Summary
Warning: contains spoilers forStar Trek Annual 2024!
Data is one of the most intelligent beings in theStar Trekuniverse, but his Kryptonite has finally been revealed, as this same intellect is turned into a weakness. InStar Trek Annual 2024, Data, who has been absent from the line since the Tzenkethi crisis, returns, seeking his brother Lore. Missing since the end ofDay of Blood,Lore is up to no good, exploiting his brother’s one weakness.
Star Trek Annual 2024was written by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly and drawn by Rachael Stott. Data is searching the galaxy for his brother Lore, and,teaming with Chief Miles O’Brienand Geordi La Forge, tracks Lore to a space station orbiting a black hole. There, the trio find not only Korath, the renegade Klingon scientist in Lore’s employ, but Lore himself. Lore tells his brother that he has walked right into Lore’s trap.
Lore, knowing Data could not resist a mystery, created one as a means of luring his brother to the station.
Data Is a Huge Mystery Buff in theStar TrekUniverse
Data Sees Himself in Sherlock Holmes
In the second seasonStar Trek: The Next Generationepisode “Elementary Dear Data,” his love of mysteries backfired, leading to the creation of the very first sentient hologram in the franchise’s history.
Lore is correct: Data cannot resist a mystery. After being turned onto the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Data became fascinated with the character, often embarking on holodeck adventures based on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s writings. In the second seasonStar Trek: The Next Generationepisode “Elementary Dear Data,” his love of mysteries backfired, leading to the creation of the very first sentient hologram in the franchise’s history. Outside the Holmes-themed episodes,Data’s inquisitive nature has become a hallmark of his character.
The sentinet, holographic Professor Moriarty has appeared a few more times in theStar Trekfranchise, most notably in the sixth season episode “Ship in a Bottle.”
Unfortunately, Lore has now weaponized this love of mysteries, turning it into a weakness, one he can then exploit. Lore left clues around Farius Prime and the Orion homeworld, all designed to bait Data and lure him into his clutches. Lore is planning to become a god, and he wanted his brother by his side to witness his greatest triumph. Lore knew he needed a way to get Data there. Lore is an astute observer, and knowing about his brother’s penchant for mysteries, creates one Data cannot resist.
Data’s Love of Mysteries Has Been Turned Against Him
Has Data’s Weakness Doomed theStar TrekUniverse
Data’s love of mysteries has driven some ofStar Trek’sfinest episodes, but here it has put the entire galaxy into danger. Now that he has taken Data prisoner, Lore has everything he needs to recreate reality in his own image. Furthermore, Data’s love of mysteries has put both Geordi and O’Brien in danger. When it was portrayed onStar Trek: The Next Generation, Data’s affection for mysteries was wholesome, but here it has been transformed into his Kryptonite, as Lore exploits it to destroy the entireStar Trekuniverse.
