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Star Trek: The Original Series #45
Double, Double
On a routine exploratory mission, the Starship U.S.S. "Hood" picks up a distress signal from a research expedition thought lost long ago -- the expedition of Dr. Roger Korby, one of the centuries' greatest scientific minds. Korby himself is dead, it seems, but his colleagues have made a most incredible discover -- a discovery they insist the "Hood's" captain see for himself. Reluctantly, the captain agrees to beam down...
Meanwhile, the crew of the U.S.S. "Enterprise(TM) " begins long-overdue shore leave on Tranquility Seven. James T. Kirk is looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation....until what seems like a bizarre case of mistaken identity plunges Kirk into a whirlpool of mayhem and murder.
And puts an inhuman stranger with his memories and anilities in command of the "Enterprise."
Meanwhile, the crew of the U.S.S. "Enterprise(TM) " begins long-overdue shore leave on Tranquility Seven. James T. Kirk is looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation....until what seems like a bizarre case of mistaken identity plunges Kirk into a whirlpool of mayhem and murder.
And puts an inhuman stranger with his memories and anilities in command of the "Enterprise."
308 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1989
22 people are currently reading
532 people want to read
About the author
Michael Jan Friedman
374 books205 followersMichael Jan Friedman is an author of more than seventy books of fiction and nonfiction, half of which are in the Star Trek universe. Eleven of his titles have appeared on the New York Times Best Seller list. Friedman has also written for network and cable television and radio, and scripted nearly 200 comic books, including his original DC superhero series, the Darkstars.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
April 17, 2022
Some good moments, but, overall, not very good.
EDIT: I enjoyed it more the second time around.
EDIT: I enjoyed it more the second time around.
June 10, 2011
This book was written years ago. It is a continuation of the events in the Star Trek episode "What Are Little Girls Made of?".
A couple of things put me off almost at once. First, Kirk posts an inaccurate log entry--deliberately for a very flimsy reason. That is very unlike Kirk. And at the ned, Star Fleet lets this pass--and that is very unlike any military bureaucracy.
Second, Kirk rescues a primitive tribesman named K'leb. Circumstances place him on the Enterprise for a couple of weeks. Conveniently, the universal translator--which works in every other episode-- is not programmed for K'leb's language. We have one crewman who speaks it a little.
I find it hard to beleive with all their computers and linguistics programs and scientist and historians that they can't learn K'leb's language. But of course, it is a critical plot element, as K'leb can't make clear what he knows.
Once started, the story is adequate Star Trek. But there is nothing to lift it out of the ordinary--it is simply one of many Star Trek books--forgettable two weeks after you read it.
I gave it a two because one scene where Kirk and his enemy must fight the Romulans together was a nice touch. After they dispose of the Romulan meance, then they'll resume their own hostilities!
Recommended for the die hard Star Trek fan only.
A couple of things put me off almost at once. First, Kirk posts an inaccurate log entry--deliberately for a very flimsy reason. That is very unlike Kirk. And at the ned, Star Fleet lets this pass--and that is very unlike any military bureaucracy.
Second, Kirk rescues a primitive tribesman named K'leb. Circumstances place him on the Enterprise for a couple of weeks. Conveniently, the universal translator--which works in every other episode-- is not programmed for K'leb's language. We have one crewman who speaks it a little.
I find it hard to beleive with all their computers and linguistics programs and scientist and historians that they can't learn K'leb's language. But of course, it is a critical plot element, as K'leb can't make clear what he knows.
Once started, the story is adequate Star Trek. But there is nothing to lift it out of the ordinary--it is simply one of many Star Trek books--forgettable two weeks after you read it.
I gave it a two because one scene where Kirk and his enemy must fight the Romulans together was a nice touch. After they dispose of the Romulan meance, then they'll resume their own hostilities!
Recommended for the die hard Star Trek fan only.
November 13, 2016
I thought it was pretty good. The characters were handled deftly. Seems like it could have been tightened a touch, and there are some inconsistencies in the premise, which is that an android survived after the end of the original series episode "What are Little Girls Made of?" The inconsistencies involve the fact that Kirk never reported any of this event to Starfleet, which given the power of the android making machine, seems highly unlikely. Once the story got going, though, it moved pretty well.
August 3, 2019
On the cold, dead planet Exo III, an android returns from an exploration mission to find that his creator Roger Korby is dead and his fellow androids destroyed. Deciding to continue his master's mission, the android creates a new duplicate of James T. Kirk, the starship captain who was to be Korby's means of carrying out his plan on replacing humanity with android duplicates. The new android Kirk soon lures a starship to his planet, where he begins the process of infiltrating Starfleet — with his next target the U.S.S. Enterprise.
