"Send in the Clones" is a TOS comic strip written by Gerry Conway in 1983. It is the 16th story in the US Comic Strips series, published in newspapers over a period of 14 weeks by the Los Angeles Times Syndicate. This story took place a few years prior to TOS movie: The Wrath of Khan. In this story, Admiral James T. Kirk commands the USS Enterprise for a sensitive courier mission.
Description[]
- To end a war with the Sangdor, Kirk receives help from Courier Clones — one of whom Scotty is accused of murdering.
Summary[]
In San Francisco, Admiral Yaramoto cuts short Kirk’s shore leave and grants him temporary command of the Enterprise for a crucial diplomatic courier assignment. Kirk is to bring two courier clone diplomats to Sangdor bearing a peace message that might end their hostilities with the Federation. Upon seeing the clones, Montgomery Scott reacts with extreme prejudice, calling them heathen monsters. The Lyssa clones say such prejudice is not unusual. However, in Scott's case it's personal, as his nephew Brian volunteered to join the Diplomatic Courier Corps, then died tragically during genetic modification procedures.
Lyssa-1 and Lyssa-2.
As the Enterprise approaches the border, a Sangdor patrol ship seizes the starship in a tractor beam and tries to ram them. In engineering, an engineer is able to divert extra power to avoid the collision, but power levels are running dangerously low, and Scotty is missing. Ensign Flynn discovers Scott in the clones’ quarters, holding a knife over the body of Lyssa-1. Lyssa-2 is found catatonic hiding in a closet.
In the brig, Scott claims he’d gone to the clones' cabin to warn them not to enter secure areas of the ship, but was hit from behind and knocked out. He awoke just as Flynn found him. Since Lyssa-2 can't testify, Kirk thinks Scott will get the death penalty.
Hoping to avert conflict
Meanwhile the Sangdor picket ship starts firing photon torpedoes at the powerless Enterprise and demands their surrender. Nyota Uhura stalls their captain while Captain Spock tries to mind meld with the catatonic Lyssa. But she's been faking — in reality, she hadn’t adapted to her shared life and stabbed her clone sister out of jealousy. Lyssa-2 flees sickbay and rushes to the brig with a phaser, but is stunned before she can kill Scott.
Trying to salvage their shambles of a mission, Spock melds with Lyssa-2. He deciphers the peace message encoded in her DNA and repeats it to the Sangdor commander, who immediately withdraws to contact superiors. Kirk is confident that a treaty might be signed within a month.
Log entries[]
- Captain’s log, stardate 9581.40.
- The Enterprise is en route to the Sangdor Principality, bearing a message of peace. … but peace, it seems, is far from the minds of certain crew members. Inexplicably, Commander Scott has shown intense mostility toward our peace bearers... a pair of courier clones from the Federation Diplomatic Corps. I'm about to find out why.
- Captain’s log.
- Pretending ignorance, I questioned the courier clones about their peculiar branch of the diplomatic corps… Hoping to learn the reason for Scotty’s hostility toward them since he seems too angry to speak lucidly on the subject.
- Captain’s log, stardate 9782.87 [sic].
- I’ve just learned the tragic reason behind Commander Scott’s hatred of our passengers, two diplomatic clones…
- Stardate 9582.92.
- The U.S.S. Enterprise en route to the Sangdor Principality…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9583.11.
- Approaching the demarcation zone between Federation space and the contested territories of the Sangdor Principality…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9583.13.
- In the demarcation zone between the Sangdor Principality and Federation space…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9583.18.
- We summoned Dr. McCoy to the courier clones’ cabin. He reacted just as we did…
- Stardate 9587.2.
- Power levels dangerously low, the Enterprise stands dead in space… for all intents and purposes, completely vulnerable to the next sally of the Sangdor Picket Ship…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9588.4.
- On my orders, Spock is attempting mind-link with the surviving, catatonic courier-clone…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9588.8.
- Captain Spock has uncovered an ugly secret while mind-linking with the courier-clone, Lyssa…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9588.8.
- Face to face with the commander of the Sangdor picket ship…
- Captain’s log, stardate 9588.9.
- Spock is attempting to break the diplomatic cipher which keeps the Federation’s peace message locked away in this unconscious clone’s genetic code… a feat which may well prove impossible. If Spock fails, war between the Federation and the Sangdor Principality will continue…with the Enterprise as the next casualty. I can only hope…
References[]
Characters[]
- Flynn • James T. Kirk • Lyssa-1 • Lyssa-2 • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Hikaru Sulu • Nyota Uhura • Yaramoto • Sangdor war captain • unnamed USS Enterprise personnel (engineer, nurse)
- Referenced only
- Brian • Lyssa
Starships and vehicles[]
Locations[]
- Earth (Golden Gate Bridge • San Francisco • Starfleet Headquarters) • Sangdor • the galaxy
- Referenced only
- starbase
Races and cultures[]
States and organizations[]
- Diplomatic Courier Corps • Edinburg Tech • Federation • Federation Diplomatic Corps • Sangdor Principality • Starfleet • Starfleet Command
Science and classification[]
- armor • battering ram • biobed • clone • communications • computer • engine • drydock • genetic engineering • hail • knife • laboratory • main computer • main converter • memory bank • phaser • photon torpedo • shields • stun • subspace radio • tractor field • transporter • turbolift • viewscreen
Occupations and titles[]
- admiral • captain • commander • doctor • engineering officer • lieutenant • lord • nurse • officer • yeoman
Other references[]
- alcohol • alert status (battle stations) • bathing suit • beam • brain • bridge • brig • bulkhead • captain's chair • Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) • cell • corridor • courier • courier clone • court martial • death • death penalty • diplomacy • DNA • emotion • engineering • Federation Starfleet ranks (2270s) • glasses • hour • kilometer • log entry • logic • marriage • memory • mind meld • orbit • peace • peace treaty • quarters • Romulan brandy • second • shore leave • sickbay • smoking • space • Starfleet uniform (2278-2350s) • transporter room • treaty • universe • Vulcan nerve pinch • war • warship
Appendices[]
Related media[]
- The story repeated elements of TOS episode: "Wolf in the Fold", not just Scott’s murder mystery and the threat of the death penalty, but also the notion that Scott would blame a whole societal group for the actions of one person. Facing capital punishment for his actions contradicted legal precedent established in TOS episode & Star Trek 4 novelization: The Menagerie, though perhaps the murder occurring near the Sangdor Principality required Kirk to obey local laws.
