Comic Book / Star Trek (IDW)

The continuing adventures of the Starship Enterprise.

Star Trek, also known as Star Trek Ongoing was a comic series released by IDW Publishing, which follows the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the Starship Enterprise in the Alternate Universe launched in the 2009 reboot. It is part of the Star Trek Expanded Universe.

IDW's involvement with the reboot franchise began with a pair of miniseries — Star Trek Countdown, a prequel story that bridges the continuity between Star Trek: The Next Generation and the prequel universe, and an official adaptation of the 2009 film itself. The ongoing series began in 2010 with several adaptations of classic stories from Star Trek: The Original Series, before bridging into original storylines and character-centric arcs.

The series includes the following volumes:

• Volume 1 (Issues #1 - 4): Adapts the TOS episodes "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and "The Galileo Seven".
• Volume 2 (Issues #5 - 8): Adapts "Operation: Annihilate!", along with a new story that follows a splinter sect of Vulcans attempting to rebuild after the destruction of their home planet.
• Volume 3 (Issues #9 - 12): Adapts "The Return of the Archons" and "The Trouble With Tribbles".
• Volume 4 (Issues #13 - 16): Includes two standalone stories focusing on Keenser and Red Shirt Hendorff, along with a story focusing on the Mirror Universe.
• Volume 5 (Issues #17 - 20): Includes four standalone stories focusing on main characters' backstories before they came to the Enterprise, including Scotty, McCoy, Uhura, Sulu and Chekov.
• Countdown to Darkness: An Interquel miniseries, which chronicles the events leading up to Star Trek Into Darkness.
• Volume 6 (Issues #21 - 24, a.k.a. "After Darkness"): The comic sequel to Star Trek Into Darkness, the arc picks up where the film ended and deals with the beginning of the Enterprise's "five-year mission", along with the threat of war from the Klingon Empire.
• Volume 7 (Issues #25 - 28, a.k.a. "The Khitomer Conflict"): The Enterprise crew discover that Starfleet's black-ops division, Section 31, is attempting to start a war between the Romulan and Klingon Empires, with them caught in the middle.
• Volume 8 (Issues #29 - 34): Includes three story arcs — "Parallel Lives", "I, Enterprise!" and "Lost Apollo".
• Volume 9 (Issues #35 - 40, a.k.a. "The Q Gambit"): Q, the mischievous omnipotent being, shows the Enterprise crew glimpses of alternate timelines, along with plenty of cameos from past Trek characters.
• Volume 10 (Issues #41 - 45): Includes the "Behemoth" and "Eurydice" story arcs.
• Volume 11 (Issues #46 - 49): Adapts the TOS episode "The Tholian Web", along with the "Deity" story arc and the one-shot special Flesh and Stone.
• Volume 12 (Issues #50 - 54): Includes the "Live Evil" and "Reunion" story arcs.
• Volume 13 (Issues #55 - 60): The final volume of the first series, which includes a story focusing on Ambassador Spock's actions in-between films, and "Connection".
• Manifest Destiny: An Interquel that takes place leading up to the events of Star Trek Beyond.

Following this, the series was revamped as Star Trek: Boldly Go:

• Boldly Go Volume 1 (Issues #1 - 6)
• Boldly Go Volume 2 (Issues #7 - 12): Includes the "Murder at Babel" and "Whom God Destroys" story arcs.
• Boldly Go Volume 13 (Issues #13 - 18): The conclusion of the second series, and currently the entire comic line, it includes the "I.D.I.C" story arc.

Also released in this story line was Star Trek/Green Lantern, where the cast from Green Lantern winds up in the Kelvin Timeline following the destruction of the DC Universe.

As many of the issues are adaptations of existing Star Trek: The Original Series episodes, expect many tropes from that series to apply here.

Tropes:

• Action Girl: Uhura, who rescues members of the crew at several points throughout the series (and even has the opportunity to sit in the Captain's chair, though she refuses it and leaves McCoy in charge instead).
  • There's also Lieutenant Zahra. Kirk makes a point of taking her along on dangerous away missions
• Adaptational Villainy:
  • Countdown To Darkness turns Robert April (the otherwise heroic original captain of the first Enterprise) into a rogue Anti-Villain who commandeers the new Enterprise in order to save a race from extinction.
