I often talk about duos in my writing, about how artists and writers can work together so well that they create something truly spectacular. There have been some incredible duos in Star Wars comics, but for me, the best of them all was always John Ostrander and Jan Duursema. This duo created some of the very best comics to be found in Star Wars. Staring with Star Wars Republic, they created fan favourite characters that have endured for years. Most notably, they created Aayla Secura and Quinlan Vos, who impressed George Lucas so much, they are in the prequel films (at least in name in the case of the latter).
When that series came to an end, Ostrander and Duursema announced their new series, Star Wars Legacy. This new series was to be set over a hundred years after Return of the Jedi. I remember when I first heard the news and, to be honest, I was disgusted. How could you possibly have Star Wars without Luke, Han and Leia? How could the galaxy be in such turmoil after everything that had gone before? I wasn’t happy, I thought it was a series that wouldn’t work. I should have had far more faith in the duo, because when Legacy was released, it very quickly become one of my all-time favourite series.
The series followed a Skywalker, one that had major flaws, who didn’t want to have the burden of the Skywalker name. We also had a Solo, who had to try and deal with the burden of keeping a galaxy united. The Sith were also back, but they were back in an incredible way, with iconic characters of Darth Krayt and Darth Talon (amongst many others). It was a new vision for Star Wars, one that’s depths of writing were astounding and the artwork, the designs, jaw dropping.
It resonated so much with fans, including myself. These characters were flawed, and their fate was unknown. Coupled with surprise appearances made this the series to read. This series meant so much to me that I even commissioned a piece of work by Jeff Confer based around the Sith of that series. And when I was at Celebration six? My first stop was to Jan Duursema, to meet the incredible talent who helped to bring this vision to life.
With the sequel trilogy now out, seeing where the new timeline has gone, it’s interesting to see someone else’s vision. It’s set far after the era of the sequel trilogy, with clever decisions made to appease fans. The most obvious being that the original trilogy heroes are dead, but we never see their deaths. We never need to delve into that. It allows our new heroes (or antiheroes) to shine, yet not have to deal with the loss of Luke, Han and Leia. It’s a series that brings a refreshing new take on Star Wars but is still firmly Star Wars. I imagine this is why it speaks to so many fans. For me, if the chronology of Star Wars were to continue further into the future, this would be the template to use, to really push the timeline so far into the future to really refresh it, with nods to what has come before. It has to be handled with care to get it right, which is exactly what Ostrander and Duursema did.
So let me take you back to the future and show you a dark, original vision of where Star Wars could have gone, created by the very best duo to have played in the Star Wars sandbox….
Published: June 21, 2006
Rating: Rated T
Writer: John Ostrander & Jan Duursema
Penciler: Jan Duursema
Cover Artist: Adam Hughes
The synopsis;
The future of Star Wars is here in an all-new series set more than a century after Return of the Jedi and the New Jedi Order!
The Jedi Temple is attacked, an Emperor is betrayed, and the Sith are born anew! A lot can happen in a hundred years, but all of the above happens just in this first issue! Not since Luke Skywalker first stepped aboard the Millennium Falcon has the galaxy seemed like such a vast, exciting, dangerous place!
This is a perfect jumping-on point for any reader—an epic beginning to an untold chapter of the greatest adventure in the universe!
The review;
So much rested on this first issue, in terms of, well… everything. This was a comic that had to set the tone, the style, for an entire era that previously didn’t exist. The first thing I want to mention is the buy in cost, because for Legacy this is high. The Expanded Universe, now known as Legends, had a vast amount of work that compromised the history of the galaxy, spanning thousands of years. Even though this is the first issue of a new story, of a new era, Ostrander and Duursema do not shy away from using little clues scattered throughout the issue. For me, it was this mystery of who everyone was, of who their families were, that really made the series interesting. You had a Skywalker with red hair, obviously a descendent of Luke and Mara. But were they the only Skywalkers? The Emperor was a Fel, which surely must mean he was a descendent of Jaina Solo and Jagged Fel, right? Which, if followed through, meant the Emperor and the master of the jedi were related. Although fans could make this assumption, it was by no means guaranteed, as the books following The New Jedi Order, were still being released. Ostrander and Duursema played on this and do so in this issue. Although a new era, it allowed fans of the Expanded Universe to really feel connected to these new characters and also showed just how well this series fitted into the history of Star Wars perfectly. That’s not to say that this isn’t a good jumping on point for fans, and certainly in this first issue, it matters not. Everyone is getting their bearings, whether they are a new fan to the galaxy or an established one. However, as the series progresses, I do feel that the pay offs for these mysteries are amplified for those who know the previous canon of work.
Before I even discuss the actual writing of the series, I want to discuss the art. Duursema is a favourite of mine, and has been ever since I picked up the first Star Wars Republic issue set during The Clone Wars. Her style never fails to impress me. Yet here, she has to go even further, as this is not simply telling a story in someone else’s galaxy, she and Ostrander and the creators of this era. That means that the design work of the ships, of the people, of the locations, are more often not, down to Duursema. It would have been so easy for her to have gone down a more extreme route, but she keeps the designs grounded in Star Wars. Everything looks fresh but yet also familiar at the same time. The Imp fighters are a great example, they are new versions of TIE fighters, and have a very different wing design (at least at the time they were first drawn), yet they still hold that basic TIE presence. You see it again and again throughout this issue as well and as the series. Duursema really gets the style of Star Wars, always has done, and is able to utilise that knowledge perfectly. Not only that, but there are plenty of scenes in this issue that have no words, where Duursema is left to carry the story by herself with nothing but her art. It flows flawlessly it shows just how trusting a relationship her and Ostrander have.
