Mousey Movies - Star Wars The Clone Wars Series

My enthusiasm for the Disney purchase of LucasFilm is still high! Part of my excitement is so much of the Star Wars universe is already part of the Disney experience. R2-D2 and CP30 are already part of the parks with Star Tours The Adventure Continues and its predecessor putting Star Wars environments into the reach of parks’ guests. And of course the merchandise is easily available, I take pride in my Darth Vader Star Tours 2011 re-opening tumbler. I like to take it to meetings to show my allegiance to the Dark Side. But in many ways the most visible presence today for the Star Wars universe, the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars television program has distinguished voice cast with voices that most Disney fans will likely be familiar with:

• Agent Rex: Voice actor Dee Bradley Baker is brilliant. In Star Wars: The Clone Wars he literally plays an army, voicing every clone. Baker is able to not only voice them but in his performance provide clones with different personalities through his portrayals. Along with the clones, he also provides a number of other voices and at times sound effects. Often at the end of a cartoon, and not only this one, you will find Baker listed as additional voices, as he provides sounds that help the crew create the soundscape they are looking for. He is a vocal genius! For Disney, Baker’s most prominent role is Perry/Agent P on Phineas and Ferb, yes I said voice for a platypus that doesn’t do much. His other credits are literally too long to list but include Turner the Screwdriver on Handy Manny, Boba Fett in Star Tours The Adventure Continues, Boo Boo Chicken on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and so many many more.  Dee Bradley Baker is one of the few celebrities I have had an encounter with. Baker was part of a Phineas and Ferb signing that the Between Family participated in at the 2011 D23 Expo. As I slid my journal in front of Baker to sign I said, “Thank you Captain Rex!” Baker smiled, looked at me and in his clone voice said, “You are welcome sir.” That one small sentence pretty much sealed my fandom for Agent P and the Clones.

• Rumbly Tummy: Just like Baker, actor Jim Cummings’ credits are impossible to list in their entirety here. Cummings’ most prominent role in Star Wars: The Clone Wars is the pirate Hondo. Hondo dreams of profit, and has shown the ability to betray allies and even threaten children to get his delicious profit. Cummings’ most popular Disney role is serving as the current voice of Winnie the Pooh on television and movies such as 2011’s Winnie the Pooh. I think that Pooh is really a much safer character in his craving for honey! Other roles of Cummings include voicing Tigger, Pete on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, the hyena Ed in The Lion King, and pretty much a voice in any direct to video Disney animated movie or Disney television production you can think of since 1985. Good guy, cuddly bear, bad guy, really bad buy, Cummings is everywhere!

• Hook: Cartoons are really popular in the Between House. There are three shows that are in heavy play from the Disney Channel in our house. They are Phineas and Ferb, Gravity Falls, and Jake and the Neverland Pirates. Captain Hook is voiced by another master voice actor Corey Burton. Burton provides numerous voices in Star Wars: The Clone Wars including the head of the Separatists Count Dooku, bounty hunter Cad Bane and gangster Ziro the Hut amongst many others. In a running theme of Star Wars voice actors crossing over to Mickey’s world, Burton also voices Ludwig Von Drake on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Amongst Burtons other credits you will find the video game Epic Mickey, Mole in Atlantis: The Lost Empire, and numerous voices in Hercules. Along with movies and television, Burton has been able to match the voice of Disney legend Paul Frees. Burton provides narration matching Frees as the Ghost Host for Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion Holiday and some of the Pirates that Frees originally voiced in Pirates of the Caribbean. Burton is both a prolific Disney and Star Wars performer.

