MORE ON TOKYOPOP'S STAR TREK IN SEPTEMBER

[MattBrady]

by Benjamin Ong Pang Kean

After a combined total of 726 episodes of the classic-era Star Trek (referred to as The Original Series by fans, 1966-1969), Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973-1974), Star Trek: The Next Generation (ST: TNG, 1987-1994), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (ST: DS9, 1993-1999), Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001), Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005), 10 feature films (and an 11th, to be produced, written, and directed by J.J. Abrams), hundreds of novels, comics, computer and video games later, the late Gene Roddenberry’s most popular creation is still going strong.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the first appearance of the original Star Trek TV series this year, TOKYOPOP is bringing the franchise back to its roots… with a manga twist, of course.

Expect to see Captain James T. Kirk, Mr. Spock, Leonard McCoy and others when the first volume of the Star Trek manga anthology set in the timeframe of The Original Series (TOS) debuts in September.

The first volume will include five stories. They are:

“Oban”
Writer: Jim Alexander
Aritst: Michael J. Shelfer

“Anything But Alone”
Writer: Joshua Ortega
Artist: Gregory Giovanni Johnson

“'Til Death...”
Writer: Mike W. Barr
Artist: Jeong Mo Yang

“Orphans”
Writer: Rob Tokar
Artist: EJ Su

“Side Effects”
Writer: Chris Dowes
Artist: Makoto Nakatsuka

While TOKYOPOP’s Star Trek marks the first time that the characters and the Roddenverry-created universe will be presented in the manga look and format, many companies have published comic book series based on Star Trek in its various incarnations (as well as new, non-series based characters and storylines, plus two crossover one-shots with Marvel’s X-Men) in the past, including Gold Key, Marvel Comics, DC Comics, WildStorm and Malibu.

“We knew many Japanese manga artists who were also big Star Trek fans, which made us suspect that maybe there is a broader appeal in not only our fan base but also among Star Trek fans,” editor Luis Reyes told Newsarama.com. “And we felt that the manga style (in format and in art style) could serve well the Star Trek universe. TOKYOPOP hasn't been able to really crack the boys market 18-32, and this might be a way to draw those readers into reading manga as a medium.

“We went through a painstaking process finding the five stories that would be true to the original series while also allowing manga artists to play with the aesthetic,” Reyes added. “We hope to rekindle the magic of the original series and demonstrate the best things about it to an audience that has never really been exposed to it. Star Trek is about a universe in which we all hope to live in, an Earth that is beyond war and famine, in which everyone is provided for and yet progress and innovation continues, in which we are made better by our faults. In a lot of ways, I feel that manga often carries similar messages of hope. Manga can mix pathos and optimism in a way that very few other popular media can. Maybe with the Star Trek manga we are bringing a narrative franchise and an artistic style together that aim to achieve similar points, to punctuate its analysis of humanity in similar ways.

According to Reyes, the title for the first volume is still up in the air. “Regardless, the book is going to be called Star Trek: The Manga,” Luis said. “There will be a subtitle in the hopes that this will be the first in a series of books based on TOS. And it is still scheduled for September.”

And the editor said that the publisher would focus on telling “strong stories that stayed true to the tenor of the original series. One story is about the Enterprise in the center of peace negotiations between two warring worlds. Another story is about the insanity of loneliness. Another is about the detriments of child neglect. Another is about the toxic side of love. And another actually hints at the origins of a popular TNG race. In all of these stories, we tried to lock in on Star Trek's concern with emotional truth, using the science fiction to reach a greater understanding of ourselves.”

TOKYOPOP came into the picture in March 2004 when the manga publishing powerhouse announced at WizardWorld Los Angeles that they had acquired the rights to produce Star Trek manga in an anthology format, although at that time only stories set in the Next Generation time frame. Last November, it was announced that writer Joshua Ortega would be writing a brand new story for TOKYOPOP that’s set in the classic-era of The Original Series.

So, what’s happening with the previously announced TNG manga? “Because the 40th anniversary was coming up, Paramount asked us if we wanted to instead do a TOS manga. We had to let the TNG manga go but there are still plans of perhaps reviving the deal for the 20th anniversary of TNG coming up next year. We still have a lot of the pitches and Paramount-approved stories for it so if the TOS does well, we might consider cracking open that file again and developing a TNG book.”

