SWNN REVIEW: Marvel’s Star Wars Obi-Wan & Anakin #2
Issue #2 puts us right back in the frozen wasteland of Carnelion IV. In my review of the previous issue, I likened this world and it’s remaining population to a kind of Mad Max-like setting. I still feel that way, even more so, after this issue. The survivors of Carnelion IV’s ruined civilization are terrified, warring, and completely isolated from the rest of the galaxy. Imagine if a Jedi dropped into the middle of a Mad Max film and that’s pretty much what you are getting here.
The mother and daughter, Pran and Kolara, have drawn their blasters on Obi-Wan and Anakin. They don’t know what a Jedi is. I don’t think they really care. Kolara senses the benevolent nature of the two Jedi and softly tries to restrain Pran (who may or may not be her mother…I was confused as to whether it was a title or relation) from blasting away at the Jedi. Just as Obi-Wan uses a little verbal persuasion of his own, the exchange is interrupted by an attacking airship, similar to the one Pran and Kolara crash landed.
Who needs a blaster by their side when you’ve got a perfectly good lightsaber? That’s Obi-Wan, there in the background, taking a boomerang offensive against the enemy craft. Anakin looks up to his master, explaining to the two women they’ve encountered that Obi-Wan is about as good as it gets. Little moments like those are sprinkled through these first two issues, and I imagine there will only be more. We only really saw the two of them bicker and backtalk each other, so it’s nice to see Anakin really trying to learn and look up to Obi-Wan like the Jedi Master is his older brother.
A little more Mad Max, with the dueling, shotgun-esque blasters and Grecker referring to them as “bangers”. Meet Grecker, the pilot of the airship Obi-Wan just took out. Grecker managed to bailout at the last second and Anakin pulled him to safety. Mother Pran is not terribly happy about this, so Obi-Wan gives Anakin the green light to disarm the would-be duelers.
After everyone is disarmed of their “bangers”, the lot realizes they are essentially up the creek without a paddle. In the middle of a blizzard, both parties blaming each other for the planet’s death, they realize they will either freeze to death or die trying to get to safety. There are other things they fear than each other. Obi-Wan and Anakin agree to help the trio of survivors.
Corpse Leeches!!! How cool of a name is that? Well, Corpse Leeches look like they have about as much sense as you’d expect from a zombie, only they are living, and even the Jedi have soft spots for Corpse Leeches.
So, Obi-Wan wants to try and settle the Corpse Leeches down with the wave of a hand and some Jedi mind soothing. Anakin agrees to try, but that works out for the Corpse Leeches about as well as Anakin’s lightsaber “trying” to not slaughter an entire village of Sand People. This failure brings Anakin back to a memory of his time back on Coruscant.
So…how did the Jedi didn’t guess Sheev Palpatine was Darth Sidious is something I will never understand. See above frame. Anakin’s Coruscant flashback takes him to a stroll he took with then Supreme Chancellor after being permitted to by a very reluctant Obi-Wan. This flashback ends abruptly, most likely to be finished in the next issue. The less you know about this the better, and you should read it for yourself, but it’s a very interesting look into the relationship Palpatine set out to create with Anakin. Palpatine was at his finest when muddying the waters.
We are left on another cliffhanger at the end of this issue. No pictures here, but we are about to meet the other thing Grecker, Pran, and Kolara didn’t want to bump into on Carnelion IV. Judging by next issue’s cover, the Jedi are about to face some fun of their own.
This is another great issue in this series I have a lot of optimism for. I heard some people complain about Anakin being whiny, and compared to the prequel films, I don’t really get it. I don’t find him whiny at all in this series He seems very curious and eager, but not the angsty Jedi we meet further down the road.
The issue’s great writing by Charles Soule is helped along by the dynamic duo of penciler Marco Checchetto and colorist Andres Mossa. Checchetto and Mossa have been responsible for some of my favorite Star Wars books over the last year, and they bring their talents here. The storm of post-apocalypse is present in every frame. Get out and get this issue now.
Purchase this issue through comiXology or at your local comic shop.
Kyle Larson lives in Portland, Oregon. When he's not running trails, he's reading and writing.
Are those blimps on the cover?! They probably aren’t but if they are this points out why I don’t think anyone should be able to come in and play in the canonized SW universe. Like people dabbling in the EU is one thing, but this stuff is all official. And a lot of these people just aren’t creative enough for this world, IMO. Like I started watching TCW the other night and couldn’t believe that in the FIRST chonological episode an invisible ship AND a tarantula man are introduced. Like what?! Somebody with some creativity needs to go over all this stuff before it gets out there, because a lot of it sucks.
Uhh…I thought your precious old EU had invisible ships, and If you notice in the prequels there are a lot of animal-based alien humanoids, so there’s nothing wrong with trench.
When did I say I read the EU? Because I never did so I couldn’t even begin to tell you what the hell is in there.
I assumed you have
Well I haven’t. When I mentioned the EU I meant it is one thing to have a whole bunch of weird, (IMO) non-Star-Wars-y stuff in the EU because it is not official, it was fan fiction. It is different now that all this insane stuff like spider people and a cloaking ship are canon and actually matter.
EU is not mere fan-fiction. It’s a huge amount of novels commissioned by lucasfilm during the time. It all started to revive interest in the 90s generation for star wars.
Another classic case of its not what I want so its not good enough to ME. And its not Star Wars-y enough. Liking or not liking something is one thing, but man
Uh?
Yeah but it was never considered canon or official
partly, yes. Whoever did anything related to star wars most of the times considered the previously released novels’ storylines. E.g. Darth Bane and Darth Revan almost appeared as sith ghosts in the mortis story arc of TCW, and recently they included in rebels thise “Hammerhead” cruisers originally appeared in the Knights of the old republic related stuff.
But cloaking is canon and Star wars-y per Obi-wan in A New Hope. And its not insane because that goes past just being your opinion. I dont like is all you need, not its insane or stupid or sucks.
They say cloaking as if losing the trackers, they never say cloaking as if literally going invisible
You mean like this invisible ship?
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Mk._III_Stygium_Cloaking_Device
Or this?
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Cloaking_device/Legends
Or these aliens like the velociraptor species?
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Ssi-ruu
Or the Killik, or even Geonosians which are insectoid species.
There are many examples of things that could be considered unoriginal that have been around much longer than since Disney acquired Star Wars. You must be semi new to the Star Wars universe. It’s purely subjective as to what should be seen as being original or unoriginal but I believe the direction that Marvel/Lucasfilm have taken the Star Wars comics overall has been pretty good.
I’m waiting for a cloaked ship in the sequels. After all ‘no ship that small has a cloaking device’ Episode V. So its only logical that in the time frame its been perfected.
I never said unoriginal. Even in the prequels Star Wars has always been creative. I’m just saying that a lot of the stuff in the ancilary material hasn’t struck me as creative or imaginitive as the stuff in the films.
I just love hypocrisy of old Eu fanatics. If something happens in old Eu and is totally crazy it is ok. But if something only little different from standard or based on old EU stuffs happens. Then It is worst thing imaginable.
I never read the EU so idk what you are talking about
O.M.G. your problems aren’t even worth debating they are that empty.
Good I didn’t feel like debating, I felt like voicing my opinion, so thank you.
Next time you feel the urge to voice your opinions, don’t. Kay? Thanks 🙂
Little tool-esque. If you don’t like my opinion you didn’t have to comment
Nobody liked your opinion Einstein.
That’s a rash generalization for one to make
*yawn*
Don’t feed the troll, ladies and gents.
Look if you’re into this stuff good for you, I’m just voicing my opinion since this is where that is supposed to be done
Sorry I feed it.