• River Guide: The moments that have lead to the most excitement in the Star Wars: The Clone Wars for fans have often been the introduction of original trilogy characters. The Clone Wars debut of the future Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin, the future commander of the original Death Star, as Captain Tarkin was a key moment and has led to many questions such as does Tarkin know that Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader? I lean towards yes! Fans have loved the portrayal of Tarkin, voiced by Stephen Stanton, an actor who honestly has been very good to fans. He has appeared several times on The ForceCast reading children’s stories as another one of his characters the criminal Moralo Eval (quick side note: only let the kids listen if you want them to have nightmares). Stanton like Burton is a voice who is already in Disney parks. He voices the Riverboat Captain onboard the Mark Twain at Disneyland and Stinky Pete in Toy Story Mania at Disney California Adventure and Disney Hollywood Studios. For those who attended the 2011 D23 Expo, Stanton narrated the opening film for the Carousel of Projects.

• Happy: If any moment was more anticipated than the introduction of Chewbacca or Tarkin, it was the introduction of Boba Fett’s people the Mandalorians. Many fans were shocked to be told that the Mandalorians were pacifists! But a splinter terrorist organization called Death Watch hopes to bring the Mandalorians back to their warrior past in Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Death Watch is lead by Pre Vizsala voiced by Jon Favreau. Favreau is best known to Disney fans for his directing talents in the Marvel offerings Iron Man, Iron Man 2 and a producing credit on The Avengers. He also portrays Tony Stark’s chauffeur Happy Hogan in the first two Iron Man films and the forthcoming Iron Man 3, which he will not direct. Why won’t he direct? Because he is busy working on the first major movie to use a Disney Park as both a background and plot device, Magic Kingdom.

• Winter is Coming: Since the first time that I saw Star Wars: Episode One A New Hope, I was left with an open question. Obi-Wan Kenobi informed Luke Skywalker that his father fought in the Clone Wars. What were the Clone Wars and what was Anakin Skywalker’s role during that conflict. For decades this was an unanswered question until the release of the prequel trilogy. Star Wars: The Clone Wars builds on these prequel answers and Anakin is often at the center of this story. Actor Matt Lanter voices Anakin Skywalker, and being a young man he does not have the credits, yet, of a Baker or Burton. But he has been added steadily to his voice credits and Disney related productions have been one avenue for the building of his resume. In Ultimate Spider-Man he voices young men full of angst, Flash Thompson and Harry Osborn, and villains Venom and Klaw. But the role that caught my attention, and I’m not sure how Star Wars fans will fell about it, is Sled in the Tinker Bell movie Secret of the Wings. Yes the same actor that portrays one of the greatest Jedi generals of all time, a future Lord of the Sith, also voices a tiny winged fairy who aids Tinker Bell! I guess it is probably not really a stretch since both are mystical characters.

Star Wars had a huge impact on my childhood and Star Wars: The Clone Wars is becoming a part of the Between Kids’ memories. Before Disney announced the addition of LucasFilm, this animated cartoon was already a Mousey Movie, I mean television show. The cast is very familiar with Disney projects both in films and in the parks. And I continue to believe Star Wars is a great addition to the Disney catalog, because honestly Disney is very familiar with the franchise already!

 

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Between Books - Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago....Volume 1

Star Wars

Marvel

Combined!

Yeah decades before Disney acquired both companies, this happened.  From 1977 to 1986 for 107 issues and three annuals Marvel Comics published Star Wars the licensed and official comic.  As a kid I read some of these issues and I still have some in my personal collection.  But with Disney now filming Star Wars Episode VII I really wanted to reconnect with these stories.  This was reinforced by the fact that I have been enjoying Brian Wood’s Star Wars published by Dark Horse.  And in 2015 Marvel will get this title back as it all comes back into the family.  In talking with friends I decided the way to jump back in was through collections which led to me picking up Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago…Volume 1 reprinting issues one through 27.  