  • The long dead Landru in The Return Of The Archons was a Well-Intentioned Extremist at worst trying to restore peace after a devastating war, here he was a corrupt Starfleet scientist with a God complex whose actions were based around population control.
• Adaptation Distillation: Many of the classic TOS storylines are reworked, and often have more positive endings (namely, Spared by the Adaptation is in full effect, and some of the plot resolutions aren't nearly as damaging to the Planet of the Week and/or Enterprise crew as they were in the original episodes).
• Affectionate Nickname: Sulu's sister, Yuku, refers to him by his nickname "Hiki". When Kirk hears this, he responds that it's "adorable".
• All There in the Manual:
  • Keenser is revealed to be part of the Roylan race in his standalone story. It's also revealed that he was a friend of George Kirk's (the Kelvin having been the ship that made first contact with them).
  • Hendorff (the Red Shirt security guard that antagonized Kirk after he and Scotty beamed back onto the Enterprise in the 2009 film) is finally given a name here, along with a much-greater explanation of why he joined Starfleet in the first place.
• Alternate Reality Episode:
  • The "Mirrored" story arc, which is an adaptation of the Mirror Universe storyline from the original series. This later comes back around in the "Live" storyline, where the Kelvin Timeline crew meet their Mirror counterparts.
  • "Parallel Lives" has the crew interact with a gender-swapped version of themselves, led by a woman named Jane Tiberia Kirk.
  • "Connection" is a two-part story in which the crew from both timelines start experiencing each other's timelines, including the probes they sent switching places.
• Artifact Title: The "Return of the Archons" adaptation. In the original series, the Betons have been taught to treat Starfleet outsiders as "Archons". In the comic series, they're a Lost Colony who have no understanding of the term "Archons", as they were never taught the phrase by their former leader Landru.
• Artificial Human: Science Officer 0718, who is revealed in a two-part arc to be created from the Enterprise itself. He has the ability to interface directly with the ship's systems himself, and proves to be a reliable crew member.
• Bedmate Reveal: In "Connection, Part 2", an anomaly causes the two timelines to mix. Original Series Uhura is shocked to suddenly find Reboot Spock asleep in her bed...while both are undressed. Reboot Spock is just as shocked while Original Series Spock is surprised to find Reboot Uhura calling him "honey".
• Berserk Button: Just like the 2009 film, Hendorff is visibly embarrassed when Kirk calls him "cupcake". Kirk later uses this as a deliberate motivator to get Hendorff to beat up Romulan guards in the "Vulcan's Vengeance" arc.
• Brick Joke: In the 2009 film, Scotty tells Kirk that he was exiled to Delta Vega for accidentally losing Admiral Archer's prized beagle, Porthos, in a transporter accident. At the end of the "Truth about Tribbles" arc, Scotty hitting random buttons on the transporter console causes the dog to beam back in, where it looks at him happily.
• The Bus Came Back: After being presumed deceased in the 2009 film, Gaila (the green-skinned Orion woman) reappears in the "Reunion" arc, and permanently joins the Enterprise crew at its conclusion.
• Call-Back:
  • The Tribble seen in Scotty's workshop on Delta Vega in the 2009 film is later brought back, and serves as the primary motivator for the "Truth About Tribbles" storyline, where it causes havoc in San Francisco.
  • Chekhov's origin story reveals he was responsible for Helmsman McKenna's illness, the same one that meant Sulu had to fill in for him.
  • In "Boldly Go" issue 2, the crew of the Endeavour analyse where the ship that attacked the Concord is going. Not only is it going to the exact place the Narada first appeared, their scans indicate they share technology and power. Which they would, given "Countdown" revealed the Narada was made using Borg technology.
• Call-Forward:
  • During "Return of the Archons", Spock questions Kirk's usage of the Prime Directive when the latter impulsively decides to start a phaser fight in the caverns underneath the planet. Kirk gives a half-hearted excuse to justify his actions to Admiral Pike after the fact. Then the second film rolls around...
  • A huge one (and a long-term Chekhov's Gun) occurs during the "Truth about Tribbles" arc, Bones transports a lone Tribble into a containment module in an attempt to analyze its physiology, only for it to die several hours later. He decides to keep the Tribble so he can run tests on it in the future. Later, in Into Darkness, Bones uses the same Tribble to run tests on Khan's blood, which is what eventually gives him the knowledge necessary to save Kirk's life.
