– Spoiler Review –
In issue #15, after a devastating counter-attack by the Mon Cala leaves both sides reeling, readers get another astounding issue of Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith and its “Burning Seas” arc.
Vader took a small backseat last issue as Jedi Master Barr was introduced, but he is the star of this issue and has some really stellar moments throughout. The giant whales, sent forth by King Lee-Char to raze the surface and make the Imperial’s invasion that much trickier, left tsunamis of devastation in their wake, and sent Darth Vader tumbling to the depths of the Mon Cala ocean. In a magnificent opening sequence, without any real dialogue, we see Vader escape his tumble into oblivion, best a giant squad in combat, and use it’s dying body to ride back into the thick of things. The staging of the panels and the art within them are excellent, gorgeous things and really show the depth (accidental pun!) and range of this series. Within the sequence is a moment that connects to one of The Last Jedi‘s many divisive ones (I enjoy it, however), though whether it’s intentional or not is a whole different story: Much like Leia uses the Force, considering she is the daughter of Darth Vader and is strong in the Force herself, to instinctively pull herself to the safety of the Raddus from the cold depths of space, Vader pulls himself with the Force from the crushing weight of the dangerous depths of Mon Cala’s oceans and back to a safer depth his suit can handle. Like father, like daughter, amirite? A little bit of cocky Anakin appears in Vader after he boards a submarine the Inquisitors are using to locate him, as he defiantly says he never needs rescue, which he proved rather handily in the opening moments of this issue. And further putting his subordinates in their place, he chastises them for wasting time looking for him when they had the damn location to the Jedi Master Barr this entire time, as King Lee-Char could warn the Jedi if he survived the wave attack as well. From his kickass survival, nod to Leia’s usage of the Force, and putting his lackeys in their place, it’s pretty amazing to see Vader with so much confidence and anger bursting through every seam of his suit, feeling comfortable in his new life unlike how he began this series several issues ago.
Admiral Ackbar fans, if you’ve been mourning his loss since December, forget about that for a moment and read. this. series. NOW. Ackbar shows off his master tactician skills in an attack on an Imperial skybase, which they are using for staging their invasion of the planet now that the surface installations have been literally wiped off the map. In a bold move, spurred on by an assumption his King is dead, Ackbar leads a small squadron of submersible flying speeders to spray the base with an immense barrage of missiles, leaving Tarkin sick of everyone’s incompetence and begrudgingly respectful of the Mon Cala rebellion. Ackbar calms down a bit after a Quarren search team locates a still alive King Lee-Char, and he has some important questions for their ruler and why he called such a brazen attack against the Empire when negotiations still could’ve been on the table. Lee-Char thinks he’s playing the long game because of wanting to fulfill Master Barr’s vision of Mon Cala’s fleet being the center of the Rebellion, but it’s Ackbar who is really playing the long game, as they could’ve used the time gained from a peaceful resolution to fight on a more prepared day; I hope we get to see these two clash a little bit more about strategy and the future of Mon Cala. In the end, Lee-Char realizes he’s given up the Jedi’s location and manages to warn Barr and his group, but will it be too late? (Spoiler: probably)
As I mentioned regarding the opening battle in the ocean’s depths between Vader and a squid, the art team of Giuseppe Camuncoli (art), Daniele Orlandini (inks), and David Curiel (colors) is blasting it out of the water on all fronts. Not only was Vader’s squid battle exquisite, Ackbar’s swarm attack and resulting explosion of the skybase are epic studies in art. Charles Soule’s writing is already great, but the art compliments and accentuates it to an amazing degree that is visually exciting to page through. Once again, the only knock would be older, male human faces, specifically Tarkin, that come out a bit weird, but it’s forgivable and minor compared to all the other excellent work.
Here are a few other things:
- While I thought my predictions of Lee-Char’s death would come true this issue, they did not, but I’m still betting he’s not going to survive this and Vader has been tricking the people of Mon Cala he’s alive this whole time. We’ll likely know more in the next issue of the Star Wars mainline series’ “Mutiny at Mon Cala” arc, this Vader arc’s thematic crossover, as the previous issue there ended with the heroes closing in on the prison holding Lee-Char.
- Not only does Soule’s latest notes point out the opening sequence of Vader vs Squid was his Jules Verne homage, but he points out Marvel has seen the fan interest in the series and is listening very closely…could this mean an extension for series when it might have only been planned to hit 25 issues, much like the last one? I’m all for more of Soule and crew’s Vader, because this and Aphra are Marvel’s best right now, and of all time so far. (Remember, the link to Soule’s notes page might not open right up to today’s date, depending on when you’re reading this)
- Seeing as the editor lineup for Marvel is changing a tad, we’ve been seeing some new names credited, and this week there is another Assistant Editor, Emily Newcomen, listed alongside the first to step into the role after Heather Antos, Christina Harrington. And then Mark Paniccia is listed alongside Jordan D. White as Editor. I’m curious to see who will all end up settling in permanently for a bit in the Assistant Editor role, as we know Paniccia is here to stay.
- And I’m saying this was on purpose either, but it’s almost like Vader and Leia are reaching out to one another, across time and space, and almost like that famous work of art, The Creation of Adam. I put together a little mashup of the Leia and Vader scenes below:
Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith issue #15 is exciting in its own right, while setting up Tarkin escalating the invasion and Vader and the Inquisitors closing in on their target, makes this an even better issue. These “Burning Seas” are well worth a dip!
+ Vader don’t need no rescue, you punks!
+ Like father, like daugther
+ Ackbar’s attack!
– Minor, but Tarkin just looks a little off
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website @MynockManor.
Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith
The Chosen One (#1-6) | The Dying Light (#7-10) | The Rule of Five (#11-12) / Arc Review| Burning Seas: #13 | #14 | #16 | #17 | #18 / Arc Review | Fortress Vader (#19-25) / Arc Review | Full Series Review (by Chris and Ryan) | Annual: #2
CURRENT COMIC SERIES REVIEWS:
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