The Federation’s delegates have gathered. The Babel conference is on. Together, they aim to save Starfleet and bring peace to all quadrants. But while Captain Sato and the crew of the U.S.S. Omega have only experienced the passage of time as four months within their transwarp bubble, for the rest of the galaxy, it’s been 23 years. For 23 years, the delegates have been left to their own devices, to stew in their own machinations and to make new allegiances…and while the U.S.S. Omega may have brought them all together, the Burn has forced them apart. Not all want to broker peace, and someone who was once closest to Starfleet may become its greatest adversary… Star Trek: The Last Starship #5 starts the rebuilding of the Federation… or does it?

The Federation is in tatters after The Burn. Planets are wrecked, ships destroyed, economies barely holding on, famine increasing. The Federation, the status quo that was, held together numerous societies and planets in a mutually beneficial relationship that lifted them all up but it was all built on sand. Star Trek: The Last Starship #5 lays a lot of that out as delegates have gathered to rebuild the Federation after the calamity but makes it clear there’s little chance of it going back to the way it was.

Written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, the issue focuses on some political tension as Captain Soto does what he can to help bring things to order and get the discussions moving. It’s clear that this won’t be easy and his rather positive view of the world betrays the reality that exists and the challenges that are now faced.

There are a lot of questions and maybe these only exist for casual Star Trek fans. One society discusses famine which seems odd in a setting where replicators exist and food can just be created. But, that might be answered easily for those more familiar with Star Trek and these societies. But, what’s interesting is the various topics and issues impacting each delegation and the answer to their problems… which isn’t really feasible.

There’s of course twists and turns as the future is debated. The end of the comic and what’s proposed feels like a new direction and proposed future with a vision that feels like it echoes the real world. Our world order has been strained and on the verge of collapse with new proposals and visions proposed. We face what Star Trek faces or is Star Trek doing what it does best in reflecting our real world struggles?

The art by Adrián Bonilla is solid and keeps up the interesting visual style of this series. There’s an almost pop art look with a bit of scratchiness to the look helped by Lee Loughridge‘s colors and Clayton Cowles‘ lettering. The series has a very unique style to it that helps it stand out from what else is out there. The colors pop and designs feel new but familiar. There’s also a sense of dread throughout the comic, just something is off, and that’s emphasized by the art. There’s a strangely ominous feel throughout the issue like something is going to happen and you can see that in the body language of the characters.

Star Trek: The Last Starship #5 is a solid issue that does what sci-fi excels at, examining our world. It also moves the direction of Star Trek forward in a major way and ends with an ominous last page (that probably hits a lot better for long time fans). It’s another great issue for the series that’s redefining the direction of Star Trek.

Story: Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly Art: Adrián Bonilla
Color: Lee Loughridge Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Story: 8.25 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.25 Recommendation: Buy

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle

First Officer Wowie Carter was once called the child without fear. But with the Federation in freefall and Earth still reeling from a brutal Klingon assault, fear is all that remains—and Wowie is cracking under its weight. The U.S.S. Omega’s mission is clear: Gather the final delegates for the Babel Conference, the Federation’s last, fragile chance at unity. A future of peace still seems possible…on paper. But every time Wowie returns to Earth, the home they once loved slips further into despair. As alliances fracture and chaos spreads, Wowie faces a question no one dares ask: What’s left to save when hope is already gone? Star Trek: The Last Starship #4 does what Star Trek does best, reflect on the issues the world faces today.

Written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing, Star Trek: The Last Starship has been an interesting series. It’s not a Star Trek about exploration or discovery, but one of rebuilding a society that has collapsed. It’s about building a new order when the past one has collapsed. It’s a series that reflects debate that goes on today as the laws, processes, and agreements that have propped up the function of the world are torched on a daily basis.

Star Trek: The Last Starship #4 is particularly interesting as it focuses its sights in on the regressive politics that have taken over far too many countries today. The United States and more have turned xenophobic, waving the saber, and threatening claims of independence and rejecting the flawed system that has existed. After the Burn and the attack by the Klingons, Star Trek’s Earth has rejected the order of its past. It has become isolationist, fearful of what’s out there, and isolationist. It has closed off its “borders” to others including Starfleet. So, where do things go from there?

The comic explores this in an interesting way jumping through time as the U.S.S. Omega completes its mission to help rebuild the federation but suffers from the issue of time. While it moves slowly on the ship it speeds up elsewhere. A month of their travel on the Omega equals a decade for example. Using that, we see the progression of Earth as it rebuilds rejecting its allies to do so and becoming “self-reliant.” It’s hard to not read the comic and see the echoes of Donald Trump’s vision for the world or recent remarks by Canada’s Mark Carney’s recent speech at Davos about rebuilding new alliances and processes to replace what has been burnt down. It’s eerie timing that this comic was released the same day as that speech.

The art by Adrian Bonilla delivers an an unsettling sense as Wowie revisits his home and we see its progression over time. With color by Lee Loughridge and lettering by Clayton Cowles, the comic has a roughness to it that feels like it reflects that scratched nature of the Federation and its ideals. The art has a sadness to it like a dour memory that you pass through on reflection. It’s haunting in a way and matches Wowie as he takes in what has happened to his home and parents.

Star Trek: The Last Starship #4 is a hell of a comic with a timing of release that’s far too perfect. It does, the series so far has done, an excellent job of what Star Trek has been great at and sci-fi does best, reflect and examine the state of the world and politics of our time. It’s an issue that should be read, examined, and ruminated upon. It highlights what makes Star Trek so great.

Story: Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing Art: Adrian Bonilla
Color: Lee Loughridge Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Story: 9.0 Art: 8.5 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle