'Star Trek: The Next Generation' Crew Just Met Its Mirror Universe Doppelgangers

In all of its seven seasons on the air, Star Trek: The Next Generation never mentioned the mirror universe in a single episode. While The Original Series invented the concept and Deep Space Nine revisited it and found it changed years later, fans never had the chance to see the crew of the USS Enterprise-D discover or interact with their mirror universe doppelgangers.

IDW Publishing has fixed that with the comic book miniseries Star Trek: The Next Generation - Through the Mirror by writers Scott and David Tipton with a different artist on each issue, which brings the core cast of the Star Trek: The Next Generation series face-to-face with its mirror universe counterparts.

The mirror universe versions of these characters were first introduced in the series Star Trek: The Next Generation - Mirror Broken. However, the events of that series took place entirely within the confines of the mirror universe, where Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the ISS Stargazer plotted to steal the Terran Empire's secret weapon, the ISS Enterprise. He gathered together a familiar but different crew for this mission and together they succeeded.

But now, thanks to mirror Data's mission to seek out Emperor Spock, Picard and the ISS Enterprise crew are aware of the other universe that exists alongside their own. What better place to find the supplies and materials they need to keep the ISS Enterprise in the fight against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance?

And so Picard and crew set about a plan to make short trips to the other timeline and raid it for supplies. They were successful, but then Picard got a bigger and better idea: to steal the Enterprises from several different timelines and create and all-Enterprise Terran fleet that could rule the galaxy.

To enact his plan, Picard sent his own versions of Deanna Troi and Reginald Barclay to pose as their prime doppelgangers and infiltrate the USS Enterprise. Their mission was to prepare the ship to be teleported from the prime timeline into the mirror universe and under Terran command.

Troi and Barclay though they had succeeded in their mission, but they were actually discovered. When Picard tried to beam over the Enterprise, it was instead Captain Picard, Commander Riker, Lt. Commander Data, Lt. Worf, and a security contingent that beamed aboard the Imperial Enterprise.

There was a momentary standoff and then a shootout. The Picard and Riker from each universe ended up together and facing off against their doppelgangers. Ultimately, the mirror universe crew managed to escape, but Reginald Barclay stayed behind, having been so appalled by his prime universe doppelganger's status and treatment onboard the Enterprise that he decided to stay behind and teach the crew some respect.

All five issues of Star Trek: The Next Generation - Through the Mirror are available now. The collected edition of the miniseries releases in October. Mirror Barclay's infiltration of the USS Enterprise continues in the next chapter of the Star Trek: The Next Generation mirror universe saga, Terra Incognita. The first issue goes on sale on July 25th.