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Star Trek: Day of Blood

Star Trek: Day of Blood

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Blood will flow in this first-ever Federation crossover event which pulls from the ongoing Star Trek space saga and the Defiant spin off graphic novel series!

As emperor of the Klingon Empire, Kahless II has consolidated power, raided ancient tombs and secret bunkers, taken the power of gods for himself, stolen the Bajoran Orb of Destruction, and has begun a slaughter across the stars.

But this genocide of gods was just the beginning. For with the power he has stolen, Kahless is about to declare war on all those who do not follow the Red Path. To prevent genocide unlike any since the ancient days of Qo’noS, the crew of icons led by the emissary known as Benjamin Sisko ( Star Trek ongoing series) and the renegades who follow a desperate and violent Worf (Star Defiant) must unite for a common cause. Only they can hope to stop the DAY OF BLOOD.

Join creators Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly ( Captain America and Guardians of the Galaxy ), Christopher Cantwell ( Namor and Star Obi-Wan ), and Ramon Rosanas ( Star Trek, Marvel’s Star Wars, and The Astonishing Ant-Man ) in this monumental crossover event of epic proportions.

Collects Star Trek Day of Blood, Star Trek Day of Blood–Shaxs' Best Day, Star Trek 2023 Free Comic Book Day issue, Star Trek issues #11–12, and Star Defiant issues #6–7.

200 pages, Hardcover

First published March 13, 2024

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Jackson Lanzing

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
Profile Image for Robert.
2,190 reviews148 followers
October 15, 2024
A fun Trek adventure for fan-favourite characters from a number of different shows and eras that puts Sisko and Co. through the ringer to take on the demented clone of Kahless in order to save The Federation / The Klingon Empire / All of Objective Reality? (It's a little hazy) with some very decent line art that ensures the characters look naturally like the actors who portrayed them and not just traced screen shots.


Oh yeah there's a Lower Decks-style coda that was tolerably amusing, while not really my cuppa (I confess I haven't seen the show)
Profile Image for Kieran McAndrew.
3,065 reviews20 followers
March 13, 2024
Star Trek: Day of Blood

Kahless, the clone of the first emperor of the Klingons, has launched a jihad to destroy all false gods. Sisko and Worf must set aside their differences to prevent a galactic bloodbath.

The artwork is astounding and there are plenty of heart rending scenes in this intricately plotted story which deals with the consequences of Sisko's return from the Celestial Temple.

This collection works well, but is perhaps unnecessary if you are already collecting IDW's ongoing volumes.
Profile Image for Monita Roy Mohan.
862 reviews16 followers
August 5, 2024
A riveting book. So exciting and interesting. A lot of the art was closer to the likenesses of the actor than the previous one. I like that the younger lot keep yelling at the old guard.

I didn’t like that Tom is so unsure of how good a father he is. I think the whole point of Voyager was to show that while he liked his silly fun, he was still very caring or at least would be for his child.

Really enjoyed this conclusion.
Profile Image for Rob Vitagliano.
533 reviews1 follower
October 25, 2023
I read this story in individual issues.

Free Comic Book Day 2023 - The Klingon half of this book is pretty intense, with a look at what this "Day of Blood" may entail, and it doesn't look cozy for anyone. I enjoyed seeing a new class of ship (some kind of Miranda variant, the USS Santa Cruz) and a new crew for a short time. The second half is an excerpt from the first Lower Decks issue. It's amusing and well done enough to follow along but it doesn't have much substance. I might check out the run at some point, but I won't be running to the store to get it. This "Day of Blood" series, however…



Day of Blood #1 - This was a solid, fun, start-to-finish romp that lays down the groundwork of what should be a great crossover. The tension amongst members of the two crews is juxtaposed with a Klingon civilization-wide mutiny. 

I also enjoyed the new Klingon ships, basically a Bird Of Prey with the old D-7 bridge. 

I wish the issue had been longer and I really hope Martok makes it out. I didn't think this was the best comic I've ever read, but this whole series has actually been more fun to read than it should be. One more note, there's a quick moment with Spock that was probably my favorite of this entire run so far, and I think long time Trek fans will want to cheer. 


Part 2 - Defiant #6 - There's a bit to unpack in this one, and it left all sorts of tastes in my mouth. I have to be honest, I'm not a big fan of the conflict between some of the characters. I know that conflict and tension creates drama, and I certainly get it between Data and Lore, and even Crusher and Sela (Crusher has a mic drop moment on Sela in this one) but I don't really understand why the writers are playing Worf and Sisko off of each other. I understand the source of the conflict, that Sisko saw the bigger picture when it came to potentially eliminating Kahless II, and Worf wasn't willing to sacrifice his son to accomplish that. I get it. I just feel like the bickering between these two is already getting old and is only serving to keep the stories separate, and not feeling like the crossover they're supposed to be. I also don't really understand the point of Paris and Torres fighting. I know it's nothing new for them, but for some reason it doesn't feel right. This whole story isn't supposed to be all touchy feely good and happy, and I get that, but somehow all this bickering between main characters isn't doing it for me. 


