It's probably safe to say that most of the Friday the 13th franchise would fit into the category of "Sequels the World Didn't Need." Most horror and slasher sequels as a whole, really, would fit in that category. Friday the 13th though had some real bad ones, and to be honest the original isn't anything to marvel at either.
Among the most ridiculous Friday the 13th sequels would be Jason Takes Manhattan and Jason Goes to Hell, with The New Blood worming its way in there as well. There is one film in the franchise though that seems to be on just a completely new level. It's the final Friday the 13th film before Freddy vs. Jason, it's the only space science fiction installment of the series, and it blows the entire series out of the water in terms of entertainment. While it may not be traditionally "good," it may also be a masterpiece.
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2001's Jason X is the tenth installment of the Friday the 13th series. It comes eight years after Jason Goes To Hell, but it's set far into the future in 2455. By 2455, Earth is not a viable place to live so humanity now resides on Earth 2. A group of students however have taken a field trip to Earth, and find a cryogenically frozen Jason from the year 2010. He's brought upon their spaceship, is dethawed, and of course, subsequently starts to kill them one-by-one.
On the surface, this is a horrible movie and possibly the worst in the franchise. It's a completely ridiculous plot, with characters that aren't easy to care about. The special effects are weird and the acting is awful, and a lot of it just feels really stupid. However, many people who are a fan of the franchise actually cite this as one of their favorites, and there are a few interesting and fun reasons as to why.
Firstly, the film doesn't take itself too seriously. Because it is such a ridiculous and stupid plot, with eye-roll-inducing characters and acting, this is key to making it enjoyable. It really plays into how wacky and cheesy it naturally is. That gives it less of a cringey and unwatchable vibe, and more of a campy and fun vibe. It's easy to watch and in a way, it feels self-aware. It knows that it's dumb and it's making fun of not only itself as a movie, but the franchise as a whole.
While most of the characters are a big write-off, the two most important ones are nailed. Not only is Jason a cryogenically frozen being who is dethawed and let loose, but so is the final girl. She's named Rowan and she's the scientist who originally suggested freezing him. While the process was happening, Jason stabbed her with his machete and they both ended up stuck in time. In this film, she's completely badass. She's tough, she's smart, and it's a joy to watch.
Jason Voorhees, the reason anyone even watches the Friday the 13th films, is also incredible in this movie. He's played by Kane Hodder, arguably the most popular Jason. While he's kind of his typical self for the first part of Jason X, it's the last section that gets really cool. At one point in the film, he transforms into this superhuman cyborg Jason. It's a departure from the zombie-like Jason fans are used to. He's overpowered and extremely over the top, and it makes for a very entertaining film. It also adds to the sort of tongue-in-cheek tone and the overall campiness of Jason X which is its best asset.
Jason X has some of the best Jason kills in the entirety of the franchise. While this sounds sort of weird to list as a positive, kills are ultimately the reason people like slasher films. And this movie has some great ones. Towards the beginning of the movie, Jason freezes someone's entire head in liquid nitrogen and then smashes it, which is a very effective and cool scene. There's also one moment in a particularly funny scene where Jason is in a simulation of his old stomping ground, Camp Crystal Lake. In his simulation, he's taunted by two very attractive, and very stupid, camp counselors. He of course has to kill them, and it's done in one of the funniest ways imaginable.
This movie is often written off for its cheesiness and the outlandish plot, but in hindsight it really is kind of a gem. Maybe that's giving it too much credit and all of the endearing badness really was the filmmakers trying to make something good, but that just feels unlikely. Whether it was accidental brilliance or not, it still stands out in its otherwise kind of stale franchise as something fun that breaks out of the formula. And outside of Friday the 13th, it is a unique watch in general. While it was never going to win any Oscars, it definitely wins over its viewers in a really enjoyable way.
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