Trek Off! E-Book

Robert Jeschonek

• Herausgeber: Pie Press
• Kategorie: Fantasy und Science-Fiction
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019

Beschreibung

Captain Picard, Commander Riker, and Lieutenant Data made history on the bridge of the Enterprise in Star Trek: The Next Generation...but what about the crewmen of the lower decks? Captain Sisko, Commander Worf, and the crew of Deep Space Nine were posted on a space station...so how did time travel become such a big part of their greatest adventures? And what was the key to the Starship Voyager getting home safe and sound from the Delta Quadrant? Is Captain Kathryn Janeway the greatest of all Star Trek captains because of her decisive command style? Find the answers to these questions and more in Trek Off! In this collection of short essays, award-winning Star Trek writer Robert Jeschonek explores the worlds of Trek, from The Next Generation to Voyager. Join him on a journey through time and space in a search for the secrets of the Trek universe. This volume, a tribute to the greatest science fiction epic of our age, includes four essays: "Lower Decks," "Past Tense," "Final Authority," and "To Boldly Go Where No Comic Book Has Gone Before: 10 Star Trek Comic Book Lost Treasures." These essays are collected here for the first time. Robert Jeschonek knows his Trek. He won the national grand prize in the Strange New Worlds writing contest. He is one of a handful of authors chosen to write stories in the Star Trek: New Frontier universe. His latest Trek fiction appears in Star Trek Corps of Engineers: Out of the Cocoon. Now he invites you to ponder some of the cool questions of Trek, explore some exciting lost comic book treasures, and boldly follow in the footsteps of the legion of Trek fans who have gone before.

Leseprobe

TREK OFF!

ESSAYS ON TREK

ROBERT JESCHONEK

TREK OFF!

Copyright © 2023 by Robert Jeschonek

http://bobscribe.com/

Cover Art Copyright © 2023 by Ben Baldwin

www.benbaldwin.co.uk

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved by the author.

Published by Blastoff Books

An Imprint of Pie Press

411 Chancellor Street

Johnstown, Pennsylvania 15904

www.piepresspublishing.com

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CONTENTS

Also by Robert Jeschonek

To Boldly Go Where No Comic Has Gone Before!

The Next Generation: Big Guns vs. Lower Deckers

Deep Space Nine: Past Tense

Voyager: Woman in Charge

About the Author

Special Preview: Universal Language

ALSO BY ROBERT JESCHONEK

A Grain from a Balance: A Trek Screenplay

Sticks and Stones: A Trek Novel

Trek Fail

Trek This

Trek You

Vendetta: A Trek Screenplay

TO BOLDLY GO WHERE NO COMIC HAS GONE BEFORE!

10 STAR TREK COMIC BOOK LOST TREASURES

Since its beginning as a television series in 1966, Star Trek has grown into a phenomenon. This science fiction adventure has been translated into nearly every medium including novels, feature films, animation...and comic books. In fact, Trek comics have been produced since the original TV series aired. Gold Key, Marvel, Malibu, DC, and IDW have all tried their hands at creating Trek comics with varying degrees of success.

Throughout its various four-color incarnations, Star Trek has inspired some downright horrendous stories--but it has been the wellspring of some excellent graphic fiction as well. The following list summarizes what I consider to be 10 of the best Trek stories ever published in comic book form.

This list has been drawn from Trek comics released by Gold Key, Marvel, and DC. Though these three publishers are represented, I've given the majority of slots of my Top Ten to DC's Trek series; I've done this simply because l feel that the DC stories listed here deserve their high rankings.

l) "Retrospect"— Star Trek Annual #3, l988, DC Comics—by Peter David, Curt Swan, and Ricardo Villagran

There are no bells or whistles in this story, no interplanetary menaces or

mysterious alien races...but it stands as one of the finest Star Trek tales l've ever read. This piece is a character study of Montgomery Scott. an insightful portrait of his life and his relationship with his one true love (and no, it's not the U.S.S. Enterprise).

As the story opens, Kirk and McCoy find a drunk and downcast Scotty draining bottles of scotch in his cabin; the Chief Engineer confesses than he's mourning his wife, Glynnis, who passed away recently in a shuttle accident (an accident which was caused, ironically, by an engine malfunction). The rest of "Retrospect" consists of scenes from Scotty's past, each one a turning point in his relationship with Glynnis. The scenes are presented in reverse-chronological order, starting with Scotty's recent past and shifting backward through the years, stretching the whole way back to his childhood.

This is a story with scope; in a mere 38 pages it manages to encapsulate Scotty's entire life and Glynnis Campbell's as well. Each vignette is poignant in its own way, and adds a fresh layer of emotional depth to the two main characters.

"Retrospect" celebrates the spirit of enduring love, the linkage between beings which surpasses time and distance and death. It is faithful to established Trek history, right down to the uniforms Scotty wears at different phases in his career.

"Retrospect" is Trek at its best—a story occurring in futuristic settings, with the human heart at its core.

2) "All Those Years Ago. . ."—Star Trek Annual #1, 1985, DC Comics—by Mike W. Barr, David Ross, and Bob Smith

One of the stories never told in the original Trek TV series was that of James T. Kirk's first mission on the Enterprise. "All Those Years Ago..." is notable because it delves into the untold story of that first mission, an event of great significance in the Star Trek mythos.

