1209. Public Enemies, Private LivesPUBLICATION: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #8, Marvel Comics, August 1997
CREATORS: Mariano Nicieza (writer), Tom Grindberg and Bob Almond (artists)
STARDATE: 50444.1 (between For the Uniform and In Purgatory's Shadow)
PLOT: Kira, Miles and Keiko O'Brien, and Jake go survey the jungle planet Maurer IV where they are captured by a Maquis splinter group. A Romulan warbird commanded by Tomalak decloaks and destroys their runabout. Tomalak is angry that his son, currently posing as a Maquis, has blown an operation designed to spark a Maquis/Federation conflict. Sisko flies the Defiant to Maurer IV to rescue his son and encounters the Maquis raider who was lured there by the Romulans. It is commanded by Cal Hudson, who wants to help Sisko rescue Jake...
CONTINUITY: For the first time in the comics, the crew wears the gray uniforms (from The Rapture forward). Keiko appears, as does Commander Tomalak (last seen in All Good Things...). The Maquis encountered here include some of those that appeared in issues 3-4, and Cal Hudson (The Maquis).
DIVERGENCES: The Orinoco was destroyed in Our Man Bashir, here it is destroyed again.
PANEL OF THE DAY - Setting the mood.
REVIEW: Inker Bob Almond is a MUCH better match for Tom Grindberg's pencils. A world of difference. The art now has a slick sophisticated look that was missing under Milgrom's sketchier inks, and Grindberg also has fun with double-page spreads, all enhancing the action in the issue. As for the story, it contrasts two pairs of fathers and sons, Tomalak and his son, at odds with each other, and the Siskos' more unconditional love. Nicieza also ties this into previous issues by making the Romulans the instigators of the recent Maquis trouble. I'm finally feeling like this series is on track, though rotating writers and artists mean it could jump the tracks at any time. Still, Public Enemies looks good and may have something to say about the principals.
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