A new unofficial Star Trek comic has hit the interwebs, and we’ve gotta say – we’re hooked. Take a look at Star Trek Beta Fleet, a beautifully illustrated comic created by Taylor Hord, which focuses on a crew of Starfleet “misfits” and the troubles they find themselves running into around the galaxy.
These are the voyages… of the B team
“Beta Fleet is about the ships and crews we don’t see,” Taylor Hord, artist and creator of Star Trek Beta Fleet, tells TrekMovie.
“It is about the ‘Misfits’ and ‘Black sheep’ that Starfleet would just rather not deal with, and subsequently sends them out to patrol the Beta Quadrant in antiquated and beat-up starships. Now, by Misfits, I do not mean ‘worthy of just being fired,’ rather ‘the paperwork to do that would be too cumbersome, and they can at least clean up a shuttlebay and do the leg work nobody else wants to.'”
Personally, this is a concept that I’ve always wanted to see fleshed out in the Star Trek universe. TNG does give us a glimpse into the less than glamorous world of the not-so-senior staff in “Lower Decks“, which I’ll admit is a favorite episode of mine. Beta Fleet combines the right amount of sci-fi ambiance and plenty of classic Treknobabble with just enough humor to keep me coming back.
Beyond the story of the comic, the artwork is absolutely gorgeous. Hord has captured the look and feel of 24th century Trek with a comic book flair and an organization that is easy to follow.
Star Trek Beta Fleet, page 12
The story follows our hero, Captain T’Prong, and her ragtag crew of the Federation Starship Soyokaze.
“Beta Fleet: They are truly the ‘B’ Team,” Hord told TrekMovie. “Our main character, Captain T’Prong, a vulcan who lost both her husband and son to Starfleet, will be placed in charge of this ragtag fleet with the challenge of commanding such a group of individuals,” says Hord. “Her first officer is Colonel Roketh, a Klingon Priest serving by way of the Klingon/Federation exchange program.”
“The 3 main vessels in the “Beta Fleet” are the Oberth class USS Lico, the original USS Excelsior, which served as a run down museum and more or less forgotten during the dominion war, and the Primary Ship on which our main crew serves; the Constellation class USS Soyokaze.”
When asked about the setting of the comic, Hord is quite clear: “The timeline is absolutely the Prime timeline. The first episode, “Wagon Train,” begins in 2388, after the destruction of Romulus. Obviously I do not have the audacity to say ‘This is how it should be!’ however that is all I have personally wanted so badly to see: lets pick up where Nemesis and Voyager left off. I disagree that in order to ‘move forward’ Star Trek has to either be ‘in a totally different time’ or an ‘alternate reality’. I would rather move forward in the timeline I grew up with, and one that feels like home.”
The USS Houston booms in to save the day
At the time of writing, the first “episode” of Beta Fleet is 35 pages long. Hord says he has treatments written up for 20-30 full episodes and that he will keep publishing the comic so long as his hands can draw them. Hord says that, while it is indeed a comic, it will be presented as episodes within seasons, just like we are used to seeing on television.
“This project started as a series of conversations with my fellow Star Trek fan, as well as oldest and best friend, Richard Hansen,” says Hord. “We met in high school in 1996, when we both saw each other drawing Star Trek ships. Our favorite thing to do was nerd-out and design our own Star Trek ships and come up with episode and TV show ideas. Star Trek: Beta Fleet is my humble attempt to offer, in the very least, a story that I know I would be excited to read, as a fan of Star Trek writ-large.”
Beta Fleet is not an officially licensed comic, and so Hord is basically creating the webcomic equivalent of a fan film. “I do not intend to make a single penny off of Beta Fleet,” he said. “It will be absolutely free, posted regularly, and is 100% for all Star Trek fans.”
Check out Star Trek Beta Fleet at its current home on tumblr, which Hord says he will eventually migrate to it’s own website.
WOW! Looks awesome and great fresh look at the trek universe. Now if we could only get a glimpse into the enlisted ranks and training of starfleet.
Thank you! I shall endeavor to do so as well!
I’ve been a huge fan of Star Trek: Beta Fleet for years!
21 years in the making dude!
USS Soyokaze?!
Please tell me the captain doesn’t have a smilie face button on her uniform… ~_^
You win 10 internets for that observation. Well noticed my friend, you are absolutely correct.
It doesn’t seem like we’re gonna be getting fan stuff made in the Nu timeline for a while. Which is a shame!
Sorry! Got cut off. But it’s a great comic! Wonderfully made.
What’s really unfortunate is that I think people who may have wanted to do fan-made stuff set in the new timeline have been scared off by the things going on with Axanar and the knee-jerk reaction by the studio. There was once a very short fan film on youtube that has since been removed set in the new timeline. It opens in an escape pod with two crewmembers of the USS Kelvin waiting to be rescued. One of them goes on about how Commander Kirk isn’t a hero and that it’s his fault the ship was destroyed. I think that crewman is supposed to be a young Commodore Decker. In any event, it was filmed well, and the tone was awesome. But then very quickly and suspiciously it was removed.
