Category: Star Wars

 

By Various (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-020-4

Spinning off from the Cartoon Network show rather than the major motion picture, this third paperback-sized volume contains four more plot-light, all-action, vignettes set in the Star Wars universe at the time of the Battles between the Republic and Count Dooku’s Separatists.

The first story here is ‘Rogues Gallery’, by Haden Blackman, with art by The Fillbach Brothers, and it’s rather good. In deepest space something is stalking Count Dooku’s evil henchmen Asajj Ventress and Durge, and there’s a creepy frisson of tension amongst all the zipping and zapping. ‘The Package’, the story of a commando raid to recover a stolen box for chancellor Palpatine, is a dark but enjoyable fable drawn by the same team, with Ryan Kaufman scripting.

‘A Stranger in Town’ is written and drawn by The Fillbach, a terrific tribute to the Magnificent Seven starring everybody’s favourite Jedi, Yoda, and the book concludes with the Brothers illustrating Tim Mucci’s taut battle thriller ‘One Battle’.

In England the cartoon episodes aired in 5 minute instalments with a polished, stripped down anime style which the comic stories seeks to emulate. Unfortunately this means that despite some very good adventure strips, these books are over almost before you even realise. Nevertheless youngsters and die-hard fans will lap this up, I’m sure. And you could read them between bus-stops. So perhaps you should.

Star Wars © 2005 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By Tom Veitch, Cam Kennedy & Jim Baikie (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-368-8

Tom Veitch and Cam Kennedy returned in a blaze of glory after the success of Dark Empire with this superb continuation of the further battles of Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo and all those other movie favourites.

The ghost of Emperor Palpatine, deprived of the clone bodies he was incubating, is intent on possessing the unborn child in Leia’s belly. His Dark Side lieutenants struggle to become his successor. The Empire’s last infrastructure remnants are producing more diabolical planet killing weapons to terrorise and subdue the battered, war-weary galaxy. And Luke Skywalker has flown off on a wild goose chase in pursuit of lost Jedi survivors. How can the good guys possibly win this time?

With extreme verve, style and panache, apparently, as this big budget blockbuster fairly rockets along full of tension and invention, with action aplenty and spectacular set pieces for the fans – although it might be a tad bewildering if your Star Wars IQ is limited.

This latest, second, edition also includes the final story-arc of the sequence, Empire’s End, with Jim Baikie replacing Kennedy as artist for a much shorter adventure that wraps up all the plot-threads in a fittingly spectacular if somewhat rushed fashion. Unchallenging fun, beautiful pictures, but perhaps best consumed in conjunction with its predecessor. I’m sure a complete compilation of all three tales can’t be that far, far away.

© 1994, 1995, 1997, 2006 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By Tom Veitch & Cam Kennedy (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84023-752-X

Although the Emperor is gone, the war continues. Six years after the Battle of Endor, and the death and redemption of Darth Vader, the remnants of the Empire are still battling for every inch of the galaxy. The New Republic is desperately hard-pressed. Han Solo and his wife Leia, although new parents, are as deeply involved as ever, and Luke Skywalker is pushed to ever-more desperate measures as he attempts to destroy the evil corrupting the Universe and rebalance the Force by reviving the Jedi Knights.

A mysterious new leader and ingenious new super-weapons are winning the war for the Empire, and the heroes must separate to succeed. As Han and Leia pursue the strategic aspects of the conflict, Luke heads directly to the source and succumbs to the Dark Side when a dead foe returns. And Leia’s newly conceived child is destined to become the greatest threat the galaxy has ever faced… Can the heroes reunite before all is lost?

Dark Horse kicked off its Star Wars franchise with this superbly moody, action-packed thriller set after the close of the film Return of the Jedi. Cam Kennedy, reuniting with Tom Veitch (previously collaborating on the excellent and peculiar Light and Darkness War) provides quirky but reassuringly authentic settings and scenarios for a space opera romp that satisfyingly captures the feel and pace of the cinema versions, whilst building on the canon for Force-starved fanatics everywhere.

A sure-fire favourite with fans of strips and movies alike, this tale, now in its third edition, spawned two sequels and assured the longevity of the franchise – at least in comic strip terms.

