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Ambrose Tardive
Published 18 minutes ago
Ambrose Tardive is an editor on ScreenRant's Comics team. Over the past two years, he has developed into the internet's foremost authority on The Far Side. Outside of his work for ScreenRant, Ambrose works as an Adjunct English Instructor.
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The early issues of Star Trek: Voyager's comic sequel have been met by mixed reviews from fans. The chief complaint? The story extends the finale of Voyager, rather than actually following up on it. Despite being called Homecoming, the story delays the Voyager crew's return to Earth, as foes from the Delta Quadrant try to stop them one last time.
Unfortunately, it's a case of a story where fans are more invested in the destination than the journey. Star Trek: Voyage: Homecoming is written by Susan and Tilly Bridges, with art by Ángel Hernández.
Star Trek Voyager Homecoming #1, live-action Janeway from the original series
So far, it feels like a good episode of Voyager, but that's not what fans want. Fans of the franchise want a genuine sequel.
"Homecoming" Is A "P.S." To Voyager's Finale 25 Years Later, Rather Than They Sequel Fans Were Promised
Star Trek: Voyage: Homecoming, Written By Susan And Tilly Bridges; Art By Ángel Hernández
Star Trek Voyager Homecoming #2 cover, the crew of Voyager with Species 8472 looming over them
Star Trek: Voyager’s finale, "Endgame," aired in 2001. The series ended its seven-season run with Voyager on an approach vector to Earth, having finally escaped the Delta Quadrant. It was an emotional final beat for the show, one that Voyager: Homecoming is trying to repeat nearly 25 years later, paradoxically proving that “sometimes you can’t go home.”
That is, franchises like Trek can only find so much success by looking backward, when fans are eager for them to move forward, to progress the story, to break new ground and explore new final frontiers. Homecoming was sold as a "sequel" to Voyager, but really, it is more of a postscript.
Homecoming picks up right where "Endgame" left off, but before they can arrive on Earth, Captain Janeway and her crew are whisked away for a confrontation with Voyager series villains Species 8472. The fate of the entire human race is seemingly in their hands, yet fans aren't fully investing in these stakes. Why? It's a story they've experienced before.
"Homecoming" Recycles "Voyager's" Best Moments, Testing Fans' Patience With The Series
So Far, Homecoming Isn't Keeping Readers' Invested
Star Trek Voyager Homecoming #2, cliffhanger ending as Janeway jeopardizing their return home
There are two ways of approaching franchise storytelling like Star Trek: Voyager: Homecoming. Readers can, and should, seek to enjoy the story on its own merits, as a Voyager adventure, regardless of how it fits into the larger picture of Trek lore. Yet realistically, most fans come to a series like Homecoming asking what it adds to that larger picture.
The first two issues of Homecoming's five-issue run have had their moments in isolation, but even these are hard to divest from their connection to prior Voyager stories. Take, for example, Janeway's big moment at the end of Homecoming #2. She dramatically orders that the only means of returning to the Alpha Quadrant be destroyed, in order to protect Earth.
It works as a reminder that Janeway is lowkey Trek's most badass captain. Yet it is a too-familiar beat. It is the same decision Janeway made in the pilot episode of Voyager, and repeated in subsequent episodes throughout the show's run. Homecoming ringing this bell again, so to speak, ultimately rings a bit hollow.
"Homecoming" Revisits Old Territory, Rather Than Breaking New Ground For "Trek"
The Series Is Hampered By Its Place In Trek Continuity
Star Trek Voyager Homecoming #4 cover, Janeway and Seven of 9 encounter the Borg Queen
When Trek fans heard the title Homecoming, they got excited. This isn't the first time the franchise has charted the aftermath of Voyager's return to the Alpha Quadrant, but this was an opportunity to do it with a clean slate. To offer the best version yet. The definitive version. Part of the reaction to Homecoming is it went a different route.
Part of the problem is the delay of the promised "homecoming," and part of it is the retreading of familiar creative ground. On top of that, Homecoming suffers from an acute version of a problem that plagues much of IP storytelling: the lack of legitimate stakes to propel the story and keep readers hooked.
Fans know, for instance, that Janeway has to survive, in canon, to become a Starfleet Admiral. This takes the bold creative choice of having the captain sacrifice herself off the table, if the series wants to be treated as "legitimate" lore. Similarly, Homecoming imperils Tuvok, but most readers expect him to be saved by the series' end.
It's Hard For Trek Fans To Sit Back And Enjoy The Ride With "Homecoming" When They're Eager For The Destination
Fans Want More Post-Delta Quadrant Voyager Adventures
Star Trek Voyager Homecoming #5 cover, Voyager approaching Earth through a wormhole
Homecoming could still throw some curveballs at readers in its final three issues, but fans know how it is going to end: Voyager will make it back to Earth, ending with the book right back where it started. That, in itself, makes the curveballs harder to throw, and less impactful even when they do land.
Following Voyager's crew as they return to Earth, reunite with family, and reintegrate into Starfleet offers a bounty of natural drama, and organic stakes for the series to build on. Homecoming instead opts for the artificial stakes of a battle against Species 8472. For many fans, this makes it hard to appreciate, even if, on its own merits, the story is perfectly good Trek.
This isn't the fault of the book's creative team. Instead, it is one more symptom of a larger sickness in franchise storytelling, one Star Trek is far from immune from. This is an allergy to taking creative risks, and Homecoming is a casualty of it. Fans can still enjoy it, but whether it will stick out as a memorable Star Trek installment remains TBD.
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Star Trek: Voyager
10 stars 9 stars 8 stars 7 stars 6 stars 5 stars 4 stars 3 stars 2 stars 1 star Like Follow Followed TV-PG Action Sci-Fi Release Date January 16, 1995 Network UPN Showrunner Michael Piller, Jeri Taylor, Brannon Braga, Kenneth Biller Directors David Livingston, Winrich Kolbe, Allan Kroeker, Michael Vejar Writers Rick Berman, Michael Piller, Jeri TaylorCast
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Kate Mulgrew
Kathryn Janeway
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