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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - The Illyrian Enigma #1-4
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds—The Illyrian Enigma
Journey to new reaches in this exclusive comic tie-in set between seasons one and two of the fan-favorite Paramount+ series! With Una accused of unlawful genetic modification by Starfleet, Captain Pike sets out in search of evidence that could prove her innocence. But, when Captain Pike and the crew of the Enterprise get caught in the Pryllia colony, home to the illusive Illyrians, the mission objective quickly shifts from gathering evidence to exonerate Una to…breaking out. From the mighty pens of Trek duo Kirsten Beyer and Mike Johnson (Picard—Stargazer, Discovery—Adventures in the 32nd Century, Light of Kahless, and more!) with art by Megan Levens (Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Star The Mirror War—Troi).
101 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 11, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
December 28, 2023
Very in keeping with the overall vibe of the television series, which is altogether a good thing in my view as it is a delight. You'll be a bit lost if you haven't watched the first season, though.
May 27, 2024
This was a nice little tie between Seasons 1 and 2 of the series. Characters were well written and matched their on screen counterparts!
February 26, 2026
a fine little book that feels like a fine episode of the TV series.
October 11, 2023
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - The Illyrian Enigma
In the aftermath of Una Chin-Riley's arrest, Pike is assigned a simple mission to deliver waste disposal pods to a colony for recycling. Deciding to investigate a nearby Illyrian planet for evidence which might help his First Officer, Spock is kidnapped and genetically altered in order for him to retrieve an ancient artefact which might unravel the secrets of this mysterious race.
The plot is deftly woven and the artwork is good. The one drawback to the story is the crotchety "comedy" Vulcan, who simply does not work. The writers have done a good job of creating a lovely inter season story which is connected to the ongoing arc without affecting it for fans who miss this book.
In the aftermath of Una Chin-Riley's arrest, Pike is assigned a simple mission to deliver waste disposal pods to a colony for recycling. Deciding to investigate a nearby Illyrian planet for evidence which might help his First Officer, Spock is kidnapped and genetically altered in order for him to retrieve an ancient artefact which might unravel the secrets of this mysterious race.
The plot is deftly woven and the artwork is good. The one drawback to the story is the crotchety "comedy" Vulcan, who simply does not work. The writers have done a good job of creating a lovely inter season story which is connected to the ongoing arc without affecting it for fans who miss this book.
September 3, 2023
The hitch with telling a story that takes place between series - the previous series having ended on a cliffhanger - is that you're somewhat hamstrung in terms of where you can take the plot, having to end the story on a "soft reset" and so it proved in this installment.
As ever with Beyer's Star Trek works, the characterisation was spot on and I really enjoyed the twist regarding the Vulcan involvement with the Illyrians, even if it did have to be gently put to one side to allow the show to pursue its own resolution of Number One's case and circumstances. On the subject of Number One, a bit of exploration of her state of mind at the prospect of losing her career in Starfleet and being in confinement wouldn't have gone amiss.
Always enjoyable add-ons to the main series though.
As ever with Beyer's Star Trek works, the characterisation was spot on and I really enjoyed the twist regarding the Vulcan involvement with the Illyrians, even if it did have to be gently put to one side to allow the show to pursue its own resolution of Number One's case and circumstances. On the subject of Number One, a bit of exploration of her state of mind at the prospect of losing her career in Starfleet and being in confinement wouldn't have gone amiss.
Always enjoyable add-ons to the main series though.
April 11, 2023
I read this story as individual issues.
For issue one:
This is a relatively uneventful setup for a story that looks like it will connect the first and second seasons of the show. I still give it a high rating because the dialogue and art stay very true to the series, and the art itself is fantastic, and I am compelled to keep reading. I'm not entirely sure why I like this series more than any of the other modern Trek shows, but I think it has to do with the sense that the crew is more of a family than a bunch of coworkers. I hope this story, though it's only a tie in, will have some consequential aspects and not just be filler.
Issue Two:
The art in this series so far has been worth the purchase price by itself. The Enterprise looks terrific, and the crew are all absolutely identifiable. Captain Pike even admits that it's not a crew he has with him, it's a family, and that they rescue their own. This issue goes by very quickly but it's intense and definitely makes me look forward to the next one.
