Welcome back for Part II of the Top 10 Unforgettable Comic Moments from 2020-2024, as Chris and I break down our favorite moments from the last 5 years of comic storytelling! In Part I we covered spots #10-8, which included everything from the High Republic’s villainous Marchion Ro to the surprising return of the Grand Inquisitor, and now Part II reveals our #7-5 choices! Head below for kyber crystals, big reunions, and…finding home?! Afterwards, Part III is already out so find out what made the final four as well!
Chris
7. Kelnacca’s Silence Speaks Volumes (The Acolyte: Kelnacca #1):
I can’t say every choice here is completely and wholly dependent upon the comic from which the story came. It’s my list! I can do that! And the Kelnacca issue is on this list for a few reasons. The first reason this issue is on the list is because it’s actually just a genuinely good issue. In a year where everything started to feel a little stale (here’s looking at a certain Dark Lord), I was happy to get anything different. But this one-shot told a tight story, one that fit within its boundaries (here’s looking at a certain bounty hunter), took full advantage of its page count, and left us with a heart-warming and touching tale of a Master and an Apprentice. Even though I am personally waiting to see the payoff for bringing Kelnacca more fully into the “mainline” High Republic storyline (my concern is the cast is already too large), this one-shot is a fairly firm foundation for a character like Kelnacca, and a fine argument in terms of adding him to another series. Cavan Scott flexed a pretty rare muscle among comic writers when he wrote a story where the main protagonist stayed mostly quiet, yet giving us a fairly well-rounded character we can attach ourselves to. The second reason I chose this comic is what it represents: a true tie-in! With the “Mandoverse”, we have seen a lot of TV shows that have…well, no follow-up in the comics. Nothing to flesh it out. I was happy to see a comic take a side character from a TV show and let them have a little time in the limelight again. Feels like it’s been too long since we’ve had that. And finally, it was nice to see the comics can branch out. Again, they were growing a bit stale: I hope this one-shot sold well enough to let Marvel know it’s okay to poke around the timeline a bit again.
6. Mighty Luke Skywalker…Gets a Green Kyber Crystal (Star Wars #43 {2020}):
One of my favorite things about the 2020 run of the mainline Star Wars comic was it pushed what we knew about our main characters to some really cool new heights. For example, I was really excited to see Luke Skywalker and his journey into becoming a Jedi, and seeing him grapple with what it means to be the son of Darth Vader and watch him grow as a wise young man. One of the first new things this run did was give Luke a yellow lightsaber – which I absolutely loved. But I think for almost every reader, except me, the question was always there: when was Luke going to break out his new green lightsaber? I think Soule did a great job in….not introducing that green saber. Instead, we watched Luke’s spiritual journey into the kyber crystal during a meditation, where he faced the depth of his darkness and his capacity for love. When he emerged from the trance, he found himself face-to-face with the new green kyber crystal.
5. Sskeer…Lives? Still? Again? (The High Republic #4 – Phase III):
Okay, the title of this paragraph is a little tongue-in-cheek. One of the biggest bummers (as macabre as it is to say) of The High Republic’s Phase III: Trails of the Jedi storytelling is finding out a majority of the characters left on cliffhangers by the end of Phase I were alive and survived pretty easily. (Well, some have spiritual scars, but some got off pretty well despite falling from space surrounded by beings that consume the Force!) I’ll even argue I’ve felt Sskeer’s story, despite being a standout of Phase I because of his Master-Padawan relationship with the newly appointed Master Keeve Trennis, is going on for too long and someone may have a darling that needs to be killed. But, all of that being said, I can’t argue anything but the thought Sskeer’s return to the High Republic comics was well done. Keeve, following her heart, hopes to find her former Master in the newly minted Nihil Occlusion Zone. And, well, boy does she. Instead of finding the Master she knew, she finds a somewhat feral Trandoshan, succumbing to his Magrak syndrome, mostly cut off from the Force, and antagonistic to his former friends. As he is returned, somewhat, to his former self, we see he has given himself to caring for a young child from the Yacombe. Seeing Sskeer’s paternal-esque side coming back out was a nice treat, and for a little while, I was very curious to see where this story would go.
