By Welles Hartley, Mick Harrison, Douglas Wheatley & Ronda Pattison (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN13: 978-1-84576-470-8
The story begins in the aftermath of the evil Palpatine’s victory. Now Emperor, he begins to consolidate his power, both over the galaxy and more importantly over his new disciple Darth Vader. The new Sith Lord is still troubled by guilt and the emotions of his former life as Jedi Anakin Skywalker.
On New Plympto Jedi Master Dass Jennir has survived by joining forces with the Nosaurian Rebels he was fighting before the Old Republic’s Clone Warriors turned on all users of the Force. When the unstoppable Stormtroopers slaughter all the Rebel males and enslave the females and children, Jennir and a single survivor join a motley crew of merchants and attempt to rescue them, but the lengths to which they must go soon have the Jedi on the brink of abandoning his beliefs. And all the while Vader obeys orders and his own doubts begin to fade…
This dark and portentous drama set in the period immediately following the birth of the Empire examines the rise of evil throughout the galaxy but still maintains a taste of the swashbuckler with the introduction of Jennir and his mysterious allies. Nevertheless the bleak star is Darth Vader, and the superb artwork of Douglas Wheatley augmented by the paint and colours of Ronda Pattison perfectly capture the troubled nature of this sulphurous black monster. Also, their facility with non-humanoid characters is simply breathtaking.
Parts of this tale (collecting issues #1-5 of the comic book series Star Wars: Dark Times) have been adapted from the prose novel Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader by James Luceno.
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