Star Trek: Boldly Go, Vol. 1

Star Trek: Boldly Go

by Mike Johnson, Tony Shasteen (Illustrator)

All-new series following the adventures of Captain Kirk and the iconic crew! New worlds! New species! New ships! And a new danger unlike anything the Federation has encountered before! Boldly go into a new era of STAR TREK! Collects issues #1–6

Genres: Star Trek, Graphic Novels, Comics, Science Fiction, Fiction, Media Tie In, Adventure

136 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2017

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Mike Johnson is a comic book writer.

An almost lifelong Trekkie, he has scripted more Star Trek comic books than anyone else to date.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely captures the feel of the Kelvin timeline movies. It was a bit odd to not have the crew on the Enterprise though, even if the Endeavor is the same class of ship. Tony Shasteen does a great job of capturing the likenesses of the actors. I loved the introduction of the Borg. The stakes felt high and Spock vs. the Borg was awesome.

Editorially, there were a few mistakes. One of the first few pages had the Federation insignia on the wrong side of Kirk's uniform even though the panel directly above had it on the correct side. The panel must have been flipped around for some reason, but it stuck out like a sore thumb. In the last issue, Kirk calls the Chief Engineer Scotty, even though Scotty is teaching at Star Fleet Academy.

[Mohan Vemulapalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the Kelvin timeline from the J.J. Abrams movies, "Star Trek: Boldly Go" follows the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise in their various adventures as they wait for a new Enterprise to be built. This book provides a creative and engaging expansion of the reboot that the movies started. In particular, the book develops the characters along lines that were explored in the movies but often do not exist in the original material. Much of the book focuses on a Borg incursion and its impact on the TOS era Federation. Additionally, there is story focusing on Jaylah from the third movie and a final story that explores the Prime Directive from a unique and original perspective.

4.5 stars rounded to 4.

[Cyndi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book brings a lot of the gang together from the recent movies. You know, Chris Pine as Kirk? Since I am the kind of Star Trek geek that has to calculate every stardate to our calendar, I truly loved reading about Kirk’s command on the Endeavor and Sulu’s stint as First Officer. But when the Borg enter and we worry about Sulu’s husband and daughter, it got really scary. Then they enter Romulan space!
Great art, great story!

[Casey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was an entertaining look at what could happen in the Star Trek universe after the events of Beyond (save for Jaylah, whose backstory we get to explore in reverse). Spock vs. Borg was a hell of a match up, so I thought the tension in later issues suffered by comparison.

[Jesse A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely done. The previous series was heavy on reimagining of original series episodes. This one came out of the gate with an over arcing story and it was well done.

[The Wintermute System · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, easy read that ties into the new Star Trek movies, and brings in enemies new to that timeline - like the Borg. And I kinda love the Borg, so that was good for me. Art is as good, too.

[Isabella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Rating: 1 star

I have so many problems with this graphic novel that I don't even know where to begin. I was going to give it another star because it is Star Trek after all, but it was honestly that bad.

I need to give Star Trek: Boldly Go some kind of praise before I completely trash it, so I will say that the illustrations were fantastic. There were some pictures where Kirk looked the splitting image of Chris Pine, and Spock Zachary Quinto. The colours were also great, and the cover is amazing.

Now we get into the trashing. First of all, it makes no logical sense that Kirk and the Enterprise-NCC-1701-C should be coming into contact with the Borg. The Borg are first encountered by the Enterprise-D captained by Picard when Q throws the starship and its crew millions of light years away where they could never have reached on their own. This alerts the Borg to the existence of humans and Starfleet, and causes them then to travel into Federation space (because the Borg are capable of much higher warp speeds) and start assimilating new species. There is no conceivable way that the United Federation of Planets could have known about the Borg before this, nor vice versa.