Michael Jan Friedman is a prolific author of Star Trek franchise novels. This book was his first, and after reading it it's easy to see why he is such a popular contributor to the series. Reaching all the way back to one of the very first episodes of the original show, he details how the threat posed by Korby's androids might have developed. What makes it work as well as it does is Friedman's fidelity to the source material, with the androids exhibiting the same developmental issues that played such an important role in the resolution of the episode.
Yet Friedman's fealty is just one factor in the novel's success. Another is his primary antagonist, which is one of the most formidable threats ever encountered by the Enterprise crew. For Friedman's android Kirk is not the maniacal accident from "The Enemy Within" or the scheming thug from "Mirror, Mirror," but a Kirk who is every bit the calm, calculating strategist. Much of Friedman's novel is devoted to detailing the enactment of his strategy, one that enjoys considerable success before it is finally stopped. Here Friedman delivers as well, providing readers with highly entertaining combination of action and suspense as his characters work towards the story's resolution. Taken together, it makes for one of the best contributions to Star Trek's Pocket Books series, one the left me looking forward to reading Friedman's subsequent contributions to it.
Michael Jan Friedman is a prolific author of Star Trek franchise novels. This book was his first, and after reading it it's easy to see why he is such a popular contributor to the series. Reaching all the way back to one of the very first episodes of the original show, he details how the threat posed by Korby's androids might have developed. What makes it work as well as it does is Friedman's fidelity to the source material, with the androids exhibiting the same developmental issues that played such an important role in the resolution of the episode.
Yet Friedman's fealty is just one factor in the novel's success. Another is his primary antagonist, which is one of the most formidable threats ever encountered by the Enterprise crew. For Friedman's android Kirk is not the maniacal accident from "The Enemy Within" or the scheming thug from "Mirror, Mirror," but a Kirk who is every bit the calm, calculating strategist. Much of Friedman's novel is devoted to detailing the enactment of his strategy, one that enjoys considerable success before it is finally stopped. Here Friedman delivers as well, providing readers with highly entertaining combination of action and suspense as his characters work towards the story's resolution. Taken together, it makes for one of the best contributions to Star Trek's Pocket Books series, one the left me looking forward to reading Friedman's subsequent contributions to it.
August 6, 2020
Hinged on a premise of an early OS episode, this book shows what Kirk would accomplish were he removed from thoughts of guilt, honesty, morality, and duty. I don't think the book does enough with that premise, per se, but it is a taut thriller typical of this series of books. An easy, adventerous, and well-characterized read. Easy to see why Friedman was tapped for so many of these.
August 30, 2017
“Double, Double” was Michael Jan Friedman’s first ever Star Trek novel and acts as a sequel to the Original Series episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of?”. The story is based on the premise that Kirk has decides to gloss over the events which occurred on Exo III and doesn’t carry out a full investigation in order to protect Nurse Chapel. However, another android returns to the planet and when it finds its creator dead, it decides to continue his work. The android finds the template of Kirk still in the machine and creates another android using it. This android Kirk is full of confidence and ventures forth to takeover a starship and then to control the galaxy.
This is one of the better written Trek novels with a well-paced story and a decent amount of detail. In addition, the story itself was rather engaging with Friedman doing an excellent job of continuing the established story from the TV series. The characters are also handled well although I did have an initial issue with Kirk which is detailed below.
Basically, the issue with Kirk I had was due to him not telling Starfleet everything that happened on Exo III. The reason given that he is protecting Nurse Chapel just seemed very inconsistent and flimsy. I found it hard to believe that Kirk would risk not telling Starfleet about everything considering the risk posed by the machine. It doesn’t spoil the overall telling of the story but me feeling rather incredulous at the set up wasn’t the best way to start a novel.
Overall, I did enjoy the novel although I will admit that I do have a soft spot for stories which continue threads started via the original show so maybe I would have enjoyed it even if it was terrible! Thankfully it isn’t and despite the weak initial premise, the writing and pacing are more than adequate and the story is entertaining.
This is one of the better written Trek novels with a well-paced story and a decent amount of detail. In addition, the story itself was rather engaging with Friedman doing an excellent job of continuing the established story from the TV series. The characters are also handled well although I did have an initial issue with Kirk which is detailed below.
