Stubs – Star Trek: The Motion Picture

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) Starring: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan. Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nicols, George Takei, Persis Khambatta, Stephen Collins. Directed by Robert Wise. Screenplay by Harold Livingston. Story by Alan Dean Foster. Based on Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry. Produced by Gene Roddenberry. Run Time: 132 minutes. U.S.  Color. Adventure, Science Fiction

Star Trek (1966-1969) was a TV series ahead of its time. Developed by Gene Roddenberry as a western in space, the series failed to catch on and was cancelled after three seasons in 1969. But good ideas don’t completely die. Star Trek found a rabid following in syndication. While I do not consider myself to be a Trekkie, I did watch the series on the UHF channel back in Dallas that carried the re-runs. (Yes, before cable, satellite and streaming, there was this thing call broadcasting.)

Capt. Kirk (William Shatner), Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and
Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) from the original Star Trek TV series.

Paramount Pictures considered Roddenberry’s idea to continue the series in a movie, but scrapped it in 1977 to instead concentrate on a new series, tentatively titled Star Trek: Phase II. The proposed series would see Shatner and Kelley return, but Nimoy had declined over financial and creative issues. The series, planned to air in 1978 on a planned Paramount TV network, was likewise scrapped.

Following the success of Star Wars (1977) and Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977), Paramount decided to resurrect the idea of a feature film. Initially, the Spock character was originally left out, since Nimoy did not plan to return. Give Robert Wise’s children credit. They convinced their father that it would not be Star Trek without Leonard Nimoy as Spock. Jeffery Katzenberg, then a production executive at the studio, was dispatched to meet with Nimoy in New York with a check in the disputed amount of royalties Nimoy was due and Spock was back. (Ironically, Nimoy, who had grown tired of the Spock character, has played Spock not just in subsequent Star Trek TV Series, but is so far the only actor/character from the series to reprise his role in the rebooted film series.)

Getting Spock back in the fold was perhaps the last great idea anyone had when it comes to Star Trek: The Motion Picture. The resultant film is a bit like watching paint dry in space. Unlike the TV series it is based on, the movie is extremely slow paced, to the point of exhaustion.

An alien force has entered the galaxy, a massive energy cloud, which Starfleet observes. Three Klingon warships move to intercept. But the mysterious force not only defeats the Klingons, it vaporizes them. The cloud moves into Federation space and likewise destroys the Starfleet space station, Epsilon Nine, on its trajectory towards Earth.

Spock (Leonard Nimoy), who has been going through Kolinahr, the ridding of all emotions, back on Vulcan. But Spock is distracted from his studies by the arrival of this new intelligence and fails to achieve Kolinahr because of it.

Spock is kept from completing Kolinahr.

Enter Capt. James T. Kirk (William Shatner), now Admiral in charge of Starfleet Operations (is he to blame for the very dull looking uniforms?). With the mysterious cloud coming towards Earth and with the “dry-docked” Enterprise, the only vehicle close enough to intercept, he convinces his superiors to give him the command of the Enterprise, usurping Captain Willard Decker (Stephen Collins), who has been in charge while the Enterprise has been refitted. Decker is not happy about being demoted to Commander and First Officer and is pretty vocal about his displeasure, almost to the point of insubordination.

Captain Kirk gets his first look at the Enterprise after being away for a few years.

One of the new officers is Ilia (Persis Khambatta), a Deltan navigator. Decker knows Ilia from having spent time on her planet. There is obviously sexual tension between the two.

New crew member Ilia (Persis Khambatta) is replaced by a robot version of herself.

Kirk is not as familiar with the Enterprise as Decker is and not everything is working as it should. The first is the transporter, which malfunctions, killing Kirk’s handpicked new Science officer, Lt. Commander Sonak (John Rashad Kamal) and another officer on their way to the Enterprise. But things must get fixed, because Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy (DeForest Kelley) uses that means to board the ship. McCoy, who has apparently retired, has been recalled to activity duty at Kirk’s request.

Dr. "Bones" McCoy is called out of retirement.

Kirk’s own unfamiliarity with the refitted Enterprise almost gets everyone killed as he insists on going to warp speed before the engines have been calibrated properly and the Enterprise creates a wormhole. To the rescue comes Spock, who is ready to be reinstated as a Starfleet officer and replaces Decker as the Science Officer. Spock helps Scotty (James Doohan) calibrate the engines and the Enterprise is off again.

Spocks' return further dilutes Capt. Decker (Stephen Collins) importance
 to the crew. Can you say expendable?

