The one thing about Star Trek II that always irks me...

[The Laughing Vulcan]

Sound like Ceti Eels prefer the taste of Augments to humans...

And there was only one human on Ceti Alpha V, so Khan couldn't have had range of data on which to base his pronouncements.

Or maybe Kirk's awesomeness attracted it from Chekov's ears.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Maybe Chekov's eel somehow sensed the death of its 'brother' (Terrell's eel) and thus weakened itself and left Chekov. Notice how that happened right after Terrell shot himself...

 

[Alrik]

Maybe Russian upset the eel's tummy.

 

[Therin of Andor]

I remember some cruel fans suggesting that since the eels feast on the victim's brain, Chekov's eel died of starvation.

 

[Iamnotspock]

Yeah. What makes that scene doubly odd is that what you're describing there is exactly how Meyer did operate everywhere else in the film. According to him, Shatner kept overplaying everything, so he did take after take after take until Shatner got tired, stopped trying so hard, and gave a more natural, understated performance. In that context, something as overplayed as "KHAAAAAANNNN!!!!" seems deeply incongruous.

This has always baffled me too. That whole scene feels completely at odds with what Meyer was doing in the rest of the film, as far as directing Shatner was concerned.

 

[Phantassm]

This is a moment in the story where it matters that Chekov is someone he knows rather than simply an officer serving aboard another vessel.

Which is apparently the only reason Chekov survived. The Ceti eel was supposed to kill him eventually, but instead it just up and decided to leave for no reason.

Actually my guess would be that it had reached its adult stage and was existing to live-out the next stage of its development. If you'll notice it looked like an adult when it emerged.

 

[Christopher]

^Yeah, DonIago and I covered that idea 11 days ago, back on page 1.

 

[jimoinj]

I thought the scream was okay. It seemed to indicate that finally we had an enemy who could get to Kirk. He may have come up with his plan after that.

 

[RyanKCR]

I thought the scream was okay. It seemed to indicate that finally we had an enemy who could get to Kirk. He may have come up with his plan after that.

Except that he did talk to Spock in the transporter room aboard Regula I. Spock indicated, through code, that they would have auxillary power restored in hours.

 

[Christopher]

And that's another thing that irks me. That whole "hours could seem like days" code was pretty blatantly telegraphed. It shouldn't have been hard for Khan's genetically enhanced intellect to see through it. You'd think that Starfleet would already have subtler code protocols in place for voice transmissions over unshielded channels. (I'm forgiving the fact that they apparently weren't using an encrypted channel, on the assumption that Reliant's computer banks would contain all the necessary decryption codes so it wouldn't matter.)

 

[Timo]

..Of course, Khan, being Khan, would hear what he would want to hear - whereas us poor bastards in the audience wouldn't have Khan's superintellect to decipher more advanced codes, nor his superego to make us fail to consider alternatives and options.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Satyrquaze]

I've always been under the impression that it was at least partily for Khan's benefit.

 

[Alrik]

Perhaps they were on an encrypted channel with Kirk and Spock knowing, without doubt, that Khan would be listening, but letting Khan believe that he was eavesdropping undetected. If Khan thought he was undetected, he may not have even been looking for them to be speaking in code.

 

[FormerLurker]

That was the impression I got from the dialog.

 

[RyanKCR]

But the regulation was about an open channel. If it was encrypted then why would Saavik not bring that up when Kirk referenced the regulation? Besides how would Khan know how to tap into an Enterprise encrypted message?

Not cannon I know but in the novel Khan indicates how foolish Spock was to transmit the ship's vulnerability to anyone who could hear.

 

[Unicron]

Khan is also an experienced military leader, so that telegraphing always kind of bugged me.

 

[Ssosmcin]

I hear/read a lot about how Kirk was a dumbass for not raising shields earlier and how Khan was a dumbass for not figuring out the "weeks seem like days" code. I don't agree with those assessments.

