Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Darth Vader #7
Marvel Comics
Gillen, Larroca & Delgado
"Darth Vader" continues to be a decent but frustrating read. While previous issues seem to characterize Vader in ways that are inconsistent with films, this issue misses out on opportunities to expand the character. Instead, Gillen falls back into the same old scenes of Vader pushing people around. The book doesn't provide anything memorable but it does a decent job at entertaining. This is an average comic book.
Vader and Aphra show up at the Lars farm looking for traces of the boy that blew up the Death Star. This scene could have been something special. Darth Vader standing in the familiar surroundings of the place where Luke grew up could have yielded flashbacks, thoughts about his encounter with Luke, perhaps his mother or brother. Instead, Vader simply comments that they are too late and they leave. It was so disappointing.
The next scene is even more disappointing. Vader shows up at Ben's shack and investigates the battle that occurred between Luke and Fett (which is not properly referenced) from the Star Wars proper title. Another chance to explore Vader's struggles with Obi-Wan. Flashbacks to Obi-Wan scolding Anakin or the fateful battle that put Vader in suit, even just some visible anger would have sufficed. Instead, Vader determines Luke is strong in the force and untrained. That's it. What a missed opportunity to explore Vader and his past.
The back of the book is more of Vader raiding the outer rim while setting in motion his own devious plan with Aphra. The back part of the book is a decent read and introduces a good subplot. It has Hutts and bounty hunters and some other scum and captures the Star Wars look to perfection.
The artwork is the highlight of the comic book. The comic uses larger panels and fills them with tons of details. The scenes in the book mostly occur either at night or in darkness and the artwork doesn't skimp on the details. There are plenty of stunning visuals that help this comic book tell an engaging story.
"Darth Vader" sets up a new plot in the back half of the book that shows the cunning side of Darth Vader. Unfortunately the front part of the comic book is a missed opportunity to develop Vader's character in a meaningful way when Vader visits Ben's shack and the Lars farm. These scenes could have been great scenes mixed with some flashbacks to provide some insight into Vader's head but fall well short of being anything other than an observation. The book has some great artwork that helps the comic to keep up a nice pace. Overall, this is a very average comic book that could have been something special.
3 out of 5 Geek Goggles