The first six issues written by Marvel legend Roy Thomas and drawn by Howard Chaykin adapts Star Wars or what we now call Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope.  With issue seven stories begin to follow our heroes after the Battle of Yavin.  The volume includes creative staff changes with most prominently Archie Goodwin taking on much of the writing duties and Carmine Infantino providing art.  These stories separate Luke, Han and Leia into their own adventures.  Han takes on a space pirate named Crimson Jack, becomes a hired gun for farmers with a posse including the talking giant Rabbit named Jaxx, and eventually works his way back to the rebellion.  Meanwhile, Luke searches for a post-Yavin home for the rebels, is hunted by a self-hating cyborg and fights water dragons.  And Leia seeks out the lost Luke who has lost contact with the alliance.  The heroes all reunite on a water world which features the water dragons, giant floating wood cities, and a society divided.  And throughout the stories the shadow of Darth Vader hangs over our heroes.  

These issues are a fantastic adventure for the Star Wars fan.  The fun all starts in the first six issues and their very different take on the original Star Wars film.  The reader knows something is different as the art on page 14 shows Darth Vader using the Force to levitate a cup of what we assume is coffee over to his gloved hand.  And then he begins to drink his beverage, as the reader struggles with the question of how the liquid is getting through the mask.  Hardcore Star Wars fans would likely complain that Darth Vader would never use the Force for something so minor.  But everyone else will still be stuck with the question of how is Vader drinking without a straw?  Another change is Luke flies against the Death Star with Blue Squadron, not Red.  And while we are at it Wedge is in a Y-Wing not a X-Wing.  There are also concepts brought forward that we would not question until other movies were developed.  For example, Blue Leader makes it appear that he knew Luke Skywalker’s father as a good pilot from the Outer Rim, a place we now know Anakin Skywalker never flew through or lived in as an adult.  So yes there is plenty in this story that does not add up with what we know today as canon.  For me, my favorite new moment is Chewbacca getting his medal after the Battle of Yavin.  But of course he has to put it on himself as Princess Leia is not tall enough to present it properly. 

Speaking of Chewbacca the Wookie, Carmine Infantino is a comics legend.  But he really had no idea how to draw a Wookie.  There is way way to much skin in Chewy’s face! 

With the movie in the rearview mirror, Marvel’s staff was able to expand on the Star Wars universe.  We find out, for now, why Han Solo did not pay off Jabba the Hutt.  And I had heard about Jaxx, but I was shocked how easily this rabbit fell into this universe.  And I did search future volumes for more of the big-eared one.  Valance the bounty hunter gives Marvel the opportunity to explore the complexity and illogical basis of racism as he hates all droids!  And he despises the droid-loving Luke Skywalker.  Marvel legend Chris Claremont gets an opportunity to craft a Luke Skywalker/Cinderella story!  And we get to see fantastic environments, I really did enjoy the water world story that finishes the volume.

I can report it is awkward anytime Luke and Leia kiss!  But let us be fair, they did not know!

Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago…Volume 1 is a fun trip.  Star Wars fans really should pick-up this collection to explore Han, Luke and Leia’s past.  And I am only looking forward to more adventures in future trips in a Comic Book Time Machine. 

Between Books - Star Wars: Tarkin

Star Wars fans for decades have been fascinated by characters who briefly were seen on screen but left lasting impressions.  Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin like Boba Fett is someone who has long held fan interest.  His appearances on Star Wars: The Clone Wars lead to fan excitement as we could finally see a villain that only appeared in one movie in a new setting.  Now as LucasFilm releases books officially labeled as canon, fans can discover the back story of the architect of the Death Star. 

In Star Wars: Tarkin, James Luceno brings us to five years after the end of the Clone Wars and the establishment of the Empire.  Moff Tarkin has apparently been stationed to a punishment outpost far from the Core Worlds and the seat of power.  But his station is actually contributing to the construction of a mobile battle station.  After an attack on Tarkin's base, he is ordered by the Emperor to join forces with Darth Vader to track down insurgents and punish them for this attack and others.  The story is punctuated by a race as Tarkin and Vader pursue the insurgents through the galaxy as they race from target to target in a ship very familiar to Tarkin with a crew that may be connected to Tarkin's past.  Along with the story sent in the "present", Luceno takes readers into Tarkin's childhood where he learned to hunt and foster fear at his Great Uncle's knee.  Tarkin would take those lessons from the wild into his political and military career becoming a man who used fear as his primary weapon. 

