The end of The Empire Strikes Back puts our heroes at their lowest point. Han has been taken. Luke has not only lost his hand but learned the disturbing truth of who his father was. Leia has lost contact with the Rebel Alliance, not sure of their fate after the Battle of Hoth. While the end of the film is hopeful, it’s clear that there was some serious work to be done to fix what went wrong. In “Star Wars” #1, Charles Soule made the decision to pick up the story before Empire even concluded and drops a major bomb. Not only is the alliance scattered, but they are also isolated, unable to communicate with one another without alerting the empire. The central question of “Star Wars” #2 is about rebuilding, how do you recover when you’ve lost so much? Soule and his creative team present this in two different characters, Lando and Leia. In both cases, the situation brings out the characters’ natural strengths but also shows the strain it puts onto them. Picking up the pieces isn’t easy, but when there’s nothing else you don’t have much choice.
Written by Charles SouleCover by R.B. Silva & GURU-eFX
Illustrated by Jesús Saiz
Colored by Arif Prianto
Lettered by VC’s Clayton Cowles“No…I am your father.” In the wake of the events following The Empire Strikes Back, it is a dark time for the heroes of the Rebellion. The Rebel fleet…scattered following a disastrous defeat at the Battle of Hoth. Han Solo…lost to the bounty hunter, Boba Fett, after being frozen in carbonite. And after being lured into a trap on Cloud City and bested in a vicious lightsaber duel against the evil Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker…learned the horrible truth about his past. Vader did not kill Luke’s father Anakin–Vader is Luke’s father! Now, after narrowly escaping the dark lord’s clutches, and wounded and reeling from the revelation, Luke, Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian, the Wookiee Chewbacca and the droids C-3PO and R2-D2 must fight their way back to the Rebel Alliance—for the fate of the entire galaxy is at stake! After so many losses is victory still possible? But, what Leia, Luke and their rag tag band of freedom fighters do not realize is that they have only traded one Imperial trap for another! Enter the cunning and vengeful Imperial Commander Zahra, at the helm of the Tarkin’s Will! Writer Charles Soule (DARTH VADER) and artist Jesus Saiz (DOCTOR STRANGE) are taking us all to the galaxy far, far away next year! With covers by RB Silva (POWERS OF X)!
Lando Calrissian is, in many ways, a more successful Han Solo. He is a quick thinker and smooth talker, taking advantage of his natural charisma to avoid fighting. In “Star Wars” #2, Soule takes full advantage of Lando’s ability to talk his way out of difficult situations. Lando’s dialogue was snappy and fun, acting like he was already best friends with everyone in the room. The highlight of the issue was his interactions with Chewbacca on the Falcon. There is a lot of tension between the two, but Lando tries to laugh it off like it’s no big deal. The writing is especially enhanced by Jesús Saiz’s art. Saiz really captures the emotions of the character well. When Lando is talking to others, he always seems to have a playful grin. There are times he can get serious, sure, but he carries himself with a sense of lighthearted confidence. That works well for the character we’ve seen before, but Saiz takes it to the next level when Lando will occasionally take his guard down. You can see how conflicted Lando is about the whole situation, moments when he’s in pain. Not only is he responsible for betraying his friend, he lost everything in the process. While on the surface he’s still projecting his jovial brashness, inside he is dealing with the mess he made.
Lando is also responsible for some growing tension in the comic. In the films, Lando goes from the man responsible for betraying the rebellion in one film and then is a respected member in the next. “Star Wars” #2 allows for Soule to investigate how he earned that trust. Because Lando is still very much an opportunist in the issue. He’s looking for a way to reclaim Cloud City from the Empire and seems to be willing to play any side to do it. His opportunism also presents itself when he’s negotiating for his life from Jabba the Hut, willing to be a mole for the notorious gangster. It’s here that he seems the most conflicted though. Once again, Saiz shows what could be some inner conflict in the character. The art allows Lando to be mysterious. Is he truly conflicted? Or is he simply playing a part to get information? We know where the story ends up, but Soule gets to show us how he got there.
Continued belowCharles Soule also does great work writing Leia. Leia not only has to deal with the loss of Han, she also has to be the leader of the cell of rebels cut off from their comrades. It’s difficult, but she handles it like the natural leader she is. Her speech is inspirational, giving hope in the hopeless, but it’s also clear that this mask is slipping a little bit. This is especially the case when she is just with the core group, she seems more sarcastic and cynical. Soule is able to capture the mannerisms that Carrier Fisher brought to the role in the sequel trilogy. It lays the groundwork for the character she became later in life which is not an easy feat. Once again, Saiz is able to tell a lot of story with her facial expressions. This is best shown in her speech to the alliance. She goes from insightful to intense to sarcastic in three panels.
The art, in general, should be commended for how well Jesus Saiz and Arif Prianto were able to capture the look of the original trilogy. There’s a certain level of grittiness to the color scheme. One of the most impressive panels is Leia’s memory of Han moments before being frozen. The predominantly red background enhances the shadows on his face which adds to the mystery of his fate. The same is true with Jabba’s palace. The coloring adds a feeling of dirty dampness which contrasts nicely with the stark white and clean lines of the rebel ship. It all looks like things that could be done in the original trilogy, which makes it all more fun.
That’s been the most impressive aspect of all of these Star Wars main trilogy comics, they all feel like lost chapters of the saga. You can read the character’s dialogue in the voices of the original actors. The creatures look like they could be achieved without computers. The adventures are the right blend of threat and pulpy fun. “Star Wars” #2 continues this trend and Soule is setting up an adventure that will continue to embrace the mystery and fun of the series.
Final Verdict: 8.0 “Star Wars” #2 is an engaging adventure that understands and enhances the characters of the original trilogy.