The Enterprise intercepts the cloud and avoids doing anything that might appear to be aggressive. Spock figures out that the alien is sending out a signal that the Enterprise isn’t able to respond at the speed the alien is expecting. When he changes their response, the alien ship sends a probe. The probe takes away Ilia and sends back a robotic doppelganger with Ilia’s memories. She informs the crew that she has been sent by V’ger to determine if the carbon-based life forms (humans) on the Enterprise need to be destroyed.

The Enterprise intercepts the alien cloud headed towards Earth.

Spock, meanwhile, takes it upon himself to take a spacewalk. Landing on the vessel’s surface, Spock does a mind meld and learns that V’ger is a living machine. The systems on the Enterprise must still not be up to snuff, because Spock is away from the ship before any sensors detect and notify the crew.

Spock mind melds with V'ger.

Ilia informs Kirk that V’ger is looking for the Creator and has a message. Kirk thinks fast and tells Ilia that he has information he can only share with V’ger, not a probe. V’ger agrees and Kirk, McCoy, Spock, Decker and Ilia leave the Enterprise. V’ger turns out to be Voyager 6, (the full name covered over by a thin layer of space smudge) sent into space by NASA back in the 20^th Century. Spock, through his mind meld, has learned that Voyager was damaged and found by a race of living machines who interpreted its programming as to learn all that can be learned and share that information with the creator. The aliens built a space ship to house V’ger and upgraded the spaceship to fulfill its original mission. (Apparently the alien machines couldn’t be bothered to clean off the nameplate and see the full name.)

Kirk leads a landing party that visits V'ger.

V’ger has learned so much that it has achieved consciousness. Spock informs us that V’ger sees the Enterprise as the living being and the crew as nothing more than parasites (though this doesn’t explain why the Kilngon ships and Epsilon Nine were also destroyed and not just the carbon-based forms within.)

V'ger turns out to be Voyager 6,  a space probe launched by NASA.

While Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) finds the NASA code to respond to V’ger’s request to share its data, the ship sabotage’s itself. It wants to become one with the creator and Decker volunteers for the job. He and robotic Ilia become one with V’ger. Apparently, they form a new life and move to a new dimension, saving the Enterprise and Earth in the process.

Now the Enterprise can resume its mission, but by this time, I doubted anyone in the movie theater cared. Star Trek: The Motion Picture suffers from so many maladies, I’m not sure I can count them all. The biggest offender, I would say, is pacing. The story plods along, numbing the audience into submission and boredom induced slumber. Painstakingly slow to get to the point and the film spends way too long on everything. When Scotty takes Kirk out to the ship aboard a shuttle craft at the beginning, the indirect path it takes is only so that there can be long loving shots of the starship Enterprise and we can see the loving-look in Kirk’s eyes as he sees his ship after his multi-year absence. I have distinct memories of seeing this the first time, thinking “Get on with it.”

Next is the story, which is nothing but a regurgitated version of an episode from the series, “The Changeling”. In that episode, the Enterprise encounters a probe named Nomad. Originally launched from Earth to explore, the probe collided with an alien probe, reprogrammed itself to find new life, but to also sterilize imperfections (humans). Nomad is looking for its creator, Jackson Roykirk, and mistakes Captain Kirk for him. After killing several crew members, Kirk convinces the probe that it, too, is imperfect, his example being mistaking him for its creator. Nomad, true to its altered mission, destroys itself. Sound sort of familiar? Had they really already run out of original ideas that they had to so blatantly reuse one?

But to make things worse, The Motion Picture reduces series supporting characters Uhura, Scotty, Chekov (Walter Koenig), and Sulu (George Takei) into glorified cameos, instead spending way too long on new characters Decker and Ilia. Okay, they’re added to be expendable, but they still take away from what should have been a victory lap for the series supporting cast, finally getting their just big screen rewards.

And the famous “Space, the Final Frontier” narration is missing. This is like a Bond film without Monty Norman’s James Bond Theme song played at least once. It seems that someone unfamiliar with Star Trek is in charge, rather than its creator.

I hate to pick on production values, but I’m befuddled as to why they would have so changed the uniforms from the series to the movie (and of course so radically change them again in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan). I’m not going to argue about the original series uniforms appropriateness for space travel, but the uniforms were immediately recognizable and distinctive. Why fix what isn’t broken and why change them, especially to such dull and drab colors?

Characters like Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) get reduced screen time in favor of new crew members.