This is really an odd book to read.  You follow along with Tarkin and Vader who are really the bad guys.  The insurgents, fortunately rarely called rebels because then I would feel for them more, are really the bad guys.  The reader knows that Tarkin is the hero of his own story and has to win.  As one pages through the book you also feel little risk for Tarkin or Vader since we are aware of their ultimate fates.  It really does "feel"weird seeing the story from the side of evil.  And when you begin to pull for Vader and Tarkin, you begin to ask yourself about your own motivations.  

The book was really hard for me to get into.  The first 100 pages were very slow for me and it really did not pick up for me until Vader enters the story.  The chase also built up some excitement where at the end of the book I was having a hard time putting it down. But I would not call this my favorite Star Wars book, maybe I would rate it somewhere in the middle of what I have read.  I am pleased to say I borrowed did not buy this book.

You really do get a character study in this book.  Tarkin as a figure has often been lumped with the Death Star and the use of fear.  Tarkin's early life and education was based around using fear to dominate prey.  And his military career as we see played out relies on fear to defeat threats (or prey).  We come to understand that in Star Wars he desired to use the Death Star on a live target with purpose.  And it did have to be on a populated and well traveled world.  News had to spread.  He did not necessarily harbor evil thoughts towards those he killed.  No, he saw the demonstration of force as a way to create order.  And for him the cost was justifiable.  He would not see himself as evil, but instead as one enforcing peace through force.  The galaxy needed to know the Death Star existed and could be used. 

One of the lingering questions is did Tarkin know who Darth Vader was?  In this book, Vader dislikes Tarkin as their mission starts.  In fact he must be ordered to partner with him.  Tarkin and Anakin Skywalker, Darth Vader's given birth name, were close as seen in Star Wars: The Clone Wars.  But Tarkin's role in the trial of Skywalker's Padawan poisoned the relationship.  Tarkin does not know for sure who is under the mask.  Vader does not confide in him.  But Tarkin begins to make an educated guess.  He notices that Vader and Skywalker used the same strategies, flawed ones in Tarkin's book.  And both have the same lightsaber fighting style.  So while this book does not make the pair close friends with long histories, Tarkin is beginning to realize who is wearing the cape. 

Speaking of Darth Vader, we get new pieces of canon to add to his biography.  First, Vader is considered unnaturally attached to his stormtroopers.  And Vader uses a special kind of trooper that goes back to the Clone Wars.  This makes sense after watching him as a General in the Clone Wars, one who was beloved by his men because of how he treated them.   Though for some reason one of his Stormtroopers seems to have a rank change from enlisted to officer without explanation.  Perhaps the editor lost track of his rank!  Second, Vader like Anakin rushes to action.  Sometimes action pays, sometimes it does not.  

Star Wars: Tarkin is for the hardcore Star Wars fans.  General fans of the movies can likely skip over this book unless like me they grab it as a borrow.  Tarkin is someone of interest, but he is not Han, Luke or Leia.  And perhaps it is the big three which a general reader would need to get through the first 100 pages and technical speak of this book set a galaxy far away.  

Between Books - Star Wars: Kenobi

As I have noted before I have been attempting to find a Star Wars Expanded Universe title to recommend to a friend.  Mostly I have struck out.  Often some of the best Expanded Universe is either in trilogies or do not feature characters familiar to those fans who have only seen the movies. Being someone who first meet Ben Kenobi, or Obi-Wan Kenobi, on Tatooine and having many friends that met this Jedi Knight there I was hopeful the latest novel would be the Expanded Universe book that I could recommend.  But then my hopes have been dashed in the past.

