Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Star Wars Rebellion #12
Dark Horse Comics
Barlow, Wilson & Glass
Luke and Leia get captured. The plan continues using the rebel who wanted out. The Imperials appear to running things like Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now in this outpost. The issue leaves a little to be desired. It has the elements of the Star Wars universe that you’d like to see, but it lacks in the spirit of the original movies. I found the issue to be so-so.
The issue opens with good, old, Admiral Ackbar leading the fleet. They all notice Luke and Leia are missing. They are trying to decide whether or not to leave the designated spot without them or sit around waiting for them to pick them up. This meeting might result in a rebel helping to pull Luke’s fat out of the fire. This was a great scene. It shows the fleet as it was in Return of the Jedi, only set in the days between Star Wars and the Empire Strikes Back, which was cool.
The issue moves the various sub teams trying to sabotage the tanks. One by one the teams get confronted and captured (or killed) by Stormtroopers. Luke throws a fit when some of his fellow rebels try to surrender and are gunned down. He tries to take on the whole Empire alone with very little Jedi skill. It’s pretty cool to see him lose his temper and all, but I would think the Troopers would have been able to kill him and they don’t. I guess you could say they didn’t want to, but why were they firing at him then? They only set their blasters to stun after they had been firing at him for three pages or so.
Eventually, Luke and Leia are put before the Imperial commanders and boy do they look like scum bags. Facial hair, long hair, shirts untucked, you name it. They are so nuts they decide not to tell the Emperor that they have captured Luke and Leia in order to use it as a bargaining chip to get transferred. Say what? They also know that Luke’s friend, Deena, is still running around trying to do some damage.
The issue concludes with Deena spitting the bit on some of her functions in the mission and then getting confronted by one of the Imperial officers who wants to “play a little” with her. This sounds like it could get ugly.
The issue had some really good parts to it. The battles were pretty good, the opening was very good. However, a lot of things didn’t make much sense, like the capture of Luke and what they do with them. It all just seems to outside of the Empire’s standard. Another strange piece to this issue was how Luke and Leia were used. They had such non-distinct roles. Their lines didn’t feel like something either one of them would say. It was really difficult to imagine this taking place during the original trilogy time period.
I liked the artwork. It felt more like Star Wars than perhaps any of the other three Star Wars comics out there today. Although, didn’t Deena look an awful lot like Luke? Maybe Leia and Deena were switched at birth. All through the issue I felt like I was thumbing through a Star Wars story, which is a very good thing.
So the issue satisfies in the art department and the fighting and the involvement of the rebel fleet. The issue falls a little short in the characterization of the Imperials, Luke and Leia. The arc might makes this all gel better, but as an individual issue it leaves an unfulfilled feeling.
3 out of 5 geek goggles.
 Star Wars: Rebellion #12--Small Victories part 2 |
