"Parallel Lives, Part 2" is the thirtieth issue of IDW Publishing's 2011 ongoing series of Star Trek comics. The issue is the second part of a two-part Parallel Lives by writer Mike Johnson, released in February 2014. Issue art was by Yasmin Liang, with Roberto Orci credited as creative consultant.
Summary[]
- PREVIOUSLY IN STAR TREK...
- After their confrontation with the Romulan and Klingon Empires on Kronos, Captain Jane Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise continue on their five-year mission into unexplored space only to encounter a starship of a most unusual kind...
The following log is from Jane Kirk's Enterprise:
- Captain's Log, Stardate 2261.234
- The Enterprise is undamaged after its journey through the anomaly dubbed a "quantum storm" by Commander Spock. Sensors indicate that we have been transported to an unknown region of space, but the first ship we have encountered is disconcertingly familiar.
The following log is from James Kirk's Enterprise:
- Captain's Log, Stardate 2261.234
- We've emerged from the anomaly Commander Spock calls a "temporal knot" to find ourselves off the edge of every stellar map we know of. That would be enough to cause concern, if not for the fact that we are now face to face with ourselves?
The two Kirks have a conversation that can only be summarized as extremely awkward and uncomfortable. The Spocks meanwhile theorize that either the entirety of the crew is experiencing a mass hallucination or they are witnessing as aspect of another reality. A scan by Lea McCoy reveals her crewmates are not hallucinating. Which, horrifyingly, means that somewhere on the other ship is a male version of her.
Some time later, James T. Kirk has agreed to bring over a delegation (though Scotty suspects he merely wants to meet his female counterpart face-to-face). In spite of the chief engineer's enthusiasm, Spock fails to see any excitement in meeting gender-swapped versions of themselves. Left behind, Pavel Chekov gripes about not being able to come along and the lack of females among the crew before his female counterpart hails him.
In the meeting room of the USS Enterprise, Mr. Scott is freaking out, Spock and Spock are exactly the same (much to Uhura and Uhuro's embarrassment) while James Kirk is eager for the unique opportunity to study similarities and differences between parallel universes. Jane reminds her counterpart of the instability of the storm and delegates both crews to finding a way back to their realities.
Walking in the halls, a visibly timid Jane asks James if he too graduated in record time and his mother died commanding the USS Kelvin before she admits that her unique position in Starfleet has landed her in hot water more than once. Though James lost his father to the Kelvin disaster, he assures Jane that they are indeed the same.
In engineering, Montgomery is aghast at the state of it. Women are supposed to be clean. After Marjorie reproaches him for his mild sexism and he mistakes Keensera for Keenser, the ship rocks. On the bridge, Sulu reports that the anomaly has expanded. With no indication of how long they have, James orders his crew back to their shuttle before Jane says it was nice to meet him and thanks him for his sympathy and ear.
In the hallways, the Spocks and Uhura walk along before a trio of Klingons briefly materialize and fire on the group, claiming the Enterprise is their ship. As Uhura runs back to the shuttle, both Spocks wish themselves safe travels. Kirk runs into an older version of himself while Marjorie has no idea who she's facing.
After the males arrive back on their ship, the captains are informed that Pavel and Pavela have figured out how to return everyone home. After modifications are made to the warp engines, both Enterprises are able to return to their realities.
The following log is from Jane Kirk's Enterprise:
- Captain's Log, Stardate 2261.235
- We have contacted Starfleet Command and confirmed that we have returned to our own reality after our encounter with the quantum storm. The quantum storm dissipated soon after with only residual traces of its unique energy signature detectable on our scans. We have left behind any warning beacons to steer any ships clear of the region in which the storm was detected, but given the unpredictable nature of the anomaly, we can only for the best.
Ship repairs and intruder sweeps are underway to make sure no alternative stowaways are aboard. McCoy, however, does not share the optimism. If there really are an infinite number of realities, is anything real? On the plus side, at least McCoy was not replaced by a "glass half-full" counterpart. Unlike her doctor, Kirk takes the existence of the multiverse in stride. An infinite number of realities merely means that an infinite number of adventures awaits them.
References[]
Characters[]
- Pavlovna Chekov • Pavel Chekov • Keensera • James T. Kirk • James T. Kirk (mirror) • Jane Tiberia Kirk • Geordi La Forge • Lea McCoy • Leonard McCoy • Marjorie Scott • Montgomery Scott • female Spock • Spock • Hikari Sulu • Hikaru Sulu • Nnamdi Uhuro • Nyota Uhura
- Referenced only
- Keenser • George Samuel Kirk, Sr. (alternates) • Winona Kirk (alternates)
Starships and vehicles[]
- USS Enterprise (Constitution-class) • USS Enterprise (Constitution-class) • shuttle
- Referenced only
- USS Kelvin
Races and cultures[]
States and organizations[]
Locations[]
Shipboard locations[]
Science and classification[]
- alternate reality • communications • central computer • Copenhagen logarithm • hail • Jeffries tube • medscanner • PADD • phaser • quantum resonance frequency • scanner • sensor • shields • star map • starship • viewscreen • VISOR • warning beacon • warp engine
Occupations and titles[]
- captain • chief engineer • commander • commanding officer • doctor ª first officer • lieutenant • metaphysicist • officer • science officer
Other references[]
- alien • atom • beam • brain • captain's log • captain's log, USS Enterprise (Kelvin timeline NCC-1701) • crew • dream • emotion • energy • Federation Starfleet ranks • Federation Starfleet ranks (alternate 2250s) • flagship • galaxy • gravity • hallucination • humanoid • Klingonese (hlvmeh mah • nargh chah • tlqaq) lifeform • log entry • Prime Directive • quantum storm • races and cultures • rank • Russian language • second • space-time • species • Starfleet regulations • Starfleet uniform (Prime) • Starfleet uniform • technology • time • title • uniform • universe • Vulcan salute • warp factor • year
Chronology[]
Appendices[]
Related media[]
- TOS comic: "All of Me" – First appearance of an incarnation of Jane T. Kirk.
- TOS comic: "Mirrored" – Scott and McCoy remember their conversation about parallel universes.
Background[]
- This is first contact between two parallel timelines that never met before.
- The stardates in part 2 (2261.234 and 2261.235) correspond to August 22 and 23, 2261. However, the stardate in part 1 (2261.274) was equivalent to October 1, 2261. If not a mistake, this meant that Kirk was notifying Starfleet about having returned to their reality 39 days before the ship actually left it.
Images[]
.jpg "USS Enterprise (parallel).jpg (262 KB)")
_profile.jpg "USS Enterprise (parallel) profile.jpg (126 KB)")
Cover gallery[]
Connections[]
Timeline[]
| published order | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous comic: Parallel Lives, Part 1 |
TOS comics (IDW series) |
Next comic: I, Enterprise!, Part 1 |
| Previous story: Khan, Issue 5 |
Stories by: Mike Johnson |
Next story: I, Enterprise!, Part 1 |
| chronological order | ||
| Previous adventure: Parallel Lives, Part 1 |
Memory Beta Chronology | Next adventure: I, Enterprise!, Part 1 |
Publication history[]
- 26 February 2014
- First released by IDW Publishing.
- 7 October 2014
- Collected in Star Trek, Volume 8.
- 31 May 2016
- Collected in The New Adventures, Volume 3.
- 5 July 2018
- Reprinted in Graphic Novel Collection, Volume 40. (Eaglemoss Collections)
External links[]
- Parallel Lives, Part 2 article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
- Captain Jane Kirk & Her Enterprise Crew Return to Action at StarTrek.com, the official Star Trek website