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I don't have much to say about the other stuff, but I do have to admit Carol's semi-nude scene was pretty gratuitous and useless.  I think even J.J. Abrams has admitted that.  But that's just my opinion. Carol IS hot.  But I think that scene was kind of out of place.  

I agree somewhat. The scene didn't add much but it didn't subtract anything either. Actually, it was one of the few times Carol and Kirk offhandely flirted and showed "sexual tension" which is important on the basis they end up being romantically involved later.(By canon) Beyond that scene there was only one other time I remember them interacting in the same fashion. It also showed kirk was lecherous and immature when he kept peeking so it could have been included to show off more of his character flaws.

I just don't know why we should flip out everytime a man and a woman f^ck or they are naked! (I remember the stink about Doctor Manhattan's "blue penis" in Watchmen too. Big whoop!)

ha ha, yeah you're right, nudity shouldn't be given the attention it gets, but that's just the nature of our puritan society I guess.  I mean, thinking about this makes me remember Princess Leia in her gold bikini, which was also a little gratuitous, but at the same time, also demonstrated that she was a woman, and that all the characters had progressed into adulthood, and with it, sexuality.  

I have mixed feelings about the nudity of Carol, I understand where you're coming from, but at the same time, it just seemed out of place.  Plus, her abs were unreal.  

As I recall,she had to change into another suit so at least it was "career related". lol. It's not as if Kirk randomly walked into her quarters and saw her naked in the shower.

I agree it could have been done better,Matt. But to imply that one scene downplays every other good thing about Carol's character seems a bit "too puritan" to me.

It's weird with Felicia though. I was always under the impression she was popular enough without pulling the social justice card. Joss Whedon does it a lot too. My emotional conflict is over the fact I agree with most aspects of pro choice,gender equality,racial equality, and gay marriage and yet I still have to deal with those who think I'm not "left enough" or that I'm simply "a misogynist in disguise" on account I don't like the word "feminism", tell the occasional dirty joke, and  actually enjoy fan-service from time to time. I feel as if I have no footing and even when I'm trying to better myself people are STILL casting stones at me.

ah, you shouldn't worry about it. there will always be people who think we aren't "right" or judge us for being different.  everyone's got an opinion.  Felicia is entitled to her opinion but so are you.  We all are.  

but I wouldn't let it bother you.  You and I can't really understand what it's like to be a woman in today's world.  My sister is very conservative, but at the same time has adopted many "feminist" policies and ideas from the left.  She would never identify herself with so-called feminists though.  

It's complex shit either way.  I think you are frustrated about gender equality the way I am about religious stuff.  There's so many loud mouths and bastards out there that make things look bad, but I think for the most part people are alright.  A lot of christians bug the hell out of me, though I was raised Catholic and identify with a lot of the ideas of the religion, but not the dogma. I think for both of us, it's the dogma that gets annoying, and the rigid belief systems and absolutism. 

It's definitely the "With us or against us" absolutism. Most things are positive in moderation but annoying when taken to extremes.

I will not claim to know entirely what it's like to be a woman (How can I?) but I do find it asinine when certain people with loud opinions bitch about Carol's panties louder than how women get treated in many 3rd world countries today. It's as if many activists in the west want to turn a blind eye to illegal sex trafficking,rapes,and mass stonings in favor of negatively sensationalizing the newest movie or game through the "feminist lens". I find it very immature personally. I guess first world problems always come off as a bit petty to me when compared to the horrible shit going on in other places.

I don't know anything about Star Trek. But when that movie came out, I did write a clueless Star Trek blog.  Do you remember that one?  I'm not a big Star Trek fan at all, but when I was little I had a Russian Blue cat and I named it Chekov after the guy from Star Trek because I couldn't think of any other Russian names.

I remember you mentioning your cat Chekov,Cary. lol. Seemed like a cute rascal! And it's okay to be mostly clueless about Star-Trek. My Pokemon knowledge is "poor" at best!

After seeing the movie a second time, I found the "Carol undressed" scene to be a bit pointless.  Otherwise, it doesn't bother me one bit.  It just seemed a bit shoehorned in there.  I think I get J.J. Abrhams intention of depicting some pssible chemistry between Kirk and Carol, but I think it was just executed poorly in that one scene.

As regards Felicia Day, I started off really enjoying "The Guild" in its early season.  Then I started to cautiously enjoy the show in later seasons.  I knew that she was getting more popularity and it would only be a matter of time before she ends up getting on my nerves just a bit.

