How to make the Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation2 comic book crossover even more geektastic? Jelly babies!
The creative team behind IDW Publishing’s clever mashup gives old school fans a flashback with the fourth Doctor (and my first*) Tom Baker in an encounter with Kirk, Spock, Bones and Scotty.
Issue #3 takes us right into the action as the eleventh Doctor is on the bridge of the Enterprise with Captain Jean-Luc Picard and crew. The Enterprise is on the run from an armada of Borg cubes and Cybermen warships. What Picard sees being transmitted from the lead Borg cube is bizarre behavior even for the alien assimilators.
Peering into the Starfleet database reveals images of Cybermen and a curly haired man sporting a hat and scarf! The current Doctor’s violent reaction to the images triggers a flashback and away we go. Captain James T. Kirk, Spock, Dr. McCoy and Mr. Scott are on an away mission where the humans seem zombified, robot warriors attack and a friendly stranger in hat, scarf and offering jelly babies saves the day. The writing and art style change to reflect the flashback feel of the tale within a tale. The trip back shows that the Cybermen have been in the Trek universe for a long time and hints at the origin of the Borg/Cybermen alliance that’s threatening the Federation now.
The writers succeed again at capturing the spirit of the classic characters and how they would act and interact. I have to thank the writers for making me remember the Cybermen’s weakness. How could I have forgotten?
Back to the future present the Time Lord is puzzled that he keeps remembering things he didn’t remember like when he recognized Worf as a Klington even though he’d never encountered one before…or did he? As Picard grows suspicious of the eleventh Doctor’s story he calls on an ancient ally to help determine the truth.
I’m excited to see that encounter next issue! *To be even more specific – my first Doctor Who episode was The Pirate Planet!
By Editor