© 1994, 2002 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By Various (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84023-995-9

Devolving out of the Cartoon Network show rather than the major motion picture, this paperback-sized volume contains three plot-light punch-’em-ups featuring Obi-Wan and Anakin in ‘Blind Force’, Mace Windu and Saesee Tiin in ‘Heavy Metal Jedi’ and Jedi Master Kit Fisto in ‘Fierce Currents’.

In England the cartoon episodes first aired in 5 minute instalments with a polished, if stripped down Manga/anime style which the comics stories seeks to emulate. Sadly this means that despite looking very good the adventures are over before you even realise. Nevertheless youngsters and die-hard fans will lap this up, I’m sure.

Star Wars © 2004 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By various (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-107-3

Another solid package of space-opera thrills from the Star Wars: Clone Wars franchise concentrates on the foredoomed relationship between Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin (Darth Vader) Skywalker. Reprinting Star Wars Free Comic Day Special 2005 and Star Wars: Obsession issues #1-5, all the stories here are set a few months before the opening of the film Revenge of the Sith.

The action begins with Haden Blackman and Brian Ching’s tale of obsession when a hard-driven Obi-Wan risks not just his life but also his reputation in a manic hunt for the Dark Jedi Asajj Ventress. The she-Sith is believed to be dead by the entire galaxy, trusted companion Anakin, who clearly remembers that time when he personally killed her. There’s all the grit and derring-do you’d expect and no real surprises, but it’s all done well enough to carry one along for the thrill-ride.

Miles Lane and Nicola Scott provide the balance of the book with their tale of foreboding friendship as the Jedi dynamic duo find themselves crashed on an enemy planet with a hard deadline to capture the insidious Count Dooku. High on action but short on plot, the emphasis here is mostly with examining any tiny cracks that might be forming in the heretofore indomitable and steadfast team.

As always the Dark Horse franchise provides reliable bang for your buck and produces reading that should satisfy the comic fan as much as the Star Wars aficionado.

© 2005 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved

 

By Chuck Dixon, Rick Leonardi & Mark Pennington (Titan Books)
ISBN 1-84576-109-X

This slim volume is an intriguing attempt to tell a tale from the viewpoint of an inveterate, rather than misunderstood, villain. Grievous is a cyborg predator and his favoured meat is Jedi Knights. At the time of telling (two years after the Battle of Geonosis, for those of you who follow such things) he is cutting a deadly swath through the ranks of the Galaxy’s defenders. A small group of Padawans (apprentice Jedis) have decided to ignore their teachers’ warnings about succumbing to the Dark Side of the Force and attempt to assassinate the General.

Led by Flynn Kybo, who had just narrowly survived an encounter with the sinister villain, they embark on their mission of necessary evil only to become embroiled in an unwitting rescue of child Padawans (you can call them ‘Younglings’ if you want) that Grievous had kidnapped, with the intention of turning them into bio-mechanical hybrids like him/itself.

Fast-paced and action-packed, this tale falls a little short in its attempt to add flesh to what remains a rather two-dimensional arch-villain, and the themes of honour in war-time and expediency versus right are somewhat lost in the mix, but Leonardi’s art is, as ever, an absolute joy to look at and the story simply rattles along at a fine pace. Here be pure entertainment, accessible and fun, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

© 2005 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By John Ostrander, Jan Duursema & various (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-106-5

This instalment of Star Wars wonderment comes as the ongoing battle against Count Dooku’s forces compel the Jedi into fighting on many fronts. Mace Windu leads a daring raid against a horde of killers in “Show of Force” by the ever reliable John Ostrander, with art by Jan Duursema and Dan Parsons. Aayla Secura and clone trooper Bly challenge her former master Quinlan Vos in a race to recover plans for a world-destroying weapon (also by Ostrander, Duursema and Parsons), whilst Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi aid the beauteous Tohno in a tale of tragedy and sacrifice by Randy Stradley and Brandon Badeaux entitled “Forever Young”.