You can argue that things change and military uniforms are no different. But why then wouldn’t the Enterprise label being applied to a new ship by then as well? One of the things that hampers the film from getting going are the painful tracking shots showing just how little about the Enterprise has actually changed. Why is the ship so much more important than the characters? Is the ship the reason people watched the series in the first place? I hope not.

A lot of screen time is spent admiring the Enterprise in drydock.

The special effects haven’t aged well by comparison to modern films and those used in the rebooted film franchise, but you have to remember that at the time they were done, they were pretty good. Maybe they were not as good as subsequent Star Wars films, but were probably on par with the original film, which was the standard bearer at the time.

So much about the film seems to be a miscalculation. While they certainly didn’t cow tow to the fan base, Trekkies being the first fanboys, I can’t think that the film satisfied the core audience it was aimed at. Too much time was spent on characters no one cared about portrayed by actors who make Shatner look like a Shakespearean trained thespian. And the lack of a good original story shows a certain amount of contempt from the fan base that made this filmic resurgence possible in the first place.

One of the influences of Star Wars was the development of the Klingon language, something that would take hold in Search For Spock (1984), when the language was finally fleshed out. This like the alien tongues heard in Star Wars, which gives it a certain, I would suppose, authenticity. Apparently it was James Doohan who came up with the first gibberish which would later be codified. Like nothing else in this film, Klingon as a language would be eaten up by the fan base. Perhaps as a punch line, the Klingon language has been referenced in such diverse TV series as Frasier and The Big Bang Theory.

Watching the movie, then and now, it’s hard to imagine that anyone would see a reason to continue with the exercise. While the film made money, it certainly wasn’t Star Wars money or even as much as Paramount had hoped for. But it was enough for them to see the greenlight of a sequel. Subsequent films would be made, but Roddenberry would be removed as creative director. The second film would likewise return to the original series as well, but was more of a sequel rather than a retelling and would do a much better job of using the entire crew of the Enterprise in the story telling, not just Kirk, Spock and McCoy. Wrath of Khan would pave the way for all the Star Trek (films, series and reboots) to come.

If you’re a completist, then you owe it to yourself to see Star Trek: The Motion Picture, if only to see how bad things can get. Otherwise, I would say that in the vastness of space, it would be easy to avoid this poorly executed film, which is a disservice to the original series fans, whose rabid devotion made it possible.

2013 - The Highlights (EHeroFlareNeos)

With 2013 nearing its final fleeting moments, now is a good opportunity to reflect on what we’ve reviewed here at Trophy Unlocked, both the good and the bad. Below, in no particular order, is my list of the top games, movies and disappointments from the year. This time, I’ve also not only resurrected a category I had hoped never to use again, I’ve introduced yet another that I hope not to use (the result may surprise you (or not)).

Top Movies of 2013

Monsters University

While Pixar has been known for making nothing but hits in its heyday, Cars 2 began a downward spiral that the studio seemed to only begin recovering from with the release of Brave. However, Monsters University is a noticeable return to form despite being a prequel to Monsters, Inc. It manages to capture the spirit of the original very well, though not perfectly, and has a good balance of serious and comedic elements. Though not perfect, I am, for the first time in a couple of years, actually wondering if Pixar will be able to replicate the success of this film with their next one, Inside Out; I now have a newfound hope for their future.

Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem – A Klok Opera

Metalocalypse is one of my favorite animated shows and, as a result, Dethklok is one of my favorite Death Metal bands. Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem – A Klok Opera has a very ambitious goal: Tie up many of the loose ends from Season 4, but present it in the form of a rock opera. Not only does it live up to its promise, it has great music, plenty of laughs and the best animation I have seen from the show yet. I can’t wait to see what Brendon Small has in store for the future of Metalocalypse.

John Dies at the End

Admittedly, this movie only just barely qualifies to be on this list since it achieved immediate cult status through its source material and choice of Director, but it makes it here because I am a huge fan of the original book (it is my second favorite one) and I greatly enjoyed seeing it in movie form (also it was theatrically released in 2013). While there may be a couple of missed opportunities here and there, and the finished product will definitely not appeal to everyone, watching it was a lot of fun and it was clear that Don Coscarelli had fun making it as well. It’s thought-provoking, funny and a little gross all at once and is a ride worth taking at least once (and perhaps only once if you are not familiar with David Wong’s literature but know a friend who is and has this movie on DVD/Blu-ray/VOD).

