In what was supposed to be a big reveal at Gallifrey One, news of IDW’s upcoming ‘Doctor Who/Star Trek: The Next Generation’ official comic book was outed days earlier but it didn’t take away any of the excitement fans had during the IDW panel over the weekend.
I had the privilege of speaking to Denton Tipton, one of the editors of IDW Publishing, about the upcoming series:
How did this project come about?
Basically we had a meeting set up with BBC at Comic Com this past year and they were doing a really big push for Doctor Who. They brought Matt Smith and Karen (Gillan) and they did a big panel. They’re trying to make room in the US market and so we were part of that push so we met to them to discuss what we can do to raise the profile of the comic. Part of that was timing and the push of the show which we are going to do with the next series.
We also said crossovers. Those are really popular. We could bring in both fan bases, you know. And everybody’s going, ‘Love it!’ And so we had a few ideas and they loved 3 of them. They were really good options so we started going through them and the ones that made more sense. Since we already had the ‘Star Trek’ license and at that con we already announced the ‘Star Trek’/’Legion of Superheroes’ crossover… and they saw the reaction to that and said, “Let’s go do it with them.” So we went to CBS with it and they were all over it. They thought it was a fantastic idea and since we were going to be publishing it this year, it’s the 25th anniversary of the debut of ‘The Next Generation,’ it just helps build it up.
Will the story be considered canon in both worlds, ‘Doctor Who’ and ‘ST: TNG’?
I’ve been asked that question but we didn’t want to worry about that. There’s something in there for the fans to give them reason for why the two come together.
Will we see Q in the series?
It was definitely discussed so you have to check it out and see if he makes an appearance but there will be lots of little cameos that everyone will enjoy. We got lots of little Easter eggs for everyone on both sides.
Can you give us a hint?
I can’t, I can’t.
I have to ask, Q or the Doctor. Who do you think would win?
You know, we had a lot of debate about that and thinking if we could resolve that in the story and we could never come to a consensus.
Next year is the 50th anniversary of ‘Doctor Who’. Any special plans to continue this crossover series?
We’re just going to do the 8 for now.
Any tie-in to the upcoming ‘Doctor Who’ season with this comic series?
That’s a good question but I’m not going to answer it now (he says laughingly).
From some of the panels that were shown, the comic book looked impressive. And although I wasn’t allowed to get a copy or take a picture (I really tried folks!), I can say that fans of both shows won’t be disappointed. And since IDW has been working closely with the BBC and CBS on the projects, Tipton has promised fans will find lots of hidden nuances throughout the series and that’s half the fun of reading a good series!
‘Assimilation2’ will feature Captain Picard and his crew joining forces with the Doctor and the Ponds as they fight to save the universe against a Cyberman/Borg alliance. The first issue of the series will hit the shelves (and the web) in May. As more information comes out about this project we’ll let you know but I can tell you, whether you are a Trekkie or a Whovian, it’s a must buy item for any fan!
