Star Trek has a host of great comics to put on your Summer Reading List.
Star Trek is known for its television shows, movies, action figures, books, and even tabletop games. What fans sometimes overlook however are the comic books that feature Star Trek. We’ve been covering the IDW run of current comics, and some of them are worth your time.
For the sake of this list, we’re excluding any comic released in 2021 or 2022 just because that’s kinda counterintuitive. We’re looking at books that many fans may have missed out on or simply forgot about.
We’re mostly looking at comics with an arc of several books or more. That doesn’t mean there won’t be one or two single-story books on this list though. This is about the stories being told and as long as it’s completed, it can show up here. Also, this isn’t about the comic series as a whole, just stories from any line of comics that we liked.
Also, no crossovers. Star Trek has crossed over with The Green Lanterns, Doctor Who, the X-Men, the Planet of the Apes, and more. Some of them are great but that’s an entirely different list.
Now, this isn’t a complete list of books you should read, just the 10 we think you should start with. There are plenty of good comics to check out, and if you’re mad your favorite isn’t on this list, tell us which ones you’d include in the comments.
Star Trek: Crew (2009)
Written by John Byrne
Illustrated by John Byrne
The book follows a young Una Chin-Riley (aka Number One) as she goes through her paces as a young member of Starfleet.
Mirror Broken (2018) Through The Mirror (2018) Terra Incognita (2019)
Written by David Tipton & Scott Tipton
Illustrated by J.K. Woodward (Mirror Broken/Through the Mirror) and Stephen Thompson (Terra Incognita)
The three series tell a complete story so all three are required reading. Since the Next Generation crew never got their mirror version episode, these three arcs serve to tell that story.
The Q Conflict (2019)
Written by David Tipton & Scott Tipton
Illustrated by David Messina (#1-3, #5-6), Elisabetta D’Amico (#1-6), Carola Borelli (#2-3, #5), Silvia Califano (#4), Giorgio Spalletta (#6)
The greatest captains of the television series, James T. Kirk, Jean-Luc Picard, Kathryn Janeway, and Benjamin Sisko have to compete with one another in order to save Earth.
The Last Generation (2008-2009)
Written by Andrew Steven Harris
Illustrated by Gordon Purcell
Set in an alternate timeline, the Federation is in ruins after James T. Kirk failed during the events of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and now Earth is under Klingon rule. Data knows things are amiss, Worf is a warlord and this book is chaotic fun.
Star Trek: Year Four (2007-2008)
Written by David Tischman
Illustrated by Steve Conley, Gordon Purcell & Rob, and Joe Sharp
Star Trek: The Original Series saw its characters launched as part of a five-year mission, and this is year four of that mission.
The Worst of Both Worlds (1993)
A what-if that features Jean-Luc Picard having never been rescued from the Borg and the results are not good.
The Final Voyage (1986)
Written by Mike Bar
Illustrated by: Dan Jurgens
The crew of the original series is finally done with their five-year mission but the Klingons have taken over Talos IV, so the mission isn’t quite over just yet.
The Trial Of James T. Kirk (1989-1990)
Written by Peter David
Illustrated by James W. Fry and Arne Star
A bounty is played on James Kirk’s life and is eventually captured by the Klingons to be set on trial in an attempt to keep intergalactic peace.
Khan – Ruling in Hell (2010-2011)
Written by Scott and David Tipton
Illustrated by Fabio Mantovani
Ever wanted to know what Khan Noonien Singh got up to on Ceti Alpha V before everything went awry? Well, now you can.
Star Trek: Boldly Go (2016)
Written by Mike Johnson
Illustrated by Tony Shasteen
Set between the events of Star Trek: Beyond and before the final scene of the film, Boldy Go features an alternate universe version of the Kelvin cast of Trek films in more serialized adventures.