Bones (Karl Urban) takes Kirk (Chris Pine) and injects him with a “vaccine” so he would have to stay with Bones. Therefore, he takes “Mr. Kirk aboard” so Kirk will be on the ship he is destined to captain. Without this deception, Kirk may never have become captain of the Enterprise.
When the Federation sends their ships to help the Vulcans, Kirk figures out what is really going on. He believes “Vulcan is not expecting a natural disaster. It is being attacked by Romulans.” The illusion was set to trap Federation ships.
While we are talking about the Romulan ship, I argue it resembles an octopus or squid. It looks like it has tentacles coming out of it. The symbolism for an octopus include magic, mysteries, illusion, and unpredictability. These symbols support Nero’s (Eric Bana) strategy in taking down the Federation. He uses tricks to trap and destroy space ships and planets.
After Spock’s (Zachary Quinto) loses his mother and his home planet, Kirk must provoke him to anger in order to gain control of the ship. He uses the illusion of picking a fight so Spock will react and “relinquish [his] command based on the fact that [he] has been emotionally compromised”.
Even though Kirk seems to enjoy getting his face beat in by every available character, I would not say he went to the Romulan ship looking for a fight. However, when faced with a fight, he uses it to his advantage. When the mean bad guy holds him up in the air to choke him, Kirk takes advantage of the situation and takes the “gun”.
Deception and illusion are key players in this film. Characters use this as a tool to take advantage of their enemies or even protect their friends. Whether it was a well thought-out plan or a spur of the moment idea, illusions and distractions work in regards to getting a character what they want.
While many articles on the Internet do not address this movie specifically, they do offer analysis of the cannon of Star Trek. One major discussion is the use of emotion and reason in both the TV show and the film.
And some cool thoughts for any Trekkie to enjoy.
Rest in peace Spock. You did “live long” and I hope you think you did “prosper”.
Readers, I will see you next week for another Second Thursday Sequel!!! Have a wonderful week.