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Alter-Khan… Star Trek Into Darkness
I’ve seen Star Trek Into Darkness.
Overall I enjoyed it. Were there things I would have done differently? Sure. Oh there’s no way to talk about this movie justly without spoilers.
Drones
FYI, I’m totally glad the ‘message’ got done with by the time Kirk reached the command chair and was only vaguely hinted at later on. Shooting long-range missiles filled with people IS immoral. There is no real world equivalent to this. Mind you this story was probably thought up while GWB was still president, I’m fairly sure Obama doesn’t mind throwing drones at terrorists either… just saying.
Summer Blockbuster
In all the talk about this movie among Trek fans, many of the hardcore fans seem to be forgetting that this is supposed to be a Summer blockbuster and not a dissertation or morality play. – Those don’t fill theater seats. You are just going to have to get over it.
There are two plot holes which I few lines of dialogue would have fixed. Why did they need Khan’s blood to save Kirk when they had 72 other Augments? Actually the novel tackles this. McCoy more or less says: “I can’t be sure the others physiology works the same and there’s no time to find out – Its Khan or nothing.” Works for me. But it should have been in the movie.
And the other one. Why didn’t Khan wake up his crew when he had access to them to place them on photon torpedoes? The novel kind of implies that waking procedure was complicated, but I got nothing.
Neither of these plot holes ruined the film for me. And lets face, Trek’s done worse.
Pavel Chekov
I don’t know if this was done on purpose, or if its just how it worked out. Did you notice that Pavel was ‘below decks’ and did not once come in contact with Khan? Well see in the main universe he was not even on the show in the first season and years later Khan claimed to recall his face. I think this is a setup for umm the third movie… Can’t you see it? Khan gets defrosted again and meets Pavel and then cane say ironically “I never forget a face….”
Caitans
Must see more catgirls. They were adorable.
Not Space Seed Redux
I keep reading from (disgruntled) Trekkies how this is a rehash of Space Seed. Wait what? The plot is completely not related to that episode. We didn’t even get to see the SS Botany Bay which I found to be a let down. Though not to worry, Robert Orci said on twitter that in the fall IDW Publishing will have a four issue ‘John Harrison’ comic, which probably will end up being this universe’s version of Space Seed.
Spock Prime
I was all prepared to groan, yet instead I smiled and chuckled at the “Mister Spock” and “Mister Spock” line. Though if anyone didn’t see the first movie, this cameo might have left them confused. Look it wasn’t really needed, though I kind of get why they have Leonard Nimoy make an appearance, he’s the godfather of Star Trek and part of what let them carry the first movie off was his blessing. These writers will never kill off Ambassador Spock on or off-screen, even though having him exist in the alternate reality it fraught with problems. The symbolism of that would not go well – Just ask Ronald D. Moore about killing James T. Kirk…
Khaaaaaannnnnnnnnn!
Gonna say something subversive here. Spock’s screaming Khan‘s name had better context then it did in the main universe when Kirk did it. Kirk screamed Khan in frustration, Spock did it anger at the loss of his friend – This is a slightly more human Spock who has been forced to come to terms with who he is much earlier. Amway, I found it a tad more chilling.
The Khan Haters…
Yeah folks, don’t think they’re done using Khan Noonien Singh, he’s going to play some role in the third movie, either big or small.
A More Fully Realized Khan Noonien Singh?
Not a Moby-Dick quote in sight. I kept waiting for it, but none. The funny thing, much of what Trek fans consider original, is in fact rehashed plot points or dialogue from ‘classic’ literature. For all these writers faults (real or imagined) they’ve yet to fall back on the Trek tradition of using ‘classic books’ as a crutch. Where they do borrow, they do it within the context of Trek’s mythology.
One of my favorite scenes was Kirk punching Khan and he just stands there and takes it like it was nothing. These Augments are very much like my Morninstars. In any event I loved Benedict Cumberbatch as Khan, rather than just alluding to what he is we actually got to see it be a threat. That is both a product of our times and the ability to make better FX.
Admiral Marcus
Khan might have been a threat, but Admiral Marcus is the actual bad guy of this movie. Which fits with a long line of corrupt StarFleet admirals.
What If Khan Was Telling The Truth?
Funny thing, in Space Seed, its stated outright, as tyrants go, Khan Noonien Singh was a nice guy. No genocide under his rule. As we know records from the Eugenics Wars are pretty fragmented. What if Khan and his brethren were created to be bringers of peace and ‘lesser humans’ simply attacked what they feared? There’s a whole lot of unexplored gray area here. Me thinks Spock Prime put his own spin on this. He of course has personal reasons for doing so. Khan did help kill him the main time line.
