If they planed this film to be the start of entire new series of stories that revolve around these characters, Kirk should not have received command of the Enterprise until the 3rd film in the series. Making him a full Captain in command of the flagship at this point is rushing things too much. That's like making Luke a full blown Jedi Master at the end of "A New Hope". Captain Pike was a great character, and the actor had a strong respect factor. I'll miss him in the next film.