The Good
The series continues to fill in the gap between Episodes IV and V. With the dust settling after their recent mission against a weapons factory for the Empire, Luke, Han and Leia go off on some new missions. Luke is trying to figure out what's next for him. With a short period of time with Ben, the only place he can think to go is back to Tatooine to search Ben's place. Too bad a certain bounty hunter is also on Tatooine looking for him. At the same time, Leia convinces Han to accompany her on a search for a new location for a Rebel base.
Jason Aaron continues to show the great grasp he has on these characters. With a tighter control over the Star Wars franchise, you can feel the cohesion being established within Marvel's line. To fans, this is a crucial time period that's ripe for exploration. Aaron captures the essence of the characters in a fantastic way. The action may be a little toned down compared to some of the big crazy moments we had in the first four issues but you can still see a lot being built to push this series and time period forward.
John Cassaday's art is stellar here along with Laura Martin's colors. Cassaday adds in a heaping amount of detail that will make you pause when looking at the panels on each page. We get some great looks of expression, especially with Luke, Han, and Leia. Seeing Boba Fett do this thing and a cantina full of aliens, it's pretty much exactly what we could hope for when seeing a story take place on Tatooine.
The Bad
Han and Leia's mission makes sense but almost makes it feel like Leia really wanted to spend time with Han. Yes, that may be the case but she wouldn't create an obvious situation. The good thing is this mission appears to be tying into a new development from last issue.
Most readers love Boba Fett but his inclusion here, as fun as it is, feels a little too much. There could be a great explanation as to how his appearance here would affect any recognition with certain characters in Empire Strikes Back. It also seems that with Tatooine being a large and desolate planet, would he be able to find any answers?
A minor Star Wars nerd complaint is there was an expanded universe story with Vader personally discovering the identity of the pilot that destroyed the Death Star by questioning a captured X-Wing pilot. Yes, the expanded universe is gone. This doesn't affect the rating of the issue or new telling. It just made my heart sink a little.
The Verdict
The saga continues with some separate adventures with our heroes. The idea of Luke returning to Tatooine is great and he's being set up for a dangerous situation. Han and Leia are getting the chance to bicker some more, as we would expect. Jason Aaron is pushing the development of these characters in this three-year gap between Episodes IV and V and it's a treat for fans. The action is toned down a little but it allows for the story to grow and for more set up. John Cassaday's are is full of detail as he captures the look of the world and adds in loads of expressions to give all a more live action feel. If you think you know everything there is to know about STAR WARS, you must not be reading this series.
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