 The Search for Spock 's plot solicited comment ; Schickel called the film " overplotted " and filled with " heavy expository burdens " , comparing it to real opera . Sterritt said that the script occasionally veered in " arbitrary " directions and contained missteps , such as how the Grissom and its crew are suddenly lost , but the plot disregards their fate . Arnold wrote that Shatner missed an opportunity to act on par with The Wrath of Khan 's revelation that Kirk was David 's father . The critic considered David 's death an attempt at a similar shock , but felt it was not a success . Harry M. Geduld , writing for The Humanist , criticized the film for what he called " contradictions and implausibilities " , such as Scott 's sabotage of the Excelsior and Spock 's regeneration . 
