Advance Review — Cantwell Shows Off His Storytelling Prowess In ‘Star Trek: Red Shirts’ #3

The body count may have slowed down slightly in Star Trek: Red Shirts #3, but the tension keeps building throughout the issue.

Trapped on an alien world, the team of red shirts — also known as “expendables” — is pursuing unknown adversaries who have stolen ship designs. Writer Christopher Cantwell spends nearly the entire issue with a chase up an antenna array. It may not sound like a compelling issue, but Cantwell makes it a strong read.

Three of the Starfleet security officers are pursuing the thieves up the array while a sniper on the ground tries to pick them off. The good guys have a support team on the ground as well, but taking the sniper out requires a sacrifice, which is a major theme in this chapter.

As Catwell acknowledges, security knows they will make the ultimate sacrifice during their careers, unlike those in the gold and blue tunics. That said, the body count in this issue is remarkably low, especially compared to the previous installment.

The continuing issue with this limited series is we know none of these characters from previous iterations of Star Trek. And few stand out as all that memorable, especially when we know their lives could be over on the next page. Still, you never want to see the bad guys killed. Well, hardly ever.

Artist Megan Levens does a good job of ratcheting up the action. We can see the terror on the officers’ faces as they believe that death is near. There’s also a particularly gnarly death involving a transporter accident. Another death she illustrates, though, is confusing. Even after multiple reads, it’s difficult to understand what’s happening. Given the low death toll here, it stands out as a significant problem.

By the end of this issue, a new enemy is introduced, which should ratchet up the tension even more for the future.

Star Trek: Red Shirts #3 will be available in comic book stores and digital platforms October 1st from IDW.