But this is the Kelvin timeline. Whatever. It takes place in the universe of Star Trek (2009) and things are different (heck, the only thing they did right in this reboot was casting Benedict Cumberbatch as Khan and that scene when Zachary Quinto's Spock and Leonard Nimoy's Spock exchange a Vulcan salute). I guess you can suspend your disbelief and accept that somehow the Borg became aware of the Federation before Q introduced the two of them. But the issues don't stop there. (The rest is going to be pretty major spoilers, but you really don't want to read this if you like Star Trek at all, trust me). Sulu is on a ship when the Borg attack and start assimilating the crew. He is not captured however because he is on the battle bridge at the time of the attack. How does this make any difference whatsoever?! The Borg are ruthless, and don't overlook things. Guinan is the last of her kind, because when the Borg visited her planet while she was off world, they were thorough and assimilated all of her race. The Borg simply don't leave stragglers.

Then Spock gets captured by the Borg and we all fain shock and surprise when he escapes. He escapes from the Borg. What?! There is a reason why Picard, Seven of Nine (and her Baby Borgs) and that small colony of people from that Voyager episode are the only people who have ever been de-assimilated from the Borg Collective - it just does not happen. And Spock's method of escape is (get this) pulling his eye piece off and quote-unquote "resisting assimilation". What happened to "resistance is futile"? You really don't have to do any research other than know their signature catchphrase to know one can't just say "stop it I don't like it" and run away from the Borg. (I am facepalming so hard right now.)

But Spock is special. We can give him a pass (and a ton of plot armour) and look beyond his extremely convenient- ah, I mean highly improbable escape from the Borg. But one fact is too glaringly obvious to overlook, and that is that all the Starfleet personnel who were captured and/or assimilated were set free. Every. Single. One. I'm not going to even try to justify or explain this. It's just too stupid to comprehend.

Whoever came up with this storyline knows literally nothing about the Borg Collective or Star Trek lore (lowercase "l" lore, not Data's brother Lore). And I'm just complaining about the problems with the Borg, without even touching on the mishandling of the Romulans, or the complete butchering of Spock's character.

If Star Trek: Boldly Go taught me anything, it's that even one of the best villains in sci fi history can be terrible when put into the wrong hands. Because on top of all that whining I have done, the Borg in this novel didn't even arrive in their infamous Borg Cube. No. They floated onto the scene in a not-a-Death-Star-but-totally-a-Death-Star:

Yep, that's right. (Yes I know this is a legit Borg ship, but it’s in the Delta Quadrant.) The Borg are pretty much Stormtroopers now under the Borg Queen's Palpatine. The Force of the resistance will be strong with this one.

[Trin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good cheesy Trek fun. Spock resisting the Borg buck-naked is definitely a highlight.

The art is super uncanny valley, though: sometimes near-perfect representations of the actors, sometimes just so off. In particular, what is wrong with poor Uhura's face???

Spock's abs look good though.

[Jasmina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall pretty good, but I do wish the artwork was more consistent. The art in issue 6 was my favourite, but it was also completely different from the former ones. Let's not even talk about Kirk's pig nose in that last issue...

[47Time · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sulu is married to a man. Yes, we get all sorts of progressive stuff in comics these days. Could Sulu's emotional involvement have worked exactly the same if he was married to a woman? Sure, but why miss this perfectly gratuitous opportunity, even though you never get to see them? Also the Borg have a spherical ship now. Cubes are soooo 90's. Otherwise, the story is top notch, though a bit rushed.

The named characters we know and love have gone in different directions. While Kirk's Endeavor is assigned to a survey, the Concord's exploration is cut short. Sulu serves as the latter's commander. As Kirk's ship rescues the survivors of a devestating attack on the Concord, Sulu recounts the message they received from their attacker: 'resistance is futile'.

The Romulans are attacked as well. The Borg demand an object called the Outlier. Spock and Uhura reunite with Kirk and reveal their own findings on the Borg - their ship shares similarities with the Narada ship (you know, from the movie). They are looking for the ship, unaware that it was destroyed.

