Being the youngest captain in Federation history has not stopped James Kirk from taking risks, making mistakes and suffering the consequences. But soon a bigger problem rears its head in the form of John Harrison, a rogue agent who single-handedly cripples Starfleet and threatens the safety of the whole Federation. Kirk, determined to take revenge, volunteers to take the Enterprise crew into deep space and bring Harrison to justice, but their mission puts them in the crosshairs of enemies both hidden and known, and threatens to expose some of the Federation's darkest secrets.

As the name implies, "Star Trek Into Darkness" is a darker film than its predecessor, and draws upon some of the darker chapters of "Star Trek" canon to build its stories and character arcs. There are still a lot of the fun adventure elements that made the previous film so watchable, a lot of the same humour and action, but Abrams and company had added a deep vein of seriousness to what unfolds in this film. It's not just the characters who have to face more serious threats and issues; it's impossible to watch the scenes of Harrison's carnage and not be reminded of recent events.

The plot is a marked improvement from the simple, guess-everything-from-the-trailer storyline of the previous film. There's some complexity and surprises in how events unfold, all of which is grounded in the characters and feeds back into the film's dark tone. But that complexity forces the opening act of the film to feel very rushed as a lot of exposition gets crammed into a short space of time. On top of that, the final act of the plot relies on spectacle rather than an intelligent resolution of events. While the imagery is scary and disturbing in its realism, it's also shallow and borders on the deus ex machina.

The new characters to this incarnation of the Abrams-verse are excellent, to a one. Alice Eve's Dr. Marcus defies expectations and never devolves into a shallow love interest; she's important to the story and earns her place as part of the Enterprise crew. Her father, Admiral Marcus, has a much bigger and more interesting role than trailers would have you believe. But it's Benedict Cumberbatch who steals the show, so cold and menacing in every scene. All the speculation about who the villain would be seems pointless, because Harrison as played by Cumberbatch is threatening and interesting enough in his own right.

The returning players are all strong, but like the previous film, it seems like much of the crew are sidelined, which is inevitable in a two hour film. Everyone gets their hero moments and their funny lines, but it's still the Kirk and Spock show, and Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are still great in their roles. The script gives them a lot of dramatic material to play around with, and both actors rise to the occasion: Kirk and Spock have depth and they grow throughout the film, anchoring the story with their respective journeys.

Sadly, for as much as "Star Trek Into Darkness" succeeds as a film in its own right and a sequel to the 2009 instalment, many of the more serious "Star Trek" fans will take umbrage with Abrams' reinterpretation of Trek elements. The plot takes a surprising number of cues from "Deep Space Nine", adding to the titular darkness of the story, while the themes and character arcs recall "The Wrath of Khan". Even the more casual fans will be put off by how one or two classic moments are recreated, because that recognition jars with the emotion of the scenes.