Synopsis:

Requiem For Methuselah with less of the out-of-character Kirk.

Intentions:

This late season three entry is not considered the best amongst the fans. Apart from other plot holes, the biggest gripe is Kirk so quickly falling in love with Rayna, particularly at the expense of his dying crew in orbit. This edit attempts to cut back as much of Kirk's out-of-character behaviour, in an attempt to try and re-frame the story to that which better aligns with the captain we all know and love.

Change List:

Major cuts: * After Flint asks our heroes what pleasure they would like to partake in, chess, billiards, conversation... We cut immediately to McCoy following M4 into the lab. "Why not all three." from Kirk to Rayna, has been cut. * The middle section of the waltz has been removed. * When Kirk moves in to touch Rayna's shoulders in the lab, we cut straight to M4's hostile entrance, after which we end the act. * We cut from the lab to the exterior shot in Act III earlier, removing Rayna's touching of lips in confusion, since now this does not occur. *Flint and Kirk's banter about test of power/physical battle, and Flint calling Kirk childish. *Kirk's comments and anger regarding Flint's treatment of Rayna, are cut. As is Spock's suggestion to pay less attention to Rayna. *Kirk's line, "what hold does he have over her?" * When Rayna says goodbye to Kirk, he does not respond that he doesn't want to say goodbye. Instead, he goes straight to kissing Rayna. However, we cut to Flint after this, removing the huge embrace altogether. *Spock and McCoy's brief exchange in the lab, and Kirk's desparation for Rayna to come with him, are cut. Instead we cut straight to Spock picking up tricorder readings. As such, Kirk entering the lab, and McCoy saying Flint lied, are gone. *The end of Act Three cuts out Kirk's final reaction, and fades instead on another Rayna model. *Kirk becomes angry at one point during the conversation revealing Flint's immortality and Rayna's android status. This has been removed. *Kirk calling out Flint for using him, getting gushy and announcing he loves Rayna, has been cut. *Flint no longer cries "no" as he starts the fight with Kirk. *Kirk and Spock no longer have an exchange during the fight. Now, the fight is all on Flint's anger, not Kirk's. *The fight has also been significantly reduced. *Kirk's "come with me" and Flint's "stay" have been cut. *Spock's line "She could not bear to hurt either of you", has been cut. *"If only I could forget" is cut. *The episode ends after McCoy's love triangle comment, with Spock responding "indeed", taken from earlier in the scene. McCoy then exits the captain's cabin and we no longer have the invasive mind wipe. To reflect this change in dynamic, I use closing music from Mudd's Women and Charlie X.

Additional Notes:

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Other Sources:

Special Thanks:

Bionicbob and Dwight Fry for kindly previewing, particularly as the episode is Bionicbob's least favourite.