In IDW’s Star Trek: Defiant #5, Spock precisely quantified Captain Kirk’s frequent insubordinations from his tenure as a Starfleet captain.
Warning! Spoilers for Star Trek: Defiant #5!
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IDW’s Star Trek line of comics continue to expand the franchise’s lore in a variety of different ways, including everything from cataclysms with galaxy-spanning implications, to small quirks of Starfleet history – such as putting a precise number of Starfleet regulations Captain James T. Kirk broke during his fabled career, from a source no less authoritative than his friend and loyal crewmember, Spock.
Star Trek: Defiant #5 – written by Christopher Cantwell, with art by Angel Unzueta – finds Spock comforting Worf, who feels he has failed his son Alexander, and failed Starfleet, suggesting that his, “real problem began long before [he] became captain of a stolen ship.“
Spock, in response, quotes the exact number times Captain Kirk was insubordinate in his career, concluding that he was “remarkably only court-martialed twice.“
Defiant Begins With Worf Pulling A Total Kirk Move
Star Trek: Defiant began with Worf assembling a renegade crew and stealing the Defiant, which he famously commanded during the Dominion War, in order to rescue his son Alexander, who had fallen under the sway of the villainous Klingon Emperor Kahless. The Defiant crew have proved to be instrumental in Star Trek‘s “God War” in the issues since. Defiant #5 finds Worf at a low point, questioning his decisions, stretching back well before the current crisis. Spock offers him wise counsel, pointing out that “the greatest captain [he] ever had the privilege to serve under” was also one of the most delinquent officers in Starfleet history.
Spock Recognizes Kirk’s Conviction In Worf
Spock cites Kirk as having “violated 234 Starfleet regulations during his tenure,” which actually seems like a somewhat small figure, given Kirk made a career out of hot-headed disobedience. Spoke adds that Kirk, “disobeyed direct orders 19 times, the Prime Directive several more than that, and was – remarkably – only court-martialed twice.” While Worf protests to the older Starfleet veteran that he is no Kirk, Spock responds by saying Worf has “a similar conviction.” Spock’s point in Star Trek: Defiant #5 is that Worf’s actions serve a greater purpose, and that Worf himself recognizes this – as do his crew, like Spock himself, who would not follow Worf otherwise.
Captain James. T. Kirk remains the gold standard for Starfleet captains, both for fans of the Trek franchise, as well as the Starfleet officers in-universe who operate in the shadow of his legacy. Spock has more first-hand experience with Kirk than anyone alive in the present era of Trek, and he is quick to point out that the paragon of Starfleet captaincy was a renegade as often as he was a disciplined subordinate. As Star Trek’s “God War” and the “Day of Blood” reach their stunning conclusions, IDW has already begun to tease what comes next, suggesting that like Spock, Starfleet will recognize the value of Worf’s actions in some way or another.
Star Trek: Defiant #5 is available now from IDW Publishing!
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