Published: June 12, 2024
Rating: T
Writer: Greg Pak
Artist: Raffaele Ienco
Colourist: Federico Blee
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Leinel Francis Yu & Romulo Fajardo Jr.
The synopsis;
THE RAZING OF EXEGOL CONTINUES!
• DARTH VADER and the SCHISM IMPERIAL launch their boldest challenge to the power of PALPATINE with an assault on EXEGOL, the home of the EMPEROR’S greatest secrets and treasures!
• But if sheer brute force can’t overcome the defenses of the SITH CITADEL, what terrifying new resources will the DARK LORD draw upon?
• Also: CAPTAIN ENRIC PRYDE faces his greatest test!
The review;
Striding forwards with an empty staff, a malevolent eye gazing down on him, Vader is ready to once again face the Summa-Verminoth. It’s an incredibly dramatic composition and suits the story that unfolds in this issue. Stott’s Pride variant is also beautifully dramatic as everyone’s favourite rogue archaeologist, Doctor Aphra, is running off with priceless artefacts through some crumbling ruins. Finally, Sprouse’s anniversary variant features the moment when a young Anakin Skywalker meets Padmé Amidala and asks whether space angels are real.
While I have been off in the Unknown Regions, my fellow literature reviewer Mark Alders has been keeping you up to speed on the Darth Vader (2020) series. Last issue saw Vader alongside the Sith Eternal on Exegol preparing to fight the Summa-Verminoth: a terrifying, kraken-like monster. It’s not the first time the Sith Lord has encountered one of these beasts, having tamed one as part of the tests the Emperor set out for Vader much earlier in this series. It means that’s he confident, and arrogant as it approaches the Imperial convoy.
The psychic attacks that the Summa-Verminoth employs actually feel very similar to the abilities of a beholder from Dungeons & Dragons. Beholders can petrify, instill fear, and even knock their enemy’s unconscious. So, it could well be that this classic monster inspired the Star Wars universe. It’s brilliantly drawn by Ienco and the swirling purple shadows of its tentacles are suitably creepy, breaking through the atmosphere of Exegol.
But on board the Imperial shuttle, Vader is communing with the kyberite he has obtained from the Sith Eternal. Such a massive crystal contains immense power, the type that fuels almost all of the destructive technology of the Imperial war machine, so it allows Vader to communicate with his master over an incredibly large distance. Coruscant to Exegol is a long, long way apart! Again, the Emperor has suspected each of Vader’s moves and there’s this sense of entrapment from the artwork – both within the crystal and Vader never being able to get out from under the Emperor’s gnarled thumb.
And then we cut to Luke Skywalker aboard a Rebel frigate. There’s a lot going on story-wise in Darth Vader (2020) #47, but Pak makes this interlude work. As the kyberite allows Vader to channel so much power, Luke can sense his father’s presence. It’s faint, but a shared connection. It’s also a lovely moment between Luke and Leia, as the princess worries for the young Jedi. Plus, it explains some of Luke’s motivations for going to Sergia in the main Star Wars comic timeline.
Back to Vader and he’s doing a move straight out of Ahsoka’s book. Taking to the hull of the Imperial shuttle, he’s standing ready to fight the Summa-Verminoth wielding a piece of the kyberite. This is such an intense scene, with the differently angles in the panels suggesting the chaos that’s ensuing. Also, Pryde is hilarious in this moment. He is absolutely not fine no matter what he’s saying. Or screaming. He may believe in Vader, but he’s definitely not confident in his own piloting abilities.
Ienco’s artwork is incredible throughout this issue but the fight with the Summa-Verminoth delivers some of the most jaw dropping panels. The extreme poses, juxtaposition, and use of silhouettes are simply superb! Vader dominates these scenes, and his anger radiates through the red lighting and highlights from the glowing kyber crystal. Combined with the action lines, it is a cinematic sequence that you’ll want to experience again and again when reading Darth Vader (2020) #47.
Pak then leaves this issue on a big cliffhanger. Do you want more of Sabé? Well good news, you’re getting more! She’s back yet again and this time joining forces with Luke Skywalker to tell him about his father. That’s going to be an awkward conversation. Next issue sees the former handmaiden test Luke, as Warba’s life hangs in the balance!