Basically, the issue with Kirk I had was due to him not telling Starfleet everything that happened on Exo III. The reason given that he is protecting Nurse Chapel just seemed very inconsistent and flimsy. I found it hard to believe that Kirk would risk not telling Starfleet about everything considering the risk posed by the machine. It doesn’t spoil the overall telling of the story but me feeling rather incredulous at the set up wasn’t the best way to start a novel.
Overall, I did enjoy the novel although I will admit that I do have a soft spot for stories which continue threads started via the original show so maybe I would have enjoyed it even if it was terrible! Thankfully it isn’t and despite the weak initial premise, the writing and pacing are more than adequate and the story is entertaining.
April 20, 2015
On the surface, this seems like a nice paranoid thriller that ties into one of the early episodes of the original Star Trek. But the entire premise rests on a ridiculous idea: that Captain Kirk left Exo III without telling anybody about the alien machinery that can create android copies of people, supposedly out of a desire to protect the reputation of the late Dr. Roger Korby and the feelings of Nurse Chapel.
To understand how stupid this is, imagine that a US Navy vessel stumbles upon an island where an evil clone of Abraham Lincoln commands alien machinery that can create evil clones of anyone he chooses. And that after defeating Evil Clone Lincoln, that the captain of the vessel (we'll call him Captain Bob) decides to leave the alien machinery intact and unguarded and never tell his superiors about its existence.
Now, imagine that due to Captain Bob's negligence, someone else is able to co-opt the machinery and use it to murder and then replace numerous civilians and the top officers of another US Navy vessel with evil clones. But once all of this is found out, Captain Bob's superiors don't punish him even though his negligence got a lot of people killed. Isn't that ridiculous?
Yes. Yes it is.
To understand how stupid this is, imagine that a US Navy vessel stumbles upon an island where an evil clone of Abraham Lincoln commands alien machinery that can create evil clones of anyone he chooses. And that after defeating Evil Clone Lincoln, that the captain of the vessel (we'll call him Captain Bob) decides to leave the alien machinery intact and unguarded and never tell his superiors about its existence.
Now, imagine that due to Captain Bob's negligence, someone else is able to co-opt the machinery and use it to murder and then replace numerous civilians and the top officers of another US Navy vessel with evil clones. But once all of this is found out, Captain Bob's superiors don't punish him even though his negligence got a lot of people killed. Isn't that ridiculous?
Yes. Yes it is.
May 3, 2018
obviously it was good.anything by Friedman is always a good read, but unfortunately because of school my reading of Double Double was very broken. Still though despite that it easily gets 3 stars in my opinion. A second read through may come in the future however.
May 22, 2022
What a classic romp! The cover and the title of this story fooled me into expecting another mirror universe story but to my surprise and delight, the double in the mirror is an android copy rather than an alternate reality version of Kirk. It probably says so in the blurb but I failed to read that before starting.
In fact, the situation is explained quite well right at the beginning and we learn that this story will continue where the episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of" left off after Kirk and Co. departed the planet EXO III. The surviving android Dr. Brown decides to continue his late creator, Dr. Korby's original mission, to populate the galaxy with their perfect android copies.
This android's Utopian vision begins with the same mistake that Dr. Korby made, which was, in my humble opinion, to copy and replace rather than just to copy. As it turns out the plan is essentially exactly the same as Korby's so there is little to wonder about how it will all play out and one of the main hitches in the plan is actually a recurrence of the exact flaw that ended it the first time. I thought that was a disappointing choice for this continuation of events, however it did mean that the bait and switch game had to be a lot more creative this time.
Michael Jan Friedman was quite a popular Trek author and for good reason. This story is interesting, the characters are instantly recognisable and even muddy sections of the plot are handled so that they are simple to follow but still able to surprise the reader.
I felt it was a risky move to refer to all android copies by the same name, instead of adding a numbering convention or some other differentiation. It's exactly the type of thing that greatly frustrates this reader, but in all honesty there was never a situation in this story when it took longer than a moment to understand which character was the original and which the duplicate.
Apart from a few noticeable vestiges of the time when this was written, there is a lot of apparent respect for all of the characters in this story and Nurse Chapel gets a particularly special mention.
"There are some people whose laughter is precious ... Christine Chapel was one of those people"
Well, even with its predictable elements this was a fantastic story. A real pleasure to read and easily imaginable as another episode of the original series. I think most trekkies will be able to enjoy this story.
In fact, the situation is explained quite well right at the beginning and we learn that this story will continue where the episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of" left off after Kirk and Co. departed the planet EXO III. The surviving android Dr. Brown decides to continue his late creator, Dr. Korby's original mission, to populate the galaxy with their perfect android copies.
