According to Ryan North, Star Trek: Lower Decks is the best Star Trek, and not just because he’s writing the new ongoing series launching this week. Given his clear sense of real science and comedy, he’s the perfect fit for this series, which is proven to be true once you finish the first issue. Armed with Derek Charm, who perfectly captures the visual style of the series, this first issue has more than enough to warrant a bandwagon uprising for the series.
A couple of things make this first issue a winner, even if you don’t like Star Trek. However, liking Star Trek goes a long way toward enjoying many of the jokes. The first is North’s iconic footnotes returning, adding additional jokes to nearly every page. They add commentary on specific moments on a page, context, and self-reflective fourth-wall-breaking humor.
Another winning element is how many adventures this issue packs into one issue. All told, there are five adventures in the first few pages, all of which are tidy and easy to solve but adventures nonetheless. It perfectly sets up Beckett Mariner’s desire for an adventure they can discuss later in a braggadocious way.
That’s one way to get a lot of missions in!
Credit: IDW
The main adventure is very Star Trek-focused, so much so that newer fans may not know what is being referenced, although the footnotes help catch us up with a debrief too. It’s a fitting first mission given its connections to Kirk and Star Trek’s past, but also it sets up a mystery filled with danger and sciency unexplained things.
Charm’s art is great, with a super clean look and a great sense of capturing expressions. The outer space shots are cool, too, with a glowy nature to planets and a CGI-issue look to the ships. My only note might be how the art can feel stuffy with mostly close-ups and mid-shots, although a starship isn’t an expansive place.
Once you put this first issue down, you have to admire how it captures so much of what Star Trek is. It has the weird, the technical, the scientific, and the unique Lower Decks charm of poking fun at it all at the same time.
Ryan North’s witty footnotes add an extra layer of comedy, and Derek Charm’s art complements the tone well, although it occasionally feels confined. With multiple mini-adventures and a main plot steeped in Star Trek history, this issue is packed with engaging content that stays true to the spirit of the franchise.
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