Top Video Games of 2013

DmC Devil May Cry

I’ve been a fan of the gameplay of the Devil May Cry series since Devil May Cry 4, but I have since played every other game and liked them (save the second one). When I first saw DmC Devil May Cry, specifically the new interpretation of Dante, I was a little thrown off by some of the choices they made, but almost immediately afterwards I gained a sense of optimism that only grew stronger as I saw the better elements refined and the worse ones forgotten; I even cosplayed as DmC Dante a few times. In the end, I saw that my optimism was not misplaced and thoroughly enjoyed the final result. Yes, the combat could have used a little more work, but it makes a necessary step by combining the abilities of both Dante and Nero (DMC4’s protagonist) to give a better sense of speed to the character. Story-wise, I actually liked the newer Dante as he showed compassion, empathy and a good deal of character development in a single game. While he isn’t completely perfect in his actions, nor is he able to provide the same testosterone/confidence boost from playing as him, this new Dante is still a character I can really get behind and I hope that a sequel can be made despite what you hear from the vocal minority.

Penny Arcade’s On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 4

Not only do I read Penny Arcade every time it updates, I own all of the book collections and have found the Rain-Slick tetralogy of games to provide an experience unique and very worthwhile to play. I really don’t mind that the combat is similar in nature to Pokémon because it managed to take the good elements of that franchise and refine them greatly, including the ability to have all of your monsters, whether they actually fought or not, gain EXP and level up at nearly the same rate. The final entry in the series manages to expertly combine serious and humorous moments together in a way that I will remember for years to come.

Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance

Within the past year, I’ve played nearly every Metal Gear game (at least among the main entries), so I was looking forward to Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance based on its premise alone: a Metal Gear game set after Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots and focused on Raiden as the main character. Not only is Raiden a total badass in this game, the game also delivers on its tagline, “Cut What You Will”, by allowing you to cut just about anything with physics that react exactly to where you cut an object. On top of that, the story isn’t that bad either and the soundtrack is one of the best I’ve ever heard (I even own a physical copy of Vocal Tracks). Even if you don’t care for the story, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance was a total blast to play through and a worthy entry into the Metal Gear franchise.

The Last of Us

Developed by Naughty Dog, known for the Jak and Dxater franchise, The Last of Us is their attempt to create a more mature game, and thus a new IP, for the PS3 that wasn’t an Uncharted game. They not only succeeded, but managed to create one of the most emotional games I’ve ever played, accomplished by managing to push the “father” button in me even though I don’t have kids. While I can see some points brought up regarding character interactions, and some plot points were a little more obvious to me, I still found myself drawn in and unwilling to let go until I was done. I found it hard to express my full opinion in this small blurb, so I encourage those interested to give it a go and see what you think of it.

The Stanley Parable

The Stanley Parable is a game whose true purpose is so thought-provoking that my review of it was deliberately void of information about what the player can hope to discover. Still, The Stanley Parable is worth playing for the funny, but subtle commentary. You might find the time to money ratio a little off, but I hope you can trust me enough when I say that the time it takes to play really has no bearing on the price of admission and that exploring every possible thing is an act that you should not only know to do, but feel inclined to do as its temptation of choice is so overwhelming that you’ll find yourself lost for hours on end. Its enlightening qualities are what help it qualify for this list as one of the best games I’ve played this year.

Top Disappointments of 2013

A Good Day to Die Hard

Though Die Hard has had entries both good and bad, I still enjoy watching most of the movies. I liked Live Free or Die Hard, so when I heard about A Good Day to Die Hard, I was hoping for something that would continue the spirit of the franchise in a way similar to the other films. Instead, I got treated to a boring slog of a movie that ignored even the most basic conventions that one would expect from Die Hard, down to complete mishandling of John McClane’s catchphrase. If this is the end of the franchise, as the sixth entry is in limbo, then it’ll be sad to know that it went out with a whimper.

Man of Steel

I’m not really a fan of Superman, since I haven’t really read any of the stories and he just didn’t appeal to me, but I was willing to watch Man of Steel to at least stay current with superhero movies and know what everyone would be talking about. When I finally saw it, it met my low expectations as it is not only a retread of Superman’s origin story, but it tries a bit too hard to emulate the Dark Knight trilogy in both tone and style, leaving behind the optimism that I admit I think Superman is supposed to embody. If this is truly supposed to be the new way the audience is supposed to see Superman, I think they got off on the wrong foot.

