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jaredkwheeler's review
4.0
Star Wars Legends Project #32
Background: Knight Errant: Aflame came out in 5 issues during late 2010 to early 2011. The trade paperback was published in July 2011. The story was written by [a:John Jackson Miller|20028|John Jackson Miller|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1272316895p2/20028.jpg], with artwork penciled by [a:Federico Dallocchio|172167|Federico Dallocchio|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and [a:Ivan Rodriguez|1923394|Ivan Rodriguez|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. Dallocchio has done a lot of work for DC comics: Batman, Suicide Squad, The Flash, Green Arrow, JLA, etc. Rodriguez' work is rather more eclectic, and aside from "The Shadow" and a few Marvel titles like "Red Sonja," I don't recognize anything. Neither has worked on any other Star Wars titles outside of the "Knight Errant" series.
Aflame is set 1032 years before the Battle of Yavin (in other words, exactly 1000 years before The Phantom Menace). That puts about a 2000-year gap between this and the Old Republic game and its various connected media; a gap that will now remain permanently unfilled. The point is, everyone in this story is a brand-new character being introduced for the first time. Almost the entire story takes place on the planet Chelloa, which is also unique to this series.
Summary: Brash young Jedi Kerra Holt finds herself stranded, alone, deep in Sith-occupied space. With no hope of reinforcements, let alone victory, Kerra wedges herself into the middle of a vicious war between two Sith brothers. One brother is responsible for the tragedy that led her to the Jedi. Both want her dead, perhaps even more than they want to kill each other.
Review: I had extremely high expectations for this story. Miller's Knights of the Old Republic comic series is light-years better than anything else I've read from the "Old Republic" era, and one of the greatest of all sagas in Star Wars. My initial impression of Knight Errant is that it's not quite there, but it has potential. I'm intrigued and entertained.
The first great thing about this story is the way it places its hero in a situation that all too few Jedi in Star Wars experience: A no-win scenario. At this point in galactic history, the Republic is dwindling badly in power and influence, and most of the galaxy is controlled by squabbling Sith warlords. While other Jedi struggle to hold the front-lines against further Sith incursions into Republic territory, Kerra ventures far outside of Republic space into areas where the battle has already been lost.
In an interview I read, Miller describes Kerra: "She's passionate about what she's trying to do, which is one of the things that keeps her alive; she's got to keep moving, keep working on the next step of her plan, whatever it is. The problem is that no plan lasts long in Sith space. There are so many causes she could take up. She's constantly facing tough decisions about what she should do next. But she's also young, and she doesn't always make the right choices. It's a place where a single Jedi alone probably can't make much difference--but she tries, all the same."
I love that premise. While Kerra enters this story determined to do some damage to the Sith cause, and maybe take a few Sith lords out along the way, she keeps getting distracted by the collateral damage that the warring Sith threaten to inflict on innocents. The tensions she faces, and unique solutions she is forced to pursue, are exciting and different. She's no Zayne Carrick, but she's got the makings of a special character in her own way.
There are a couple of other characters who embody different ways the Jedi can approach heroism in this situation. One thinks only of the bigger picture, fighting the important battles to try and win the war, but is forced to ignore the plight of the innocents along the way. The other abandons the fight entirely, physically standing between those innocents and anyone or anything that might harm them, but cannot hope to protect them forever. Kerra is left to find a balance between the two, and that search drives most of this story.
The Sith characters are also pretty great, in their own way. Lord Odion, the older brother, revels in inflicting death, hoping to one day kill off pretty much the entire galaxy. His younger brother, Lord Daiman, is a solipsistic psycho with delusions of godhood. Their villainy could easily come across as flat, cartoonish, and not very threatening, but the way they play Kerra off against each other, and consistently employ more sophisticated strategy than either thinks the other capable of, keeps things interesting. Plus, being slightly-demented, there's also the constant danger that they're just going to blow everyone up to get at each other.
My only real complaint is that this feels too short for all the story it had to tell. There are a few places where things feel more rushed than they ought. There was also one particular moment when Kerra could have easily finished off an opponent, and didn't, that kind of mystified me. I don't have a problem with that turn of events, just with the lack of explanation. Nevertheless, I'm excited to read more of Kerra's adventures in Sith space, and my expectations remain elevated.
B+
Background: Knight Errant: Aflame came out in 5 issues during late 2010 to early 2011. The trade paperback was published in July 2011. The story was written by [a:John Jackson Miller|20028|John Jackson Miller|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1272316895p2/20028.jpg], with artwork penciled by [a:Federico Dallocchio|172167|Federico Dallocchio|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and [a:Ivan Rodriguez|1923394|Ivan Rodriguez|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. Dallocchio has done a lot of work for DC comics: Batman, Suicide Squad, The Flash, Green Arrow, JLA, etc. Rodriguez' work is rather more eclectic, and aside from "The Shadow" and a few Marvel titles like "Red Sonja," I don't recognize anything. Neither has worked on any other Star Wars titles outside of the "Knight Errant" series.
