At New York Comic Con, IDW hosted the “Star Trek: Boldly Going with IDW Publishing” panel all about Trek comics for a packed room at the Javits Center over the weekend. IDW Star Trek editor Heather Antos led the discussion with writers and artists from a number of new and upcoming Trek titles. The panel covered IDW’s prolific output of titles this year as well as upcoming releases planned for later this year and 2024.
Sons of Star Trek coming in February
At NYCC, IDW announced a new miniseries titled Star Trek: The Sons of Star Trek which launches in January 2024. The series is being written by Morgan Hampton, who is new to Trek comics, and features art from Trek comic vet Angel Hernandez. As the name of the series implies, it will take a closer look at some of the famous sons of the franchise, including Worf’s son Alexander, Sisko’s son Jake, Rom’s son Nog, and even Q’s son Q. IDW editor Heather Antos joked that the series deals with Star Trek’s “nepo babies” and hinted it would also include Jack Crusher, son of Jean-Luc Picard and Beverly Crusher.
IDW also released a cover and early interior artwork for the series.
Cover for Sons of Star Trek (IDW)
Interior art for Sons of Star Trek (IDW)
According to Antos, the series will tie in to the continuity of the ongoing Star Trek and Defiant comics, which also feature Alexander and Jake. She said the series is “dealing with fathers who may not have been there in the ways they wanted them to. We really explore all of that and what it means to be a legacy in the Federation.”
At the panel, they also showed off an additional cover and more interior art.
Defiant annual to tell Sela’s origin story
Fans of The Next Generation may also be excited for the upcoming Star Trek Defiant Annual, coming in January 2024. The character of Commander Sela has already been featured in the Star Trek: Defiant series, including the recent “Day of Blood” crossover. At the panel, Defiant writer Chris Cantwell described this annual as “her issue,” revealing it will feature Sela along with her mother Tasha Yar, via some time travel. “We are going to see some of the more painful and tragic events in both of their lives,” said Cantwell, who also teased that the series will show Sela’s origins in a Romulan prison camp, picking up after the events of the classic TNG episode “Yesterday’s Enterprise.”
First look at the cover for Defiant Annual 2024 (Photo: TrekMovie.com)
First look inside Lower Decks interactive graphic novel
IDW first revealed they were making a choose-your-own-adventure style book tied to Lower Decks at San Diego Comic-Con. Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way is being written by Ryan North, who wrote last year’s Lower Decks IDW miniseries, and will have art by Chris Fenoglio. Heather Antos said Lower Decks creator Mike McMahan has been very supportive of the project as well as their other tie-ins to his animated comedy. Antos was wary of giving out spoilers even when pressed by the audience. She did reveal there is a “correct path”—but as the book is written from the perspective of Beckett Mariner, you will need to make “Mariner-like choices in order to find the correct path.”
She brought interior art from the book, showing the Lower Decks version of Khan.
First look inside Lower Decks: Warp Your Own Way (Photo: TrekMovie.com)
Space dinosaurs and Gorn gangsters
Now that the big “Day of Blood” crossover has wrapped up, the ongoing Star Trek and Defiant series are branching out into their own stories starting in October. Later this month, the first part of the new “A Savage World of Glass and Bone” arc for the ongoing Star Trek series will be released, starting with issue 13. The new storyline focuses on the Tzenkethi Coalition, which was mentioned on Deep Space Nine but never shown. At the panel, writer Collin Kelly hyped up the arc, saying, “The mighty world of Tzenketh has been unseen for too long and we know that the Federation has clashed with them twice and lost in both cases.” Sisko has been tasked to stop another war, which is a challenge, as Kelly noted: “With the Tzenkethi being gigantic space dinosaurs, that might get a little rough.” He also revealed the series will feature the return of Harry Kim, working as a secret agent with the codename “Kingsnake.”
Cover C for Star Trek #13 coming later this month
The new Star Trek: Defiant arc titled “Another Piece of the Action” began earlier this month. On the panel, writer Christopher Cantwell said it was inspired by the first Mission: Impossible film, with Worf and his crew being “disavowed” by Starfleet so they can track down some of the Federation’s most wanted off the books. This includes Hugh the Borg, Berlinghoff Rasmussen (who is hiding out on Talos IV), and a new character named Benny the Munch, a holdout from Sigma Iotia who “still believes in Chicagoland gangsterism” and is using tech from McCoy’s communicator to cause trouble, which includes teaming up with some Gorn.
Cover B for Star Trek: Defiant 310 coming in December
Prodigy comics?
As discussed at the panel, IDW has done tie-ins to all the original Star Trek shows that have streamed in Paramount+ except one. When asked if they had plans for a Star Trek: Prodigy comic, perhaps timed for the release of the second season in 2024 on the show’s new streaming home, Netflix, Antos deflected the question, saying, “I would love to. That is a question for people above my pay grade.” She encouraged the fans in the audience to let those people know if they wanted a Prodigy comic, resulting in loud applause. She indicated some of those decision-makers were in the room, so maybe Prodigy will finally get the IDW comics treatment.
Heather Antos (L) speaking at the IDW Star Trek comics panel at NYCC 2023 (Photo: TrekMovie.com)
More from NYCC
Check out all of our Star Trek Universe at New York Comic Con coverage including Alex Kurtzman’s Star Trek Universe update and his gratitude to fans who saved Star Trek: Prodigy, Mike McMahan talking Lower Decks season 4 finale and season 5 as well as the first part of our NYCC interview with McMahan. We also reported on the Kid Cudi x Star Trek reveal at NYCC.
Keep up with news about the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.
Don’t spend much time on the comics, but I’m pretty sure these sons of Trek don’t fit the definition of nepo babies. Jack Crusher, however, does in spades.
why not use the “space rhino” Tzenkethi design that STO established years ago? big literal dinosaurs is so generic and seems like Gorn ripoffs
Not to nitpick, but “space rhinos” make me envision the rhino-like Judoon of “Doctor Who” fame.
The First Splinter Tzenkethi are more alien.
Star Trek Comics are becomming more and more absurd… Jake in Starfleet? Is as belivable as Janeway having crush on Seven.
Why is that so unbelievable?
because they only talked about it a dozen times in the series about how Jake didn’t want to follow his father’s career path. Even in ‘The Visitor’ he got deep into science and worked with Starfleet but never entered.
One, these comics are not canon. Two, that’s just art of them in uniform, Nog is the only one that’s ever joined Starfleet. Three, the part I had issue with was them taking a shot at J/7. That was unnecessary.
Janeway didn’t have a crush?
“Is as belivable (sic) as Janeway having crush on Seven.”
So what you’re saying is you think Jake should be Commander, Starfleet. Got it.
It’s Jake and Alexander ending up in another alternate universe.
https://www.comicbook.com/startrek/amp/news/star-trek-sons-of-star-trek-series/
“Their paths become entangled when they find themselves in an alternate universe where they both follow more explicitly in their fathers’ footsteps, each joining Starfleet and serving aboard the U.S.S. Burton.”
What did Hugh do? He’s too cute for this.
Could we have some daughters, please?!
I would have liked to see Molly O’Brien or Demora Sulu … Sela’s being used in Defiant it seems. Certainly, more than Q’s son. On the other hand, he’s the one driving the alternate reality plot it assume.
the “abandoned by their fathers in one way or another” series…
Just read the description of the new “Defiant” arc….. JESUS ,and they accuse Lower Decks and Picard of nostalgia pandering!!!