James Bond Needs a 1911-A1

People are always arguing over what the next gun Bond ought to carry, often applying real-life logic to support their opinion. But factually speaking, Bond is a fictional character in a fictional universe where such logic need not apply, and in most films Bond really doesn't do all that much shooting anyway because James Bond is a Spy, and Spies are supposed to be sneaky, ergo it makes no sense for Bond to carry a big gun.

The Walther PPK makes sense for Bond because it's small, easily concealed, and looks good on camera. If Bond ends up in a gunfight and needs something more, then he generally ends up picking up an enemies weapon then using that.

There's no valid reason to replace Bond's sidearm. Folks can argue all they want that the PPK is outdated and out of style, but in many ways, so is everything else in 007 films, and do we really want that to change? Does anyone here want to see the Bond films drop the iconic theme because Big Band Swing music is long out of style in favor of more modern music? Does anyone want to see Bond abandon his suit, tie, and dress shoes in favor of more modern attire? Does anyone want to see a Bond film which opens with him attending a mandatory sensitivity class after being reported by Money Penny for sexual misconduct because his casual flirting made her feel uncomfortable?

Honestly, if you modernize Bond's carry gun, then you have to modernize everything else as well, and nobody wants that.
 
Forte S+W said:
People are always arguing over what the next gun Bond ought to carry, often applying real-life logic to support their opinion. But factually speaking, Bond is a fictional character in a fictional universe where such logic need not apply, and in most films Bond really doesn't do all that much shooting anyway because James Bond is a Spy, and Spies are supposed to be sneaky, ergo it makes no sense for Bond to carry a big gun.

The Walther PPK makes sense for Bond because it's small, easily concealed, and looks good on camera. If Bond ends up in a gunfight and needs something more, then he generally ends up picking up an enemies weapon then using that.

There's no valid reason to replace Bond's sidearm. Folks can argue all they want that the PPK is outdated and out of style, but in many ways, so is everything else in 007 films, and do we really want that to change? Does anyone here want to see the Bond films drop the iconic theme because Big Band Swing music is long out of style in favor of more modern music? Does anyone want to see Bond abandon his suit, tie, and dress shoes in favor of more modern attire? Does anyone want to see a Bond film which opens with him attending a mandatory sensitivity class after being reported by Money Penny for sexual misconduct because his casual flirting made her feel uncomfortable?

Honestly, if you modernize Bond's carry gun, then you have to modernize everything else as well, and nobody wants that.
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That’s called the slippery slope fallacy. We can see it’s a fallacy because they have changed Bond’s pistol to the P99 and then back again, and I don’t remember the sensitivity class in the movies (maybe it’s in the deleted scenes).


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Do I really need to point out that such was a deliberately extreme and exaggerated example of the logical progression of the modernization of the Bond franchise? No, I don't, much like how when attempting to make a convincing counter-argument one really shouldn't resort to feigning ignorance of such obvious nuances for lack of anything better in order to support their stance.
 
I don’t need to feign ignorance. What you wrote originally matches up with real exaggerated claims and forms of argument that I see pretty often online. It came across as completely serious to me, especially with that last line separated from the others that argues modernization of one thing would require modernization of all (which was why I mentioned the slippery slope fallacy).


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JohnMoses said:
One of the best things about being a fictional character is that it does not matter the caliber or action type of your weapon. If the script says the 25 Berretta (or 22 AR7) takes out the helicopter, it will do the job.
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Exactly. When I was a youngster, and saw "From Russia with Love" for the very first time, that take down "sniper rifle" was one of the coolest things I'd ever seen. It didn't matter to me that it was just an AR-7 survival rifle in 22 LR, a fact that I didn't learn for years, it was just James Bond COOL. I think there was even a toy version of it on the market.

Oh. One other thing. The rifle didn't take down the helicopter. The passenger was tossing grenades at Bond. As the chopper hovered overhead, Bond hit the passenger, causing him to drop the grenade in his hand, onto the floor of the chopper. THAT took down the chopper.

I'm such a geek.

And Daniela Bianchi was the best "Bond Girl" ever. WOW.
 
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Yes, as I once heard William Shatner tell a fan at a convention
"Those are made up stories, folks."
The M1911 is too "American" for a British character. We would look askance at an American
character who carried a Webley. Or a Beretta.
 
Unfortunately, Bond’s gun has to satisfy some criteria that have nothing to do with utility. It has to have cache, but still look deadly and not like the pistol version of a Gucci purse. It has to be relatively expensive, so that an “Everyman” isn’t carrying one. It also has to have a cool name that rolls off the tongue. Q explains the virtues of the PPK, but not the Glock 19MOS. And, it has to have a trigger for menacing hammer cocking scenes. No Glock cocking permitted. Sorry guys, these are the rules, even if they don’t make a lot of sense.
 
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