Tag Archives: Star Wars

Review: Women of the Galaxy

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Sometimes, a project is special enough that everyone should be talking about it. Women of the Galaxy is one of those projects.

Out today from Chronicle Books, Women of the Galaxy by Amy Ratcliffe with art by Alice X. Zhang, Amy Beth Christenson, Annie Stoll, Annie Wu, Christina Chung, Cryssy Cheung, Eli Baumgartner, Elsa Charretier, Geneva Bowers, Jennifer Aberin Johnson, Jen Bartel, Jenny Parks, Karen Hallion, Little Corvus, Sara Alfageeh, Sara Kipin, Sarah Wilkinson, and Viv Tanner, profiles 75 of the female characters in a galaxy far, far away from the stars of the saga like Leia and Rey to more minor ones like Kneesaa and Norra Wexley. The book might not be packed full with revelations but everyone’s bound to learn at least something about one of these characters as they read. From start to finish, Women of the Galaxy is a pure delight. Continue reading →

Resistance Review: The High Tower

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Star Wars Resistance considerably raises the stakes for Kaz–and the citizens of the Colossus–in its latest episode, “The High Tower.”

Although Kaz still has a lot to learn about spying, and his technique could certainly use a little work, he finally uncovers the First Order’s nefarious plans for the station when he’s invited into Captain Doza’s tower.
Continue reading →

Resistance Review: Fuel for the Fire

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When last we met our intrepid hero, Kaz, he was demonstrating his eagerness to be a spy and his resistance (see what I did there?) to learning the trade of his cover identity.

The latest episode, Fuel for the Fire, finds Kaz still straining against the expectation that he work competently as a mechanic. He’s still obsessed with racing and intent on spying, but this week, we also see that he’s hungry for friendship. Continue reading →

Resistance Review: The Recruit

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It wasn’t all that long ago that we were bidding farewell to Star Wars Rebels and yet here we are now saying hi to Star Wars Resistance. With a new team at the helm and the implied promise of a fresher start, there’s a lot to like about Lucasfilm’s latest animated television show. Expectations (including our own) are high because, after all, it’s Star Wars but we’re certainly ready to embrace this latest batch of galactic heroes.a

But on to why you’re here: what did we think about the first episode? Continue reading →

Suitable for All Ages: A Mom’s-Eye View of The Mighty Chewbacca

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True story: The Mighty Chewbacca in the Forest of Fear arrived at my house on release day. That was in May. Just as I do with many of the adult and YA Star Wars releases, I had planned to have a piece written on it to accompany Bria’s review. Obviously, this did not come to pass.

“Why?” you might ask. Why was I unable to get this book read and my thoughts on the page until now? My four-year-old, who sometimes asks to open packages, was the first one to set eyes on the book and he insisted it was his. Never one to deny my little guy an opportunity for reading, I relented (with reservations, which I will elaborate on in a moment). He loves it. It’s been a read-at-bedtime favorite for months, and he hasn’t wanted to let Mom “borrow” it.

It’s only now, with him in kindergarten, that I am able to claim the book for a few hours each day. So if you’re looking for a ringing endorsement—there it is. My kiddo cannot get enough of this book! Continue reading →

Review: Solo: A Star Wars Story (Novelization)

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Heard about some big shot gangster putting together a novelization…

Out today, Solo: A Star Wars Story novelization by Mur Lafferty brings Han Solo’s origin story to the page and even gives us a little more than we saw in the film. (Hence the Extended Edition banner at the top.) That said, the Solo novelization isn’t going to change anyone’s mind about the story or even the film itself. If you generally enjoyed Solo, you’ll likely enjoy the novelization but it doesn’t reach that exalted top shelf where Revenge of the Sith and Rogue One sit. However, if you’re the least bit interested in the book, it’s worth picking up especially for the deleted scenes like those set at the Imperial Academy. (Long live Tag and Bink!)

Spoilers after the jump, including those you’d know from watching the film.  Continue reading →

Review: Beckett #1

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There’s so much Star Wars content these days. So, so much. Truly, there has never been a better time to be a Star Wars fan. One of the consequences of all that content, though, is that there’s so much to read through/watch/play that, at a certain point, some stories just don’t need to be told. The can be, they can even be enjoyable, but they’re just not necessary to understanding the galaxy far, far away.

And so, we have Star Wars: Beckett, the comic one-shot from Marvel detailing the exploits of Han Solo’s mentor (they knew each other for like 3 days but we’ll go with it) and his partners in crime, Rio Durant and Val. To cut right to the review, it’s fun! Writer Gerry Duggan makes the adventures of these merry misfits more entertaining than I would have expected, and weaves it into the universe well: Beckett’s fake Death Priest scam is hilarious, and I’ll admit I’m curious about a few background details that came up as well (Spoiler-y speculation: were the Tognaths we see those of Rogue One fame? Was this heist stealing from Saw Gerrera, and did it inspire him to send one of the twins to infiltrate Enfys Nest’s cadre?)