Spock and Scotty's reunion isn't the emotional moment I wanted it to be. It feels sort of ho hum, after the brilliant moment in the last issue when Spock decides to join his old shipmate, a moment I considered my favorite in this entire run so far. 


Overall, I wasn't thrilled with this issue. HOWEVER, there is a full page log right at the very end, with a callback to one of the best Trek movies, that makes this entire issue worth reading by itself. 


Star Trek # 11 - NOW we're talking. I was hoping this issue would live up to the cover that I saw back when I pulled this comic online a month or two ago. The cover A by Malachi Ward has to be my favorite in this whole run. The comic more than lived up to it. From start to finish, I thought this was a brilliant issue, possibly my favorite in this entire new Trek run so far. The first panel shows a great view of the grounded Defiant and segues to B'Elanna and Paris actually working together, not fighting. The next is a full two page spread of Qo'Nos city engulfed in battle, and it's almost breathtaking in its scope. Next you have Lily Sato showing that she's no pushover, then another absolute crushing mic drop on Sela from Crusher, then Sela finally being a badass, a neat interaction with Data and Lore, then a brilliant two page layout of the USS Theseus, Spock taking the captains chair in a moment that actually feels worthy, Shaxs being a badass (and a setup for his own spinoff mission) and finally, a hell of a cliffhanger with a showdown any reader that was paying attention had to see coming. The art, the dialogue, everything about this issue was great. 5 stars, A+. Can't wait for more. 


Defiant #7 - This penultimate chapter is mostly about the battle between Worf and Alexander, something I'm surprised hasn't really happened in Star Trek up to this point. The rest of the crew continues to evade attackers and finally work together instead of bickering. The art from Angel Unzueta continues to be some of my favorite of Star Trek and possibly all comics I'm reading right now. The ending is slightly predictable but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking. Definitely can't wait for the concluding chapter of this saga. 

Shax's Best Day: This is a spinoff covering events that take place during Star Trek #11, and it's basically just Shaxs beating Klingons to a pulp for 30 pages or so. It's fun, it has some funny moments, and there's plenty of action throughout. Was it necessary? No. Probably not even a little. It could have been two or three panels in one of the other books and that would have sufficed, but it was still fun to see a character kick so much ass for so long.

Star Trek #12 - I have to be honest, I was pretty underwhelmed by this ending. It was neat to see how each member of the two crews played a role in bringing this conflict to a close, and I was really glad to see a Sisko and Worf moment at the end, and of course it leaves the story open for more, but it felt like the ending of the conflict was just... too simple. Too quick, maybe? For such a wide ranging crisis, it felt like it was tied up too quickly. I might have to read it again, but I was definitely expecting more.

Overall, this was a fun and engaging read as a story overall, but I wish the ending had been better.
Profile Image for Daniel.
2,781 reviews44 followers
June 1, 2024
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 4.0 of 5

Kahless II is the emperor of the Klingon empire and the power has completely corrupted him. He has raided ancient tombs, stolen the Bajoran Orb of Destruction, and taken the power of gods unto himself. He's begun a genocide campaign across the galaxies but other races aren't just lying around waiting to be slaughtered. Some of the Federation's elite come together to challenge Kahless. But Kahless has his own strong army (willing or not) including Alexander, Worf's son.

There are many different 'fronts' to the war with Kahless and the elite Federation forces need careful coordination, and each squad must achieve their individual goal if there's any possible chance of success.

For the most part, I really liked this graphic novel.

First, it's an all-star cast of characters. Spock and Scotty, Data and Lore, Sela and Ro, Worf and Sisko, B'Elanaa and Tom, and more. The story cuts back and forth between the different groups (they've teamed up to do specific jobs) and I don't always get the feeling that their characters are consistent with what we've seen of them on television, but given the heightened threat for the story arc, it's hard to say for sure. My least favorites here were B'Elanna and Tom and my favorites were Scotty and Spock, but that might be more an indicator of my viewing preferences.

The Alexander/Sisko/Kahless/Worf arc is a little over the top, but it's the part that's supposed to resonate because of the family dilemma.

The art is fairly standard - it's okay. There are panels where people are not particularly recognizable, but we know who they are because because of the story and previous panels where they looked more familiar.

I really liked the inclusion of Lower Decks' Shax. His personality is perfect for the story and writers Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly, and Christopher Cantwell do a really nice job with him.

