– Spoiler Review –
With the notorious Lourna Dee in custody and the Ataraxia in hand, Jedi Master Keeve Trennis and her team jump behind the deadly Nihil Stormwall to try and find Sskeer, her former Master, but will they like what they uncover? Familiar faces and strange alliances make for an entertaining The High Republic #4 – Phase III!
Jumping behind the Stormwall comes with its challenges, the first being the scav droids which attack any ship not broadcasting the right codes, but it quickly becomes clear they are the least of Keeve Trennis and team’s problems. For starters, within her own ranks, Ceret and Terec are at odds, bond twins who share a mind yet can’t stand one another, a point Lourna Dee makes after we see Ceret attempt to mind trick her into giving up information. Terec doesn’t agree with their twin’s actions, and Keeve makes her displeasure known, while even later in the issue the two argue over the usage of platitudes to an injured Jedi. That we can easily tell them both apart due to the implants on their bodies, thanks to surviving a Nameless attack, is something I’ve been curious to see made manifest in how they both act and issue #4 makes it clear neither will ever be the same or as totally connected as before. The likelihood this will be an even bigger problem going forward almost goes without saying, especially as the issue ends with them about to potentially face off against Children of the Storm and their Nameless, so can they get over their new differences to fight for light and life another day?
As Keeve’s friends have their disagreements, she finds herself agreeing with the most unlikely of sources: Lourna Dee. The way these two begrudgingly come to an understanding throughout the issue is some master class from writer Cavan Scott, whose been responsible for the grand majority of both their stories so far (and parts yet to come!*) and it’s unmissable how easily he seems to understand and get how they work, both for why they are still so different but maybe not so different overall. Lourna points out a strange truth, that Keeve’s saved her twice from fellow Jedi, and because of those events she’s able to offer a scathing, but all too true point that brings back up Keeve’s status as one of the Lost Twenty of the Jedi Order: are the Jedi really the moral beacons of the galaxy, as they are now? Or have they lost themselves along the way? It’s a potent point, one Keeve doesn’t fight directly, yet she does in her actions, from saving Lourna, again, and later freeing her from her binders when they go into a mysterious temple to find Sskeer, as the former Nihil won’t join her unless she’s able to be free and fight. That she doesn’t immediately run says a lot about Lounra too, as she realizes, of all places, she might be the safest next to a Jedi. Regardless, Keeve’s sentiment on feeling fear and it’s more about what you do with it rather than trying not to feel it, could earn Lourna’s trust even more because it shows Keeve isn’t as high and mighty as Lourna keeps calling her. I look forward to seeing where this temporary truce goes and how much she’ll help with the return of a certain Jedi Master…
Though before we get into that, how about who Keeve, the bond twins, and Lourna run into first?! Upon landing on Kindosorn, after a brief interaction with a cute little monkey-like local, Keeve senses fear nearby and they are attacked by a strange, blob-like being wielding a lightsaber! It’s not going well, as it can shift its body away from Keeve’s lightsaber blade, but it all ends quickly enough thanks to, of all things, Keeve’s swearing! Her penchant for kriff and another bad words is well-known amongst the Jedi, as it’s when the blob apologizes for its recklessness and introduces itself: OrbaLin! The archivist Jedi showed the amorphous stuff he’s made of in a duel with Lourna Dee on Valo, though she got her revenge on the Ataraxia as she stole its docking spot on Starlight Beacon. However, fans noticed OrbaLin was fighting the Drengir on Mutila with Keeve at the same time he was battling Dee on Valo and Scott admitted it was an error, but promised he’d have an in-universe explanation (in a now deleted tweet) eventually…and well, we finally get it here: OrbaLin is able to duplicate himself, essentially splitting up his amorphous insides into more than one body, while the same ability allows him to survive Dee shooting him in the “head.” Giving his species and what he’s made of, this is a very plausible and fun explanation, and I’d like to see more of his species and them taking advantage of such abilities! Anyways, OrbaLin isn’t alone, as while he helped plenty of people get into escape pods on Starlight Beacon, that also included a fellow Jedi, Goonral Monshi! Neither are in the best of shape, OrbaLin spooked and Monshi injured, as more Children of the Storm, alongside Nameless are out in the jungle around them, hunting them, but so too is something far more dangerous: Sskeer!!
That’s right, the issue ends as Keeve, with Lourna alongside with her, encounter Sskeer in the jungle’s temple, looking absolutely vicious and scary as all hell. Is this because of the Magrak Syndrome? His scuffle with the Nameless? Both? And can he be brought back from whatever places his mind has taken him? Will Keeve be able to use all his teachings to reach out to him, like no one else can? I don’t have those answers yet, but I do know Scott is going to make this quite the experience for everyone involved, including us fans!
