Written By: David Tipton & Scott Tipton
Story A Artist: Débora Caríta
Story A Colorist: Jay Fotos
Story B Artist: J. K. Woodward
Lettering By: AndWorld Design
Published By: IDW Publishing
As two Captain Picards face against one another, which Enterprise will stand their ground in the end? As the USS Enterprise away team arrive fully armed on board the ISS Enterprise, a fight is about to commence. Just which Captain will win in the end, and will the Mirror Universe succeed in gaining another Federation ship for its armada? And what has become of Spock after his encounter with Alternate Data?
We have now come to the final issue of this miniseries, and it has been an interesting journey! It started with a rumour from the Mirror Universe, one that involved the forgotten Emperor Spock, his encounter with another universe, and the alter egos of the crew that lived there. By chance, their paths crossed again. This time, however, a plan has been put in place by Captain Picard of the ISS Enterprise to gain more ships and valuable supplies for his mission to take over the universe. However, it appears this Captain has mistaken about how competent his counterpart is.
Well it’s not every day you see two Captains in the one room, let alone ones that share the same physical makeup. As the two Picards stand in front of one another, the only thing they share is their DNA and looks; their personalities, mindset and ideologies are very different, polar opposites even. That guarantees this encounter to be a very treacherous one, and as the phasers start shooting the chase has definitely begun. It ultimately comes down to Data of the USS Enterprise to use his enhanced android brain to decipher the plans of the Mirror crew and find a way to prevent them from entering their Federation universe again.
Data against Data, Picard against Picard and also our own Riker against his pirate-looking counterpart. It was a grand shoot-out; some limbs were lost but the battle was unfortunately all too short. I would have preferred a more prolonged chase and fight scene, but the story must reach its conclusion in these thirty-six pages. Past the main story lies an interesting ending, one that certainly leaves the story open for a potential continuation in another miniseries. Hopefully we won’t be waiting too long to see this. Then we have the final encounter between Alternate Data and Spock, and although the action was not shown, it is clear to see that there was much bloodshed once Data emerges from the cave.
This final issue has five artworks. The first is from J.K. Woodward, in the same style as all the other previous cover A images for this series. It shows the Enterprise pictured between the two opposing sides; both Dr Beverly Crushers, Worf of USS Enterprise and Lt. Barclay of the Mirror Universe. Once again, the convention exclusive cover is a black and white image of this. Cover B is by Débora Carlta and Jason Lewis. This is an interesting scene, as we have Alternate Spock trying to choke the life out of Picard. Retailer incentive A photo cover is a group shot of the main characters of the Star Trek: The Next Generation cast. Lastly, we have the retailer incentive B cover from Peter McKinstry, with a headshot of Riker from the Mirror Universe. He is a more rugged man, who has lost one eye over time and now sports a twin braided beard. His demeanour is that of someone eager for battle.
Overall this miniseries has been a good one. It would be very beneficial to have already seen Star Trek: The Next Generation TV show before reading this. You could possibly skip the original Star Trek and just browse the main points about Spock’s character. There will certainly be another Star Trek: The Next Generation comic in the near future, one that will follow on from the events of this miniseries. This issue is well worth picking this up from your comic book shop, but there has been no news on if it will be released as a TPB yet.
Overall: 8/10
