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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mimicking Menace}}
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{{Comic|
  
  ⚫
{{comic
−
type = [[Comic]]|
 +
| type = [[comic]]
⚫
title = The Mimicking Menace|
  
  +
| title = The Mimicking Menace
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cover image = [[Image:Gold_Key_28.jpg|250px]]|
  
−
cover artist= [[George Wilson]]|
 +
| cover image = gold Key 28.jpg
  +
| cover artist = [[George Wilson]]
−
series = [[Star Trek: The Original Series|The Original Series]]|
  
  ⚫
| series = {{sT|The Original Series}} ([[star Trek (Gold Key)|Gold Key TOS]])
−
number = 28|
+
| number = 28
−
date = [[Stardate|3421.7]] ([[2267]])|
  
  +
| stardate = 3421.7
−
editor = |
  
  +
| date = [[2267]]
−
artist =[[Alberto Giolitti]] |
 +
| artist = [[Alberto Giolitti]]
−
penciller = |
  
  ⚫
| writer = [[George Kashdan]]
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inker = |
  
  ⚫
| omnibus = [[The Enterprise Logs, Volume 4]]; [[The Key Collection, Volume 4]]; [[Gold Key Archives, Volume 5]]
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colorist = |
  
  ⚫
| published = {{srcdate|1975|January}}
−
letterer = |
  
  ⚫
| format =
⚫
writer = [[George Kashdan]]|
  
  ⚫
| pages = 25
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omnibus = [[The Enterprise Logs, Volume 4]]; [[The Key Collection, Volume 4]]; [[Gold Key Archives, Volume 5]]|
  
  ⚫
| publisher = [[Gold Key Comics]]
⚫
published = [[1975|January 1975]]||
  
⚫
format = |
  
⚫
pages = |
  
⚫
publisher = [[Gold Key Comics]]|
  
−
ISBN = |
  
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altcover = |
  
 
}}
  
}}
−
'''The Mimicking Menace''' was a [[comic book]] story published by [[Gold Key Comics]] in 1975. In this story, the {{ship||Galileo|NCC-1701/7) (II}} [[shuttlecraft]] lands on a barren world harboring a mysterious [[lifeform]] which absorbs energy and duplicates matter.
 +
''Dead planet? Or deadly?'' — '''The Mimicking Menace''' was a ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' [[comic book]] story published by [[Gold Key Comics]] in {{srcdate|1975}}, the 28th issue in the first ongoing series of ''[[Star Trek]]'' comic books. It was the 26th story credited to artist [[Alberto Giolitti]] and the first of ten stories written by [[George Kashdan]]. In this story, the {{ship||Galileo|NCC-1701/1}} [[shuttlecraft]] lands on a barren world harboring a mysterious [[lifeform]].
   
  +
==Description==
−
==Publisher's description==
  
  +
:''What form can [[life]] take? In an infinite [[universe]], it can take infinite forms! Now, as the crew of the {{ship|USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701}} seeks to learn about a wandering [[asteroid]], it is confronted with an unsuspected [[lifeform|life form]] that turns [[Captain]] [[james T. Kirk|Kirk]] and [[Lieutenant]] [[Calder]] against the others!''
−
;<nowiki>Cover blurb:</nowiki>
  
−
:''Dead Planet? Or Deadly?''
  
   
 
==Summary==
  
==Summary==
  +
;''[[Captain's log]], [[stardate|star date]] 34.21.7'': ''The wandering asteroid [[Tactis II]] is now below the {{ship|USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701}}! Question — does this asteroid pose any threat to the [[Federation]]?''
−
{{incomplete|comic|section=summary}}
  
