Star Trek: Nero #1 Review

Comic book adaptations of movies, whether they be prequels or direct tie-ins, don't have a very respectable track record. They're about as successful as movie-based videogames, actually. But earlier this year, Star Trek: Countdown proved to be a rare exception. That mini-series explored the events leading up to the newest Trek film, with future villain Nero teaming with Spock and Captain Picard in a vain attempt to save Romulus from destruction. Given how little the film explored Nero's history or motivations, the comic proved to be almost required reading for the dedicated fan.

Recognizing the success of that project, IDW has commissioned a sequel of sorts. Star Trek: Nero features the same creative team and takes place almost immediately after Countdown, with Nero and the Narada stranded in the past and badly damaged thanks to George Kirk's suicide attack. If you were wandering just what Nero was up to in the 20-odd years between the movie's opening sequence and the rise of James T. Kirk, this series should provide the answers.

There's a problem with that premise, however. I was never under the impression Nero was really up to anything besides waiting for Spock-Prime to arrive and silently preparing for his revenge on Vulcan. Star Trek: Nero does very little to suggest otherwise. The opening pages see the Narada crew scramble to stay alive after nearly being destroyed. To some extent, writers Mike Johnson and Tim Jones use this section as a way to explore Nero's burgeoning leadership qualities and simultaneous descent to madness. Unfortunately, there isn't really much left to explore in that regard. The one real flaw of Countdown was that its short length forced Nero to make the transition from humble miner to vengeful tyrant very quickly. His character arc is already completed, in a way. Though the writers still handle Nero as well as ever, they don't really accomplish anything new with him.

After the initial damage is contained, the Narada proceeds to battle it out with a Klingon fleet. Fans will finally get to see what Klingons look like in this new Trek continuity (spoiler - they look exactly the same). Long-term Trek fans will get a kick out of seeing a few familiar faces. And for a while, it's interesting merely to see the all-powerful Nero thrust into a position of vulnerability again. But by the end of the issue, there's no shaking the feeling that something vital is missing. The story isn't quite there, at least not yet.

David Messina makes a welcome return on art, though he too doesn't impress as much as he did on Countdown. Messina still excels at capturing the smooth, slightly cold look of the new Trek-verse. His Nero continues to bear a close resemblance to Eric Bana without appearing blatantly photo-referenced. But this issue features a heavy dose of action and hand-to-hand combat, and Messina doesn't prove as adept in this regard. His battles lack fluidity, and scenes that should have been visual showcases appear rather flat instead.

As much as I enjoy having the Countdown crew back in action, Star Trek: Nero just doesn't elicit the same feelings it prequel did. The writers have yet to convince me that there's a real story to be told here. With any luck, that will change in issue #2.

http://comics.ign.com/articles/101/1013586p1.html