Khan Noonien Singh
After five television series and 11 films, the “Star Trek” universe packs hundreds of baddies. The level of villainy varies, but when it comes to pure revenge-fueled rage, none can compete with Khan Noonien Singh. The genetically-enhanced superhuman first made his imposing presence known in a one-off episode of the original “Trek” series, later realized his full ruthless potential in “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.” Years of exile, courtesy of Captain Kirk, left Khan boasting a bloodlust (not to mention one heck of a mullet and ample man-cleavage) that led him to torture and destroy anyone standing between him and his ultimate vengeance. While the Melville-quoting madman fell short of his kill-Kirk goal, Kahn eliminated Spock and inspired
the greatest Kirkism in “Trek” history.
The Borg
Resistance is futile, but surrender isn’t much better when it comes to the assimilation-centric Borg. The cold, detached bio-technological race sought perfection by forcibly absorbing other civilizations into their drone collective. That process included lopping off limbs, removing superfluous eyes, and doing away with whatever other bits of body the Borg deem worthless in favor of cybernetic implants and built-in weapons. And since emotions don’t play a part in an effective hive mind, the Borg eagerly destroyed those who interfered with their genocide-for-the-greater-good plan. There’s virtually no way to best them, unless of course you’re a Starfleet captain, in which case bringing down the entire Borg nation is a doable endeavor — if you’re willing to spare a few red shirts and some of your own factory-original parts.
Kevin Uxbridge
It almost seems unfair to call Kevin Uxbridge a villain. After all, the immortal Douwd from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” spent most of his existence as a pacifist. He sure seemed like a nice guy when Picard and crew came upon him on a mysteriously vacant planet. Then again, what Uxbridge lacked in overt evil, he more than made up for by bagging the single largest body count in “Star Trek” history. His strict no-kill policy hit a snag when a band of Husnocks destroyed everyone on his planet, including his beloved bride Rishon. The act drove Uxbridge insane and “in an instant of grief,” he killed the Husnocks — not just the particular evildoers responsible for the carnage, but all 50 billion members of the Husnock race.
Weyoun
The Cardassians, the Jem’Hadar, the Founders — all the biggest threats in “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” had one common link: Weyoun, or more accurately, Weyouns. The fin-faced Dominion diplomat cheated many deaths thanks to the convenience of cloning. Though he rarely had blood on his own hands, the soft-spoken master manipulator convinced others to take on his dirty work while he acted as a loyal servant to his Founder gods and cruel master to his Jem’Hadar junkies. Weyoun maintained his status as official thorn in the side of the Federation during all but one of his incarnations, the defectively pleasant and short-lived Weyoun 6, and brought a sense of grace to the business of badness.
The Vidiians
A civilization made up entirely of plague-stricken beings generally deserves sympathy. But the Vidiians of “Star Trek: Voyager” traded any claim on compassion by harvesting organs from unwilling donors. Suffering from the incurable, tissue-devouring Phage, the Vidiians pirated a lung here and some skin there in an endless effort to buy themselves more time. If butchering their way through the Delta Quadrant didn’t make them frightening enough, their method of organ extraction upped the fear factor. Using transporter technology, the Vidiians could steal an eye in an instant, without ever warning their victims that dismemberment was a moment away.
© 2013 msnbc.com.
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