  +
  +
From [[orbit]], [[Spock]] and Calder found indeterminate life signs. At her request, Kirk, Spock, Calder and two [[security officer]]s landed the {{ship||Galileo|NCC-1701/1| (NCC-1701/1)}} near a [[volcano]], where they were surprised to find a duplicate shuttle. The security officers boarded it just as the volcano erupted. They both became dizzy and collapsed — and large, floating molecule chains reformed into copies of their bodies.
  +
  +
Drained of its [[ion]] power, ''Galileo'' was caught in a [[lava]] flow. When it was safe to open the [[airlock|hatch]], Spock and Calder spotted the other shuttle flying towards the volcano's crater. Kirk called the security team, but his [[communicator]] lost power. Kirk and Calder spotted the team climbing back down the [[mountain]] and left to meet them. Kirk and Calder fainted, and floating molecule chains copied them too.
  +
  +
The four duplicate [[Human]]s now approached ''Galileo''. Spock felt his own energy draining and with a spark of inspiration retreated into the shuttle. At that moment, [[Montgomery Scott]] and [[Leonard McCoy]] [[beam]]ed down to find out why they'd lost contact. The duplicates fired [[phaser]]s at them. Scott and McCoy returned fire, collapsing the duplicates into molecules. The volcano rumbled. Spock quickly ran out and retrieved the woozy Kirk and Calder, and everyone piled into ''Galileo'' to hide from an onslaught of boulders.
  +
  +
;''Captain's log, star date 32.21.9'': ''From the moment our party landed on the supposedly lifeless asteroid, our lives have been under an unexpected threat! Some as yet unexplained life-form drains us of strength, makes a mockery of our form and turns us against each other!''
  +
  +
Scott had a [[video camera robot]] beamed down. The [[probe]] examined the crater, relaying images of [[spacecraft]], [[skeleton]]s and huge molecule chains of a [[Tactisian]]. The transmission cut out, and when the [[robot]] returned, Kirk, Calder and Scott inspected it, then collapsed. The robot was a duplicate, and it copied the three officers. As Spock weakened, he ordered the ''Enterprise'' to fire negatively-charged ions into the crater. This weakened the [[Tactisian]], reviving the missing security officers, who fled back to ''Galileo'' and shot the duplicates with phasers.
  +
  +
;''Captain's log, supplement'': ''In accordance with [[starfleet General Orders and Regulations|Federation by-laws]], we did not destroy the life-form on Tactis II… But even now, the life-form is probably active again! It will be seeking other energy sources! Be warned!''
   
 
==References==
  
==References==
 
===Characters===
  
===Characters===
−
*{{dis|Calder|Lieutenant}} • [[James T. Kirk]] • [[Leonard McCoy]] • [[Montgomery Scott]] • [[Spock]] • [[Hikaru Sulu]] • [[Tactisian]] • [[Nyota Uhura]] • [[Unnamed USS Enterprise personnel (2260s)]] (Two security officers)
 +
:{{dis|Calder|Lieutenant}} • [[James T. Kirk]] • [[Leonard McCoy]] • [[Montgomery Scott]] • [[Spock]] • [[Hikaru Sulu]] • [[Tactisian]] • [[Nyota Uhura]] • [[unnamed USS Enterprise personnel (2260s)|unnamed 2260s USS ''Enterprise'' personnel]] (2 security officers)
   
 
===Starships and vehicles===
  
===Starships and vehicles===
−
*{{USS|Enterprise|NCC-1701}} • {{ship||Galileo|NCC-1701/7) (II}} [[shuttlecraft]] • [[Unnamed spacecraft]]
 +
:{{uSS|Enterprise|NCC-1701}} ({{class|Constitution}} [[heavy cruiser]]) • {{ship||Galileo|NCC-1701/1| (NCC-1701/1)}} ([[class F shuttlecraft]]) • [[unnamed spacecraft]]
   
 
===Locations===
  
===Locations===
Line 42: Line 48:
   
 
===Races and cultures===
  
===Races and cultures===
−
:[[Tactisian]] • [[human]] • [[Vulcan]]
 +
:[[Human]] • [[Tactisian]] • [[Vulcan]]
   
 
===States and organizations===
  
===States and organizations===
Line 48: Line 54:
   
 
===Science and technology===
  
===Science and technology===
−
:[[amino acid]] • [[atmosphere]] • [[circuit]] • [[communicator]] • [[impact crater|crater]] • [[ion]] • [[lava]] • [[life-sign]] • [[molecule]] • [[phaser]] • [[protein]] • [[scanner]] • [[setting 1]] • [[transporter]] • [[video camera robot]] • [[volcano]]
 +
:[[circuit]] • [[communicator]] • [[engine]] • [[ion]] • [[life-sign]] • [[robot]] • [[scanner]] • [[setting 1]] • [[transporter]] • [[video camera robot]] • [[viewscreen]]
   
 
===Ranks and titles===
  
===Ranks and titles===
−
:[[captain]] • [[lieutenant]]
 +
:[[captain]] • [[doctor]] • [[lieutenant]] • [[philosopher]] • [[skipper]]
   
 
===Other references===
  
===Other references===
  +
:[[amino acid]] • [[asteroid]] • [[atmosphere]] • [[beam]] • [[bridge]] • [[communications]] • [[Starfleet General Orders and Regulations|Federation by-laws]] • [[impact crater|crater]] • [[emotion]] • [[glass]] • [[airlock|hatch]] • [[hibernation]] • [[hull]] • [[landing party]] • [[lava]] • [[life]] • [[life energy]] • [[lifeform]] • [[logic]] • [[molecule]] • [[parasite]] • [[philosophy]] • [[protein]] • [[security]] • [[skeleton]] • [[suicide]] • [[temperature]] • [[universe]] • [[volcano]]
−
:[[landing party]] • [[logic]] • [[philosophy]]
  
−  
⚫
==Timeline==
  
−
===Chronology===
  
⚫
{{start box}}
  
⚫
{{next comic box|
  
⚫
title = [[Star Trek: The Original Series]]<br>([[Gold Key Comics|Gold Key]])|
  
⚫
before = #27: [[Ice Journey]]|
  
⚫
after = #29: [[The Planet of No Return]]|
  
⚫
}}
  
−
{{end box}}
  
−
[[Category:TOS comics|Mimicking Menace, The]]
  
   
 
==Appendices==
  
==Appendices==
  ⚫
===Related media===
  ⚫
* {{e|TOS|Whom Gods Destroy}} – Spock was faced with two Kirks and forced to deduce which was the real one.
  ⚫
* {{e|TOS|The Man Trap}} – Driven by hunger, the [[M-113 creature]] duplicated a variety of humans.
  +
* {{c|TOS|sub=New Visions|The Hunger}} – The [[Hollow Planet]] entity devoured life energy on a planetary scale.
  +
* {{c|TOS|Planet Ecnal's Dilemma}} – [[Lerow]]s drained life energy from [[Ecnal]] in an attempt to save their endangered world.
  +
 
===Background===
  
===Background===
−
*The parasite did not provide evidence of sentience, as its actions were entirely based on instinct, driven by hunger. It attempted no contact through its duplicates except to lure and expose others to be drained.
 +
* The parasite did not provide evidence of sentience, as its actions were entirely based on instinct, driven by hunger. It attempted no contact through its duplicates except to lure and expose others to be drained.
−
*The parasite lived inside the volcano and apparently drew energy from [[magma]], or else it could not have survived on an otherwise dead asteroid. Expelled lava in the crater and in the lava flow miraculously cooled in moments, for example, as if all its heat were drained away. [http://volcano.oregonstate.edu/how-long-does-it-take-lava-cool It normally would take 10-15 minutes] just for surface of a lave flow to be cool enough to walk on, and years for its interior to cool. The lifeform may be able to change magma temperatures to trigger volcanic eruptions.
 +
* The parasite lived inside the [[volcano]] and apparently drew energy from [[magma]], or else it could not have survived on an otherwise dead [[asteroid]]. Expelled [[lava]] in the crater and in the lava flow miraculously cooled in moments, for example, as if all its heat were drained away. It normally would take 10-15 minutes just for surface of a lave flow to be cool enough to walk on, and years for its interior to cool. The lifeform may be able to change magma temperatures to trigger volcanic eruptions. ([http://volcano.oregonstate.edu/how-long-does-it-take-lava-cool How Long Lava Takes to Cool] article at the [http://volcano.oregonstate.edu Oregon State University] website.)
  ⚫
* It seemed that the [[parasite]] originated from Tactis II, but it could have been brought there. Within the volcano, the [[video camera robot]] found an unidentified [[alien]] [[spacecraft]]. Either the spacecraft carried the parasite to the volcano, or the parasite was in the volcano and lured the ship there.
−  
  ⚫
* The unidentified [[spacecraft]] discovered by the robot appeared to be modular, chemically powered and not capable of warp travel. The asteroid was identified as “wandering,” so at some point it must have passed through a [[star system]] within range of an inhabited planet that was capable of sending an interplanetary spacecraft to land on the surface.
⚫
*It seemed that the parasite originated from Tactis II, but it could have been brought there. Within the volcano, the robot probe found an unidentified alien spacecraft. Either the spacecraft carried the parasite to the volcano, or the parasite was in the volcano and lured the ship there.
  
