Being a look back at cards from the Star Trek CCG, and what I thought of them back when they were fresh and new... in EPISODE order. So where did they grab a pic of Mr. Kyle? That would be Tomorrow Is Yesterday!
PICTURE: The Technicolor look is rarely as evident as it is here, with the grainy blue of the background playing off Kyle's too-blue eyes and silver-highlighted hair. Nothing special about the pic really, and the technical drawbacks keep it even from average. Just 2.8.
LORE: There's a lot of stuff on here that I can't find a canonical source for. Did Decipher invent the details? Did they go to the novels and comics? Called up the Mr. Kyle fan club (yes, there's a surprisingly strong one)? What we know from the episodes is that he was both relief helmsman and transporter technician on the Enterprise. We also know that he was British (but the novels say Australian). And that's it. His first name is new to me (it's the actor's, John Winston), as is his exact place of birth. The level 2 pilot certificate helps solidify the Navigation, but I didn't have a problem with it before. And the stuff about alien graphology seems to be pure invention to justify Anthropology, but it does perhaps explain how he would eventually shift to communications (in Star Trek II). Hey, I don't begrudge the background extras their invented lore as long as they make sense, and I certainly won't do it to Mr. Kyle, a pretty permanent presence in TOS even if they never explored his backstory. What's here is sound and interesting. A 4.2 even.
TREK SENSE: Best known as a transporter technician, Transporter Skill and Engineer are musts. He was also relief helmsman, so Navigation equally makes sense. And as for Anthropology, I don't think we saw much of it on the show, but as mentioned under Lore, it eventually leads to a career in communications. None of the attributes are either too high or too low, though it would be hard to really fix a number for them given the on-screen evidence. No problems, though no pleasant surprises, I'm game for a 3.8.
STOCKABILITY: Anthropology is especially useful for OS personnel because they can time travel to the "present" using The Guardian of Forever for extra card draws. Kyle and Bailey are actually the only two not from either the present already or the Mirror universe. Transporter Skill has always been rather rare, but useful, and again, there are only two non-Mirror AU OS personnel with the skill (the other is Scotty). Navigation is more common, but often required in multiples. ENGINEER is, of course, always welcome, and may be used in conjunction with Classic Tricorder to gain more skills. Oh, and no big attribute weaknesses. Now, Lt. Kyle's worst flaw is that he's only got 3 skills, but they're generally good ones, and if running an OS deck, you've got fewer personnel to choose from. When the sky's the limit, Smiley actually has all the same skills (and classification) plus a few more. Enough for a 3.4.
TOTAL: 14.2 (71%) Hope his fan club is happy.
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