10 Star Trek Comics Fans Need To Read
5. Countdown To Darkness
Unique in that it's one of the few comics considered more or less canon, this series set between the first and second Kelvin timeline films also has the distinction of featuring a rogue Robert April.
In the prime timeline Robert April, the first USS Enterprise captain, was considered one of the greatest captains in Starfleet history. He would rise to the rank of commodore and become an ambassador at large. The Kelvin timeline's April, however, becomes disillusioned with the Prime Directive and Starfleet as a whole and as a result chooses to begin making his own rules.
Such a stark difference in characterization may seem hard to reconcile for readers but the comic does provide a subtle explanation. Kelvin April is a single man with only a few estranged relatives. In the Prime timeline April fell deeply in love with and married his chief medical officer, Sara - a person whose effect on his life and career seem apparent by her absence.
April goes rogue and fakes his own death in order to supply a pre-warp civilization with the advanced technology they need to fight their enemies. This is where Kirk finds him, leading an army and having in effect assimilated into the native populace.
"Countdown to Darkness" is a classic Prime Directive story in which the right thing to do is not entirely clear. April may be half mad and care nothing about the consequences of his actions but his immediate goal is to prevent genocide, which is admirable.
April's quest to save the natives takes precedence over everything else. To accomplish it he's willing to bend the knee to the Klingons and even plunge the galaxy into war.
Ultimately it amounts to a battle of wills between Kirk and April, the resolution of which leaves Kirk with many doubts leading into the events of Into Darkness.