  ⚫
* The current location of the asteroid was not mentioned in the story, but it must be near or within an important [[Federation]] location in order to prompt an investigation by a [[starship]]. Stardate 3421.7 was near to stardate 3417.3, citied in {{e|TOS|This Side of Paradise}}, suggesting perhaps that the asteroid might be passing through the [[Omicron Ceti]] system or a neighboring system.
⚫
*The unidentified [[spacecraft]] discovered by the robot appeared to be modular, chemically powered and not capable of warp travel. The asteroid was identified as “wandering,” so at some point it must have passed through a [[star system]] within range of an inhabited planet that was capable of sending an interplanetary spacecraft to land on the surface.
  
  ⚫
* The parasite drained power from the ''Galileo'', Kirk’s [[communicator]], and several humans, but it did not drain or duplicate [[phaser]]s, a significant energy source and the only one that was able to destabilize the duplicates.
⚫
*The current location of the asteroid was not mentioned in the story, but it must be near or within an important [[Federation]] location in order to prompt an investigation by a [[starship]]. Stardate 3421.7 was near to stardate 3417.3, citied in {{e|TOS|This Side of Paradise}}, suggesting perhaps that the asteroid might be passing through the [[Omicron Ceti]] system or a neighboring system.
  
  ⚫
* The unnamed male security officer looked similar to [[Manning]] as he was drawn in {{c|TOS|The Final Truth}}. The unnamed female security officer looked similar to Lieutenant [[Angela Martine]].
⚫
*The parasite drained power from the ''Galileo'', Kirk’s [[communicator]], and several humans, but it did not drain or duplicate phasers, a significant energy source and the only one that was able to destabilize the duplicates.
  
  ⚫
* ''Galileo'' was said to be [[ion]]-powered. It withstood being dragged by a lava flow, only scorching the paint.
⚫
*The unnamed male security officer looked similar to [[Manning]] as he was drawn in {{c|TOS|The Final Truth}}. The unnamed female security officer looked similar to Lt. [[Angela Martine]].
  
  ⚫
* Spock deduced which of two Kirks was real by picking the weaker one, as he did in {{e|TOS|Whom Gods Destroy}}.
⚫
*''Galileo'' was said to be [[ion]]-powered. It withstood being dragged by a lava flow, only scorching the paint.
  
  ⚫
* Spock hypothesized that, when the lifeform attempted to duplicate him, the process took longer due to his anatomy being different from human. Since the parasite had no trouble with humans, a shuttlecraft or a robot, it was unclear what aspect of the Vulcan’s anatomy would take longer to duplicate.
⚫
*Spock deduced which of two Kirks was real by picking the weaker one, as he did in {{e|TOS|Whom Gods Destroy}}.
  
  ⚫
* Despite her wearing a red operations uniform, Lieutenant Calder was clearly a biologist, whose purpose on the landing party was to study life forms on the asteroid. Previously in [[canon]], [[Astrobiologist]] [[Ann Mulhall]] had also worn a red operations uniform.
⚫
*Spock hypothesized that, when the lifeform attempted to duplicate him, the process took longer due to his anatomy being different from human. Since the parasite had no trouble with humans, a shuttlecraft or a robot, it was unclear what aspect of the Vulcan’s anatomy would take longer to duplicate.
  
  ⚫
* [[Hikaru Sulu]] was given command by [[Montgomery Scott]] in dialogue, but [[Nyota Uhura]] appeared to be giving commands while Sulu manned the helm.
⚫
*Despite her wearing a red operations uniform, Lt. Calder was clearly a biologist, whose purpose on the landing party was to study life forms on the asteroid.
  
  +
* The "shuttleship" ''Galileo'' and its duplicate were consistently marked NCC-1701/1. This version of the shuttle also appeared in the [[UK comic strips]] stories "[[The Marshall Plan]]", "[[I, Emperor]]", "[[The Void of Storms]]", and "[[Vibrations in Time]]".
⚫
*Sulu was given command by Scott in dialogue, but Uhura appeared to be giving commands while Sulu manned the helm.
  