Issue Three:
This is a relatively uneventful issue as far as the storyline goes, but the art, intrigue, and world building for the Illyrians make this series worth reading. They’re all top notch, and the dialogue fits the characters well.
Issue Four:
While there is no action in this concluding chapter, there is an interesting revelation that was a shade darker than I expected this story to have. While the story as a whole is probably of no major consequence to the show, the revelation was enough to give this comic series purpose and I'm glad I read it. It definitely serves as a tie in between the first two seasons. I assume season two must deal with getting Commander Chin-Riley back, and I'm looking forward to the show's return. This storyline should scratch the itch of anyone waiting for the show.
For issue one:
This is a relatively uneventful setup for a story that looks like it will connect the first and second seasons of the show. I still give it a high rating because the dialogue and art stay very true to the series, and the art itself is fantastic, and I am compelled to keep reading. I'm not entirely sure why I like this series more than any of the other modern Trek shows, but I think it has to do with the sense that the crew is more of a family than a bunch of coworkers. I hope this story, though it's only a tie in, will have some consequential aspects and not just be filler.
Issue Two:
The art in this series so far has been worth the purchase price by itself. The Enterprise looks terrific, and the crew are all absolutely identifiable. Captain Pike even admits that it's not a crew he has with him, it's a family, and that they rescue their own. This issue goes by very quickly but it's intense and definitely makes me look forward to the next one.
Issue Three:
This is a relatively uneventful issue as far as the storyline goes, but the art, intrigue, and world building for the Illyrians make this series worth reading. They’re all top notch, and the dialogue fits the characters well.
Issue Four:
While there is no action in this concluding chapter, there is an interesting revelation that was a shade darker than I expected this story to have. While the story as a whole is probably of no major consequence to the show, the revelation was enough to give this comic series purpose and I'm glad I read it. It definitely serves as a tie in between the first two seasons. I assume season two must deal with getting Commander Chin-Riley back, and I'm looking forward to the show's return. This storyline should scratch the itch of anyone waiting for the show.
April 8, 2023
The story is just okay. Nothing too exciting and it has a really ho-hum ending. The art isn’t unpleasant but has a cheap Wikihow illustration look to it.
March 13, 2024
Genetic engineering. Harsh landscapes. Cultural secrets. Tight timelines.
April 3, 2023
if this first miniseries is anything to go by, the strange new worlds comics are going to have the same general strengths & weaknesses as the discovery comics.
first of all, great art. just a truly great job of translating what you see on the screen in the show to the panel in the comics without being overly photorealistic which is always just a little bit off-putting to me when comics go for that. it's also little things like how the dialogue reads, it's always very pleasant when you can imagine the dialogue coming out of the actors' mouths & such, while still not going too lengthy/wordy to have an effectively paced comic.
as for the plotting, if discovery is anything to go by they oftentimes seem to like setting things between seasons, which makes perfect sense, but it does very much limit the kind of story you can tell, especially when there is any kind of cliffhanger between seasons like number one's arrest. i do think using that as the main plot of this comic to try to flip it from a liability to an asset was a very shrewd move, and i think they did the best they could with what they had to work with.
and hey, maybe we're gonna see more of the illyrians in season 2 of the show, and we got a nice sneak peek of them here. my gut tells me that the reason the comic showed us so much of them is that they know they aren't really gonna show up in the series proper, so they figured it would be nice to depict them in this form at least, but who knows?
for all its stated limitations, this was a fun read, especially if you're looking to whet your appetite for season 2 of the show.
first of all, great art. just a truly great job of translating what you see on the screen in the show to the panel in the comics without being overly photorealistic which is always just a little bit off-putting to me when comics go for that. it's also little things like how the dialogue reads, it's always very pleasant when you can imagine the dialogue coming out of the actors' mouths & such, while still not going too lengthy/wordy to have an effectively paced comic.
as for the plotting, if discovery is anything to go by they oftentimes seem to like setting things between seasons, which makes perfect sense, but it does very much limit the kind of story you can tell, especially when there is any kind of cliffhanger between seasons like number one's arrest. i do think using that as the main plot of this comic to try to flip it from a liability to an asset was a very shrewd move, and i think they did the best they could with what they had to work with.
and hey, maybe we're gonna see more of the illyrians in season 2 of the show, and we got a nice sneak peek of them here. my gut tells me that the reason the comic showed us so much of them is that they know they aren't really gonna show up in the series proper, so they figured it would be nice to depict them in this form at least, but who knows?
for all its stated limitations, this was a fun read, especially if you're looking to whet your appetite for season 2 of the show.
