Published: August 2, 2023
Rating: Rated T
Writer: Cavan Scott
Artist: Ibraim Roberson
Colourist: Neeraj Menon
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Designer: Carlos Lao
Cover Artist: Phil Noto
The synopsis;
THE FINAL LESSON!
• After years in exile on DAGOBAH, legendary JEDI MASTER YODA is
visited by a ghost of his past.
• Plagued by painful memories, he must enter the CAVE OF EVIL to face
his ultimate fear.
• But will the Jedi’s greatest teacher recall the most important lesson of all?
The review;
If there had been one series I had been dreading reading, it was this one. Yoda is such a beloved character that when he is done wrong, as a fan you really feel it. Ten issues, that’s a lot of Yoda to mess up and after some of the character series we have had in the past from Marvel I was terrified this would just be another to add to the pile. I cannot tell you how happy I was to be wrong. This series has gone from strength to strength, showcasing the Jedi Master and his lessons perfectly. To keep such a high level of writing and artwork for the length of this series is incredible. But alas, all good things must come to an, and we have reached it. We return to where it all began, Cavan Scott writing the finale. He really set the bar high with the first arc and he has got quite the task for himself to provide this series the finish it deserves. Joining him is artist Ibraim Roberson who can be seen here and there in the Star Wars galaxy as well as the Marvel universe. I have no idea how this is going to finish (particularly after last issue), what Scott is going to achieve in a single issue, but I’m not like Luke Skywalker; I do believe.
There is no subtlety here, this is all about Yoda and only Yoda. After seeing his lessons encapsulated by others, this is the one issue where it is all about the Jedi Master. Scott opens with returning us to where it all began, Turrak and Bree. If this series had failed to meet the high expectations that creating a Yoda series entails, this could have gone horribly wrong. However, for one that is so well written, this reminder of how far down the journey we have come is wonderful. I love that it’s a smaller character in Yoda’s life that has the impact. Not another Jedi Master or politician, but just some local boy from his own little planet. It is so in keeping with everything that Yoda stands for. Scott introduces us almost immediately to the lesson for the issue and perhaps the one that Yoda still needs to learn (and perhaps even a few of us): we never stop learning.
Yoda always seems to be positive. Even when he’s negative there is hope, there’s a plan of what to do next: there is trust in the force. Scott presents us with a Yoda we don’t see, one that is utterly defeated and unwilling to carry on the fight. He is wallowing in his own self-pity, forgetting everything that he has learnt or taught in the hundreds of years that he has been alive. Why? Yoda having nightmares I think is Scott’s answer to this, that Yoda has allowed fear to creep into his thoughts and we know where that can lead. His journey is actually very similar to Kenobi’s; Yoda is angry at the galaxy at large and angry at himself for not been able to stop what has happened.
Obi-Wan. I could almost hear Luke’s voice as the force ghost appeared and it was so interesting to see the interactions between him and Yoda. Yoda is angry at Obi-Wan, partly because of his self-pity but also perhaps some jealousy. Yoda and Obi-Wan were very similar, both wallowing. Yet Kenobi has been able to let go and become the master, to traverse to a higher plane that Yoda doesn’t want to accept. Obi-Wan has put his trust back into the force and has been rewarded for it. Could Yoda possibly have a bit of jealousy that Kenobi has done this, or even resentment that even though he failed to save the galaxy, he knows it will all be well and let himself off the hook? It’s a dynamic we see rarely in Yoda.
It ultimately leads to the cave. This is what I love about this issue, before even discussing the cave, are all the nostalgic nods that Scott adds to this issue: Yoda’s hut, Obi-Wan force ghost, the cave, herbs for his soup. The list goes on and on and it’s simply enjoyable to see Yoda in the habitat that we consider native to him (at least if you grew up on the Original Trilogy!). To then see what Yoda sees in the cave, how we now can reevaluate the advice he gives to Luke about his weapons. Yoda gets taught an important lesson and he knows there is one in there for Luke. And let me not drift too far past the visuals of the lesson: Dooku with no hands, Keeve Trennis for The High Republic, Mace Windu, Anakin. You can truly feel the weight of them all on Yoda’s shoulders looking at these panels, how much guilt he is carrying around.
This brings me perfectly onto the artwork by Roberson. He captures the sheer volume of everything that Yoda is carrying in the panels in the cave. All the different characters, he captures the creepiness to them surrounding Yoda. And the introduction of the tree on such a large panel, what an impact! Roberson is treading a very fine line, if he got anything wrong on images that we have all grown up with, he would have been doomed. But the atmosphere, the feel of Dagobah as we walk around with our characters, it all works perfectly and brings Scott’s story to life.
We always knew that Yoda would come out of the darkness. Yet when he does, it isn’t any less special. The moment is perfect.
You cannot focus on Yoda for too long without removing some of the magic, some of the mystique that makes Yoda so revered by fans. This series has done this so well, leading up to an issue where we can focus completely on Yoda and still keep all of this intact. It is a wonderful and poignant ending to a truly incredible series. I never dreamed that a series focusing on Yoda could be done this well, but here we are. It seems so right that Cavan Scott gets to end what he started, creating bookends with a simple musical instrument. It seems in some ways so strange and yet so right for the diminutive Jedi, which I suppose sums Yoda up perfectly. It’s so strange someone so small and so old can be so powerful and yet it also makes sense at the same time. This is a series that I think readers are going to keep gravitating towards. The character of Yoda, his lessons, everything that makes himself so unique in the modern world is done to perfection here. The way the lessons are presented real honours Yoda. This is a grand tribute to him, and Scott and Roberson really have been able to end on such a high note.
Availability;
Yoda is a 10-part mini series published by Marvel comics. This issue retails at $3.99 and is available via ComiXology and all good comic book stores.
