The only constant in the universe is change. It doesn’t matter if that’s good or bad but there you have it.

This month’s edition of Star Trek: Year Five sees Brandon Easton take his turn in the rotating roster of writers the series, a trend which is expected to continue as each issue follows the Enterprise crew through the 23rd century. Meanwhile, writers Jackson Lanzing and Colin Kelly have shifted into the “showrunner” role as they manage the overall story for the Year Five title.

Look at the story so far. In Issue #1, we saw a brief glimpse of the ending of this arc, with a despondent Captain Kirk lamenting on the state of affairs to this point and a phaser pointed to his head. That was a powerful set-up that seemed fairly straight-forward.

Then, after a scientific procedure, the Enterprise responded to a distress call from a Tholian colony that was under attack. They rescued a young survivor and were then confronted by a Tholian vessel.

The second issue saw a bit more excitement with the battle with the Tholian vessel, which formed the basis of the story’s events. Using the equipment from the scientific procedure we saw from the first issue, the Enterprise was able to defeat the Tholian ship and safely soar off into the stars. End of episode.

Issue #3, however, is a little busy. Let me put together a list of what’s going on in this one. The amount of activity was fairly high so I found that it gave the plot a bit of a frantic pace.

The crew of the Enterprise is trying to communicate with their unexpected Tholian passenger, which creates a myriad of sub-plots, including an attempted mini-mutiny from one Ensign Satie (notice the last name), who clearly sees the Tholian as an enemy of the Federation. However, there’s also Jim Kirk’s failed relationship with Carol Marcus and the son he never knew at play in this story as well. With the hint of a romantic interest between Uhura and Scotty in the subtext… like I said, there’s a lot going on here.

However, this is also just background. The main storyline centers on the Sigma Iotians, last seen in “A Piece of The Action.” When the Enterprise last left this highly imitative civilization, the Prime Directive had been violated by the last visitors from the Federation who left a book about 1920s-era mob culture. The book formed the blueprint for their society, indicating contamination on a significantly high level. At the end of that episode, further cultural contamination was suggested by Doctor McCoy’s admission that he had left his communicator behind.

That’s the basis for the main plot. Departing from the battle with the Tholian vessel, the Enterprise receives indications that a nearby system is experimenting with warp-flight capabilities. It just happens to be Sigma Iotia II, the same planet that Kirk and crew had visited a few years prior. In that short time, the Iotians have developed space flight and Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock and Dr. McCoy are regarded as the fathers of their current civilization.

It’s a lot to cram in to one book, and I think that was the problem with my enjoyment of it. It’s rich, and I appreciated its richness in detail and information, but it’s a lot of flavour to contend with. Let me put it this way: I’m still trying to figure out what’s going on with the Tholian survivor and then all of a sudden, the Enterprise is returning to figure out another “piece of the action,” so to speak, but this time it’s on a governmental front as the Iotians have now developed a representative democracy to replace their brutal criminal society.

At the same time, there were a few issues with the portrayal of Captain Kirk’s character that I had difficulty in accepting. First, the dilemma with Carol Marcus is probably one of the saddest times in Kirk’s life. Not only does he know he has a son out there but he also knows that he’s not worthy of being his father. As a Captain Kirk fan, I liked this insight into his personal past, but I didn’t feel that it got the full respect it needed to fully convey its importance.

I found it also difficult to accept the near-whimsical way that Kirk treats the Prime Directive violation when reminds McCoy of the communicator he left behind. McCoy is agonizing over this mistake, and Kirk dismisses it with flat jokes about court martials. There’s also a scene where Spock is kidnapped by a Sigma Iotian faction, but Kirk easily disregards it as a serious issue, relying on the Enterprise’s ability to transport him out of harm’s way.

We know Kirk is daring and he’s also been described as a cowboy when it comes to diplomacy and interstellar incidents, but he’s also the successful commander of a near-legendary five-year mission. I just can’t see him easily dismissing his first officer’s safety so casually – even though “A Piece of the Action” was regarded as one of the funniest episodes.

Treating franchise characters with accuracy is something I look for in a Trek comic. This just didn’t speak “Kirk,” and I found it a bit awkward.

As for the art, I have no complaints. Even though it’s a different artist this month, and I was really enjoying Stephen Thompson’s work in the previous two issues, I can’t find any fault with Martin Cocollo’s work.

• The regular cover is by Stephen Thompson, which makes me feel a little relieved, to be honest. Like I said, I was enjoying his work so far, so I guess it’s heartening to see him doing a cover. Artists always prefer covers; they can be interpretive or stylistic so they give the artist a great deal of leeway in their work.
   
• The retailer-incentive cover is created by J.J. Lendl. Continuing in the propaganda-type format that we saw in previous covers; Lendl doesn’t fail to disappoint. In fact, I have to also point out the use of the lettering from the Gold Key comics from the 1960s and 70s, which adds a nice bit of a nostalgic twist.
   
• Finally, the Montreal Comic-Con exclusive photo cover (not pictured) is a Captain Kirk stock image that we have seen before. While I’m not a fan of photo covers, it’s pretty easy to figure out why this went into print seeing that William Shatner is a guest at the Montreal Con. I can’t fault a marketing opportunity when I see one.

Change is a part of life, and we have to be prepared to roll with changes. The changes in this issue are fairly prominent. But, I’m intensely curious about the Tholian child the Enterprise rescued from the colony, Spock’s involvement in Iotian culture and if there’s any progress on the Uhura/Scott front!

Like I said: we have to roll with the changes.