Kirk faces the Borg - and risks angering the Romulans by flying in their controlled space - to try to save the crew of the Concord, but only manages to have Spock captured as well. Spock's physiology delays his assimilation by the Borg until Kirk arrives with a daring plan. While the Romulan armada keeps the Borg ship busy, he recovers both his and the Romulan captured crew. He leaves behind their torpedos to destroy the Borg vessel. They all worry what the next Borg attack will bring, but at least they know that in times of need animosities with the Romulans may be forgotten.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

On to this graphic novel: I was simply drawn to the cover art. It just looked cool. This series is connected to the Chris Pine films, and honestly, that’s about all I know about how it fits into the larger ST world. But I’ll tell you now that it doesn’t matter. If you know the basic premise of the Star Trek mission, you’ll be ok because I haven’t even watched all the new flicks and I was ok.

The story starts off after the destruction of the Enterprise (I’m assuming that happened in one of the films) and the crew has been placed on different assignments until the new one is built. Kirk takes over command of another ship and Spock goes to New Vulcan on a sabbatical. As with many scifi plots, a distress signal and a warning sends the collective team into action. This is another introduction of The Borg…

Overall, I enjoyed this. It was a bit of nostalgia and some great action wrapped up in a well-drawn package. The art is a bit cookie cutter as each character is separated from the background with a very narrow white line.

For my full review: https://paulspicks.blog/2019/08/02/st...

For all my reviews: https://paulspicks.blog

[Tom · Rating 3 out of 5]

After the events of Star Trek Beyond, we rejoin the Kelvin Timeline crew on their various assignments while the Enterprise is reconstructed. There isn't much dependence on the movie, so you don't really have to refamiliarize yourself with it to get the most out of this run (although I did rewatch it just in case).

The Borg have been drawn into Federation space earlier in this timeline due to Nero's interference with various whatnot and thingamabobs. It's fun to see the TOS characters face off against the Borg, and this seems to be setting up an interesting overarching plot with both the Borg and the Romulans. Promising stuff.

Issue 6 is a fun one-shot with a peek at how it feels to be on the other side of the Prime Directive. Very well-illustrated as well.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

It feels a bit soon to bring the Borg into the universe since TNG had a lot of trouble with them a century later. The team does work well together.

[David Agranoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Borg in the Kelvin universe, set after Star Trek Beyond. Fun enough read. more thoughts later.

[spockito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jim… I think we just got prime directed

[Punk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was honestly surprised when this book started out with Spock and Uhura still together. I was like: Don't they know Kirk and Spock are in love? No? I've been reading too much fanfic? Okay then.

Set after Star Trek Beyond, our crew's scattered while the new Enterprise is being built. Kirk's captaining the USS Endeavour, with Bones, Chekov, and Lt. Darwin along for the ride. Sulu's the first officer on a smaller ship. Spock and Uhura are taking a sabbatical on New Vulcan and wearing a bunch of fancy clothes, and Scotty's teaching at the academy, where we catch a glimpse of Jaylah and the cadets from the Starfleet Academy title sitting in the lecture hall. They're also in the background at the end of the Jaylah issue. It's nice to see them again and think about Jaylah becoming friends with them, though we don't get to see that. The Jaylah story is more of a one-shot, a series of flashbacks that just keep going backwards through her life.

So all that's going on, and then THE BORG show up. I love the Borg, so I'm always happy to see them. The art, though. Let's talk about Uhura's face. I didn't know it was her. They were calling her by name and I was like, "Who is this fancy black chick?" Kirk and Spock (and Sarek!) look exactly like their reboot actors, but Uhura is just...not. She's okay in profile, but unrecognizable in the face straight on. Same goes for Sulu. Bones is almost right. Chekov is spot on, but scarce. Spock gets to be naked for a while and he has some Vulcan abs, y'all. He also holds a perfectly civil conversation with Bones while starkers, which I don't believe for a second. Bones would not be able to handle that much Spock at once without hollering.