Most of this story is told in flashback form. In order to decide how to deal with a race of aliens returning to Federation space, Kirk recounts his first encounter with them, a mission which happened to be his first aboard the Enterprise. Jim's recollections provide glimpses of important and never-before-shown scenes: his first sighting of the Enterprise; his first meeting with his predecessor, Captain Pike, as well as Spock and Scotty; the gathering of Kirk's original "inner circle"—Dr. McCoy and Commander Gary Mitchell; the change of command from Pike to Kirk; and the departure of the Enterprise for the start of its fabled "five-year mission."

In the flashback sequence, Captain Pike is kidnapped by the Tralmanii, and Kirk and his crew set out to rescue him. When the Enterprise team finds Pike, they learn the reason for his abduction: years ago, he stopped the Tralmanii from feeding on the energy of a nova, and now their race is dying and hungry for revenge. By rerigging the alien ship's equipment, the Enterprise group enables the beings to generate their own nova energy so their race can be rejuvenated, and the encounter is peacefully concluded.

"All Those Years Ago..." is a splendid story, a wonderful piece which explores early Trek history. Though the plot involving the Tralmanii isn't overly original, the flashback itself is a treasure for Trek fans. This story answers a lot of questions which fans have asked through the years, and does so in an entertaining fashion; it explains the departures of original pilot characters like Captain Pike, Number One, and Dr. Boyce, and features characters like Gary Mitchell and Lee Kelso, who died in the second pilot episode, yet made strong impressions in their brief appearances.

3) "The Final Voyage"—StarTrek Annual #2, l986, DC Comics—by Mike W. Barr, Dan Jurgens, and Bob Smith

Whereas "All Those Years Ago..." depicts the beginning of Kirk's first five-year mission on the Enterprise, "The Final Voyage" portrays the end of that deep-space journey.

When the story opens, the Enterprise is on its way back to Earth after its five years in space. After picking up Commander Will Decker, the officer in charge of the ship's refitting, or so they think.

Instead of reaching Earth, the ship ends up in orbit around Talok IV, and is ambushed by Klingon vessels. It turns out that the Klingons have conquered Talok and forced the inhabitants to teach them how to cast illusions. The Klingons used their new powers to fool the Enterprise crew into coming to Talok, and plan to use the starship to attack the Federation.

When Kirk beams down to the planet with a landing party, he finds that the Klingons have also captured Captain Pike, who is living on Talok IV. (As depicted in the TV episode "The Menagerie," Pike went to Talok IV to live a life of illusion after being maimed in an accident.) Kirk and company are imprisoned by the Klingons and tormented by illusions, but manage to break free.

"The Final Voyage" draws together many elements of Trek history, tying in with Trek's origins (the first pilot, "The Cage," which introduced Pike and the Talosians), and its future (the feature films, like Star Trek: The Motion Picture, which introduced Will Decker). The story also holds some interesting bits of characterization, like Decker's overcompensation for being the son of a captain who destroyed his own ship; Spock's concern for Pike, and his furious leap into action when he sees the Klingons torturing his old captain; and Kirk's anguish when the Klingons force him to relive the death of Edith Keeler, whom he fell in love with during a time-trip to Earth of the 1930s.

"The Final Voyage" is an excellent Trek adventure, one which fills in some of the continuity gaps between the TV series and the films.

4) "The Return of the Serpent"- Star Trek #43-45, 1987, DC Comics—by Mike Carlin, Tom Sutton, and Ricardo Villagran

I'm a sucker for sequels to original Trek episodes, and this three-part sequel to "The Apple" is my favorite.

In "The Apple," Kirk and company visited the planet Gamma Trianguli VI, a veritable Eden inhabited by a peaceful and primitive race. The only catch in this paradise—the people were ruled by a super-computer called Vaal. Kirk managed to shut the machine down and left the natives to follow a more natural pattern of development.

In "The Return of the Serpent," the Enterprise travels back to Gamma Trianguli VI after 20 years. Kirk takes a landing party down to the surface, intending to observe the current condition of the race which he set free, but finds that the world has become a desolate wasteland and that the inhabitants have adopted a barbaric, medieval society.

Kirk and his party are caught up in the warfare between the planet's two tribes and are captured by Akuta, who possesses incredible powers derived from the Vaal computer. Akuta begins to drag the Enterprise out of orbit, and is only placated when Spock volunteers to help reactivate Vaal.

"The Return of the Serpent" highlights Kirk's human capacity for error, and the tremendous responsibility which falls on his shoulders every time he meddles in an alien culture. One wrong move on the surface of an undeveloped world and a starship officer can cause irreparable harm. "The Return" points out that an explorer like Kirk can't always make decisions based on his own values and beliefs because those personal feelings might not be applicable in an alien frame of reference.

5) "All the Infinite Ways"—Star Trek #13, 1981, Marvel Comics—by Martin Pasko, Joe Brozowski, and Tom Palmer

Dr. McCoy's daughter plans to many a Vulcan? That's the wonderfully ironic plot of this story, and it provides an intriguing character study of both Bones and his child.

The Enterprise crew travels to the planet Hephaestus to negotiate for mineral rights. While the Klingons engage in some nasty mischief, Bones has a chance encounter with his daughter, Joanna. Upset because her father hasn't been in touch with her for years, Joanna tells him that she doesn't want to have anything to do with him. Then she introduces him to her husband-to-be, a Vulcan named Suvak.

Suvak has a sudden relapse of a mysterious illness which Bones diagnoses as a fatal Vulcan blood disease. When the Klingons kidnap Joanna, however, Suvak comes to her rescue. Though weakened by his illness, he frees Joanna and sacrifices his life in a Klingon-triggered explosion.