Review: Star Wars: Darth Vader #1
By D. Goodman
Star Wars: Darth Vader #1
Written by Kieron Gillen
Art by Salvador Larroca
Colors by Edgar Delgado
Published by Marvel Comics
When Marvel announced that the second monthly title in their Star Wars line was going to feature Darth Vader, I was more than a bit apprehensive. In the 20 years Dark Horse help the license, they published very few stories that focused on the Dark Lord of the Sith, and for good reason. One of the most complex and tragic characters in the series, Vader is incredibly hard to do right. Other creative teams have tried and failed, whether they didn’t get his “voice” right or just weren’t sure how to tell a compelling story about the all-powerful epitome of evil in the Star Wars universe.
So I went into Marvel’s Darth Vader #1 with an open mind, but was expecting to come away disappointed.
But instead of coming away disappointed, I came away with the feeling that Darth Vader might actually be a better first issue than Star Wars #1.
Star Wars: Darth Vader occurs in the same time frame as Marvel’s other series, Star Wars. In it, we see things from the Empire’s point of view, and the ramifications from the recent loss of the Death Star. Vader has to deal with the Emperor’s displeasure with him, as well as trying to discover the identity of the pilot who destroyed the Imperial battle station.
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I’m going to be up front and tell you right off the bat: I loved this comic. Loved it. Not only does the book work as a great Star Wars story, it works as a great comic book, period. To be able to see events after the first Star Wars movie from an Imperial perspective is just so refreshing and engaging that I literally could not turn the pages fast enough.
A big part of the reason for that is Keiron Gillen. If you have read his acclaimed run on Journey Into Mystery featuring Young Loki, then you know that he has the skills to write characters that are less than altruistic. But it is amazing how he just nails the tone and feel of Vader. The way he talks, the way he reacts, it’s just spot-on perfect. Better even than Jason Aaron’s version of Vader in his book. Plus the story is just so compelling and so … Star Wars, that you can’t help but love what you’re reading.
But as good as the story may be, without the art of Salvador Larroca, I don’t think it would work quite as well.
Larroca is an artist whose style you either love or hate; there is no middle ground with most comic book readers. And while I wasn’t a huge fan of his work on Invincible Iron Man, I was interested to see what he could do with a book like Darth Vader. I had no idea that when combined with the color work of Edgar Delgado, it would be what I consider the best work of his career.
Between the script by Gillen and the perfect way Larroca draws Vader, down to the way he “moves” and his presence in a scene, it’s almost like watching one of the movies. Simply remarkable.
The Bottom Line: In case I haven’t been clear enough, Star Wars: Darth Vader #1 is an awesome, must-read book that should be on every Star Wars fan’s pull list. Do not wait for the trades, go out and get this comic right now because you don’t want to miss what could easily be one of the best new series of the year from any publisher.
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