Also I need to talk about the Vulcan "battleship" that looked like a flying taco with a swamp boat fan on the back. I can't believe any self-respecting Vulcan would be caught dead in one of those.

Issue 6: written with Ryan Parrott, art by Chris Mooneyham, colors by J.D. Mettler:

The art in issue six is more sketchy and rough, and still a bit off in the face area, but I liked the story it was telling. It was a nice change of perspective and, like Kirk, I found it reassuring.

Overall, the writing was a bit pat (too many people being self-sacrificing with little impact), but there were some nice character moments, and everyone was acting like themselves even if they didn't look it. I'll be reading the next volume.

Contains: blood (vulcanoid); body horror (Borg-related); death of a parent.

[John Yelverton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Normally, I would scream if you tried to pit Kirk against the Borg; however, first, this was done really well, second, it's in the Kelvin timeline, and finally, this is exactly how I imagine Kirk would have dealt with the Borg. It's well done, and picks right up where "Star Trek Beyond" left off.

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

The new Star Trek Boldly Go series is more consistent in style and quality than its predecessor. A really good start!

[Unseen Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed as part of my Throwback Thursday series, where I republish old reviews, review books I have read before or review older books I have only just had a chance to read.

Rating of 4.5.

In this Throwback Thursday, get ready to explore the first volume of an intriguing Star Trek comic book series, Boldly Go, which presents the reader with clever new story directions spinning off from the alternate timeline Star Trek movies.

Following the destruction of the U.S.S. Enterprise in Star Trek Beyond, the entire crew have been temporarily reassigned to new posts while they wait for their ship to be rebuilt. While Spock and Uhura are living on New Vulcan and Scotty is a lecturer at Starfleet Academy on Earth, Sulu, McCoy and Kirk are still serving out amongst the stars. Kirk has taken command of the U.S.S. Endeavour with McCoy begrudgingly at his side, and Sulu is serving a one-year exploration mission aboard the U.S.S. Concord.

Events outside of their control will soon bring the former crew of the Enterprise back together, when the Concord encounters a ship of unknown design on the edge of Federation space. The ship is extremely powerful and technologically advanced and it attacks without warning, easily carving off pieces of the Concord with its destructive weapons. As alien boarders abduct members of the crew and devastate the ship, only one thing is certain: resistance is futile!

The Borg Collective, one of the most dangerous races in the entire galaxy, have arrived in this version of Federation space nearly 100 years earlier than they were supposed to. Their motives are unclear, but as they attack several Federation vessels and settlements it is clear that they are en route to the capital of the Romulan Empire, Romulus. Answering the Concord’s distress call, Kirk and the Endeavour follow the Borg sphere after picking up Spock and Uhura. Forced to enter Romulan space, can Kirk and his crew save the abducted humans and defeat the Borg, or will actions provoke war with the Romulans? And what connection do the Borg have to the events that made this alternate timeline and formed this version of the Enterprise’s crew?

To see the full review, check out the link below:
https://unseenlibrary.com/2019/08/30/...

For other exciting reviews and content, check out my blog at:
https://unseenlibrary.com/

[Jeff Lanter · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars for this volume. Fresh off reading the previous Star Trek run, I was curious to see what Boldly Go would be like. Especially since at the time of writing, it looks like this series didn't last very long and Star Trek comics in the remake era have been stopped at least for now. Truthfully, it mostly seems like this is a soft relaunch for the disappointing Star Trek: Beyond. Fortunately, that movie doesn't affect this volume TOO much so don't click away from this review yet.

The longest story in this volume involves the Borg which definitely makes it memorable. Maybe its been too long since I saw Beyond but I was surprised to see that many of the iconic members of the Enterprise were in unfamiliar roles during this storyline. That certainly spiced things up a bit too. The art in this story was up to the usual standard for Star Trek comics which was appreciated. All in all, this is easily the best story within this volume.