  +
* This story has been released five times in [[english language|English]] and translated into [[german language|German]] and [[italian language|Italian]].
−
*The “shuttleship” ''Galileo'' and its duplicate were consistently marked NCC-1701/1.
 
−  
⚫
===Related stories===
  
⚫
*{{e|TOS|The Man Trap}} – Driven by hunger, an alien lifeform duplicated a variety of humans.
  
−
*{{e|TOS|The Devil in the Dark}} – Crew encountered a sentient, non-carbon-based lifeform.
  
⚫
*{{e|TOS|Whom Gods Destroy}} – Spock was faced with two Kirks and forced to deduce which was the real one.
  
−
*{{e|TOS|The Galileo Seven}} – First flight of the [[Galileo (NCC-1701/7) (I)]] [[shuttlecraft]].
  
   
 
===Images===
  
===Images===
 
<gallery>
  
<gallery>
−
GK28-Calder.jpg|Lt. Calder
 +
gold Key 28.jpg|Cover image.
  +
spocGK28.jpg|[[Spock]].
⚫
GK28-Officer1.jpg|Security officer
  
  +
jTKGK28.jpg|[[James T. Kirk]].
⚫
GK28-Officer2.jpg|Security officer
  
  +
jTKduplGK28.jpg|Kirk's duplicate.
⚫
GK28-Video-camera-robot.jpg|Video camera robot
  
  +
volcGK28.jpg|The [[volcano]].
⚫
GK28-Tactisian-parasite.jpg|Tactisian
  
  +
phasGK28.jpg|Type-2 [[phaser pistol]] in use aboard [[Shuttlecraft]] ''Galileo II'' (NCC-1701/1).
  +
gK28-Calder.jpg|[[Lieutenant]] [[Calder]].
  ⚫
gK28-Officer1.jpg|[[Security officer]].
  ⚫
gK28-Officer2.jpg|[[Security officer]].
  ⚫
gK28-Video-camera-robot.jpg|[[Video camera robot]].
  ⚫
gK28-Tactisian-parasite.jpg|[[Tactisian]].
  +
gK28-Volcano-crater.jpg|The [[volcano]].
 
</gallery>
  
</gallery>
  +
⚫
===External links===
  
  +
===Connections===
  ⚫
====Timeline====
  +
{{timeline-published}}
  +
{{published order
  +
| type = comic
  +
| seriesformat = [[Star Trek: The Original Series]] ([[gold Key Comics|Gold Key]])
  ⚫
| before = #27: [[Ice Journey]]
  ⚫
| after = #29: [[The Planet of No Return]]
  ⚫
|}}
  +
{{author order
  +
| author = [[George Kashdan]]
  +
| before = first story
  +
| after = [[This Tree Bears Bitter Fruit]]
  +
|}}
  +
{{mB order
  +
| prevMB = [[To Reign in Hell: The Exile of Khan Noonien Singh]]{{bsmall|Chapters 7-11}}
  +
| nextMB = {{com|Retrospect}}{{bsmall|2267 Section}}
  +
|}}
  ⚫
{{end box}}
  +
  +
{|
  +
|-
  +
! Production history
  +
! Translations
  +
|- valign="top"
  +
|
  +
;[[January]] [[1975]] : First published by [[Gold Key Comics]].
  +
;[[August]] [[1976]] : Printed in the [[omnibus]] ''[[The Enterprise Logs, Volume 4]]'' ([[Golden Press]]).
  +
;[[June]] [[2004]] : Printed in the omnibus [[The Key Collection, Volume 4|''The Key Collection, Volume 4'']] ([[Checker Book Publishing Group]]).
  +
;[[September]] [[2008]] : Included on ''[[The Complete Comic Book Collection]]'' DVD ([[Graphic Imaging Technologies]]).
  +
;[[August]] [[2014]] : Remastered in hardcover in the omnibus [[Gold Key Archives, Volume 5|''Gold Key Archives, Volume 5'']] ([[IDW]]).
  +
;[[29 March]] [[2018]] : Remastered in hardcover in the omnibus ''[[Graphic Novel Collection]]'' #33 ([[Eaglemoss]]).
  +
|
  +
;[[1976]] : German: As ""Drohung aus dem Nichts" in the 228-page omnibus ''Zack Parade'' #18.
  +
;[[2006]] : Italian: As "La Minaccia degli Impostori" in the omnibus ''The Gold Key Collection, Volume 7'' (Free Books).
  +
|}
  +
  ⚫
===External link===
 
