Shatner Of The Mount

By Shamus Posted Sunday Apr 3, 2011

Filed under: Movies 113 comments

Some people have strongly-held beliefs on this whole Kirk vs. Picard business. Perhaps this will settle things…


Link (YouTube)

Also, I apologize.

 


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113 thoughts on “Shatner Of The Mount

  1. Bentusi16 says:

    Mister Young, you sly boots. I had just gotten this song out of my head and then I logged onto your blog here and clicked the youtube video, because I’m a sucker.

    Apology accepted sir.

    And a rebuttal using the strangely mesmerizing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6oUz1v17Uo (It’s the Picard Song as googles “feeling lucky” spat up.)

    1. Jamfalcon says:

      I appear to have been ninja’d by you, good sir.

    2. That one doesn’t seem so, err, warped.

      Kind of a replacement for rick rolling people though.

    3. Gantidae says:

      God, back when I played Global Agenda somebody mic spammed this song for the entire round. Still better than the round somebody mic spammed “My Horse is Amazing”.

      1. Davie says:

        The worst part about that is that it’s designed never to end.

      2. Daemian Lucifer says:

        Better this than this.The fun(so to speak)thing you can do with this is to open it in multiple tabs simultaneously.

    4. Slothful says:

      It’s quite hypnotic

      1. Integer Man says:

        I see what you did there.

  2. Daemian Lucifer says:

    Bah,kirk vs. picard is so 20th century.Which new doctor is the best is what 21st century is about.

    Though its a nice song.

    1. psivamp says:

      I vote for Christopher Eccleston!

      You know, if I even watched that nerdy British rubbish. Because I don’t.

    2. Halfling says:

      Like that is a debate.

      Christopher Eccleston’s doctor would disembowel the others then erase them from time entirely.

      1. Bentusi16 says:

        Is this some sort of low-budget British sci-fi Red Dwarf ripoff? Just wondering, I’ve never heard of it before.

        But seriously, the real test of the doctor is the one who can sing and dance the best and therefore David Tennant takes the cake.

        1. ZekeCool says:

          Eccleston? I am surprised by the popular opinion here. I for one vote for the best Doctor… Tennant of course. Such a cheeky schoolboy. I love him.

          1. Sara Pickell says:

            I adore Tennant, he’s like a puppy with a new toy most times. Then he needs to get serious and he does, it’s great. Not that the gentlemen pre or post are in any way deficient, Tennant’s just that interesting to watch.

      2. X2-Eliah says:

        Hm. Eccleston would be my preferred choice for the doc.

      1. ehlijen says:

        I was gonna say Jackson, or possibly McKay.

        1. Halfling says:

          You are forgetting that Carter is also a doctor.

          1. ehlijen says:

            No I’m not. I’m just not seeing her placing well in this race.

            1. X2-Eliah says:

              You just need to reverse the polarity, and it’ll work out.

            2. Halfling says:

              Except she owned McKay like 95% of the time. And Jackson is all about the liberal arts. :P

              1. ehlijen says:

                Doesn’t mean she was any fun as character though. McKay was. And Jackson went guns akimbo at least once, so he gets the badass vote.

        2. Heron says:

          Well now I feel all dirty for betraying my beloved Stargate…

      2. Halfling says:

        After Hugh Laurie finishes his stint on house it would be amazing if they got him to play the next incarnation of the Doctor. We need an older Doctor again, these new guys have all been relatively young.

        Also Doctor Who would likely make better use of Laurie’s comic abilities then House M.D. does.

        1. Daemian Lucifer says:

          I love eccleston.Tennant was excellent good once he ditched rose,but got ruined by that ending crap(stupid davis).But you cant not love smith with the fez.Fezzes are cool.Still,eccleston remains my favourite too in the new cast.

          Hugh laurie as the doctor?I dont know,seems a little bit too dark.I love the dark doctor,but I think too much of that wouldnt be such a good thing.

          1. Skitt says:

            Have you not seen Hugh Laurie in blackadder? He’s hilarious

            1. Daemian Lucifer says:

              Black adder is quite dark.Hilarious,but dark.Though,like I said,its probably a british thing.