I tried watching a few of "Co-Op" shows where she plays old videos game with her brother, and I just couldn't get into it.  She seemed kind of snooty.  And I'm kinda just left with the feeling that, at this point, she's riding on the popularity geekdom and retro gaming.  That's not to descredit her as a retro gamer though.  I know she's the real deal in that respect.

I feel the same,Jamie. The scene didn't need to be there. It could have been substituted with any other scene showing Kirk and Carol interacting and it would have been fine. However, the scene was so "hyped" as a bad thing that when I finally saw it I was like "Oh,Carol is briefly in her panties. Wow,this is what got people so mad??" I was really shocked at the intensity of anger over such a mild pg-13 moment. It's not as if we saw KIrk bend Carol over a desk and go to town!

I likewise concur Felicia day has reached a point where I can't relate to her as much. I admit,she played off being the "cute yet awkward nerd" well enough I bought it for awhile. But as pretty as she is and well off as she is it's difficult for me to buy the fact she was picked on in school and "very shy'. Anytime a vocal youtube personality says "I was SO socially inept back in the day!" I roll my eyes. I'd love to ask them "Then why are you so calmly composed all the time with MILLIONS of people watching you?" Yeah,people can change but the "humble origins card" seems to be something every celebrity puts on the table. It loses its' luster after the millionth usage!

However,I still love what Felicia does 80% of the time! I just hope she's not going to flow with any position that's "popular" at the moment just to keep her fan ratings up. I mean it's possible to disagree with other feminists and other media personalities while still being a media personality and a feminist. Not everyone has to have a "hive mind" about every issue!

I just read her blog and found it extremely tame and extremely non-confrontational.  Just because she's famous doesn't mean she can't voice her opinion on the interenet like everyone else, and I happen to agree with her.  I can see why some nice people get offended at the way some confrontational feminists act, but I don't see that blog as an example of that at all.

I also agree with most of the posts here about the Carol scene.  Personally, I dont' mind it but found it kind of pointless.  But did that blog even mention it at all? It referes to the fact that her character's most important attribute seems to be that she is attractive, but as far as I could tell it didn't focus on that scene at all. (Of course, I might have missed it)

I'm not saying Felicia can't voice her opinion. Nor am I saying you cannot agree with her. Most times I agree with Felicia too. This is just one case where I did not.

  I agree the scene was unnecessary. On the same flip of the coin,people really got upset over basically nothing. This scene in question didn't even lead up to some romanticized & idealized softcore sex yet it was the biggest controversy for awhile.

 As for Carol she defied her war-mongering father and disarmed a warhead thus saving Bones's life. I noticed that more than the bra and panties moment. Sure,she wasn't much help "fighting" Kahn but what can we expect? She's a scientist not a soldier. Heck,even Kirk got his ass kicked by Kahn.

Well, that's just her opinion, I suppose. Even if she did complain about the female characters in that movie, it doesn't really make any difference in the grand scheme of things. I can only thank her for not being another Sarkesian!

Felicia is still a far cry away from being remotely like Sarkeesian. Thank the divine for small miracles!

I actually like most of the stuff she does. I liked her in Eureka especially. Even the silly dlc quest in Dragon Age 2 I didn't mind. It was really weird seeing her as an elf, though. lol

Eureka was a good show. It's a shame she came in as new character when the show was already having some problems. I thought Holly's relationship with Fargo was really sweet. Don't get me wrong,Fargo was still awkward,analytical, and nerdy but it was good to see despite not being the best with women he was still capable of love and empathy. Without Holly I doubt we would have gotten to see that side of him. Wheaton's performance as Fargo's rival Parish wasn't too shabby either. lol. Their fights were always hillarious! The arch where they brought Holly back to life yet she had complications was perhaps the deepest arch in the whole series. It had the same emotional punch as when Stark died.

If you think about the Original Star Trek series, Into the Darkness really adds a lot of confident and strong females. Yes none of them pilot a starship and the men are still in all the leadership positions, but this is the early days of Starfleet. The movie updates the sexual politics of the sixties to match today's world, but some say it's not enough. Well, everyone wants to be Kirk, even the women, because he's in a position of power. Fine, be that way. But being in a position of power isn't everything. I would be very disappointed to see women start playing the roles of men and acting in exactly the same way in media. I hope women bring something new, some unique perspective like what they tried with Voyager before 6 of 9 brought it right back to eye candy for males. I'm tired of brotastic, power trip heroes full of braggadacio. I say, flush 'em down the toilet no matter who plays them.