This android's Utopian vision begins with the same mistake that Dr. Korby made, which was, in my humble opinion, to copy and replace rather than just to copy. As it turns out the plan is essentially exactly the same as Korby's so there is little to wonder about how it will all play out and one of the main hitches in the plan is actually a recurrence of the exact flaw that ended it the first time. I thought that was a disappointing choice for this continuation of events, however it did mean that the bait and switch game had to be a lot more creative this time.
Michael Jan Friedman was quite a popular Trek author and for good reason. This story is interesting, the characters are instantly recognisable and even muddy sections of the plot are handled so that they are simple to follow but still able to surprise the reader.
I felt it was a risky move to refer to all android copies by the same name, instead of adding a numbering convention or some other differentiation. It's exactly the type of thing that greatly frustrates this reader, but in all honesty there was never a situation in this story when it took longer than a moment to understand which character was the original and which the duplicate.
Apart from a few noticeable vestiges of the time when this was written, there is a lot of apparent respect for all of the characters in this story and Nurse Chapel gets a particularly special mention.
"There are some people whose laughter is precious ... Christine Chapel was one of those people"
Well, even with its predictable elements this was a fantastic story. A real pleasure to read and easily imaginable as another episode of the original series. I think most trekkies will be able to enjoy this story.
May 11, 2023
I do love me a good "evil Kirk" Trek story, and this one was... just okay. I felt as if the Kirk android wasn't over the top enough like the evil Kirk's are in the show. The book also spends too much time on side characters that mean nothing outside of these pages, so those parts tended to drag whenever we were away from Kirk/Spock/McCoy. The ending kind of just happens too, after so much build-up. The resolution felt way too quick.
On the plus side, there is a great opening Kirk action scene that is very fitting to the character, McCoy has some great lines and zingers throughout and Friedman does well with the dialog sounding like how the actors would do the lines. It just felt there was a lacking of anything deeper going on. There is never any moment of contemplation on the thought of androids and what they would mean if they took over people's jobs. They are treated more like pirates taking over a ship that just need to be rid of. Deeper sci-fi meanings could have been dug into here. Oh well.
It's worth a read if you need an empty calorie Trek tale.
On the plus side, there is a great opening Kirk action scene that is very fitting to the character, McCoy has some great lines and zingers throughout and Friedman does well with the dialog sounding like how the actors would do the lines. It just felt there was a lacking of anything deeper going on. There is never any moment of contemplation on the thought of androids and what they would mean if they took over people's jobs. They are treated more like pirates taking over a ship that just need to be rid of. Deeper sci-fi meanings could have been dug into here. Oh well.
It's worth a read if you need an empty calorie Trek tale.
November 4, 2023
Frau Blücher: YES.YES. Say it. he vas my…. BOYFRIEND.
back in 1966 there was a Star Trek episode https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708486/... called what are little girls made of where Nurse Chappel was reunited with her fiancé only to discover he was a bit obsessed with androids. He’d gone a bit batty. Luckily Kirk and Co were able to stop the droid replacement in it’s tracks
But unbeknownst to the crew of old NCC-1701 the droids have survived and are planning to take over the galaxy starting with the Enterprise
This is a clever plot and interesting so why the low rating? The numerous editing errors in a professionally produced ebook. It’s embarrassing.
back in 1966 there was a Star Trek episode https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708486/... called what are little girls made of where Nurse Chappel was reunited with her fiancé only to discover he was a bit obsessed with androids. He’d gone a bit batty. Luckily Kirk and Co were able to stop the droid replacement in it’s tracks
But unbeknownst to the crew of old NCC-1701 the droids have survived and are planning to take over the galaxy starting with the Enterprise
This is a clever plot and interesting so why the low rating? The numerous editing errors in a professionally produced ebook. It’s embarrassing.
June 6, 2020
This sequel to "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" returns to Exo III with another starship encountering the androids that want to take over the galaxy. This time, unlike the earlier encounter with the crew of the Enterprise months earlier, the androids are successful.
A extremely fun and, surprisingly, tense read has Kirk replaced by a mechanical doppleganger, with the real Kirk trying to get back aboard his ship. It was extremely interesting to see what qualities of the fake captain would draw attention from the human crewmembers. How Kirk regains control was thrilling and extremely believable. Naturally, the book's climax is Kirk versus Kirk and it's pure Trek gold.
There are also two new characters introduced into the cast and I was really impressed with, given how author Friedman dealt with them. I expected them to be certain types of characters, and they went in very different directions. I also had expected certain fates for them, being new and pivotal characters to the plot, and, again, Friedman didn't go there. The dialogue for every character is also spot on.
