Mike Johnson culminates 60 issues of the Kelvin Timeline with a terrific valentine moment only comics can supply.
Cover art for Star Trek #60 – Altered Encounters part 2 of 2
Issue #60 available from IDW
Captain’s Log: Stardate 47634.44 Last month the crews of both Enterprise 1701’s from the Prime and Kelvin Timelines experienced a dimensional shift where each member of the command crew swapped places with their counterparts. The most embarrassing moment had to be when Zachary Quinto’s Spock woke up next to Nichelle Nichols’ Uhura. Besides laughs and the fascinating experience, there is something definitely amiss as both ships sent probes to better understand the phenomenon, except the probes that returned belonged to the other reality’s Enterprise …
Wrapping up IDW’s and his five-year run writing the Kelvin Timeline Star Trek adventures, Mike Johnson could not have ended the series any better, as both crews to inhabit the Enterprise 1701 team up for an improbable mission. The two-part storyline, which concludes with Star Trek #60, is hailed as a 50th anniversary special, and it really is Star Trek at its finest.
Battles with Klingons and Romulans are always fun, and the summer blockbuster has certainly given way to a more action-packed version of Star Trek that hardcore and longtime fans are accustomed or appreciate. At its core, Star Trek is cerebral, Star Trek is exploring the final frontier of space (and understanding as well as pushing the human condition), and Star Trek is seeking out new life and civilizations.
So it is fitting that in the final issue of the series, Johnson used a “strange new life form” to bring both crews together in a unique way that only the medium of comic books can provide. It is a mystery that of course has a timetable to solve before the puzzle becomes catastrophic. It is enjoyable to watch members of both crews shift realities and work together with their alternate shipmates to resolve the crisis.
Shasteen continues to utilize the split page format of storytelling as he did in the previous issue, as the reader experiences what each crew is going through simultaneously. While visually, only readers know the difference between one Scotty to the other, Shasteen deftly illustrates the character shift changes without confusing readers regarding which alternate reality character is where. Right before things take a turn for the worse, Shasteen pictures the moment in unique fashion.
Reminiscent of the end of their Legacy of Spock arc in Star Trek #55-58, Johnson and Shasteen’s final pages offer fans a nice visual treat, as well as a valentine to both series. Months after a poignant end to Spock Prime’s story, IDW’s final page of the series pays to tribute to Anton Yelchin with an In Memoriam for the late actor.
Interesting. Why would they stop doing these comics with a potential 4th film on the way?
Isn’t Orci a consultant on these?
This is just one more revenue stream being cut off to Paramount and Bad Robot, to help them recoup their costs. Perhaps nobody’s reading these comics either.
I wonder if CBS had anything to do with this, in order to keep renewing the more profitable Prime universe licenses?
Do some research- the Comics are continuing with a small revamp (Awful beyond Costumes)
Then this article is absolutely misleading, and should mention that fact. I don’t need to do any research since that’s why I come to this particular blog which bills itself as “The source for everything new in Trek”.
@ CC – although it does say it’s ‘initial’ run in the headline, I do agree that the article wasn’t too clear about things.
they have wrote about the relaunch before on here
https://trekmovie.com/2016/07/20/idw-to-relaunch-star-trek-comic-in-october/
I don’t really even understand that article either. But thanks. I remember seeing that artwork thinking it didn’t look that interesting.
“They have wrote”…?
:::facepalm:::
A small nitpick for me but at first I really didn’t like the Beyond uniforms, but after seeing the movie they didn’t bother me so much. But I really do like the uniforms from ST09 and STID much better. They look retro yet modern at the same time..
its ok, i do like those comics,in fact much better than the films, i am a little worried cover the cover artwork, i will have to get the first few
Looks like the movies have come to a close too, Beyond has officially flopped and at a loss $$$$$$$$$$$
Worldwide: $214,290,435 Before Korea and China totals
What I didn’t like was that somehow, the crews knew they had different faces. That makes no sense if they are the same people, which they should be. Nero shouldn’t have altered Kirk’s face for example. Spock Prime already showed he recognized both Kirk and Scotty. And Spock was genetically identical to Spock Prime, which is why Spock Prime’s ship responded to him. So why would they be able to look in a mirror and say that they looked different?
Makes no sense.
This two-parter is, in my opinion, one of the weakest stories to come out of the entire 60-issue series. The main premise doesn’t even make sense, since the conceit of the 2009 film is that, despite the audience seeing different actors, they’re supposed to look the same as in the prime timeline. How do we know this? Because old Spock recognizes them all immediately. If he had seen the characters as we, the audience, do, then he never would have known Simon Pegg was Scotty, or that Chris Pine was Kirk. He also recognizes Zach Quinto as his younger self, which means he sees what we saw while watching The Original Series. As such, this two-parter is a continuity nightmare… and, more to the point, it’s boring and simplistic. And that’s a true shame, as I’ve loved almost all of the series since issue 1, other than the horrible Landru and Gorn storylines. So to see it go out not with a bang, but a fizzle, is sad.