• Captain Ersatz: Captain Steven Corey from "Lost Apollo" is essentially Major Tony Nelson if he lived in the Trekverse and married an ordinary woman rather than a genie. He lives in Cocoa Beach, is an astronaut in the late sixties/early seventies and is drawn to look exactly like a young Larry Hagman.
• The Cavalry: Uhura shows up to rescue Spock on two separate occasions, and calls him out for making her save him.
• Chekhov's Gun: The dead Tribble saved by McCoy in the "Truth about Tribbles" arc is later utilized in Star Trek Into Darkness, when it gives him the idea about how to save Kirk's life after he seemingly dies.
• Chess Motifs: Chess is constantly used as a metaphor for Spock and Uhura's relationship. When she first met Spock at Starfleet Academy and played a game of chess with him, he left the King piece of his set on her nightstand, which she finds to be a decidedly-unlogical reaction. It's later revealed that Uhura has beaten Spock at multi-dimensional chess, a fact that Kirk is extremely amused by.
• Comically Missing the Point: When Kirk points out that a Gorn incursion may be the prelude to another attempted invasion, he tells Spock to get ready for "Round 2". When Spock doesn't understand, Kirk explains that it's a boxing metaphor. Spock then goes into a long-winded explanation of physical exertion, leaving Kirk exasperated.
• Continuity Nod:
  • Spock's reckless actions over several arcs, including the "Return of the Archons" and "Operation: Annihilate!" storylines, are later brought up by Uhura as she attempts to console him over his lingering feelings about the destruction of Vulcan.
  • Quocch (a minor character from the Nero comic miniseries, and a deleted scene from the 2009 film) is seen explaining how he escaped from Rura Penthe at the very beginning of the "Vulcan's Vengeance" story.
  • "After Darkness" has several references to the video game adaptation, including Bones getting exasperated once again about landing on the planet surface and Kirk trying to reassure Spock and Uhura by saying that he hopes they don't run across any more Gorn. In issue #24 (a standalone story based off the TOS episode "Arena"), Kirk gives a personal log where he complains of having Past Experience Nightmares about his previous encounter with the Gorn.
  • To Boldly Go's first issue shows Jaylah and the cadets from the Starfleet Academy companion miniseries in class listening to Scotty's lecture.
• Crazy-Prepared:
  • When Ambassador Ferris attempts to strongarm Kirk (who has realized that Uhura has gone to rescue Spock and several crew members herself) into leaving Makus III, Kirk shuts him up by quoting a long-winded Starfleet regulation involving dereliction of duty. This causes Ferris to stare at Kirk in shocked silence.
  • Lampshaded when Sulu and Hendorff are caught by a faction of alien creatures in Countdown to Darkness. Sulu reveals that he not only has a knife hidden in his boot, but that he's extremely dextrous with his feet. When Hendorff asks how he did that, Sulu claims that he was given special permission from the captain to carry whatever equipment he wants during away missions, and he suggests that Hendorff ask for the same thing.
• Cross Through:
  • "The Q Gambit" has its prologue set in the aftermath of Star Trek Countdown (in the Prime Universe), then transitions to follow Q as he makes his way to the Kelvin timeline and interacts with the alternate-universe Kirk and company.
  • The Flesh and Stone one-shot has all of the doctors from the various series (including McCoy, Christine Chapel, Beverly Crusher, Katherine Pulaski, Julian Bashir, The Emergency Medical Hologram and Dr. Phlox) working together in various time periods to investigate a strange disease.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: The USS Concord, a small exploration vessel, versus an unknown ship. The exact details aren't shown, but the end result is Concord gets sliced to pieces, and most of the crew taken. As is pretty typical with the Borg.
• Dark and Troubled Past: Uhura's family was caught in a shuttle accident, with Uhura's uncle being killed as a result.
• A Day in the Limelight:
  • Almost all of the main characters get separate issues that go into more detail about their work and backstory before they arrived on the Enterprise, including Scotty, Keenser, McCoy, Sulu, Uhura and Chekov.
  • There's even an entire issue focusing solely on a Red Shirt named Hendorff, appropriately titled "The Redshirt's Tale".
  • To Boldly Go #5 is about Jaylah's family and how Krall killed them.
