Star Trek Vengeance

A necessary edit of one of the weirdest Star Trek films. TM2YC clears up a lot of the oddities in the script, particularly the bizarre conflict between Kirk and Spock. Reducing Khan's fan service elements makes the whole experience move much more smoothly. Unfortunately, I will always have issues with core elements of this film, but TM2YC has done a great job at making this movie significantly more watchable and in line with the tone of the other Kelvin universe films.

This is a great edit, expertly handled to create a movie far superior to the original.
I'm definitely in the camp of those who were very disappointed with Into Darkness when I first saw it at the cinema, the worst flaw for me (amongst many) being that it felt like a shameless 'greatest hits' rip off (KHAN!!!!)
Kirk's death scene had little emotional impact, because it hadn't earned it. Kirk and Spock didn't seem to have known each other for very long or have much of a friendship. Although the film grew on me with time, really I only tolerated it.
Well I'm happy to say that TM2YC has done an amazing job and showed that there was a great movie under there all the time. The movie has a theme now - Vengeance. The narrative is so much better, the story is no longer muddled and all over the place. The crew seem like they've been together a while (not just 5 minutes after the last film) Kirk and Spock's characters are vastly improved, they seem like friends and Kirk's death genuinely has an emotional impact now. For me this edit has taken a 6/10 movie up to a 9/10 enjoyment wise. I think he's succeeded in all of the things he set out to do with it.
I watched both the bluray and 720p MP4. I've seen it 3 times now, which is the same amount of times I watched ITD. It's improved each time. I think a fanedit (usually) deserves at least 2 watches before making your mind up as you'll often remember what happened before and what's been cut, and (for me at least) it takes a couple of watches to start overwriting the old version in my mind. Of course there's still some flaws in the film that can't be changed, just bad writing or casting in the original movie, but I feel like I can live with them more now.
TM2YC's Video editing is seamless, beautifully done. There's a couple of bits (very rare) where there's a noticeable cut but they have to be like that to make the narrative work. Nothing too major anyhow. After I'd watched it the first time, I then read through his entire list of changes and what TM2YC has accomplished is just amazing. He's done so much more than I ever noticed, which is a testament to how well he's edited it. Love the colour correction too.
The sound editing is good. I liked his moving of small amounts of dialogue to other scenes, worked well. New music was fine for the most part. And I think it's a Stereo mix, could be wrong. Most of the audio was fine, although some talking scenes seemed a little quiet now and again. But overall, very good.
There were a couple of things that I was not sure about. I agree with some other reviewers that the line "it's gonna be alright son" (said in the bar scene by Pike) and the look Kirk gives back feels a little out of place in the new narrative. Although, who knows perhaps TM2YC tried it differently and it didn't work.
Also the scene where Spock and Urura kiss also seems out of place, the edit could easily do without it. And finally right at the end of the Spock/Khan fight, I did wonder whether Spock would/should still be as uncontrolled and violent given the new narrative? Still not sure. And at the point where Uhura tells Spock to stop, perhaps they could've just had one look back and forth before he takes him down?
But anyway these issues are tiny compared to just how great this edit is. It's excellent and I can now proudly display it on my shelf.
TM2YC has managed to drag this movie firmly out of the darkness and into the light. Well done TM2YC, and thank you!

Into Darkness is a mess of a film. Lots of great moments and scenes and characters, but its bogged down by fifty extra sub plots, a main plot that doesn't make much sense, a lack of overall focus, and a really contrived and awful ending (I don't know about you, but its totally in Spock's character to beat a man within an inch of his life). So I haven't seen the original film in maybe a year or more, so I was ready to be blown away by TM2YC as I often am. Star Trek Vengeance fixes and improves upon most of Into Darkness' original problems!

