TODAY IN STAR TREK HISTORY: The First Two Section 31 Novels Are Published

Image: Paramount+ / Pocket Books.

MAY 22, 2023 – It began with Article 14, Section 31 of the Starfleet Charter, which allowed for extraordinary measures to be taken in times of extreme threat. Since then, our heroes across the Star Trek franchise have had their brushes with the shadowy organization itself known as Section 31. While we wait to hear more about Emperor Georgiou’s involvement therein, let’s remind ourselves that on today’s date in Star Trek history, in 2001, two Section 31 novels were published, the first two in Pocket Books’ Section 31 series.

Editor Marco Palmieri says in Voyages of Imagination: The Star Trek Fiction Companion, "From the moment the concept was introduced in the Deep Space Nine episode "Inquisition" I knew I wanted to do Section 31 stories. Here was a secret, autonomous black ops agency, willing to take whatever action was needed for the safety and security of the Federation, and the elimination of all threats to it. The controversy that erupted in fandom over Section 31 didn't surprise me; in fact, it only fueled my desire. Some fans argue that it goes against the fundamental ideology and the basic philosophical assumptions that Star Trek is built upon. Others say it adds texture and greater complexity to the Star Trek universe by retroactively introducing the idea of a necessary evil. What I realized is that this very argument is what's so compelling about the concept in terms of storytelling. These were the kinds of questions the familiar heroes of Star Trek would wrestle with in the novels, because Section 31 is an enemy their training doesn't prepare them for."

The first of the two novels published on this date was Rogue, by Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin. According to Voyages, the novel is set six months prior to the events of Star Trek: First Contact and in which “a mission will force Captain Picard to face the true horror of the organization known for subterfuge. His friends from academy days are on board, and the both have secret agendas.” The book jacket adds, “Old friends become bitter enemies and one young officer reaches a crossroad when he's forced to choose between the greater good of the Federation and the ideals for which it stands.”

Martin and Mangels came to the project following their work on Marvel Comics’ monthly DS9 title. Mangels says of their approach to the novel, “Allegory has always been a large part of Star Trek storytelling, so the political and personal conflicts in Rogue carried more weight when they were relatable for readers.” And Mangels “found it frustrating and disappointing – not just as an openly gay writer but also as a lifelong fan – that gays and lesbians had almost no representation in the future world of Star Trek.” So Lieutenant Hawk, who appears in First Contact, becomes a central, and gay, character in the novel.

Rogue turned out to be the bestselling mass-market Star Trek title in 2001.

Shadow is the other Section 31 novel published on this date in 2001. In the story, written by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch, “someone or something is trying to kill Seven of Nine. As the crew races against time to save millions of refugees from an imminent stellar cataclysm, the former Borg becomes the target of several seemingly random but potentially lethal ‘accidents.’ The investigation reveals a truth more terrifying than anyone ever imagined, as Captain Kathryn Janeway and the crew of the Starship Voyager fight for their lives against the most unexpected enemy of all,” says the book jacket.

Palmieri said that the challenge with this novel was to figure out how to involve Section 31 with the USS Voyager, given its distance from the Federation. The solution is revealed in the Voyager’s mission to the Badlands and a character from the season four episode, “Scientific Method.”

Following Rogue and Shadow, two more Section 31 novels would round out the series that same year. Palmieri resisted doing any more after that because he “hated the thought of beating a story concept into the ground…. I also think Section 31, like the Borg, works best when used sparingly, and only when the right story presents itself.”

The Section 31 banner title would eventually reappear thirteen years later with Star Trek tie-in veteran David Mack’s Disavowed.