October 9, 2023
I think you can tell right from reading the blurb on this book that there's not going to be much in the way of plot developments here. The big cliffhanger at the end of the first season of Strange New Worlds was that Number One had been arrested for concealing her Illyrian heritage, and there's simply no way that that story is going to get resolved in a tie-in comic book between seasons, I'm afraid.
Hamstrung as it is by its impossible premise, the Illyrian Enigma does mean we get to spend more time with this incarnation of the Enterprise crew. Having the writers and producers of the show involved with the comics means the characters always sound and act as you'd expect, and the titular Enigma itself is neat, even if it feels a tad convoluted.
The artwork from Megan Levens (been a while since I've read something she's drawn) is neat, and captures the characters' essences pretty well. I think the last time I saw her was on Angel & Faith, so she clearly likes her media tie-in books.
Decent, but don't expect any huge revelations that will change the course of Strange New Worlds. I question the idea of dealing with a story like this instead of something a little more freeing, but hey.
Hamstrung as it is by its impossible premise, the Illyrian Enigma does mean we get to spend more time with this incarnation of the Enterprise crew. Having the writers and producers of the show involved with the comics means the characters always sound and act as you'd expect, and the titular Enigma itself is neat, even if it feels a tad convoluted.
The artwork from Megan Levens (been a while since I've read something she's drawn) is neat, and captures the characters' essences pretty well. I think the last time I saw her was on Angel & Faith, so she clearly likes her media tie-in books.
Decent, but don't expect any huge revelations that will change the course of Strange New Worlds. I question the idea of dealing with a story like this instead of something a little more freeing, but hey.
April 2, 2025
I had a day off work so I decided to stop by our amazing library. I was hoping to get the new Patrick Stewart memoir that I saw they highlighted on their library social media page but someone must have beaten me to it. Instead I got this 4 issue collection from the Strange New Worlds crew. My oldest daughter has surprised me with some interest in this particular iteration of Star Trek so I am re watching it with her.
The collection itself is fast and fun with great art. I'm also reading one of the older TOS paperbacks that has a Vulcan centric story so I liked having a little more of that. It was good enough to make me add a Star Trek shelf to my goodreads account so let's get to filling it!
The collection itself is fast and fun with great art. I'm also reading one of the older TOS paperbacks that has a Vulcan centric story so I liked having a little more of that. It was good enough to make me add a Star Trek shelf to my goodreads account so let's get to filling it!
June 25, 2024
Unsatisfactory Star Trek fare.
I have no love for Strange New Worlds and Captain Pike Enterprise. Reflective of the poor choice to do a spin-off to a hated prequel to true fans - Star Trek Discovery. Blackwashing Robert April was additionally promoted to Admiral when canon only has the Caucasian former Captain April retired as a Commodore. And the difference in appearance and temperament of Pike, Uhura and the other characters we know and love. This comic book just jars visually and on an emotional level. Poor show.
I have no love for Strange New Worlds and Captain Pike Enterprise. Reflective of the poor choice to do a spin-off to a hated prequel to true fans - Star Trek Discovery. Blackwashing Robert April was additionally promoted to Admiral when canon only has the Caucasian former Captain April retired as a Commodore. And the difference in appearance and temperament of Pike, Uhura and the other characters we know and love. This comic book just jars visually and on an emotional level. Poor show.
February 6, 2026
"The Illyrian Enigma" out of the SNW comics series attempts to explain just who the Illyrians are as the events are set near the end of Season 2. The story means well & has the drama you would expect; however, the actual explanation for the Illyrians is so farfetched it's not believable. There's also a temporary genetic modification to Spock which is more plot device than anything else. Overall, this is not a sequence of comics people will probably believe, but the story is still somewhat sound.
March 8, 2026
This is a great one-shot story to fit in between seasons one and two of ST:SNW. The characterisations feel right, and the art is decent.
