Star Trek comic writer-editor team David Tischman and Dan Taylor talked about their decision to do a Wesley story for IDW's new Star Trek: The Next Generation comic series and the extent to which the two of them are Star Trek geeks.

In an interview posted at Newsarama, Tischman said that his first internet password was "tranya" - the delicacy Captain Kirk shared with an alien in "The Corbomite Maneuver" - and said that when he contacted Taylor about specific details for the comic, such as how the transporter works, "that'll lead into a longer conversation about specific episodes, on all the series, that feature the Transporter."

For his part, Taylor admitted that he owned several hundred mint-in-package Playmates Star Trek action figures and said that he finds being complimented on his Trek knowledge by Tischman "flattering in a way that my girlfriend will never understand. I grew up on Star Trek the same way long-time sports fans grew up with a favorite team...it's like getting to hangout in the clubhouse or locker room with the team."

Tischman said that it was difficult to produce an entire story in 22 pages and said that the biggest single issue challenge was writing about Wesley Crusher, who has "taken such a beating from the fans over the years, and he never really bothered me." He likened Wesley to The X-Men's mutants, saying, "I wanted to do a story where Wesley didn't mope, or save the day, but just acted like a normal teen-ager...a smart, fairly self-aware young man who's dealing with some painful stuff."

Tischman has most enjoyed writing Worf, "which was a surprise, actually, because going into the book he wasn't my favorite character. There's a tragic nobility in Worf I really admire...there's a lot going on behind those forehead ridges."

The pair mentioned that the individual comic books will contain clues to a larger story arc and suggested that readers look at the technological elements in a real-world context."After the all-out action and personal drama of Issue #3, we settle into a good old fashioned adventure in Issue #4," Tischman promised. "And I got to use Ensign Ro, who I've always liked."

Newsarama also has an article by IDW's Taylor on upcoming Star Trek titles, including the Klingon series Blood Will Tell, the original series continuation Star Trek: Year Four, and a six-issue series, Star Trek: Alien Spotlight, that will look at the Vulcans, Gorn, Borg, Andorians, Romulans and Orion Slave Women. Taylor said he hoped that if the Star Trek comics did well, a Deep Space Nine continuation might be a possibility in the future.

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