This post is dedicated to the amazing desdike.

Before I get started, let me just warn folks that this topic of discussion – the Star Trek Ongoing comic series – can be potentially spoilery, given the scattering of clues JJ has left for us in regards to the movie coming out in May. So, with that in mind, I will avoid the outright claiming of certain details as connected to STXII in the body of this post.

But that’s not to say I don’t want to speculate, y’all!

Hence there will be two comment threads below: one for non-spoilery, why-did-they-go-this-route? talk, and one for spoilers and speculation about STXII. I don’t mind bouncing back and forth between them. Just comment under the one that’s relevant.

That said, let me start! I’m not going to recap completely – ’cause Lord knows that would take forever – just point out interesting or disturbing things that caught my attention and any thoughts as both a TOS-lover and an advocate of AOS. Though I have read up to comic #17, I will limit my talk to comics #1 through #16. :)

#1 – #2: Star Trek Ongoing

This really should have been titled Remake of Where No Man Has Gone Before. We meet two of Kirk’s Academy buddies, Gary Mitchell and Kelso (I forgot his first name… oops). I gotta tell you, I wasn’t surprised this is where they started the series. Of course there are some differences right away: Spock is already First Officer and Gary is not happy about not being part of the senior command team and not afraid to tell Kirk that either. Then Gary gets taken over by you-know-what and becomes creepy with god-like powers. I’m sure the irony isn’t lost on anyone when Spock advises his captain to strand Mitchell on Delta Vega. Poor Kirk. Gary is his friend.

What made me raise my eyebrow was the scene where Kirk faced off with Mitchell and Gary showed him their past together. In particular he insinuated that he “slipped” Jim answers to an exam test? …Hrm. Not sure what to make of that.

Unfortunately, I was very disappointed by the lack of Elizabeth Dehner. She gets a mention in passing (apparently having had a relationship with McCoy at some point? what?) and basically is cut out completely from the storyline! *sadface*

Other than the end, wherein Spock offers to play chess with Kirk (in lieu of the dead Mitchell who played with Kirk and beat him, too), I wasn’t too impressed by this first tackle at Rebooted canon. Then again, I suppose we would want some things in the universe to stay the same…

#3 – #4: The Galileo Seven

The reason this is one of my favorite TOS episodes is because it’s a character study in Spock AND it’s the first time we really see that lack of understanding between McCoy and Spock which usually sets them at odds. It’s the same in the comics, apparently. :)

Noteworthy here is Rand! With a better hairstyle! It’s so nice to see her on a mission and not simply serving coffee to Kirk or trying to force-feed him salad. I approve, JJ!

For the most part, this episode follows its predecessor up until the point where Spock volunteers himself to be left behind AND, more surprisingly, Uhura abandons her post and steals a shuttle to save him. Now, in my heart of hearts, I know and love that Uhura is a strong, brave woman. Was she ever cowed by a bad guy in TOS? Hell no! But this… this didn’t sit right with me. I think it’s because I would expect Jim to go off the fly and pull a stunt that’s a court-marital waiting to happen. I will say that Abramsverse is going out of its way to establish Uhura as a key player in AOS events. The question becomes… is it done with the right intentions? (And there’d better be no sacrificing of McCoy along the way!)

#5 – #6: Operation: Annihilate

Oh my. What a big one to tackle! This is such a cornerstone episode in TOS for a lot of reasons, mainly to bring on the Kirk!whumpage. I have to say, I appreciated a lot of what came out of this Rebooted version. We finally have some mysteries solved about Jim’s past. Some of them did prove my head-canon wrong, sadly, but I can appreciate a new view.

Most notably about James T. Kirk’s past:
1. Frank is Jim’s uncle, not his stepfather. (Damn, this just invalidated a lot of h/c fics.)
2. Jim’s brother still goes by George (like in TOS) and not Sam. (Double damn! I would think poor George is gonna have a lot of issues with sharing the same name as his dead heroic father.)
3. Frank is still an a-hole. And probably an abusive a-hole.
4. Sam, er, I mean George did leave Jim and Winona, going to stay with his grandfather. Jim kinda hates him for abandoning them. So there’s that, at least, my dears. :/

By the end of this storyline we have a brotherly reunion and nobody in Kirk’s family dies. Really, y’all… need I say more?

It’s worth mentioning I was creeped out by the way the parasites (or singular cells, however you want to think of them) infected their hosts – by literally engulfing their heads. McCoy had to use a scalpel to cut Spock out! My god! Would it have been done this way if the ’60s tv show low-budget props allowed for it? I have to wonder. A lot of things are visualized better in AOS, I have to say.

Lastly, Spock puts himself in a light-exposure chamber without consulting anyone beforehand. McCoy catches him in the act. It’s the third time (or more?) Spock has put himself in the direct line of danger. *shakes head in disappointment at Spock*

As with TOS, Spock’s blindness is temporary, but kudos on this take because his eyesight comes back gradually rather than being a miracle of miracles. (Though I miss the by-play about Vulcan eyes and Vulcan ears!)

