Star Trek 965: Time Crime The Conclusion: Seems Like Old Times

965. Time Crime The Conclusion: Seems Like Old Times

PUBLICATION: Star Trek v.2 #57, DC Comics, February 1994

CREATORS: Howard Weinstein (writer), Rob Davis and Arne Starr (artists)

STARDATE: 8545.1 (follows the last issue)

PLOT: The warlord believes Sulu and Kirk and executes the saboteur. To make sure he doesn't die in his air show, they allow the plane to explode without him in it. The Klingon time agents capture the landing party and reveal they and Romulan co-conspirators have been toying with history to prove a point - that Gorkon's plans for peace will lead to ruin (epic fail). With the warlord's survival, the timeline is restored, though everyone at the Guardian retain memories of BOTH timelines. Kor contacts Klingon High Command to explain the situation and they send a ship back in time to apprehend the time agents, while the Romulans are arrested in the present. When the landing party returns, Worf leaves with Kor to return to his old/new life.

CONTINUITY: See previous issues of this storyline. At this point (in the true timeline), Gorkon is gaining followers (before ST VI). The Klingons use the slingshot technique of moving through time (Tomorrow Is Yesterday, etc.). Worf Sr. returns to his role as defense attorney with a thing for hopeless causes (ST VI), and this story explains how Kirk got a lawyer to defend him.

DIVERGENCES: See previous issues of this storyline. If Worf's ties to Kirk are explained, I'm not sure it fits Kor's future appearances as well.

PANEL OF THE DAY - Klingon classic radio
REVIEW: The big finish is something of a mixed bag. If we start with the bad, I have to mention the motivations of the Klingon time agents. Ok, you go back in time, make the Klingons peaceful and they (ideally) get crushed by the Romulans. And...? Who's gonna get the message? The leader you're trying to convince no longer exists, and neither does your Empire! I can see why the Romulans thought this was a good idea, but the Klingons? Ridiculous. But there's good here too. The Klingon warlord is a quite a little bit crazy, and it would have been fun to see even more of him. The twist of having Kor and Worf remember both timelines leads to interesting consequences. And the actions scenes are well set up.