Eh. Meta-cosmic shenanigans with spirit realms. ( )

Sometimes one gets tired of reading Star Trek tie-ins with endless universe-shattering events, or series continuations drained of all the charm and warmth of the source material. Which made it a shoe-in that I would purchase Ghosts, a simple standalone set during The Next Generation's fourth season. Unfortunately, though there is some good stuff, the story feels stretched at five issues. People take a long time to figure out simple things, and much of this is well-trod ground, especially two warring factions on an alien planet. Cannon does an excellent job capturing the voices of the TNG characters (except for Riker), but this story isn't particularly significant to any of these characters; there's nothing at stake, not really. But I liked the depiction of the phasing effect that causes the eponymous "Ghosts" and there are bits of it that are genuinely touching. With either some tightening or some fleshing out, this could have been a a very good story; as it is, it's a diverting way to spend an hour.