#7 – #8: Vulcan’s Vengenance

Sigh.

Talk about out of left field. Okay, I can buy that some Vulcans would go as crazy as Nero did after experiencing the destruction of their homeworld and loved ones, BUT THE EXECUTION OF THIS PLOT CONFUSED ME. I mean, it really did. Probably it was Sarek which confused me most. We only get the one part where Spock sees his father is behind the plot to destroy Romulus and then the next thing we know is Spock somehow convinced him otherwise, with no further details! I needed those details mainly to buy into why Sarek was acting like a would-be murderer of billions of innocent people. What explanation/repercussions we did get was not satisfying. I felt like it was a handy plot device involving a well-known character and then any misdeeds were brushed under the rug.

IDK. Can someone explain what I missed here?

Something interesting to note is Spock’s threat to the Vulcan they interrogated. He said, “Despite the bond we share, I could ask the Captain to forcibly restrain you. I could then mind-meld with you to obtain the information we seek.”

Eek, Spock. This harkens back to one of the six movies where Spock did forcibly take information from his protege who had betrayed him. That never sat well with me, so here I was wondering if Spock would really make good on his threat if he had to. Spock can’t harm an innocent but life-threatening species (Galileo episode, remember?) but he can strip thoughts from somebody’s mind? …Opinions?

This particular comic did do a good job of showing that Romulans have not become frenemies of the Federation. I wouldn’t have expected it, of course, but it’s nice to see how that relationship will obviously lead into further conflicts like in TOS.

(BTW, I see Jim is still carting around his medical doctor into dangerous situations without good reason. And McCoy is complaining he should have stayed on Earth at every turn! Heehee. Go figure!)

#9 – #10: The Return of the Archons

THANK YOU, ABRAMSVERSE! Thank you for the Sulu-awesomeness! Sulu is just larger than life here. And we get to see that Starfleet values him for that. *hugs this comic*

The TOS episode was interesting, in my opinion, but it also made me cringe for McCoy when he was brainwashed by Landru. We don’t get that part in this Rebooted version! We don’t get brainwashed-anybody (I’m talking Starfleet officers, btw), and instead a lovely woman who explains where Landru came from. I kept expecting Kirk-random-lovely-woman romance (TOS conditioned my brain, lol, apparently). I was glad when it didn’t happen.

But I still can’t decide, after finishing this comic, whether I miss the potential McCoy h/c or not. XD

Anyway, there are two important themes here: the higher echelons of Starfleet have had and still do have some suspicious activities going on through the galaxy which Kirk is not happy about; and Jim makes a decision that puts him at odds with Command. Pike has to deliver their warning to him to shape-up.

Personally I enjoyed seeing Kirk struggle to make the decision he did. Even more so, we had both McCoy and Spock arguing against a course of action but for different reasons. Those reasons showed us more about them as individuals and what is ultimately an important part of their mindsets: for Spock, the preservation of what the mission is and its prime directive; and for McCoy, how people are directly affected by the operation of Starfleet and its choices, i.e. the preservation of life itself rather than a preservation of a way of life.

In the end, I think Jim makes a decision in keeping with himself and what he believes is his foremost responsibility – which is to his crewmen and to his ship. Sound familiar? :)

#11 – #12: The Truth About Tribbles

I knew immediately from the title this wasn’t going to be a remake of The Trouble with Tribbles, one of the beloved, more humorous episodes of TOS. And I have to say, everything about this was just right. It represented a true “reboot” of a classic. Previous threads (from STXI) were brought in and used wonderfully, and both old and new information about Tribbles was handed to us on a silver platter. I ate it up, let me tell you.

If anything, this comic felt like a follow-up to STXI; moreover, it felt less like somebody’s testing-the-waters kind of idea and more as if JJ himself wrote this. It had all the little touches I would have expected: from Kirk getting his arm chewed on by a Tribble Eater (heehee, that’s what I think of the beast as) to Chekov being fascinated by his first planetside mission to Scotty being the unwitting culprit of a Tribble-overrun Starfleet Academy. *still chuckling to self*

FYI for future fic writing, courtesy of this awesome comic:
1. Tribbles have a… um, let me just quote Bones: “They don’t have teeth, but I think that cartilage-looking thing at the bottom there beneath the fur absorbs the food.”
2. Tribble on Delta Vega didn’t procreate due to the cold temperature of the ice planet.
3. Tribbles procreate faster at signs of danger (like a Tribble Eater!) so don’t distress them. LOL.

There was no mention of purring. This is the only thing that the story lacked. I wanted to see Spock succumb to a Tribble and keep it as a pet. Damn it.

Also, it’s important to note here, Kirk, that you can’t always expect your crew is acting at its smartest. See what happens when you don’t pay attention to what they’re up to?