No worries! And thank you very, very much. I hope you continue to enjoy.
Brilliant choice naming the Constellation class ship the Soyokaze!
The “Gentle Breeze.” Thank you <3
I love how Star Trek inspires so many to create. Not my cup of tea, but it looks like quality work!
Could you elaborate, if you don’t mind me asking?
Thank you dude. I have loved Star trek since I was 12. If not entirely palatable, that makes no difference to me in how much I agree with your statement. I shall bust my butt to improve this tea 100 fold.
I wish people would learn to draw their space ships instead of 3D rendering them. It’s really lazy looking to me plus the two styles clash. I think amateur comic artists don’t understand that most ships scenes are traced from photos, models, or renders. Even Disney traces. Render it. Trace it. No shame. Keep your style consistent.
Totes McGoats dude! I follow a comic principle that I most agree with: make it look good, but good ENOUGH. If good enough and carries the story, then on to the next page!
Except that you’re spending an egregious amount of time adding tons of photoshop filters onto every panel. It wreaks trying to hard to cover up a lack of ability. And the thing is, I’m not criticizing your ability to draw. I’m telling you, as a professional artist who’s work you’ve probably seen, everybody cheats and this is the way they cheat. I’m pretty sure you could find a way to trace your ships that would be compatible with your style of drawing characters. I suggest you do something completely off-the-wall crazy and try it for one measly hour. You might actually wind up growing as an artist. Or you can disregard me in a huff. Your choice.
Ok I LOVE this!!! I hope that one day fans and studio execs can agree that Trek is big enough to tell stories in multiple timelines and universes much like the two big comic book entities do but that there is one ‘prime’ universe and timeline that allows continuity to move forward. No one story or depiction is bad, it’s just different branches of the Trek Tree so to speak.
As far as this comic, I wish there was a way to have it as a trade but I’m more than happy with following the tumblr page on my phone so that I can keep up with the comic. I’m loving the premise, the art, and the way it’s being taken seriously as well. I think when Renegades teased their idea, I was thinking it was going to be more along the lines of this, so I’m glad Beta Fleet is happening. Can’t wait to see more!
Thank you PEB, that is all I can say <3. Your comment means a great deal to me. What you are experiencing is 100% what I set out to offer.
How do read this comic? There is no way to down load it. It tells me to down load something called tumbler. I down loaded tumbler but still can not see it.
Once you download the tumblr app to your phone and quickly set up your info, you can search for Beta Fleet and “follow” Star Trek Beta Fleet. You’ll get updates to your tumblr feed and if that’s the only thing you’re following on tumblr then that’s the only thing that will show up on your feed. My explanation may have complicated things more but hopefully it helps.
Thank You
Is there a way to get the comic to appear in order?
I really enjoyed this. Artwork is quite good. Technobabble was a little hard to follow, but the results were not. Looking forward to more. Created a tumblr account just for this.
Hah, don’t worry dude. My friend Richard is the Engineer; what I DO know is that while I have no idea what some of it means, I have no doubt it is accurate, and would not have it any other way. That being said, the story takes precedence, and I am honored that you would follow me.
Still following. Every day there’s a new page is a treat. Hope you can keep it going! It’s really compelling so far…
SO AWESOME!!
A minor geek-gasm is the only way to respond to a Miranda Class saucer separation ^^
YES!!!!!! We have NEVER seen this! I had no DOUBT it would be awesome! I have done my best to portray even a glimpse of this awesomeness.
Go to Amazon, buy a book called ‘Warship’ by Joshua Dalzelle.
Best space opera/starfleet SF book I’ve read in years. Would make a great movie. As I’m reading it kept reminding me of TWOK.
I shall check this out at once!
Well, thanks, now I gotta go and reinstall Bridge Commander for a playthrough :P
But, seriously, I dig it. LOVE the “T’Prong Maneuver” you set up there! She’s definitely got an old school TOS/TMP style of thinking. My only note is there might be a touch too much “tech the tech” in the opening pages, but I’m used to far worse.
Note for the future, will these ever be collected in an e-book style PDF or something? I’d love to be able to read it a little easier on a a phone or tablet, or even my digital comic reader.
The fact that you called it the “T’Prong Maneuver” put the most gigantic grin on my face dude. I’ve been calling it that for months now. You NAILED it, at least 5 episodes before I would officially title it.
Incredibly exciting sequence, terrific artwork, great dialog, and T’Prong is just a bad ass captain. Well done!
Thank you Plum, a very great deal! ~
Any chance this will be released as .pdf or .cbr?
Wonderful to see GREAT TALENT .. from such a Inspirational show/series.
Look Forward to more more more
This is seriously awesome- the art, the story, the pacing, the characters… It’s almost as good as a live-action show, but in its own way, more accessible. I really like it. And it’s great to see a female Vulcan leading the heap, as well. I’m following on Tumblr, and telling all my friends.
I heard about this from Shane Plays and am glad I did! Great work!