2009’s reboot of the Star Trek film series is a film that is
utter impossible for me to view in any critical sense. I say this because, for
better or for worse, it was what finally got me properly interested in the
franchise and I have been ever since. When the Star Trek series and movies are
at their best, they are some of the most thought-provoking and well-crafted
science-fiction stories in the history of the medium. Hell, I’d argue that the
Next Generation episode Tapestry is one of the greatest works of fiction ever
conceived. But don’t mistake this for blind fanboy devotion: When it’s bad, it
conversely makes for some of the most brain-dead uses of the art form possible.
In stark contrast to my thoughts on the 2009 reboot, 2013’s Into Darkness is
far less complicated: It’s decent, but quickly turns sour thanks to how badly it borrows ideas
from previous films in the franchise. Are we gonna get a repeat of either of those, or are we in for something else entirely?