• Deadpan Snarker: When their shuttle crashes into an uninhabited planet in "The Galileo Seven", Spock remarks on their situation.
  Spock: Considering the circumstances, our landing was most successful. (cue the shuttle slamming into the planet's surface)
• Death Faked for You: Robert April, in Countdown to Darkness. Having allied himself with a seemingly-oppressed faction on an alien planet, he orders his first officer to declare him dead to Starfleet.
• The Dreaded: The Klingons regard Tribbles as such dangerous creatures that they transport all of them onto a planet and attempt to blow them up with a timed bomb.
• Dressing as the Enemy: Spock dresses up like one of the Narada survivors in order to infiltrate their ranks and learn their plans in the "Vulcan's Vengeance" arc.
• Eloquent in My Native Tongue: Keenser is quite talkative in his native Roylan dialect, but can only say one or two-word sentences in Standard.
• Everyone Went to School Together: The flashback issues reveal that nearly all of the main characters (except for Scotty) attended Starfleet Academy together. Namely, Kirk met Chekov while jogging at a nearby facility, and Sulu and Chekov planned to pull pranks at the same time during their year-end ceremony.
• Exactly What It Says on the Tin: The "Klingon Language Edition" of Manifest Destiny's first issue translates all of the text (besides the publisher info and staff credits) into Klingon.
• Explosive Instrumentation: Occurs frequently, due to the crew's frequency of running into hostile alien lifeforms and phenomena.
• Eyepatch of Power: The Mirror Universe version of Admiral Pike wears one of these, along with some massive scars.
• For Want Of A Nail: The Borg show up a lot sooner than they did in the original timeline, namely because the Narada, which has Borg components, drew their attention.
• Foreshadowing:
  • In issue 6, Uhura confronts Spock about his increasingly reckless, nigh-Death Seeker behavior. This becomes a major plot point in Act One of Star Trek Into Darkness, where he's finally snapped out of it after mind-melding with a dying man.
  • During Scotty's Flashback story, the captain on a ship he visits offers to put him in touch with a "Commander Marcus", who can help him get into Starfleet. This reference occurred several years before Admiral Marcus appeared in Star Trek Into Darkness. This also makes Scotty's sabotage of the Vengeance in that film (against the man who referred him to Starfleet in the first place) an amusing bit of Irony.
• Geeky Turn-On: When Spock is forcibly sequestered during his pon farr phase, Uhura is the only one allowed to visit him and it's explained that after she beat him in a game of 3-D chess early on in their relationship, that she realized how much he'd fallen in love with her.
• Gender-Bent Alternate Universe:
  • Jane Tiberia Kirk, who is encountered by the crew in the "Parallel Lives" arc. Not only is she a gender-swapped version of James Kirk, but her origin story is also gender-flipped (her mother captained the Kelvin for eight minutes before it was destroyed).
  • In addition, the main crew encountered in the "Parallel Lives" arc are all gender-flipped as well, including a female Spock, Pavlovna Chekov, Keensera, Lea McCoy, Marjorie Scott, Hikari Sulu and Nnamdi Uhuro.
• A God Am I: Much like his Prime Universe counterpart, Gary Mitchell becomes this due to his exposure to the barrier and subsequent increased intelligence.
• Good Is Not Soft: Sulu is prone to many badass moments throughout the series, which prompts Section 31 to attempt to recruit him into their ranks. When that fails, they recruit his sister instead.
• Heel–Face Revolving Door: Spock's father, Sarek, in the "Vulcan's Vengeance" arc. He initially joins the Narada survivors in their attempt to obtain Red Matter and destroy Romulus, but finally gets his bearings after his son discovers him while undercover, and helps them foil the plot.
• How Dare You Die on Me!: During the "Galileo Seven" arc, Uhura threatens to "kill" Spock if he isn't found alive on the uninhabited planet.
• Humans Are Bastards: When Kirk learns that a group of miners fooled Starfleet into nearly going to war with a splinter group of Gorn who became peaceful, he tells Spock "and I thought the Gorn were bastards."
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight:
  • Kirk says this to try to stop the mutated Gary Mitchell, but he only regains his sanity long enough to tell him he can't kill himself before his eyes begin to glow again.
  • When Spock is consumed by the Pon Farr, Uhura attempts to calm him down by invoking this trope.