An engaging and exciting Trek read that's an excellent sequel to the classic episode.
A extremely fun and, surprisingly, tense read has Kirk replaced by a mechanical doppleganger, with the real Kirk trying to get back aboard his ship. It was extremely interesting to see what qualities of the fake captain would draw attention from the human crewmembers. How Kirk regains control was thrilling and extremely believable. Naturally, the book's climax is Kirk versus Kirk and it's pure Trek gold.
There are also two new characters introduced into the cast and I was really impressed with, given how author Friedman dealt with them. I expected them to be certain types of characters, and they went in very different directions. I also had expected certain fates for them, being new and pivotal characters to the plot, and, again, Friedman didn't go there. The dialogue for every character is also spot on.
An engaging and exciting Trek read that's an excellent sequel to the classic episode.
August 25, 2011
Starship U.S.S Hood picked up a distress signal from a research expedition thought lost long ago - the expedition of Dr. Roger Kirby, one of the greatest scientific minds. He is dead but his colleague Dr. Brown made an incredible discovery - a discovery to clone a person's identity with the person's memories and abilities. Dr. Brown insisted that Hood's captain to see it for himself. Brown had cloned James T. Kirk - Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise. The cloned Kirk is an android. Meanwhile, the USS Enterprise begins a long - overdue shore leave on Tranquility Seven. Then the original Kirk is captured and keep prisoner in a warehouse. He escapes and seek help to call back his ship, only to find many light-years away with the android. Until what seems a long time, it seemed like a case of mistaken identity which plunges Kirk into a whirlpool of mayhem and murder.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 2, 2019
This is a sequel to the Original Series episode "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" A couple of things irritated me. One is Capt. Kirk not telling his superiors about the existence of the android machine, as others have noted. Another is the alien empath's ability to instantly recognise that the android Kirk isn't the real one, which seems rather convenient! And the android Brown's developing a conscience also seems convenient. However, the book is well written and has good characterisations; a final space battle with the Romulans is particularly good. Recommended for fans of the original ST series.
September 20, 2013
I first picked this book up 15 years ago at least, in a second hand bookstore in Morocco. I read it then (I was a young Trek fan, and devoured the TOS, TNG, and DS9 books), and having enjoyed it, it has stayed in my personal collection all these years. I saw that Michael Jan Friedman was going to be at a local sci-fi convention in August, so I dug this out thinking I would have him sign it. I never got around to doing that, but carrying it around in my purse for a couple of days had me tempted to read it again, so I did.
It holds up wonderfully. A rollicking good time, as they say.
It holds up wonderfully. A rollicking good time, as they say.
December 14, 2017
A seriously fun novel. It was fun to revisit double Kirk mischief a third time (twice in the main series if you count the transporter malfunction episode). The story has just the right blend of typical TOS hokeyness and some compelling narrative and the dialogue is written in such a way I hear the characters and found the book engaging where admittedly some of the books can drone on in places.
If you're a TOS fan consider giving this a try if you stumble upon it in the bookstore, an antique shop (how I got my copy), your library or just find it on amazon.
If you're a TOS fan consider giving this a try if you stumble upon it in the bookstore, an antique shop (how I got my copy), your library or just find it on amazon.
May 26, 2019
I was torn on this book I liked some parts and others not so much which is why I had to settle on 3 stars I was close to going with 4. I really enjoyed the overall story story and thought it was a great continuation of a classic episode. I liked the new characters that were introduced in this story. One thing I didn’t care for in this book was the dialogue I don’t feel this author captured the way these characters interact particularly Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty. An overall enjoyable read though.
April 25, 2019
When the U.S.S. 'Hood', answers a routine distress call, they are hijacked by androids from Exo III, led by a doppelganger of Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship 'Enterprise'.
Friedman has written an enjoyable spin off to "What Are Little Girls Made Of?", but the story suffers a little from being such an integrated sequel.
Friedman has written an enjoyable spin off to "What Are Little Girls Made Of?", but the story suffers a little from being such an integrated sequel.
May 7, 2020
Very much a Kirk story. I do wonder a bit at the military discipline in Starfleet; it seems to go out the window whenever anyone is under stress, which rather defeats the point of military discipline.
November 30, 2010
One of my first and favorite Star Trek books when I was a kid.
July 28, 2017
It is what it is. Not deep or intricate. Like watching an episode on tv. Enjoyed it but nothing earthshattering.
January 10, 2018
It was an interesting enough premise, based off of an actual episode. But there were too many perspectives involved and too many details that I just felt weren't fleshed out enough.
