Date: 23 May 2014 01:21 Title: Duty Bound
well, that was infinitely better than what I could weave together involving Vulcans. The conflict between family members a tricky one, more-so when involving the decision such as this. A top-notch piece.
Author's Response:
Thank you for the review. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I really wanted to try writing this one, I just wasn't sure if I could cram enough Vulcan cluture into it,and still make the word count. I'm glad it turned out the way it did.
Date: 20 May 2014 07:23 Title: Duty Bound
I love how "LLaP" can be said with such...venom. Not sure if that's how you wrote it, but I could certainly read it that way after her previous outburst. And awesome job with her brother's very Enterprise-like Vulcan mentality. Enterprise had the Vulcan's still very insular, very much against the humans and their emotions. TOS started to take them out of that, and by TNG it seemed to be gone. Given that this is the Connie herself, it would be a bit earlier than TOS, and it fits very well. Good job
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. You're right Soval (during the first 2 seaons of Enterprise) is very much the inspiration for Stavek. It was the only way that I felt the exchange would've worked, and it came together nicely.
Date: 20 May 2014 06:42 Title: Duty Bound
Nice give and take here. I imagine this must be similar to the exchange between Spock and Sarek, when the latter became aware of his son's decision to join Starfleet and serve on a ship full of humans as opposed to accepting a posting on the Intrepid. Nice look at Vulcan culture, and the pros and cons to it. And I always found it so amusing that the race who invented the concept of IDIC tended not to adhere to that philosophy at all.
Author's Response:
Thank you for the review. Based on what happened on Enterprise, I figure Vulcan is still trying to find it's identity which is why T'Vana is embracing the IDIC philosophy while Stavek subscribes to the ways before the Kir'Shara had been found by Archer. There was a line I hated to cut, but had to in order to get the word count right. I'm still going to use it in a future story.
Date: 20 May 2014 03:45 Title: Duty Bound
Ooooooo. This is an interesting build to the story. Loving the exchange between these two Vulcans. It will be interesting to see what happens with T'Vana from here.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I'm glad this exchange worked.
Date: 20 May 2014 03:19 Title: Duty Bound
Oh, those pesky brothers. Always thinking they know better than their sisters do. Seriously, I love the back and forth, and that she stood up for herself and stuck by her decision.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I was trying not to make their conversation sound Sorkin-esque while at the same time making sure that it fit within the confines of Star Trek, I had just watched The West Wing right before I wrote this, I think it helped.
Date: 19 May 2014 23:17 Title: Duty Bound
An interesting window on contrasting logic of two Vulcans. Well done.
Author's Response:
Thank you for the review. My concern was that the logic was too extreme, and I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Date: 19 May 2014 20:20 Title: Duty Bound
Yes, the Vulcans. Always worried about becoming "too emotional" around Humans. This has played out a lot of times with them and I'm glad to see T'Vana isn't going to be swayed by the supposed logic of the situation. Well done with the fighting here, quite on point.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. Their fight was something I had in my head and came out when I put my fingers to the keyboard. It worked otu well I think.
Date: 19 May 2014 19:22 Title: Duty Bound
Huh. I like T'Vana. Could something else be going on with her? Great piece you've got here Mick.
Thanks for sharing.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I"m glad you like T'Vana, I am enjoying writing for her.
Date: 19 May 2014 18:49 Title: Duty Bound
My goodness, that's a belter. What a reveal about T'Vana and what a painful time she is enduring too. There's a hope that a return to the Constitution will serve to heal her but a concern it may not. Given that there seems to be some sort of role she played in Marshall senior's death, T'Vana could be taking on a lot. Seems the past will catch up. Boys, terrific to see this kind of backstory and to see that there's a few connections between the characters that is going to set up a lot of cool dynamics. Very, very interesting read.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I'm glad the dynamics worked. I intended this to provide some sort of backstory to help the characters get where I would like them to go. I'm glad it worked and that you enjoyed it.
Date: 19 May 2014 16:45 Title: Duty Bound
I can't blame her for wanting to return. Her brother being overbearing like that would be enough to drive anyone, even someone not traumatized, back out into the broader universe!
Author's Response:
Thank you for the review. I've had my own experiences with overbearing former colleagues, and that was part of my inspiration for the events here.
Date: 19 May 2014 15:28 Title: Duty Bound
This was an interesting look into Vulcan family dynamics. Stavek's logic seems true to Vulcan form. Without knowing much about your story universe, I wonder at T'Vana's backstory. Seems she has been through a lot in a relatively short amount of time and it is changing her, but maybe she doesn't mind it. Maybe she's being set free. I really liked this. Lots of food for thought.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I am still developing the universe in which these characters inhabit. I believe in having backstory for every character so that I know where they came from to help them get to where I'd like them to go. I will say you are right about a few things that haven't been revealed yet.
Date: 19 May 2014 15:07 Title: Duty Bound
A nice little scene here with lots of tension. Stavek's last shot about her losing the captain like she lost her father seems to be quite a low blow, but T'Vana handled it well. Good dialogue and a nice sense of the context threaded throughout. Well done.
Author's Response:
Thanks for the review. I'm glad the dialogue worked, it was one area of concern for me.
Date: 19 May 2014 15:06 Title: Duty Bound
Oh, this is a sticky point between them. And to know that T'Vana was, at least for a while, seen as possibly culpable in the elder Marshall's death is intriguing. This is a great exploration of Vulcans, everything from meditation to a bit of unsettled business to their loyalties.
Author's Response:
Thank you for the review, Stavek is very much like the Vulcans from the first two seasons of Enterprise. I wanted to show as much of the Vulcan culture as possible, and just thought it out in my head how to do that. It worked out very well.