Star Trek - The First Six Films ~ Bookish Whimsy

I usually comment on each season of Star Trek by ranking my favorite episodes, but for these films I will comment on and rank each of these TOS crew films starting with my least favorite or basically the worst of the films. It was so interesting to see how they transitioned the series to the big screen - there were some uneven plots and some really weird plot developments but when they got it right, it was an awesome thing! So starting with last place -

6. Star Trek: The Motion Picture (the first Star Trek film)

Literally, my first thoughts while watching this was WTF?? The uniforms are horribly bland and boring, I was amazed at how much time they took showing the new Enterprise (I get it, they have the Enterprise back) and also the lighting was really dark sometimes (or just me and my tablet? Or maybe I'm just so used to the brightness of the TV show). I don't know, everything was so lackluster about this film, and it should have been awesome since it's the first time we get to see the crew after 10 years! And Spock reuniting with the crew again was so anticlimactic! I get that he doesn't like to show emotion, but it seemed like he had a problem with them that I thought would be explained later in the film but there was never any reason for his almost hostile attitude to being back on board the Enterprise. It was an iffy story as well, with some very excruciatingly slow pacing in some parts. After watching this, I was just like "No."

5. Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (the fifth Star Trek film)

While I really enjoyed this film, and it had some great moments (like the camping trip with my favorite boys - Kirk, Spock, and McCoy) I put this at #5 because the plot was very mediocre and I think Kirk gets to show off a bit too much in this - someone should have reigned that in a bit. (BTW I wonder why they didn't show his regrets? That would have been some good character development.) The sense of family that I got between the Star Trek crew was so nice to see though, as was seeing Kirk, Spock, and McCoy banding together against the influence of Spock's brother. Who was also an interesting character in his own right. I would have liked to know more about their relationship though.

4. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (the second Star Trek film)

I feel like I have to defend placing this iconic film in the #4 spot, but it is getting very difficult for me to rank this now, so I can only say I enjoyed the later films a tiny bit more than this one. I did not know that the recent Star Trek: Into Darkness film drew so heavily from this one though, so seeing all the similarities was really surprising. And also having seen it, I definitely think this film is superior to Into Darkness despite the Benedict Cumberbatch. If only because the friendship of Kirk and Spock is much more powerful having seen them go through so much in 3 seasons and 1 horrible movie. It also helps that this film is 5000x better than the first film btw. And somehow I think it was more emotionally powerful to have Spock make the sacrifice than for Kirk as he does in Into Darkness. Anyways, the other best part of this film was seeing Kirk get the better of Khan, who is a fantastic villain. Although I am surprised that he is so full of revenge when really Kirk had no choice in what he did in the TV show, and it was pretty fair to Khan to give him a chance to make something of a barren planet. Also I was not expecting that ending with Spock - I really thought he would be revived somehow by the end. I can't imagine how it must have felt for people watching the film when it first came out to wonder if Spock was really dead!

3. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (the fourth Star Trek film)

OMG. What was this awesomeness? This movie was pure fluff, and I enjoyed every moment of it. From whales on the Enterprise, to the crew adjusting to 1980's San Francisco, this was just pure enjoyment although I never really took it very seriously. But that doesn't matter because they made such a perfectly fun time travel film here! And really plumbed the potential of Kirk and Spock as a comedy duo! Every crew had a great "moment" as well in this film and this was a very well-rounded story. The romance with Kirk was a little unnecessary, but it was sweet so I really had no complaints there. This was just a fun movie.

2. Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (the third Star Trek film)

This film reminded me of a recurring theme to Snow White and Charming's love story in Once Upon A Time - "I will always find you." The BFF feels in this are off the charts and it made me giddy with happiness. I also loved how the crew goes rogue and they each have their own moment to show they are a force to be reckoned with. Especially Sulu and Uhura! I was very surprised to see Christopher Lloyd in this, though I could have done with less Klingon make-up... Kirk's bad-assery was another reason I really enjoyed this one! I was only a little put off by how Spock was revived - he died, and then he was re-formed? WEIRD. I mean it seems unlikely that he is exactly the same person, it's a little disturbing. It's just... weird!

1. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (the last Star Trek film)

What a gorgeous film! It's a wonderful homage to the legacy of the crew, to the message of the franchise to embrace peace and tolerance and it ties up the TOS crew's stories while also feeling like it passes on the torch to the next series. The plot is fantastic too - there's mystery, betrayal, and an urgency in the end that only the TOS crew can save the day. It also gets really dark when Kirk and McCoy are taken prisoner and put on trial, but luckily McCoy brings a wonderful comedic touch with his unexpected one-liners. The writing is just brilliant as well (and I am a bit biased because there are so many literary references here.) Bonus too that Christopher Plummer is one of the villains (although I again could have done without the Klingon make-up marring his beautiful face :D) This was the best film for me, because I was so caught up in the story and all of the crew played an important part. I wanted to hug this film when I finished it. Also cry because it's the last one with my crew. *sob*