Advance Review — A Rushed Journey’s End For ‘Star Trek: The Last Starship’ #12
by Tom Smithyman
It’s the end of the line for the Borg-cloned James T. Kirk, the U.S.S. Omega, and the series Star Trek: The Last Starship.
This 12th issue marks a story’s last issue. And while the issue is rushed, the series ending feels long overdue.
The Last Starship had the chips stacked against it from the start. It follows on the heels of writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly’s largely lauded run on IDW’s main Star Trek title. So the pair were probably overdue for a misfire. They didn’t help themselves by setting the story just after little-known event called The Burn, the galactic cataclysm that rendered warp cores inert and killed trillions.
The answer was obvious — to Lanzing and Kelly at least: Bring Kirk back from the dead. It sounds … logical. After all, we didn’t know these new characters. They may have been Starfleet characters, but the Federation of that era is new territory for even the most diehard Trek fan. But it just didn’t work, and the series was announced to end.
So with only a few months’ notice, Lanzing and Kelly scrambled to resolve the story as best they could. Kudos to them for trying to bring everything to a close. But, as you might expect, everything feels rushed.
Kirk and the series’ real protagonist, Delacourt Sato, are trying to save the Federation by hiding in T’Galatheon Gate, where the evil Emerald Chain won’t find it. The baddies learn about the plan and attack. If that sounds overly simplistic, it’s because it is.
The final battle is slapdash and confusing. Characters we largely forgot about play important roles (or we’re made to think they’re important because we can’t understand what’s actually happening). At least the battle looks good thanks to artist Adrian Bonilla. He uses clever angles, splash pages, and a two-page spread to demonstrate the scope of the fight.
At least Lanzing and Kelly’s ending is unexpected. They have given themselves leeway to revisit this dark time for the Federation, if they would ever choose to. But the real question is: Would readers want to rejoin it with them?
Star Trek: The Last Starship #12 — written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, illustrated by Adrian Bonilla, colored by Lee Loughridge, and lettered by Clayton Cowles — will be available on Wednesday in comic book stores and on digital platforms from IDW.
Overview
The series that brought James T. Kirk back from the dead now dies an early death with this issue. The ending is rushed and leaves readers wondering why the writers chose this story to tell. But there are some good illustrations, particularly the space battle.
