Didja Know?

 

This issue does not have an actual title. The title I've used for this issue, "The Only Place I Fit", is from a line of dialog in the story. The reprinting of this story in the Star Trek, Volume 4 TPB refers to it simply as "Keenser's Story".

 

Didja Notice?

 

The beast seen on the cover of this issue appears to be a drakoulias, the polar bear/gorilla creature that attacked Kirk on Delta Vega in "The Vengeance of Nero". The creature that actually appears in this issue's story, however, is a hengrauggi, the creature that kills the drakoulias and then pursues Kirk on its own, again in "The Vengeance of Nero".

 

On page 3, panel 1, we see an unusual variation on the international radiation symbol in engineering. The additional triad in the symbol looks sort of like a wrench! Or, possibly, they are meant to represent warp nacelles?

 

This story reveals that Keenser, small as he is, is considered monstrously huge among his species.

 

Page 6 reveals that first contact with Keenser's planet, Royla, was made by the U.S.S. Kelvin and its officers, Captain Robau, Lt. Commander George Kirk, and Lt. K'Bentayr. The Kelvin and the three officers later encountered the Narada in "Rebirth" in 2233, where the ship was destroyed and George Kirk sacrificed his life.

 

The name of Keener's homeworld, Royla, and his species, Roylans, is likely a nod to the actor who plays Keenser in the films, Deep Roy.

 

On page 9, panel 5, the Kelvin is depicted with registration number NCC-514, but it should more accurately be presented as NCC-0514.

 

Page 10 reveals that Keenser graduated from Starfleet Academy after only 3 years, as the first Royla in Starfleet, only months after the loss of the Kelvin in "Rebirth".

 

Notice in the flashback of Keenser's life on Delta Vega on page 13, panel 3, that the tribble in a cage (seen in "The Vengeance of Nero") is already there while he's stationed there alone, indicating the tribble was not Scotty's, but Keenser's (or left behind by one of the departed crewmembers of the station). But, in "The Truth About Tribbles" Part 1, Scotty said he obtained it from a trader with the intention of sending it to his nephew.

 

On page 15, Scotty mentions why he was sent to Delta Vega, due to "the business with the Beagle". Scotty told the story of why he was banished by Starfleet to Delta Vega for losing the Admiral's Beagle in "The Vengeance of Nero". At the end of "The Truth About Tribbles" Part 2, Scotty finally manages to transport Admiral Archer's prize Beagle back aboard the Enterprise. 

 

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