There's some interesting stuff in here: the idea of the Star Trek universe already containing elements of the DC one is the sort of cross-pollination that rarely makes it into crossovers and is almost always retconned out at the end if it does. I like the decision IDW/DC have made to create this shared universe and explore it in logical and interesting ways: the Lanterns are capable of travelling to parts of the universe well beyond Starfleet's reach, so how does that affect things?

It's a shame then that so much of the action falls into the fan-pleasing template of dishing out Power Rings to characters from other franchises. I get that it makes for a strong cliffhanger but there's little that is interesting beyond that moment. By the time the Enterprise makes it to Oa on the power of love things have descended into meaningless sentiment, and of course everything is solved by people punching each other.

There's also the aching narrative hole that is the Lanterns' own lost universe. Alright, shallow representations of grief and anger flood the floor of mainstream comics, but I can't get away from the fact this series has created a huge moment in its characters' lives and then acted as it didn't have any effect on them. I might be tired of grief-stricken superheroes but if they're going to be created I'd rather they were tackled (and preferably tackled well).

Stranger Worlds hasn't been helped by being published in parallel with Planet of the Apes/Green Lantern, which started off with the same template before breaking out and becoming much more interesting. The end of this volume at leasts suggests further exploration of the DC/Star Trek combined universe, and there's enough about that angle that I like that I'm willing to be optimistic about the series' future: even if its present has been disappointing, and its past ignored. ( )