        2. some random dood says:

          What a great idea! Think you’re right, Hugh Laurie would be a great Doctor (Who).
          From the recent Doctors a couple of scenes that stick in my mind are:
          One scene with Chris Eccleston’s doctor where he ends up ranting at a dalek. The response from the dalek just worked – “You would make a good dalek.”
          Think the daleks work well as an enemy of the Doctor, as this quote from Tennant’s stint was also from a dalek. In the episode where the Cybermen were taking over Earth, 4 daleks crashed the scene. A cyberman challenges the daleks “Do you think that 4 daleks can take on the might of the cybermen army”, to which the lead dalek replied “No. We would only need one.” (Or something along those lines ;-)

    3. Ergonomic Cat says:

      Clearly it’s The Doctor. I mean, Bones is great, Crusher is annoying, and Basheer had that whole “I’m genetically perfect” thing that Miranda totally ruined.

      That’s what we’re talking about, right?

      In other realms, Matt Smith, because Neil Gaiman wrote him an episode.

    4. Sueb262 says:

      What has become of the younger generation? No one can top Tom Baker.

      1. Daemian Lucifer says:

        Hence the disclaimer “new”.

    5. lionday says:

      Matt Smith all the way. I just think he can give a speach and is full of whimsy. (Helps he’s with Steven Moffit who writes Gold).

  3. Obai says:

    Shamus, I had a question about Zax mode in minecraft. You can only move in one cardinal direction, but can you freely move vertically?

    1. Shamus says:

      I would say yes. It seemed like the Zax did, anyway.

  4. Ben says:

    The obvious answer is neither Kirk or Picard.

    Its Sisko.

    1. Heron says:

      I argue this sometimes. I have trouble deciding whether I like DS9 or TNG better.

      People give me strange looks when I discuss this topic.

      1. Ben says:

        Is that really a hard decision?

        Even setting aside the absolute schlock of early TNG (pretty much all season 1 and most of season 2 ignoring Measure of a Man) it never really gets close to DS9 in terms of consistently putting out quality episodes. The characters were better pretty much all around, compare TNG Worf, even at his best in Drumhead, with DS9 Worf and its crystal clear. Then there is the rest of the main cast who are pretty much all better characters then their TNG counterparts and of course the secondary characters, many of whom are better developed then parts of TNG’s main cast (See Garek or Rom vs. Crusher or Troi).

        Perhaps the best argument you can make for TNG is that it is truer to the Trek theme but that just doesn’t do it for me. Trek for me is defined by the universe, primarily Roddenberry’s utopianism and while TNG for the most part accepts that whole only occasionally getting at some of the underlying issues (see Who Watches the Watchers) DS9 actually explores the limitations and consequences of the premise.

        Anyway enough gushing about DS9 for me.

        1. ehlijen says:

          But DS9 also made us endure far more ackward comic relief ferengis that was ever necessary :(

          Wesley at his worst was more bearable than late season Rom (or whatever Quark’s brother’s name was. Was it Rom?)

          1. Ben says:

            Are the awkward ferengi episodes of DS9 really any worse then some of the bad comic relief episodes of TNG like The Game or A Fistful of Datas? Even if you want to claim they are DS9 still consistently put out better episodes then TNG. Both had their really terrible episodes but DS9 had at least more consistent highs and I’d argue higher highs as well.

            Also my previous comment should say Nog not Rom. Although I wouldn’t call Rom as bad as Wesley he did become somewhat grating toward the end. Nog by contrast had some really great episodes by the end, Siege of AR-558 and Its Only a Paper Moon (yes I know some people hate Vic Fontaine but this isn’t a terrible use of him).

            1. ehlijen says:

              Both had bad epsidoes, sure. But DS9s tended to reduce an entire people to ‘capitalism is bad’ jokes on a regular basis. Given the obvious ‘racial oppression is bad’ theme they were going for with the dominion war, that was really a mixed message they shouldn’t have tried for.

              In any case, DS9 and TNG were very different shows in that one came before ongoing plots became fashionable and then other copied the show that made them fashionable (in scifi at least).

