IDW’s forthcomingStar Trek: Redshirtsis “not your father’sStar Trek,” and it is exactly what fans have been waiting for. The new miniseries, based on a popular joke within theStar Trekcommunity, will take the franchise in new and horrifying directions. It also promises to be an excellentStar Trekcomic.
IDW has announced three otherStar Trektitles coming in the next few months:Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: The Seeds of Destruction, Star Trek: Voyager: HomecomingandStar Trek: The Last Starship.
Star TrekSenior Editor Heather Antos, speaking withComic Book Resources,provided some new insight into the series, to be written by Christopher Cantwell and drawn by Megan Levens. The intention, according to Antos, was to create a book that was “not your father’sStar Trek.”The three variant covers forRedshirts#1 depict the titular characters dying in horrible fashions.
Star Trek: RedshirtsWill Be Another Creative Win for IDW
Star Trek: RedshirtsBrings Christopher Cantwell and Megan Levens Back to the Franchise
Star Trek: Redshirtsis the latest offering from IDW, who just put the bowon one of the greatestStarTrekcomic linesin recent memory. Big creative swings were the norm for the line, andRedshirtslooked to keep the “sky-blue” thinking that was a hallmark ofStar TrekandDefiant,only in a darker, gorier fashion.
In her talk withCBR, Antos stated she and writer Cantwell tallied it up, and a whopping 45 red shirts died onStar Trek.
Star Trek: Redshirtsis based on a popular meme within the franchise. In the classicStar Trekseries, crew members wearing red uniforms usually met gruesome ends on away missions. In her talk withCBR, Antos stated she and writer Cantwell tallied it up, and a whopping 45 red shirts died onStar Trek.
Star Trek: Redshirtswriter Christopher Cantwell is no stranger to theStar Trekfranchise. Famous for his work at Marvel on titles such asIron ManandDoctor Doom, Cantwell wroteStar Trek: Defiantfor IDW.Defiantshowed a darker, grimier side to theStar Trekfranchise. This makes Cantwell the perfect choice to writeRedshirts.
Star Trek: RedshirtsWill Not Just Be a “Gore Fest”
Star Trek: RedshirtsWill Ask Tough Questions of the Franchise
While the Redshirts meme is often invoked for laughs, it points to an uncomfortable truth about theStar Trekuniverse: that it is a dangerous and hostile place. With redshirts having a high casualty rate, recruiting them may seem to be a challenge, and Antos statedRedshirtswill tackle this thorny issue.
Antos explained further about the moral and ethical issues surroundingStar Trek: Redshirts.Believing the redshirt concept challenges the lofty concepts the Federation claims to hold dear, Antos promisedStar Trek: Redshirtswill get to the core of this problem, and for this reason, it will be a new type ofTrekcomic.
There Is Precedent For Darker Takes onStar Trek
Star Trek: Deep Space NineRegularly Questioned Starfleet and Its Ideals
Antos’ comments indicate thatStar Trek: Redshirtswill be a much darker foray into the final frontier. Traditionally, the Federation and Starfleet embody high moral ideas,to the point that Wesley Crusherfamously quipped “Starfleet does not lie.” While Wesley meant well, later shows and movies have shown the darker side of the galaxy.
Perhaps noStar Trekshow went as dark and heavy asDeep Space Nine,which is now regarded as one of the franchise’s finest entries.
Perhaps noStar Trekshow went as dark and heavy asDeep Space Nine,which is now regarded as one of the franchise’s finest entries.Deep Space Nineregularly questionedStar Trek’sideals, finding cracks in the foundation. Ideas like Section 31 demonstrated the Federation was not above playing dirty to get what it wanted.
In concepts like Section 31and the Maquis,Star Trekreturned to the examinations of the human condition that Roddenberry intended for the franchise from day one. The Original Series regularly showed flawed humans, both in and out of Starfleet. Utopias like the Federation take work, and Section 31 does the dirty parts.
Star Trek: RedshirtsPromises to be a Gripping Read
Star Trek: RedshirtsDoes Exactly What Gene Roddenberry Wanted of the Franchise
While Section 31 will most likely not play a major role inStar Trek:Redshirts, the same spirit informingDeep Space Ninewill be present. That is,Redshirtswill hold a mirror to the ideals Gene Roddenberry put forth. Do expendable redshirts contradict Starfleet’s ethics? This series will ask this question, perhaps even arrive at an answer.
Source:Comic Book Resources
Star Trek: Redshirts #1 is on sale July 16 from IDW Publishing!