A long-running sub-plot seemingly closes as Anakin and Obi-Wan join Jedi renegade Vos to prevent a fleet of warships from falling into enemy hands. Vos then returns to the Jedi, revealed as a deep-cover agent in Ostrander, Duursema and Parsons’ “Dreadnaughts of Rendili”. But all is not as it seems…

These tales, reprinted from Star Wars: Republic #65-71 are set between Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, and are cracking space-opera adventures in the grand tradition. As is often the case, even when the films may disappoint, the comic spin-offs can offer a smidgen of hope for the fan and the casual browser alike.

© 2005 Lucasfilm Ltd & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By Rob Williams, Brandon Badeaux & Michael Lacombe (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-460-9

The Good Imperial returns as Janek Sunber (see Star Wars: Empire volume 3 ‘The Imperial Perspective’ ISBN 1-84023-93-6, and volume 7 ‘The Wrong Side of the War’, ISBN 1-84576-457-9, amongst others) stars in this book set just after the destruction of the Death Star and explores his early years growing up with Luke Skywalker whilst telling a contiguous tale of spy and counterspy in that action-packed galaxy long ago and far away….

Echoes of the American Civil War abound as two noble young men find themselves on opposite sides in this dark espionage thriller. At Rebellion HQ a rescued Rebel strategist slowly recovers. Is his return a lucky break or has his mind been turned by the Empire’s brainwashing techniques? Meanwhile, “Tank” Sunber has approached Luke personally, claiming to be disenchanted by the methods used by the Empire and its minions. Can the young Jedi trust his oldest friend or is even childhood friendship a hostage to Imperial ambition? Is this all a plot by the awesome Darth Vader to crush the Alliance once and for all?

As well as providing intriguing insights into the formative years of these characters this story dishes out huge amounts of pulp-pounding fun, tightly scripted and lavishly illustrated. In a franchise with buckets of product available this collection is certainly a cut above.

© 2007 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By John Jackson Miller, Brian Ching & Travel Foreman (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-371-8

This is set nearly four thousand years before the events of the feature films and the Republic is a sprawling pan-galactic, multi-species culture run on largely democratic and free-market principles, policed by individual systems but overseen by the beneficent adepts known as Jedi Knights, who answer only to the Senate. Zayne Carrick is a Padawan, a Jedi-in-training, and one of the worst his Jedi masters have ever taught. In fact he’s even a bit of a joke to the various low-level criminals and thugs he in charge of policing.

So it’s much more than grim irony when his Jedi masters slaughter all the other Padawans and frame Carrick for the crime. Hunted and desperate the fugitive must team-up with a minor crime-lord and other “evil-doers” to discover the truth of a plot to re-shape the Galaxy if he is ever to find peace and justice.

This is an old fashioned story told in a traditional way, and it’s great. Harking back to the glory-days of the pulp genre from which the Star Wars brand evolved, it’s full of breakneck thrills, baroque characters and action, action, action. No knowledge of backstory is necessary, and there’s even a twist in the tale. All licensed comics should be this good.

© 2006 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved.

 

By Various (Dark Horse Books)
ISBN 1-84576-457-9

This final volume – containing issues #35-40 of the comic book series – returns to the Jabiim war front of the previous volume and focuses on Imperial up-and-comer Janek Sunber (Star Wars: Empire volume 3 The Imperial Perspective), a generally honourable ‘good soldier on the wrong side’, and a very useful narrative tool for creators wanting to ad some depth to the bad guys.

Here he’s part of the Imperial force interrogating captured Jabiimi on military/resupply base Kalist VI. As Luke Skywalker and a Rebel team infiltrate the base to steal fuel and rescue a vital Rebel Spy, Sunber is compelled to make harsh choices when he discovers some unpleasant facts about the way the Empire actually works. He also learns that the Rebel hero causing so much chaos is that scrawny kid he grew up with on Tatooine…

Less a conclusion than a bridge to further adventures in spin-off tales, this book nevertheless delivers a healthy dose of fun and thrills that will satisfy both franchise followers and adventure addicts alike. Both the main story by Welles Hartley, Davidé Fabri and Christian Dalla Vecchia, and John Jackson Miller and Brian Ching’s prologue thriller featuring Darth Vader’s hunt for a Rebel spy rattle along full pelt and are very easy on the eye. Why weren’t the films this well done?

© 2007 Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™. All Rights Reserved