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[sequart]

A very smart move on the Roddenberry's part. With such a backlog of story, a whole new audience will quickly devour the manga and then thirst for more. That's where the DVDs and comics and book come in.

[psycha]

I hope those a ROUGH rough sketches.

[Reliant]

Just when it seemed like the franchise was down for the count last year, Trek seems definitely set for a comeback...

Definitely looking forward for this manga to come out...

[Moriarty]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

And another actually hints at the origins of a popular TNG race..

Oh no. Please don't let it be the Borg...

[jedifish]

Love Star Trek. Hate Manga. This will get as much of a look from me as Star Wars Manga did, which is None.

[Delta Ass]

As a Trekkie, the thought of Kirk and company with giant eyes and spiky hair is nauseating.

[samnoir]

I loved the Star Wars Manga in the same way I loved Carmine Infantino's Star Wars comics, but I really don't think mixing Classic Trek and Manga will do well to service fans of either. Forty year olds men aren't interested in Manga and Teens aren't interested in Classic Trek. If they went with TNG instead, I can see some generational overlap, but absolutely none between Classic Trek and the Manga generation.

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[Gladiator X]

Originally Posted by jedifish

Love Star Trek. Hate Manga. This will get as much of a look from me as Star Wars Manga did, which is None.

Sadly,I must agree.I would be all over new Trek comics with the original crew but not for some manga-fied version.

I guess we'll see lots of upskirt shots of Uhura though so it may not be all bad.

[Fan4Fan]

I usually dislike manga and have never liked Trek in comic form.

However, the sketches are intriguing enough that I'll check this out!

[BamaRainbow]

Quote:
“We knew many Japanese manga artists who were also big Star Trek fans, which made us suspect that maybe there is a broader appeal in not only our fan base but also among Star Trek fans,” editor Luis Reyes told Newsarama.com. “And we felt that the manga style (in format and in art style) could serve well the Star Trek universe. TOKYOPOP hasn't been able to really crack the boys market 18-32, and this might be a way to draw those readers into reading manga as a medium."

If Tokyopop hasn't cracked that particular gender/age market with their current output, I'm not really sure that market is overly interested in any manga. Or, are we to assume that Tokyopop's current market is mostly female of all ages and/or boys under 18?
I know that manga sells very well in the mainstream bookstore market as opposed to the comic book store market but how does Tokyopop know they haven't cracked the 18-32 boys? Most of the mainstream stores don't keep that type of profile information on customers (if they are, I'm not sure I really want to know), but this won't do much better if the Trek manga are stocked by the bookstores within their current manga section. To attract the potential Trek fan who reads the MMPBs (who are apparently NOT already reading manga), the Trek Manga will need to be stocked with the MMPBs. Also, a Trek gaming fan or Trek video junkie would need the Trek Manga stocked near Trek games or videos, rather than just put in with all the other manga.
Now, more than likely, I will be picking up at least this first volume, but I would feel a bit better if there were more "names" attached to the project (I know Barr has written Trek stories before, but it'd be nice to see some of the MMPB authors--Michael Friedman, Greg Cox, PAD, Diane Carey--who might attract some of the non-manga buyers, at least enough to give the manga a shot). I just wonder, though, just how freedom the Tokyopop creators will have, given Paramount's well-known control over the franchise.
One other bit has me troubled. The description of the types of stories (" One story is about the Enterprise in the center of peace negotiations between two warring worlds. Another story is about the insanity of loneliness. Another is about the detriments of child neglect. Another is about the toxic side of love. And another actually hints at the origins of a popular TNG race.") doesn't seem to really push any new ground for the franchise; in fact, the descriptions sound like territory that's been well-covered on the original shows. I know, I know--this sounds pretty petty since many Trek stories have shared common plot points with other stories, receiving some new "twist" to make the newer one seem fresh and innovative, but just based on the bare bones of the stated plots, these new stories sound like original TOS episodes.

[Dino1963]

I'd be more interested in this if it came from Japanese artists instead of American artists. To see their take on Star Trek would be more interesting than this.

[Sanman]

OTS is TREK for me so I will give the manga book a look. Would be better if it was done by someone like Silvertri or others who worked on the Star Trek X-Men one-shot from some years back (which illustrated the original cast dead-on) but something new might be interesting. I am actually more hesitant about the next movie. A new actor playing Kirk and Spock does not feel right. I assume that the manga Trek will bear some resemblance to the original cast.

