Written by Kirsten Beyer and Mike Johnson

Art by Angel Hernandez

IDW Comics, out January 29

With the Romulans taking control of the USS Verity and Admiral Picard stranded on Yuyat Beya, the chances of a planet-wide evacuation before the supernova seem slim.

The concluding issue of this three-part prelude to Star Trek: Picard successfully wraps up the story without giving away too many of the secrets that show will be teasing out across its 10 episode run. While not designed to be essential, it’s also a great way to acquaint yourself with Picard’s first officer, Raffi Musiker, as well as his housekeepers Laris and Zhaban.

If any criticism could be levelled at this issue, it does wrap things up rather quickly, the sense of momentum built up over issues 1 and 2 dissipating once we know that the Verity and its crew are safe again. In hindsight, this shouldn’t be a surprise, as the Romulans did manage to take over the ship rather easily, and it follows that Jean-Luc had anticipated this and taken appropriate measures. And while the tension is lessened, we do still get the chance to spend time with Laris and Zhaban, two fascinating characters with quite a story to tell.

Verdict: When we recently interviewed Michelle Hurd, she enthused that this comic book series had helped her to pick up some additional character points about her character, Raffi Musiker – and who are we to disagree? Carefully-plotted additional content to sate your Star Trek: Picard addiction, let’s hope there’s more flashback, sequel or wider in-universe takes to tell. 9/10

Nick Joy