The first quarter of Star Wars: Obi-Wan by John Jackson Miller focuses on the lives of those hardy folks who live in and around an one-store Tatooine oasis.  Orrin Gault is a wealthy moisture farmer who also leads a local posse of farmers and settlers who protect farms against the raids of Tuskens, or Sandpeople.  A'Yark is the local Tusken War Leader, whose tribe is slowly dying is hatches a desperate plan to save the Tuskens.  A'Yark has a number of secrets and is familiar with the ways of a newcomer in the area, known as Ben Kenobi.  Annileen Calwell is a widow and mother who runs her late husband's store, Danner's Claim.  Annileen is very interested in the comings and goings of this newcomer who always seems to be around trouble.  Those who live in and around the claim live a hard life that is underscored by Tusken attacks and underworld maneuvers.  And in the end, nothing is really what it seems to be in this Sci-Fi western.

For me this book started really slow.  It took me a week to read and the early part of the week was slow going.  Part of this was me asking where is Kenobi?  His early appearances are few and short as Jackson Miller makes his reader familiar with the new characters he has developed.  But by the weekend, the pace had quickened for me and the role of Kenobi, the character I wanted to see, had expanded.  By Saturday night I resented the fact that I was tired and could not keep my eyes open any longer to read the climax of the action.  When I woke up, the first thing I did was finish.  By the end of the book I was sold, and  I think the fact I reached for it first thing shows it had me hooked.

John Jackson Miller has past experience with Star Wars, but often in a different form.  He has written Star Wars comic titles which have been well received.  And he even slips in the names of his original Jedi characters.  Additionally, he has written short stories which were collected as Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith: The Collected Stories which are highly entertaining snippets.  But all of these stories are generally set thousands of years before Star Wars: A New Hope with this being his first attempt at Original Trilogy characters.  And I would say that he does an excellent job writing this especially iconic character.

I do wonder if in the Disney era if we will see a Star Wars book like this in the near future.  Clearly it was written before the Disney purchase.  The story looks back and references heavily characters from Star Wars: The Clone Wars and characters that look into the past, not the future and Star Wars: Episode VII.  The shadow of Anakin Skywalker leaves a bigger impact on this story than infant Luke Skywalker or his uncle Owen Lars.  One might expect a story where Kenobi was interacting with the Lars' family.  I think that Disney would have preferred that story, focused on moving readers to their 2015 movies, instead of a series that they cancelled and movies produced before they bought the property.

I would recommend Star Wars: Kenobi to the casual Star Wars fan.  The book is well written and ends with a flurry of action that wraps the reader up.  But this comes with the caveat that it has a slow beginning as John Jackson Miller takes the time to introduce us to his all new cast of characters.

  

Between Books - Star Wars: The Halcyon Legacy

Synergy!

I love it!

It may not be for everyone, but I generally am a fan. And with something as big as the Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser it’s all departments on deck as Marvel supports an ambitious new hotel experience!

Star Wars: The Halcyon Legacy written by Ethan Sacks with art by Will Sliney takes readers on a historic journey on the fictional galactic starcruiser. We join a grandfather and granddaughter on a voyage when it is stopped by pirates. The space pirates are seeking out a spy for the Resistance, and they hope to be rewarded by the First Order for turning over the agent. During this crisis, the Halcyon’s logistic droid Deethree Ohnine tells the family stories of past events, including one that involved the grandfather. These tales also give Star Wars fans moments with The High Republic, Aurra Sing, Asajj Ventress, Anakin Skywalker, Padme Amidala, Lando Calrissian, Hondo Ohnaka, and many more. The stories together paint a picture of a cruise liner with a long history of intrigue and adventure.

Overall, the story is what you expect for a comic book tale. And it is written clearly and approachable especially for younger fans. I assume that Disney and its subsidiaries did require that the story include a large number of tie-ins…for synergy. The art is well done and gives you the visual reference you need to enter the Star Wars universe.

Huh, so you want to open with a story about the High Republic? I get that the High Republic is a massive Disney publishing program. But do you really want to open with that? To me, this comic has a purpose. Okay, I will agree that Sacks and Sliney had the purpose of creating an enjoyable story. So two purposes. Purpose two, as likely seen by Disney as purpose one, is to get guests excited about Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser. I’d also argue that kids are a great target for the comics format. I am not convinced that kids really know anything about the High Republic publishing effort. I’m not convinced as a Disney adult that the High Republic, especially wave two, is successful also. So while I get the references to the newest trilogy, especially how it aligns with Batuu, I scratch my head with the inclusion of an era of Star Wars that is really only on the page at the moment.