The graphic novel collects a number of specific comic issues which include a crossover of different titles - including a special free comic that was issued for Free Comic Day. This last one focuses on Shax and is drawn in the style of Star Trek: Lower Decks animation. This is clever and a bit fun, but it really isn't needed for the story.
I'm a Star Trek fan but I'm not likely to buy a bunch of different comic runs, so I appreciate the collecting of stories into the graphic novel.

Looking for a good book? Star Trek: Day of Blood is a graphic novel of epic scope feature characters from all across the Trek universes, well-written and full of action.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Renato.
401 reviews6 followers
September 21, 2025
Reviewer's Note - Please take note of the reading order at the bottom of this review. Because we are talking about comics here bound into larger volumes with crossovers, you cannot simply follow the volume numbers. I had the conclusion of this series spoiled for me by going to Star Trek, Vol. 3: Glass and Bone first not knowing that Defiant and the conclusion crossover were out there. It was annoying and sucky for me, but it does not to have to be for you.

Day of Blood is a crossover event between the current ST IDW run and the ST Defiant runs, which means double the nostaligic characters crammed into one place. While I was worried that this would cheapen the storytelling experience, it ended up being a mostly decent plot with only a modicum of eyerolling.

Kahless II (the clone of the first emperor of the Klingons) has launched a holy war against all gods (or the members of all Type 3 Civilizations - the Q, the Prophets the Metrons etc). He has proven that this could be done with the Orb Of Destruction (after killing immortal Gary Mitchell) and he has returned to Qo'Nos to increase his army and destroy all who defy him. He also has brainwashed other species to his will (humans, Cardassians, Romulans) for this Jihad.

The stakes are huge and there are repercussions after this volume that will carry over into future storylines.

This volume highlights also why Klingon's as a whole are just bloody awesome (reiterating something we knew from Klingon marriages):
description
As well providing 30+ year old callbacks in the form of clapbacks from Martok to Kahless


Finally, this volume also contains the Shaxs' Best Day one-off by Ryan North, all totally done in the Lower Decks art style. Friends, this whole crazy arc is worth the read if you get to conclude it with the Shaxs' one off - it is so good!

Star Trek/Star Trek Defiant Crossover Reading Order
Star Trek Volume 1: Godshock
Star Trek Volume 2: The Red Path
Star Trek Defiant Volume 1
Day of Blood
Star Trek Volume 3: Glass and Bone
Star Trek Volume 4: Pleroma
Star Trek Volume 5: When the Walls Fell
Star Trek Defiant Volume 2: Another Piece of the Action
Star Trek Defiant Volume 3: Hell Is Only A Word
Star Trek Defiant Volume 4: The Stars of Home
Star Trek: Lore War
Profile Image for Chris Lemmerman.
Author 7 books123 followers
March 8, 2024
The Theseus and The Defiant head for the Klingon homeworld to stop the clone of an ancient Klingon Emperor from unleashing hell across the galaxy in the first big Star Trek crossover that both series have been building towards.

I was hopeful that this would be good, and I was pleasantly surprised. The three writers keep everything moving without losing the voices of their individual titles, and they work well together on the big one-shot that opens everything up too, which shows that they're all on the same page. The repercussions from this crossover will affect both titles as well, so even though the main plot began in Star Trek, Defiant definitely has a reason to get involved.

Also included here is Shax's Best Day, which is hilarious, though the tonal dissonance compared to the rest of the crossover might taint it a little when held up against the rest of the collection.

Crossover success! Well done IDW.
Profile Image for Ross.
1,543 reviews
December 20, 2024
Reads like a solid episode from the later years of 'DS9'...

Worf and Spock join back up Sisko and Doctor Crusher (oversimplified that, really) to stop Kahless and his mad rush to attack all the godlike beings in the universe. The pacing, battles, and dialogue all fall in line with how episodes of the show, 'Deep Space Nine' were written out. Plots get explained away and things are left juuuuuuuuust open enough for them to use them in the future.

It's also amusing as heck to see Lieutenant Shaxs from 'Lower Decks' get his own one-shot written and drawn in the style of the animated show.
========
You know how Buffy: The Vampire Slayer had comics that continued the storylines from TV into a comic book full season? This reads much the same. Everything in this book screams, "Season 8". IF you ever wanted to see what happened to the DS9 and Voyager after the ends of their shows, then give this a chance. I don't think you'll be too disappointed.
Profile Image for Ben A.
503 reviews9 followers
November 5, 2023
Star Trek: Day of Blood collects the entire 5-part crossover, the Shaxs' Best Day one-shot and the FCBD Issue. The story brings together both crews from the two ongoing Star Trek series and brings several of the plot points to a conclusion. It was a fun story, but I think that five parts was likely one part too few, as I would like to have seen more interaction between some of the characters as well as a little bit more resolution to some of the storyline. Feeding back into the ongoing stories may make this ending a little better in the future.
 
