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. And now we need someone to command last week's ship!
PICTURE: Ok, before heading into the controversy of the day, let's start with the aesthetics of the card. There's a diagonal composition that follows Kirk's arm with the help of ever smaller boxes (an illusion created by the black lines and contrasting colors). It's distinctive, but not particularly attractive. I also have to wonder what that lighting's all about. First, it's a bit green, and second, it looks like there are blinds on the Enterprise. Also, while the insignia on Kirk's chest could be of interest, they disappear into his comet-green shirt. And guess what? This is OUR Kirk, not really the Mirror version (who was on our Enterprise at the time). So the card's points actually come from the pose, which really do give him that Mirror feel we're looking for. Now, many at time objected to this as somehow being a "Nazi salute". I disagree. It was quite clearly a Roman salute, though of course, they resemble each other (fascist regimes... go figure). I know this because there are references to both an "Empire" and Kirk becoming "Ceasar", as well as the sword motif, all of which remind us more of Roma than of Nazi Germany. Besides, Kirk was a Nazi in a whole other episode. Controversy? I think people were just ignoring the context of the episode. Superman flew in this position for years and no one ever brought attention to it. For being a distinctive, unforgettable pose rather than a dull ol' head or bust shot, I give the card a 3.6.
LORE: I like the stuff about Captain Pike, which was only mentioned on the show by a computer voice, and any adjectives describing a character are welcome in my book. He's also made a matching commander, which is useful. And the Tantalus Field is mentioned to explain the special download. Also, the card's title is really cool, since his actual second name, Tiberius, puts us in the right Roman frame of mind. A fairly good 3.6.
TREK SENSE: Ok, as far as being Kirk's opposite goes, there aren't many standard skills to match. He's just as good a leader to be in the same position (in a much more difficult situation, actually), so Leadership x2 fits. He's in many ways the same person, so Cunning and Strength are the same. He doesn't have the same moral compass though, and being the butcher that he is, Integrity is quite low, and Treachery gets the x2 treatment. We also get Archaeology, presumably having to do with finding the Tantalus Field, which in the game, is an Artifact (not that he needs to "find" it with that special download). As if he didn't kill a real archaeologist for it. Iffy. I will believe his special download of the Tantalus Field however. He had it when we met him, and used it (until it fell into First Officer Spock's hands). Just because it's an artifact is no reason to exclude it from possible downloads. As for the Classic Communicator, I get the sense that our Kirk's use of it aboard the ISS Enterprise to coordinate his people is the reason behind its presence here. I don't think it's particularly appropriate. It's fine because it's standard equipment, but it's standard for everybody, not just him. Didn't say anything about the Officer classification or the multitude of icons, but that's cuz they're all okay. Good stuff, but some of it is questionable. Gonna stop at 3.3.
STOCKABILITY: A powerful personnel for the powerful Terran Empire micro-affiliation. You'll want him to lead your Terrans into battle (Emblem required) with his boosted ISS Enterprise, which hits a pretty good 8-9-9 with Plaque and Log, but much higher with various well-chosen crew members (Chief Engineer Scott and Chief Navigator Chekov, for starters; see last week's review of that ship). First Officer Spock can even serve as back-up matching commander in case something bad happens. Either way, the ship may download at Halkan Council, so you can get its matching commander on the first turn, because this Kirk may report to the ship directly either through its download or via Ready Room Door. But while you're doing that, you can also kill personnel with the Tantalus Field at this same location (on an opposing ship, for example), without getting your hands dirty. The Artifact need not even be acquired! It just magically appears on his ship through the special download. Yeah, baby! You don't even need to keep his crew pure Terran Empire if that's how you're going to do your killing, so you might add other OS personnel to the mix, to get Mr. Scott's further boosts to the Enterprise, or Lt. Uhura's download of Hail (stop opponent's ship and use Field on its crew). The Tantalus Field costs a lot of cards, but the Terrans have access to Process Ore at their version of Terok Nor, which can recycle all those cards back. On mission attempts, Mirror Kirk has lots of nice Leadership, rare-for-Federation Treachery (in spades!) and Archaeology for the odd mission requiring it. The Classic Communicator he downloads can be used to add even more. Note that Treachery x2 has its own special uses: He may use Protection Racket (sounds right!), is protected from Sabotaged Negotiations, and he can use The Art of Diplomacy to turn Treachery into Diplomacy and kill even more personnel (or download a hand weapon to boost his STRENGTH). Speaking of killing, in personnel battle, his Treachery x2 also gets him an opening kill with I Do Not Take Orders From You! As a Kirk, he interacts with Khan-related cards, which protects your missions from Khan's anti-attempt skill and reduces Revenge Is a Dish Best Served Cold's points, but also attracts the unwanted attention of Wajahut and the USS Reliant. A clear winner, I think, at 4.4.
TOTAL: 14.9 (74.5%) Hail Caesar!
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