I was thinking about doing a "What do you prefer? Kruge or Chang" poll-thread and the following post in the Kruge thread convinced me I should do it:
I honestly don't understand why Chang gets the love he does as a villain, I don't think he's nearly as good as Kruge and he is one of the weaker Klingons in general in the entire Star Trek franchise.....No I don't put him behind Klaa so don't anyone fly off the handle over that.
But let's compare the two:
Motivations:
Kruge. However misguided he may have actually been, he did truly believe Genesis was a major threat and he was acting in the best interests of protecting the Klingon Empire.
Chang. Unless he was a complete moron, he knew the Klingon Empire was in trouble and probably wouldn't survive unless peace was made. But he loved war so much and couldn't stand the idea of his life without it. So everything he did was for his own personal benefit and not that of the Empire.
Smarts:
Kruge was smart enough to know that something wasn't quite right when the Enterprise didn't return fire immediately and has enough confidence to call Kirk's bluff when he tried to get Kruge to surrender. Was also smart enough to know that killing one of the three would show Kirk he meant business and not give up any advantage since he still had 2 hostages left. Was also smart enough to know what the countdown Torg played over the communicator meant....but was too late....although it made for a great reaction on his part.
Chang:
I guess you could say he was smart based on the conspiracy, but it didn't seem like he masterminded it. He also showed a certain level of intelligence to go along with it like he did. But then he shows a distinct lack of intelligence by not simply opening fire on the Enterprise a fast as he could to destroy it. Instead he fires a torpedo every 30 seconds or so, taunts Kirk, says some Shakespeare and fires another torpedo....giving the Enterprise crew time to think of a way to destroy him.
Guts/Bravery:
Kruge: Goes down to the surface personally to investigate. Returns to the ship to lead the attack against the Enterprise. When the Enterprise hits him with two torpedoes he quickly orders all emergency measures and decides to go out fighting by firing a torpedo back although he thinks it'll be useless......of course the shot does prove fatal. Beams down to confront Kirk one on one and shows he's not afraid to die as the planet is destroying itself. Would rather die and take Kirk with him (which of course fails) rather than surrender.
Chang: Shows no bravery whatsoever. His only means of attack is to fire while remaining invisible. Once he realizes he's about to be hit he just sits there saying "To be or not to be." Doesn't order evasive action, doesn't open up with everything he's got, doesn't try to ram the Enterprise. Just passively lets his ship get destroyed.
Honor:
Kruge: Does show he has a little bit of honor for his enemies. Most notable when he gives two minutes for Kirk and his "gallant" crew when Kirk asked for one. Yes he kills a crew member for destroying Grissom, but it's a pretty good guess this is not uncommon for Klingons to kill subordinates if they fail. Also has a hostage killed, but is done to try and gain the upper hand in a life and death struggle....not for pleasure or revenge.
Chang: Has none. Conspires to has his own chancellor, and many fellow Klingons, killed and frame others for it, even actively accusing Kirk for having no honor and prosecuting them. Cares more for his own desires than the Empire's best interests. Attacks from a position where he is practically invincible......yeah it's a smart way to attack, but for Klingons who are all about face to face combat, it's pretty chicken shit.
Finally Kruge does come off as menacing and formidable in his words and actions. Chang is just sneaky and deceitful, the only time he actually sounds a little tough is when he talks to Kirk about how all warriors are cold warriors.
Finally I know Chang saying Shakespeare was supposed to mimic Khan quoting Moby Dick, but really didn't make much sense. Khan was stranded for 15 years and had become so consumed with rage and revenge that he mirrored Ahab with Kirk being his white whale. Khan also said the quotes at times that mirrored what was happening in the film and his emotions at that moment like when he says his last line. "For hate's sake I spit at thee." It was his farewell FU to Kirk....not just some line he said because it sounded cool.
With Chang a few of the quotes were ok, but most seemed like they were just shoved in there to say "Hey!!!! Look at how well Chang knows Shakespeare" and there wasn't any reason or motivation Chang had other than to be taunting and/or annoying.
Kruge- Good villian. Great Klingon villian.
Chang- Somewhat entertaining. OK as a villian. Terrible as a Klingon villian because he's really pretty chickenshit in how he fights.
Now, I've always liked both characters.
And AT THE TIME, I really loved Chang because he was a different type of Klingon than I was used to seeing on TOS or TNG.
I loved Kruge myself, and by the time we reached TFF and met Klaa, I thought, "Ok, Kruge is still awesome of course, but Klaa is just a Kruge clone. And a weak one at that."
TNG had the warrior thing going too. Like everyone was part of a biker gang, which is all well and good, don't get me wrong, I love Klingons.
But when TUC came around, I was thrilled to see this different guy with an eye patch, eloquence, and elegance to go with his forehead and Klingon ship.
Yeah, some of the Shakespeare was a bit much, especially, "I'm as constant as the Northern Star." but even that paved the way for one of the last, great McCoy quips.
I'm going to hold on voting for now because I can't think of one I'd like to vote. You can vote for both if it's a tie for you.
Kruge came first and, to me, because the prototypical Klingon badass. Chang, I loved for Christopher Plummer's bombastic line delivery, scenery chewing and uniqueness.
I'm leaning Kruge, but for a long time after TUC, I loved Chang more. So it's hard for me to pick.