Ryan
7. Lando’s Choices Haunt Him Still (Star Wars #14 {2020}):
Lando and Lobot’s friendship is a storyline Charles Soule charted from his earliest days in the comics, with Lobot’s sacrifice gaining my #1 spot in the 2015-2019 Top 10 Unforgettable moments, and Star Wars (2020) picks it up and really runs with it throughout its 50-issues. Of the ups and downs of Lando’s attempts to save his friend, which includes Lobot being taken over by a sentient computer virus and Lando standing trial by a Rebellion tribunal, I felt the most memorable was the absolute gut-punch of Lando’s selfish actions resulting in devastating consequences. Eager to get Jabba the Hutt off his back, Lando sacrifices the Rebellion’s Talky droid, an ancient machine they procured to develop a special encoding language after the Empire hacked theirs, but as he jettisons it out into space, it reveals it can not only push back Lobot’s implants, allowing the man to return to the forefront, but he could fix it permanently. To retrieve it, Lando would have to reveal his subterfuge, which he’ll do later and leads to his trial, so instead he lets it go, cursing his decisions. If he hadn’t been so worried about Jabba, maybe trusting in the Rebellion despite their recent actions showing him they’d put their cause first over Lobot, he could’ve saved his friend right then and there. It’s a long road afterwards, but watching Lando deal with the consequences of his actions and realize he’s no closer to saving his friend, really hit hard and made one wonder if, and how, he’d be able to make up for such a pivotal mistake.
6. Finding Home: The Sav Malagán Story (The High Republic Adventures #8 – Phase II):
I’ve been picking a lot of beginnings or midway points for many of my top Unforgettable Moments, but this one is all about the ending to The High Republic Adventures – Phase II, where a young Savina Besatrix “Sav” Malagán, pulled between the Jedi Order and being herself, finds herself and her home. Those far more qualified than I, like James Dillion, the renowned writer of Eleven-ThirtyEight, Cinelinx, and even the graced us at the Manor, has covered Sav’s journey throughout the series and its underlying queer subtext around different aspects of the experience, while his coverage of the final issue reaches at all our hearts with trust and openness about his own experience and THRA’s unlikely place in it. Series writer Daniel José Older has a penchant for infusing his stories with many different layers and, while often subtle about it, he manages it in a way which any fan could pick up what was lying underneath if they faithfully engaged with the story, so even beyond the excellent essays, I myself found relatable aspects to the story of acceptance and found families. To have such layered storytelling, even in an all-ages comic, all while giving a character a satisfying arc which still adds to the overall era, without neutering the messaging, means a ton to the fans who don’t always get to see themselves in the stories they love, something which will likely be even more scarce given the dangerous, fascist way the world, especially the USA, is swinging.
5. Keeve Trennis Keeps Finding Another Way, For Light and Life (The High Republic #5 – Phase III):
Keeve Trennis has been one of the most fascinating Jedi of the High Republic era, not because we’ve known she’d be leaving the Order due to an Easter Egg before the series even began, but since she’s been one of the most consistent practitioners of the Jedi’s motto: “For Light and Life” and somehow still will end up leaving the Order. Whereas other Jedi get into conflict, using their sabers in offensive battles against the Nihil and hoping a simple apology to the Force will get them off the hook for taking a life, Trennis has proven time and time again she understands there’s always another way which upholds their motto. Having saved Lourna Dee from Jedi Master Avar Kriss, she saves the ex-Nihil again but this time from her former Jedi Master Sskeer, ravaged by a Transdoshan-specific disease, while still managing to pull him from the brink too, only using her blade in defense. Much like how she devised a non-violent way to quell the Drengir threat (which made the Top 5 for 2021) and continues to be defensive in most, if not all, her actions, Keeve saving both her mentor and an ally at the same time really showcases what it really means to stand for Light and Life. Seeing her be the Master at this only serves to make the realization she’ll still leave the Order, despite the upcoming “win” against the Nihil, all the more tragic and leaves me and many fans on the edge of their seats as we close in on the finale.
How’s that for our second part?! Our first overlap sort of occurred with the Keeve Trennis and Sskeer reunion though we picked different issues and reasons, Charles Soule’s work with Star Wars (2020) has now net him 2 spots per list (could he get any more?), and The High Republic era has earned 5 spots between both of our lists (will it also have more to come?)! What remains for the Final Four spots in the Manor’s Top 10 Unforgettable Star Wars Comics Moments? Check back on Friday for Part III to find out Part III is out!!!
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him and the website on Bluesky. Chris is the Manor’s Sous Chef. You can follow him on Bluesky as well.
All comic panel images credited to Marvel/Dark Horse/Lucasfilm