Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Alright, I fully admit that by doing a marathon on all of the Star Trek movies, I am stepping completely outside of our stated genre, but as a life long Trekkie, this simply had to happen. Given the success of this franchise, I'm betting that at least a few of our readers are also Star Trek fans. Of course, I will stick to the usual social justice perspective, as we work our way through the series.

Star Trek II The Wrath of Khan has Ricardo Montalban reprising his role as Khan Noonien Singh. The character first appeared in "Space Seed". Khan is a genetically engineered human from India.  When he is awoken from suspended animation, instead of being thankful, Khan attempts to take over the Enterprise and as a result, Kirk maroons him on Ceti Alpha V.  Stark Trek II the Wrath of Khan begins with Chekov on a scouting mission, for a planet which meets the parameters of  the Genesis project.  He mistakenly beams onto Ceti Alpha V and is captured by Khan, who implants an alien in his ear, along with that of his captain and thus begins his plan to get revenge upon Kirk.

I have to pause to say that the entire start of this saga is absolutely faulty.  How could Chekov not remember or realize where he landed in the first place?  The set up was absolutely thin at best and was a weak excuse to introduce Khan into the story. Is this the reason Chekov didn't make captain like Sulu?

Kirk is beginning to feel his age and though the promotion to Admiral is something Kirk viewed as a positive, the end result is that it keeps him landed. At the very first opportunity, Kirk quickly takes over command of the Enterprise, though he no longer possess intimate knowledge of the ship's capabilities. In many ways, this reads as a man desperately trying to prove that he is still vital and capable.

 Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, is a test of wills - a contest of masculinity.  For Khan, Kirk represents Moby Dick,  so much so that Khan's last line is, "from hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee" —Moby-Dick, Chapter 135.  Though Khan has a ship and Genesis - everything he needs to start fresh, he simply cannot let go of his desire for revenge and it is in the end his undoing. 

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is very much about hyper masculinity.  What constitutes manhood and how does one prove it?  Kirk as the White male of course represents the best of what masculinity has to offer and Khan, the man of colour cannot help but to be secondary.  In many ways, Khan's race makes him just as much "other" as Spock, with the difference being that Khan refuses to be submissive to Kirk.  Khan would rather die on the Reliant than surrender. Only those who follow the headship of Kirk can possibly be considered good and this justified through the approved hierarchy of the Federation and thus once again, we have White male leadership affirmed.