MATT LOWDER Looks At Marvel's STARS WARS Volume 1

 Guest review by RUN THE COMICS 5K's Matt Lowder . . . . .

STAR WARS: VOLUME  1 of 14, (Marvel Comics, 2015-2019 series)Collects Star Wars #1 -6 Rating: FOUR out of a possible FIVE STARS. 

FIRST TAKEAWAY:
By page 10 or 12 it really dawned on me how iconic these characters are. Thanks to the strong identity portrayed on the big screen by the original cast, the writer's job is honestly easy as long as the plot feels canon and the vocabulary is true to the characters. The peril and humor hit like onion rings and zesty sauce. It feels like a favorite blanket always on your couch. You will "beep-beep-boop" while reading this.

DO I RECOMMEND IT?
Yes. This story picks up right after the events of "A NEW HOPE" but before "EMPIRE STRIKES BACK." It's a great place narratively to explore, stitching together more story in "the in-between." It is an easy recommendation to fans of the films. Read this.

PROS:
Writing this must have been a huge honor but also probably came with a lot of pressure. Multiple generations of readers and Star Wars fans have different expectations of what they want from their Star Wars media these days. Luckily, if you're talking about the core trilogy with the original cast, this couldn't have been done better. This was done very admirably with minor complaints. Threepio and Han Solo specifically have excellent dialogue and sound pitch-perfect to their characters. Action is good, though there may be a bit too much for a first arc. 

CONS:
Why a 4, and not a 5? Vader confronting Luke for the first time in a new series by Issue #2 gave me pause. That is something I would have built up to later. A plot contrivance miraculously saves him right in the knick of time as is ALWAYS the clockwork case. 

My other small complaint is about Vader's word choices, which just don't ring perfectly true to the cadence of James Earl Jones. He was the only one in the book that felt off. 

There were also a couple lines of dialogue Luke spoke out loud to himself with no one else around that sounded like they should have been thought-bubbles or voice-over. It didn't seem in-character or logical for him to just say out loud, "Oh, Ben. What did I just do?" or "I'm not my father. I'm not a Jedi. I'm just some stupid Farm Boy." It just didn't sound like anything Mark Hamill would have ever uttered. 

They're minor quibbles, but they did stick out and gave the book a couple "young adult teen angsty comic book" moment that felt out of place. Everything else was fine. You'll be treated to ample callbacks, cameos, easter eggs, references, and imagery harkening back to the original trilogy's characters, items, locations, and baddies. It's a mixtape and a love letter to Jabba, speedsters, AT-ATs, sabers, Sand people, Fett, you name it.

SPOILERS SECTION:
(Spoiler portion in italics)** There's a surprising reveal of Han Solo's wife, Sana Solo in Issue #6, which puts quite the dramatic hamper on some romance which had been developing between Leia and Han, and Issue #6 reveals a box in Tatooine with Luke's name on it holding Obi-Wan's journal, which I think may be a ancient text. **(end of spoilers).

PRICING/BUSINESS:
I also think a $20 MSRP on a pretty slim volume in trade is a high-ask for a Volume One when the publisher should be wanting a low-buy-in for new readers. (And, these are 20 page issues, not the typical 24, but who's counting?)

 It's why Image Comics brilliantly has $10 Volume Ones almost as a rule, with future volumes being maybe $15+. It's a good strategy to my mind, eating that cost early as a publisher, to get more people to try your product. Especially as I don't think Star Wars or Marvel are particularly hard-up for cash. For kids and teens buying trade comics with allowance (or, hell, adults on limited budgets), it has a bit of a "gatekeeping" feel to it, unintentional or otherwise. But that's just me being overly sensitive for the little guys and small fries.

WHAT DO YOU RECOMMEND TO ME, STAR WARS FANS?
Uh, help! I was genuinely carried away while reading this book, but do I "know enough lore" to try something not based on the original trilogy? I don't know. You tell me. 

There are several comics I've been too cowardly to begin, including Han Solo's book, Leia's book, Legends "Old Republic", Legacy collections, Poe's, Darth's, and Kanan's short-series. I just never know where to start chewing. What's next? Do I go to Volume Two here? Go to another series? I like Vader and Kanan, so should I try their first volumes? For those who have read a great deal of Star Wars books, what do you recommend?