Have you picked up a copy of Star Trek: Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way yet? The interactive graphic novel is an incredible and unique way to take part in a Star Trek: Lower Decks story. Written by Ryan North with art by Chris Fenoglio, coloring by Charlie Kirchoff and lettering by Jeff Eckleberry, this OGN from IDW is available at your local bookstore and/or public library now.
Already had a chance to read this one-of-a-kind graphic novel? Then, good news. For this week’s Trek Tuesday, we’re listing six Star Trek episodes and a movie to watch after you’ve finished Star Trek: Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way. Please be aware that this article includes some slight spoilers for the OGN. What did you think of Warp Your Own Way? Be sure to let us know in the comment section.
“Who Mourns for Adonais?”
The first Star Trek: The Original Series episode on our list is Season 2 Episode 2, “Who Mourns for Adonais?” This episode is filled with memorable images and lines. This includes the U.S.S. Enterprise being grabbed by a giant, glowing green hand. Yikes.
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Warp Your Own Way pays homage to “Who Mourns for Adonais?” in a big way. In a branching possible storyline, the U.S.S. Cerritos runs afoul of another alien from Pollux IV: Dionysus. Enormous in size, as you might expect, Dionysus is there to par–tay. Hey, what could go wrong? It turns out: a lot.
“Mirror, Mirror”
In The Original Series Season 2 Episode 4, “Mirror, Mirror,” James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and several crewmembers are transported to the Mirror Universe due to a transporter malfunction. There, they discover a world filled with doppelgängers … and they aren’t exactly friendly. Ironically, the only exception might be Spock (Leonard Nimoy). This is ironic because Mirror Spock’s goatee has become shorthand not just for the Mirror Universe but for malignant parallel timeline doppelgängers in general.
In Warp Your Own Way, Beckett Mariner creates several D’Vana Tendi holograms in an attempt to crash the holodeck. When she needs these holograms to become less moral than Tendi Prime, goatees suddenly appear on their faces, a clear reference to Mirror Spock.
The Wrath of Khan
In Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalban) escapes from his exile on Ceti Alpha V. He immediately pursues revenge against Kirk for stranding him there in The Original Series Season 1 Episode 22, “Space Seed,” 17 years earlier. Assisted by his crew of genetically augmented humans, Khan’s vengeance has become legendary in Franchise canon.
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In Warp Your Own Way, the crew of the Cerritos becomes the subject of Khan’s vengeance instead of Kirk. Flying aboard the U.S.S. Reliant and assisted by his augments, Khan’s inexplicable reappearance deeply confuses Carol Freeman and her crew. But apparently, sometimes vengeance is a dish served very, very cold. From Hell’s heart, he stabs at thee, Cerritos!
“Home Soil”
The 18th episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1, “Home Soil,” sees the U.S.S. Enterprise-D encountering a strange new form of life. While they originally believe that they have discovered inanimate crystals, these crystals turn out to be sentient beings. A very different form of life than humans, they address Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his crew by calling them “big ugly bags of mostly water.” As Data (Brent Spiner) points out, this is not an inaccurate description of human physiology.
Warp Your Own Way pays homage to this episode through dialogue spoken by Beckett in one possible storyline. When addressing Samanthan Rutherford and Tendi, Mariner refers to them as “big ugly bags of mostly water.” Crystals: they aren’t so different from us, after all.
“Trials and Tribble-ations”
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Season 5 Episode 6, “Trials and Tribble-ations,” sees Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) and several crew members aboard the U.S.S. Defiant pulled back in time. There, they must foil Arne Darvin (Charlie Brill), a Klingon Intelligence Officer, from altering the events of The Original Series Season 2 Episode 13, “The Trouble with Tribbles.”
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In one of the story branches of Warp Your Own Way, Bradward Boimler has trouble with Tribbles himself. However, because “Trials and Tribble-ations” features Raktajino in a bigger role than you’d expect, and Mariner may order the caffeinated Klingon beverage in Warp Your Own Way, we’re including this Deep Space Nine episode rather than The Original Series episode to which it pays homage.
“The Xindi”
In the Star Trek: Enterprise Season 3 premiere, “The Xindi,” we get insight into the structure of Xindi society. This includes a council populated by two insectoid Xindi. As the name suggests, they share a visual similarity with Earth insects but are much larger in size.
Warp Your Own Way sees Mariner ultimately facing off against a pair of antagonists. One of them, Chrtz, is an insectoid Xindi.
“All Those Who Wander”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 1 Episode 9, “All Those Who Wander,” sees the crew of the Enterprise encountering one of their most horrifying challenges yet. When investigating the crashed U.S.S. Peregrine, they learn the ship was felled by the Gorn. And worse yet, they discover that one of the innocents they’ve rescued has been impregnated with vicious Gorn offspring.
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In one of the possible narrative branches of Warp Your Own Way, Andy Billups is revealed to have been impregnated with Gorn. Poor Billups … he doesn’t deserve such a fate any more than Hemmer (Bruce Horak) did. At least with Warp Your Own Way, you can go back and choose another path.
Star Trek: Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way is available now at a local bookstore and/or public library near you.
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