* {{memoryalpha}}
  
* {{memoryalpha}}
   
−
[[Category:TOS comics|Mimicking Menace, The]]
 +
[[category:tOS comics]]
−
[[Category:1975 productions and publications]]
  

Revision as of 01:23, 4 September 2019

Dead planet? Or deadly? — The Mimicking Menace was a Star Trek: The Original Series comic book story published by Gold Key Comics in 1975, the 28th issue in the first ongoing series of Star Trek comic books. It was the 26th story credited to artist Alberto Giolitti and the first of ten stories written by George Kashdan. In this story, the Galileo shuttlecraft lands on a barren world harboring a mysterious lifeform.

Description

What form can life take? In an infinite universe, it can take infinite forms! Now, as the crew of the Enterprise seeks to learn about a wandering asteroid, it is confronted with an unsuspected life form that turns Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Calder against the others!

Summary

Captain's log, star date 34.21.7
The wandering asteroid Tactis II is now below the Enterprise! Question — does this asteroid pose any threat to the Federation?

From orbit, Spock and Calder found indeterminate life signs. At her request, Kirk, Spock, Calder and two security officers landed the Galileo (NCC-1701/1) near a volcano, where they were surprised to find a duplicate shuttle. The security officers boarded it just as the volcano erupted. They both became dizzy and collapsed — and large, floating molecule chains reformed into copies of their bodies.

Drained of its ion power, Galileo was caught in a lava flow. When it was safe to open the hatch, Spock and Calder spotted the other shuttle flying towards the volcano's crater. Kirk called the security team, but his communicator lost power. Kirk and Calder spotted the team climbing back down the mountain and left to meet them. Kirk and Calder fainted, and floating molecule chains copied them too.

The four duplicate Humans now approached Galileo. Spock felt his own energy draining and with a spark of inspiration retreated into the shuttle. At that moment, Montgomery Scott and Leonard McCoy beamed down to find out why they'd lost contact. The duplicates fired phasers at them. Scott and McCoy returned fire, collapsing the duplicates into molecules. The volcano rumbled. Spock quickly ran out and retrieved the woozy Kirk and Calder, and everyone piled into Galileo to hide from an onslaught of boulders.

Captain's log, star date 32.21.9
From the moment our party landed on the supposedly lifeless asteroid, our lives have been under an unexpected threat! Some as yet unexplained life-form drains us of strength, makes a mockery of our form and turns us against each other!

Scott had a video camera robot beamed down. The probe examined the crater, relaying images of spacecraft, skeletons and huge molecule chains of a Tactisian. The transmission cut out, and when the robot returned, Kirk, Calder and Scott inspected it, then collapsed. The robot was a duplicate, and it copied the three officers. As Spock weakened, he ordered the Enterprise to fire negatively-charged ions into the crater. This weakened the Tactisian, reviving the missing security officers, who fled back to Galileo and shot the duplicates with phasers.

Captain's log, supplement
In accordance with Federation by-laws, we did not destroy the life-form on Tactis II… But even now, the life-form is probably active again! It will be seeking other energy sources! Be warned!

References

Characters

Calder • James T. Kirk • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Hikaru Sulu • Tactisian • Nyota Uhura • unnamed 2260s USS Enterprise personnel (2 security officers)

Starships and vehicles

USS Enterprise (Constitution-class heavy cruiser) • Galileo (NCC-1701/1) (class F shuttlecraft) • unnamed spacecraft

Locations

Tactis II asteroid

Races and cultures

Human • Tactisian • Vulcan

States and organizations

Federation

Science and technology

circuit • communicator • engine • ion • life-sign • robot • scanner • setting 1 • transporter • video camera robot • viewscreen

Ranks and titles

captain • doctor • lieutenant • philosopher • skipper

Other references

amino acid • asteroid • atmosphere • beam • bridge • communications • Federation by-laws • crater • emotion • glass • hatch • hibernation • hull • landing party • lava • life • life energy • lifeform • logic • molecule • parasite • philosophy • protein • security • skeleton • suicide • temperature • universe • volcano

