Star Trek #1 May Be the Franchise’s Best, Boldest Entry Yet (Early Review)

There are few sci-fi franchises as iconic as Star Trek. This year marks Star Trek’s 60th anniversary and it is a franchise that is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Over the decades, it’s been a key part of just about every form of media you can imagine and one of its particularly exciting forms comes on the pages of comics. Now, IDW Publishing is relaunching the Star Trek comic series with a new book from writer Christopher Cantwell and artist Dennis Menheere. Picking up five years after the Season 3 finale of Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek #1 is poised to take the franchise in its boldest direction yet with a story that is far more than a follow up.

Star Trek #1 centers on Jeri Ryan’s Seven of Nine at the helm of the USS Enterprise-G and takes Seven and the Enterprise beyond the Quadrants into unexplored space, specifically into a hidden region that isn’t just uncharted territory. Time works differently here and what is set up to be a relocation and colonization mission may just end up being something far more terrifying — and personal. This first issue does a lot of set up for what is going to be a layered, complex adventure, but it’s brilliantly done and surprisingly accessible, even if you are newer to the Star Trek franchise.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

PROS	CONS
Very accessible storytelling	A little to dense for a quick read
Cinematic art

A Clean Slate With a Lot of Detail Diehard Fans Will Love

Since this is an early review, I want to be careful to avoid too many details and spoilers so much of what I am going to say is fairly vague in terms of actual story details, but the big thing that stands out about Star Trek #1 is that despite being a story set within a 60-year-old franchise and coming as a follow up to a series that concluded three years ago, this is a comic that is exceptionally welcoming to new fans. Cantwell does a masterful job of explaining what is going on and things about Star Trek in general within the story — even large information dumps do not feel like they are exposition or the large info dumps that they are. Instead, you get history and context woven into the forward motion of the story as Seven works to navigate her role as Captain of the Enterprise-G, what it means for her personally, as well as the high-stakes and mysterious nature of the mission beyond known space.

What is particularly notable is the way the story layers different motives and agendas as well as the complicated relationships between different entities and groups. You get a sense very early of just how complicated it is to operate within the Federation and the various challenges that exist even beyond those of simply space. It’s no doubt a somewhat dense read — there is a lot to take in and process — but Cantwell does a fantastic job of balancing it all with, for lack of better term, the humanity of those involved. The story is huge, the stakes are high, and there’s a sense of foreboding that is absolutely intriguing.

Beyond the words, however, is the art. Menheere’s art moves between intimate and cinematic in equal measure exactly in the places where each is called for. There are a few full-page spreads in the issue that are just stunning and while there happens to be a lot going on on those pages, they never feel cluttered. The art in this book feels like watching a movie or a very immersive television episode in the best possible way. It’s stunning and dramatic and it perfectly fits the tone for the tale that is beginning to unfold.

Ultimately, Star Trek #1 is an incredible comic. Yes, being a long time Trek fan will help understand the intricacies of things, but Cantwell and Menheere have created a story that is both past and future that is both reverent and revolutionary. The first issue sets a glorious stage and it’s clear by the time that you get to the final page that it’s warp speed ahead from here.

Star Trek #1 goes on sale September 23rd.

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