After an unexpected week off, we’re back to finish up the second arc of “Star Wars: Darth Vader,” which finds out titular character working his way back into the power structure, step by step.
Cover by Adi GranovWritten by Kieron Gillen
Illustrated by Salvador Larocca
Colored by Edgar Delgado
Lettered by VC’s Joe CaramangaCollects Darth Vader (2015) #7-12.
Bounty Hunters on the attack–against the Empire! Vader has a new mission to do for the Empire. Unfortunately, it’s completely at odds with his own mission. What’s a Dark Lord to do? Plus: Who is Tagge’s mysterious new agent?
An accurate subtitle for the back half of this arc could be “How Vader Got his Groove Back.” Throughout these three issues, we see Lord Vader cut an impressive figure in all his interactions: with Thanoth, with Aphra, on his Imperial mission. And it’s not so much in the script but in Salvador Larocca’s art, specifically on two P’s: perspective and paneling.
On perspective, there’s a lot of worm’s eye view, that view that puts the eye at the base of the figure looking up. But what’s interesting is how it is used in issue #10 at the Dragon’s Lair. Just before Vader takes the life of the Dragon, he questions him about the sale of explosives. In this moment, you see both Vader and the Dragon in that worm’s eye view, two equals standing toe-to-toe with each other, tugging for power. It’s only a brief moment of that conflict, for the Dragon ends up very much dead only a short time later, even after he gives the answer that Vader wants (that yes, he knows who sold those explosives and that he will share the information with him). So why kill someone when they give you what they want? Simple: knowledge is power. And when someone has that knowledge that Vader doesn’t, they are more powerful and can use it against him later, even if they give it up.
Now on to that other P: Paneling. Full page spreads and breaking panel borders push Vader to the front and center in several scenes, putting him in your line of sight. He’s there and you can’t look away, no matter how hard you try. There’s also a bit of bird’s eye view perspective in issue #11 that shows power, with Vader overlooking a flank of stormtroopers, the general reviewing his army. With these, Darth Vader cuts an impressive figure to all in his presence, no matter how on the outs he is with the Empire.
But there’s also script moments that show Vader is not to be messed with, and they involve Aphra directly. Aphra shows herself in this series of issues to be a woman who does whatever it takes to get the job done. If that means stealing credits from the Son-Tuul Pride, so be it. If that means traveling with a lot of those credits and very little security to the Ante to continue the pursuit of information about Luke Skywalker, so be it. If that means not only killing Commodex Tahn after her interrogation and then burning his home down, an act even the violence-loving Triple Zero calls barbaric, so be it. These are heavy risks she takes . . . and unfortunately they blow up in her face. Darth Vader is someone who cares how the job is done, and his punishment of Aphra for the heist shows that he has to balance that self-interest with the Imperial interests. When one takes precedence over the other, both missions fail.
Let’s chat a little bit about Aphra for a moment. Issue #11 gives us a little bit more of her backstory, as she shares her upbringing with Commodex Tahn: raised during a galactic war on the frontier by her mother, far away from her father, her mother killed right in front of her. In the later “Star Wars: Doctor Aphra” series, we have several issues devoted to this backstory, and reading this after reading that series is one of those times where an emotional moment meant for character development ends up diluted. I guess you can say: spoilers.
The artwork still has a few missteps. Action scenes still remain stiff and stilted, and I’m hoping that the creativity I saw in paneling, breaking out of those traditional panel boundaries can extend further. There’s almost too much effective use of space, and I want to see this comic’s fight scenes get bold and excessive. Take some of the excessiveness that we see in some of the one-on-one violent moments, such as Triple Zero’s execution of Commodex Tahn, and bring it to the larger scale action scenes. But moments in space, where color and line combine to show its vast emptiness, show just what Salvador Larocca does best in this series: create evocative settings. Perhaps a co-artist who has that technical prowess to draw fluid action can take this series to even greater heights.
Continued belowAt the end of ‘Shadows and Secrets,’ we see that Vader earns back some of the Imperial respect. He decides to forgive Aphra for her earlier transgression, wisely persuaded by her information on where Luke Skywalker hides and impressed by her tactics. But as I said earlier, the mere possession of information can be power, something Vader knows and seems to scheme to keep Aphra in line.
All signs point to Darth Vader’s dark star once again on the rise. But with the next arc titled ‘Vader Down,’ that rise isn’t going to be one that runs smoothly. See you all next week.
Next week we look at the first half of ‘Vader Down’ which includes issue #13, the one-shot “Star Wars: Vader Down,” and issue #13 of “Star Wars.”
If you want to read along with me this summer, you can pick up the single issues or trades of “Star Wars: Darth Vader” at your local comic shop (be sure to wear your mask and social distance while you’re there!), or digitally on Marvel Unlimited or Comixology Unlimited. All single issues and trades of the series are available on Marvel Unlimited and Comixology Unlimited. If you’re a trade reader, don’t forget to check your local library’s print and digital catalogues for these books!
