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jaredkwheeler's review
3.0
Star Wars Legends Project #281
Background: The Will of Darth Vader was published in July 2010, the fourth in the Star Wars Adventures series of graphic novellas. It was written by [a:Tom Taylor|109984|Tom Taylor|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and drawn by [a:Brian Koschak|4037263|Brian Koschak|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. Taylor has written a few other Star Wars comics, including one other in this series. Koschak also drew for about half a dozen issues of Clone Wars-related comics.
The Will of Darth Vader takes place 3 years after the Battle of Yavin, presumably shortly after The Empire Strikes Back. The main character is . . . Darth Vader. The story takes place on and around Annamar.
Summary: When Rebel ships that have been targeting Imperial cargos become a little too successful, Darth Vader decides to put a stop to the raids, personally. But a chance encounter with a mouthy smuggler leads to a more introspective mission than the Dark Lord is comfortable with.
Review: So, obviously this is one of those Darth Vader stories where he just single-handedly rolls in and decimates a ridiculous number of adversaries. Generally these stories aren't very interesting because they lean almost entirely on action in place of any character work, and they suggest that Darth Vader is so ridiculously powerful on his own that it's laughable for anyone to stand against him. Like, why would the Empire even have a military if Darth Vader can hunt down and destroy entire Rebel bases alone?
So, I don't love that aspect of this story, but I was surprised and intrigued by the way it handled the smuggler character, Luca. He seems like a complete throw-away upon first introduction, but he ends up being a really interesting foil to Vader here. I really liked the way the title seems to suggest that this is a story of Darth Vader's implacable resolve, but that it instead calls into question the degree to which Vader has or exhibits any genuine free will at all. There's more to that than can be fully explored in a story this short and this juvenile, especially when the focus really is ultimately on Darth Vader battling ridiculous odds, but this definitely felt like a cut above some of the other stories in the series. Might be worth checking out.
B-
Background: The Will of Darth Vader was published in July 2010, the fourth in the Star Wars Adventures series of graphic novellas. It was written by [a:Tom Taylor|109984|Tom Taylor|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and drawn by [a:Brian Koschak|4037263|Brian Koschak|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. Taylor has written a few other Star Wars comics, including one other in this series. Koschak also drew for about half a dozen issues of Clone Wars-related comics.
The Will of Darth Vader takes place 3 years after the Battle of Yavin, presumably shortly after The Empire Strikes Back. The main character is . . . Darth Vader. The story takes place on and around Annamar.
Summary: When Rebel ships that have been targeting Imperial cargos become a little too successful, Darth Vader decides to put a stop to the raids, personally. But a chance encounter with a mouthy smuggler leads to a more introspective mission than the Dark Lord is comfortable with.
Review: So, obviously this is one of those Darth Vader stories where he just single-handedly rolls in and decimates a ridiculous number of adversaries. Generally these stories aren't very interesting because they lean almost entirely on action in place of any character work, and they suggest that Darth Vader is so ridiculously powerful on his own that it's laughable for anyone to stand against him. Like, why would the Empire even have a military if Darth Vader can hunt down and destroy entire Rebel bases alone?
So, I don't love that aspect of this story, but I was surprised and intrigued by the way it handled the smuggler character, Luca. He seems like a complete throw-away upon first introduction, but he ends up being a really interesting foil to Vader here. I really liked the way the title seems to suggest that this is a story of Darth Vader's implacable resolve, but that it instead calls into question the degree to which Vader has or exhibits any genuine free will at all. There's more to that than can be fully explored in a story this short and this juvenile, especially when the focus really is ultimately on Darth Vader battling ridiculous odds, but this definitely felt like a cut above some of the other stories in the series. Might be worth checking out.
B-
erutane's review
3.0
Luca is a funny guy and the story is amusing, but the art is something ghastly.
murderbydeath's review
5.0
Totally biased rating, as I and my husband are long-time friends of the author. I don't have any experience with graphic novels so I'm hardly qualified to review one, but I needed a graphic novel for a reading challenge and of course I wasn't going to try anyone else's work before I tried Tom's. The art was great, the story tragic. That Tom was able to convey the tragedy of it in so few words is what, I suspect, has made him so successful.
Full review: http://jenn.booklikes.com/post/1107463/willdarthvader
Full review: http://jenn.booklikes.com/post/1107463/willdarthvader
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