August 17, 2019
Bit convoluted
July 7, 2020
I Loved it !
July 25, 2020
Not your usual Star Trek novel based on the setting and a great sequel of a fun episode.
December 16, 2024
In the season one Star Trek episode “What Are Little Girls Made Of?”, the Enterprise is sent to Exo-III to search for Dr. Roger Korby, a brilliant scientist who is the fiance of Nurse Chapel. He’s been missing for five years, but Kirk and Chapel find him alive and well, living with a few android companions. Korby intends to use these machines to bring peace and order to the galaxy, but his darker, true intentions soon become apparent. Rather than serving humanity, he wants to replace all humans with androids, who never do anything illogical or out of emotion. This episode explores themes of identity, love, and the ethics of technology, posing timeless questions about what it means to be human.
Michael Jan Friedman’s book Double, Double is a direct sequel to this episode. Following several months later, one of Dr. Korby’s android assistants, Brown, stumbles out of the cave system where he has been lost since before the Enterprise arrived. He discovers Korby and the other androids missing and is compelled by his programming to carry on Korby’s mission. He retrieves a copy of the Kirk android Korby created from the duplicating machine’s cache and sets off on his plan to replace large parts of the Federation with perfect android copies.
In writing a tie-in novel that is a sequel to a television episode, Friedman faced several challenges. First, he had to capture the tone of Star Trek and the distinct voice of its characters. Friedman executes this part very well. Aside from a few early moments where Spock is befuddled by human idioms, the characters act like their television counterparts. I often heard the actors’ voices speaking the words on the page, even before coming across the dialogue tags.
Second, Friedman had to recap the episode in a way that would familiarize readers who don’t remember the episode with enough plot details to serve as a springboard for his book, while not boring those who know the episode intimately. He handled this task with ease. Through some quick dialogue in the first handful of chapters, he catches the reader up to speed and fleshes out what might have happened in the months between the episode and the book. It’s hard to find any fault here.
Finally, Friedman had to craft an interesting story and tell it well. For the most part, he was successful here, too. The story is interesting with real stakes. Kirk solves the problems presented to him both with cunning and raw physicality – has he often does in the series. The only part that fell flat is the middle section where Kirk is replaced on Tranquility Seven. These parts drag on a bit and a few of the shore leave scenes have some cringe worthy dialogue. Each scene does help advance the plot, but at times are tedious. Overall, though, it was an enjoyable read.
Double, Double won’t win any awards, but it captures the tone and spirit of Star Trek well. By furthering the philosophical debates from the original episode and delivering a solid, if imperfect, adventure, it provides fans with an enjoyable opportunity to reconnect with these beloved characters. While it may not rank among the top-tier Trek novels, it’s a satisfying read for fans looking to explore the ethical questions and human dilemmas that define the series.
Michael Jan Friedman’s book Double, Double is a direct sequel to this episode. Following several months later, one of Dr. Korby’s android assistants, Brown, stumbles out of the cave system where he has been lost since before the Enterprise arrived. He discovers Korby and the other androids missing and is compelled by his programming to carry on Korby’s mission. He retrieves a copy of the Kirk android Korby created from the duplicating machine’s cache and sets off on his plan to replace large parts of the Federation with perfect android copies.
In writing a tie-in novel that is a sequel to a television episode, Friedman faced several challenges. First, he had to capture the tone of Star Trek and the distinct voice of its characters. Friedman executes this part very well. Aside from a few early moments where Spock is befuddled by human idioms, the characters act like their television counterparts. I often heard the actors’ voices speaking the words on the page, even before coming across the dialogue tags.
Second, Friedman had to recap the episode in a way that would familiarize readers who don’t remember the episode with enough plot details to serve as a springboard for his book, while not boring those who know the episode intimately. He handled this task with ease. Through some quick dialogue in the first handful of chapters, he catches the reader up to speed and fleshes out what might have happened in the months between the episode and the book. It’s hard to find any fault here.
Finally, Friedman had to craft an interesting story and tell it well. For the most part, he was successful here, too. The story is interesting with real stakes. Kirk solves the problems presented to him both with cunning and raw physicality – has he often does in the series. The only part that fell flat is the middle section where Kirk is replaced on Tranquility Seven. These parts drag on a bit and a few of the shore leave scenes have some cringe worthy dialogue. Each scene does help advance the plot, but at times are tedious. Overall, though, it was an enjoyable read.