Background[]
- This is the first of five stories written by Gerry Conway, who co-created Marvel’s Punisher and scripted the death of Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man. Conway wrote the final five stories for the strip series, fashioning a period when Admiral Kirk revisited the Enterprise before the events of TOS movie: The Wrath of Khan.
- The story’s title was created for its reprinting in The Newspaper Comics, Volume 2.
- The Lyssa clones were named for Lyssa, Greek goddess of "mad rage" and "crazed frenzy." (Lyssa article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)
- Admiral Yaramoto's name was not provided in this story, but rather during his reappearance in TOS comic: "The Retirement of Admiral Kirk".
- The genetic engineering aspects of the courier clones was curious given Earth's genetic modification laws as clarified in later media, particularly regarding the Illyrians in SNW episodes: "Ghosts of Illyria", "Ad Astra Per Aspera" and with the Paragon Colony in TOS - The Eugenics Wars novel: The Rise and Fall of Khan Noonien Singh, Volume 1.
Setting[]
- With Kirk an admiral, Spock a captain, and Pavel Chekov notably absent, this story took place after the end of the second five-year mission. During this era, Kirk served as commandant of Starfleet Academy and would occasionally lead missions on the Enterprise, with Spock commanding the ship and some of their original crew coming along when available. In one case, in November 2279 during the events of TOS - Mere Anarchy eBook: The Darkness Drops Again, Kirk, Spock, Uhura and Ryan Leslie were aboard, but McCoy, Scott, Sulu and Chekov were not.
- These five comic strip stories would have taken place at a time before too many of the original crew had been reassigned, but after Kirk had settled in as commandant and could take a vacation. Sometime in the first half of 2279 seemed appropriate, prior to events of TOS novel: Wagon Train to the Stars.
Errata[]
- Although imaginative, the system employed by the Diplomatic Courier Corps had some faults. Its medical procedures were potentially deadly. There were security liabilities in that personnel encoding the message would have to know the message. One could kill the three couriers and then take DNA samples to recover the message. But more importantly, Spock beat it with a mind meld. Assuming a meld was capable of reading a genetically-encoded message, the story was unclear if Spock actually did extract the whole message, or if he deduced it after decoding a third of it.
- Leonard McCoy spent nearly an hour examining the Lyssa-2 clone, but failed to detect fake catatonia.
- Given Scotty's decades of experience, it seemed unlikely he would abandon his post while the ship was at battle stations. Kirk called out such actions as being inappropriate, then he and Spock both left their posts during the battle to go find him.
- Artist Bob Myers provided a highly unusual rendition of the 23rd century. Admiral Yaramoto was shown smoking. An engineering officer wore strange goggles. The brig was labeled “jail,” with Scott behind actual bars with a keyed lock. Diplomats walked around barefoot in one-piece bathing suits. A nurse was drawn wearing a mid-20th century nurse’s hat. A turbolift was labeled as an elevator. Hand weapons looked more like pistols than phasers. And Spock’s mind meld was depicted with wavy lines coming from his head, rather than by him touching the subject’s face.
- Nyota Uhura was addressed as a lieutenant in the 4-16-83 and 4-23-83 strips. She had been promoted to lieutenant commander nearly a decade earlier.
Images[]
Connections[]
| US Comic Strips stories | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stories | "Called Home" • "Dilithium Dilemma" • "The Real McCoy" • "Double Bluff" • "Aberration on Abaris" • "Husian Gambit" • "Heads of State" • "It's a Living" • "The Savage Within" • "Quarantine" • "Restructuring Is Futile" • "The Wristwatch Plantation" • "The Nogura Regatta" • "A Merchant's Loyalty" • "Taking Shape" • "Send in the Clones" • "Goodbye to Spock" • "Terminally Yours" • "The Retirement of Admiral Kirk" • "Getting Real" | |
| Collections | The Newspaper Comics (1 • 2) • Graphic Novel Collection (15 • 24 • 34) | |
Timeline[]
| published order | ||
|---|---|---|
| Previous comic: #15: Taking Shape |
TOS comics US Comic Strips |
Next comic: #17: Goodbye to Spock |
| Previous story: first story |
Stories by: Gerry Conway |
Next story: Goodbye to Spock |
| chronological order | ||
| Previous adventure: Wagon Train to the Stars The Captains' Meeting |
Memory Beta Chronology | Next adventure: Goodbye to Spock |
Production history[]
- 14 February 1983 – 7 May 1983
- Published in daily newspapers. (Los Angeles Times Syndicate)
- 1 October 2013
- Collected in The Newspaper Comics, Volume 2. (IDW Publishing)
- 12 April 2018
- Collected in Graphic Novel Collection, Volume 34. (Eaglemoss Collections)
External links[]
- Send in the Clones article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.