Star Trek Beyond: A Review

Despite my reservations about it, Star Trek Beyond was not the joke of a Star Trek film I thought it would be. Obviously there more than a number of canonical flaws, this being a reboot series set in an alternate timeline that seems to have every little concern for what came before it, other than the memes. However, I will over look those flaws for something I have wanted out this new series since the very beginning, that it be Star Trek and not Star Wars.

So what was good and what was bad? Lets look at the bad first:

The Bad

• The worst part of this film was the villain, "Krall". A former "Starfleet Officer" for the 2160s (Star Trek: Enterprise era). His ship and crew crash landed on a planet populated by worker robots from a civilization that had abandoned them long ago. Heavily mutated by the ancient technology that allowed them to extend life, he planned his revenge on the "Federation" for "abandoning" him there. basically he is disgruntled officer who decided to shoot up his old office. Also his philosophy made no sense, then again he's basically a raving mad man.

The Good

• The best thing about this film was, instead of shooting their way out, the crew used their skills and resourcefulness to not only escape the planet after "Krall" attacked the Enterprise, but also to prevent his plan of revenge from coming to fruition. It was refreshing to have bar raised and appeal to what Star Trek fans have been asking for.
• Credit must also be given to the handling of "Dr. McCoy" and "Spock" by the actors and writers. The banter between the two of them was superb. Their silent respect for one another and constant back another arguing was beautifully reminiscent of the original show. All the actors portrayed their parts superbly, even "Kirk" was more like his character than memes about him.

Conclusion

This is not a perfect Star Trek, most of the films aren't, but this one lightyears ahead of it's predecessor. Star Trek from it's inception was meant to be a TV show, it's episodic nature and character development don't a good source from which films can be made, unless your willing to make a lot of them. Star Trek Beyond is a step in the right direction, solving problems intelligently with rich and interesting characters. If they can continue on this line, then there is hope for the future of the franchise.

A Quick Thought: Star Trek Beyond

The controversy surrounding the new Star Trek film deals with character of Sulu being portrayed as  a gay man. According to the film thos is to bring LGBT representation into the film and is the fist LGBT character in Star Trek. However, George Takie, who played Sulu in the orgininal series, disagrees with this, saying that it is unfortunate and doesn't fit with Rodenberry's vision.

As a long time fan of of the series, I must agree with Mr. Takie, infact I would consider extremely lazy writing. Star Trek has never shied away from portraying controversial issues, in fact on "The Next Generation" and "Deep Space Nine", LGBT issues were looked in at least two episodes. This is just a shoehorn for the sake of political correctness, rather then taking on the social issue in a creative way.

In Gene Rodenberry's vision, someone being gay would be a nonissue. People of the 23ird and 24th centuries wouldn't have cared, just like Picard's bald head.I understand the creative license of an alternate universe, however the events that created it would not have changed everything, you are still bound by certain rules.