An Old Star Trek Episode Answers A Common Question About Wrath Of Khan

"Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" is why people remember Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán) as the greatest enemy of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner). Previously, Khan was only in one episode of the original "Star Trek" — "Space Seed." It's a memorable episode, but still just an episode. Indeed, part of the impetus in "Wrath of Khan" is how what became a defining event in Khan's life was just another day on the job for Kirk.

Khan is a genetically-engineered superhuman from the 20th Century who, in the 1990s, ruled a quarter of the world beside his fellow Augments. ("Star Trek" was created in the 1960s; later shows like "Strange New Worlds" have had to revise this timeline.) When they were overthrown, they fled into space, never to be seen until the year 2266 when the Enterprise discovered their ship, the SS Botany Bay.

In "Space Seed," Khan is the first augment woken from cryo-sleep and plots to take over the Enterprise. He and Kirk spend plenty of time face-to-face, culminating in a fist fight (Kirk narrowly wins) and Kirk sentencing Khan to "rule in Hell" on untamed world Ceti Alpha V.

In "Wrath of Khan" though, the two never actually share the screen. The closest they come to a face-to-face dialogue is about halfway through the movie; after Khan's hijacked starship the Reliant disables the Enterprise, he and Kirk talk over viewscreens. It's a marvelous scene, with Montalbán savoring his every line just like Khan is savoring his 15-years-cold revenge.

"Wrath of Khan" went through many revisions before the final draft (one version reportedly had Kirk and Khan sword-fighting). How did the final iteration end up keeping its hero and villain separated? According to Harve Bennett. it's all explained in "Space Seed."

Bennett (who passed away in 2015) spoke with StarTrek.com in 2010 about "Wrath of Khan." One question posed is why Kirk and Khan never got a physical final showdown. Bennett, who declared he "wouldn't change a thing" about how the movie handled this, explained:

"Khan is a superman. He was [genetically] engineered to be invulnerable. That would have given him a tremendous advantage if we'd chosen to put him in the same place as Kirk. We just felt that if they never saw each other, except on screens, it'd work better. You had the distance of time –- the [15] years since they'd seen each other –- and the physical distance of space."

In Khan's introduction scene, the movie shows off his strength when he lifts Mr. Chekov (Walter Koening) off the ground with one hand. Unlike 2013's "Star Trek Into Darkness" (a pseudo "Wrath of Khan" remake), that's it; there's no scene of Khan slaughtering dozens of men single-handedly to show off his superior strength. That small taste, though, is enough to demonstrate the physical threat he poses.

In "Space Seed," Kirk only defeats Khan by repeatedly bashing him over the head with a metal pipe. Khan also bends Kirk's phaser with only his hands. In "Wrath of Khan," Kirk is aging and past his prime; showing him as an action hero would undermine that. It's truer to the film's themes that he wins by his wits — and Spock's emotional sacrifice.

Shatner has confirmed that he and Montalbán had to communicate "long distance" due to them never sharing a scene in "Wrath of Khan." Even so, that did nothing to weaken the power of Kirk and Khan's battle.