In this review of Star Trek #30, Kahless’ path to redemption begins at the end of the universe, and ends at the start of Klingon history.
Star Trek #30
Written by: Jackson Lanzing, Collin Kelly
Art by: Travis Mercer
Main Cover: Ramón Rosanas
Variant Covers: Travis Mercer, Jake Bartok
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: March 12, 2025
This review contains spoilers
In Star Trek #30 warriors clash as the universe dies, and a former intergalactic villain is found worthy of killing another.
After the events of Star Trek Defiant #24, Kahless II returns to the remote Monastery on Boreth where he was originally cloned by Klingon Monks. He pleads with the Monks to undergo the Klingon Quv rite to restore their honor, but he is denied by them as they await the end of the universe (caused by the renegade-android-turned-mad-god, Lore).
As reality dissolves around him, Kahless II plunges into the distant past of the Klingon home world, Qo’Nos. Surrounded by brutality and suffering, Kahless II realizes that he has arrived on the day that the original Kahless vanquished the tyrant Molor, freed the Klingon people, and forged an honorable path forward for the Klingon Empire.
Kahless II forces his way into the throne room ready to fulfill his destiny but is shocked to see a familiar face: not Molor’s, but his own. The legend was wrong, Kahless I was the true tyrant, not the savior of the Klingon people. The pair clash in a flurry of blades, blood, dust and epithets.
Kahless II defeats his predecessor, thus making the legend partly true. Kahless II then melts down his old Bat’Leth and forges a new blade in a nearby volcano, fulfilling another part of the Kahless legend.
Star Trek #30 ends as the cosmic powered Benjamin Sisko appears to Kahless II, revealing that he has been prompting the clone along his perilous journey. Sisko imbues Kahless’ new blade with the power of the Bajoran Prophets, and sends the new Emissary on his way to kill the last remaining god in existence, Lore.
Analysis
Star Trek #30 propels Kahless II into the final phase of his new role as Emissary. This story arc (and Star Trek #30 in particular), features a number of full circle storytelling elements that impact important cultural and historical events in the Star Trek universe. Kahless II’s journey to Qo’Nos parallels Sisko’s own odyssey through Bajor’s ancient past in previous issues of this comic series.
Writers Colin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing (Thunderbolts), continue their stellar work on this series with exquisite plotting and clever dialogue (plus a good old-fashioned redemption story).
During their clash, Kahless II notes that the Klingon Quv rite, as originally deciphered, reflected Kahless I’s own vanity, pettiness and thirst for revenge, and that the true path forward for all Klingons involved sacrifice, valor and honor. This revelation was only recently discovered during Alexander Rozhenko’s own Quv rite trials in recent issues of Star Trek Defiant.
It’s fascinating to see Lanzing and Kelly pull plot elements from long established Trek cannon to craft their villains’ current motivations in this series. Both Lore and Kahless II are artificial creations who were rejected by their creators. Lore was Data’s predecessor, his “big brother” as it were, but Lore’s faulty emotion programming led to instability, patricide and ultimately to genocide.
Kahless II was cloned from the original Kahless’ DNA and assumed the throne as a figurehead. He was eventually corrupted by the lure of power, a nagging impostor syndrome, (and perhaps a flaw in the cloning process), which lead him to wage a bloody war to kill all gods (and a lot of innocent beings as well).
With artist Travis Mercer (Batman/Superman: World’s Finest), the series returns to the more familiar IDW Star Trek “house style” than the previous couple of issues (this fits as Kahless II’s journey is set more in the “real” world than Sisko’s was). Whether Kahless II is shown dwarfed by the massive Monastery on Boreth, running across giant, fracturing time crystals, waging bloody battle with his Bat’Leth, or expressing fear, rage or confusion, Mercer’s art delivers on all levels.
Lee Loughridge’s colors complement the shifts in time and location with brilliant yellow as reality fades, cool blue for Kahless II’s time travel journey, and warm orange and red for Qon’os’ past (and blood red skies).
Clayton Cowles’ lettering effortlessly shifts from dialogue test, to the vibrating sound effects that reverberate the impact of every blow, to the subtle whisper of an ancient scroll unravelling.
Final Thoughts
Star Trek #30 maintains the high quality of story, art and character development the series is known for, all while setting up the eagerly anticipated “Lore War” event.