I think Ripley from Alien/Aliens is still one of the best female leads. She's strong but still a woman unlike Vasquez who's clearly just trying to have the biggest balls. 

I rather women bring something new too. Having females act more like men isn't truly an answer to gender equality. As much as I love Joss Whedon I think he falls into that trap sometimes. Actually, his women still act like women. The problem is their worth suddenly becomes defined by how much they can physically beat up their enemies. "Strength and combat prowess" are not the only admirable traits that put women on an equal playing field with men.

Don't get me wrong. I love ass-kickers like Ripley,River,Buffy,Faith, and Starbuck but I do not think that's the only mold female protagonists should aspire to be like.

He did a good job with Cabin in the Woods. The female lead in that was great. 

Whedon does a good job with most things! I agree with you about Cabin in the woods. Additionally I was huge into Buffy,Angel,and Firefly. "The Avengers" was great as a super hero film but I wouldn't call it Whedon's very best.

I agree with that.

He had a great run writing X-men comics for awhile! Sadly I haven't gotten around to seeing Doll House with Eliza Dusku.

I disagree that Into Darkness is a remake of Wrath of Khan. 1) This is the first time Kirk & Co. are meeting Khan so you don't have the revenge angle. 2) Other elements from WoK are missing, such as the recognizing of old age on Kirk's part. One of the best moments from WoK is the one where Kirk realizes a) he's an aging lothario and b) not only does he have a son, but the son hates his guts.

I must have said this before in a post of mine but it boggles my mind while some people were so bothered by the few seconds of the lovely Alice Eve in undies but didn't mind that a good portion of San Fran was destroyed by the starship Khan was piloting. It makes me wonder if Day complained about the scene in the previous film where Uhura, Kirk and green-skinned Rachel Nichols were all in undies or an early scene in ID where Kirk is in bed with two alien women.

The film is busy with so much that many supporting characters get little to do with, including Alice Eve's Marcus. She's there, I suspect, to lay down a foundation for a relationship that'll pay off in later films (at this point, Kirk hasn't had anything approaching a love interest). So I don't buy that Eve was exploited.

I enjoy Felicia Day's Youtube channel but it doesn't surprise me that her opinions on the film is such. To each his/her own.

It's not a complete remake of Wrath of Kahn but even the ending where Kirk's noble act to save the crew is almost identicle to Spock doing roughly the same thing in the earlier film. I guess it's just difficult for me not to notice the parallels,avid! lol.

But yeah, the movie moved fast and heavy. With Carol I agree that she was there to lay the groundwork for future development. It's a shame we did not see more of her but what I "did" see of her I liked. (Including her cleverness she used to get on board the enterprise) I'd say standing up to her father and saving Bones life were both worthy achievements. She seems like the type of person who will stand by her convictions.

The movie is so very different from Wrath of Khan except for a few points like in the sacrifice scene. In watching the new one, and I'm a huge fan of the original and have seen it many times, I didn't even think about the original hardly at all. They did a great job at making the story seem very different. I loved it.

I loved it too! Maybe too much on account Felicia's opinion shouldn't have really made me nerd-rage in the first place. lol. For some reason I still saw it as a "remake" to a degree. But perhaps "homage" or "prequel" is more accurate!

I agree that the film echoes events like that one in Wrath of Khan (as well as a lot of things in the Star Trek universe) but it changes the context which makes a lot of difference. When you think about it, Carol Marcus had a lot more to do than Chekov.

Yeah, I noticed Chekov didn't get much time either. Heck, even Scotty and Bones got a chance to shine here and there. Regardless, I'm sure Chekov will become more prominient in future movies. As for Carol? She proved she could hold her own and even got to do a few heroic things to boot. I personally got to admire Alice Eve's portrayal of her and the brief underwear scene didn't lessen that one iota.

Though I personally think the Carol in her underwear scene was unnecessary, it didn't take away from the character.  I blame the director for that bullshit.  I think the same way about the T&A shots in the Transformers movies.  Those scenes aren't necessary.  It's a shame they are made at all.  It annoys me because I would like to enjoy these movies with my children but I can't because Hollywood felt the need to force in sexual content when none is needed or wanted.  As if the story couldn't stand on it's own, so to "get more asses in the seats" they put in a couple minutes of content that has little or nothing to do with the story just so they can.  They could of easily did that scene without showing her half naked, maybe show that Kirk was watching & enjoying the view, and it would of been funnier.  As for Uhura, I didn't think anything was wrong with her.  I thought she was great too.  I was surprisingly pleased with the movie.  Looking forward to the next one.  Hopefully no bullshit scenes forced in. 

