Review: Star Wars – Forces of Destiny #1: Leia
Star Wars is certainly the gift that keeps on giving, with its many incarnations acquiring a wide range of fans, aimed at a wide range of audiences, of which I am not sure I fit into any. With all the hype, good reviews and bad reviews following The Last Jedi I made a brave and brash comment in that Star Wars is essentially a kids film. That was all well and good when I was a kid; now not so much. This series just adds to my level of disenfranchisement. But does that make this a bad comic?
Forces of Destiny is a companion book of the animation series of the same name. The comic will either serve as an extension of stories from the cartoon or offer gaping elements to the overhaul tapestry that is Star Wars. Another quirk of the book is that it features the girls of the universe. Issue one, understandably, features Princess Leia. Set on Hoth from The Empire Strikes Back, the book details the difficulty in setting up Echo Base. Some of the regulars appear, from 3PO and R2 to an old school Han Solo full “worshipfulness” and “highness’s”. Leia is on a bit of a mission, to locate a downed ship from which she and the rebels can cobble enough parts to get their energy shield up and running.
Elsa Charretier and Pierrick Colinet provide the simplest of stories, set amongst the idea of unlearning what you have learnt, going with the flow and building a relationship with those around you. In this case the latter is the reluctant tauntaun that Leia is trying bend to her will. It’s with this element, along with the repercussions that follow, that the book feels more like “My Little Tauntaun” rather than Star Wars. Charretier and Colinet gives the reader, ideally young girls, a nice flow of dialogue to keep than interested, kind of.
Elsa Charretier also provides the pencils for the book. Leia looks like Leia, her tauntaun looks like a tauntaun, yet Han Solo is only recognisable by the fact that someone uses his name. Charretier’s art has simple lines, which is reminiscent of Bruce Timm or Mike Parobeck, both of whom are more than familiar to fans of animation and their companion books. The panel structure is also easy to follow, which again is a must for younger readers. Colors are provided by Sarah Stern who keeps things fresh. I haven’t seen the show that this is based on, so I will defer to those that have to state if the style in the book is comparable.
I am totally on the fence with this book. Sure, there should be books out there for a wide age range of fans, and sure, some of those are young readers. I love the idea that the focus is on the women of the Star Wars universe, What I question is does what is actually delivered meet its purpose? Reading this book, I am not presented with a Leia who is a strong character; I am presented with a Leia that fits every stereotype for a “aimed at young reader” book. Surely, even young readers deserve a book that shows how strong a female character can be without having to resort to the befriending an animal trope? I may be being too hard, but I would like someone to explain why a universe that is already aimed at kids needs to be further de-toothed. With all that said, for a book that takes a very simplistic view on Star Wars, Charretier and Colinet certainly deliver a story that lacks any ambiguity.
Writing – 3 Stars
Art – 3 Stars
Colors – 3 Stars
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Written by; Elsa Charretier & Pierrick Colinet
Art by; Elsa Charretier
Colors by; Sarah Stern
Published by; IDW
Author Profile
- I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow
Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network
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