I was surprised at how much I found myself enjoying the edit. I was trying to remember any differences between this and the original movie (beyond obvious omissions like the strip tease scene, the Kirk bedding two cat ladies scene, and the Nimoy scenes). One specific thing I remember in the original film was that Spock and Kirk were always at each other's throats, which made no sense and was clunky and confused. TM2YC has streamlined that friendship and made them so much more believable! I had to look at the cutlist and rewatch parts of the original film to get a full sense of how this relationship was changed. Also, I had forgotten about the terribly awful Spock/Uhura sub plot, and its omission is a blessing. Now they both feel like real people and not a movie-couple! So much effort was put into this edit, and every single cut made payed off. Vengeance is a great follow-up to 2009 Trek.

I think my only criticism is something that might not have been fixable. I absolutely despise the final action scene, Spock chasing down Khan and punching him forever (and my brain is telling me that Spock starts swearing at Khan). I'm curious if there may have been a way to omit this sequence and somehow end the movie differently. That being said, the small but amazing cuts made to this sequence made it much more enjoyable for me, though I still wasn't a fan. That might be personal preference, and it might not be possible to change that ending. But I must reiterate, this edit is great and needs to go into any modern-Trek lover's library.

When Star Trek into Darkness originally came out, I remember it being touted as being the movie to save hollywood that year. It definitely isn't a perfect film and has many loopholes, but I remember enjoying watching it in the theater. Hearing that TM2YC was attempting to fix some of those loopholes, I have been extremely excited to see this edit.

All review content is based on the 18gb Blu Ray AC3 Stereo edition and will focus on the main rating categories. This review will also attempt to be spoiler free until the narrative section.

Audio/Video Quality: 9/10
The AC3 audio sounds great.
The video quality is crisp and clear with only slight blocking during scenes that have a lot of particle effects and or movement (ala Nibiru chase scenes).

Visual Editing: 9/10
TM2YC's visual editing is seamless. Added components such as smoke overlays, new title sequences, removal of ships, etc. are completely natural looking as if they always occurred in the film. This is a textbook example. The color grade is fantastic. I find that I am noticing more in this film because of the more accurate coloring. There may be a bit too much yellow for my eyes, but this is far superior to the official release.

Audio Editing: 9/10
Audio transitions during edited scenes are near flawless in this edit. The only real issue I have with the audio is during the ending of Pike's chastising of Kirk. The audio switch used to end the scene feels a bit off due to the same cue being heard in the following scene. This is more an issue of personal taste though as the execution is flawless.

Narrative: 8/10 *Spoiler Alert*
The main changes to the narrative are handled well in this edit. This is a more streamlined presentation that focuses on the core story and removes content that would otherwise distract from or add to the main focus. The rearranging of certain scenes works great and helps establish certain key elements of this edit.

The beginning scenes of the movie seem to have an extra sense of freneticism due to some editing choices. I personally like the lines regarding the prime directive that were omitted and felt that they helped to strengthen the connection to the OT and its characters. I also feel like this omission removes some of the key components of the OT triangle; Kirk (heroism), Spock (logic), McCoy (compassion). One area that doesn't seem to fit the narrative is Pike's line "It's going to be ok son" around the 20 minute mark. Since there is no demotion, this line doesn't feel right or needed. Speaking of the no demotion of Kirk, this is handled superbly and all scenes concerning this scene have been expertly edited. The added components to the meeting ambush help to create a greater sense of tension and loss which enhance the impact of the scene. Edit choices throughout appear to follow the "Faster, more intense" mindset. While it works to progress the story and cut side plot material and character development, I found myself missing omitted scenes. Certain dialogue such as Spock's line about incurring the rage of Uhura doesn't quite make sense without the lovers quarrel scene that was removed. Again, this is a personal preference.

*EDIT*
Upon further watches I noticed that the security guards are sitting in the cockpit with Kirk, Spock & Uhura. It totally makes sense that Spock would not divulge such in their presence as it wouldn't be appropriate. Good edit TM2YC! The inclusion of the deleted scenes are absolutely fantastic and placed expertly to advance and enhance the story.

While this edit does a fantastic job at removing the confusing choice to demote and promote Kirk in the same movie, I had hoped that Kirk's death could have received a more believable resolution. This is no fault of TM2YC as the source material does not allow for such at the moment. While I find that I actually might prefer the original cut more, this was a fun ride and an excellent example of what a quality fan edit should look, sound, and feel like. Thank you TM2YC!