[Robert_Coyner]

Cinescape has some color cover art for it.

http://www.cinescape.com/0/editorial...&obj_id=51056#

[Blackbeard]

I'll definitely check this out.
I'm a huge fan of the original series--and a fan of manga--so this should prove interesting.

[mdhprime]

I am actually looking forward to this a lot. I am glad to see that the editors decided to go with The Original Series. It hasn't been visited a lot in recent years.

[Mark Shaw]

Good to see Mike Barr on this. He's worked with just about every incarnation of the Trek comics.

[Not From Around]

While the sketches don't look bad, I think I prefer the art in the old Gold Key "Star Trek" series. Now those were nice-looking comics! I've never much cared for other "Star Trek" comics adaptations.

Have there really been over 700 TV episodes? Wow! I've seen nearly all of the the original and TNG (and the Filmation series), but only bits and pieces of the others.

[Squashua]

Wow, this looks really cool! I think that this "Star Trek" concept could really do well if they got some sort of TV deal.

[skeletorjr]

What a great mix. Very cool. And that cover image that Robert Coyner posted the link to looks great. No 'spiky hair and big eyes' in sight, as if that's all manga is. Count me in!

[Lucky Luke]

Originally Posted by Delta Ass

As a Trekkie, the thought of Kirk and company with giant eyes and spiky hair is nauseating.

How many mangas have you actually read?

[mrvlvsdc]

I hope they do develop the tng series for the 20th aniversary that'd be cool.

[DynamiteKid]

I'm wary of the anthology approach because it's difficult to maintain a steady level of quality. You could end up with one or two good stories but also get four or three horrible stories. The spirit of the TOS, with its dealing in social, political, and cultural issues, can be a good fit with manga since the "deeper" manga has had more mainstream exposure than the western counterparts for the most part. However, this can only happen if the creators have an understanding of what makes the better/deeper manga great. If the creators are among those who are essentially riding the manga/anime explosion and present only the superficial aspects of manga, which is generally the visual style and typical storylines, then the Star Trek manga will end up being a shallow rehash of Star Trek at best.

Originally Posted by psycha

I hope those a ROUGH rough sketches.

I second this. I'll take it a step further and say that even for rough sketches, the scans show a level of draftsmanship that gives me no other choice but to be skeptical about this project. This has nothing to do with style as it is a touchy subject in comic art. This is purely on the technical ability shown, specifically the perspective. In both pages, it's obvious the work was freehand, especially in the second page with the characters set in what looks to be an audience hall. One point perspective is used, which is the most basic of the perspective views, and the lines are simply off. Even if the perspective was off, at least use a straight edge to ensure clean lines and approach a semblance of parallel relation. The first page with the Enterprise...all I'll say is that freehanding doesn't excuse anything shown in the art. Ellipses and cylinders and cubes are easily freehanded and while they won't be 100% perfect in dimension, they should be within the the ability of even a beginning artist. When you're dealing with technical subjects such as vehicles and architecture, you must have strong technical drafting skill. You're dealing with manufactured objects, which will have clean forms. You can get away with fudging things a bit in more organic subjects but not when you're dealing with subjects like the starships in Star Trek.

I'm not out to shoot down this project. I'm not out to shoot down whoever provided the art. I just can't help but have a bad feeling seeing how this art was given the green light to be shown in the article. If this level of quality is acceptable for public exposure in an article, which is at least in part "selling" the idea, then I must question what the overall accepted standard for work is for the Star Trek Manga.

While I can certainly see how hardcore manga fans can see my post as an indirect criticism of manga art, to anyone with an artistic background, which means anyone from a professional artist to an art fan/student/admirer, it should be clear that I am criticizing the foundational skills of any artist working in a field(comics) that generally deals with depicting a three dimensional environment. The irony is that manga artists are often technically sound and more often quite skilled in industrial design.

[SHABBAZZ]

Originally Posted by psycha

I hope those a ROUGH rough sketches.

I hope they're thumbnails, or fan art, or something...

[OM]

Originally Posted by Moriarty

Oh no. Please don't let it be the Borg...

...Nah, it's probably the Pakleds, in which we discover they're all descended from Joey the Q