Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who Assimiltion #4 Review

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Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who Assimiltion #4 Review
By Tao Mori
September 8, 2012 - 13:20

IDW Publishing
Writer(s): Scott & David Tipton with Tony Lee
Penciller(s): Gordon Purcell
Colourist(s): J.K. Woodward
Letterer(s): Shawn Lee
$3.99 US

This series combines two different science fiction stories together into one. Doctor Who is about a time traveling alien who tries to help people from aliens and bad people who seek to do the innocent harm. This isn't is moniker but often that's exactly what the Doctor finds himself doing. Star Trek: The Next Generation on the other hand is set in the future aboard an interstellar ship known as Enterprise. They travel the galaxy boldly going where no one has gone before and all that sort of thing.

I've been following this series since Issue 1, just haven't had the chance to post a review of the previous issues so I thought I'd jump in the middle. I should admit that I am more of a Doctor Who fan than Star Trek, blasphemous I know, so if my review seems to favor one side more than the other that's probably why. What's been happening so far is that in the Star Trek Universe the Cybermen from Doctor Who's Universe have somehow snuck in and have teamed up with the Borg to give the Star Trek Universe a good thrashing.

There's not a lot of action in this issue, the previous issue had some fighting in it, but not this. When we do get to see some action its sort of after the fact. Bit of a spoiler here, though the cover gives it away too in that the Cybermen have betrayed the Borg. I suppose that was going to happen at some point, seems a bit odd that the Borg fell victim to the Cybermen so easily. I thought the Borg were tougher than that.

One of the problems with a mash up like this is that each story has such strong characters who do certain things, but you mash them up with another story and suddenly the main cast feels like extras instead of being in the center light, but how can you fit in everyone? Interaction between the Ponds and other members of the Enterprise crew is limited, only taking place in a few panels. Giving face time to everyone a hard thing to do, we could probably see a whole issue with a back and forth between the Doctor Who and the Enterprise crew. The writers have done what they can to make the story compelling for both sides. Funny quips from the Doctor here and there, and lots of Jean Luc Picard facial shots. If they could do this on television, it would be spectacular.

Generally the comic is enjoyable seeing the interactions between the Doctor and various members of Enterprise. The Ponds have their comic moments, but they feel a bit out of place on a spaceship. Perhaps that's part of the problem too is that the Doctor Who characters are on a Star Trek ship, thrust into the Star Trek Universe, where of course they feel a bit alien and out of place. If the Cybermen are to be defeated in this comic, then which way will they be defeated. The Star Trek way with phasers and photon torpedoes? Or The Doctor Who way with a sonic screwdriver and some funny lines? Unfortunately it can't be both, which makes it difficult to put these two stories together because they have different ways of dealing with conflict.

The drawing of the artwork is quite nice, it captures the facial characteristics of the characters from their respective television shows, which I'm sure is no simple task. Personally I'm not a fan of their coloring though. The colors are sort of distorted and smeared with pastel colors giving the comic a surrealistic look. The previous issue actually had more of a cartoon style coloring with the Jelly Baby Doctor and Captain Kirk's Enterprise crew. That style I liked a lot better, but since it was a flashback it wasn't the central way in which the coloring is being done.

Overall the comic is worth getting if you like either Doctor Who or Star Trek and if you like both then even better. The Story is interesting and definitely unique. It leaves a lot of mystery in the air as to what's going to happen next making the reader want to get the next issue.

Rating: 8/10