Star Trek Into Darkness

Reboots provide a rare opportunity to create an entirely new universe with completely original characters and stories (though it’s fair to want some familiarity as well for veteran fans). The 2009 Star Trek film was able to capitalize pretty well on said opportunity, but Into Darkness continues this baffling trend where those in charge feel a need to retread earlier stories, but slap a new skin on it. In this case, it basically has the cast reenacting The Wrath of Khan, except Benedict Cumberbatch’s portrayal of Khan is nowhere near as memorable as Ricardo Montalbán’s and the film has more of a pessimistic attitude about the future, partly due to the 9/11 conspiracy theories thrown in. It would be more understandable to revisit earlier stories if the movies came out at a quicker pace, but since the next one won’t be around for quite a while, it comes off as a decision they’ll probably regret later.

BioShock Infinite

Let me say right off the bat that BioShock Infinite is only on here because of the story, as well as how I feel that I am in a small minority for liking its gameplay more. Gameplay-wise, I consider the latest entry in the BioShock series to be somewhat of an improvement over the previous games during combat, though I will also admit that even that has its shortcomings. The story, on the other hand, feels like something cobbled together as it constantly abandons interesting plot threads to the point where I cared less for the protagonists as time went on, constantly changes the direction of the story and manages to retroactively erase any potential conflict from the choices made throughout the game (in a series explicitly about choice). I was excited at the prospect of being able to to finally dry off and get away from Rapture, but after seeing the ending, it’s very disappointing to know that both the fans and the developers (looking at you, Ken Levine) can’t seem to get over the fact that this franchise needs a game with a new setting, not one where Columbia, temporally speaking, is Rapture in disguise.

Deadpool

As a huge Deadpool fan, to where I have an effective monopoly on Deadpool books at my local comic book store and I can see a framed image of the character from where I’m typing this, I really looked forward to him finally have his own video game. Unfortunately, despite the laughs, the gameplay felt unpolished. Daniel Way isn’t the best writer, but his script for the game was filled with plenty of laughs and a few good cracks at game development in general, but I wish I could play a Deadpool game where combat isn’t a tedious grind. I hope this game gets a sequel so that I can play a game that does the character better justice.

Worst Movie of 2013

My Little Pony: Equestria Girls

I’ve been a fan of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic for quite a while now, since a good chunk of the way through Season 1, though my status has gone from curious (Season 1) to Brony (Season 2) to wavering fan (Season 3); My Little Pony: Equestria Girls certainly didn’t help. From the get-go I had very low expectations and no amount of trailers was able to raise them any higher. If I had to explain my reaction to seeing the movie to someone, as well as why I consider it the worst film of the year, then I’d say that with A Good Day to Die Hard I expected something and got nothing, I expected nothing from Man of Steel and got nothing and with Equestria Girls I expected nothing and got a negative result. What didn’t help was the audience I saw the movie with in the theater (but who goes to theaters anymore, right?), a group of Bronies so visibly obnoxious about their love for the franchise that not only did they treat the theater like their den at home, they also gave every other fan (including myself) a bad name. The edited TV version didn’t really improve on anything either, but I will never forget how awful that movie was or how awful my audience was (also, I will never forgive whoever yelled “wingboner” (for the uninitiated, it’s a fandom meme (one of many) that I don’t find funny) in a crowded theater with a little girl present in the audience).

Worst Video Game of 2013

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know!

Adventure Time is a very fun show with interesting characters in a unique setting with gradually deeper themes and stories. You’d think then that there would be a lot of potential for a great video game to come out of it, one that would take advantage of the unique world and take full advantage of the various RPG tropes and D&D-like environment to create a game that would be fun and interesting for even the uninitiated, right? Wrong. Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know! doesn’t do any of those things, instead choosing to be a boring, repetitive and broken mess that only got through because Adventure Time was slapped on top of it. The only reason to play is for a shocking, canon, reveal at the end, but you could easily save yourself $40 and just look it up on the internet or even wait for the show to give the same info. I really hope the reins are handed over to another developer so that we can get a good Adventure Time RPG in the future, but until then, this is unfortunately all we have to work with.

2013 - The Highlights (Tetris_King)

At the end of every year, it is sometimes good to reflect on what we may have liked or disliked about it. Below is a list, in no particular order, of what I liked or disliked about what came out this year that got reviewed on this blog, with links provided to the appropriate review.

Top Movies of 2013

Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising

Yes, I am putting another Transformers product, a TV movie, into the positive end of one of these lists, but I really, and legitimately, enjoyed this conclusion to the Transformers: Prime cartoon. I think everything really came together in the end, with the animation and voice acting being some of the most impressive here since Darkness Rising. It may not have answered every lingering question, though at least one of them was through an interview in an issue of the Collectors’ Club Magazine, but the end result was nonetheless satisfying.