Pike takes the Enterprise on a side quest to hunt information on Illyrian culture in the hopes of finding something to help in Una’s court martial.
The story provides background and context, as hoped, but none of the revelations are able to be used in the end. So the story wraps up without breaking the continuity of the series.
A quick and entertaining read.
Pike takes the Enterprise on a side quest to hunt information on Illyrian culture in the hopes of finding something to help in Una’s court martial.
The story provides background and context, as hoped, but none of the revelations are able to be used in the end. So the story wraps up without breaking the continuity of the series.
A quick and entertaining read.
January 13, 2025
I think these tie-ins are well-served by focusing on character moments and side-details since the reader is at all times aware that the brute force of canon can at any time turn on a dime and wipe any larger revelations away. In the case of this limited series, character moments are mostly eschewed, but the side-details concerning the Illyrians are pretty revelatory. A shame that the ending sweeps it all under the rug in such a direct way.
February 16, 2026
I'm a huge fan of Kirtsen Beyer and her Star Trek writing. This comic is between the events of season one and two of Strange New Worlds so it can't make too many changes (not that the comics ever could) but it ties in with the trial of Number One. The story is great and deals with the history of the Illyrians and ties into the Vulcan's past. Sadly, the ending feels a bit abrupt given, again, it can't affect events in the trial. Overall, I really liked the art, though.
March 2, 2024
Taking place between seasons one and two of Star Trek's Strange new Worlds, this graphic novel perfectly captures the voice, look, and personality of each character and grabs onto the tone of the show with precision. I very much enjoyed this bonus and delighted in this chance to revisit all the characters between seasons.
May 16, 2023
This was a fun standalone story set between the two seasons of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. The writers of this book really captures the voices of the characters. I look forward to the new season in a month.
May 28, 2023
Mostly captured the voices of the crew well, but also, like most tie-in fiction, felt like it had its hands tied and couldn't let any of its events meaningfully change the status quo. But who knows? Maybe S2E1 will prove me wrong. I'm already hearing amazing things.
November 15, 2023
Ortegas is in it, so it’s an automatic five stars for me. (She could’ve been in it a lot more, though.)
Strange New Worlds is one of my comfort shows, and this was an enjoyable way to spend some extra time with this lovable crew.
Strange New Worlds is one of my comfort shows, and this was an enjoyable way to spend some extra time with this lovable crew.
November 25, 2023
Taking place between Seasons 1 and 2, this directly addresses the Season 1 cliffhanger. The resulting story feels very much like an episode of the show, which is a good thing, since it's a good show. (B+)
December 2, 2023
Love that it connects to the show and you know where it falls in the timeline...but it is an inconsequential story overall. It feels like it could be massive but because it happened in the comic will likely be ignored in the show.
December 27, 2023
Considering that this is based on a show that thrives when episodic, I found it odd that they would try to smash this story in between two episodes. It also means that this can’t really go anywhere because the resolution is already predetermined.
February 19, 2024
(Read the 4 individual comic books.)
Fascinating side mission set during season two of SNW. I enjoyed this addition to the Illyrian lore, although I would love to have seen them do more with this story.
Fascinating side mission set during season two of SNW. I enjoyed this addition to the Illyrian lore, although I would love to have seen them do more with this story.
October 6, 2024
The authors got some details wrong (Spock not being a commander yet, for example), and I'm not entirely sure the historical part is canon compliant. Some smaller bits are also out of character, but for the most part the characters are well done and the story is interesting.
April 28, 2023
This one of the better stories in terms of comics based off of "new Trek". I love this crew and I am very excited for the next season of Strange New Worlds.
January 8, 2024
Strange New Worlds has been my favorite new series. Seeing it in the graphic novel didn't dampen that. Great story. Sort of a prelude to the first episode of season two. Leads into it nicely.
February 26, 2024
Some backgrounds are too empty, but this really nailed the vibe of Strange New Worlds.
August 24, 2024
The vulcans did what!!??
December 29, 2024
Für einen Star Trek Comic gar nicht schlecht, auch wenn die Geschichte dann doch etwas bizarr wirkt, mit dem steten Übertölpeln der Protagonisten auf allen Seiten.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews