Prognosticating "Star Trek Into Darkness"

Tonight, "Star Trek Into Darkness" opens at select theaters in the United States, with a general release at 12:01 AM on Thursday morning. I will be among the crowds in attendance... but before I go (or read the book), I wanted to share some prognostications on the film with you...

My hope for the villain...

I have avoided all the major spoilers (well, those centered around John Harrison, at any rate), so I have no idea which way to go... this time a year ago, I was fairly convinced that Benedict Cumberbatch's character was going to be Joaquin from "Space Seed" and not Khan. I still think that would make for a more compelling story, but, since I am avoiding spoiling myself, it either is or isn't him... and I won't know before I go in to see the film.

Now, just in terms of overall expectations... "Star Trek" (2009) was filled with plot holes and inexcusably horrible choices that made the movie very difficult to redeem on an intellectual level. It was a fun action movie, but that's about it. I was not sold on Kirk's ascent to command, the assembly of his crew, etc. However, they are together now, and I can now put that aside and enter "Star Trek Into Darkness" with the following viewpoint: Kirk is an inexperienced commander who has been given significant responsibilities... and here is how he deals with them. I don't have to think about the fact that he spent three years as a cadet and zero days as an officer... (at least I hope I don't!). I think a lot of pressure in that respect will be off, and I will be able to relax and enjoy it even more as both a popcorn flick and as a pop science fiction film - but I won't be evaluating it on any real intellectual level this time around.

And that is good, because the revived Star Trek is, essentially, a souped up video-game. It's fast paced, extremely engaging, and fun. Regardless of its flaws, it feels like a video game to me... one that probably would get played several times.

And so, tonight, I'll be going to see the film, with no particular hopes (other than to not see Khan) and with a proper mindset about what I am going to experience. 

We'll see  how effective J.J. and crew are this time out.

April 2013: "The Weight of Worlds"

The Ephrata Institute is an intellectual think tank at the outer fringes of the final frontier. Dedicated to the arts and sciences, the Institute seems an unlikely target for an invasion, but it proves easy pickings when the Crusade comes from beyond, determined to impose its harsh, unbending Truth on all the worlds of the Federation. Armed with weaponized gravity, the alien Crusaders will stop at nothing to rescue the universe from its myriad beliefs… even if it means warping the mind and soul of every sentient being they encounter.

Responding to an urgent distress signal, Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise soon find themselves in conflict with the Crusade, and facing individual challenges. When Kirk and Spock are transported to the Crusade's distant homeland to confront the source of the invasion, Sulu finds himself trapped behind enemy lines, while Lieutenant Uhura is faced with possibly the most difficult decisions of her career. 

As the Crusade sets its sights beyond Ephrata IV, it is up to the Enterprise and its besieged crew to keep freedom of thought from being crushed beneath the weight of worlds!

March 2013: "The Stuff of Dreams"

When the course of the Nexus becomes unpredictable, Starfleet sends a science mission to investigate... but the consequences go far beyond a simple inconvenience and offers the potential to serve as a destabilizing force among the Kinshaya.

March 2013: "Devil's Bargain"

Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise are sent to evacuate the Federation mining colony Vesbius, a frontier settlement that is on the brink of an extinction-level event, threatening the lives of all the colonists and the disruption of ore production vital to Starfleet. However, the colonists refuse to abandon this settlement, not wanting to leave their claims. It is after these irrational decisions that Spock suggests that perhaps an unexpected ally could aid the colony and help complete the mission....

July 2013: "A Choice of Futures"

A new nation has arisen from the ashes of the Romulan War: the United Federation of Planets, an unprecedented union of diverse species cooperating for the good of all. Admiral Jonathan Archer—the former captain of the Earth starship Enterprise, whose efforts made this union possible—envisions a vibrant Fed­eration promoting galactic peace and a multispecies Starfleet dedicated to exploring strange new worlds. Archer’s former crewmates, including Captain T’Pol of the U.S.S. Endeavour and Captain Malcolm Reed of the U.S.S. Pioneer, work with him to secure that bright future. Yet others within the Federation see its purpose as chiefly military, a united defense against a dangerous galaxy, while some of its neighbors view that military might with suspicion and fear. And getting the member nations, their space fleets, and even their technologies to work together as a unified whole is an ongoing challenge.

When a new threat emerges from a force so alien and hostile that negotiation seems impossible, a group of unaligned worlds asks Starfleet to come to its defense, and the Federation’s leaders seize the opportunity to build their reputation as an interstellar power. But Archer fears the conflict is building toward an unnec­essary war, potentially taking the young nation down a path it was never meant to follow. Archer and his allies strive to find a better solution...but old foes are working secretly to sabotage their efforts and ensure that the great experiment called the Federation comes to a quick and bloody end.

Review forthcoming...

August 2013: "From History's Shadow"

2268: Following their encounter with the mysterious Gary Seven in the twentieth century, the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise is startled by two intruders who have transported through space and time from Earth circa 1968. Incredibly, one of the infiltrators is a Vulcan, who asserts that he’s lived among Earth's population for over a decade. The other represents a little-known race, and reveals to Captain James T. Kirk that she has spent that last twenty years working to bring about humanity’s destruction. It is then that Gary Seven’s young protégé, Roberta Lincoln, arrives seeking Kirk’s help.... 

1947: In the wake of the infamous “Roswell Incident” involving a crashed alien craft and beings from another world, Captain James Wainwright finds himself recruited as one of the first members of Majestic 12, a secret organization with two goals: Collect evidence of extraterrestrial activity on Earth, and develop strategies to combat alien invaders. And it is this very mission that will consume Wainwright’s life for the next two decades, driven by the knowledge that the danger is as real as the aliens living among us....

Review forthcoming...

February 2012: "Allegiance in Exile"

A beautiful green world, rich in fertile soil and temperate climate . . . a textbook Class-M planet that should be teeming with life. Scans show no life-signs, but there are refined metals, including those associated with a space-faring race . . . and a lone city. But where are all of the inhabitants? Captain James T. Kirk leads a landing party from the U.S.S. Enterprise, hoping to get some answers.

The away team discovers a city in ruins, covered by dust, utterly bereft of life. Tricorder readings indicate that this is no ancient metropolis—it has been deserted only for a year. And just beyond the citadel lies what appears to be an ancient spaceport . . . a graveyard of ships that have clearly been sabotaged.

With these ruins too far from either the Klingon or the Romulan Empires, the Enterprise crew can only wonder: Who could have done this? And could this unnamed threat now pose an imminent danger to the Federation?