        2. krellen says:

          The last seasons of DS9 – after Roddenberry died and Berman took over completely – are completely antithetical to the central message of Star Trek. It was supposed to be about a shiny, optimistic future, not one ravaged by war and destruction.

          Even when the Borg attacked in TNG and everything seemed lost, there was still optimism shining through – the crew rescued Picard, instead of destroying him along with the Borg. The Dominion War had none of that.

          Star Trek fell into the same gritty, dark hole as the rest of Sci-Fi, and that’s what ultimately killed it. It was no longer something different and something hopeful.

          1. Daemian Lucifer says:

            Well thats what doctor who is for.Even in the darkest episodes,like the ones with vashta nerada and weeping angels,there is always positivity and good doses of humor.But I guess thats a british thing.

            1. krellen says:

              That is, actually, one of my favourite things about Doctor Who.

              1. daveNYC says:

                That’s actually one of the things that grates on me about the show. I’ve been plowing through the episodes on Netflix, and it’s rather disturbing how upbeat the guy is even after watching anywhere from five to five billion people get killed.

            2. Soylent Dave says:

              If it’s a British thing, that’d be ‘humour’…

              (also the first time I’ve seen British TV described as ‘positive’, especially by an (I assume) American!)

          2. Heron says:

            This is the biggest complaint I’ve heard about Star Trek Online (and as a lifetime subscription holder, I agree) – the Federation seems to have abandoned its mission of peaceful exploration. In STO, pretty much every mission is “shoot first, maybe consider asking questions later”, and Star Fleet is engaged in wars with *at least* four major enemies, last I counted, and apparently has standing orders to attack dozens of other species on sight…

            Cryptic has added more diplomatic missions recently, but none of them are really vital to the central plotlines of the game, so although they’re interesting they feel kind of tacked on as an afterthought. Probably because they were.

            1. ehlijen says:

              A common problem with most star trek computer games. In bridge commander there is even a mission where you *can* convince a very powerful enemy ship to join you for the last mission…if you ignore every tactic you’ve been doing so far in the game (shoot first, ask questions later) and not attack but rather use the ‘hail them’ button.

              Many players apparently failed to figure that out on their own. I didn’t.

              1. ehlijen says:

                That’s meant to mean that I didn’t figure it out. Not that I didn’t fail to. Oops.

            2. Jarenth says:

              ‘Shoot first, loot second. Level up dudes, improve bridge skills. Check quest log. Wait, there’s something left. Ask questions? Bah, this quest is too complicated! Drop it, pick up another quest.’

        3. Heron says:

          Much of my indecision comes from DS9’s focus on the Bajoran religion. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an interesting story, but it got kind of mystical near the end (which seems very opposite of what Star Trek is supposed to be) and I was pretty disappointed that Sisko just kind of up and vanished at the end. “There is still a lot for me to do for the wormhole aliens” isn’t really a good way to end the series…

    2. Viktor says:

      This. Sisko had problems that lasted more than an episode, he actually dealt with entire galactic civilizations on a regular basis rather than single planets, and his decisions mattered. Anyone who doesn’t believe me can watch The Pale Moonlight until they agree.

    3. Traska says:

      I like this answer. I can live with this answer. Because I can live with it.
      I can live with it.

    4. Marcellus says:

      I agree wholeheartedly, and I’m going to support this claim with an SFDebris video:
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFD90iBvQWY#t=1m17s

      1. Shamus says:

        Love me some SFDebris. Been meaning to do a post on that guy.

        1. Wolfwood says:

          thanks to this post i now have another person to subscribe to on YT. just started watching his reviews of the ST Movies. one word: Fantastic.

      2. Wolfwood says:

        So he was responsible for creating that ugly lump of a ship! Also terrible in STO XD

        Liked Sisko, not so much DS9. it didn’t have the happy image of the future gene roddenberry laid out. Didn’t watch Star Trek to feel depressed :(

    5. some random dood says:

      Oh. My. Stars! I can’t believe that people actually *like* that cheap Babylon 5 knock-off!!
      I understand the Crusher hatred from TNG, but Sisko and his kid brought forth the same reaction from me. And pastie-head? For a supposed martial master, he always looked as if a 6-year old could beat him up anytime they felt like. Don’t know how good an actor the guy behind the character was, but always felt very badly written to me. Suppose the only time I gave Worf any kudos was the “men-in-tights” episode when Q turned the crew into Robin’s Merry Men…

      1. Hitch says:

        Thank you. As soon as I saw Sisko I thought, “Neither, the real debate is Sinclair or Sheridan.”

