– Spoiler Review –
The situation on Valo escalates once the Nihil discover their deception, but will Padawan Ram Jamoram, Jedi Knight Farzala, and some pirates be enough to help the population against the marauder’s wrath? Find out in our review of The High Republic Adventures #12 – Phase III!
In my review of the previous issue, I felt like this pivot to the events of Valo felt too sudden compared the lingering and larger events about to come on Eriadu, though narration from Ram Jamoram in The High Republic Adventures #12 – Phase III helps catch up readers on previous connecting events from Escape from Valo and last issue itself, negating much of my earlier criticism and helping this fit better into the overall series. While this issue doesn’t completely link up events on Valo to Eriadu, beyond what we already knew regarding the Warden’s plans to recruit Nihil troops he thought were on Valo to help with taking Eriadu, via its events and Ram’s overall message, it’s clear this change of location is more about tying this story into the ethos of what writer Daniel José Older is building with this run. In fact, Ram’s message to the people of Valo comes at a rather prescient time, allowing it to act as a very appreciated balm, as its hopeful meaning amidst overwhelming darkness hits on many different levels, especially for those of us in the US facing a stark, fascist-filled reality after the recent election.
With Gavi’s ruse uncovered about pretending to be Nihil overtaking the “resistance” from the inside, the young Padawan has a difficult choice, either send a message breaking the spirit of the city or watch his Master die at the hands of the Warden; it’s not clear how the Warden got Master Kunpar, but here we are. While Gavi’s at the Warden’s mercy, his Scarlet Skulls lead the resistance against the Nihil, even if the locals aren’t all participating, they’re still helping them, and Ram, Farzala, Zyle Keem, Drrn, and Therm Scissorpunch work on freeing the Jedi Order’s teaching ship, the Star Hopper, from the Nihil’s grasp. As good as all the efforts are going, Gavi’s inspiration with his messages has been a vital part of what’s made the resistance even possible on Valo, so when he decides to send a message of defeat to save Kunpar’s life, it’s a halting moment in the fight against the Nihil, with the Scarlet Skulls rounded up and the fight quickly ending. Efforts on the Star Hopper were more successful and the message only galvanizing for Ram and his group, spurring them into action to use Crashpoint Tower to interrupt Gavi’s message and send out their own, more hopeful one! This is a fun way to callback to Phase I, as it was Ram’s efforts with Crashpoint Tower during the Nihil’s destruction of the Republic Fair (The Rising Storm) which helped the Jedi Order turn the tide that day, as seen in Race to Crashpoint Tower, something the issue reminds readers about in Ram’s opening narration. And while he gets to share a hopeful message to the people of Valo, and to us readers at home, the fact the tower might be used to call more reinforcements forces Ram to make a surprising decision: he blows up the tower! It might seem like a drastic measure, but his inspiring words about becoming the dawn when a bunch of lights in the darkness team up together overlaying the bright blast of the tower’s demise makes it a joyous moment.
Seeing this arc through to its end thankfully (which is only one more issue), is Caìo Filipe on art alongside the usual Michael Atiyeh on colors and the lettering duo of Tyler Smith & Jimmy Betancourt. The contrast to Valo pre-Republic Fair to its current state really helped highlight how far it has fallen with the Nihil in control, as you can look at two different images of Crashpoint and feel the change. The first time we see it this issue, it’s made to look almost like a shining beacon, as Valo’s sun peaks over a mountain range in the background, the glowing rays of its light ringing around and pointing right through the twoer, while the city looks bright and peaceful, little birds flapping in the skies. Atiyeh uses some lovely shaeds of gold and orange to capture the brilliance of the sun, with little to no shadow over the tower itself. The next time we see it, instead of it taking up the majority of a page, it’s captured in a smaller side panel this time and it looks so much smaller from the new perspective, as we’re looking up at it instead of being level with its center or so in the more vibrant page in the issue’s opening. Now, the sky is just blacks and blues, dark and heavy over the rusty looking tower, covered in vines that are bright and green and foreign to the tower. With the current resistance over thanks to Gavi’s message, there’s a similar sense of night, of ending, of darkness in the streets of Lonisa City as Therm and Drrn navigate it and I really enjoyed this tone setting change to the city. It keeps things dark and oppressive and then helps accentuate the brighter and brighter flashes of Ram and Zyle’s resistance, first in explosions when Zyle shots down some Nihil to help give Ram time on the Tower, and then later in the final page when Ram blows it up, it sort of helps make the tower look like the earlier image in a way, a bright beacon to guide others, something Betancourt and Smith try to hammer home with placing the final word bubble right next to the exploding tower.
Here are a few other things:
- Within the Star Wars Insider issues (which I read via Libby from my local library), there continues to be High Republic Phase III focused exclusive fiction. The two most recent stories are part of the “Chronicles of Corellia” by Alyssa Wong, starring characters like Krix Kamerat, Ruu, and Driggit Parse, filling in some background about each one and what they are up to during the events of this series. Don’t miss out, they’ve been fantastic. Next, it’ll return to being stories from Lydia Kang titled “Tales from the Occlusion Zone”!
- The High Republic: The Lightsaber Collection released on November 12 and it includes looks at plenty of THRA regulars and their sabers!
- It’s going to be a big month for THRA in December, as not only are some of the connected miniseries returning with new issues, the Wedding Spectacular of Lula Talisola and Zeen Mrala is set to debut! And in January, we’ll see the first new Annual issue! Here’s a quick look at some of the upcoming overall High Republic releases, but don’t forget to check out our release calendar on our High Republic page: November 27, 2024: The High Republic Adventures – Echoes of Fear #3 and The High Republic Adventures – Dispatches from the Occlusion Zone #2; December 3, 2024: Tempest Breaker; December 18, 2024: The High Republic Adventures – Dispatches from the Occlusion Zone #3, The High Republic Adventures #13 – Phase III, and The High Republic Adventures – The Wedding Spectacular; January 8, 2025: The High Republic Adventures – Echoes of Fear #4.
The High Republic Adventures #12 – Phase III helps alleviate concerns after last issue by bringing everyone up to speed and still pushing the story forward, while its hope-filled message will be one to remember in the dark times ahead.
+ Making it all cohesive
+ Art and message on the same page to point towards something bright in the darkness of our current times
– How’d the Warden get Gavi’s master?
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.
DISCLOSURE: I received a copy of this comic from the publisher at no charge in order to provide an early review. However, this did not affect the overall review content. All opinions are my own.
THE HIGH REPUBLIC ADVENTURES – PHASE III REVIEWS
Vol. 1: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 — Vol. 2: #6 | #7 | #8 | #9 | #10 — Vol. 3: #11