The Story Behind Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’s “Tales From the Frontier” Comic

Last week’s episode of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy (“Come, Let’s Away”) introduced an in-universe comic book, sparking online discussion. The prop and plot point prompted further investigation into its origins.

Tales From the Frontier: A 31st-Century Legend

The episode revolved around a visit to a ship graveyard, including the derelict USS Miyazaki, used for a joint exercise for Starfleet Academy and War College cadets. The Miyazaki is a 31st-century vessel that lost its entire crew during experimentation with a new type of drive around the time of “The Burn” – a cataclysmic event that occurred a century before the events of Starfleet Academy.

The Miyazaki and its crew became legendary in the decades following The Burn, with their story being told in the comic book, Tales from the Frontier. The comic’s presence in the show highlights how comics have endured into the 32nd century. War College cadet B’Avi was inspired by the comic, and Academy cadet Caleb Mir admitted to having read it. To reactivate the Miyazaki’s computer, the cadets scanned the comic book, allowing the system to recognize them as the new crew, as it still believed the original crew was alive.

Uniform Inspiration and Connections to Current Comics

During the computer scan, viewers saw several spreads from a digital version of the comic. These spreads featured Captain Chi and the crew, wearing uniforms reminiscent of those from Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. This design choice suggests that 31st-century Starfleet drew inspiration from the 23rd century for its uniform designs.

Similar uniform designs are featured in the new Star Trek: The Last Starship comic book series from IDW, which is set during the era of The Burn on the USS Omega. Initial speculation suggested that Tales from the Frontier was a promotional tie-in for the IDW comic, but TrekMovie confirmed with IDW that they had no involvement in creating the fictional comic seen in the TV series. [TrekMovie]

Not Created with AI: An In-House Production

Following the episode’s release, there was no initial credit given to an artist for Tales from the Frontier. Speculation quickly arose that the comic was generated using artificial intelligence. Concerns about “AI slop” being used in Star Trek grew, particularly within the artistic community.

However, TrekMovie confirmed with multiple sources that Tales from the Frontier was hand-drawn by a graphic artist within the Starfleet Academy art department. [TrekMovie] The production team opted for an in-house solution for speed and efficiency. A physical copy of the comic was likewise created as a prop, appearing on B’Avi’s casket at the end of the episode.

AI in Hollywood and the Legacy of Star Trek

This controversy is understandable given the ongoing debate surrounding the utilize of AI in the creative arts, a central issue during the 2023 Hollywood strikes. Unions are currently renegotiating contracts, with AI once again a key topic. Despite not being used for the on-screen comic in Academy, AI tools are becoming increasingly common in film and television production. Paramount’s new CEO, David Ellison, has stated the company will “embrace AI.” However, studios are also pushing back against unauthorized AI use, as demonstrated by a recent cease and desist letter sent to TikTok owner ByteDance regarding an AI-generated video featuring an artificial Tom Cruise.

Star Trek has long explored the risks and benefits of AI, from the dangers depicted in Star Trek: The Original Series to the positive portrayal of AI companions like Data and Geordi La Forge.