My Review (of The Good That Men Do)

I'm a big Star Trek fan. Not the costume wearing, convention going, Klingon speaking fan--but the other kind of big fan. My favorite, out of all the series, was Star Trek Enterprise, taking place 100 years prior to Captain Kirk. It lasted for four short seasons (arguably the first two being the best) and had a horrible series finale. The Good That Men Do is an attempt to appease Enterprise fans by rewriting a bit of canon to give a more fitting end to the series and my favorite character, that of Trip Tucker. I picked up the book first without knowing a thing about it--really by just looking at it's cover. I think the cover art is fantastic and that the title embodies what Star Trek is all about, the goodness of man, the self sacrifice, and heroism.

First of all, you have to understand the book is written for a Star Trek fan, with lots of technical jargon and references to the overall Enterprise story line. However, there is still a lot of exposition concerning events of the fourth season of Enterprise that lead directly up to the book. Often times, these passages read more like an episode synopsis than a fluid narrative and it can be quite annoying. Some of the analogies made throughout the book are a bit too Trekish as well.

For fans of the show, the story does not disappoint. It's right up there with most of the other over-the-top Trek story lines, specifically reminding me of Unification from TNG. The Good is an enjoyable read if all you're looking for is something entertaining. There is nothing cerebral here and most of the time, if you put too much thought into the story, you start to find holes--not plot holes but story holes that just don't always add up.

My biggest complaint about the book is that the ending does nothing to tie up the Enterprise franchise. It instead opens a door to the possibility of another franchise with the character of Trip Tucker as the star. Star Trek is plagued by so many literary franchises anyways that this isn't really the best of ideas. I got the feeling after reading the final chapter that I was being set up for a sequel, just like watching a bad movie.

As a Trek fan though, I couldn't have asked for more from the story. It was exactly what I was looking for; a more heroic fate for my favorite character.