And to the story itself. JJ Abrams said about the sequel trilogy, that you needed to go back before you go forward. Some people have criticised this, yet for me it makes absolute sense. To bring new viewers on, you need to establish what they are watching, to catch them up with what diehard fans have always known. Legacy is no different. Although set in a new era, it has to set the groundwork first, to help new readers as well as old. The story of this issue is scattered Jedi who are ultimately defeated by the Sith who then take control of the galaxy. Of course, there is more to it than that, but at its absolute basic, this is the tale. Sound familiar? It should do. Ostrander and Duursema knew, just like Abrams (and you may note, long before Abrams ever said it), that they needed something familiar before moving forward. It tells us that this is going to feel like the Original Trilogy, that we know how this should play out. Ostrander and Duursema want us to feel comfortable, for that is when they will take what we think we know and turn it on its head. They will show us what happens when they start changing what has already come before.
Our main hero is the biggest change. Cade Skywalker is our Luke, yet one who walks a much finer line with the dark side than Luke. He has compassion and love, a parent’s love (something Luke didn’t have), but this doesn’t mean he’s a better jedi, for he is unable to deal with loss. Whereas Luke would deal with the losses he suffers in A New Hope, that drive him to doing the best he can, Cade can’t deal with them and uses his power to brush the dark side. He is far more selfish than Luke. This is the type of Skywalker we’re not use to. With Luke, we find a hero we want to be like, one that inspires us to do better. With Cade, we find a hero who is like us, who is selfish, who is flawed, who struggles to make the right decisions. He is a hero we can empathise with. At the time this was written, it was these sorts of comparisons that I’m sure Ostrander and Duursema would have been expecting, probably even played on. Yet there is another comparison to now make. Kylo, the new Skywalker offspring is also flawed. Yet unlike Cade, he wants to kill the past not save it. Cade is motivated by the love of his family, and I think it’s what most of us would expect from a Skywalker who had an upbringing descended from the heroes we fell in love with in the Original Trilogy. Kylo however, is motivated by wanting more, to not be in the Skywalker shadow and be his own person. That love might ultimately save him, but for the most part, it’s not enough. Although they both brush the dark side, they both take very different paths. As we continue through this series, I’m really looking forward to the differences as well as the similarities that we will come across between these two.
A hero can only ever be as good as the villain. Darth Krayt visually looks so different to what has come before in Star Wars and you are unlikely to forget him quickly! But just like Cade, and Vader, he is also flawed. He has the same vision as Vader, wanting a united galaxy, yet he is living on borrowed time. The work he wants to do, that he genuinely wants to do to help make the galaxy better, needs to be done now before it is too late. At the time, the mystery as to who Krayyt was, seemed to be the only thing fans were discussing. The fact he is so similar in terms of Vader’s motives for joining the dark side is no mistake. Just as Cade is a play on Luke, so Krayyt is for Vader. Unlike Vader, who was under Palpatine, Krayyt is in command, he is the one leading and we get to see how someone wanting to unite the galaxy will act. Not only that, but he has a vast array of Sith around him, all of whom visually look very unique and impressive (and the fan favourite one can only be seen on the cover, not within the story!).
Emperor Roan Fel is also established, if not actually seen. As I’ve said, the name Fel draws lots of conclusions for those familiar with the Expanded Universe and this is even further evidenced by the fact that Fel is a force user. But what really has the cool factor, the thing that made fans sit up, were the Emperor’s guards. How can you possibly make the royal guard better? Make them jedi! Not only is their design by Duursema incredible, you then have an Emperor who is a jedi himself. The moral dilemma with who he (and his guard) are and their actions sets a fantastic foundation for what is to come.
This issue is very much about setting the scene, about showing the state of the galaxy so fans have some idea of where all the characters are coming from. Like Abrams, Ostrander and Duursema repeat a lot of what has come before, but with a twist. It allows us to feel familiar with the unknown and make this whole issue feel like Star Wars. The sheer amount of content, both visually and written always astounds me, no matter which issue of whatever series I’m reading by this duo. The complexity of the stories they tell is second to none and even in one issue, you feel like you have had a full story. Ostrander and Duursema really showed their abilities in Star Wars Republic, yet here, they are beholden to no one and can really tell the sort of story they want to tell. With the setting of this story firmly established, it leaves room for issue two to really show the direction of the series. It’s in some ways, a slow build up, but this merely makes the reading more enjoyable. With just a trickle of comics still being released at the moment, now is the perfect time to discover Ostrander and Duursema if you haven’t, and fall in love with this duo’s best work, for love it you will…
Availability;
Star Wars Legacy was an ongoing originally released by Dark Horse Comics that ran from 2006 until 2011. It is currently available in digital format via the Marvel App, comiXology or by subscribing to Marvel Unlimited. A physical copy can be found in one of the many trade paperback releases from Marvel. Please check with Amazon UK and US or your local comic bookstore for availability.
