Like Captain Ahab, Khan is such a larger-than-life character that he has stood the test of time. “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” focuses on the repercussions of Khan’s effect on the world through the eyes of his descendant, La’an Noonien Singh (Christina Chong). Khan’s devotion to genetically augmenting the human race defines him, and he never changes his mind. Similarly, Ahab is as vitriolic as he was when he first started hunting the whale. He fails to kill Moby-Dick and watches it destroy his ship and most of his men. Even so, he uses his final moments to curse the whale. He understands his fate, but wouldn’t change anything. This is also the place that we leave Khan at the end of “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.”
After sustaining injuries on his ship, he shows no remorse for what he did. His actions directly cause Spock’s (Leonard Nimoy) death and reaffirm he was only ever interested in world domination. He dies, cursing Kirk while he himself is the one who caused his downfall. He dies as he lived, full of hate. The tragedy of it all is that he could have turned back at any moment. But like Ahab, his fate was to be drowned by his own revenge.