Monsters University

In a first for these lists, we have a newer Pixar movie not considered a disappointment. While not quite as good as the film it was made be an extension of, Monsters University is more of a return to form for the studio, with a good story and great characterization proving that they have not yet lost their touch. Hopefully their next project, The Good Dinosaur Inside Out, continues this trend.

The World’s End

The third and final part of the Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy, and one of the few comedies of the year that actually grabbed my attention, The World’s End is an extremely funny movie, which is to be expected of an Edgar Wright/Simon Pegg/Nick Frost collaboration. Though the film is most definitely not for younger audiences, it stands out amongst other high profile movies released this year for having a more light-hearted atmosphere and sticking with it, even as the major sub-plot continues to develop, though I can’t say the same for its final minutes. Regardless of how it ended, this is a comedy that did not disappoint.

John Dies at the End

Another good comedy movie, this one based on a book by David Wong from Cracked.com, John Dies at the End is a great blend of hilarity and horror from start to finish (it also counts for this list because even though it was initially released in 2012, its theatrical run took place in 2013). Having gotten accustomed to David Wong’s style of writing, I thought the movie, directed by Don Coscarelli of Phantasm fame, served as an enjoyable adaptation of an enjoyable book, adapting whatever worked for the medium to great effect while taking creative liberties that worked in its favor. However, it should be stressed that this is not a movie for everyone, more so than The World’s End, due to the concept, graphic imagery, and rampant cursing. In spite of this, I would recommend people in the right age group to give this movie a shot, especially if someone who is already a fan offers you the chance.

Top Games of 2013

DmC Devil May Cry

As someone who had never actually played a Devil May Cry game until this one, I actually had a fun time with it. While the controls may be a little complex and some arguably important game mechanics were missing, I enjoyed seeing how well the new version of Dante was handled, as well as the conflict that unfolded between him and his brother Vergil. While this new interpretation of the Devil May Cry mythos might upset some of the older fanbase, I found this game to be a good starting point for any newcomers and hope that any potential sequel continues to improve on what was on display.

Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time

After a few years of inactivity, we finally have a new Sly Cooper game for a new generation of PlayStation (before the PS4 came out). Even with a change in developer it feels just like a Sly Cooper game, down to the characterization and gameplay, along with a couple of extra features to keep things fresh, such as the connectivity between both the PS3 and Vita versions. Though some minor things in the plot might be a little questionable, it still feels like a natural extension of the previous game and I hope developer Sanzaru Games continues to show their passion for the Sly Cooper brand in any games in the series they might make down the line.

Penny Arcade’s On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness 4

As a fan of the Penny Arcade webcomic, I enjoyed my time playing the Rain-Slick tetralogy of games, with Episode 4 being a fitting conclusion to the story. The Pokémon-esque battle system was executed well and the characters were developed and explored rather nicely, each displaying what exactly was on the line by the end. With shocking twists combined perfectly with Penny Arcade’s brand of humor, this game deserves a spot on this list.

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons

The ideas behind Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons are not only interesting, but the game executes them really well. Even if you can’t understand what the characters are saying, there is enough in the animations that you can still understand them, not to mention there are some absolutely gorgeous background visuals that really flesh out the world. The game also has some interesting puzzle elements and the controls, while seemingly unorthodox at first, are an integral part of the experience. This is definitely a game that should not be passed up.

Top Disappointments of 2013

A Good Day to Die Hard

Having seen every Die Hard movie, including both the theatrical and uncut versions of Live Free or Die Hard, I expected this movie to continue working with what made the fourth one so good. However, A Good Day to Die Hard did not really live up to these expectations, instead having an uninteresting story with moments that feel out of place in a Die Hard flick, and on top of that the timing of the series’ well-known catchphrase was way off. If a sixth Die Hard movie ever gets made, I’m hoping it can once again raise the bar for the franchise like the fourth one did.

Star Trek Into Darkness

Since I enjoyed watching the first in the recent reboot of Star Trek movies, I expected the second of these, Star Trek Into Darkness, to take full advantage of the fact that there is now an entirely new universe to play around with. Instead, it turned out to be a remake of Wrath of Khan from the previous continuity, with some iconic scenes altered in some way. Benedict Cumberbatch did do his own take on the Khan character, but it didn’t do Ricardo Montalbán’s performance from the original series enough justice. Since there evidently won’t be a new movie in the new universe for quite some time, I’m left to wonder why there isn’t more of an effort, outside of tie-in comics, to keep fans interested in the meantime.

