TrekInk: Review of Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation2 #1 + 7-page Preview

doctor After a difficult adventure, the eleventh Doctor, with companions Amy and Rory, would like to relax with a bit of glamour and mystery, but a little dimensional feedback has deposited the Tardis in a time and place they couldn’t have imagined. Spoilers ahead in TrekMovie’s review of Assimilation2 #1, the opening installment of an eight-issue mini-series from IDW Publishing.

Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation2 #1 (of 8)
written by Scott Tipton and David Tipton with Tony Lee, art by J.K. Woodward, lettering by Shawn Lee and Robbie Robbins, edited by Denton J. Tipton

Story

Without asking for surrender first, the Borg, accompanied by another type of cyborg, launch a surprise attack on the largest cities of Delta IV. A Starfleet task force is on its way but won’t arrive before the planet is overrun. Meanwhile, the Doctor and his companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams are engaged in a chariot chase through the streets of ancient Egypt, late for an appointment with the Pharaoh. Sneaking past the palace guards, the time travelers are confronted by the Pharaoh’s Vizier, an escaped alien criminal who doesn’t escape the Doctor. After all the excitement, the Doctor recommends a visit to someplace cool and foggy. Attributing a rough landing in 1941 San Francisco to a bit of dimensional feedback, the Doctor feels they are bound to run into something unusual. Stardate 45635.2

cyborg

A whole lot of Starfleet on Delta. What’s up with that?

Writers Scott and David Tipton are Trek veterans who have never let me down. Tony Lee, writer for IDW’s series about the eleventh Doctor, is a consultant for this mini-series. This issue begins modestly and is primarily an introduction to the swashbuckling Doctor and his companions for Star Trek audiences. There is no question that the Doctor is in. The Tiptons give a classic Borg line to the Cybermen. This is entirely expected; but taking the story to the Next Generation’s mean streets of San Francisco was a surprise and a nice touch. I expect the Tiptons to keep us on our toes throughout the eight issues of this mini-series and I’m looking forward to the inevitable clash of wills between the last Time Lord and the Captain of the Enterprise.

resistance

The Borg’s new pals are shiny!

Artwork

Most comics published today are penciled, inked and then colored digitally. For some art, the inking is also done on a computer. J.K Woodward paints with watercolors, producing comics with an entirely different look and feel. I think he’s a great choice for this epic crossover of science fictional universes. He is adept at making characters like Amy Pond and the Cybermen glow with beauty and dark menace, respectively. Previously, Woodward did an outstanding job on the art for Star Trek: Captain’s Log – Pike. I expect his art to help make this crossover unique. If you would like to see Woodward at work, keep an eye on his blog, where he routinely documents his efforts. Veterans Shawn Lee and Robbie Robbins do a fine job with the lettering. I could hear the Doctor’s voice in the word balloons. That’s good work.

Covers

Assimilation2 #1 comes with an abundance of covers, six of them, if you like to count with fingers on both hands. With two regular covers, two retailer incentive covers, and two retailer exclusive covers, one each for the UK and US, there’s something for everybody. The Doctor, Captain Picard and Amy Pond are the most prominently featured characters, but Rory and other members of the Enterprise crew make appearances, as do some Borg and a Cyberman. J.K. Woodwards Enterprise chasing the Tardis over portraits of the Doctor and Picard is suitably majestic. I also like the covers by David Messina and Joe Corroney. One of the Borg on Messina’s cover looks a little like 7of9 and Amy looks sensational. In Messina’s black & white sketch cover, Picard looks like he’s had a snootful. Corroney’s Doctor and companions on the bridge was the first art released to publicize the mini-series, so everyone’s seen it, but it has the look of a classic setpiece. Next up for Corroney? The Captain and crew in the Tardis!

tngwho1a_tn 

Cover A: Art by J.K. Woodward, Cover B: Art by David Messina, colors by Giovanna Niro

tngwho1ria_tn

Cover RI A: Wraparound photo cover

tngwho1rib_tn

Cover RI B: Art by Joe Corroney

 tngwho1re-fp_tn

Cover RE: Forbidden Planet, art by David Messina, back cover sketch of typical UK comic shop customers?

tngwho1re-h_tn

Cover RE: Hastings, photo cover

Bottom Line

So we have another Star Trek comic crossover, but this one is a must have for Trekkies and Whovians alike.

7-page preview

Available now

Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation2 #1 is at your local comic shop this week. A trade paperback collection (of the first four issues, most likely) will be published October 2012 and can be pre-ordered from Amazon. IDW Star Trek comics can also be purchased online at TFAW and you can also pre-order the trade paperback collection at Amazon.