Special Thanks to IDW Publishing and Edelweiss Plus for the digital ARC. This was given to me for an honest review.
Profile Image for John Shaw.
1,204 reviews13 followers
November 20, 2023
A story arc from with in two of
IDWs ongoing comic series.
As before with the initial premier
story, despite the appeal of the
fan favorite stunt casting, the story just falls flat.

We see our dream team gathered from
The Original Series - Scotty
Next Generation - Dr. Crusher and Data
Deep Space Nine - Capt. Sisco and Worf
Voyager - Tom Paris

Fighting the Mad Emperor Kahless as he
sets to "kill all Gods"
and remake the Klingon Empire in his new
Bloody Image.

But, in the most boring and uninteresting way possible.

I knew better but was hopeful.
I should learn.
Profile Image for Chris.
774 reviews13 followers
June 4, 2024
As far as crossovers go, this is a pretty solid one. It helps that it's only crossing over two books which are already pretty closely integrated.

As with the rest of the series I enjoy seeing various characters from different series interacting, but I wish there was a little more time devoted to the new characters.

I wish there'd been more time devoted to all of the characters in the lead up to this crossover, as this series jumped immediately into a God-killing major story arc. I hope that future issues have a few one-off stand-alone episodes to help flesh out everyone.

475 reviews6 followers
March 17, 2024
On the one hand, the main story would be an average episode of the TV show, but it's populated by all your favorite Star Trek action figures in a bit of over indulgent fan service.

On the other hand, Shaxs Best Day is so wonderful it almost makes up for it.

Overall, it's fine. I guess if you are invested in this series it would be better but I'm just here for North and Charm. The rest was okay.
Profile Image for Amy Tudor.
133 reviews4 followers
March 31, 2024
This was a good story which brought together favourites from TOS, TNG, DS9 and Voy as well as original characters we met in earlier comics. The story was tense and action packed and every character worked to help push and resolve the story. It was a bit too fight heavy for my preferences but I am intrigued by the set up for future storylines. And I am sad for Alexander. Would've been nice to have a better resolution between him and Worf.
Bonus points for Tom and B'Elanna - I adore them :)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Zane Brumley.
56 reviews
November 17, 2024
What a riveting Star Trek adventure that combines the ongoing Star Trek comic line with the Defiant spinoff. There's action, there's drama, and there's heart - what more could I ask for? The mix of cast memebers from multiple eras of Star Trek gets you hooked, but the substantial narrative and multiple character arcs keep you coming back. IDW has knocked it out of the quadrant with Day of Blood, and I can't wait to see where the story takes us next.
Profile Image for Joel Jorden.
Author 10 books2 followers
February 19, 2025
The exciting culmination of a year-long story arc between the Star Trek and Star Trek Defiant titles, reuniting Captain Sisko and Captain Worf aboard the USS Theseus and USS Defiant, all in a desperate gambit to prevent the mad clone Emperor Kahless II in his bloodsoaked coup against the Klingon homeworld.

If I could, I'd give the volume a sixth star just on the strengths of the Lt. Shax issue alone. ;-)
Profile Image for Chad.
10.3k reviews1,060 followers
April 4, 2024
A solid crossover of IDW's ongoing Star Trek All-Stars comics. A faction of the Klingons are trying to take over the empire and killing everyone with everyone else stuck on Qo'noS. Not as much happens as I would have expected. It's mainly a lot of running around. Still it was fine. That Lower Decks issue was unnecessary but pretty funny.
Profile Image for Ed.
746 reviews13 followers
October 11, 2023
Overall, a very fun story that is more operatic than Trek usually is. There’s lots of novel character pairings and while it’s fan service it’s well done fan service.
Profile Image for Daniel Butcher.
2,939 reviews2 followers
April 3, 2024
3.75

The event is a fairly typical comic crossover event that is good. But the Shax one -shot pushed it to a 4.
Profile Image for Louis Skye.
652 reviews8 followers
April 21, 2024
Thoroughly enjoyed this series! Fantastic character moments, great action scenes, very suspenseful. Fab art. Loved every second.
Profile Image for Sunil Kumar.
Author 3 books4 followers
Read
June 27, 2024
One of the most boring Trek comics I've ever read, and I am a great fan.

That about sums it up
Profile Image for Andrea.
573 reviews6 followers
July 15, 2024
I’m really enjoying these books. Shax is fantastic.
398 reviews1 follower
February 21, 2025
Awesome read and funny, too!

I am so glad and happy to discover this comic book that's exciting to read. The artwork is fantastic hopefully there will be more like it. A new fan!
Profile Image for Steven Shinder.
Author 5 books20 followers
July 20, 2025
Sisko and Worf were written pretty well in this. Was also surprised to see Shaxs in the Lower Decks style again.
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