        1. some random dood says:

          I’d go with Sinclair – he always seemed to exude a compassion and competence I liked. Sheridan was too gung-ho for my liking. Still, the main characters for me were Garibaldi and Ivanova (though credit to Bester as an excellent semi-villain).

      2. Daemian Lucifer says:

        Deep space 9 is so much better than babylon 5.Its actually 4 better.

    6. Daemian Lucifer says:

      But only because he punched q.

    7. Cody211282 says:

      You sir win, that man was chosen by crazy wormhole gods to kill their versions of demons, commanded a very powerful(at least at the end) space station/completely OPed ship(with a cloaking field), plus beat back two aggressive empires one of which hadn’t been defeated(oh and he beat their gods as well).

      Oh and he had Warf and Chif O’Brian working for him.

      /nerd rant

  5. gothictwist says:

    Pah at your modern docters. Sylvester mccoy would take care of all of them with little trouble.
    Still of the modern ones its a shame Eccelston quit after one series he was definitly the most interesting doctor still heres hoping for a 3/4 doctors story before to long

    1. Irridium says:

      Agreed. Went too early I thought… although after hearing what he had to deal with while filming I can’t say I blame him.

    2. ehlijen says:

      Nah, Peter Curshing’s the best. Which other doctor ever commanded a death star?

  6. Neil Polenske says:

    Before Sheen…there was Shatner.

    1. X2-Eliah says:

      Going by the Sheen’s Detroit fiasko, I’d say it’s not really praise of any kind anymore.

    2. Mari says:

      Take it back. Shatner was embarrassing, yes, but not even remotely in Sheen’s class.

  7. Gantidae says:

    I was just thinking I missed the random vids on Saturdays.

  8. Aufero says:

    Sometimes I wish William Shatner was even less articulate.

  9. thebigJ_A says:

    So, Picard wins.

  10. BaCoN says:

    Oldie but a goodie.

    Also, Shatner for life.

    And not just because I’m Canadian, and have seen Free Enterprise.

  11. Mumbles says:

    ORIGINAL SERIES 4 LYFE

    1. Gantidae says:

      I watched most of the original series as a kid at my grandmother’s house. She didn’t have cable and it was either that or Pittsburgh baseball and I dislike baseball.

    2. krellen says:

      Dammit Jim, I’m a Doctor, not a TV Executive!

  12. X2-Eliah says:

    I now expect a text-or-video about a computer game without any music in it on Digitaltrainmumbles.

    THINGS MUST BE IN BALANCE!

  13. David Armstrong says:

    TOS was just a terrible show. Low production values, poor acting, worse writing… meh. It’s known and beloved for it’s camp and nostalgia; Shatner is in good company with Adam West.

    Next Generation post Season 1 is another story. Yes, I am prepared to have an in-depth discussion on this matter.

    But on topic with the video – how deep a pool of psycho-babble do you have to swim to go from “climbing a mountain” to “being in love”? What the crap is that shit?

    1. X2-Eliah says:

      Don’t you dare to diss Adam West. He is the ONLY Batman ever.

  14. Milos says:

    Shamus you should be ashamed for posting this.

    And I should be ashamed for already knowing about it beforehand.

  15. Ramsus says:

    I grew up watching next gen so….yeah.

  16. Jarenth says:

    Damnit, now I feel like playing RIFT again, for reasons I suspect very few people will get.

    1. Galad says:

      care to share? :)

      1. Jarenth says:

        Josh showed me this video a few months ago, during the RIFT beta. Afterwards, a large part of the beta was spent dicking around and trying to climb to places we weren’t supposed to go.

        I’ve used the phrase ‘Oh man, there’s a mountain in the way. If only we had captain Kirk now!‘ more times than I’d care to admit.