Man of Steel

I don’t have much personal experience with the Superman mythos, having only seen one movie all the way through and read only a handful of his stories, so I wasn’t sure what to expect out of this latest interpretation of the character, Man of Steel. This movie didn’t really do much for me, since it not only seemed to break from the whole point of the Superman character, what with people punishing him in his youth for saving lives, and felt more like an installment from the Dark Knight trilogy with Superman stuff on top of it. If this is how DC wants to begin their own version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they certainly got off to a bad start with this movie.

God of War: Ascension

My reasoning for considering this game as a disappointment is similar to why I considered Alice: Madness Returns to be one for last year, in that it mainly comes down to the gameplay, more specifically the combat, which is more akin to what’s present in the (unnecessary) multiplayer function, rather than trying to improve upon what already worked in previous entries. Aside from that are the visuals of the game, which can often seem too good (this is a rare time in all of the games I have played where a game’s imagery made me physically squirm). Ascension is otherwise an acceptable entry in the God of War franchise, even if I wasn’t expecting it to top God of War III.

Even Bigger Disappointments of 2013

My Little Pony: Equestria Girls

I wasn’t expecting much from this movie, especially given the teaser trailers, but somehow I walked away from it with even less. Though it has some real talent attached to it, it seemed like the script could have used at least one or two more re-writes before being handed over to the voice actors, since much of the plot and characterization felt rushed and the fandom nods forced, not to mention it felt more in some places like a re-telling of the first episodes of the base show, but with humans in place of ponies. The TV edit makes the overall experience better, but sadly not by much.

Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon Because I Don’t Know!

The world of Adventure Time presents many great ideas for a potential video game, with the many creative landscapes and monsters, not to mention the various RPG elements, presented in many of Finn and Jake’s adventures. A boring, repetitive dungeon crawler that punishes you for wanting to save something for later is not one of them. It may feature the original voice cast from the show and have creator Pendleton Ward as head writer, but these good elements are not enough to outweigh the bad, with the only real reason to play being to see the big reveal at the end.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

I'll admit right off the bat that I'm not a big fan of Star Trek, but this is more based on my lack of exposure to the franchise. The only other movie I've seen is the fantastic J. J. Abrams reboot and a couple of episodes of the original series here and there. Star Trek II was the only one besides the Abrams series that I had really wanted to see because I had kept hearing so many positive things about it, but only recently had I acquired a copy on DVD, specifically the extended Director's Cut. While I don't immediately wish to see more Star Trek, I have become a fan of this movie and I can see why others love it too.

The events of the movie take place 15 years after the Original Series episode Space Seed, which I had watched beforehand. The crew of the USS Reliant are searching for a lifeless planet to test something known as the Genesis Device, which can create life in an area where none exists. They stumble upon what they believe to be Ceti Alpha VI, which seems desolate enough to qualify as a candidate. However, they keep receiving a mysterious signal and decide to beam Commander Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) and Captain Clark Terrell (Paul Winfield) down to the surface to investigate. As they search the area, they run into Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán), who reveals that they are in fact on Ceti Alpha V, which Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner), now an Admiral, had exiled him to 15 years prior; Ceti Alpha VI had actually exploded, which caused his own planet to suffer greatly. He blames Kirk for everything bad that has happened to him, including the death of his wife. Khan now plans to avenge her death by eliminating Kirk, no matter what it takes, starting with a complete takeover of the Reliant.

What unfolds next is fascinating to watch. It's sort of like a classical nautical adventure, only set in the far reaches of space, pulled off by having the Federation function like an actual navy. As we learn more about the Genesis device and Khan's intentions, the plot becomes more dramatic and at times exciting. There is an interesting chemistry between Kirk and Khan that helps make this work, and the tactical thinking displayed by the two of them as they try to come up with deeper strategies is simply amazing. This carries over until the final climactic battle in a nebula, when Khan finally shows some desperation in his two-dimensional battle plan.

