I know I'm a bit behind the curve, but I finally got the opportunity to read this story. Of the six Myriad Universes stories, "Seeds of Dissent" was the one I looked forward to the most because Julian Bashir is my favorite Star Trek character, second to only Elim Garak.
In a counterpoint to Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin's brilliant Cathedral, "Seeds of Dissent" provides an intriguing look at what would happen to Bashir if his genetic enhancing was the norm and such enhancing was amplified. Additionally, the story provides a fascinating look at the Star Trek universe if Khan Noonien Singh had won the Eugenics Wars.
I love world buidling in every book I read and I especially love it in "What if...?" stories. Swallow provided an extraordinary look at how Earth, humans, and the galaxy was different in a mere 145 pages. The story excelled in showing how Khan rose to power in the galaxy, how worlds like Andor, Trill, Bajor, Cardassia, and others were afflicted by his empire, how people like Bashir, O'Brien, Ezri (and Dax), Jake Sisko, Kira, and Dukat were changed by this direction in history.
I was greatly amused to see Kira and Dukat in a deeply close relationship, especially in contrast to the recent (well, for me) Fearful Symmetry. The soft and affectionate Dukat (particularlly in regards towards Rain and how death affected her) was a very nice touch. I also loved how Swallow managed to slip in my favorite character from the Terok Nor trilogy, his very own creation, Darrah Mace, although I wish we had seen more of him before he was killed.
Along with Bashir's character study, I was also intrigued by Ezri's and Dax's character studies and how Dax had long fought against the Khanate on a covert level and how her scheming finally bore fruit upon the arrival of the Botany Bay. Ezri was a cool and calculating woman (although perhaps not all that different from the Ezri we see in the Destiny books just driven by different motivations) and I greatly enjoyed seeing her standing on her own against such strong-willed characters as Bashir, O'Brien, and Kira.
When I began to read who some of the crew aboard the Botany Bay were, I immediately began hoping Rain Robinson was among them and I was not disappointed. I loved Rain Robinson in "Future's End" (largely because of the great and wonderful Sarah Silverman) and I loved seeing her perspective of Khan's world, both in the 21st century and 24th century.
My only complaint about the story is that I wish there was a small hint of how Khan managed to win in contrast to the events described in Greg Cox's books and how Gary Seven's mission failed.
Okay, I lied. I have one other complaint: I would have liked to have read one scene with Bashir and the Elim Garak of that world and to see the stark difference from our universe.
Lastly, I have one question for James Swallow: I couldn't help but notice that the name of the Third Khan was Tiberius Sejanus Singh and that his right hand man was Picard. Was this a deliberate reference to I, Claudius?
Edit: I just read the review thread from last year and I'm horribly ashamed to admit that I missed the Doctor Who reference. Enlighten this poor bugger, please?
In a counterpoint to Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin's brilliant Cathedral, "Seeds of Dissent" provides an intriguing look at what would happen to Bashir if his genetic enhancing was the norm and such enhancing was amplified. Additionally, the story provides a fascinating look at the Star Trek universe if Khan Noonien Singh had won the Eugenics Wars.
I love world buidling in every book I read and I especially love it in "What if...?" stories. Swallow provided an extraordinary look at how Earth, humans, and the galaxy was different in a mere 145 pages. The story excelled in showing how Khan rose to power in the galaxy, how worlds like Andor, Trill, Bajor, Cardassia, and others were afflicted by his empire, how people like Bashir, O'Brien, Ezri (and Dax), Jake Sisko, Kira, and Dukat were changed by this direction in history.
I was greatly amused to see Kira and Dukat in a deeply close relationship, especially in contrast to the recent (well, for me) Fearful Symmetry. The soft and affectionate Dukat (particularlly in regards towards Rain and how death affected her) was a very nice touch. I also loved how Swallow managed to slip in my favorite character from the Terok Nor trilogy, his very own creation, Darrah Mace, although I wish we had seen more of him before he was killed.
Along with Bashir's character study, I was also intrigued by Ezri's and Dax's character studies and how Dax had long fought against the Khanate on a covert level and how her scheming finally bore fruit upon the arrival of the Botany Bay. Ezri was a cool and calculating woman (although perhaps not all that different from the Ezri we see in the Destiny books just driven by different motivations) and I greatly enjoyed seeing her standing on her own against such strong-willed characters as Bashir, O'Brien, and Kira.
When I began to read who some of the crew aboard the Botany Bay were, I immediately began hoping Rain Robinson was among them and I was not disappointed. I loved Rain Robinson in "Future's End" (largely because of the great and wonderful Sarah Silverman) and I loved seeing her perspective of Khan's world, both in the 21st century and 24th century.
My only complaint about the story is that I wish there was a small hint of how Khan managed to win in contrast to the events described in Greg Cox's books and how Gary Seven's mission failed.
Okay, I lied. I have one other complaint: I would have liked to have read one scene with Bashir and the Elim Garak of that world and to see the stark difference from our universe.
Lastly, I have one question for James Swallow: I couldn't help but notice that the name of the Third Khan was Tiberius Sejanus Singh and that his right hand man was Picard. Was this a deliberate reference to I, Claudius?
Edit: I just read the review thread from last year and I'm horribly ashamed to admit that I missed the Doctor Who reference. Enlighten this poor bugger, please?
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