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The most notable exception to this is the second of what I believe is now 51 films, The Wrath of Khan. Eager to rebound from the critical indifference leveled at the first film, Paramount brought some new creative blood into the fold. Director Nicholas Meyer was not a fan so he had no emotional hang-ups about breaking new ground with the material. He and producer Harve Bennett created a story that relied on the franchise’s strengths, and they committed themselves to making a real drama by raising the stakes, finally allowing the crew of the Enterprise to face the consequences of their dangerous profession, namely death.

It all started in an episode of the original show, when the Enterprise found a derelict freighter in space. On board was Khan Singh, a 20th Century military dictator who escaped judgment by sending himself and his henchmen into space, where they could hide out in deep freeze until the heat was off. Unfortunately, Kirk and company didn’t discover the truth until Khan’s minions took over the ship and declared their leader Supreme Ruler of Everything. Naturally Khan is defeated, and instead of remanding him to the proper authorities, Kirk maroons him on a deserted but otherwise pleasant planet where Khan can be master of his domain. Fast forward 15 years to 1982 – or is that 2282? Captain Kirk is now Admiral Kirk. A man who was once a virile young stud with the galaxy as his playground is now a middle aged man who spends his time doing ship inspections and polishing his stars. It just so happens that his next inspection is aboard his old ship, the Enterprise. Old pal Mr. Spock is in command and the ship is filled with recruits on their first training flight.

Kirk is forced to take command when they receive a distress call from a remote science station. It turns out that the research team assigned there ran into Khan on a routine mission. The depraved despot hijacked their ship, along with a powerful new prototype capable of destroying an entire planet. Rather than using these resources to make himself a king again, Khan decides to head straight after Kirk and dish out an ice cold heaping helping of revenge. You see, thanks to a fluke natural disaster, Khan’s new empire didn’t quite work out and now he and what’s left of his people want a piece of Kirk for their troubles. Khan and his followers are genetic supermen with enhanced brains and bodies. Kirk’s crew is all a bunch of snotty recruits still working the creases out of their new uniforms. I’m sure you can see where this is going.

The inevitable showdown between old adversaries dominates the second half of the film and no doubt delivers the film’s best moments, but it benefits from the story surrounding the characters up to that point. Kirk is older and wiser but struggles with his priorities now that he’s flying a desk. He has an illegitimate son he’d like to connect with and time has changed his relationships with friends. Khan’s dream of a new kingdom wasn’t the only thing that died on him; he lost his wife as well and irrationally blames Kirk for what happened. Proud men want something to lash out at when they’re wronged and you can’t put a bull’s-eye on bad luck. So Khan sets out after Kirk, seeking to destroy the next best target. It’s a tragic story with a potentially epic sweep when you think about it, and that’s precisely the point. If you think it was a jerk move by Kirk to abandon Khan on a deserted planet, you can only imagine what would have happened to Hitler, had he ever been captured. Basically Kirk had found one of history’s most insanely evil dictators floating around in space and taken it upon himself to decide what to do with the guy. It’s an uncommon thing for one to show respect to a hated enemy. No doubt Kirk meant it as an act of mercy.

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