Star Trek comics updates: IDW releases resume from June

IDW have released their latest solicitations, for August release, with just one new Star Trek title on the cards. Meanwhile regular releases are set to resume from June (following the recent Covid induced pause), with rescheduling of already announced titles filling up the schedules towards the end of the year already. Continue below for an update on all IDW's Star Trek series.

So first up, let's check out the newly announced book. The final issue in the latest DS9 miniseries, Too Long a Sacrifice has officially been announced. Issue four continues with the same creative team of writers Scott and David Tipton, and artist Greg Scott. Here's the blurb:

Everyone is a suspect on a space station one murder away from plunging into total chaos. Constable Odo has a suspect in his sights, but there's one final piece to this dark puzzle that will change everything he thought he knew-not to mention life on Deep Space Nine-forever. Don't miss the shocking conclusion to this space noir from David & Scott Tipton (Star Trek: Mirror Broken, Star Trek: The Q Conflict) and Greg Scott (Gotham Central, The X-Files)!

The book will be available in three covers, either the A cover by Ricardo Drumond, a B photo cover, or a retail incentive by J.K Woodward. So far only the photo cover has been released.

I suspect an August release for this issue might slip. IDW and Previews are currently listing different release dates for some issues, but both agree the series will now start in July. Which at a monthly release would see the series run from July to October. Here are the dates currently in circulation:

• Too Long a Sacrifice #1 - IDW July - Previews 15th July
• Too Long a Sacrifice #2 - IDW August - Previews 16th September
• Too Long a Sacrifice #3 - IDW no listing - Previews 24th June
• Too Long a Sacrifice #4 - IDW August - Previews 26th August

I think it's fair to say we should expect some updates to these release schedules still!

Meanwhile Amazon's listing for the omnibus for the series has been updated: They've switched cover art, with Ricardo Drumond's cover art for issue one now being used. This is currently still expected to arrived in December.

In other news from the series, several of the creators from the series recently took part in a WonderCon virtual panel on Star Trek comics, which is up on YouTube. This discussion included some chat about Too Long a Season, including a fun little slideshow from JK Woodward where he showed some of his cover art for the series. That including this amazing mock-up of an all out pulp novel version of his issue two cover. Somewhat toned down, this is what prompted the switch the the cool pulp style cover treatment the series is now using:

Woodward also shared some unused concepts. Here are other possibilities for issue one:

And an alternate issue two design:

Meanwhile in the 23rd century... There are no new issues for the TOS Year Five series in these latest solicitations, and with the shape of releases forming for this series, I expect we won't see new issues announced for a little while yet. IDW and Previews are again not listing the same dates for issues at the moment, but it seems clear the series will resume in June on a monthly basis, with already announced issues taking us up to October.

• Year Five #11 - IDW June - Previews 3rd June
• Year Five #12 - IDW July - Previews 1st July
• Year Five #13 - IDW August - Previews 24th June
• Year Five #14 - IDW no listing - Previews 8th July
• Year Five #15 - IDW no listing - Previews 7th October

Writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly also took part in that WonderCon virtual panel and revealed some details of what is to come, including the shifting focus of the Year Five series as it enters its second year:

The first year of the comics, up to issue twelve, is coming back to the Federation. And then the second half of the series, from thirteen to twenty-five, is going to be entirely inside the Federation, and we're going to get a chance to go to Andoria, and Tellar, and Proxima, and Earth, and really see these things through the lens of the original series, which we never got a chance to do.

Brandon Easton meanwhile revealed his forthcoming storylines in the series will explore Carol and David Marcus, and later a storyline for Spock. Check out the whole panel for lots of Star Trek comics chat and behind the scenes insights.

One further little update from the series comes from colourist Charlie Kirchoff, who shared the cover art for issue fourteen, sans titles, on Twitter:

There are a few more releases also affected by shifting schedules:

• Hell's Mirror, the TOS mirror universe one-shot featuring Khan is now listed by Previews for December release. IDW still have it down in it's original March slot.
• Debt of Honor, the reprint of the classic DC TOS movie era graphic novel, is still on course for its original June release according to Previews.
• The Picard: Countdown omnibus has been pushed back slightly, now listed for August release, instead of June.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation: Mirror Universe Collection, a mega omnibus of all IDW's recent TNG mirror universe miniseries has been moved from this November to March 2021.

Finally, something to brighten up your day: Artist Derek Charm has shared on Twitter some of his beautiful artwork from the Kelvin timeline Starfleet Academy series. He notes:

Came across a bunch of backgrounds from our Starfleet Academy series from 2017. It was my first *serious* comic and I thought it would be fun to fully render the backgrounds in every panel. It never happened again lol

Order links for mentioned books:

DS9: Too Long a Sacrifice, by David and Scott Tipton, and artist Greg Scott.

#1: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#2: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#3: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
Omnibus: Bookshop, Amazon, Barnes of Noble.

TOS: Year Five, by Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly (#11, #12, #13, #14) and Jody Houser (#15), and artists Stephen Thompson (#11, #12), Angel Hernandez (#13, #14), and Silvia Califano (#15).

#11: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#12: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#13: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#14: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.
#15: Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.

TOS: Hell's Mirror, by J.M. DeMatteis, and artist Matthew Dow Smith.

Things from Another World, Forbidden Planet, Amazon.

TOS: Debt of Honor, by Chris Claremont. and artist Adam Hughes.

Things From Another World, Forbidden Planet.

Picard: Countdown omnibus, by Mike Johnson and Kirsten Beyer, and artist: Angel Hernandez.

Bookshop, Amazon, Things From Another World, Barnes and Noble, Forbidden Planet.

TNG: Mirror Universe Collection, by Scott and David Tipton, and artists JK Woodward, Angel Hernandez, and Carlos Nieto.

Bookshop, Amazon, Barnes and Noble.

Kelvin: Starfleet Academy, by Mike Johnson and Ryan Parrott, and artist Derek Charm.

Bookshop, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, iTunes.

To keep track of all the latest Star Trek comic releases, hit the comics button on my 2020 schedule page. You can also find reading lists for several Star Trek comic series on my Trek Collective Lists site.