  17. Wolfwood says:

    For some1 who is 80yo he looks surprisingly spry. I mean Patrick Stewart looks older than him XD

    Picard Song > Kirk Song. Sorry but that is fact :P

  18. some random dood says:

    Oh dear – speaks directly to the old Kirk stereotype. He will make love to *anything* that might be female.
    As to which is the better captain? Like them both for different reasons. Kirk is fun (but ridiculous). Picard is much more believable – that is someone you think could very well be in charge of several hundred crew, and has responsibility for the well-being of a large expanse of space (with the diplomatic relations needed for that). Kirk… well, is fun, but I don’t think I would place him in charge of a soft-drink vending machine, let alone a well-armed warship!

  19. SolkaTruesilver says:

    Shamus, there is a special place in Hell just for you.

    You will share it for those who designed EA’s DRM and anyone feels that Neelix was what’s best about Voyager.

  20. Gantidae says:

    As long as everybody is sharing videos.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vjrIj5fEX0

    1. Halfling says:

      Sulu confirmed as best Captain?

      I agree.

      1. Mari says:

        The second-greatest disappointment of my life was finding out George Takei is gay. Sulu > every captain ever

        1. krellen says:

          Funny, finding out Takei was gay was one of my greatest joys.

          Oh my.

          1. Halfling says:

            Hahahaha you two are cute.

            1. Bentusi16 says:

              One of the things that made me laugh the hardest in the last year was him calling someone a douchebag.

              I bet Chekov would’ve been a better captain then all the other ones combined.

              1. ehlijen says:

                Didn’t do too bad as a squadron commander on B5.

  21. Old_Geek says:

    I can’t believe Shatner spent so much time thinking about the mountain climbing scene! It was like 2 minutes long and the first shot in the movie. No wonder Star Trek 5 sucked. He should have been thinking about the plot or something…

    1. krellen says:

      For all that 5 is (largely rightly) viewed as the worst of the bunch, it nevertheless has my top 3 all time favourite Star Trek moments; the mountain climbing scene (especially Spock with the hover boots interrogating Kirk as he’s climbing), a scene after Sybok steals the Enterprise (“I know this ship like the back of my hand!” *CLONG*), and the climax (“What does God need with a starship?”)

  22. Cody211282 says:

    Ok I know I just ranted about DS9 up there but I think everyone forgot someone who should be added into this debate, Commander Adama.

    1. SolkaTruesilver says:

      If you want to include Adama, then it’s up between Sisko and Adama. Both were ruthless, yet moral, in their application of power. They did their best to make their side win.

      Although I believe Adama was a tad incompetent when it came to disciplining his subordinates. He made it up with a glare that qualify as antitank weaponry, that can scourge your soul and make you suck your thumb asking where your mommy-cylon is.

      But The Sisko is The Sisko.

      1. Cody211282 says:

        It basically comes down to whose ship you like more, or at least it does for me since both of them are so damn cool. With Adama you have an aircraft carrier that has a few nukes, enough ordinance to blow up an entire fleet, and armor that can take a direct hit from a warhead and only get a scorch mark. Sisko has a cloaked BFG9000 with a warp core.

    2. X2-Eliah says:

      Commander Adama would be a very good opposition, however.. Those in-between-season episodes where Adama had grown a russian-style caterpillar on his face seriously harmed his reputation.

    3. ehlijen says:

      New or original Adama though?

      1. SolkaTruesilver says:

        There can be only one.

        1. Cody211282 says:

          Yea new one rocked.

          1. Old_Geek says:

            You dis Lorne Green? For shame!

            1. Cody211282 says:

              Did he ever try to use a bio weapon to wipe out his enemies? I think not.

  23. Lesquille says:

    What did I just see? I… I feel like I’ve been violated.

  24. Drejer says:

    I don’t understand …

    1. SolkaTruesilver says:

      …why Kirk is climbing a mountain?

      He wants to embrace it. He wants to merge with it. He wants to have sex with the mountain, to possess it.

      1. Drejer says:

        That sounds horrifying.

        1. Richard says:

          Horrifyingly amazing.

      2. Drejer says:

        Double post

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