Countdown To Darkness
So because of the secrecy involved, the prequel comic book is next to useless. Or was there some subplot like in the first movie that got cut? I noticed a whole chunk of Khan’s dialogue which happened in the trailers was no place to be found in the movie itself. Anyway I think the ‘John Harrison comic’ is going to end up what Countdown to Darkness should have been, a setup for Khan’s motives.
Four Stars
I give this movie four stars. It’s now my second favorite Trek movie right after Wrath of Khan and probably ranks slightly above The Undiscovered Country. Of course, I like Star Trek V...
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Khan Noonien Singh (alternate reality)
Oh look, Memory Alpha has also lifted its embargo on the movie.
This is Khan Noonien Singh‘s bio from the alternate reality.
Did they screw up the date of the Eugenics Wars again? I don’t think they actually outright mention the wars, just make a mention of 300 years in cryosleep and that he committed genocide against ‘lower humans’.
If I’m grasping the time line correct, Admiral Marcus woke Khan while Kirk was still in the Academy. He’s supposed to have been defrosted over a year ago and the move takes place about six months after the last film. This I might of done different and woken him far earlier, but that’s just me.
Did I mention its nice to be able to call Khan, Khan?
I like how Kirk’s greatest foe is now part of the StarFleet.
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Star Trek Into Darkness: “I allowed it…” Clip
‘I can give you 72 and they are on board your ship, they have been all along.’
– John Harrison/Khan
So what are these 72… Err, things which John Harrison/Khan says supports his case? That number has a very familiar ring to it. As I remember from Space Seed, Spock remarking about 72 Napoleons…
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Khaaaaaaaaaaaan! I Told You So…
Khaaaaaaan! I told you so…
Benedict Cumberbatch is Khan Noonien Singh, who was recruited by StarFleet/The Federation/Section 31 to deal with the looming Klingon threat.
Admiral Marcus is in on it and the big black Dreadnaught belongs to him. StarFleet is using Khan‘s people against him.
The summery I read was not super detailed and I’m holding back who lives and who dies. I’ll update this post as I gather more plot specifics.
Right Spock-2 Calls Spock-Prime and Spock-Prime tells him: “I didn’t want to tell you too much about your futures, but Khan is a real evil guy.” That’s not the wording for sure, but the spirit of it. And I’m sure there’s a bunch of nuance I’m don’t have.
OK, so I think its safe to say that this photo shows Admiral Marcus and Khan leaving the SS Botany Bay and Admiral Marcus is the big guy on the left with Khan to his right in the white ‘sleeper outfit’.
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Star Trek ITD: Dreadnaught-class
That’s… A BIG SHIP!
I wonder who built her? Interesting that John Harrison seems to be able to easily take command. Presumably those guys wearing the blue/black uniforms (you need to look close at pictures to notice them) are ‘his crew’.
Sort of has a Galaxy-class silhouette.
Kind of related, you know what always bugs me about Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan? Kirk and Khan are never in the same space together. For that matter William Shatner and Ricardo Montalban did not even get to act against one another.
Quite an illusion, an editing room can turn out.
If John Harrison is indeed Khan – I think this movie will make up for that lack of a face-to-face.
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Star Trek ITD: So, Who’s Controlling The Dreadnaught?
Bridge of the Dreadnaught?
OK over at Trekmovie.com there is a rundown of two sequences. One of them is the space jump, which involves Kirk and John Harrison trying to get over to an unnamed Dreadnaught-Class starship. That’s right, they’re working together.
Kirk says something to John Harrison about how he’d (Harrison) would “Do anything for his crew”. At least, that’s how I understood it. And Harrison remarks that he (Kirk) “cannot even assure the safety of his own crew”.
So, who’s controlling the Dreadnaught?
What if Harrison is not the only bad guy? What if John Harrison/Khan turns out to not be the real heavy in the film?
Is it Admiral Marcus? Peter Weller quipped once that his character “Has his own ship”. We know in Star Trek, admirals tend to end up as bad apples…
Is Robert April in command of the Dreadnaught? Ah that might explain and reconcile a number of spoilers. You know April’s gatling gun and a very strange remark about how this movie is only going to be “the first part of what they want to do with Khan” by the same guys who had the walk through of Bad Robot Productions.
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