Appendices

Related media

Background

  • The parasite did not provide evidence of sentience, as its actions were entirely based on instinct, driven by hunger. It attempted no contact through its duplicates except to lure and expose others to be drained.
  • The parasite lived inside the volcano and apparently drew energy from magma, or else it could not have survived on an otherwise dead asteroid. Expelled lava in the crater and in the lava flow miraculously cooled in moments, for example, as if all its heat were drained away. It normally would take 10-15 minutes just for surface of a lave flow to be cool enough to walk on, and years for its interior to cool. The lifeform may be able to change magma temperatures to trigger volcanic eruptions. (How Long Lava Takes to Cool article at the Oregon State University website.)
  • It seemed that the parasite originated from Tactis II, but it could have been brought there. Within the volcano, the video camera robot found an unidentified alien spacecraft. Either the spacecraft carried the parasite to the volcano, or the parasite was in the volcano and lured the ship there.
  • The unidentified spacecraft discovered by the robot appeared to be modular, chemically powered and not capable of warp travel. The asteroid was identified as “wandering,” so at some point it must have passed through a star system within range of an inhabited planet that was capable of sending an interplanetary spacecraft to land on the surface.
  • The current location of the asteroid was not mentioned in the story, but it must be near or within an important Federation location in order to prompt an investigation by a starship. Stardate 3421.7 was near to stardate 3417.3, citied in TOS episode: "This Side of Paradise", suggesting perhaps that the asteroid might be passing through the Omicron Ceti system or a neighboring system.
  • The parasite drained power from the Galileo, Kirk’s communicator, and several humans, but it did not drain or duplicate phasers, a significant energy source and the only one that was able to destabilize the duplicates.
  • The unnamed male security officer looked similar to Manning as he was drawn in TOS comic: "The Final Truth". The unnamed female security officer looked similar to Lieutenant Angela Martine.
  • Galileo was said to be ion-powered. It withstood being dragged by a lava flow, only scorching the paint.
  • Spock deduced which of two Kirks was real by picking the weaker one, as he did in TOS episode: "Whom Gods Destroy".
  • Spock hypothesized that, when the lifeform attempted to duplicate him, the process took longer due to his anatomy being different from human. Since the parasite had no trouble with humans, a shuttlecraft or a robot, it was unclear what aspect of the Vulcan’s anatomy would take longer to duplicate.
  • Despite her wearing a red operations uniform, Lieutenant Calder was clearly a biologist, whose purpose on the landing party was to study life forms on the asteroid. Previously in canon, Astrobiologist Ann Mulhall had also worn a red operations uniform.
  • Hikaru Sulu was given command by Montgomery Scott in dialogue, but Nyota Uhura appeared to be giving commands while Sulu manned the helm.
  • The "shuttleship" Galileo and its duplicate were consistently marked NCC-1701/1. This version of the shuttle also appeared in the UK comic strips stories "The Marshall Plan", "I, Emperor", "The Void of Storms", and "Vibrations in Time".
  • This story has been released five times in English and translated into German and Italian.

Images

Connections

Timeline

Published Order
Previous comic:
#27: Ice Journey 		Star Trek: The Original Series (Gold Key) Next comic:
#29: The Planet of No Return
Previous story:
first story 		Stories by:
George Kashdan 		Next story:
This Tree Bears Bitter Fruit
Previous adventure:
To Reign in Hell: The Exile of Khan Noonien Singh
Chapters 7-11 		Memory Beta Chronology Next adventure:
Retrospect
2267 Section
Production history Translations
January 1975
First published by Gold Key Comics.
August 1976
Printed in the omnibus The Enterprise Logs, Volume 4 (Golden Press).
June 2004
Printed in the omnibus The Key Collection, Volume 4 (Checker Book Publishing Group).
September 2008
Included on The Complete Comic Book Collection DVD (Graphic Imaging Technologies).
August 2014
Remastered in hardcover in the omnibus Gold Key Archives, Volume 5 (IDW).
29 March 2018
Remastered in hardcover in the omnibus Graphic Novel Collection #33 (Eaglemoss).
1976
German: As ""Drohung aus dem Nichts" in the 228-page omnibus Zack Parade #18.
2006
Italian: As "La Minaccia degli Impostori" in the omnibus The Gold Key Collection, Volume 7 (Free Books).

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