The return of Captain James T. Kirk to Star Trek‘s future has officially changed history, entrusting the resurrected legend to save the entire Federation. Now as an added bonus, IDW has revealed Kirk in all his glory, donning a brand new Starfleet uniform that’s a perfect fit for William Shatner’s original 1966 TV series.
After 59 Years, Captain Kirk Finally Gets His Own Retro Red Starfleet Uniform
The Resurrected Captain Kirk Debuts New Red Uniform in February 2026
The new storylines and cover art coming to the Trek line have been revealed (courtesy of CBR) including the first look at a bold transformation coming for Captain James T. Kirk. After more than half a century, Captain Kirk finally dons the iconic captain’s red, in the bold retro uniforms created for The Last Starship by artist Adrián Bonilla.
The striking color scheme is just the first dramatic shift to notice, officially welcoming the not-quite-cloned, not-quite-reanimated Captain Kirk into the series’ new age of Starfleet. But as writers Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing previously explained, the new uniforms go much deeper than fans might asume:
Collin Kelly: “Inspired by the white uniforms from Search for Spock and some of the “retro” aesthetics of the original series, Adrian really wanted to lean in on something hyper clean, but still visually striking and unmistakably Star Trek–we think he hit it out of the park.”
Jackson Lanzing: “The uniforms are also loaded with meaning. We’re also having quite a lot of fun with the colors – red command, yellow ops, blue science, and a particularly odd take on medical. Numbers of stripes have rank significance, even our combadge has a special detail. As longtime nerds for this particular thing, it’s been really validating and fun to craft a whole new system for The Last Starship.”
Fans can witness the debut of Kirk’s new threads when Star Trek: The Last Starship #5 arrives on February 18, 2026. A historic issue, for any fan familiar with the strange reason William Shatner never wore the now-iconic red command uniform in Star Trek: The Original Series.
Captain Kirk’s Original Gold & Green Uniform Colors Are Still A Mystery
The New Comic Art Finally Addresses Almost 60 Years of Color Confusion
Before anyone assumes the uniform is related to the doomed fate of Star Trek‘s infamous ‘redshirts,’ the truth is actually much stranger. In the first preview images of Captain Kirk officially waking up in Trek‘s future, he’s only worn a white medical tunic. But despite modern assumptions, when Kirk decides to put on a full uniform, his instinct will be to reach for gold (or yellow).
The explanation is an intensely strange one, since Captain Kirk’s original gold uniform was a total mistake, thanks to the material and lighting used in production of Star Trek: The Original Series (1966). Intended to be lime green in tone, the actual result was soon adopted as canon, leading other command officers of this era to also wear gold (seen in Discovery, Strange New Worlds, etc.).
Without official explanation, it seems red was ruled a better looking color following the film adaptations, becoming the now iconic mark of command crew from Star Trek: The Next Generation forward (swapping spots with gold). And The Last Starship looks to play on this notion a bit, showing Kirk in a yellow/gold uniform in cover art for coming issues.
Come Issue #5 this February, that will finally change. Of course, what twists or turns lead to Kirk’s change of uniform, and what events bring him into the captain’s chair, remain a mystery. So even if the return of Captain Kirk is controversial to some, there’s no denying this story is one fans will need be watching closely.
Star Trek: The Last Starship #1 is available now from IDW Publishing.
- Created by
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Gene Roddenberry
- First Film
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Star Trek: The Motion Picture
- First TV Show
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Star Trek: The Original Series
- First Episode Air Date
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September 8, 1966
- Cast
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William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, George Takei, Nichelle Nichols, Deforest Kelley, James Doohan, Walter Koenig, Jonathan Frakes, Patrick Stewart, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, Gates McFadden, Brent Spiner, LeVar Burton, Wil Wheaton, Avery Brooks, Nana Visitor, Rene Auberjonois, Alexander Siddig, Cirroc Lofton, Armin Shimerman, Colm Meaney, Terry Farrell, Kate Mulgrew, Robert Beltran, Roxann Dawson, Jeri Ryan, Robert Duncan McNeill, Robert Picardo, Ethan Phillips, Garrett Wang, Jolene Blalock, Connor Trinneer, Dominic Keating, Scott Bakula, Linda Park, John Billingsley, Anthony Montgomery, Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Simon Pegg, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, John Cho, Chris Hemsworth, Benedict Cumberbatch, Anton Yelchin, Idris Elba, Sonequa Martin-Green, Mary Wiseman, Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Wilson Cruz, Oyin Oladejo, Emily Coutts, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Anson Mount, Ethan Peck, Rebecca Romijn, Michelle Yeoh
- TV Show(s)
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Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Short Treks, Star Trek: Picard, Star Trek Lower Decks, Star Trek: Prodigy, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
Star Trek is one of pop culture’s biggest multimedia franchises, spanning multiple movies, TV shows, books, comics, video games, and various other media. The franchise was created by Gene Roddenberry and started with the 1960s TV series starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy. Over the decades, several equally popular series have come out since as Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Discovery.