The scene wasn't necessary but in this case I don't even think it would be damaging to children either,James. Heck, there were kids in the theatre when I went to see it with my friend and none of them hooted and hollered when seeing Carol in her undies. I think to most people the scene in question did not even stand out much. It was very brief in passing.

As for Uhura,we're agreed. I think she is a strong,quick thinking, and brave protagonist and there was much more to her than simply being there to humanize Spock. (A role shared with Kirk who also humanizes Spock)

That's just it.  The scene was brief, so why was it even there?  The rest of the movie wasn't like that.  I felt it was out of place and it wasn't even original.  I'm all for t&a when it's where it's suppose to be.  I love watching "exploitation" movies.  Scenes of women changing in & out of clothes is rampant in those movies, so I have no problem with it.  

If I did watch this movie with my kids, I know my oldest (9) would feel uncomfortable and leave the room.  I've seen him leave the room on a movie and not return for fear of more sexual scenes.  I don't know where he got this from (my other kids aren't like that), but I'm not going to make him watch a film he doesn't want to watch.  My son likes to watch action sci-fi movies but when Hollywood puts in scenes like that, just to do it, then what is he left to watch.  The first time I saw Transformers was with my son.  When the scene came in with Fox sweating under the hood, he left the room.  He lost complete interest in the movie just because of that one scene.  The dude likes Transformers.  I felt bad because, as his father, it was like I tried to introduce porn to my child (speaking from his reaction to the scene).   I got him to try again with the 2nd film and assuming you also saw it, we didn't make it far into that one.   I have a feeling my sex talk with him is going to be some to remember.  

I admit I never had a friend "scared" of light fan-service scenes. lol. I do know I personally have trouble watching certain horror films with rape and torture. Actually when I was a child I thought I was dying just because skin on my hand was pealing. In a way I was right. Those skin cells were dead. But I took that to a very scary place! My point? Kids are "odd" sometimes. Ironically that's rather "normal".

I think that the underwear scene was only partially unneccesary. Watching it again, it sort of gives a bit of characterization to the character, because the way she says, "turn around, now" sort of shows her commanding nature and if anything, further proves the fact that she has a strong female role. I think that went way over people's heads though because the whole thing that "OMG she's nude" overshadowed that. I agree though that if it wasn't there nothing really would have been changed. 

You have a good point. The scene contrasted Kirk's childish behavior with Carol's more mature and no nonsense personality. Based on their relationship I think that was important to touch upon. Could it have been done differently? Sure! Do I still think people flipped out too much over a bra and panties moment? Yup!

I agree. She faces him with no shame or fear. She's confident. She's like "yeah, I'm a woman, what of it. Now turn around."

Yeah,we can file this under "People see what they want to see". I thought even in the act of undressing Carol portrayed an aura of stoic dignified assertiveness. It's not as if she was giggling and shaking her ass at Kirk. (Of course women shouldn't be stigmatized for being flirtatous and promiscous either!)

Man... I don't know crap about Star Trek or Felicia Day lol. I tried to watch the original series on netflix, but lost interest in it. I had heard this movie was good though. Would you recommend it?

I would recommend both of the new Star trek films,Aaron. Even if you have no knowledge of trek trivia the movies can still be enjoyable! As for Felicia? She's alright! Usually I like her work but I just so happen to disagree with her here.

Man, I really need to see Into Darkness. Can't say much if I hadn't seen the movie.

It's worth a watch,Alejandro! Probably one of my favorite movies of the year and I'm saying that even being an old Trekkie.

I need to see this movie to fully understand the context of the two female charcters and asto why the scenes they are in are of contention.

Personally for me I don't care to see a woman dress down to her undergarments. I didn't like seeing it in the first movie with Uhura doing it. To me it just didn't really serve no purpose for character development if only to help justify the setting being a bed room where usually people get changed. I liked it in the past when they left to a different room to change reguardless if the person that's there is comforatable seeing them in their unmentionables. But that's the first movie, don't know anything about the second undressing moment.

I'm really behind on things I see...