What are your controversial Star Trek opinions?

[Vger23]

Sybok is a more interesting antagonist than any others in the Trek movie franchise except Khan and Chang.

Agree on Khan. Tough to top that one.

Controversial Opinion: Disagree on Chang. I love Christopher Plummer and I love the performance....but in my controversially humble opinion, the character is written pretty blandly. I'd actually take Kruge over Chang.

 

[1001001]

Sybok is a more interesting antagonist than any others in the Trek movie franchise except Khan and Chang.

If they just would have made him an old schoolmate of Spock's or something like that it would have been better, IMHO.

 

[Henoch]

If they just would have made him an old schoolmate of Spock's or something like that it would have been better, IMHO.

Sybok seems older than Spock, so not a schoolmate. But his best school teacher (and mentor) would be interesting on how it becomes part of Spock's backstory and how it affected his relationship disagreements with his father, his decision to join Starfleet, etc. Now, it is about Spock, again.

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

I like 80s Khan but sometimes I imagine him saying "Welcome to Fantasy Planet"

 

[fireproof78]

Going to get pilloried for this, but: Pike was a better character than Kirk.

I've held this view for a long time.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Sybok seems older than Spock, so not a schoolmate. But his best school teacher (and mentor) would be interesting on how it becomes part of Spock's backstory and how it affected his relationship disagreements with his father, his decision to join Starfleet, etc. Now, it is about Spock, again.

Nimoy was Luckinbill's senior, by three years. I think @1001001 hit the nail on the head. What was needed was less of the small universe syndrome, more interpersonal relationships, more IDIC.

 

[oldtrekkie]

Sybok is a more interesting antagonist than any others in the Trek movie franchise except Khan and Chang.

Sybok is not evil like both Khan and Chang, the moment he realized his mistake, he sacrificed himself without hesitation to save others. That's not something an evil character does.

 

[oldtrekkie]

I like 80s Khan but sometimes I imagine him saying "Welcome to Fantasy Planet"

I never watched that to me it was like the love boat on an island and I hated that one too.

 

[1001001]

I like 80s Khan but sometimes I imagine him saying "Welcome to Fantasy Planet"

His niece runs it now...

 

[tesral]

Sybok is not evil like both Khan and Chang, the moment he realized his mistake, he sacrificed himself without hesitation to save others. That's not something an evil character does.

There is a principle,, an axiom if you will of Star Trek I keep closely. "No one is a villain in their own mind." The badest bad guy has his reasons that are rational to at least himself. Said villain might only want something opposed to the protagonist that is benign enough. They might be totally batshit evil. Either way to themselves they are not the bad guy.

 

[cooleddie74]

Sybok is not evil like both Khan and Chang, the moment he realized his mistake, he sacrificed himself without hesitation to save others. That's not something an evil character does.

Exactly. Which makes him a great antagonist.

Not all antagonists have to be evil. They just have to be pushing against the protagonist(s).

 

[oldtrekkie]

There is a principle,, an axiom if you will of Star Trek I keep closely. "No one is a villain in their own mind." The badest bad guy has is reasons that are rational to at least himself. Said villain might only want something opposed to the protagonist that is benign enough. They might be totally batshit evil. Either way to themselves they are not the bad guy.

Not to himself, TO ME, he's not a bad guy. He's misguided, imposing, obnoxious even but a bad guy... No way.

 

[cooleddie74]

Sybok so far as we know did few "evil" things until his kidnapping of the Nimbus III hostages and hijacking of the Enterprise-A. Not one member of Kirk's crew was killed nor even seriously injured so far as we know(Scotty knocking himself out on an overhanging bulkhead being his own fault) and the only fatality during the entire film from the moment Sybok boards the Enterprise is Sybok himself in a heroic act of self-sacrifice to save Spock and his friends.

 

[Henoch]

Nimoy was Luckinbill's senior, by three years.

IMHO, It's the gray hair. Nimoy had no gray hair (and no, he doesn't dye it), so, he is younger than Sybok by Vulcan years. From the various Star Trek shows, I observe that Vulcans start getting gray around 80-90 years old.(Note that gray hair is in his family; Sarek was gray at 102, so, he should be turning gray in about 20-30 years from ST:TFF.)

 

[Kor]

Agree on Khan. Tough to top that one.

Controversial Opinion: Disagree on Chang. I love Christopher Plummer and I love the performance....but in my controversially humble opinion, the character is written pretty blandly. I'd actually take Kruge over Chang.

To me, Chang is a fun mustache-twirling, scenery-chewing villain. I like Christopher Plummer's performance. But there really wasn't much substance to the character.

Kor

 

[oldtrekkie]

To me, Chang is a fun mustache-twirling, scenery-chewing villain. I like Christopher Plummer's performance. But there really wasn't much substance to the character.

Kor

To be, or not to be an interesting villain.

 

[Vger23]

I think making Sybok out to be Spock's brother was done out of story and character concerns that Nimoy had...that Spock would never "betray" Kirk. I think they felt like they had to have a good reason Spock would go against his Captain. So, they wrote him as a half-brother. Then, the script changed further, and the nature of the "betrayal" was greatly downplayed, to the point where it's really just a hesitation / refusal to kill someone outright...but the idea of the half-brother was already so well-baked, they didn't back out on it.

I was just fine with it as is. I thought it added some further backstory to Spock, and it made Sybok even more sympathetic...even though you were concerned he was recklessly charging the ship and crew to their doom.

 

[Commander Troi]

Ensign Tilly was hot.
However Captain Killy was a supernova

I thought these were supposed to be controversial?

 

[Commander Troi]

There is a principle,, an axiom if you will of Star Trek I keep closely. "No one is a villain in their own mind." The badest bad guy has is reasons that are rational to at least himself. Said villain might only want something opposed to the protagonist that is benign enough. They might be totally batshit evil. Either way to themselves they are not the bad guy.

Is this my college writing teacher?

 

[Gingerbread Demon]

I thought these were supposed to be controversial?

There's a large part of fandom that hate Tilly for whatever reason