Star Trek 879: Old Loyalties

879. Old Loyalties

PUBLICATION: Star Trek #54, DC Comics, September 1988

CREATORS: Peter David (writer), Gordon Purcell and Ricardo Villagran (artists)

STARDATE: 9001.3 (follows the last issue)

PLOT: Investigator Finnegan is called off the mystery of the USS Renegade to determine who tried to kill Kirk, though Bearclaw has already been arrested for it. Still a kidder, Finnegan pranks Kirk by seeming to not remember him (Kirk vows revenge). Bearlcaw burns his bridges with his only supporter, his girlfriend Liz. Konom and Nancy rechristen Moron, Bernie. And Bloemker, who's had a bad attitude for a couple issues now, appears to be a duplicate, the real Bloemker found dead on Omicron Ceti IV...

CONTINUITY: Finnegan (Shore Leave) is back, and still a prankster. Kirk's dressing is the same as in Journey to Babel. Peter David uses a lot of the same names for background extras as he does in his 24th century Trek novels (ancestors?).

DIVERGENCES: There's a Klingon with a Starfleet jacket helping out on Omicron Ceti IV. This is the first time Starfleet Security is called the Security Legion. Commander Finnegan has a captain's insignia.

PANEL OF THE DAY - Kirk goes "Yesssss"
REVIEW: The plot thickens. If there's a fake Bloemker aboard, is it possible a fake Bearclaw tried to kill Kirk? It sure is! Bringing in Finnegan adds levity to the proceedings, and the Kirk/McCoy, good doctor/bad patient, relationship is fun too. I'm especially glad to see the original characters' scenes as this particular series winds down, as I know full well they are absent from the next at Paramount's request. Though I can't disagree with them too much, considering the ship is now populated by an almost extreme number of aliens, including sentient squirrels. And while appreciate David's obfuscation concerning Finnegan's identity, it's another case of the cover blowing the surprise.