Published: October 25, 2023
Rating: Rated T
Writer: Marc Guggenheim
Artist: Salva Espín
Colourist: Israel Silva
Letterer: VC’s Joe Sabino
Cover Artist: Aaron Kuder & Frank Martin
The synopsis;
THE BATTLE OF THE CIRCUITRY! R2 VS. BT! 000 VS. IG-88! — A DARK DROIDS TIE-IN!
• ARTOO’S adventure across the galaxy to rescue his friend SEE-THREEPIO continues!
• But does Artoo need rescuing himself?
• Guest-starring 000, IG-88 and 4-LOM!
The review;
R2-D2 is trapped between the skeletal hands of Triple Zero and the monstrous firepower of BT-1 in Kuder & Martin’s explosive direct cover. As the droids are locked in combat it hints to the chaos inside this comic. Meanwhile another potential enemy is the focus of Christopher’s action figure variant as 4-LOM looks very striking against a bright orange background. And speaking of orange there’s a bunch of it in Reilly’s Chopper inspired variant as the droid blasts off into the clouds.
Following on from the main storyline in Star Wars (2020) #38, this new series from Marvel focusses on the droids from their point of view. As the Spark Eternal corrupts droids across the galaxy, irrelevant of whether they’re a protocol droid or have assassin programming, how do the droids feel about it all? While Ajax and his enlightened followers are aghast at the thought of losing their free will, what about the others scattered amongst the stars? Dark Droids D-Squad explores just that.
With C-3PO overtaken by the Spark Eternal and jettisoning R2-D2 off from the rest of the fleet, the plucky astromech is determined to save his friend. If only so he can berate Threepio for throwing him out an airlock. Journeying to the planet Gallios following a rumour about a homicidal protocol droid, R2-D2 finds none other than Triple Zero. And what’s worse than a droid overtaken by the Spark Eternal? A homicidal one that’s already unhinged being taken over by the Spark Eternal. With BT-1 on a murderous rampage, it’s up to the pair to stop him… somehow.
Guggenheim really has fun with Dark Droids #2. Both Triple Zero and Beetee One are infamous for their violent ways and murderous tendencies throughout the Doctor Aphra comics. Their programming as assassin and torture droids makes them morally grey characters, yet the pair are always written in a way that’s never too dark. Guggenheim strikes this same perfect balance, making Beetee’s corruption a macabre yet amusing cat-and-mouse as R2-D2 tries to find a way to save the astromech.
Teaming up Artoo with Triple Zero is so unlikely, yet it works brilliantly. Artoo is the perfect foil for the murderous protocol droid, helping to rein in Triple Zero’s more violent tendencies and making him see sense about Beetee’s rampage. As the citizens of Gallios flee in terror and Triple Zero watches on in delight, Artoo’s there pointing out about things like free will and choice. While Triple Zero might not care about the humans, he does believe in droid rights.
So follows some of the funniest panels in a Star Wars comic ever. Unwilling to let the humans fend for themselves, Artoo decides to go out and goad Beetee in order to lead him into a trap. Considering R2-D2 is pretty light on any kind of self-defence gadgetry apart from his stun blaster, it’s a pretty risky plan. Yet he charges in like a little droid knight, throwing verbal abuse (in binary of course) at Beetee and enraging him even more by avoiding all his missiles. It’s a fantastic sequence that is brought to life by Espín’s art, with the droids chasing each other through the streets.
Luring Beetee into a warehouse of pod racers, Artoo stands his ground as the mindless astromech approaches to finish the job. Triple Zero then unleashes the trap with a little too much glee, using one of the racers to override Beetee’s circuits with a massive electrical shock. It’s summed up perfectly by the protocol droid, ‘Well, that was delightfully chaotic.’
It’s the perfect way to sum up this entire comic issue and its artwork. Each panel is limited in its colour scheme, sticking to the greys for the droids and bright sunset colours for the surrounding landscape. It puts all the emphasis on the characters and their shenanigans and leaving plenty of room for all the binary goading from Artoo. Espín unleashes just about every weapon that Beetee has and it’s completely delightful overkill that just adds to the sheer genius of this story.
While the rest of the Dark Droids plot line is pretty dark, D-Squad is a refreshing, lighthearted comic relief that’s the perfect palette cleanser in between the heaver stories. These droids are going on adventures that are just as thrilling as anything our favourite heroes might be facing, and the fact that readers can’t understand the binary only makes it more enjoyable. It’s easy to imagine what might be said. Being droids doesn’t lessen their characters or their struggles in any way, and Guggenheim captures that spirit. Next issue sees more familiar metal faces joining Artoo’s story – if he can escape the bounty hunters first!
Availability;
D-Squad is a 4-part mini series published by Marvel comics. This issue retails at $4.99 and is available via ComiXology and all good comic book stores.
