Jedi News Comic Review: Classic Star Wars The Early Adventures #5

    After coming under attack from Imperial forces when on route to a mission, the great Princess Leia and her accomplice Hume, must diverse a plan quickly. Leia opts to stay and fight to the death in rebellious glory while Hume worries about the survival of the Princess and the Rebellion with her. So in a drastic move Hume knocks the Princess out and decides to send her off to the nearest planet in a Gossamer Glider. But a TIE fighter has been dispatched with a set route to destroy the glider, there’s only one thing Hume can do in order to save Leia.

    Although her life was fortunate her destination was not. Unbeknownst to her, the world that lay in wait for her arrival was an Imperial slave colony run by the revenge stricken Lady Tarkin, the grief stricken widow of the mighty Grand Moff Tarkin. Leia realises in order to survive she must blend in with the workers. However from previously being layered in a cloak, she stands out from the rest of the workers. Lady Tarkin spots her immediately and calls her up.

    Luckily for Leia, the Tarkin does not know the face of the heroic Princess and makes her a diplomatic servant for her dinner party. After sitting in the eatery she soon finds out that two of the workers have devised a nifty escape plan from the treacherous work life. She decides to help them and all they need is for her to reach the Space Transponder and convey the message onto the rescue ship. Leia creates a plan to reach the Transponder, although one thing stands in their way of escape, the evil Sith Lord Darth Vader and his band of Stormtroopers!

    The Review

    In this issue of Early Adventures the reader will be leaving Luke’s side and heading onto Leia’s. This issue also investigates into the legacy of the greatly missed Grand Moff Tarkin which I’m sure many readers would find quite intriguing. This issue really does focus completely on Leia’s mischievous side, so this would be a real good read for any fan girls out there.

    Some of the angles used in this issue really show the character in its bare form without all of the layering we see today. For example, Lady Tarkin is looked up to by the illustrator showing her sharp face features and tight upright positioning, emphasising her authority with striking fear and revenge set deep within her eyes. Darth Vader is also portrayed much more in his McQuarrie like state reflecting more of a Samurai like helmet. Personally I really love when a character is portrayed in his/her early state of concept as it puts a unique twist on the story.

    The storyline itself is very original with a satirical twist. The exploding Megonite creates a tense atmosphere as there is always this current underlying threat that anything can blow up at any moment. The use of broadening key words within dialogue really helps emphasize character traits, thoughts and feelings. A good technique to help new readers develop an understanding about the characters.

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    SOURCEDark Horse
    Zak Portlock-Thorogood
    Zak joined the site as a reviewer of Dark Horse's weekly comic publications. Before joining Matt Booker in running the Facebook page. Zak is a keen photographer, and covers events such as MCM Comic Con, Farthest From, and Celebration for Jedi News.