– Spoiler Review –
After focusing on Luke Skywalker for a few issues, Star Wars #21 (Vol. 2) brings the series back to its core story of the Rebellion against the Empire, the struggling fleet trying to reconnect and get out from the gaze of Imperial hunter Commander Zahra. But before the big action, issue #21 focuses on the plight of Shara Bey, hiding away on a Star Destroyer….Zahra’s Star Destroyer, the Tarkin’s Will!
Shara Bey’s been missing and hiding since issue #12, where Starlight Squadron’s mission to spread their new code ran into Commander Zahra, and to escape her clutches Shara made a tough call and stayed behind. Ever since, she’s been managing to survive in the Tarkin’s Will destroyed sections, which Shara ruminates are meant to kept to remember the lives lost in the Death Star explosion but are ironically keeping her safe and stocked instead, sending out an odd message here and there regarding the Imperial’s fleet movements, on where Zahra is next, helping the Rebellion know where to run from…or where to attack. It was really cool to see her so resourceful, eking out a living, using the memories of the Imperial fallen to sustain herself, but also how practical she was about it, knowing she couldn’t get away with it forever and being okay with it, while also never losing out hope. She has a brilliant, yet simple plan to hijack an Imperial Shuttle and rescue herself, knowing the Rebellion would rightly consider rescuing her low on their priorities, and it goes to show her commitment to the Rebellion that she’d put herself at risk rather than ask them to do, but also her commitment to her family, willing to take the risk to be with her husband Kes and their child Poe. I love the way writer Charles Soule structured this issue, as we start with Shara barely escaping detection and then head over to Kes, who gets to listen to her message, which we watch her record and play out in real time, adding to the suspense when she says she’ll be coming back, maybe even as he’s listening to the message. Of course, it doesn’t happen and it adds some great tension to the final pages, because we already know she’ll survive this encounter so this helped make it feel less assured.
Back with the Rebellion, Mon Mothma and rebel leadership, recently returned to the fleet during the War of the Bounty Hunters crisis, respond like Shara expected, telling Kes Dameron they can’t go after her, they can’t rescue her…not yet at least. They want to make sure any rescue comes at a minimal cost to resources, which of course Kes both understands and doesn’t, wanting to end his wife’s struggles on the Destroyer now because she’s already spent far too much time there and her window for avoiding detection narrows by the parsec. In good ol’ Dameron fashion, or technically pioneering it now before Poe gets into the same business, Kes decides to jump into an X-wing and blow things up, gathering together his Pathfinders and the remnants of Starlight Squadron to go against orders and rescue Shara. Unbeknownst to him, back on Tarkin’s Will, Zahra becomes wise to Shara’s plans and stops them before she can jump the shuttle to hyperspace, confronting the rebel and sharing her admiration for her tenacity and plans…and then capturing her to reverse tables and glean information from her, instead of how she’s been stealing information from Zahra. This really sets up for a big, fun push to finally deal with a number of lingering threads first introduced in the series from its opening pages, something Soule’s promised as he’s said issues #22-24 are, “…a huge three-part arc that will wrap up a ton of threads, building to issue 25.”
Both Marco Castiello and Romon Rosanas share the pages and panels of issue #21 and I love how they split up the work. Marco draws all of Shara and Zahra’s pages while Rosanas captures Kes’ panels, presenting a stark difference to their situations but also somewhat signifying which is past and which is present; too often have multiple artists been on a single issue and they meld the styles throughout a single page or storyline, which results in bringing the reader out of the situation if a character looks different one panel to the next, but this way it felt natural, it made sense to show which part is which. Rachelle Rosenberg’s colors mix the two styles together to make the whole issue cohesive as well, but she also has a warmer tone for Rosanas’ panels with Kes in the Rebellion’s Fleet, almost as if to show the comfort he and the Rebellion feels, while the darker, dirty colors match Shara’s scrounging around in the belly of the Destroyer and how uncomfortable it is. Castiello’s gritty work adds a lot to Shara’s discomfort, the dirt and destruction on the trooper’s armor she took over or the passageways she sulks around, while Zahra in her battle gear at the end is spooky and unsettling, fast and swift in her reaction to Shara’s defense, looking more and more like an unstoppable force the Rebellion to deal with. Rosanas’ panels might look clean and comfortable, but Kes’ worry is all over his face, his frustration with the Rebellion’s decisions clear. Clayton Cowles’ lettering really helped add to the tension of Kes listening to Shara’s message, providing hope for one more panel by placing her line, “I’ll see you soon” in the middle of a big, empty starfield, as if moving it would make her appear, but then the following panel is just the starfield and it’s clear Shara’s well laid plans aren’t going as well as she thinks.
Here are a few other things:
- We don’t quite know the scale of what issue #25 will behold, but here’s a hint on how things build up to issue #24 from the May solicitations!
Star Wars #21 (Vol. 2) returns to the series to the plight of Shara Bey, setting up for what should be a good batch of issues resolving tons of lingering threads.
+ Shara’s resourcefulness
+ Structured well to give us hope too
+ Dueling art teams played well
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
STAR WARS (Vol. 2)
The Destiny Path: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 / Arc Review — The Will of Tarkin: #7 | #8/Arc Review — Operation Starlight: #9 | #10 | #11 | #12 — War of the Bounty Hunters: #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 | #18 — Dangerous Turn: #19 | #20