Star Trek III and IV

Onto the third and fourth installments in the Star Trek film franchise. Now although Star Trek III: The Search for Spock was certainly faster-paced than the first film in the series, most people who have seen these films generally regard the odd-numbered entries to be worse than even-numbered ones, and I think this is certainly a fair summary when it comes to this film in particular. Sure, the whole Spock being reborn premise is a bit flimsy, but that's not what really makes this film odd. No, it's everything from the casting (recasting Saavik and making Christopher Lloyd a Klingon were both poor decisions), to the plot and the general scope of the whole film when compared with its predecessor. Ultimately, the film's not horrible, it's just horribly forgettable.

Then there's Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, arguably the last in the trilogy comprising the second through fourth installments. Yeah, there's the time travel back to San Francisco in the 80's; yeah, the film's generally really cheesy; yeah, it's about whales and was therefore essentially a glorified PETA ad; but ultimately, this film is so enjoyable that you just forgive all these possible missteps. Seeing Spock and the rest of the crew in 1980's America is just too priceless to give up. Sure, it doesn't feel like it belongs with the other films (kinda like the Star Trek equivalent of a What If...? comic in the Marvel Universe), but damn it, this is just a fun movie! =)