Star Trek: TNG
Doctor Who
Assimilation2
#1 of 8

Star Trek: TNG
Doctor Who
Assimilation2
#2 of 8

Star Trek: TNG
Doctor Who
Assimilation2
#3 of 8

Star Trek: TNG
Doctor Who
Assimilation2
#4 of 8

$3.99
(May)

$3.19
(Jun)

$3.19
(Jul)

$3.19
(Aug)

Also released this week:

  • Star Trek #9 The countdown to the next Star Trek movie continues here in The Return of the Archons! Kirk, Spock and the crew search for a lost Starfleet ship that may hold clues to the future of the entire Federation. (TrekMovie review coming soon)

 

Mark Martinez is an obsessive-compulsive Star Trek comics reader and collector. You can visit his website, the Star Trek Comics Checklist for more than you ever needed to know about Star Trek comics.

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Who?

Star Trek, that’s who!

Imagine it — the Enterprise with Timelord technology. The borg wouldn’t stand a chance!

Or maybe a ship that is the size and shape of the Tardis on the outside, but the size and layout of the Enterprise on the inside??

Who am I kidding. There’s no beating the graceful look of warp nacelles and pylons with the essential boss saucer section and secondary hull. Apologies to all

Screw this crap. You know what would be awsome? Crossing Star Trek with The Twilight Zone….Oh wait. That was done, The episode was called Charlie X. And it was AWSOME!

What if you crossed Star Trek with Gilligan’s Island?

A five year mission condensed into a three hour tour!

Yikes!

@6: It’s called “LOST”.

@6 Or what if you crossed “Star Trek” with the “Power Rangers?” There were few people associated with both franchises, including Hillary Shepard Turner, who appeared in a couple episodes of “Deep Space Nine” and played Divatox in “Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie” and the final half of TV’s “Power Rangers Turbo.”

Hello Amy Pond welcome to wonderland

Just to point out the injoke of “Resistance is futile” is that the Cybermen actually said it *first* back in a 1960s episode when cautioning humans they were converting into Cybermen that there was no point in fighting back…

To wibbly wobbly boldily woldily go.

Where’s my photonic screwdriver?

i believe Trek has done 2 sort of Dr Who eps

TNGs Matter of Time and that Enterprise ep where the ship they find is larger on the inside…

werent there also talks to do a proper crossover episode if Enterprise had continued into a season 5?

Doctor Who sucks. Keep it far away from Star Trek please.

Doctor Who’s awesome. It can mingle with Star Trek anytime it pleases.

13. That was Russell T. Davies’ idea, yes. Manny Coto was running the show toward the end and might’ve been ameanable. You guys in America knew Enterprise was toast, when Season 4 began. It took a bit longer for us to cotton on on this side of the Atlantic.

Christopher Eccleston was rumoured to be a huge Star Trek fan. Probably not ENT, but we’ll never know now.

Hmm. Star Trek WHO!. Good title.

I have no interest in this whatsoever. Enough with the crossovers already! Get back to telling great Star Trek stories, un-diluted by other franchises. It’s too corny.

The two franchises have a lot in common, when you think about it. Apart from both coming out in the 60s…

The new series is in a way, similar to Next Generation because it’s clear by the second episode (End of the World) that there’s been some changes since we last saw the “universe”. In TNG, of course there was stuff like the new status with the Klingons as well as new technology (Holodecks). Doctor Who of course has the Time War which changed some aspects of the franchise. Both series of course have larger budgets than their original series. There’s even a few episodes of Nuwho (and it’s spinoffs) in which classic companions have shown up, akin to “Relics” and “Unification” in TNG.

Also there’s some similarities between the classic series winding down and the decline of Trek series. Doctor Who started to overdo the technobabble and continuity, thus making it hard for new fans to get involved (The new series takes a more balanced approach). This was sort of a problem with a lot of later Treks.

Also the Slitheen are similar to the Ferengi, they were going to be the ‘big bads’ of TNG but that didn’t work out. Later seasons introduced the Borg, of course…and WHO had the Weeping Angels. Both the Borg and the angels however, get less effective with each appearence.

So many cool Trek stuff out there besides comics as well that nobody knows is being released.

There is a 1/350 Scale TOS Enterprise coming out soon, as well as a nice detailed kit from Revell Germany hitting the market. AMT is doing miniature models of the refit, Reliant and Bird of Prey.

Mongoose Publishing has made an AWESOME miniatures game called A Call to Arms: Star Fleet. It’s based in the Starfleet Battles universe, but has really cool miniatures of some of our favorite TOS ships and plays really well.

