Category Archives: Star Wars

Review: Lando #3

Posted on by

Lando #3 by Charles Soule and Alex Maleev definitely left me wanting more when I turned the final page… and I’m not entirely sure that’s a good thing. (Which in itself is about to be a confusing statement because I did enjoy the issue.) Heyyyy did you all see the rad cover with Lando Draper? (Dunnna Dunnnna Dunnn.)

This was clearly not Lando’s best-planned heist. They got the ship, sure, but that was the easy part. Now the twins are fighting two Royal Guards and Lobot’s down for the count and uhhh… what exactly is on the Emperor’s private yacht?

Continue reading →

The Expanded Universe Should Only Expand, Not Change

Posted on by

I love the Expanded Universe. I love that it exists. I love that there are books and comics and even video games to fill up my Star Wars obsessiveness in the absence of film and TV shows. I love that Heir to the Empire jump-started the fandom way back in 1991. I love that the barrage of books and comics kept the fandom going strong during the 1990s. I love that the EU always drove the Star Wars story forward, no matter what was happening onscreen. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: without the EU I would not have become a Star Wars fan.

I don’t always like the way people treat the Expanded Universe. I hate that people look down upon it. But I also dislike when fans treat it as just as important as what’s onscreen. This might seem odd, coming from an EU fan like me, but it’s true. I hate when people take something that happened in a book and assume it will have huge consequences for the Sequel Trilogy. Yes, everything is canon now, but that doesn’t mean every story holds the same weight.

Nor should they.

(spoilers for Star Wars #6 and #8 under the cut)

Continue reading →

Review: Star Wars #8

Posted on by

Star Wars #8 is out today. The bad news is that we don’t get the answers we’ve so anxiously been awaiting. The good news is that Stuart Immonen took over art duties and rocked the hell out of it.

Luke’s journey to Tatooine wasn’t as fruitful as he’d hoped. His next plan for learning how to be a Jedi is about to take him to a hive of even more scum and villainy. Meanwhile, Han and Leia find themselves caught between an Imperial patrol and a woman named Sana Solo who says she’s Han’s wife and hardly seems to be his biggest fan.

Somehow, Jason Aaron manages to keep a reader’s interest throughout an issue where we don’t get the answer we’ve been so desperately wanting for two months now. Actually, I may be even more confused as to who Sana Solo was than I was before. Is she actually his wife or not? Maybe next issue we’ll get some solid answers?

Character-wise, the two who stood out to me this issue were the Skywalker twins. Aaron really nailed how impetuous Luke can be at times especially right after he leaves Tatooine. On the flip side, we get to see Leia’s very no-nonsense attitude that rears its head so frequently when Han Solo is involved. I’m very impressed by how both writers Marvel has tapped so far have seemed to really get all aspects of Leia’s character.

Unsurprisingly, Stuart Immonen rocks his first issue on Star Wars especially when paired with Justin Ponsor’s colors. Everyone’s body language tells just as much of the story as the dialog bubbles which makes for a more dynamic book. Can we keep him on this book forever? I’d especially like to see him do an arc where he gets to do all of the artistic set up and come up with what the planet looks like and also what Leia’s outfit of the day is. (So sue me, I’m a geek with a weakness for fashion and costume design.)

Overall, Star Wars #8 was an enjoyable issue with some great art that has left me wanting it to be September already so I can have #9 in my hands. No seriously: who the heck is Sana Solo?

Tsar Wars: Return of the Alderaanians

Posted on by

Welcome to the final part of our royal team up with Eleven Thirty-Eight.  Jay and I have already discussed monarchy as a whole, Naboo, Hapes, and now it’s time for Alderaan.

Bria: I’d like to start by blaming YOU AND YOUR EMPIRE FOR THE DESTRUCTION OF A PEACEFUL PLANET, YOU JERK.

Jay: it’s not my fault! It’s not my fault. It was all Tarkin’s doing. Seriously, if you don’t believe me, check out the old Radio Drama — Vader told Tarkin not to destroy Alderaan and basically said the Emperor wouldn’t approve, and Tarkin did it anyway. I’m super curious to see if Alex Bracken will use that part of the audio drama in The Princess, the Smuggler, and the Farm Boy because I *NEED* it to still be canon, otherwise I will hate myself.

Bria: She probably won’t just to spite you.  Yes, specifically you.

Jay: Considering how many people enjoy specifically spiting me, it wouldn’t surprise me. But I have hope yet, she’s a nice person. :p If not, well, um…. are you guys taking defectors or do I have to wait for the fall session?

Bria: We’ll look into seeing if we can arrange you non-explosive transportation.  Before it was so rudely and cruelly blown up, Alderaan actually seems to have had one of the more traditional monarchies in the Star Wars universe; at least in Earth terms.

Jay: Traditional, if confusing as heck. Under the EU, the Organas were the royal family of Alderaan. Bail Organa was the viceroy (which… doesn’t make any sense, as a viceroy is a monarch’s representative but words don’t mean anything in space I guess) and so his adopted daughter Leia was the Princess of Alderaan. Breha, who wasn’t Breha yet, was the Minister of Education. Until ROTS, when it turned out that *she* was the Queen of Alderaan and Bail was prince consort. Luckily for us, the EU already had the “Alderaanian Ascendency Contention” from the Zahn books and… Bria, this is getting complicated, isn’t it? Continue reading →

Review: Lando #2

Posted on by

If you want a book that has twists a plenty, Star Wars: Lando should do the trick. Lando #2 by Charles Soule and Alex Maleev is out today and boy have Lando and company gotten into a lot more trouble than they figured. After all, who would have suspected that the yacht they stole was Emperor Palpatine’s and that he’d send three Star Destroyers after them? (Lando should’ve guessed. Only his luck would be that bad.)

