"Star Trek: Red Shirts" - Thank Goodness this is Getting a Sequel

Star Trek: Red Shirts is… 💥 (Stepped on a landmine. oops.)


Anyway, Star Trek: Red Shirts is… 🔶 (Changed into a styrofoam polygon. Dangit.) 


So, Star Trek: Red Shirts… 👴 (Ugh. Aged rapidly and died from old age. Drat.)



Ahhh! Anyway. Star Trek: Red Shirts is about the security division of Starfleet, the brave souls who charge headfirst into danger and usually die before the opening theme song rolls.

📖 “Star Trek: Red Shirts.” 

📝 Writer: Christopher Cantwell

📔 Cover Artist: Chris Shehan

👨🏻‍🎨 Artist: Megan Levens

🖍️ Colorist: Charlie Kirchoff

🔡 Letterer: Jodie Troutman

🏢 Publisher: IDW 

🗓️ Published: May 12, 2026


A group of 12 Starfleet security personnel are sent on a daring mission uncover an unknown antagonist spying on a distant starbase. Set the trap. Neutralize the enemy. Try not to die in the process. What could possibly go wrong?



I am a long-time Star Trek fan, so it was a delight to revisit the world of The Original Series. Page 1 opened with a cameo appearance from Commodore Decker. This comic is firmly grounded in the world of the television show. However, it resists the urge to pack its pages with callbacks and fan service.


Megan Levens' art is very strong. Retro-futuristic technology, strange new worlds, new life and new civilizations: this comic feels like Star Trek. It feels like stepping into an episode of The Original Series. 



However, don’t let the art fool you - this story isn’t 60’s TV fare. In issue 1 alone, several redshirts die. This is a disaster-movie-style story of peril and survival with a touch of espionage thriller. Full credit to Cantwell and Levens, each of the comic’s deaths have impact. We like these characters. We want to see them to succeed. So, when they die, often gorily and sometimes at shocking and unexpected moments, we feel the loss.


In places, the tone initially felt more cynical than conventional Star Trek stories. However, the end of the comic uses this cynicism in a really interesting way and places this story firmly in Star Trek territory. I wish I could spoil the ending because, for me, it made this comic. You’ll just have to wait and read it for yourself. 



Suffice it to say, I could not be more thrilled that this comic is getting a sequel this year. I cannot wait to read the next installment! I very rarely buy individual issues as they are coming out, but this comic might just change that… 


Go read this comic! 



4.5/5 Stars


Thank you IDW Publishing for providing a copy of this ebook for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

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