Kirk: he's been behind a desk for an unspecified number of years. Long enough to be rusty. It was established in TMP that a mere two years of unfamiliarity dulls Kirk's edge. When the Reliant was approaching, even without communications, Kirk kept the shields down because it was a friendly vessel, one of their own. Old school Kirk in season 2 of TOS might very well have smelled something rotten, but this was Rusty Kirk. When he was told of the phaser lock, he had the shields raised. Should he have done it when Spock told him reliant had her shields up seconds earlier? Sure, but again, his reflexes were slower and it was only a matter of seconds. After the battle, Kirk fully realized he dropped the ball big time. Being who he is, he was determined to not have that happen again, and it didn't. He knew exactly how to deal with Khan and from that point on, he played him like a drum, Once he sized up the situation, Kirk slid back into his classic state. He played his bluff, bought some time, then changed the odds. He failed first, learned from his mistake, then got back up and kicked ass. That's what a hero does.

Khan: the thing about movie Khan was that he was totally batshit crazy. His supreme ego wouldn't allow him to accept responsibility for his own predicament. Add the horrific death of his wife and you've got a crazy dude with a revenge obsession. Khan, while being genetically enhanced, was out of his depth and off his game. He only won the first skirmish against Kirk because he was off his game too. Unlike Khan, however, Kirk learned and got back in the zone. Khan was still crazy, still too convinced of his own superiority to suspect a coded trap.

Kirk was no stranger to easily duped adversaries ("but Captain, the Romulans have broken code 2"). Kirk wasn't fighting against Khan in his prime, but Khan after 15 years of insanity and obsession. Nobody in Khan's position would be thinking logically, he was going completely on emotion.

So, no, I don't have these issues with Kirk's lack of reflexes or Khan's intelligence. To me, it was all part of the characters.

 

[Satyrquaze]

Yes, but crazy does not equate to stupid.

Khan was many things, an idiot isn't one of them. The writers of "Space Seed" and TWoK wanted to get across Khan was intelligent in the extreme.

For him to fall for such an obvious trap is very out of character.

 

[DonIago]

One thing I'd add to ssosmcin's notes above - one stark contrast between Kirk and Khan was that Kirk listened to the counsel of his friends, while Khan outright rejected Joachim's counsel. There would seem to be an implicit lesson there about listening to your friends when they try to give you advice.

Given Khan's massive ego and the demonstrated tendency of augments to underestimate normal humans...and the fact that Khan was crazy...I think it's entirely possible he just couldn't see Kirk being clever enough (the fact that it wasn't -that- clever notwithstanding) to pull the wool over his eyes.
Oy, I just flashed to Wesley's statement that "Starfleet doesn't lie."

 

[Ssosmcin]

Yes, but crazy does not equate to stupid.

Khan was many things, an idiot isn't one of them. The writers of "Space Seed" and TWoK wanted to get across Khan was intelligent in the extreme.

For him to fall for such an obvious trap is very out of character.

Sure, Khan from Space Seed never would have fallen for it, but he wasn't anywhere near the same person after living 15 years in that hell. Who knows what that would do to someone like him? Also, when you're gripped by obsession, judgment and clear thinking go right out the window. I can actually picture the scene...

Joachim: "My lord, we've intercepted a communication from Kirk to his ship."

Khan: "Ah Kirk, so foolish to believe we're not listening..."

For Khan to think otherwise would be admitting Kirk was as intelligent. Mr. Crazy Ego at this point would never consider it. And if he believes Kirk doesn't know he's being monitored, then Khan has no reason to suspect a trap. Crazy people don't think rationally. That's why they're crazy.

Whether or not this was intended by Meyer and Bennett is another question. Just saying this is why I don't have an issue with it and just go with the flow. Everyone's mileage will vary.

Given Khan's massive ego and the demonstrated tendency of augments to underestimate normal humans...and the fact that Khan was crazy...I think it's entirely possible he just couldn't see Kirk being clever enough (the fact that it wasn't -that- clever notwithstanding) to pull the wool over his eyes.

Yup, what you said. Much less verbose than my answer.