• It Has Been an Honor: Scotty tells Chekov this in the "Truth About Tribbles" story, just when it seems as though they'll be overrun by the natural predators on the Tribble-infested planet.
• Kneel Before Zod: Just like its original source material (the TOS episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before"), Gary Mitchell attempts to force Kirk to do this after being mutated by the barrier.
• Long-Lost Relative: George Kirk Jr., who James encounters in the "Operation: Annihilate!" arc. Unlike his Prime Universe counterpart (who died offscreen and was only mourned by Kirk after the fact), George and his wife survive the events of the story and go on to live a happy life. The brothers even patch up their differences before parting.
• Lower-Deck Episode: Issue #13, "Hendorff/The Red Shirt's Tale", which focuses on a low-level ensign (the same burly, bearded man who mockingly calls Kirk "Cupcake" at one point in the 2009 film) who goes through several dangerous situations while serving on the Enterprise.
• Machine Empathy:
  • The mutated Gary Mitchell demonstrates this to Kirk and Spock, claiming that he can "talk" to the Enterprise (and has learned from it that its impulse power isn't functioning correctly).
  • Science Officer 0718 is also able to interface directly with the ship, especially since he was seemingly created by it.
• Mad Love: The first thing Mudd does upon meeting Kirk (in Countdown to Darkness) is tell him that she's single, and she spends the rest of the miniseries pining over him and trying in vain to get him to date her. Even Captain April's attempt to dissuade her does nothing to deter her infatuation.
• The Main Characters Do Everything:
  • Lampshaded in an early issue (just like the video game). In the first part of "Return of the Archons", Kirk elects to go down to a planet himself after Sulu goes missing and Spock discovers a power source underground. When Spock tells him not to, Kirk mockingly says he should get a security team to cover it instead, before going off himself and beaming both of them down.
  • Also averted in one issue. Spock attempts to join the away team when they go to investigate a squad of Gorn soldiers on an isolated planet and is rebuffed. Kirk tells him that due to his previous encounter with the Gorn (which resulted in him being infected with a virus), his attempted sacrifice in a volcano, a fistfight with Khan over San Francisco and his recent recovery from Pon Farr, he's confining Spock to the ship for the foreseeable future.
• The Man Behind the Man: Section 31 is revealed to be behind Admiral Marcus' actions in Into Darkness (along with Captain Robert April's takeover of the Enterprise in Countdown to Darkness), and they attempt to start a war between the Romulans and Klingons.
• Mauve Shirt: Ironically, despite being billed as a Red Shirt, Hendorff averts many of the tropes and pitfalls associated with the role, and is seen to survive many threatening situations throughout the comics, eventually becoming a trusted companion to Kirk on many of his away missions (and still wearing the red security shirt).
• My Greatest Failure: The destruction of Vulcan is this for Spock. Although he continues to help with reconstruction efforts on New Vulcan, he's prone to Past Experience Nightmares over how he couldn't save his mother. It takes a lot of help from his friends, particularly Kirk and Uhura, to help him get past this and look forward to the future.
• Mythology Gag:
  • At the beginning of "After Darkness", Bones interrupts Kirk reciting the classic credit scroll ("Space, the final frontier...") by barging into the Captain's ready room. Soon after, he asks Kirk if he actually wrote that himself or stole it from someone else.
  • The cover for the first issue of Manifest Destiny (much like the marketing campaign for Star Trek Beyond) is styled after the poster for the very first theatrical film.
  • Issues 1 and 2 of "Boldly Go" has several references to "Q Who?". In issue 2, the assimilated Captain Terrell uses the same warning the Borg gave to the Enterprise-D, and their second target is a Federation colony on the Romulan Neutral Zone, which they abduct using their cutting beam.
  • In the same issue, Uhura dons Vulcan dress, specifically the kind T'Pring wore in "Amok Time".
  • According to Gary Mitchell in Boldly Go #17, there are universes where the Enterprise is "powered by mushrooms", presumably referencing an alternate verison of the spore drive from Star Trek: Discovery.
• Named by the Adaptation: "Burly Cadet #1" from the 2009 film (the guy who gets into a fight with Kirk in the bar and later becomes Head Red Shirt) is claimed as the reboot verse's counterpart of Lieutenant Hendorff from the TOS episode "The Apple". This was subsequently confirmed in Star Trek Into Darkness.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Scotty sends the lone Tribble he was in possession of to his cousin as a gift from his travels. When Kirk asks him what his cousin would do with the Tribble, Scotty remarks that he's "a very responsible lad". Cut to a shot of the Tribbles having utterly taken over San Francisco.
• Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: In the "Vulcan's Vengeance" arc, the Narada survivors' attempt to destroy Romulus with the Red Matter is averted, but the substance itself is left behind in the custody of the Romulan Senate. Ironically, this gives the Senate the eventual power to prevent the planet from being consumed by the supernova from their nearby sun, which is what happened to their Prime Universe counterparts.
• No One Gets Left Behind: When Ambassador Ferris attempts to quote regulations to Kirk in the "Galileo Seven" adaptation, Kirk responds that he's not leaving without his crew.
• Not His Sled: Mostly downplayed, but several storylines adapt the plots of TOS episodes with some minor variations due to the changed relationships and personalities of the characters.
• Off with His Head!: In "Mirrored, Part 1", Mirror Spock decapitates Gorkon with Mirror Sulu's sword.
• Oh, Crap!: Occurs in the "Mirrored" story. Mirror Spock seems to expect that Mirror Kirk would turn on him, and that he might have convinced other members of the Enterprise to mutiny. However, it's only when Mirror Uhura tells Spock that she's cheating on him with Kirk and beams over to the Narada that Spock finally realizes he's been outplayed. His Not So Stoic reaction to Uhura leaving happens seconds before Kirk blows the Enterprise to bits. It's later inverted when Spock is revealed to be Not Quite Dead, and turns the tables with Uhura to kill Kirk.
• O.O.C. Is Serious Business: In Countdown to Darkness, Kirk is nearly lost for words when Spock apologizes to him for putting emotion before the needs of the mission.
• Past Experience Nightmare: In Countdown to Darkness, Spock begins to suffer from these, as a result of his perceived failure to rescue his mother in time from Vulcan's destruction.
• Race Lift: The originally-unnamed girl who has white hair and is seen infrequently throughout the reboot films is revealed in the comics to be Yeoman Zahra, who was African-American in the original series.
• Red Eyes, Take Warning: When Spock is consumed by the Pon Farr in the "After Darkness" arc, his eyes glow red and he seemingly gains super-strength, fighting off three Vulcan guards who attempt to restrain him.
• Refusal of the Call: Both Red Squad (first seen in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and Section 31 attempt to recruit Sulu to their ranks. He refuses both offers, citing that Red Squad is everything Starfleet fights against (despite their claims that they can destroy his career) and that he's not interested in Section 31's espionage tactics.
• Running Gag:
  • After Kirk complains that he isn't facing any credible challengers in the multi-dimensional chess game, Spock steps up and begins beating him every time they have a match. This continues into the video game adaptation.
  • Spock makes a habit of doing dangerous solo missions, sometimes as a Heroic Sacrifice, in order to rescue crew members or the Enterprise itself. He is berated constantly for this by Kirk and Uhura.
• Sacrificial Lamb: In the first story arc (and just like the TOS episode that inspired it, "Where No Man Has Gone Before"), officers Gary Mitchell and Lee Kelso are introduced as being Kirk's friends from Starfleet Academy, who he requested specifically because they were two of the most capable officers he knew. Both die by the end of the second issue (Kelso killing himself after Mitchell possesses him, and Mitchell himself dying after he attempts to kill Kirk).
• Series Continuity Error:
  • Chekhov and Sulu's origin story includes Red Squad, despite their appearance in DS9's "Homefront" and "Paradise Lost" implying they had only recently been formed.
  • The Countdown to Darkness miniseries chronicles the Enterprise crew's immediate mission (dealing with the discovery of former Captain Robert April) before they head to Nibiru (which is where the events of Into Darkness begin). However, the video game adaptation (which is also considered canon by Paramount) has the crew dealing with a immediate threat from the Gorn before they go to Nibiru.
• Shipper on Deck:
  • Kirk is this to Spock and Uhura, to the point that he orders them to spend several hours together in a room (under the guise of "punishing" them) at the end of "The Galileo Seven".
  • Even Sarek approves of his son's relationship, very subtly indicating that he has no objections if they wanted to get married and have kids. Uhura naturally picks up on this before Spock does and she has to spell it out for him.
