Weekend Movie Discussion: Star Trek Into Darkness

I'd like to think that in an alternate reality J.J. Abrams is a child. One that is in a world where they haven't got a vaccine for polio yet. There he fights day and night, managing to overcome the disease. His struggle is an inspiration to all who witness it. While mostly unscathed, he does spend the rest of his life with one stiff leg that gives him a bit of a limp. But he doesn't let that stand in his way of becoming the world's greatest doctor. The courses are hard, naturally, but that same fighting spirit that licked polio all those years ago drives him to the top of all his classes. Years later, when he's an old man, he'll stand over the body of a sick child, with a vaccine, he himself created, in his hands, ready to cure the child of a disease far worse than polio. Truly an inspired life. Tears all around. Lens flare.

I'm just saying, it'd be cool for that alternative world...

Speaking of alternative worlds and J.J. Abrams: STD is out this week. I know everyone wants to abbreviate Star Trek Into Darkness as STID, but I prefer the connotation of the other one. With the first series of movies way back yonder, it's always been widely held that there was a curse on them. Every odd Start Trek movie was bad, and every even movie, good. When Abrams released his reboot, despite the plot holes and spotty writing, he brought forth a fantastically entertaining film. It seemed the curse of odd numbers had been broken.

Or had it?

In the first film an alternative timeline is created. One that sheers off from the original line. It was a great device which allows for the freedom to take the same characters and create your own canon, free of the bind of previous continuity. However, like the alternate world that develops in the film, could we be looking at an alternate curse? I won't present any spoilers here or ruin anything, but there are a lot of negative opinions on the new film. Don't get me wrong, there's good too, but a lot of bad word of mouth. Could it be that for an alternative timeline of Trek movies, we might be looking at a curse that ruins even number films?

Only time will tell.

And by time I mean there'll pretty much be a general consensus by the weekends end.

What are your plans this weekend? Seeing Star Trek? Already seen it? What's your favorite film in the franchise? (Mine is 4)