To continue to overstep myself, I think if Disney Parks, Lucasfilm, and Marvel wanted to really use synergy this story should have gone a little differently. First, we only get to see Captain Keevan in the story from the actual park experience cast. I think they could have added more current crew to the story. That would have better prepared you for who you will meet on the Halcyon. We really don’t get to see as much of the ship as I wanted. And I still scratch my head that anyone can do lightsaber training after tv has shown us they are super hard to use (nerd alert). Second, I would have rolled into the moments that older Star Wars fans may really have wanted, the original trilogy cast on an adventure. I think this would have been a perfect moment to adapt Princess Leia’s and Han’s honeymoon into comics. They’ve adapted entire Thrawn novels into comics. And this would have been a great moment to give that story some visuals. Now that is synergy and maybe help get Disney some bookings. And spoiler, younger fans like that first group of heroes too!

Star Wars: The Halcyon Legacy written by Ethan Sacks with art by Will Sliney is a fine representation of a comic book that can be enjoyed by numerous audiences. I just see the ability to better apply synergy. I think that Disney could have better used this opportunity to get bookings by making guests feel both informed and excited about a vacation of a lifetime. I would have simply recommended sprinkle in more of who we know and who we will see.

 

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Mousey Movies - The Phantom Menace

Star Wars is back.  I’m one of those geeky dads that took the release of Stars Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace in 3D as an opportunity to share the experience of Star Wars in the theater with a kid.  The Phantom Menace may not be my favorite of the Star Wars movies.  And it has some plot devices that I may not be able to explain, cough cough metachlorians cough cough.  But I fully accept it as Star Wars, have watched it several times and see its place within the larger story of a galaxy far far away.  And of course all things Star Wars are Mousey to me, even if Disney does not produce or distribute these movies:       

·         3D:  Hands down I believe that some of the best 3D experiences are Disney experiences.  Mickey’s PhilharMagic has ruined me for all other 3D experiences.  The Between Family went and saw Beauty and the Beast in 3D which was a little bit of a letdown as the champagne bottles during “Be Our Guest” did not shoot directly at me with puffs of air hitting my face!  Too much?  So slapping on the 3D glasses always makes me think of Disney experiences.    

·         Naboo:  The planet of Naboo is featured heavily in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.  And Naboo is one of the worlds featured in the 8 sequences in Star Tours: The Adventure Continues.  Naboo is not one of my favorite worlds in the Star Wars saga, but it may be my favorite planet in Star Tours due to the excellent use of 3D in the segment.  I’m back in my Starspeeder 1000 every time we go under the seas of Naboo!          

·         Podracing:  A second segment from Star Tours: The Adventure Continues is Tatooine and podracing.  In Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace we do not see any Starspeeders in the race.  But we get another view of the Boota Eve podrace.  The movie allows us to sit in the crowd cheering for little Anakin Skywalker, in the ride we get to be in the race. 

·         A113:  In the final battle on Naboo I swear I saw a Trade Federation battle droid labeled A113 attacking Gungan Jar Jar Binks.  I smiled satisfied I had found an Easter egg from Pixar films and the work of CalArts alumni.  With the high amount computer generated animation in the film I knew I there had to be a connection.  But wait!  I’m sure my initial thoughts and those of some of the Internet is wrong.  The droid is not A113, but 1138 in my opinion.  This is a tribute to Star Wars creator George Lucas’ first film THX 1138 and not an animation classroom.  Here is the photo so you can judge it for yourself. 



A113 or THX 1138?