Double, Double won’t win any awards, but it captures the tone and spirit of Star Trek well. By furthering the philosophical debates from the original episode and delivering a solid, if imperfect, adventure, it provides fans with an enjoyable opportunity to reconnect with these beloved characters. While it may not rank among the top-tier Trek novels, it’s a satisfying read for fans looking to explore the ethical questions and human dilemmas that define the series.
January 13, 2024
I enjoy Star Trek books that harken back to a previous episode and build on what else might have happened had there been a follow-up episode. I also enjoy when original characters are introduced and have important things to do but don't end up becoming the whole focus of the book, taking us away from our crew, and turning the lot into a self-insert fan faction.
This book manages both of those things. The first - building on the end of What Are Little Girls Made Of? - was done impressively well, and had me interested from beginning to end. This is despite the fact that one must suspend incredulity to the utmost degree from the start (regarding a highly unlikely command decision) and just go with it.
The second - the original characters being balanced - was done quite well in nearly every instance, except one character, which is where most of the 5th star went. The only original character who was a woman entered as a possible love interest (but that wasn't deeply explored, which is far better than the alternative in my opinion), then seemed later as though she would have something more important to do, but was instead fated to a single slapdash and disappointing attempt to "help" during a crucial moment, only to become a fair maiden in distress for another love interest. I'd have just rather she wasn't introduced at all instead of being let down like that.
Aside from this disappointment, the rest of the story was a great read! Its 308 pages went by quickly, and I enjoyed all the little pitstops and adventures along the way - including an extremely lively bit of time planet-side!
A severe and frankly unbelievable breach of command ethics was quickly brushed off at the end, which again required stringent suspension of disbelief, but one has to admit that Kirk got away with a lot of B.S. in the show and the films, so Starfleet's collective "Weeeeeelllll, whaddya gonna do?" slots in well with their usual reaction to his antics.
A fan of the original series would really enjoy this, I think. It reads as if it could have been an episode itself, fitting fairly well into the existing canon up until the time the novel was written, with all the same little annoyances and logic gaps that the original episodes had.
I would recommend this one to the ST:TOS fan.
This book manages both of those things. The first - building on the end of What Are Little Girls Made Of? - was done impressively well, and had me interested from beginning to end. This is despite the fact that one must suspend incredulity to the utmost degree from the start (regarding a highly unlikely command decision) and just go with it.
The second - the original characters being balanced - was done quite well in nearly every instance, except one character, which is where most of the 5th star went. The only original character who was a woman entered as a possible love interest (but that wasn't deeply explored, which is far better than the alternative in my opinion), then seemed later as though she would have something more important to do, but was instead fated to a single slapdash and disappointing attempt to "help" during a crucial moment, only to become a fair maiden in distress for another love interest. I'd have just rather she wasn't introduced at all instead of being let down like that.
Aside from this disappointment, the rest of the story was a great read! Its 308 pages went by quickly, and I enjoyed all the little pitstops and adventures along the way - including an extremely lively bit of time planet-side!
A severe and frankly unbelievable breach of command ethics was quickly brushed off at the end, which again required stringent suspension of disbelief, but one has to admit that Kirk got away with a lot of B.S. in the show and the films, so Starfleet's collective "Weeeeeelllll, whaddya gonna do?" slots in well with their usual reaction to his antics.
A fan of the original series would really enjoy this, I think. It reads as if it could have been an episode itself, fitting fairly well into the existing canon up until the time the novel was written, with all the same little annoyances and logic gaps that the original episodes had.
I would recommend this one to the ST:TOS fan.
March 29, 2024
Double, Double by Michael Jan Friedman - 45th book in the series
Challenging, dark, mysterious, reflective, sad,
and tense.
Medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5 Stars
This was a fairly good story, IF you accepted the conceit...which I couldn't really.
An evil genius builds a machine that can make an android of anyone put into it...that took all the thoughs, memories and personality of the human, and put it into an android.
I just didn't believe it...from an "in world" reason. We have Data about 90 years later...with his pluses and minuses, and it was/is obvious that he is an android.
In this story, we are to believe that the machine could make an EXACT replaca of the human...that could pass the "smell" test. Go un-noticed by ANYONE? Nah.
So, I had to figure out a way...to continue reading...without this doubt. So...I did. I didn't "buy" it, but other than that...it is an interesting story of duplicity...within the realm of Star Trek.
What IF someone "could" duplicate you (and then kill off the original)...it would be the perfect "Identity Theft".
So, it was fun.
Oh, also...the Enterprise and its crew are guarding the Neutral Zone...for the Romulans are doing maneuvers near the border (as they do).
