Star Wars Addiction

January 20, 2008

So Legacy is officially my favorite Star Wars comic line, ever, mind you, not just currently. I’m kicking the stellar Rogue Squadron series to the curb, as well as the Empire series and the early 1990s Tales of the Jedi, despite my affinity for all of them. Yeah, Legacy is all about Jedi (yawn), and is woefully short on pilots that don’t rely on their Force crutches, but its just so well done in every respect that its hard not to grin like you just won the Coronet mega-millions jackpot with each new issue.

The culprit this time around is #18, part five of the six part ‘Claws of the Dragon’ story arc. The issue finds our anti-hero Cade Skywalker trapped in the Embrace of Pain, a monstrous contraption left over from the days of the Yuuzhan Vong and used by the nefarious Darth Krayt in an attempt to break Skywalker’s mind and set him on the path to the dark side. Fans of the New Jedi Order series, and the Vong in particular, will love this issue, as it delves deep into Krayt’s origins, from his capture and subsequent coral implantations at the hands of the Vong shapers, to an encounter with the traitorous Vergere, to his resurgence at the head of the new Sith order that casts off Darth Bane’s ‘rule of two’ mantra.

The script, by John Ostrander, does an admirable job of fleshing out Krayt’s backstory within the limited confines of a comic, and the dialogue crackles with gems like:

The artwork, by Legacy regular and co-author Jan Duursema, is quite simply the standard for Star Wars comics. Duursema’s panels convey a range of raw emotion that is at once beautiful to look at and appropriate to the dark subject matter. Her characters, particularly the broken Bothan Jedi Hosk, display a range of facial detail not often found in the medium, and her action scenes are as darkly balletic as any of the lightsaber duels in the six Star Wars films.

It's also a treat to see Duursema turned loose on some of the earlier events and characters in the canon. Her rendition of Vergere is solid, bringing a grounded visual reference to a character that has mostly existed in the mind’s eye, and her depictions of the Yuuzhan Vong and their iconic paraphernalia (thud bugs, amphistaffs, and the Embrace) had me itching to revisit some of the better New Jedi Order novels currently gathering dust on my bookshelf.

In a nutshell, the Legacy comic series continues to amaze, both in terms of storytelling and visuals. Fans of Star Wars, and the comic medium in general, will be hard-pressed to find many faults with what is one of, if not the, premiere titles in the long history of the Expanded Universe.


	DarthDan January 20, 2008 Comment 1 One kickass review, bud. I can't wait to get caught up. Forever January 20, 2008 Comment 2 ooooh, THE EMBRACE!!! Awesome to finally see it drawn. I like you quoted the dialogue like that. very nice Jef! RebelFox January 20, 2008 Comment 3 Holy shit, man. I'm about two issues behind you. I don't think I've ever seen you so gushy, Master Jef. You're a pretty tough customer, so your five masterful sabers speaks volumes. Get these immediately and SWAC off over the pages, I must! Stuck together, the pages of this issue shall become! Angyll January 20, 2008 Comment 4 QUOTE(JediFox @ January 20 2008, 04:58 PM) and SWAC off Only here, on SWAC, does such a new term arise. Ooh the imagery -bangs head against wall to get it out- JediJef January 20, 2008 Comment 5 iam118 January 21, 2008 Comment 6 Yeah I need to go pick up my stash at the comic store! Good review. Ethanos January 27, 2008 Comment 7 AAAAAAH!!! I CAN'T READ THE TINY TALK BUBBLES