Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Shattered Empire #4 - Marvel Comics

JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE No. 4, December 2015

As the concluding instalment of “a tent pole story in the journey to [the] Star Wars: the Force Awakens publishing program” this somewhat ‘silly’ tale of Luke Skywalker secreting himself into the Imperial base on Vetine in order to ‘rescue’ “a couple of twigs” proves a rather disappointing finale. For although the twenty-page periodical certainly ramps up the ‘thrill factor’ once the young Jedi’s scheme has been rumbled by the military installation’s commandant and Ben Kenobi’s protégé is literally surrounded by scores of Stormtroopers, it is hard not to question just why the Rebel commander’s co-pilot Lieutenant Shara Bey has volunteered for so dangerously ludicrous a mission when her alternative is a blissful life with her husband on a peaceful planet?

Quibbles as to the unconvincing motivation of Greg Rucka’s titular character aside however, the Eisner Award-winner’s narrative also regrettably appears to be based upon the presumption that despite knowing that Bey’s impersonation of Alecia Beck is false (as “Commander Beck is missing her left eye”), the research facilities’ Imperial forces still incredulously escort their intruders into the inner lab to a place where the rebels can do most damage? Considering that the Galactic Empire has “increased our security measures since the events at Endor” and that there are “only two people in the galaxy who could freely access this room…” why would any officer actually encourage such a blatant senseless breach of protocol?

Admittedly doubtless many of this title’s 105,284 readers forgave such lazy plot development just as soon as Artoo-Deetoo provided his black-suited master with his legendary weapon and the resultant light-sabre show ensued. But such seemingly bizarre decision-making and rationale as to how Po Dameron’s mother, Skywalker and his droid happen to have found their way to the location of “all that remain[s] of the tree that grew at the heart of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant” leaves something of a bad taste in the mouth; especially as the Californian’s writing for this four-issue mini-series has been so strong up until this point.

Fortunately Marco Checchetto’s drawing ability is more than up to the challenge such an implausible plot provides. Indeed the Italian’s pencilling of the sheer carnage Luke, now seemingly in full mastery of his Jedi powers, causes is breath-taking in places, as the Force-sensitive repeatedly fends off an apparently endless army of Imperial Stormtroopers and E-11 blaster rifle bolts.

The variant cover art of "JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE" No. 4 by Sara Pichelli

Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Shattered Empire #3 - Marvel Comics

JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE No. 3, December 2015

Utterly relentless in its breath-taking depiction of the Rebellion’s “ongoing combat operations against the shattered Empire”, this mini-series’ third instalment arguably provided its 105,496 buyers with an almost faultless “Star Wars” reading experience; even if Greg Rucka’s narrative does possibly rely a little heavily upon the nostalgia of “The Phantom Menace” in places. Indeed the opening third of this twenty-page periodical simply doesn’t let up for a moment, as General Han Solo leads a successful raid against an Imperial Security Bureau Black Site on “The Wretch of Tayron” and the San Francisco-born writer (once again) has this title’s audience guessing as to whether or not Sergeant Kes Dameron is going to survive his latest shoot-out with a seemingly endless swarm of Stormtroopers.  

Admittedly it seems inconceivable that the American author would have one of his main protagonists disposed of quite so ignominiously as to be killed by a lucky shot from a scout trooper’s hold-out blaster pistol. But until the timely and savage intervention of a rather enraged wookie, there’s a palpable tension within the sequence’s panels as the rebel’s position becomes increasingly exposed and vulnerable. Certainly ‘Strike Four’ seems to attract an awful lot of enemy laser fire for a two-person team; albeit they do single-handedly take down an AT-ST walker and “opened a door for us, [on the secret ISB base] southeast side.”

Just as unclear throughout “Shattered Empire” is the fate of the Pathfinders’ wife, Lieutenant Shara Bey. Having been “assigned a light duty, acting as pilot and escort for Princess Leia Organa”, Po Dameron’s mother soon finds herself confronting an Imperial-class Star Destroyer and its “complement of seventy-two TIE fighters” in nothing more than a twenty-year old Naboo spaceship. The resultant battle as she tries “shooting shiny things until there aren’t any more” is wonderfully tense, especially when her damaged craft loses its starboard hydraulics and falls into the gun sights of two enemy vessels…

All of this action is incredibly well-illustrated by Marco Checchetto and Angel Unzueta. The sheer pandemonium of Solo’s strike upon the Imperial base is fantastically frantic with explosions erupting all around the “Marvel Worldwide” artist’s characters, and is only bettered by the colourful ‘laser show’ of Bey’s space battle alongside Leia and Queen Soruna.

The variant cover art of "JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE" No. 3 by Mike Deodato, Jr.

Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Shattered Empire #2 - Marvel Comics

JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE No. 2, December 2015

Whilst undoubtedly an enjoyable and entertaining experience, Issue Two of “Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire” sadly seems to fall victim to the trap so many ‘official’ motion picture tie-in-titles experience by having its characters insufferably revisit the same familiar locations featured within the movies. Admittedly such an obvious ‘hook’ as Princess Leia leading a “diplomatic mission” to Naboo doubtless helped this magazine become the Eighth best-selling comic book of October 2015. But with the entirety of George Lucas’ “galaxy far, far away” to explore, it is arguable that some readers, especially those disillusioned by the ‘Clone Wars’ film trilogy, would have preferred the storyline to have occurred upon a planet which hasn’t already been so overly-exposed within the many Star Wars storytelling mediums.