I was asked, if Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace really is a Mousey Movie?  As I wear my Star Tours t-shirt, playing with my Disney/Star Wars action figures and play catch with my Star Wars baseball bought in Downtown Disney (by you dude), I say you betcha.  I recommend you go see Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace 3D while you can, relive the theatrical experience and share it with a youngling Between Disney. 

Between Books - Star Wars: The High Republic Tempest Breaker

War crimes are not cool. I’m sorry if you find that controversial, but they are horrible, truly evil, and require justice. Did Star Wars decide that redemption is more important than justice?

Star Wars: The High Republic Tempest Breaker by Cavan Scott is an audiobook with production to really provide a radio play. There is a script version available for those who prefer to read. The story follows forearm Nihil leader Lourna Dee as she works with a group of Jedi to track down a possible cure to the Blight. The story is full of adventure and danger, while we witness Lourna Dee transform from truly evil to at least gray.

I’m sorry. Lourna Dee has been a participant in truly evil mass casualty events. Scott allows us to dive deep into her personality, with the hope of finding sympathy from the reader, allowing us to accept a character transformation and redemption. But the fear for the reader is that the Jedi and the Republic will forget the horrible, atrocious acts of terror she has at times masterminded. I just need to remind everyone, Anakin Skywalker was redeemed, but he died before the next steps. Could he have moved forward with no punishment? Also, Lourna Dee isn’t even the most evil character that Scott builds sympathy for. I get that it’s enjoyable to redeem villains, but let’s not go so far as to make them heroes. Lourna Dee is not Han Solo! Their crimes were not at the same level of terror.

I also continue to struggle with the High Republic setup. Here in this book, I keep being told that Marchion Ro promised to cure the Blight. But I can’t remember when and where in everything I’ve read so far. There is a section that is a recap of other books and comics in the series. There is a pretty large plot point that I keep thinking, well, we can’t resolve this here because how many readers have picked up this audio first volume? And here, this is the moment where the High Republic attempts to more fully connect the different phases of the High Republic? I just think there are too many moving pieces, it’s too big, and disconnected in a way that keeps readers from being connected.

Okay, I like radio shows. So I love the production elements of this audiobook that makes it feel like I am listening to an action-packed story.

Yoda gets a moment.

I still can’t get past the fact that war crimes and many other horrendous acts cannot be ignored. Star Wars: The High Republic Tempest Breaker by Cavan Scott frames Lourna Dee in the language of Star Wars as a Han Solo type. Perhaps, we need to acknowledge that redemption and regret do not mean one can escape from judgment and justice.

 

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Cap's Comics - Darth Vader #3

On a quarantined world a young lady makes a desperate attempt to free a murderous robotic mind from imprisonment.  Her desperate attempt leads her into a partnership with Darth Vader, who finds himself without resources while he lacks the Emperor's favor.  Vader partners with the adventurer, rouge archaeologist Doctor Aphra, to increase his personal power through machines, starting with two assasin droids.  Aphra offers Vader even more robot power on a world that has a deep personal connection to Anakin Skywalker.

I really liked this Kieron Gillen story with Salvador Larroca art.  Though I will admit I do feel like I have seen some of this before.  There are portions of this tale that remind me of Brian Wood's Dark Horse arc "Five Days of Sith which also saw a disgraced Vader paired with a female counterpart.  And there is part of Aphra that feels like Indiana Jones...okay a big part including a reframing of a classic line!  So there will be moments where you might say, yeah I have seen this.  But the story still is very successful.

A big part of the success of Darth Vader #3 is setting up Aphra as a character.  She is clearly intelligent, adventurous and follows very questionable morals.  She has quite the dark side to her, but it is different than Vader's evil as she is talkative and what I would call adventurous bad.  I find myself liking this black hat and her love of evil robots is something that has my interest.  So I look forward to seeing what Gillen does next with this new non-Sith bad guy!

Darth Vader #3 hit all the right beats for me.  And I enjoyed yet again the introduction of an entirely new character.  Though if we have learned nothing in our Star Wars lore, standing too close to Darth Vader can get you burned! 

