The Travelers, who count Wesley Crusher among their number, are one of Star Trek‘s most enigmatic races, but they were depicted much darker in the comics. Throughout IDW Publishing’s Star Trek: Year Five, Supervisor Gary Seven was a recurring villain, continually trying to kill Captain Kirk. Picard’s second season revealed that these Supervisors work for the Travelers, who generally seem benevolent, but 2021’s Star Trek: Year Five #24 paints them in a far more sinister light.
Although the Travelers were not officially named until Star Trek: Picard’s season two finale, their presence has been felt throughout the franchise since the Original Series episode “Assignment: Earth.” Intended to be a backdoor pilot for a new series, the episode introduced Supervisor Gary Seven, sent to Earth with superpowers to help guide it through the rough times ahead. Seven remained one of the franchise’s biggest loose ends until Picard, when it was revealed that Supervisors like Seven worked for the Travelers, an enigmatic group capable of manipulating time and space. The first Traveler appeared on-screen in the first season The Next Generation episode ‘Where No One Has Gone Before’ and later, at the show’s conclusion, Wesley Crusher joined them. Wesley’s whereabouts remained a mystery until the Picard finale, when he returned to recruit a new member. The Travelers appeared benevolent in the episode, but Star Trek: Year Five presented a much darker vision.
The Travelers’ Supervisors Are Killers
In Star Trek: Year Five #24 – from Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly and Silvia Calfiano – Gary Seven has abducted Kirk, intending to finish the job and end his life. However, Kirk is able to give Seven the slip. Undaunted, Seven continues his quest, instead jumping through time to key points in Kirk’s life, each time trying to kill him. Kirk matches Seven’s movements, thwarting him at every turn, until they finally arrive at the USS Kelvin, the ship Kirk’s father served on. On board his father’s ship, Kirk and Seven continue their fight. Seven, angered over the death of his only friend Isis, is ready to deliver the death blow to Kirk, but he decides not to, realizing they both only have their missions. Seven agrees to leave his superiors (here called the “Aegis”) and is taken into protective custody, where Doctor McCoy surveysing the extensive genetic modifications done to Seven.
The Travelers Have Different Goals to Humanity
At first, reconciling the depiction of the Travelers in Picard and the Aegis in Year Five may seem impossible, but they do not necessarily contradict each other. “Travelers” is a more colloquial name used by those outside the group – it’s possible “Aegis” is their self-identified name. If this were to be the case, it paints the Travelers/Aegis in a much darker light. The Travelers as seen in Picard worked to help the galaxy, as did the Aegis, but the comics make it clear they are not above murder and manipulation to achieve their goals. The Travelers in Picard seemed friendly, but fans only saw a fleeting glimpse, and much about them is still up in the air. The Travelers are possessed of great power, able to transcend time and space, and their motivations are their own – and alien to humans. Travelers, even Wesley Crusher, see the bigger picture, which reduces people to pieces on a chessboard, to be moved about as needed.
Both the Aegis and the Travelers are made up of many species, all working together towards some unknown goal. There have been varying depictions of the two groups, but if this darker side to the group is what it seems, the Travelers would be the most dangerous group in the Star Trek universe.
