Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever, Issue 3 was the third issue of a five-part Star Trek: The Original Series miniseries published in 2014 which adapted Harlan Ellison's original script for TOS episode: "The City on the Edge of Forever". It was adapted by writers Scott and David Tipton and painted by J.K. Woodward.
Description[]
- Solicitation text
- Harlan Ellison’s Hugo- and WGA Award-winning teleplay, visualized for the first time! Stranded in the past of old Earth, Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock search for the focal point that altered the timestream and changed everything about the universe they knew. And once they find her, they could find themselves foiled by a force even greater than the Guardians of Forever—love!
Summary[]
Ducking into a basement, Spock has a disturbingly emotional reaction at the savage past of humanity only for Kirk to quickly silence him and begin looking for contemporary clothing. Once the two are disguised, the landlord discovers them and sympathetically offers them lodgings if they are willing to provide cleaning services. Smirking, Kirk asks Spock if humans are indeed "worse than any barbarians".
As they sweep the floors, the two men ponder that if Beckwith will be drawn to the "focal point" in time, so will they. Grabbing the tricorder Kirk orders the machine to, despite the very real risk of power overloads and internal circuit burnout, use the data gathered from the Guardians to compute all possible points of temporal divergence. As it goes to work, Spock points out the good news that the tricoder is not dependent of the USS Enterprise for power. The bad news is that without the Enterprise, they are dependent on one tricorder which they stretching far beyond its design limitations. And in this primitive time, its value to them is inestimable. The device then beeps but all it can do is remind them of the Guardians' cryptic warnings. It did warn them of possible circuit burn out.
Delegating Spock to repair it, Kirk decides to find a job but overrules Spock doing the same. Overhearing, the landlord waves off such concerns and says he can find Spock a job just down the road. A week later, Spock walks home from work and overhears the sermon of Edith Keeler. Who preaches truth as clear as the sky, wears a brooch of a burning sun and a cloak as blue as the sky of old Earth and the key is in the name.
Observing the woman from afar, Spock reports to Kirk his theory of believing she is the focal point they have been searching for. But despite Beckwith's absence, they have no way of knowing if he hasn't already arrived. Continuing to observe Keeler, Spock worries his captain is developing feelings for the woman.
Later, Spock stoically observes Kirk and Keeler walking out together.
References[]
Characters[]
- Edith Keeler • James T. Kirk • Janice Rand • Spock
- Referenced only
- Beckwith • Gleeson
Starships and vehicles[]
- automobiles
- Referenced only
- SS Condor
Locations[]
- Earth (New York City)
- Referenced only
- China • Iowa
Races and cultures[]
States and organizations[]
- New York City Police Department • Starfleet • United Federation of Planets
Science and technology[]
- memory bank • mnemonic memory cube • transistor • tricorder
Ranks and titles[]
- captain • ethnologist • Federation Starfleet ranks (2260s) • Sister • Starfleet ranks
Other references[]
- 1930 • apartment • asparagus • barbarian • baseball • baseball bat • cabbage • coordinates • day • dog • dollar • drum • emotion • English language • Great Depression • history • hour • hydroponics • plant • kilometer • logic • macaroni • money • month • night shift • peace • peace • space • Starfleet uniform • Starfleet uniform (2265-2270) • sun • sun • time vortex • year
Appendices[]
Related media[]
- TOS episode: "The City on the Edge of Forever" – the episode as aired.
- TOS short story: "Gateway to the Future" – Kirk and Spock visit the far future through a pillared time travel device protected by an elderly humanoid calling himself the Guardian of the Future.
- TOS episode & Star Trek 4 novelization: All Our Yesterdays – In 2269, Kirk, Spock and McCoy are transported to Sarpeidon's past via the atavachron.
Background[]
- In this continuity, it is established Vulcans made it into space 200 years after humans- contrary to other sources.
Connections[]
Timeline[]
| published order | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous comic: Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever, Issue 2 |
TOS comics IDW Publishing |
Next comic: Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever, Issue 4 |
| chronological order | ||
Publication history[]
- 27 August 2014
- First printed by IDW Publishing.
- 3 February 2015
- Collected in the hardcover omnibus. (IDW Publishing)
- 19 January 2017
- Collected in the Graphic Novel Collection's Volume 2 omnibus. (Eaglemoss Collections)
Translations[]
- 6 September 2017
- Italian: Collected in the Italian paperback release of Graphic Novel Collection, Volume 2: La Città Sull’orlo del Sempre – La Sceneggiatura Originale. (RCS MediaGroup, ISSN 977228074425770002)
- 18 February 2021
- Spanish: Collected in the Spanish hardcover omnibus as La ciudad al borde de la eternidad. (Editorial Drakul, ISBN 978-8412169249)
External link[]
- Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever, Issue 3 article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.