10 Star Trek Questions That Always Confused You

9. Why Was The Kelvin Enterprise Larger Than A Galaxy-Class Starship?

Star Trek 2009 Enterprise Kelvin
Paramount Pictures

One of the biggest criticisms that Star Trek 2009 received was that it sacrificed nuance for spectacle. While time has been slightly kinder on the film as a whole, there are still several questions that remain. Why, for example, is the Constitution-class Enterprise so large? In canon, the original Enterprise was a fraction of the size of Picard's Enterprise-D, however, the Kelvin ship is both longer and almost as powerful.

The arrival of the Narada, Nero's mining ship from the Prime Universe, changed everything for Starfleet. The USS Kelvin encountered the ship as it arrived, suffering heavy losses in mere moments. Even the suicide run that George Kirk set the ship on didn't destroy the more advanced vessel.

Therefore, back at Utopia Planitia, plans for the fleet were suddenly thrown into disarray. The rollout of new classes of vessels were switched up, with the new Constitution-class being one of the biggest changes. What had originally been designed as purely a vessel of exploration was now armed to the teeth. Quite aside from this, the ship swelled to encompass the new technology that was rushed into production. The final product was evocative of its Prime Universe counterpart, though it was significantly beefed up to deal with the new threats that this galaxy faced.

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Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"