At the end of the day, though, this comic just… didn’t really do anything for me. It was fun, but I still don’t understand why Beckett, a fairly boring and predictable character from the moment we met him, got so much screen time in Solo over a character like Val, and indeed why this comic was called “Beckett” – why not Val or Rio, or all three? They all get the same page time. In a prequel comic like this, I’d hope to see some sort of character development between what we’re seeing and Beckett’s character in Solo, but I just didn’t get that here. I went into this comic wondering why exactly I should care about Tobias Beckett, and I came out the same way.

So, if you loved Solo, read this comic. If you are fascinated by Tobias Beckett (more power to you), read this comic. If you just like comics, the artwork by Edgar Salazar, Marc Laming, and Will Sliney is certainly worth the price of admission. If none of the above is true for you, though, you can skip this one, to be perfectly honest. It’s fun, but it wasn’t a story that needed to be told, and not one that I’m convinced actually adds anything to the Star Wars universe.

Star Wars: Beckett #1: Gerry Duggan/Writer; Edgar Salazar, Marc Laming, Will Sliney/Artists; Jordan Boyd/Colorist; VC’s Travis Lanham/Letterer; Tom Groneman/Assistant Editor; Mark Paniccia/Supervising Editor

Review: Thrawn: Alliances

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If you’d told me three years ago that we would see Grand Admiral Thrawn not only brought back into canon as a major villain for two seasons of Star Wars Rebels but that we would also have two novels with his name in the title written by Timothy Zahn, I would’ve said that you were crazy and yet here we are. Thrawn: Alliances is out today. Look around, look around, how lucky we are to be alive right now!

Thrawn: Alliances takes place in the aftermath of Star Wars Rebels Season 3 with everyone’s favorite grand admiral fresh off a defeat involving a giant deus ex Bendu. Darth Vader is less than impressed but that doesn’t matter to Palpatine who sends them to the Outer Rim planet of Batuu to investigate a disturbance in the Force. Funnily enough though… they’ve both been there before. It’s where Anakin Skywalker also met Thrawn while he was looking for Padmé who’s gone missing. It sure would be convenient if they were somehow connected… Continue reading →

Review: Thrawn #1-6

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I’m going to start this review with complete honesty: Timothy Zahn’s Thrawn was fun and I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t my favorite book. I liked learning more about Thrawn and loved Eli Vanto, but the plot felt convoluted at times, and like too much was being shoved in for the sake of building out Thrawn’s entire Imperial past ahead of his appearances on Star Wars Rebels. So, when Lucasfilm and Marvel announced Jody Houser’s comic adaptation of the novel, I wondered how such an intricate plot would transfer to such a different medium.

Which brings me to the point of my review: if you were excited about this adaptation, you’ll probably love it – it’s exactly what you’d expect. Seeing Thrawn in all his imposing, blue glory at the helm of the ISD Chimaera is always a treat, and his dialogue actually transfers quite well to the comic format (I couldn’t not hear Lars Mikkelsen’s voice in my head as I read it). Bonus points to Houser and artist Luke Ross for making Vanto notably not white, as we got a sense of his isolation in the novel due to his Wild Space origins that’s heightened by adding the racial component to others’ disdain here. Continue reading →

Review: Darth Vader (2017) #13-17

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In the “Burning Seas” arc of Charles Soule’s Darth Vader comic series, we take a bit of a time jump from the series so far: while issues #1-12 focused on the days immediately following the rise of the Empire, issue #13 opens three years after those events (so, around 16 BBY, for those keeping track). The Empire is consolidated, the military has built up, and the Emperor’s sinister servant, Darth Vader, has come into his own as the regime’s chief enforcer.

Whereas the series so has shown us the internal struggles of becoming Darth Vader, this arc focuses much more on external events – namely, the pacification of Mon Cala, the water world home to some of the future Rebellion’s greatest heroes. Indeed, these issues are full of familiar faces: Not-yet-Grand Moff Tarkin and his capital ship Sovereign (previously seen in the Tarkin novel) are pitted in a battle of wills (and weapons) against King Lee-Char of Mon Cala (who you may remember from The Clone Wars), Admiral Raddus (Rogue One), and then-Commander Gial Ackbar (c’mon, you know him). With such a cast of characters demanding page-time, we actually get less of the titular villain than one would expect; Vader plays the role of antagonist here, rather than the focus of the plot.  Continue reading →