Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Star Wars Darth Vader #8 Comic Book Review/Discussion: Spoilers!


Let me start by saying I have never been an actual comic book fan. Super Hero fan, yes, but I never managed to get into actual comic books. Honestly, the task always has felt daunting to me. So many story lines, different runs, and rebooting. I always felt I didn’t know where to start. Well, thank you Star Wars for giving me an in. I’m reading the comics so I can consume everything canon before the movie comes out in December.
I am officially caught up on all the comics, besides Princess Leia. I haven’t been able to find all of those yet…. Guess I’m officially actively hunting for comics now.  My path to the nerd side is complete.  I picked up the new Darth Vader today and eagerly consumed it, but I’m a bit disappointed where they have taken the story. I loved the first two books in the series, but since then I haven’t been a fan of the overall arc.
In number 8 we start out with the Aprhra, the droid archaeologist, who is planning to raid an Imperial ship with a group of bounty hunters. As far as this part of the story goes, I enjoyed the action. It was an enjoyable read, but I think there is a problem with a Darth Vader comic where he doesn’t show up until the comic is half over.  I don’t like that Vader teamed up with Aprhra in the first place. It doesn’t seem like a Vader move. I know we are seeing him shamed and vulnerable after destruction of the Death Star, but he wouldn’t associate with this character. I keep expecting him to force choke her, because she gets on my nerves. I also don’t feel any true fear from Aprhra towards Vader. Maybe I’m reading into it too much, I just expect more fear and awe from people who associate with Vader, even if he is disgraced at the moment.
Once Vader makes his appearance in the book he gives Aprhra another task to complete. He flies back to the fleet only to be assigned the task of hunting down the person who stole the loot from the Imperial ship. He is also saddled with another overseer who is supposed to keep an eye on him. I like this aspect, and wish they would focus more on this part of the story. I want to see Vader fight his way back into the Emperor’s favor by destroying his competition. We need to see a more brutal Vader. We got a taste of this in the first two episodes, and a bit in #7. This should be the focus. I like that he is trying to find Luke, but I want more of Vader brutalizing Imperial commanders while doing it.
Underwhelming is how I feel about the Darth Vader comic story so far. Hopefully it picks up, but I am thoroughly enjoying all of the other books coming out from Star Wars. The Vader comic isn’t bad, but as of right now it is my least favorite. Hopefully it picks up a bit, and we get some more of Vader being the complete terror he is from the first two movies.

Anyone have any thoughts? Have you read the comics, interested in them? Let me know what you think. 

No comments:

Post a Comment