Customer Reviews

Star Trek: Year Four (Star Trek (IDW))

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a great book. It really has the characterizations down pat. From McCoy saying "He's dead Jim" many times to the banter between Kirk, Spock and Bones, these stories have the feel of left-over scripts from the original series. The art is somewhat cartoony at times but it works. There is one instant classic panel which shows Kirk in his melodramatic pose of being in pain from an unseen force that will incite instant laughter from any fan of the show. The word balloons even have the emphasis on certain words in Kirk's dialogue to incorporate the immortal melodramatic cadence of William Shatner. Buy this book now, you'll love it. 5 stars.

Warning: A few spoilers ahead...

This graphic novel is terrific for fans of the original Star Trek series. After a brief foreward, it contains multiple stories, including one story about dilithium with some references to today's politics on energy. The characters include Arex and M'Ress from Star Trek: The Animated Series. The artistry is well done. If you are a Star Trek fan of any era, it is definitely worth buying...

The chapters in this collection, each of which comprises a separate 'episode', read more like treatments or outlines rather than fully-realized stories. With the exception of the opening segment which, interestingly, picks up immediately after the events in final aired episode of Star Trek's original series ("Turnabout Intruder"), each story leaves one wanting for expository text or some sense of closure. Many questions are raised, but few are answered. Questions such as "Why is Captain Kirk behaving so oddly?", "Did the author run out of time?" and "Where's the rest of this?"

References to classic original series clichés are dutifully repeated in nearly every chapter. A Red Shirt will always be killed and Dr. McCoy will always state "He's dead, Jim." One mention of each of these in the collection would have been humorous, but one in each chapter comes across as satirical and disrespectful of the material.

The artwork ranges from interesting and appealing to awkward and childish. Some manga art has an intentional awkward childishness to it, but one gets the sense the art here is unintentionally so.

Overall, these stories feel like proofs of concept and not completed work. There's just enough here to make the volume worthwhile for fans, though they're likely to to be left unsatisfied.

With the Enterprise testing a new Federation cloaking device, Kirk and Spock take a shuttle craft to see if they can pierce the ship's invisibility. But, it soon becomes apparent that something has gone wrong. The enterprising pair succeed in boarding the ship, only to discover it is out of phase - and when a Romulan ship arrives, they realize that they have trouble indeed!

But things are going from bad to worse as the captain finds out that the Organians have withdrawn from enforcing their cease-fire along the Federation-Klingon boarder, and full interstellar war looms. Now the Enterprise is on a race with the Klingons to find a cache of ancient Preserver technology, and if possible find out just where the Organians have gone.

OK, if the above description sounds like I am describing two unconnected stories, it should - I certainly saw no real connection between the stories.

But, that said, I did think that this was a very good graphic novel. The two stories are well written and interesting, and I thought that the illustration work was quite good. (Not excellent, perhaps, but quite good.) The authors did a good job of capturing the feel of the original series and the characters therein. Also, I must say that I enjoyed seeing so many characters from the TV series show up looking just like that do on the small screen.

Yeah, I enjoyed this graphic novel, and do not hesitate to recommend it.
I do not recommend this book.

I can really only give this comic three stars. At times the artwork is brilliant and at other times it's very simplistic. The writing is weak and relies on cliche. I've read other comics of this Genre by IDW and they were a lot better and the art was more consistant. I have to say that some of the art reminds me of the things I used to post at some of the Trek Forums. Looking forward to the Mirror Universe comic.

Keep on Trekkin!

This graphic novel is meant to be a continuation into year four of the three-year run of the original Star Trek series. The crew of the Enterprise is still intact and the story lines all are continuations of episodes in the original series.
The first two chapters are a continuation of "The Enterprise Incident", where a supposedly deranged Kirk orders the Enterprise into the neutral zone with the Romulans. Kirk and Spock are under orders to capture a working version of a new cloaking device created by the Romulans that would allow them to penetrate Federation space undetected.
This story begins with the cloaking device installed on the Enterprise and being tested. Kirk and Spock are in a shuttle craft conducting a search pattern for the Enterprise and failing. However, when the time comes to end the test Scotty does not answer their hails and they must discover a way to get back on board the Enterprise.
The device has malfunctioned and Kirk and Spock must somehow restore the Enterprise and fight back against the Romulans that have arrived and are seeking revenge. For the commander of the Romulan ship is the very commander that was duped in "The Enterprise Incident."
The remaining chapters are a continuation of the episodes "Errand of Mercy" and "The Paradise Syndrome." In "Errand of Mercy", the Enterprise arrives at the planet Organia ahead of the Klingons, who are determined to subjugate the planet and use it as a base. A battle for control of Federation and Klingon space is also about to begin. To their surprise and consternation, the Organians prove to be advanced beings that end the war and force a peace treaty between the Federation and the Klingons.
In "The Paradise Syndrome" Kirk and Spock beam to a planet threatened by a collision with a large asteroid. They find an encampment of Native Americans and when Kirk attempts to communicate with the Enterprise he inadvertently activates a device that deletes his memory. Spock has to take control of the Enterprise and take it to the asteroid in an attempt to divert it. The device was installed by a species known as "the Preservers" and Spock is able to decode the writings so that he can activate it to divert the incoming asteroid. Kirk's memory is restored and he resumes command of the Enterprise.
This story begins with the frustration that the Klingons are experiencing due to the Organian peace treaty. Kor, the Klingon commander in "Errand of Mercy" is on the hunt for Preserver technology, so he attacks and destroys Federation outposts. He captures a Preserver obelisk and attempts to extract the technology to use it as a weapon to defeat the Federation.
The Enterprise responds and all are puzzled as to why the Organians are not intervening to stop the renewed movement towards interstellar war. Kor thinks it is because the Organians are weak while Kirk and Spock are simply baffled as to why the battle is being allowed. Kirk and crew must then fight to prevent the Klingons from exploiting the Preserver device while holding off the Klingons as they prepare to invade Federation space. Eventually they learn why the Organians have adopted the hands-off position.
Both stories are excellent continuations of the original series. One of the best characteristics is how all sides continue to push their rivalries to the edge, knowing when to fight, when to back off and when to betray their allies. The Cold War aspects seen in the original series are maintained in these stories, which is as it should be. For that is the social context within which the original series was developed and should be continued, as the Federation and the Klingons are not yet ready to make peace.

This pretty much ties in most of the events from the first 3 seasons into a singular story. If you arent very familiar with TOS, you wont like it. Or even be able to understand whats going on.

It was a good comic book but several of the pages fell out due to poor binding. Still a good story.