819. Errand of War!PUBLICATION: Star Trek #3, DC Comics, April 1984
CREATORS: Mike W. Barr (writer), Tom Sutton and Ricardo Villagran (artists)
STARDATE: 8150.7 (follows the last issue)
PLOT: After the Klingon declaration of war, Kirk is sent to guard the Romulan border in case they take advantage, but that order doesn't make any sense. No wonder, as it is revealed that an Excalibian is controlling both the Klingon Emperor and a Starfleet Admiral. As propaganda starts to make the rounds, including disturbing images of both sides attacking hospitals and civilians, the crew turns on Konom and a befriended Bryce. Kirk decides to defy orders and go to Organia to see a man-god about a treaty. But the planet's gone and in its place lies a black anomaly. He meets opposition from Klingon ships, defeats them, and takes aboard the survivors, including old foe Kor. When Kirk extends a hand to Kor to try and puzzle this out as allies, an angry Excalibian appears...
CONTINUITY: The title takes us back to the first Klingon episode, Errand of Mercy, which is where the Organians are also from. Kor now appears free of the retrovirus just as Koloth was (though this look for the Klingons is not the final one, so maybe the right treatment took time). Excalibians are from The Savage Curtain.
DIVERGENCES: None. We don't know enough about Klingon politics at this point to really discount the possibility of an Emperor.
PANEL OF THE DAY - The seduction
REVIEW: Another great George Perez cover (sadly, the last), and the story started in #1 continues. It's still a good mix of action and character moments, though perhaps a bit higher on the former end. With the appearance of Kor, Barr seems intent on getting all the Klingons from the original series into his opening issues. A bit much, perhaps, especially when you throw in the Organians (at least connected) and the Excalibians. A conflict between the two god-like races is at least intriguing. Overall, this is a Part 3 that feels like a Part 3, with the required running around, but it at least has some major revelations that "change everything".
Comments
However, "Sins of the Father" (TNG) a couple of seasons before implied the existence of a presiding emperor through at least the Khitomer Massacre.
I'm sure someone who's more than half awake at this point can come up with a plausible explanation.
I was a big fan of DC's series, especially compared against Marvel's gnomes and Cordrazine junkies. What strikes me now is that these are maybe the earliest examples of 'continuing' Trek subplots. Everything before this was standalone, one- or two-part episodes or comics, or one-off novels, with the occasional recurring guest star. Does the developing universe/continuity/soap opera in this series, with the upcoming status quo change and the developments in the lives of Konom, Bryce, and Bearclaw, prefigure mid-TNG and DS9?