Ranking every Star Trek film in franchise history according to metrics

American actors Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, Walter Koenig, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, and Canadian William Shatner on the set of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (Photo by Paramount Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images)
American actors Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, Walter Koenig, DeForest Kelley, Nichelle Nichols, and Canadian William Shatner on the set of Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (Photo by Paramount Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images) /
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Canadian actor William Shatner with actor and director Leonard Nimoy on the set of his movie Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. (Photo by Paramount Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images)
Canadian actor William Shatner with actor and director Leonard Nimoy on the set of his movie Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. (Photo by Paramount Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images) /

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home

Final Score: 78.85

For those who don’t know, the Voyage Home is the one where the crew goes back in time to find whales. It’s more in-depth than that, sure. The plot follows the remaining members of the Enterprise bridge crew after the return of Spock in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Stuck on Vulcan and wanted by the Federation, for stealing a ship, the crew then steals another ship (a Klingon one to boot) and goes back in time to save the whales.

Fans *LOVE* this film, and I’ve personally started it six times, failing at not falling asleep by 20 minutes in each time (though I’ve finished it at least twice). Want more proof I had no hand in the final scores? If I did this would be right next to Beyond, Nemesis, and the Final Frontier.

Admittedly, it’s far more light-hearted and offers far more comedic scenes for fans to sink their teeth into, so for that reason, it’s a good palate cleanser.  After all, Wrath of Khan saw so many people get their ears violated by worms and the Search for Spock saw Kirk painfully lose his son and then barely care about it by the end of the film.

So this light-hearted romp around 1980s San Francisco may have been needed. At the very least, more needed than Beyond.