Star Wars #2
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: John Cassaday
Star Wars #1 was the bestselling comic of the past 20 years so there was obviously mountains of hype surrounding its release. And boy, did it live up to our expectations. Marvel have selected the perfect creative team for this book in the form of Jason Aaron and John Cassaday. The first issue was everything I wanted it to be. Light-hearted, adventurous and character driven. There really wasn’t a better way to kickstart Marvel’s new Star Wars comic’s line, so I was obviously highly anticipating the series’ sophomore issue. And upon putting this issue down, I felt no surprise, only joy. Because this series has found its footing and is sticking to it. Star Wars #2 is another hit!
From the first page of this series, I knew that Jason Aaron would completely nail the tone plot and pacing of this book. When I read this book, I felt as though I was watching a Star Wars movie. The magic was re-created in the pages of this glorious comic book (despite some missteps along the way). The plot of this book is very simplistic but it fits for what Aaron is trying to achieve. He’s aware that his story isn’t complex in any form so he focuses on creating such a light and adventurous tone that’ll suck the readers in at first glance. This comic doesn’t need a complex plot, all it needs is to feel like Star Wars and that’s exactly what it does.
While the strongest aspects of Star Wars’ inaugural issue was in the top-notch characterizations, this became my biggest problem with the book here. I don’t like the way Jason Aaron portrays Darth Vader, which is unfortunate because he’s the best character in the history of this layered universe. Aaron’s rendition of the character boasted of his villainy, talked too much and asserted his power through dull threats. I picture Darth Vader as a silent and threatening presence who doesn’t need to remind people of who he is and what he’s done. He’s a commanding villain based off of actions and not threats. That’s not to say that he’s all bad in this issue, however. He’s certainly a solid antagonist for the first arc of this series and Aaron does give him some pretty good lines. Though, overall, if Aaron had toned down the dialogue for Vader, I would definitely have enjoyed this issue more.
But that isn’t to say that Star Wars’ sophomore issue loses the brilliant characterizations of its predecessor. Far from it. Aaron has a firm handle on a reckless Luke Skywalker with shaken confidence and a strong sense of responsibility. He was the driving force of this issue and proved to be a strong leading character for this series. And on the other side of the hero spectrum, Aaron continued to write Han-Solo to perfection while building on his blooming romance with Leia quite well. Aaron certainly understands their dynamic and that was extremely apparent through the strong interactions in this issue.
John Cassaday returns on art duties (without any delay) and he does a solid job. His art has a cinematic feel to it that helps bolster the tone of the series. Fellow CTG writers were saying they didn’t love his art but I definitely enjoy it and feel as though he was a great choice to pencil this series.
If you’re a Star Wars fan and you aren’t reading this comic yet, you’re making a huge mistake. This is a Star Wars comic that feels like a movie due to its cinematic art, adventurous tone and great renditions of the characters we know and love. Marvel hit the mark with their first Star Wars series that continues to impress in its sophomore issue. The only thing holding this series back is an underwhelming portrayal of Darth Vader, but that’s quite a small complaint in comparison to all the praise I can give this issue.
Artist: John Cassaday
Star Wars #1 was the bestselling comic of the past 20 years so there was obviously mountains of hype surrounding its release. And boy, did it live up to our expectations. Marvel have selected the perfect creative team for this book in the form of Jason Aaron and John Cassaday. The first issue was everything I wanted it to be. Light-hearted, adventurous and character driven. There really wasn’t a better way to kickstart Marvel’s new Star Wars comic’s line, so I was obviously highly anticipating the series’ sophomore issue. And upon putting this issue down, I felt no surprise, only joy. Because this series has found its footing and is sticking to it. Star Wars #2 is another hit!
From the first page of this series, I knew that Jason Aaron would completely nail the tone plot and pacing of this book. When I read this book, I felt as though I was watching a Star Wars movie. The magic was re-created in the pages of this glorious comic book (despite some missteps along the way). The plot of this book is very simplistic but it fits for what Aaron is trying to achieve. He’s aware that his story isn’t complex in any form so he focuses on creating such a light and adventurous tone that’ll suck the readers in at first glance. This comic doesn’t need a complex plot, all it needs is to feel like Star Wars and that’s exactly what it does.
While the strongest aspects of Star Wars’ inaugural issue was in the top-notch characterizations, this became my biggest problem with the book here. I don’t like the way Jason Aaron portrays Darth Vader, which is unfortunate because he’s the best character in the history of this layered universe. Aaron’s rendition of the character boasted of his villainy, talked too much and asserted his power through dull threats. I picture Darth Vader as a silent and threatening presence who doesn’t need to remind people of who he is and what he’s done. He’s a commanding villain based off of actions and not threats. That’s not to say that he’s all bad in this issue, however. He’s certainly a solid antagonist for the first arc of this series and Aaron does give him some pretty good lines. Though, overall, if Aaron had toned down the dialogue for Vader, I would definitely have enjoyed this issue more.
But that isn’t to say that Star Wars’ sophomore issue loses the brilliant characterizations of its predecessor. Far from it. Aaron has a firm handle on a reckless Luke Skywalker with shaken confidence and a strong sense of responsibility. He was the driving force of this issue and proved to be a strong leading character for this series. And on the other side of the hero spectrum, Aaron continued to write Han-Solo to perfection while building on his blooming romance with Leia quite well. Aaron certainly understands their dynamic and that was extremely apparent through the strong interactions in this issue.
John Cassaday returns on art duties (without any delay) and he does a solid job. His art has a cinematic feel to it that helps bolster the tone of the series. Fellow CTG writers were saying they didn’t love his art but I definitely enjoy it and feel as though he was a great choice to pencil this series.
If you’re a Star Wars fan and you aren’t reading this comic yet, you’re making a huge mistake. This is a Star Wars comic that feels like a movie due to its cinematic art, adventurous tone and great renditions of the characters we know and love. Marvel hit the mark with their first Star Wars series that continues to impress in its sophomore issue. The only thing holding this series back is an underwhelming portrayal of Darth Vader, but that’s quite a small complaint in comparison to all the praise I can give this issue.
A Look Inside
