Reviews

Before I became a comic fan and long before I became a gamer I was a Star Trek fan. Despite my love for Star Trek I have not enjoyed many of the comics that have come out over the years. I am not saying that I have not enjoyed any of the comics that have come out in the past in fact there are some I have enjoyed very much. Still, the majority of Star Trek comics that have come out in the past have disappointed me and there are a variety of reasons for this. Sometimes the writer will feature characters they created while making little or no use of well loved and established characters like Scotty and Sulu. Other times the story will ignore or even contradict established continuity. These are just some of the reasons I have not enjoyed many of the Star Trek comics that have come out over the years. Star Trek: Khan Ruling In Hell does not suffer from any of the problems that have kept me from enjoying so many other Star Trek comics. In fact, this series has just about everything in it that I or any other Star Trek original series fan could want in a comic. This well written story, by Scott and David Tipton, does not tread over ground that has been covers a dozen times before while at the same time fills in a empty spot in Star Trek history. The story dovetails nicely into established continuity and their portrayal of existing characters fits in well with what we already know about these characters.

This story takes place between the events in, the famous original series episode, Space Seed and the movie Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. For those of you who do not know, in the original episode the crew of the Enterprise discovers an old Earth ship, the Botany Bay, with it crew in suspended animation. Once revived Khan a genetically enhanced warlord from the 20th century and his people try to take over the Enterprise so they can begin their conquest anew. Once Capt. Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise thwart this attempt rather then send Khan and his followers to prison Kirk gives them the option to go to Ceti Alpha V and begin building a new world. Khan happily takes Kirk up on his offer saying that he now has what he wants: a world to win and an empire to build. When we next meet Khan, in Star Trek II, it is clear things have not gone as either man had planned. Ceti Alpha V is a barren wasteland; Khan has gone mad and wants nothing more then to get revenge on Kirk no matter what the cost. This mini series tells the story of what happened between those two events.

Clearly, since this is the fourth issue in a four part mini series this is not the issue you want to start with but that is not a problem. The whole series is an enjoyable read regardless if you are a causal or a diehard Star Trek fan. This may not have been exactly how I would have written a story about the events on Ceti Alpha V but I still enjoyed it and believe it is worth reading.

Keith Forney