Fortunately any such disillusionment with Greg Rucka’s script doesn’t manifest itself until a good two-thirds of the way through the comic. By which time the San Francisco-born writer has already enticed any semi-reluctant bibliophiles into ‘sticking with the title’ as a result of his marvellously enthralling demonstration as to how the Emperor manages to uphold his “legacy of darkness” over the “scattered Imperial forces” despite “Rebel propaganda” suggesting Palpatine is actually dead. Captain Duvat’s encounter with one such sinisterly-garbed ‘faceless’ Messenger, complete with mandatory blood verification, is chillingly written, and, along with Lerr’s sadistic grin as he orders his Star Destroyer to “scour” Naboo, gives a rare glimpse as to the unnerving fanaticism some of the Sith Master’s minions maintain for their evil-hearted ruler.

Equally as engrossing, and far more action-packed, is the three-time Eisner Award-Winner’s depiction of the Rebellion’s battle inside Cawa City on Sterdic IV, as Tie-fighters buzz across the futuristic metropolis’ skyline and a formidable AT-AT walker thunders down its main throughway. Indeed, this sequence, set “seventeen days after the Battle of Endor”, genuinely seems to capture a real sense of claustrophobic low-level combat with it fast-paced panels portraying Green Group’s A-Wings taking on the Imperial Navy in a series of dog-fights amidst the overcrowded settlement’s cramped streets.

Somewhat disconcerting however has to be the inconsistent quality of this comic’s pencilling. Something which can’t have come as a surprise to “Marvel Worldwide” considering that they employed Angel Unzueta and Emilio Laiso as “extra hands to round out this issue.” Lead illustrator Marco Checchetto’s drawings are quite simply breathtakingly good, with his double-splash of stormtroopers blasting away on Sterdic IV beneath the legs of the aforementioned AT-AT being the highlight of the book. Sadly though the Italian’s enviable artwork inevitably means his colleagues’ pictures appear unfairly poor by comparison, especially those depicting a rather ruddy-nosed Leia Organa.

The variant cover art of "JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE" No. 2 by Julian Totino Tedesco

Journey To Star Wars: The Force Awakens - Shattered Empire #1 - Marvel Comics

JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE No. 1, NOVEMBER 2015

Set within the last act of the 1983 “American epic space opera film directed by Richard Marquand”, this twenty page periodical not only depicts “the final moments of the Battle of Endor” as “the Rebellion’s capital ships… buy enough time to rescue victory from the jaws of defeat…” But also introduces two new characters to George Lucas’ galaxy far, far away in the shape of Sergeant Kes Dameron and his wife Lieutenant “Green Four” Bey; one of General Han Solo’s Pathfinders and an ace A-Wing pilot who inadvertently almost dispatches a certain Imperial shuttlecraft fleeing the destruction of the Second Death Star; “This is Commander Skywalker, repeat, vessel is under friendly control.”

The inclusion of, and subsequent focus upon, two such newly-created “Star Wars” personalities is a somewhat disappointing move by writer Greg Rucka, as this “new chapter in the Star Wars saga” was advertised by “Marvel Worldwide” as one of “a series of canonical projects” which would “explore the aftermath of Return Of The Jedi” and as such seemed destined to follow the exploits of Luke, Leia, Han and Chewie in a post-Palpatine universe rather than any “new addition[s] to the Star Wars canon”. Fortunately however “the acclaimed writer” of “Wolverine” has been very careful not to solely concentrate upon the actions of the two rebel fighters, and instead has weaved them throughout the Emperor’s final moments.

As a result there are some nice scenes shared with the more recognisable ‘heroes of the Rebellion’, such as C-3P0, R2-D2, Nien Nunb and plenty of fuzzy Ewok warriors. Indeed one of the highlights of the narrative is Bey’s interruption of General Solo as he berates a smirking Lando Calrissian for damaging the Millennium Falcon during the space battle as the San Franciscan’s script absolutely nails the smooth-talking smiling former administrator of Cloud City as the “connoisseur of beauty in all things…”

The three-time Eisner Award-winner is equally as successful in producing a storyline which genuinely increases in tension with each and every turn of the page. Having spent the best part of the comic searching to see if her husband still lives after the Death Star’s demise, Green Four then accompanies the Corellian and Chewbacca on a “hot” raid upon “an imperial holdout on the far side of the moon…” and spends a nervy few panels watching the enemy base Dameron is fighting within, waiting to see if the sergeant will return to her arms alive…

Quite possibly this book’s greatest asset though is the incredibly detailed artwork of Marco Checchetto. Rucka’s collaborator on “The Punisher” really manages to ‘nail’ both the grandeur and dynamism of this “untold story”, and additionally captures all the trademark looks and gestures of trilogy actors Billy Dee Williams and Harrison Ford.

The variant cover art of "JOURNEY TO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS - SHATTERED EMPIRE" No. 1 by Pasqual Ferry