Review: Star Wars: Darth Vader #43

This Star Wars Darth Vader comic needs a fresh team and perspective urgently. The entire book has become repetitive and circular. The meandering politics, the dull characterizations and the lack of any real stakes are made worse by the wooden artwork.

Greg Pak is a wonderful writer but all of the crossovers and side journey have left this run feeling like filler content. At this point Vader being duplicitous in opposing the Emperor has been played out. But are again given a version of this with Administrator Sly Moore and Governor Tauntaza ostensibly convincing Vader to join their opposition force. Sly Moore gathers a group of those who corrupted or colluded against the Empire to form the Schism Imperial. They infiltrate the Empire.

Moore and Vader arrive a month later to a battle-ready Tauntaza who is shocked to learn Vader is joining their Schism. They then attack and overtake Tauntaza’s former facility and its weaponry and energy. All of this is done swiftly and without any real threat to Vader.

We are meant to be watching Vader play chess but we are not given any reason to care for him or any other character in this story. The artwork is dry but serviceable. All of the characters are recognizable and well drawn but there is no visual excitement outside of the action sequences. We just see characters talking to each other in what may as well be a boardroom.

Darth Vader should be a comic in which a great interesting character is given even greater or equally interesting enemies. Instead we are seeing characters be maneuvered strategically without any actual likelihood of overthrowing the Emperor. We know how this ends and as such we can’t be asked to believe that Vader’s betrayal here matters.

More than this continually having Vader betray or pretend to betray Palpatine massively weakens the end of Return of the Jedi. Why do we care that Vader turns against the Emperor for his son if it’s the seventh time he’s turned. We lose the lesson of hope if he’s willing to turn against the Empire purely for power or vanity.

Writing: 1 of 5 stars
Art: 2.5 of 5 stars
Colors: 2 of 5 stars

Overall
1.8 of 5 stars

Writer: Greg Pak
Art: Adam Gorham
Colors: Federico Blee
Publisher: Marvel Comics

Author Profile

M.R. Jafri

M.R. Jafri was born and raised in Niagara Falls New York and now lives with his family in Detroit Michigan. He's a talkative introvert and argumentative geek. His loves include Star Wars, Star Trek, Superheroes, Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, Transformers, GI Joe, Films, Comics, TV Shows, Action Figures and Twizzlers.