The way every character is portrayed helps to really sell the movie in all of its elements. Admiral James T. Kirk has to deal with being middle-aged on his birthday, something which he isn't very proud of. This is compounded by McCoy's gift of antique reading glasses, which gets used rather well as subtle symbolism of Kirk at first succumbing to old age when using them a couple of times, but then reclaiming his youth once the spectacles are cracked at the end and when he says "I feel young." Captain Spock (Leonard Nimoy) acts as a good opposite to Kirk, approaching situations with logic as opposed to letting emotions influence him. He is also shown to be very tactical as well, especially during his encoded radio communications with the Admiral as Khan listens in. Another spectacular performance shines through with Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley), who delivers some light-hearted and humorous moments to an otherwise dramatic and serious film, creating some balance that helps the movie be a classic.

Then there is, of course, Ricardo Montalbán's performance as the antagonist, Khan. Montalbán plays the character in ways that make him a very interesting villain to watch, especially how dead set he is on eliminating what he sees as his greatest enemy. His presence alone breathes a certain atmosphere into everything around him and I couldn't help but be impressed whenever he was on the screen. Khan will stop at nothing in pursuit of his prey, ignoring reasoning given to him by both Chekov and his own crew. This is done similarly to Captain Ahab from Moby Dick, whom he embodies and quotes at the right moments to sell the drama with graceful precision. It is this along with his quick and forward thinking that, to me, makes Khan a credible and memorable character that stands up well even into the present day.

But while Star Trek II has great characters, it also has some memorable and classic moments. One of these is Kirk's "Khan Scream", which has been endlessly copied, referenced, and parodied through TV and the internet (though incorrectly). I found myself dropping my jaw in awe when I first saw the Genesis chamber, with its vast, colorful space and impressive scale in relation to the characters walking into it. There are also a couple of moments within the nebula that stand out as well. The first is how Kirk and Khan both alter their strategies to suit the environment of the nebula cutting off their sensors, leading to an amazing scene where the Enterprise goes underneath the Reliant and then "surfaces" behind it to deliver a finishing blow. This works in the end since Spock reveals that Khan is used to battles in two dimensions, thus he isn't used to thinking in three, something which is alluded to near the beginning of the film with a checkerboard. The other moment in the nebula is when Spock manually fixes the core of the Enterprise's warp drive, enabling the ship to escape an explosion from Khan arming the Genesis device.

This moment, while leading to a moment of victory, shifts into the most dramatic event of the movie, which is Spock's death scene. As Kirk and Spock share this moment, the drama really sinks in and their emotions immerse the viewer into the scene. You can tell just how much Spock meant as a friend to Kirk, as what can be seen as a part of him is now gone, seemingly forever (he returns in the sequel, but that doesn't matter here). Everything about this death is pulled off fantastically, including the event leading up to it and how it is dealt with after the fact as the Admiral regains his sense of youth. Spock even delivers the closing narration.

Other things I liked about the movie were the score and visuals. The score is simply perfect as it matches the tone and fits whatever is happening at the moment. Even what can be heard from the original TV show is used well at the beginning and end. The special effects are breathtaking and surprisingly hold up even today, particularly those used to illustrate the Genesis chamber and the nebula, as well as the transformation of the space within the nebula into a planet after the Genesis device explodes aboard the Reliant. I also thought Ceti Alpha V had an impressive sandstorm on its surface. Set designs for the ships and other locations are also well-detailed, something I can also say about the costumes and props. I know this may sound like an odd way to praise a movie, but I actually found myself impressed by not only the well-framed cinematography, but also the lighting. Yes, the lighting. I felt it contributed heavily to the overall dramatic atmosphere and highlighted the mood of each scene, like those on the Reliant, perfectly.

While there are plenty of good things to say about this film, there are admittedly a couple of things that seem off a little. The costumes for the Federation for example, while offering a more timeless look that fits the naval feel, do seem a little heavy. A couple of plot holes also exist, the most glaring of which is the fact that Khan recognizes Chekov even though he wasn't in Space Seed and the fact that the USS Reliant was unable to detect that Ceti Alpha VI no longer existed. These quips are minor however and most of the holes, whatever others there may be, can be explained away logically. For instance, it is possible that Chekov was indeed on the Enterprise at the time and just not a prominent character then, but it is still odd that he of all the crew members would stand out in Khan's memory. I'll also admit that I found the pacing to be a little slow at times, but sitting through the movie is well worth it anyway.

Star Trek II is indeed a fantastic movie. Every element balances out very nicely to create an atmosphere that never ceased to amaze me. It's a film that stands out to me well beyond the realms of pop culture and I now consider it to be one of my favorite films. If you've ever been curious about The Wrath of Khan, and aren't a nitpicker or someone who doesn't like older sci-fi, then you should definitely give this film a viewing. If you don't own it, you may very well want to afterwards.