It was fun to put our favourite characters in these different situations.
Captain Kirk, being himself...an the other...and how one being brash and bold was a positive, while the other...it just didn't work.
Overall, it was a "good" story, but not stellar.
Challenging, dark, mysterious, reflective, sad,
and tense.
Medium-paced
Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5 Stars
This was a fairly good story, IF you accepted the conceit...which I couldn't really.
An evil genius builds a machine that can make an android of anyone put into it...that took all the thoughs, memories and personality of the human, and put it into an android.
I just didn't believe it...from an "in world" reason. We have Data about 90 years later...with his pluses and minuses, and it was/is obvious that he is an android.
In this story, we are to believe that the machine could make an EXACT replaca of the human...that could pass the "smell" test. Go un-noticed by ANYONE? Nah.
So, I had to figure out a way...to continue reading...without this doubt. So...I did. I didn't "buy" it, but other than that...it is an interesting story of duplicity...within the realm of Star Trek.
What IF someone "could" duplicate you (and then kill off the original)...it would be the perfect "Identity Theft".
So, it was fun.
Oh, also...the Enterprise and its crew are guarding the Neutral Zone...for the Romulans are doing maneuvers near the border (as they do).
It was fun to put our favourite characters in these different situations.
Captain Kirk, being himself...an the other...and how one being brash and bold was a positive, while the other...it just didn't work.
Overall, it was a "good" story, but not stellar.
December 9, 2022
TOS #45: Double Double
On my continuing Trek lit journey. Today I finished Double Double by Micheal Jan Friedman, one of my least favorite Trek authors. I believe this is one of his earliest books and it wasn’t outright horrible.
It atucally felt better than some of his later style and I wanted to read it as it was a sequel to the TOS episode What are Little Girls Made of? Also the Immortal Coil by Jeffery Lang is one of my top 5 Star Trek books, so I was curious to see another story with the Exo III androids.
As the novels were written at least 13 years apart, there’s no tie between them and the continuity with the Exo III androids in Immortal Coil is completely different then what’s presented here.
The book was just average. Not offensive or not great. It just serves as a nice distraction or something you would read on a beach. Android Kirk was decent as a villain and it would have made an ok episode. But the presence of an empath felt predictable. Although the androids weaknesses were cool in the sense they only remembered up until the point of their human template remembered. Anyway, a fairness harmless book I don’t imagine I’ll be re reading soon
On my continuing Trek lit journey. Today I finished Double Double by Micheal Jan Friedman, one of my least favorite Trek authors. I believe this is one of his earliest books and it wasn’t outright horrible.
It atucally felt better than some of his later style and I wanted to read it as it was a sequel to the TOS episode What are Little Girls Made of? Also the Immortal Coil by Jeffery Lang is one of my top 5 Star Trek books, so I was curious to see another story with the Exo III androids.
As the novels were written at least 13 years apart, there’s no tie between them and the continuity with the Exo III androids in Immortal Coil is completely different then what’s presented here.
The book was just average. Not offensive or not great. It just serves as a nice distraction or something you would read on a beach. Android Kirk was decent as a villain and it would have made an ok episode. But the presence of an empath felt predictable. Although the androids weaknesses were cool in the sense they only remembered up until the point of their human template remembered. Anyway, a fairness harmless book I don’t imagine I’ll be re reading soon
March 4, 2022
There is good to be had, here - the characters "sound" OK (mostly) and the idea of a follow-up to an original series episode (in this case "What are Little Girls Made of?") is almost always worth the price of admission, to so speak. That having been said, the book also twists itself through some flimsy "because plot" mechanics that make the central concept a little bit hard to accept. It is also (for a "Star Trek" book) surprisingly violent - not graphically, obviously, but there is a lot of death taking place here, and it feels - sometimes - off-putting.
Still and all, the book has some really good bits and, generally, it builds to a satisfying climax where you do feel that the victory is well-earned. It also gives Uhura a good bit of business toward the finale, and that is always a winning move. It is a little rough around the edges, but a few dodgy plot machinations and a plethora of "do they really need to be here?" added characters notwithstanding, the story told is a generally enjoyable one. It will not change your world, but it will do you no harm, either.
Still and all, the book has some really good bits and, generally, it builds to a satisfying climax where you do feel that the victory is well-earned. It also gives Uhura a good bit of business toward the finale, and that is always a winning move. It is a little rough around the edges, but a few dodgy plot machinations and a plethora of "do they really need to be here?" added characters notwithstanding, the story told is a generally enjoyable one. It will not change your world, but it will do you no harm, either.
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