Star Trek just broke the fourth wall, and introduced a species even more powerful than Q. This is a new development for the Star Trek franchise, which hardly ever trafficks in meta-textual stories. Yet in “What’s a Q to You?” appearing in Star Trek #500, Q’s son comes to a shocking realization about the nature of the universe, introducing the franchise’s most powerful race yet.
“What’s a Q to You?” appearing in Star Trek #500, was written by Morgan Hampton and drawn by Megan Levens. Q Jr has contracted the Continuum’s equivalent of a cold. An unintended side effect is that Qs becomes even more aware of the fabric of reality, and this is Q Jr’s first time experiencing this.He learns of the existence of a race just outside the universe, one that watches–and observes. His father offers theories on whom the aliens are, but Qs is powerless against them. Q concludes his speech by telling his son there “are always bigger fish.”
Q Is One of Star Trek’s Most Powerful, and Popular, Reoccuring Characters
Q Is Literally a God
Introduced in “Encounter at Farpoint,” the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the trickster figure Q would go on to become one of the franchise’s most popular antagonists, not only menacing Captain Picard many times, but also Captains Janeway and Sisko as well. It was during one of Q’s encounters with Janeway that fans learned the Continuum was preparing for civil war, which could have destroyed the universe. Instead of going to war, a new Q was created: Q Jr. Q Jr recently starred in the wonderful Sons of Star Trek miniseries.
Every Q appearance drives home just how powerful he is. Q has shown the ability to manipulate energy and matter, and is highly intelligent, once boasting to Vash that “he knew everything.” Q was able to fling the Enterprise tens of thousands of light years into the Delta Quadrant and can travel through time. Despite the power, Star Trek has also seemingly put a limit to Q’s abilities, and as seen in Star Trek: Picard’s second season, they can even die, in a fashion. Furthermore, other Q can strip him of his powers, making him mortal.
The “Observers” Are Star Trek Fans
The Observers Redefine the Heirarchy of the Star Trek Universe
Yet the “Observers,” introduced in Star Trek #500, elude even the Q, and for good reason: they are us, the fans. Q makes cryptic comments to his son, telling him that they (the Observers) cannot hear them, and thus they need word and thought balloons to communicate. Q Jr, able to see the balloons thanks to his cold, begins toying with them, and even tries to use his powers against the Observers, despite his father’s warnings. Q Jr learns a valuable lesson in humility during his encounter with the Observers.
The revelation of the existence of The Observers redefines the hierarchy of power in the Star Trek universe, and keeps with a theme that IDW has been exploring in their line: the relationship between gods and lesser beings.
The revelation of the existence of The Observers redefines the hierarchy of power in the Star Trek universe, and keeps with a theme that IDW has been exploring in their line: the relationship between gods and lesser beings. The “God War” that climaxed in Day of Blood riffed on this theme, and “What’s a Q to You” continues it. The Q, long thought to be the pinnacle of power in the franchise, has now been relegated to a lower rung on the ladder, ironic in light of their attitudes towards mortals.
Star Trek Only Broke The Fourth Wall Once (Sort Of)
Deep Space Nine Employed it To Glorious Effect
What makes the Observers a fascinating Star Trek species is they allow the franchise to break the fourth wall. The closest Trek has come to doing so was during Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s sixth season, in the episode “Far Beyond the Stars.” Ben Sisko, in a Prophet-induced illusion, believed himself to be a 20th century science fiction writer named Benny Russell.
Russell wrote stories set on a futuristic space station called Deep Space Nine, but thanks to racial prejudices of the times, his work went ignored. The episode ends with Sisko returning to normal, but the pain lingers.
The setup of “Far Beyond the Stars” could have sent Star Trek in a meta-textual direction, and it nearly happened. According to legend, Deep Space Nine showrunner Ira Steven Behr briefly contemplated ending the show by revealing it was, in fact, a television show based on the writings of Benny Russell. While this idea was brave, and gelled nicely with Deep Space Nine’s iconoclastic approach to the franchise, it was overruled, and it was probably for the best.
Star Trek Needs To Do More Metatextual Stories
A Meta Star Trek Would Go Where No Other Show Has Gone Before
Yet, as seen in “What’s a Q to You?” the Star Trek franchise and meta concerns mesh well. Morgan Hampton and Megan Levens take full advantage of the possibilities offered by the comics medium. Q Jr regularly plays with the word balloons, twisting them and throwing them around. Q Jr also tries to manipulate the color scheme, but his failure to do so ultimately leads him to accept the lessons his father is trying to teach. Hampton and Levens crafted an excellent, meta-textual Star Trek story and made the case for more attempts in the future.