This review has minor spoilers for the issue.

Continue reading →

Tsar Wars: A New Naboo

Posted on by

You may have noticed that I have a weakness for all the royalty in Star Wars.  That’s why it made perfect sense to team up with Jay Shah from Eleven Thirty-Eight for a nice long chat about all the different monarchies we see across the Star Wars universe.  Part I covered how monarchy works and now we’re ready for a deep dive into the intricacies of Naboo.

—

Bria: I’d like to thank George Lucas and The Phantom Menace for giving nine year-old Bria the dream that she too could one day be elected Queen and get a crown to wear at state occasions.

Jay: I love Naboo so much — you know, it was my home world in Star Wars Galaxies and I never wanted to leave. I hung around Theed and De’ja Po–oh wait, we were supposed to be talking about the Naboo system of government, weren’t we? Sometimes it’s hard to get over how beautiful and awesome Naboo is.

Bria: Did I ever tell you that I went to the Lake House?  I mean, technically it’s called Villa Balbianello on Lake Como but it was the kriffing Lake House!

Jay: Yes, I still remember the day you told me and being eternally jealous. I lived vicariously through the photos, but oh my god it looked just like you had walked onto the set of the pier/balcony area.

Bria: Thankfully, no one was there to talk to me about how they hated sand but you’re right.  We digress.  Let’s get back to talking about how I’d like to be Queen of Naboo.  I mean how Naboo elects their monarchs.

Jay: I’d vote for you–I mean, I’d vote for an improbably young candidate who went through a legislative program and a crash course in politics. But then people would probably think I was crazy, so why is it that the people of Naboo feel so comfortable electing children to run their planet?

Bria: Do we actually know how old the youngest queen ever elected was?

Jay: Argh, I feel like it was something that came up in one of the reference books, perhaps Wizard’s of the Coasts Secrets of Naboo sourcebook but I can’t remember offhand. Man, and Naboo is like my second or third favorite SW planet. Nerd fail.

Bria: Let’s assume it was 13 or younger since Amidala was 14.  You knew me via the TFN boards when I was 14… would you have voted for me as Queen back then? Continue reading →

Review: Darth Vader #8

Posted on by

I’d ask you to guess what comic is out today but given the title of this review, you already know that Darth Vader #8 by Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca is in comic stores everywhere now. We now return to our adventure show about a Sith Lord, an archaeologist, and two murderous droids.

The fun thing about this issue is that it’s definitely Aphra heavy and given that she’s been one of the best parts of this book that is a-okay by me. It takes until about halfway through the issue for Vader to show up. Again, this is not a problem which is a testament to what a strong supporting cast Gillen has built up in only a few issues. We are, however, getting to the point where I ask myself, “What exactly are Aphra’s motivations for continuing to work for Vader besides not wanting to, y’know, die?” She seems to be enjoying herself but this latest mission seems a little more out of her wheelhouse.

One of the neat things that this book has been doing is showing that Vader does still share that mind for strategy that Anakin Skywalker but that he still can’t beat a true master. He tries to be careful but he’s not perfect. This book has done a fantastic job at really integrating those last remnants of Anakin into Vader without sacrificing anything in terms of showing the Vader that we first met in the Original Trilogy.

Nothing much to say about the art this week. Larroca continues to do a fantastic job and is clearly having fun with character design. No wait, I’m sorry. I lied. I do have to point out that I appreciate the efforts towards diversity that the comics are making. It would have been very easy to make this new Inspector another white male and instead, we get an older black man so kudos to Larroca for that decision. I do miss the Adi Granov covers though.

Do we even need to say it? Darth Vader #8 gets out recommendation again this month.

Review: Star Wars #7

Posted on by

If you came into this issue expecting to find out just what the heck is up with Han Solo having a wife, that’s too bad because this issue is all about Obi-Wan Kenobi. Jason Aaron and Simone Bianchi take a break from the action to travel back in time to years before A New Hope when Obi-Wan’s still becoming the crazy old hermit and Luke Skywalker’s just a little boy.

First things first though: what nerd at Marvel lettered the credits page entirely in Aurebesh? Because you, you beautiful nerd, are a wonderful human being.

Using the journal as a framing device was a simple yet great idea to allow Aaron and company to go back in time so they can use a character like Obi-Wan Kenobi and it’s one that I hope they use again in the future from time to time. Like Kenobi before them, Star Wars #7 brings the story down to a far smaller level and makes it about the characters. Is there a plot line? Sure but that’s not as important as the journey that Obi-Wan is going through as he continues to adjust to this life as Ben Kenobi. It’s also about him figuring out how to be at peace with being a Jedi to his core and also remaining in hiding where he can protect Luke.

On the art front, this is our first issue without John Cassaday and Marvel chose wisely. Bianchi was a great choice for this issue as his style is a perfect fit for Tatooine. He also draws an absolutely adorable young Luke Skywalker. I’d love to see more of Bianchi’s artwork in the Star Wars universe in the future especially if they continue to do the occasional Kenobi one-off.

Bottom line? Aaron-Bianchi-Kenobi are a winning combination in my book.

Star Wars #7 gets a 5/5 from me this week for a simple yet enjoyable one-shot story about the one and only Master Kenobi.