The return of Captain Kirk to the future of the Star Trek timeline has already dropped a bombshell into existing canon, but also closes a plot hole Klingon fans have analyzed for decades. And the true reason the Klingon Empire lost its hold on the galaxy is so dark, it may change the way people view Starfleet forever.
Star Trek Finally Explains Why Klingons Disappeared as a Galactic Power
Star Trek: The Last Starship #3 by Collin Kelly, Jackson Lanzing, Adrián Bonilla, Heather Moore
The shocking secrets are still being revealed in the ongoing Star Trek: The Last Starship, a series focused on the galaxy-wide disaster known as “The Burn” which killed trillions, dismantled the Federation, and almost destroyed Starfleet. As alluded to in Star Trek: Discovery “The Burn” occurred in the year 3069, when all dilithium (used in warp engines) became unstable and, either instantly or when next used, detonated withh dramatic effect.
With all warp travel suddenly halted due to the risks, the arrival of a handful of Klingon vessels into Earth’s solar system in The Last Starship #2 took all of Starfleet by surprise. According to the interpretation by Captain Sato of Kirk’s returned Enterprise…
“Moments ago, multiple unstable warp signatures were detected near Jovian orbit. We have no distress signals and they are not answering hails, but we know two things. First, that to risk dilithium use after what we’ve all recently experienced, their need for aid must be dire. And second… their warp signatures are unmistakably Klingon.”
And while the Klingons launched their attack on Earth without their warp engines exploding catastrophically, they are soon defeated by Sato and Kirk, settinf the stage for a far more horrifying fate. And one that explains why the Klingon Empire was dramatically changed on this very day.
The Klingon Empire Was Arguably Destroyed By A Starfleet Attack…?
This Controversial New Twist Has Changed Human/Klingon History Forever
Having defeated the fleet’s commander, and therefor earning their obedience, Captain Sato issues them new order: leave Earth’s solar system, and head back home to their own worlds. But as Sato reveals in his Captain’s Log in The Last Starship #3, this reckless order has repercussions that nobody could have possibly expected. Soon after arriving home, the dilithium explosions began and, apparently, spread through every other warp core that had somehow survived “The Burn” opening wave.
Not just the death and devastation of one or two Klingon planets or fleets, but twenty-nine, making up most of the confirmed core world of the entire Klingon Empire. Dropping to radio silence, this new series confirms “The Burn” was so devastating to the Klingons, it may have floored them even more than humanity. But now, fans know the truth: it was Starfleet who ordered it. Perhaps indirectly, or irresponsibly, but they caused the Klingon horror all the same.
Star Trek: The Last Starship #3 is available now from IDW.
- Created by
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Gene Roddenberry
- First Episode Air Date
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September 8, 1966
- Cast
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William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Deforest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, Jonathan Frakes, Patrick Stewart, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Wil Wheaton, Avery Brooks, Nana Visitor, Rene Auberjonois, Alexander Siddig, Cirroc Lofton, Armin Shimerman, Colm Meaney, Terry Farrell, Kate Mulgrew, Robert Beltran, Roxann Dawson, Jeri Ryan, Robert Duncan McNeill, Robert Picardo, Ethan Phillips, Garrett Wang, Jolene Blalock, Connor Trinneer, Dominic Keating, Scott Bakula, Linda Park, John Billingsley, Anthony Montgomery, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho, Chris Hemsworth, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anton Yelchin, Idris Elba, Sonequa Martin-Green, Mary Wiseman, Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Wilson Cruz, Oyin Oladejo, Emily Coutts, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Anson Mount, Ethan Peck, Rebecca Romijn, Michelle Yeoh
- TV Show(s)
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Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Short Treks, Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek Lower Decks, Star Trek: Prodigy, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
