You Klingon bastards! Kirk gets personal. It is what it is folks, it's a good honest Star Trek story, it beats a real emotive heart and although some may decry the lack of blistering space battles, or end of the universe peril scenarios, it's an essential film for dealing with the protagonists we know and love. Into the mix here we have our favourite alien enemies The Klingons (led by the oddly cast Christopher Lloyd), Spock's father, Sarek, who adds grace to the story, and crucially Kirk gets an emotional kicker. While elsewhere hardcore fans get a big surprise with the beloved Enterprise. It's of course merely a set up for the next (and delightfully great) instalment of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, but on its own terms this stands up as one of the better character pieces in the series. Due in no small part to having Leonard Nimoy directing it because he shows care and thought about a subject he obviously knows quite a bit about. 7/10

I kind of feel that this gets a lot more hate than it deserves... because it follows Kahn and because it rewrites an emotional death. I know, I know, I love Spock too, but, really, should have left him dead. That was part of the emotional roller coaster of II. But, they didn't and that does sort of cheapen Kahn a bit. However, it's really not a bad entry on it's own. It's a solid film. It just followed the greatest of the bunch and pales in comparison.