Star Trek #30 Review

What will happen when two Enterprises meet? Read on to find out.

The official description from IDW:

Captain Jane Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise fight fortheir lives in this concluding chapter of a 2-part story overseen by STAR TREK writer/producer Roberto Orci! The Five Year Mission between blockbuster movies continues here, in this all-new mind-bending adventure!

Have you ever wondered what it’s be like to see two Kirk’s or two Spock’s meet one another? Well you don’t have to wonder any more, as this issue sees two Enterprise’s meet one another in a interesting, but slightly lacklustre tale. Now before I go any further I’ll clear up one mistake most people will have notice, and that is that we’ve already seen two Spock’s meet during the reboot J.J. Abrams films. This however is a much more unique, as whereas the Spock’s from the film were wary on what they said, this interaction had a much more natural feel to it.

Mike Johnson continues from the last issue perfectly, showing the perplexed state of both Kirk’s. Johnston explores this unique opportunity to see two sets off Enterprise crew interact with each other, with the each one having it’s own unique appeal. Johnston does however go through this at a ultra quick pace, proving that the story should have been longer than two issues. Added to this the teasing of a fight near the end which delivered nothing and I can’t help but reflect of the wasted opportunities of this issue. The multiple realities near the end however did put a slight smile on my face with the brief meeting between the regular Kirk and the Kirk that William Shatner played being a nice touch.

Yasmin Liang has really grown on me over this two issue story, with her art being very vibrant. Her talent for showing the both difference and similarities in these parallel versions is simply wonderful, and if I’m honest it’s hard to choice which comparison I loved the most. Liang also managed to give a lively and dynamic feel through her layouts, with them making this tale more impactful. Added to this the terrific character expressions as well as Zac Atkinson’s amazing colours and I could definitely get used to seeing her art on this series.

Parallel Lives has been a fun mini-story, but overall the lack of time has severely affected this story. It is however still an enjoyable read and I recommend it to any Star Trek fan.