Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2011 July 8

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July 8

Big-headed bar alien in the only good/awesome Star Trek movie

I was looking at that alien in the recent Star Trek film. The dude in the bar between Uhorra (however you spell it) and Kirk. He reminded me a great deal of this actor from Die Hard. When I check the page for Davi though, I don't see him as having been in that film. So, who played the alien (face was obviously distorted by makeup) guy? Is the similarity just a coincidence? Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | Say Shalom! 17:37, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

It's Uhura. The character is apparently called "Long Face Bar Alien" according to the IMDb credits listing for the film. And I wouldn't be surprised if it was an homage though I don't know any connection that Davi has with the ST universe. The character of Morn (article? redirect?) is known to be an anagram of Norm and an homage to Norm Peterson from the series Cheers. Dismas|^(talk) 18:56, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Another one about the Star Trek film

How exactly did Nero figure that by blowing up Vulcan and Earth he could save Romulus from a natural event? Does the fact that he did that not ensure that his planet is in fact screwed? Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | Say Shalom! 18:09, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

I think the idea was that he was blowing them up as revenge for not saving his planet. And I guess not since he has the tool that spock was planning to use to save his planet in the first place, he could just use it himself when the time comes--Jac16888 ^Talk 18:38, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Hmmm, you know I hadn't thought of that last bit, even though it's kind of obvious now. xD Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | Say Shalom! 18:51, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

You have to be careful asking these kinds of questions in a film where the best way to escape a gravity well is to jettison your engine. Googlemeister (talk) 18:59, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Could Nero do anything about that, since he is apparently stuck in the past? And it doesn't matter anyway since Nero, the ship, and the Rambaldi device or whatever it is are all destroyed by the end of the movie. Also, are you implying with the above question that this is the only good Star Trek movie? Adam Bishop (talk) 20:19, 9 July 2011 (UTC)

I don't know if Vulcans live that long (or anything about their physiology except that they appear to be diesel beasts), but obviously his plans didn't originally include dying, just being a douche and blowing up Vulcan and Earth. Yep, and if you have a problem with that, you'll just have to accept me having a difference in opinion and taste on the subject of Star Trek films. :p Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | Say Shalom! 10:57, 10 July 2011 (UTC)

Yes, Vulcans and Romulans do live for a long time. Sarek was 203 when he died, although that was pretty old even for a Vulcan, and Spock was about 150 in the latest movie. And assuming Nero is about 40, and he goes back in time about 150 years, he would also be pushing it by the time the Romulan star explodes. Furthermore, if you think this is the best movie, I'll have to assume you're about 15, you've never seen any of the other ones, or you're insane :) Adam Bishop (talk) 11:46, 10 July 2011 (UTC)

He would possibly warn Romulus or take over the Empire and it would be handled later, so no worries on either count if things had worked out for him. Please review WP:NPA (the age thing). Nope, I'm 21 and I've seen one other which nearly put me to sleep. As I've said, people can have differences in opinion and taste. Sir William Matthew Flinders Petrie | Say Shalom! 12:49, 10 July 2011 (UTC)

gladitorial combat

Wasn't sure whether this should go into entertainment or humanities, but anyway here goes. Did the gladitorial combat of the Roman days include unarmed combat where the combatents were not intended to kill each other? Something like a precurser to modern boxing or WWE in one of the colleseums? Googlemeister (talk) 18:57, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

No on the unarmed, yes on the non-lethal. Most gladitorial combats were non-lethal. Gladiators were expensive to train, and many earned their freedom before dying. As far as unarmed combat went, that was not given the name "gladiatorial" because "gladiator" literally meant "sword-user". Greco-roman wrestling is an example of an unarmed combat sport that existed in the roman empire. Check the article for Gladiator for details about the profession. i kan reed (talk) 19:20, 8 July 2011 (UTC)

Just a side note on the sword, see gladius for more details. --Jayron32 19:53, 8 July 2011 (UTC)