IDW’s Star Trek: Defiant and the story of Captain Worf and his ragtag crew continues this week with Issue #23. Two years ago, IDW re-launched the Star Trek comic universe with Star Trek, soon followed by its sister book, Defiant. These stories take place roughly between the movies, Star Trek: Insurrection and Star Trek: Nemesis. Christopher Cantwell has been writing Star Trek: Defiant since the beginning, and I’ve enjoyed his take on Worf and especially his handling of the estranged relationship between Worf and Worf’s son Alexander.
It has been an absolute treat to see Worf in the Captain’s chair along with the return of B’ellana Torres, Ro Laren, and Spock. So far, the crew of the Defiant survived the first IDW crossover event, “The Day of Blood,” and has been operating as a disavowed black-ops squad for Starfleet command ever since. The series has seen several callbacks to Trek lore, including a follow-up to a cliffhanger the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, “Conspiracy,” from its first season. Cantwell has also fleshed out the character of Commander Sela, the daughter of a Tasha Yar from the alternate timeline seen in the episode, “Yesterday’s Enterprise,” from Star Trek: The Next Generation season two, even devoting an entire annual to her backstory.
Most recently, Star Trek: Defiant finished a fantastic multi-part tale centering on the Romulans and a coup by the Romulan military, led by Commander Sela’s father, to overthrow the government. After multiple adventures of high-level galactic stakes, the crew of the Defiant shifts into a smaller story that nonetheless has high personal stakes for our characters. During the “Day of Blood” crossover, Worf’s son Alexander sided with the clone Emperor Kahless II in an attempt to kill the gods of the Star Trek universe and conquer the Klingon Empire. This choice caused Alexander to lose honor in the face of his people and further strain his relationship with his father. After the events of the Romulan coup, Worf has taken leave of the Defiant in order to guide Alexander in the Quv Rite, a series of ordeals that can restore his son’s honor and place among the Klingon people. Worf tasks Alexander to complete three errands. The first errand, the Errand of Punishment, took place in the previous issue. The second errand, the Errand of Valor, is the focus of the story in this current issue. To complete the second errand, Alexander must free prisoners who have been unjustly convicted and sentenced to death. Their planet in the Archanis Sector is plagued by capitalism run out of control. Since the system is under dispute between the Klingon Empire and the Federation, there is little-to-no governing authority to push back against the power of the corporations. In taking on this quest, Worf also hopes to teach his son compassion, a word with no translation in Klingonese.
I personally enjoyed this break from galactic threats to return to Star Trek at its most basic, telling science fiction stories that hold a mirror to real-world issues. The plight of the laborers in this story and the overbearing corporate leaders of Archanis sheds light on our current society and provides a warning for us today. In the secondary story of the issue, we are given a glimpse into Mile O’Brien’s deep guilt over his wartime actions of the past in both the Cardassian and Dominion Wars. In a previous issue, Chief O’Brien, now an instructor at Star Fleet Academy, had one of his students accuse him of committing war crimes. Primarily, the student criticized O’Brien for creating self-replicating mines that were used to great success against the invading Dominion but were now being used by Starfleet’s allies, such as the Cardassians, to wreak havoc on innocent planets. Almost five thousand people have died from the use of the mines since the end of the Dominion War. Hoping to make amends, O’Brien asks Torres, now commanding the Defiant in Worf’s absence, to take a detour from their current mission to remove mines that the Cardassians have placed around a planet in the Gamma quadrant. Here, Cantwell addresess not only O’Brien’s guilt but also his PTSD from his time as a soldier in war, and the pain those scars still hold for man today. Again exploring real-life issues and debates through science fiction. Quintessential Star Trek.
Star Trek: Defiant and Cantwell have been on a great streak since the end of “Day of Blood.” The end of that crossover essentially ended the original premise of the book, and I wondered if and how Star Trek: Defiant could continue. Sure enough, Cantwell deftly guided the book into a new status quo and the series has never been better. Angel Unzueta continues his terrific work with this issue and once again does justice for some of Trek’s favorite characters. Like the right Star Trek director, Unzueta succeeds in both the action scenes and quieter moments. Marissa Louise brings those pencils to life with vibrant colors. The Unzueta and Louise pairing especially succeeds with the wide horizontal shots of futuristic cityscapes.
This week’s issue is an example of Star Trek at its best. Real-world issues played against the canvas of the Star Trek universe. Star Trek: Defiant continues its strong run after the conclusion of “Day of Blood,” and I’m enjoying the current father/son story immensely. Cantwell doesn’t let Worf off the hook as a parent just because he’s a Starfleet hero and fan-favorite character. Worf is both trying to help Alexander prove himself to his fellow Klingons and to make up for his not being present during Alexander’s childhood. A poignant tale that I think most Trek fans have been waiting to see unfold since Alexander was sent back to live with his grandparents after the end of the next generation. Fans of 1990’s Star Trek owe it to themselves to check out what IDW is producing. The comic future for Star Trek continues to be a bright one.
Creative Team: Christopher Cantwell (Writer), Angel Unzueta (Artist), Marissa Louise (Colorist), and Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
Publisher: IDW Publishing
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