Review: Star Trek Boldly Go #12
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Written by: Mike Johnson
Art by Megan Levens with colors by Marissa Louise
Cover by George Caltsoudas
In last month’s part one, Mike Johnson filled in the gaps on Captain Garth’s origin story that was only alluded to in “Whom Gods Destroy.” We learned how exactly he transformed into Lord Garth of Izar – from the Cochrane Deceleration Maneuver and the hero of Axanar, to the transporter accident on Antos IV – it’s all there. Only this time, Garth is not yet a prisoner on Elba II and, in fact, never made it off of Antos IV – until now…
Kirk is “stunned” he didn’t notice a fake Eurydice
In Boldly Go #12, we pick up after last month’s cliffhanger, ending with some convenient over- explanation from Eurydice, recounting her conversation with a certain shape-shifting Starfleet Captain. There’s also much exposition about how Garth’s transporter accident also transformed him into a stereotypical Bond villain.
It’s a good thing she heard the entire plan.
Apparently, his plan was to knock out Eurydice, shapeshift into her, and steal her ship. But before he could take the ship, Thalia takes it, in an effort to somehow search the galaxy to find Kirk. This ends up being fortuitous for Garth because after stunning Kirk, instead of getting a two-seat, space-pirate ship, he has taken control of a Federation Starship, The USS Endeavour.
I’m a detective, not a doctor.
Thankfully, the crew is pretty much onto him from the beginning and he doesn’t stay as Kirk for long. His seemingly erratic behavior includes a refusal to a medical exam, forgetting who he was playing 3D chess with, calling McCoy “Leonard”, and with no explanation, plotting a course to intercept his old ship, the USS Heisenberg. Once they reach it, Garth reveals himself (well done by artist Megan Levens) along with his true intentions – seeking revenge on his former XO, (now) Captain Jiang, whom he blames for abandoning him on Antos IV.
Captain Garth! You’re still alive, my old friend.
This sets up the inevitable double Kirk showdown – except this time, Sulu takes the role of Spock (since he is still with Uhura on Vulcan), asking his own, personal version of “Queen to Queen’s Level Three.” It’s a nice little twist that works, demonstrating how close these characters are to each other, although all Garth had to do was look at Sulu’s file (as he did with the other senior officers) to find the answer, but still.
Sulu is seeing double.
Sure, this isn’t as intricate as DC Comics’ “Who Killed Captain Kirk?, but it’s still a fun take on a popular TOS storyline. I like that Mike Johnson figured out an interesting and creative way to blend the TOS, Kelvin and IDW comics universes together. Not only that, but I appreciate the risk in taking some liberties by filling in some pretty large gaps in Garth’s background. The beauty is that in this universe, (other than what is already in the movies) anything after the Narada is fair game and a writer’s dream.
5-Page Preview: Star Trek Boldly Go #12
Click thumbnails to enlarge
Available Now
Star Trek Boldly Go #12 was released earlier this month and retails for $3.99. You can also order it at TFAW with a discount. Boldly Go #13, the first part of the six-issue “I.D.I.C.” min-series, will be released tomorrow, October 25th. Look for a TrekMovie review soon.
And if you want to catch up, the trade paperback collection of Star Trek: Boldly Go (volume 1, collection of issues #1-#6) is available now. It retails for $19.99. You can order from Amazon for 32% off.
Keep up with all the latest inked Star Trek in TrekMovie’s Comics Category.
The artwork is shocking. What happened to days of exceptionally drafted STAR TREK comics?
I noticed that too.
Amongst the new TREK comics art, only Gabriel Hardman has excelled ( though I think his art only graced a portion – if that – of some recent series ).
This other stuff – the garish colours aren’t a compensation for the poor artwork. Sadly, it’s a bit of a habit in a LOT of current comics.
Even when DC were doing the TREK comics, they had some really good draughts-people. The IDW stuff hasn’t come close, with the possible exception of the artist who basically photo-traces stills from the JJ movies.