– Spoiler Review –
With Dark Droids over and the Trial of Lando Calrissian coming soon, Star Wars #42 (Vol. 2) takes us on an exhilarating detour as Luke Skywalker returns to a new friend in hopes of healing a red kyber crystal. But will he get more than he bargained for? Find out in my review!
Back in issue #35, Luke Skywalker’s quest to fix his borrowed High Republic lightsaber led him to Gretta, a Fallanassi practitioner, and Dr. Cuata, a kyber specialist, in what became a moment so memorable it made my Top 5 Moments list for 2023’s Star Wars comics (and writer Charles Soule was one of my Top 3 Writers)! Luke first attempts cleansing a red kyber, finding himself in the halls of an ancient Sith Lord before he’s pushed out into Darth Vader’s meditative state and then pulled back to reality, and then communes with a pure kyber, which turns green as he talks with Yoda about his issues using the Force at that time; and yes, that’s the green kyber he’ll use to construct his new lightsaber! The comic solicitations promised in issue #42 and #43 we’d see Luke return to the ancient Sith Lord’s halls, once again trying to cleanse the red kyber, but we were left to wonder why and if we’d see Gretta and/or Dr. Cuata again. Issue #42 very quickly gets to the why of Luke’s reasoning for trying to cleanse the crystal again and I was a little ashamed in myself I didn’t guess it: he not only wants to be prepared to fight a Sith, so why not learn more about them from a vision/memory of one, but also because he wants to heal it to understand how to bring something lost in the darkness back to the light. When exactly Luke’s decided to try to save his father rather than defeat him isn’t clear, but his intentions to do so are here, now, and I love that we’re using this cool kyber crystal/Force lore stuff to explore Luke’s attempts and hopes about turning his father back to the light. He obviously still fights for Vader to turn, to help him, to come back to the light, right up until the final moment, a choice so vital to his character it’s long been what people love about him, so having him do something similar would help us understand how he has so much confidence he can do it with someone as sinister as Darth Vader, even in the presence of the dreaded Emperor Palpatine.
I’m glad we get to see Gretta again, and even meet her Auntie Feez, as it felt like there was a lot of potential for her character beyond even her interactions with Luke. We learn this issue she sort of has a crush on him, which her Auntie doesn’t quite understand, but Feez’s discussion about why she doesn’t use the Force and what it takes to be a Jedi Master builds on what’s come before for Luke and other stories. For Feez, she had other concerns than learning to use the Force, like raising four kids and studying medicine, and while this isn’t saying a mother couldn’t be trained in the Force, she is pointing out it takes obsession or great commitment to become truly proficient in it. If it comes out Luke never had any romantic relationships between now and up until his death, I already wouldn’t be too surprised considering how they’ve been setting up things, though I’d be a bit disappointed, but this conversation about commitment to the Force to become a great Jedi Master would help said decision make some type of sense. I still feel like the future of the Jedi should include romantic relationships, if one so chooses, but we’ll see what they do with Rey’s new film and her new Jedi Order. This conversation also points out even those weakest in the Force, if they devote themselves to it, could come to use it and wield it, which fits into George Lucas’ thoughts on the Force and Sabine Wren’s recent ability to tap into it after training and focusing. Regardless, both Gretta and Feez are interesting new characters and I really enjoyed getting to spend more time with them, as it’s great to see other people who know of the Force but aren’t as invested in it but also have unique rituals with it. After Luke learns what he can, he leaves, but Gretta and Feez have a quick little debate about helping him on his cleansing journey, with Feez rightfully pointing out the dangers of doing so, but they decide to watch over him as he goes once more into the kyber, claiming they’ll be able to tap into the visions and guide him out. By the end of the issue, it looks like Luke might be on his own, however!
Before Luke journeys into the kyber’s visions of this Sith Lord’s memories, he gets some clarifications about the realness of what he would be seeing, as Feez tells him it’s less about how real it is and more about him remembering he came from somewhere else aka don’t get lost in the memories. Luke ungracefully plummets back to the ancient Sith Lord’s hall, who remains unnamed,* and quickly finds out he’s surrounded by lightsaber wielding Sith in the crowd of the hall thanks to the rash action of whipping out his lightsaber. The Sith Lord, with just a flick of his fingers, flings Luke back and slams him to the ground, knocking him out cold. As he’s pulled into a prison cell, we learn the Jedi are all but extinct in this era, or at the very least not very prominent or powerful, as they typically don’t even have a lightsaber, and this Sith Lord even had a Jedi as his court’s jester at one point (who killed themselves rather than stay in the court). It’s a bleak time for Jedi and the Sith’s rule seems absolute, though whether this Sith Lord just looks over his own little corner of the galaxy or rules over it overall remains to be seen (if we ever learn it though I will say we don’t need to), and given how Feez claims to sense Luke seems to be doing fine despite being beaten in his jail cell, it’s just as bleak for him. Will he figure out how to heal this Sith Lord’s pain? How will he pull himself back? Will Gretta and Feez help him or will be have to do it all on his own? Consider me totally intrigued and excited to see how it all unfolds next issue!!
Bringing us this trip down Sith memory lane is penciler Steven Cummings, inkers Wayne Faucher & Jonas Trindade, colorist Rachelle Rosenberg, and letterer Clayton Cowles. Cummings previously did the art for Soule’s Crimson Reign and Hidden Empire miniseries, so he has a distinct and memorable style we’ve seen a lot of recently (he won a spot in 2022’s Top 3 Artist Teams), though you’ll only see the underpinnings of it after Faucher and Trindade come to the table with their inks. There’s a little inconsistency with how characters look at times, but it’s minor, while in a way I feel like Faucher & Trindade’s work makes Cummings’ usual style look more like Madibek Musabekov’s, who has been the main artist on this series for quite some time now, so characters and places we originally met in his style look familiar to that. I really liked the use of close-ups on swirling or reflective objects, the first being when Gretta sees in a vase next to her a shadowy figure behind her, which turns out to be Luke, the second being the dark swirls in the kyber crystal, and lastly the focus on the eyes as Luke regards one of Gretta’s pieces of artwork. It seems to fit in with the Feez’s words about pain and how people hide it, as the first time we see Luke we see him as a dark mirror of himself, hinting at his own pain or darkness inside, further compounded by the swirling black in the red crystal when he holds it close to his face, and lastly how him looking at the picture could almost make it seem like a demented mirror of his face; I’m not sure if that was the intention, but these little details the team snuck in all go a long way towards building up the uneasy and darker undercurrents to his scenes before he goes into the kyber’s visions. I really like the look and vibes the team is bringing to the Sith Lord, from his more androgynous design with the long flowing hair and neutral yet flowing outfit, his face often looking dispassionate or unamused but can be smug and gleefully happy when Luke starts being beaten, to the armor/outfit itself feeling both ceremonial yet practical, as if he’s prepared for battle at any moment; also, was anyone else seeing Lee Pace in the Sith Lord’s face or was it just me? The medieval trappings are all over every page, but subtle, mixing in nicely with the usual Star Wars design, be it the jester-like shoes for the Jedi at the Sith Lord’s court, the flame-lined hallways of the cell area, the bars of the jail cells, to the thick armor of the Sith Lord’s guards. Rosenberg’s color switch from Gretta’s planet to the Sith Lord/kyber visions adds to the Dark Ages aesthetic, as inside Gretta’s home is bright and white, and outside is calming purples and oranges, but inside the kyber is mainly red for the sky while the Lord’s Castle is dark colors, like blacks and metallic greys/browns, which feel very oppressive and limiting. As for Cowles’ work, I liked how big Luke’s sound FX was for when he jumps into action in the Lord’s hall, the big, brave Jedi igniting his saber or when he pushes the Sith around him away, yet this is counteracted by the many little SFX for the Sith igniting their sabers, showing the strength in their numbers against Luke’s ‘bravery,’ and how there’s no SFX for the Lord’s usage of the Force, as if Luke is a mere afterthought as he flicks his finger and does some major pain to Luke.
Here are a few other things:
- *Between Celebration Europe 2023’s High Republic panel teasing there is more to come even after Phase III of The High Republic ends and all the Sith Lords we keep hearing about in High Republic or related stories, I’ve been wondering for a while now if a hypothetical next publishing initiative would focus on the Sith! After getting the Golden Age of the Jedi…why not the Golden Age of the Sith? As far as our Sith Lord makes out about his time period, it makes it seem like the Jedi are basically non-existent, so having the Siths’ problems be different than dealing with Jedi would be fertile storytelling, much like it has been for The High Republic. Is that why they are waiting to reveal this Sith Lord’s name, as it might be one we’ve learned in a previous story?! We’ll have to wait and see, but it’s fun either way to see his type of era, even if it’s just this way!
- Speaking of the Sith Lord’s name, Soule says he’ll reveal it after issue #43, so it seems it won’t be in the story, but I’m curious if my theory above has any weight and it’s at least a name we’ve heard before, which mentioning that in the issue might distract from its contents.
- I’m okay with us moving on from the Dark Droids crossover to the next part of each series’ story, even if it means the end for some, but a little moment from Gretta being concerned with seeing Artoo and asking if he’s not affected would’ve gone a long way to make it feel like the events of the crossover happened because, as far as it seems in this issue, it could’ve just been a dream at this point.
- In the recent Revelations (2023) #1, we met Lando’s eventual lawyer for the upcoming trial, which starts in issue #44!
Star Wars #42 (Vol. 2) gets to the heart of Luke’s reasons for diving back into the red kyber crystal yet reveals a far more intriguing and difficult journey is ahead for them than he ever imagined.
+ Digging into Luke’s goals
+ Gretta and Feez and all the interesting Force lore they bring with them
+ Art team brings a great aesthetic to the ancient Sith Lord’s memories
– Inconsistencies with art
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: #1-6 — Operation Starlight: #7-11 — War of the Bounty Hunters: #12-18 — Crimson Reign: #19-24 — Special Issue: #25 — The Path to Victory: #26-30 — Quests of the Force: #31 | #32 | #33 | #34 | #35 | #36 — Dark Droids: #37 | #38 | #39 | #40 | #41