Star Trek is a franchise that’s never shied away from deep issues such as racism and identity. In fact, those very themes are baked into the very core of the series. The concept of Starfleet is to show a world where mankind transcends the petty differences and biases that hold us back and literally reaches for the stars. With Star Trek: Deviations – Threads of Destiny #1, the creative team of Stephanie Williams and Gregory Maldonado shows what happens when the promise of tomorrow collides with the harsh realities of the past.
The “Deviations” label, much like Marvel’s What If…? or DC’s Elseworlds, is meant to show different takes on iconic franchises. The previous issue of Star Trek: Deviations took a wild turn by imagining what happened if mankind made first contact with the Romulans instead of the Vulcans, but Threads of Destiny takes a different approach by putting its own spin on the classic Star Trek episode “The City on the Edge of Forever.” Instead of Kirk and Spock traveling through time to Depression-era New York, it’s Uhura who’s hurled through time to 1963…specifically the time of the Civil Rights Movement. As she acclimates to life in a different time, Uhura finds herself connecting with some unlikely figures.
Threads of Destiny is being released at the tail end of Black History Month, so it would have been easy to just make this a “Uhura travels through time and meets prominent figures in Black history” story. Williams decides to add plenty of layers to the narrative, especially as Uhura is a Black woman in a time that’s hostile to her – in one moment, she says that while Starfleet is a near-utopia, there’s still progress that needs to be made. Williams’ script also notes that Uhura’s skill is in communication, which turns out to be more beneficial to her than a phaser or a tricorder. (That’s saying nothing of a key moment that will hit Trekkies in the heart, especially those who know the original series’ history.)
IDW
Threads of Destiny also doesn’t look like the Trek comic you’d expect. Thanks to Maldonado’s pencils, which are highlighted by detailed inks from Anthony Fowler Jr., it sharply resembles a “lost issue” from the Gold Key era of Star Trek comics. Highlighting that feel are the colors by Charlie Kirchoff, which feels more vibrant than a modern comic, and Jodie Troutman’s boxy speech bubbles. Maldonado even manages to get very close to the original Star Trek crew’s likeness, and puts his own spin on the City on the Edge of Forever – here depicted as a series of mirrors reflecting certain points in time rather than a massive stone guardian, which makes this feel like an actual deviation from canon.
Star Trek: Deviations –A Threads of Destiny #1 is both a return to a long-lost format and a poignant tale focusing on Uhura traveling through time. That it can accomplish all of this in a single format is impressive, and is proof that IDW should not only give us more Deviations tales but that Williams should write more Star Trek in the future.
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