A New Direction In Star Wars.
Synopsis: A new era for Star Wars.
"A long time ago in a Galaxy far, far away...."
Boy, does that quote mean something in this series. In Star Wars, the stories we know goes into the far future (New Jedi Order, Legacy, Legacy (comics)), But Star Wars never really explore the past. Yes, there's Tales of the Jedi, but what about before Tales of the Jedi? HOW EXACTLY did Jedi and Sith came to be? Who's better to answer these questions than John Ostrander and Jan Duuresema (George Lucas could answer those questions as well...maybe)?
Both John Ostrander and Jan Duuresema takes this story 36,453 years before A New Hope (I kid you not). This issue explains how the Jedi, or "Je'daii" formed on the planet Tython and slowly became the guardians of the galaxy that we know. Their philosophy is not that different from the Jedi that have appeared in Tales of the Jedi and onward, only that instead of following just the light side of the Force, they balance it with the dark as well. While the Je'daii maintain harmony and continue to learn about the Force, The Rakatans, that control the Infinite Empire are on a conquest to control the galaxy (fans of Knights of the Old Republic game may recognize this empire). Soon, these two will meet
Who's better to illustrate this series than Jan Duuresema? Because this series takes place many years in the past, this series has a different look to it. The technology is still advanced, but there's the sense that it's not so advanced to what we have seen in the movies and beyond. The different races featured are always great to look at, and the environments are spectacular. Take Tatooine for example. We all know Tatooine as that desert planet right? But it wasn't always like that. It's pretty interesting to see it as a world filled with water.
A couple of things I disliked about this issue is how the Je'daii came to be. I'm supposed to believe that floating pyramids called Tho Yor gathered Force sensitive individuals from different species in the galaxy to a planet where they trained in the Force?? Don't get me wrong. I'm not expecting this series to answer everything. I just find that one aspect far-fetched.
There's also the fact that there's not a central character in this issue other than Xesh on the cover (who like almost every single villain in Star Wars has a mask), and maybe Master Ketu. This is not a problem if (like me) read #0 before this issue, as it explains the characters that will be featured in this series.
I also want to say that any Star Wars fan can get into this series, but it feels like this is more for those who are into the expanded universe lore.
Overall:
One thing to take from this series is that anything can happen. I trust in the writing team of John Ostrander and Jan Duuresema, for they came up with some awesome works in the past. Fantastic issue.