Okay, I don’t get these crossover things. But, I haven’t read any of these crossovers.

#10

Actually, the Cybermen phrase was ‘Resistance is useless’. But The Borg were absolutely influenced by the Cybermen, no question.

Don’t worry, the Caeliar took care of the Borg. Dr. Who can go about his business.

Just read this on Comixology. A bit of Federation, but I understand it’s an introduction of the Doctor to US Audiences

Nevertheless, 8 issues will mean a big story!! I grew up as a TNG fan then discovered Doctor Who in 1999 and becamea convention going fan, so it’s brillliant to see the two together,

Can’t wait for issue 2!!

Not for me, I love Trek and I love Who. But Whek? Nooo, feels corny, and a dilution of both. Seems like marketing drones thinking ‘double your money’.

Does anyone know why new issues of Star Trek ongoing have stopped appearing on Comixology?

Actually issue 9 is on Comixology, as is the Doctor Who issue. But for some reason they skipped issue 8.

A jillion comments in, and noone mentions the artwork!?! (ok, 29)

I can’t wait for:
Amy: Woh… is that?
The Doctor: It’s a commbadge. I wear a combadge now. Combadges are coool.

:D

But back to the artwork… it’s gorgeous! This is what that “Outer Light” guy was aiming for, but missing entirely. One hopes that this comic avoids all the myriad problems that one had.

What I meant is that what if there would be a “Star Trek”/”Power Rangers” crossover comic book?

Hmmm…. I’m throwing money at my monitor, but it doesn’t seem to be working. Please rectify this obvious error in your website.

only thing to say is this is the worst doctor ever! even worse then colin baker for god’s sake !

Is it inevitable that Doctor Who and Gary Seven will meet up? The comparisons have been there for years. Let’s see what happens.

The first issue was pretty good. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see much of the Enterprise crew yet, but I’m sure that will change. I’ve always wondered what would happen if the Borg and Cybermen met, and I guess now we know. I wonder how long it will take for the two to turn on each other and try to assimilate/cyber convert each other.

33-How is Matt Smith in any way worse than Colin Baker?

I liked this issue. I agree with Destructor1701 with the artwork and how it is a hit where the Outer Light is a miss.

Crossovers can be a hit or miss and some fans do not like to mix things. I for one have always thought about the possibilities of a Who/Trek meet. I always thought the Tenth Doctor and Captain Janeway chasing after Dalek Caan after Daleks in Manhatten would be fun.

Crossovers are a huge “What If…?” story, sometimes fun, sometimes painful.

This issue, I was hoping for Picard and such but it is slowly unfolding, and for me fun so far.

@33/36 He has to follow David Tennant and Chris Eccleston, who set the bar pretty damned high for Doctors Who. Not easily done.

I thought the issue is brilliant. The artwork is beautiful, the writing feels right, smart…and the ending of the first issue was genius! I can’t wait for the next one.

Anyone interested that Karen is my niece?

37-If Dalek Caan ever appeared in the Star Trek universe, he would have to meet Captain Kirk. “Caaaaaaaaan!!”

38-Few actors have played the role as well as David Tennant, but I think that Matt Smith has been better than Christopher Eccleston so far. No Doctor will ever be as good as Jon Pertwee though.

I didnt think so………..

This is so strange, why cross Doctor Who with Star Trek?

Because they are the two longest running scifi series of all time.

6. Harry Ballz – May 29, 2012
“What if you crossed Star Trek with Gilligan’s Island?”

Wasn’t that Voyager??

Ok so Enterprise Season 4 was the last straw that broke the Star Trek back. And this collaberation with Doctor Who, is an improvment and should be taken serioulsy???

Combining Star Trek with that pile of dog crap Dr Who just goes to show that Star Trek really is in terminally decline…

Got it.
Get it.
Great.
Bagged and boarded and boxed.
Never thought they could pull it off; I bought it to keep my comic collection [which I began with the Gold Keys in the 60s] complete. As pleasant a surprise as the Legion of Superheroes crossover.

47-Doctor Who started three years before Star Trek, and it is saddening to hear you call it a pile of dog crap.

I love both series, and think that it is wonderful work. I like the portrayal of the current Doctor, seems so vibrant. Cannot wait to see more of this, though I am annoyed they waited until THE LAST WEDNESDAY in May (touting May 2012), but marketing may be the reason.

Star Trek Voyager meets The Fourth Doctor–that would be fun to write.

Hmm… Cybus cybermen… Interesting… I’m guessing it was their hijinks breaking over from Pete’s world to the main ‘Who universe that then sent them into the ‘Trek universe…