Aflame is set 1032 years before the Battle of Yavin (in other words, exactly 1000 years before The Phantom Menace). That puts about a 2000-year gap between this and the Old Republic game and its various connected media; a gap that will now remain permanently unfilled. The point is, everyone in this story is a brand-new character being introduced for the first time. Almost the entire story takes place on the planet Chelloa, which is also unique to this series.
Summary: Brash young Jedi Kerra Holt finds herself stranded, alone, deep in Sith-occupied space. With no hope of reinforcements, let alone victory, Kerra wedges herself into the middle of a vicious war between two Sith brothers. One brother is responsible for the tragedy that led her to the Jedi. Both want her dead, perhaps even more than they want to kill each other.
Review: I had extremely high expectations for this story. Miller's Knights of the Old Republic comic series is light-years better than anything else I've read from the "Old Republic" era, and one of the greatest of all sagas in Star Wars. My initial impression of Knight Errant is that it's not quite there, but it has potential. I'm intrigued and entertained.
The first great thing about this story is the way it places its hero in a situation that all too few Jedi in Star Wars experience: A no-win scenario. At this point in galactic history, the Republic is dwindling badly in power and influence, and most of the galaxy is controlled by squabbling Sith warlords. While other Jedi struggle to hold the front-lines against further Sith incursions into Republic territory, Kerra ventures far outside of Republic space into areas where the battle has already been lost.
In an interview I read, Miller describes Kerra: "She's passionate about what she's trying to do, which is one of the things that keeps her alive; she's got to keep moving, keep working on the next step of her plan, whatever it is. The problem is that no plan lasts long in Sith space. There are so many causes she could take up. She's constantly facing tough decisions about what she should do next. But she's also young, and she doesn't always make the right choices. It's a place where a single Jedi alone probably can't make much difference--but she tries, all the same."
I love that premise. While Kerra enters this story determined to do some damage to the Sith cause, and maybe take a few Sith lords out along the way, she keeps getting distracted by the collateral damage that the warring Sith threaten to inflict on innocents. The tensions she faces, and unique solutions she is forced to pursue, are exciting and different. She's no Zayne Carrick, but she's got the makings of a special character in her own way.
There are a couple of other characters who embody different ways the Jedi can approach heroism in this situation. One thinks only of the bigger picture, fighting the important battles to try and win the war, but is forced to ignore the plight of the innocents along the way. The other abandons the fight entirely, physically standing between those innocents and anyone or anything that might harm them, but cannot hope to protect them forever. Kerra is left to find a balance between the two, and that search drives most of this story.
The Sith characters are also pretty great, in their own way. Lord Odion, the older brother, revels in inflicting death, hoping to one day kill off pretty much the entire galaxy. His younger brother, Lord Daiman, is a solipsistic psycho with delusions of godhood. Their villainy could easily come across as flat, cartoonish, and not very threatening, but the way they play Kerra off against each other, and consistently employ more sophisticated strategy than either thinks the other capable of, keeps things interesting. Plus, being slightly-demented, there's also the constant danger that they're just going to blow everyone up to get at each other.
My only real complaint is that this feels too short for all the story it had to tell. There are a few places where things feel more rushed than they ought. There was also one particular moment when Kerra could have easily finished off an opponent, and didn't, that kind of mystified me. I don't have a problem with that turn of events, just with the lack of explanation. Nevertheless, I'm excited to read more of Kerra's adventures in Sith space, and my expectations remain elevated.
B+
wyrmbergmalcolm's review
2.0
This incoherent mess almost put me right off this series. The passage of time and space seem irrelevant as Kerra Holt bounces from one Sith brother to the other with no apparent difficulty in logistics. The most interesting character was Damien who believes he is the creator of the universe and everything in it. However, his postulating gets old very quickly as it's clear he's mostly bark without any real bite.
There is some semblance of characterisation as Kerra tries to bring a former Jedi back into active service but it was lazily done with no real pay-off.
The artwork was okay-ish but suffered from some very obscure POV choices that suggested the artists really wanted to draw a lot of nostrils. Seriously! If you're into looking up nostrils this is the book for you. There are a number of quite unflattering angles. As the book moves through the collected comics the art style changes dramatically as does Kerra's likeness. She definitely becomes more attractive and curvaceous as the story progresses.
After ploughing through a good chunk of my collection of Star Wars graphic novels, this one brought me to a lengthy standstill.
There is some semblance of characterisation as Kerra tries to bring a former Jedi back into active service but it was lazily done with no real pay-off.
The artwork was okay-ish but suffered from some very obscure POV choices that suggested the artists really wanted to draw a lot of nostrils. Seriously! If you're into looking up nostrils this is the book for you. There are a number of quite unflattering angles. As the book moves through the collected comics the art style changes dramatically as does Kerra's likeness. She definitely becomes more attractive and curvaceous as the story progresses.
After ploughing through a good chunk of my collection of Star Wars graphic novels, this one brought me to a lengthy standstill.
tsedai's review
2.0
One star for pretty pictures. One star for light sabers. That's about all I can say to recommend this one.
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