5 Cons
5. What The Heck Were They Thinking?
The big risk for the filmmakers in bringing back Khan: how will his return be viewed by the Trekker faithful? After all, of the films featuring the original crew, The Wrath of Khan is not only a fan favorite but arguably the best of the original Star Trek films. It rescued the franchise from the immobility of Star Trek: The Motion Picture and made a geek hero out of its director, Nicholas Meyer. Now Abrams has gone and reinvented a character who has stood unwavering as the best of all the Star Trek movie villains. That move was bound to elicit comparisons, and threatened to divide the Trek faithful, which to a certain extent, it did. There are a number of die-hard Trekkers out there who have been vocal about J.J. Abrams bringing Khan back into the picture. The secretive nature of the character and the reveal, midway through Darkness, has the unsettling makings of a cheap stunt. Mr. Beaks at aintitcool.com laments that Abrams fan service is the films undoing. One might argue, if you're going to make a Star Trek movie about Khan, then make it about Khan. The cloak and dagger was not necessary. And Khan in disguise as John Harrison, a Starfleet officer? Really?