Warning: Contains spoilers for “What’s a Q to You?” Appear in Star Trek #500!
Star Trek Just explains Q’s entire personality with one sentence. The omnipotent trickster figure of the franchise, Q has always shown a flair for the theatrics, using great stunts and illusions as he trolls Captain Picard. Now, in the story “What’s wrong with you?” Appear in Star Trek #500, Q Jr, while undergoing a rite of passage into the continuum, provides context to his and his father’s colorful personalities.
“What is a Q to you?”, one of the stories that appear in Star Trek #500, is written by Morgan Hampton and drawn by Megan Levens. Q Jr is sick with a cold, his first. As a result, Q Jr’s perceptions of the universe are different, and he becomes aware of a race called “The Observers.” Q Jr cannot accept that there are species above him, and tries to attack them. His father reins him in, however, telling him there are even bigger species in existence. Q Jr concludes “Qs loves an audience,” and decides to give the observers a show.
Q’s first Star Trek Appearance sets the stage for every visit to follow
K is very strong and loves “camping” it up
When Q made his first appearance in Star Trek: The Next Generation pilot episode “The Meeting at Farpoint,” he made one of the boldest, splashiest entrances in franchise history. Appearing to Captain Picard dressed as genocidal warlord Christopher Columbus, K accuses humanity of savagery and kindness, and puts them on trial. During the episode, Q took on different appearances: in one scene, he appeared as a judge in a late 21st century kangaroo court and in another, as a drug-addled soldier. The tradition of grand entrances would continue throughout the franchise.
Q is played by John De Lancie, and Q Jr is played by his son Keegan.
Fans quickly learned that Q was not alone, and there were, in fact, many others just like him, who were in a place called the “Continuum.” The others, who used to come in from time to time, also showed up. In the third season Next generation Episode “Deja K,” other members of the Continuum, tired of K’s antics, strip him of his powers, and they are only restored when he learns his lesson. Later, during Star Trek: VoyagerThe Qs nearly went to war with each other, and only the birth of Q Jr prevented a complete collapse.
K is a quintessential trickster figure
K also knows that he is being observed, and acts accordingly
The passion for using elaborate scenarios and tricks to teach lessons is common to trickster figures like Q. Many cultures on Earth, ranging from the Norse to the Greeks to various indigenous nations, have some sort of trickster figure in their pantheon. Whether it is the Norse god Loki, Anansi or Coyote, tricksters often push the boundaries of what is acceptable in a society, but ultimately do not threaten its existence. They challenge norms and sometimes even impart knowledge – just like Q. Despite Q’s extreme methods, Picard and others often gain insight from the encounter.
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While a passion for drama unites all tricksters, it is especially pronounced in Q, and “What is a Q to you” makes this clear, and that it also rubbed off on his son. Q Jr realizes that his father’s colorful and flashy costumes have a purpose: Q knew all along that he had an audience in the Observers, and decided, just like his son at the end of the story, to give them a show. The story equates the observers with Star Trek Fans, who have come to expect big and showy antics from Q – and he’s happy to oblige.
Star Trek #500 is now on sale from IDW Publishing.