Also, also, Scotty gets Archer’s prized beagle back. Bet you didn’t see that one coming, did you? XD

#13: The Redshirt

I didn’t mention it previously but in an earlier comic we learned Cupcake actually has a last name – Hendorff. And he’s a good friend of Uhura’s, hence the protectiveness of her in that bar during STXI. This is a little gem of a comic because it gives us a look into why men and women serve in Starfleet despite the risk. I really feel bad now about any uncomplimentary remarks I may have made about “Cupcake” in fanfiction just for the sake of plot. Clearly he’s proud to serve aboard the Enterprise and under Kirk, despite their unfriendly history. I think he’s still harboring a crush on Uhura. And Scotty sends him on “assignments” to get booze. XD

This is one of those must-reads for AOS fans, in my opinion. Available for download here.

Interesting fact: Chekov made it through the Academy long before Kirk and crew (minus Spock) showed up because he’s more of a freakin’ genius than I previously assumed! Go, Chekov, you little cutie pie!

#14: Keenser

I don’t even know what to say about this one. I loved it. I don’t think I could have not loved it. We finally get a backstory for Keenser and a look into what it’s like for him being on the Enterprise. He’s from a race called the Royla, and he’s the first of his kind to be a Starfleet officer.

And a young Commander George Kirk (Jim’s dad) makes a star appearance!

I think everyone needs to read this. End of story. Available for download here.

#15 – #16: Mirrored

At last, the Mirror, Mirror remake – or is it a remake at all?

First, let me say that Scotty and McCoy having a drink together can still be head-canon – or just plain AOS canon now! Scotty attempts to explain alternate timelines to the good Doctor. Eventually he has to devolve into using booze as an example. I love this pair!

I will say, it grates on me that Scotty calls McCoy ‘Bones’. In my head, it will always be Kirk who has that honor – and no one else! I flinched a little each time ‘Bones’ came out of someone else’s mouth.

And Scotty says, “Damn it, Bones, I’m an engineer, not a poet.” Did this bother, y’all? I don’t know if it was made in jest, or if Scotty is going to be the one with that catch-phrase. :/

Bonus info, though: Old Spock is sticking to his guns concerning “non-interference”. (And I noticed this earlier: the senior command team seems to know about him. But who told them? Scotty knew, I get Jim would have told Bones and possibly Spock would have told Uhura, but…? Hm. Not saying it’s a bad thing, I just would have liked to be privy to that conversation!)

Now to the mirror universe part…

It never occurred to me (and I don’t know why) that Old Spock had to show up in the Mirror ‘verse. Thing is, after thinking about it, I know I would have automatically assumed he would be an “evil” Old Spock. But he’s good. In fact, he’s kinda JUST LIKE THE MOVIE VERSE. That threw me.

I guess the overall concept would be Nero and Old Spock travel back in time to the mirror universe rather than the universe they were familiar. What happens then? How does that timeline get altered when the Narada destroys the I.S.S Kelvin?

Well, for one thing, it just makes everybody kill each other more so than before. They are all very, very ruthless, including our bearded Vulcan. I hope I never have to see Spock cut somebody’s head off again. It just seems wrong, whether he is a mirror version or not.

Anyway, there were things I liked and didn’t like. Maybe it’s better to make a list:

Pros:
– Kirk doesn’t succeed in killing Spock (I saw this twist coming, though)
– Kirk doesn’t succeed in blowing up Vulcan (bad Jim!)
– Kirk doesn’t stay Captain of the Narada
– Pike had a light beard and an eyepatch. Yum. (Sorry, I couldn’t help myself.)
– Klingons weren’t better or worse, just themselves like always, lol.
– Spock was Captain of the Enterprise.
– Uhura, your short hairstyle was uber-cool!
– The scar on Kirk’s face. And his revenge on Nero.
– It’s a version where Spock takes down Kirk and we get to see it happen!

Cons:
– Uhura killed Scotty. *tears*
– Chekov and Sulu seemed weak. No flirty, dangerous Sulu. No evil-grinning Chekov. :(
– McCoy seemed weak and of no opinion either. Damn.
– Uhura first came off as a Marlena.
– There is red matter in the hands of the Imperium. Crapola.

Make of that list what you will. I can’t decide if I approve of Mirrored. Maybe a little. But in the end, though, I think I will stick to my head-canon for the AOS mirror!verse because this one is too… depressing in many ways. I mean, Old Spock has to live out the remainder of his life in that universe? *more tears*

[On to #17 – #19]

Related Posts:

• Star Trek Ongoing Comics (21 – 26): Thoughts and Discussion – from October 27, 2013
• Star Trek Ongoing Comics (20): Thoughts and Discussion – from May 19, 2013
• Star Trek Ongoing Comics (17-19): Thoughts and Discussion [And An Announcement] – from April 10, 2013