) cruisers on its way. It's diameter is several times the distance between the Sun and our home planet, so it does look like an incredible threat.

Mostly retired (and promoted to Admiral after the events of the series, the Motion Picture in both novelized and movie format succeeds the long-running Star Trek: The Original Series) James T. Kirk suspends his Gibraltar holidays after being informed via an emergency communicator in his head of the situation at hand.

At the nearest communication center he is presented with live footage from a deep space station Epsilon IX. Epsilon's crew tries to scan the Intruder, as the space force identified this object, but seconds after that is destroyed by a green beam coming somewhere from the huge being.

#01. Words.

01. affront - унижение
02. weepy - плакса
03. stifled - приглушенный
04. flatware - столовые приборы
05. ingratiate - втираться в доверие
06. ponder - обдумывать
07. diminished - преуменьшенный
08. flue - дымоход
09. chimney - камин
10. sooty - закопченный
11. flutter - трепетание
12. switchboard - коммутатор
13. confer - даровать
14. formica - формайка (торговая марка огнеупорного пластика, используемого преимущественно для отделки поверхностей, напр., мебели) - никогда бы не подумал...
15. zest - пикантность
16. clink - бряцать
17. jangle - звенеть
18. stubble - жнивье
19. odometer - одометр - устройство для измерения пути
20. stature - телосложение