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoyed this movie and would like a fresh take on it, tolerated this movie but wished for similar changes, and any aspiring faneditor who would like to view an example of superb craftsmanship.

Count me firmly in the "liked it" camp. In fact, when I first saw Into Darkness, I thought it might even be better than its predecessor (and this is coming from someone who LOVED ST09 - it's my favorite Trek film). Since then, watching it again, is it perfect? No. Some plot contrivances become more obvious upon repeat viewings, and character regressions become more eyeball worthy. Still, is STID a fun and completely watchable flick? Definitely. So while many have clamored for an edit for awhile, I have not. But I'm more than welcoming to Vengeance, which brings the film damn near close to the best it can be.

First of all, all the nips and tucks done, whether to remove weird lines or fix reactions or pacing - perfect and completely seamless. In many cases they do what they set out to do like a trick, keeping things going. In most cases you won't even notice. Most of the edit is comprised of these types of tweaks, to the point where, even though 15 minutes have been removed, if you didn't know better you'd probably never notice. Which is of course the true sign of a great fan edit.

The opening scene works this way, and is in many ways faster and more fun than the original. Not in all ways because unfortunately, the resequenced reveal of the Enterprise emerging from the water to save Spock is sort of ruined, pacing-wise, in comparison to the original. Still, I love the reinsertion of the deleted scene (even if the musical scoring isn't quite what I would have done), and the new title is very well done.

Moving on, removing Kirk's demotion is handled quite well and does a good deal to improve the film in regards to Kirk and Spock's character. Kirk doesn't need to be sent to his room for him to learn his lesson, so the change is nice, in addition to removing the redundancy of getting his rank back later. Unfortunately there's a slight oddity because of this when Kirk says that only he can go get Harrison, but I suppose its not all that different from the original. More odd is the bar scene. The intention of the editing is clear, but you can't remove Pine's smile to make Kirk reaction go from feeling comforted to feeling guilty. The real winner of the demotion change though is the scene in which Kirk asks Spock why he saved him which is expertly done and really frames their relationship in this film very well.

Spock's handling of his emotions is a big through line in the original and here, with a key scene being his discussion with Uhura on the ship en route to Kronos. That scene is cut here, mostly because of what it does to Uhura's character. Going it to this edit, I was okay with that. Watching, the edit is, of course, seamless, and helps keep the film going at a breakneck pace. Problem is, though, once the film has come full circle and Spock is watching Kirk die, the emotional through line kind of falls apart. The scene on the ship is crucial not just to establish and deepen Spock's handling of his feelings post-Vulcan, but also to have a pause in the action for some depth, and to remind us where the characters are coming from emotionally. Ultimately, I think removing the scene is a mistake, regardless of how it treats Uhura. The Spock/Kirk dynamic is simply more important to this film and isn't quite there without this crucial element. (As well, Uhura kissing Spock after they get back on the Enterprise just seems contextless and random.)

Still, Kirk's death works fine here and in many ways much better than in the theatrical cut due to the relequencing of Bones's super-blood discovery. I mean, this is it, guys, this is the reason you need to see this edit. I'm not one who ever cared much about the Wrath of Khan rip-off critique because, frankly, I think it's not really there. Still, I can't deny the original's Kirk death and resurrection is a bit misguided. Well, it can't be removed, but it can be improved. It's so simple, really, and the changes are actually quite subtle, but what's done here is the final bit of the climax has been given a much needed boost of excitement and tension and plain heroism. It just works.

So yeah, overall, this is a great edit. On the technical side, yes the scene where Scotty resigns is out of sync. As well, for the most part I like the regrade (and appreciate that the vibrancy is still there), though I think it could have gone a bit farther. Shadows are still far too blue, and a couple deleted scene shots don't look quite right (Kirk's shirt almost green in the first scene, Scotty's face a little too desaturated in the one where he finds the Vengeance). Otherwise, though, the technical proficiency of this edit is top shelf. And it's just damn fun too. Recommended.