Between Books - Star Wars: Mace Windu: The Glass Abyss

Yeah Star Wars!

It’s the phrase that wakes up my kids in the middle of the night as I scream it at the top of my lungs.

Now, with many recent Star Wars’ books it’s been “sure I guess Star Wars”. The High Republic has given us a bunch of new characters, new places, new villains, new problems, and not really new reasons for me to care. Get off my lawn High Republic! And in the middle of my growing acceptance that the High Republic storylines just won’t end, Star Wars gives me a book with a character that I want to read about!

Star Wars: Mace Windu: The Glass Abyss by Steven Barnes is what I need from Star Wars right now. It’s a fast-based adventure story that uses a character I have seen and can picture, with enough pages to help build out the character even more within the approved canon space. But it also comes with stakes that can be limited to just the book itself, especially since we already know Windu’s final adventure.

In the aftermath of Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, Jedi Master Mace Windu receives an unexpected inheritance from the late Qui-Gon Jinn. Windu must fulfill a favor owed to the late master. Windu travels to the planet Megatos, where Jinn assigns him the task of throwing off planetary control by two competing criminal empires. Megatos is a world ravaged by an environmental disaster but also the sole source of the galaxy’s strongest silk for cables. Windu befriends the innocents of Megatos while also infiltrating the competing crime lords as he pretends to be “The Solver.”

The book really starts out well with it having a clear set up in the days after Jinn’s death, which we saw on screen. Barnes also gives us something we really want as fans, proof that Jinn and Windu were friends! So we have a setting to start the book and a time period that we are familiar with…and a Jedi hero who we know and fans want to see in more action.

From this setup, Barnes can give us the new. We get a new world, new friends, and new creatures. And the fact that we have the familiar as a jumping-off point allows us to share our goodwill with the new characters we want to cheer for even if they are only ever in these pages. And since we have a familiar character, Barnes can give us new canon tied to Windu’s image as the prototype Jedi warrior and his motivations and history with the Jedi. We get several flashbacks to Young Windu that help us understand him and if he is allowing himself some swagger in a purple blade! We also get to see how he can deeply care for others while holding to his Jedi vows. This serves as an interesting contrast to how we observe Anakin Skywalker’s lack of relational balance. Barnes also gives us an interesting new villain in Chulok, a crime lord who has menace and makes us feel like he could be a Jedi killer through their skill and biology!

Yoda has wise things to say about life! It’s exactly what we want from him!

Star Wars: Mace Windu: The Glass Abyss by Steven Barnes is a breath of fresh Star Wars. The story is a straight adventure but still gives us new canonical insight. Barnes provides us planet-wide but not galaxy-impacting stakes! Finally, we best of all get to join a character in an exciting moment and escape our real world for a few hours. 

 

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Cap's Comics - Darth Vader #4

Darth Vader #4 by Kieron Gillen with art by Salvador Larroca continues the partnership of Darth Vader and Doctor Aphra.  The pair travel to Geonosis to liberate one of the last remaining droid factories from the immortal queen.  What the two find is a damaged queen who thinks of her droids as more than machines.  Doctor Aphra takes time to discuss her future and destiny with the Sith Lord.  Finally, they discover one of the Emperor's secrets from a captured smuggler.  And the secret is one that Vader must act upon.

I really wish I could say that the adventure on Geonosis would have been what I found as the highlight of the issue.  There is a nice flashback to the movies and Anakin Skywalker's past on this planet.  But really it is Doctor Aphra that catches my attention in this story, again the original character is the most interesting.  It must be because she is the blank slate.  She understands her role in the partnership and how Vader values her.  She has no illusions where this story will take her.  But she faces it with confidence!  Aphra wants a life that mattered and a deal with the devil may be the clearest path to letting the universe know she was here. 

As the issue ends I find myself worrying for Aphra.  The Emperor's secret is tied to Lord Vader.  Yet I feel as if it is Aphra who is at risk.  Let us be blunt friends, we cannot guarantee a spot for her in any future movies!