4. The Destruction Of The Enterprise NCC-1701
While Spocks death was a pivotal moment, for me, the great draw dropping moment in the Kirk films was the destruction of the Enterprise itself in The Search For Spock. The poor ship had taken a pounding in
The Wrath Of Khan and limps back to Earth, still far from full strength. From the moment Kirk and the command staff steal the damaged Enterprise from space dock, the film enters a thrilling middle act with the confrontation with the Klingons at the Genesis planet. A tense stand off with the Bird of Prey. The death of David, Kirks son and then one of the best moments in Star Treks film history as Kirk sets his beloved ship to self destruction, tricking the Klingons into boarding the vessel and escaping to the planet in time to watch the burning wreck plummet towards the surface. It a moment you cant quite believe it happening. As the frenzied strings of the orchestra play over the Klingons marching through the abandoned, red-lit corridors of the Enterprise, you realise there is no turning back. And then the bridge is destroyed; the saucer begins to burn up, the name Enterprise in flames and it explodes. A devastating, draw-dropping moment for the entire Star Trek franchise