And then it mostly went downhill from there. The next story is about the female alien introduced in Star Trek: Beyond and it fills in her backstory a bit. Its not bad and if I liked Beyond, then I probably would have enjoyed this. Unfortunately, I don't like Beyond so I breezed through it as fast I could. The art was fine in this but not up to the quality of the first story.

The final story was short and hard to really explain what it was about. The art was unfortunately not of the quality or style that I would have hoped which took me out of it too. The plot is fairly forgettable when all is said and done too which makes it seem like a bit of an afterthought.

So as you can probably already see, this volume started off well but seemed to head downwards quickly. I wonder if this was a bit rushed as it seems like the art really suffered here. Regardless, this is not as promising of a start as I would have liked and I'm a little concerned that the last two volumes of this short series aren't going to be what Star Trek fans would have hoped but I'll probably pick them up anyway because I love this universe and these characters.

[Kacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been waiting to read these volumes. I only had the first two issues available to check out for a long time and I really wanted to see how the rest of the story played out. As always, I love this and for the most part, the art style is really nice. The last volume made all the characters look a little odd and I didn't care for that, but otherwise it was great.

What I love about the AOS comics is how they incorporate the deviating timeline into the story, and how everything that happens is because of that deviation. Like in this volume, the Borg show up far earlier than when they encounter the Federation in the OS timeline. But it makes sense because they were tracking the signal from Nero's ship, which came from that timeline and future, and had Borg technology.

I also really like where all the crew ended up after the ship was destroyed at the end of Beyond. It makes sense for their characters: Kirk staying in space, Bones joining them, Scotty teaching at the academy, Spock and Uhura working on New Vulcan... And I like how they all came together again.

Aside from the odd art style choice in the last issue, the only complaint I have is that Jaylah's backstory seemed too short and quick. It did highlight how she came to be who she was and how she was when Kirk and the others found her, but I still would've liked more. Maybe that's just the writer in me always hungry for more story.

Overall, though, this was a delightful continuation. I'm already reading volume two and enjoying it so much. These are probably the only comics I would buy, as I find myself wanting to re-read them over and over.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the new Star Trek movies, and I've really been enjoying the comics IDW has been publishing, filling in the gaps between the movies. While the first series they did was a lot of fun, this first volume of Star Trek: Boldly Go (taking place after Star Trek Beyond) is a step beyond that. The first comics series told a series of stories that, while they build on each other somewhat, were fairly separate and discrete. This series has added ongoing character development and subplots to the mix, making the series feel more like a cohesive whole, while still able to mix big action-packed epic adventures with smaller stories based on character or space exploration.

The book opens with this version of the Enterprise crew's first encounter with the Borg. Writer Mike Johnson follows that with a story of new character Jayla's background, and then a single-chapter tale introducing a new alien race. The first two stories are drawn in an almost photorealistic style by Tony Shasteen; the final story is done in a more impressionistic--but no less effective--style by Chris Mooneyham.

I recommend this series to fans of the new Star Trek movies, because this continues the stories found there. However, I also recommend it to fans of the various TV series, because the ongoing comics format allows for a greater variety of stories than can be told in a new movie every couple of years.

[c · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was just alright.

The Borg is arguably the best villain in all of Star Trek but I felt like this comic didn't capture its full power and potential.

I did Kirk's new second-in-command, Valas, as well as the fact that she! wore! pants!! I also loved all the Sulu (minus mischaractization in that he would never call McCoy "Bones...) and the fact that Jaylah and her family got their own issue. And I may or may not have teared up everytime I saw Chekov.

Anyway, it was a good comic to fill the time and something to read in public than Saga..

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this a lot. I like the Borg interactions and it makes sense in this timeline.
I didn't like how easily they learned about and defeated the Borg, come on. And to bring back an assimilated human? Don't like the way neutering of this terrifying enemy. Also didn't like the continued traumatizing of Sulu's family. Yorktown was enough. I didn't like the art in the last issue though.
I did like it though. The characters felt authentic. Can't wait to see what happens with the Tal Shiar and the Romulan!

