Star Trek has been a refreshing comics experience since Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly took over the property at IDW, and now their first crossover event starts today. Christopher Cantwell headlines writing “Day of Blood” with Lanzing and Kelly and artist Ramon Rosanas in a story that has Klingons rising up now that they have the power to kill gods. Kahless leads the charge for them, who some see as a pretender, while others see him as the rightful ruler. Sounds like a problem only Federation heroes can resolve.
With a god-killer weapon in enemies hands, Worf angry his son has taken Kahless’ side, and Sisko returned from a god realm himself, many elements are converging in this first issue. That’s never more apparent than in a key scene where characters from the Star Trek comics series and the Star Trek: Defiant series meet since Worf parted ways from Sikso’s crew. This scene helps remind us how this new era for Star Trek comics is very good at character writing. One might say it’s the core of everything. Data sounds like himself and reacts to Lore, as you might hope from good writing, and there are multiple pairings to enjoy in this key scene.
This series is proof that throwing together different Star Trek eras together makes a lot of sense. With Spock interacting with characters, Worf acting as a resident grump, and the colorful nature of new characters, there’s a lot to enjoy. Beverly Crusher is another character that shines in one scene. These character moments are the meat and potatoes of this issue.
The opening page.
Credit: IDW
Before we get there, the captions of Sisko help catch us up at the start of this issue and establish where we’re at with the enemy and the U.S.S. Theseus. That includes Scotty taking over as interim captain, a nice wrinkle to contemplate as the story continues in future chapters.
Some key conflicts are helpfully drudged up to remind folks where folks’ heads are at. That includes Sisko and Worf being at odds and Laren and Shaxs butting heads almost as if they are family.
There’s a tense rush to reach Kahless in the final pages, although aside from this, most of this issue is quiet on the action and big reveals. Kahless can start his “Day of Blood,” and most characters wait and listen. Rosanas gets to showcase the U.S.S. Theseus in all its splendor in a killer double-page splash, but his talents are mostly focused on character acting and spot-on character likenesses. The long and the short of it is that the stakes feel high, but not much happens outside of character work in this issue.
Star Trek: Day of Blood #1 is all about the conflict between heroes and villains, fathers and sons, and everything in between. The art is as good as it gets regarding likenesses with licensed properties, and the character writing is even better. For a crossover event — “event” being the key word — this issue doesn’t go quite as hard and big as I’d have hoped, but it sets up the narrative expertly.
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