Hive may be the ultimate example of a "love it or hate it" Star Trek book. For one thing, the story was developed by Brannon Braga, a writer (whether fairly or unfairly) associated with the decline of the Star Trek franchise in the Voyager and Enterprise eras. For another, it focuses heavily on the Borg, a group of villains who are either criminally overused or the best thing to happen to Star Trek since Q, depending on whom you ask.
If I have my Stardates down correctly, Hive takes place roughly ten years after Picard's showdown with the Borg in the movie Star Trek: First Contact. Braga and scriptwriters Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett immediately capture the reader's attention through the use of an opening flash-forward. The book begins hundreds of years in the future, with Picard re-assimilated into the Borg Collective and presiding over a galaxy completely dominated by Borg. As the issue flashes back to the 24th century, the question immediately becomes "How does this future come to pass?" But the story takes on even more wrinkles from there as it becomes clear that there will be some direct interaction between the two timelines.
If you're flat-out sick of the Borg, this series isn't going to do much to win you back over. That said, it does present the Collective and their relationship with the Federation in a somewhat different light. The clash between present and future timelines goes a long way towards spicing up what might otherwise have been a formulaic conflict. The writers also show a strong handle on Picard, a character who at this point is showing his age and is suffering from an increasingly restless nature. A number of fun, well-placed character cameos spice up the issue, but this is really Picard's story, at the end of the day.
But if the story gets off to a strong start, the artwork is typical Star Trek fare. Which is to say, very bland. Though at least sporting more detail than some Trek comics, Hive suffers from an endless series of stiff, lifeless figures and bland facial work. The characters are generally recognizable in terms of actor likenesses, but there's a lot more to proper comic storytelling than that.
Jesse is a writer for IGN Comics and IGN Movies. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following Jesse on Twitter, or on IGN.
Source : ign[dot]com
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