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and interesting read this afternoon--this throws in a "What if...?" scenario of the reboot Trek cast interacting with the Borg ahead of the original timeline schedule. The Borg are intimidating in every iteration and it's always fun to read something involving them. The artwork is nice, and since I haven't personally seen the reboot cast since whenever that third movie came out a while back, it was interesting to get a quick story that gives an update on their respective whereabouts after the events of the third movie.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picks up right after Star Trek Beyond, splitting the crew up, and then bringing them back together to fend off a Borg invasion. It's fast-paced and satisfying, but it's not particularly original or surprising. The Borg are determinedly one-note, unstoppable villains with zero zest. The rest of the Star Trek crew are true to their movie characters - good dialogue with plenty of one-liners, but not a lot of growth or change. Worth a read, but not a major addition to the Star Trek canon.

[Mike Tuholski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first half of this volume, despite spotting several typos and a miscoloring which erased the Tellerite doctor's facial hair....

But then the quality started to impact the rest of the artwork and story as the art style abruptly changed in a way I didn't care for and the story seemed finished but then took a side trip to Jaylah's backstory which seemed totally disconnected and then ended with a weird deus ex machina that came out of nowhere. Very strange second half.

[Kieran McAndrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Star Trek: Boldly Go Vol. 1

The 'Enterprise' has been destroyed and the crew scattered, but they find themselves reunited when an unstoppable alien force known as the Borg enter Federation space in search of the 'Narada', a ship built from twenty fourth century Romulan and Borg technology.

Johnson has progressed the Kelvinverse past the events of 'Star Trek Beyond' and the story feels believable and the artwork is interesting, adding extra dimensions to the plot.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star Trek: Boldly Go pulls from the current movie continuity (the characters portrayed even look like the actors playing them) but it throws enemies at them that they have yet to face in the film franchise, and I have to say, I’m loving it.
The artwork is a slightly inconsistent, occasionally giving us stunning scenes and then flipping back to something else, like oddly portrayed characters. On the whole I was really happy with the color palette (it’s what I would have asked for, given a choice), so I can’t complain.



I should preface this by saying I am fascinated by the Borg, and thus love any cameo or appearance they make. So naturally I was absolutely tickled when they appeared in Boldly Go. While some fans may not agree with me (which is totally fine, obviously), I really enjoyed seeing a different set of characters interacting with the Borg. Totally unrelated, but I just want to throw it out there: First Contact is and always will be my favorite of the movies. Sorry, had to say it.
I should have seen this coming, because I had heard a rumor involving a spoiler (the twist in the graphic novel involving Spock) but I hadn’t actually put two and two together until reading it. I’m actually pretty happy I hadn’t, as I really enjoyed the surprise (sorry to anyone out there that had it spoiled, I feel for you).
I’m really pleased with the representation of the Borg in this graphic novel, I don’t want to go into too much detail (it’s a relatively short volume so it’s so easy to give everything away) but I think the way they handled the two groups meeting, as well as the reason for it perfectly.
All my praise aside, I can’t help but notice that there’s a very specific character missing from the series; Chekov. I’m very sad about what happened to the actor (Anton Yelchin) that played his character, and I worry/wonder if this is an indication of how they’ll handle what happened in the movies (IE, just having him not be there). I hope not, but maybe that is just me.
Overall I’m really happy with where the series is going so far, though I should warn you it does in fact end in a cliffhanger. The cliffhanger has me hooked though – I just have to see what happens next. So it’s safe to say I found yet another series to follow.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Theresa Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read strongly recommend. Art work is stunning as is the storyline! A really good addition to the star trek universe. A must read for all trekkies out there!


Highly recommended by the commander of the USS trouser cough and all those who proudly sail in her. Live long and prosper