• The Singularity: The Enterprise comes across a smoothly featureless planet made of unknown material and decide to explore it. After interaction with it brings the Enterprise computer to sentience, they deduce that the population of the planet converted it entirely into a machine and uploaded their minds into it. This effectively turned them into their planet, sustained by radiation from their sun. Kirk partially deconstructs it by asking why anyone would do that, since all they seem to do is simply exist now. He's answered by chalking that up to the ancient philosophical question of the meaning of life.
• Smart People Play Chess: Most of the command crew plays the multi-dimensional chess game in their spare time, including Kirk, Spock and Uhura. According to one issue, Uhura managed to beat Spock!
• Spaceship Girl: Boy, or at least doesn't object to being called "he". 0718 was created when the Enterprise temporarily gained sentience, as a way of more conveniently interacting with the crew. His body's made of artificial flesh cobbled together with one of the sickbay' Autodocs, can mentally link up with any of the ship's systems, and was born happy to adhere to Starfleet's chain of command.
• Spared by the Adaptation:
  • Unlike her Prime Universe counterpart, Dr. Elizabeth Dehner (from the TOS episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before") withdraws her transfer request to the Enterprise. It's implied that she did so, in part, due to an unspecified Noodle Incident with Bones in the past.
  • Officer Gaetano survives the events of the "Galileo Seven" story arc, whereas he was attacked and slain by the wild creatures in the original series episode of the same name.
  • Kirk's brother, George, and George's wife survive the events of the "Operation: Annihilate!" adaptation, along with Kirk patching up his differences with him before they part ways.
  • All the Redshirts in "The Redshirt's Tale", which is based on the high-bodycount episode "The Apple". It even ends with them reflecting they could have been killed if the mission had gone slightly differently.
• Spotlight-Stealing Squad: Notably averted. The comics have a lot more focus on secondary characters, many of whom get A Day in the Limelight or Took a Level in Badass moments that showcase their skills and value in the crew. This includes the Mauve Shirt Hendorff, Uhura (who is a serious Action Girl this time around), Sulu, Chekov, Science Officer 0718, Yeoman Zahra, Kai and Gaila.
• Tempting Fate: In the "Truth about Tribbles" story, Kirk attempts to pat a creature that's described as being a natural predator to Tribbles. After initially finding it "cute", the creature rears up and attacks him.
• Thrown Out the Airlock: Kirk threatens to do this to an uncooperative Vulcan science officer in the "Vulcan's Vengeance" arc.
• Too Spicy for Yog-Sothoth: Spock turns out to be much harder to assimilate, thanks to his nature as a Vulcan-human hybrid, and eventually breaks free through reliving the memory of his mother's death.
• Took a Level in Badass: Several of the Away Team members, including Hendorff, Zahra and Kai turn out to be just as capable as the command crew. Notably in "The Khitomer Incident", Zahra and Kai beat up a squad of Klingon guards before freeing the crew. Kirk makes a point of referencing how they should be present on more Away missions in the future.
• Violently Protective Girlfriend: Uhura, to the point that she performs a Gunship Rescue to save Spock, Scotty and a group of other officers stranded on a hostile planet at the end of the "Galileo Seven" arc.
• Wham Line: To Boldly Go's first issues closes with the line, "Resistance is futile."
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Although Carol Marcus is present in several of the comic arcs that take place after Into Darkness, she simply disappears at the end of the "Lost Apollo" arc, and her disappearance isn't mentioned or discussed after the fact, nor is she present in the following film, Star Trek Beyond.
• What the Hell, Hero?:
  • In the "Galileo Seven" adaptation, Samuel Boma calls out Spock for being insensitive towards Latimer's death (as he is busy admiring the handiwork and going into great detail about a crudely-made spear rather than burying or examining Latimer's body).
  • In Countdown to Darkness, Kirk has this reaction when Uhura tells him that she left Bones in charge of the Enterprise.
• You Can't Go Home Again: In "After Darkness", Spock succumbs to the Pon Farr and becomes feral because Vulcan is gone and his organic link to the planet is not present. This forces the Enterprise crew to fool the ship's sensors (and Kirk) into thinking Vulcan has been restored in order to fix his condition.
• You Killed My Father: In the "Mirrored" arc, Mirror Kirk greets Mirror Nero for the first (and last) time by announcing this.

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