– Spoiler Review –
Return to Vader’s Castle #4 – “Vault of the Living Brains” involves Hutt intrigue and the very creepy B’omarr Monks, which for me at least, makes this the spookiest tale yet!
Jabba’s cousin, Crakka, comes to mend their turbulent past with the offer of a giant, deadly creature and Jabba puts it to the test against his favorite creatures to see if it’s worthy. Crakka’s offer is all part of an elaborate plan to find hidden treasure, the location of which hides in the B’omarr Order’s brain vault below the Palace! The B’omarr Monks are an order which eventually remove their brains from their bodies and place them within tanks so they are free of physical constraints to mull on the mysteries of the universe, using creepy spider-liked droids to get around; you might’ve seen a member in an early scene of Return of the Jedi, when the droids come to the Palace. To me, the B’omarr are the creepiest aspects to Star Wars lore, and a story in Legends’ Tales from Jabba’s Palace, where the monks take over the Palace by force after Jabba’s death, forcing Bib Fortuna’s brains out of his body, is one of the scariest experiences I’ve ever had reading Star Wars. In fact, stories where characters transformed into something they weren’t, like Arthur becoming a bird in The Sword in the Stone, real boy Pinocchio becoming a donkey, or even Mr. Limpet becoming a fish in The Incredible Mr. Limpet, always scared me as a child; I don’t know exactly why, and it barely creeps me out as an adult, but “Vault of the Living Brains” took me right back to the creepy, sinking feeling of the B’omarr Legends tale, as Crakka’s plans are quickly uncovered by Jabba and her punishment is to join the Order! There’s also a very chilly panel where Crakka’s co-conspirator wakes all the brains, with them shouting, “Who?” I couldn’t turn the page quicker! A lot of this is helped by Nicoletta Baldari’s gorgeous, painted style, which at first felt out of place in this horror anthology, but as the creepiness of the story intensified, the art gave events a macabre tinge and I grew to really like her style for horror story.
Over in the framing story, Hudd gets captured, again, but things get complicated for both him and Vaneé: a Inquisitor arrives for Hudd! I loved the design of this new Inquisitor, from the helmet to the cape, and am really excited to see more of this character next issue! With the introduction of this new Inquisitor and Hudd’s eventual recapture, artist Francesco Francavilla is definitely my favorite out of all the artists in Return to Vader’s Castle, but they’ve arrayed quite the group so we’ve been lucky on that count. Cavan Scott’s strength as a writer is also readily apparent as we march towards the final issue of the miniseries, finding ways to bring frights and scares for all-ages via Star Wars is no easy task and he makes it look effortless.
Here are a few other things:
- Peek ahead at the final Return issue with a preview by the official site.
Return to Vader’s Castle #4, “Vault of the Living Brains” brings me back to the fears of my childhood, with some gorgeous art to add to the haunts, making for what might be the best issue yet!
+ Scaring me like I’m kid all over again with the B’omarr monks!
+ Beautiful art adds macabre feeling
+ Teasing what’s next in the finale
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website @MynockManor.
RETURN TO VADER’S CASTLE
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IDW’S STAR WARS ADVENTURES:
Tales from Vader’s Castle (miniseries) | Annual 2019