Last issue’s team continues, which means Jim Towe and Marika Cresta on art, Jim Campbell for colors, and Ariana Maher lettering. OrbaLin without his suit, in his amorphous form, must not be an easy task, but the team does a great job, as he doesn’t come off as a silly blob but rather a formidable presence despite being a blob. When he first appears, I almost thought of Slimer from the Ghostbusters franchise as we’re sort of meant to be thrown off and scared by him, Keeve reacting a bit with shock at seeing him come flying at her, while he has an aggressive posture, all of his blob forward, with his lightsaber extended, the lack of a face off-putting and the shades of green making it feel like he could’ve been hiding anywhere in the forest, blending so well into it. In their battle, his body is forward face, much of the bulk amassed in the front, to weight heavily on who he was attacking, but when we get into the little hut he and Monshi are holed up in, he’s skinnier, taller almost, to feel less aggressive and more friendly. Glimpses at his abilities offer some great panels too, like when he’s engulfing Nihil in a flashback to save Monshi, Campbell’s blue coloring to these panels give them a sense of a newsreel or old-time footage, or when he makes the shape of the temple they know Sskeer is living in, his shape appearing viscous; Maher gives him a unique feel, voice-wise, with the blob-like dialogue bubbles, filled in the same green as his body, which adds to the spooky factor of his look. Speaking of Sskeer though, the final page is a doozy, as our first glimpse of Keeve’s former Master, who we’ve only been reminded of as a tender being in flashbacks, smiling at Keeve, holding her hand, or cradling cute animals, looks positively fierce, intimidating, and deadly. His back is to us and to Keeve/Lourna, which is rippling with muscle, almost glistening from the fire pits he stands between, his clothes in tatters around his waist, an homage to the Hulk, raged out, his humanity gone, Campbell letting shadows and darkness overwhelm everything despite the bright flames, while Maher shows how excited Keeve initially is, but as her words pull away, her fear at what has become of him is clear.
Here are a few other things:
- *Like I mentioned, there’s more Lourna Dee and Keeve Trennis on the way! At the end of each issue of this series, there’s been a checklist for it claiming this volume will end at issue #10, which is August at this point if issues don’t get delayed. I was trying to ignore this, hoping it would be longer, as I was concerned Keeve’s choice to leave the Order, as she’s been memorialized as one of the Lost Twenty by the time of the prequels, wouldn’t be given justice if only done in 10 issues. Well, even if the series ends there, the recently announced audiobook original (each Phase gets one) looks to pick up her story, as well as Lourna Dee and Avar Kriss’! The High Republic: Tempest Breaker, out December 3, will see the three women form an unlikely alliance to go after Marchion Ro! Will we see Keeve’s choice to leave happen then or is there another volume of the Marvel comic on the way after it, as Phase III won’t wrap up until summer 2025? I’m sure we’ll have a better idea in a few months, but exciting news either way knowing the comic is only one part of Keeve’s bigger story!
- I’ve been seeing a lot of the comments about how, by now, basically everyone survived Starlight Beacon’s destruction, thus robbing the event of its impact for some fans. I totally understand where the feeling is coming from, and everyone’s allowed to feel how they’d like so I’m not saying they are wrong, but to me, letting these characters survive, and likely die in service to other characters or the larger story instead, I feel like that’s far more compelling than them just being names ticked off a list for dying when a space station goes down. I still think Starlight’s fall has had an impact, look at the Jedi hiding back on Coruscant besides a brave handful, the Nihil taking over a large swath of space and oppressing those behind it, the Republic looking incompetent for a year plus not being able to get through…that’s lasting, wide-ranging impact that’s doesn’t need a bunch of people to die in the process. Just my two cents!
- Above you’ll see the final Black History Month cover, featuring Bell Zettifar and Ember, only out now due to the issue being delayed. Issue #5 is still set for March 20 and has a special Women’s History Month variant with Ahsoka Tano on the cover!
- Artist Ario Anindito will return to the series for Sskeer’s full return next issue, which will be neat since he kicked off their wonderful relationship in Phase I’s volume over three years ago now!
The High Republic #4 – Phase III finds fractures in the Jedi and strange alliances, and while familiar faces return, it’s only the start of bad days ahead for Keeve Trennis and her crew!
+ Keeve finding an ally in…Lourna Dee?!
+ Trouble amongst the bond-twins
+ Sskeer’s intimidating return thanks to the art team
– Given other stories about being behind or trying to break out of the Stormwall, this all felt a little too easy
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Bluesky, Twitter @MynockManor, and Instagram @mynockmanor.
THE HIGH REPUBLIC – PHASE III REVIEWS
Children of the Storm: #1 | #2 | #3