Then evidently you are not a fan of anything other than the original trilogy. The Clone Wars are over 8 years old and what you describe is mostly liked. Just because you dont like doesnt make it creative enough. Remember there is a spaceman in the Cantina scene in A New Hope. Hows that for creative?
Look guy a giant tarantula and a freaking cloaking ship are not creative in the least bit. And even on Rebels they couldn’t figure out how to make a droid emote without two arms sticking out of him. Like I said though, it’s just MY opinion
Then your opinion has out grown Star Wars. Its cool man, you can move on. No one will stop you. Take your Original Trilogy ball and go home.
This is unbelievable, when did everyone who likes Star Wars and reads Star Wars related articles have to like every little thing?
They do have someone going over it, its called the Lucasfilm Story Group. They go over everything that has a Star Wars logo attached to it. So again you dont like it then you dont like Star Wars. Period.
And no that is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. I love the OT and TFA. But the story group has come up with a lot of dull and unimaginitive stuff for the books and Rebels and so on. You look at the movies and they are bursting with creative creatures and crazy locations and a variety of different designs. Then all of the sudden the story group decides it would be a good idea to through a talking spider and Wonder Woman’s ship into Star Wars. So don’t try to tell me that because I don’t like every little thing I’m not a fan. If that’s the way you think than you are just someone who is a blind fan who just likes anything and everything because it’s Star Wars. And I am certainly not that.
Then your opinion is unimaginative. Humans can only imagine so much outside what they know from this planet called Earth. Humanoid species of animal and insects in sci-fi is going to happen. Sorry YOU dont like it, but that doesnt make it unimaginative. And the thought of cloaking devices were around way before Wonder-Woman guy. You dont like something thats fine. To each their own, but dont spew uneducated nonsense because you dont. Fine you dont like a stealth ship, but it is apart of all war stories. Expecting Star Wars to live to some expectation over everything else in the sci-fi world is unrealistic.
Look I get that a lot of the creatures in Star Wars are hybrids of many animals on earth, but the thing in TCW is literally a tarantula! Like change it a little bit! And I don’t know where I came off as uneducational or spewing nonsense. Invisible ships are for comic books, not Star Wars. But just like everything else I said, it’s my opinion. I never said you were an idiot for liking stuff I don’t. Like I think the prequels are trash, but I would never say someone is dumb for liking them. If I said that, I would be spewing off uneducated nonsense, but as it stands, I am just voicing my opinion.
He is changed. He has two humanoid legs that he stands on and one of his pincers and eye are mechanical replacements.. just like The great Darth Vader. I said uneducated because you commented/opined that they were letting anyone play in the Star Wars world unchecked, when there are checks and balances for eveything now. Fine you dont like it, but you dont even read it either so why even worry or opin about it? You said it yourself.
I never said anyone can play in the universe. I’m saying that I think the group that they have just aren’t up to the creative Calibur as the universe itself.
You said:They probably aren’t but if they are this points out why I don’t think (anyone should be able to come in and play in the canonized SW universe.) This is the uneducated comment you are now refuting. No one is just coming in and doing what they want. There is a story group that goes over everything from books/comics to tv and movies. It all jives and has to work now. If you dont like things thats fine. Just say i dont like those blimpy things that Im not reading about anyway so it doesn’t really matter to me but still. Dont say people are writing things in books and tv willy-nilly. I dont like it is a fine enough statement . Not people are not creative enough for me even though I couldnt come up something better myself.
Then I worded it wrong. But I stand by my claim that I think who they have in the story group might be super fans and super knowledgable, but they just aren’t that imaginitive. I mean instead of bringing in a new bad guy lets just bring back one of the worst ever, Darth Maul. And instead of coming up witha new creature design lets just make a spider person. Or instead of coming up with an inventive ship they just took a torpedo and made it invisible. Like this stuff is all over TCW and Rebels. It all just (to me) feels very un-Mcquarry and in turn very un-Star Wars.
Funny you say that because alot of things they use in Rebels is all from unused McQuarre art concepts.
I was waiting for you to say that. Yes, every once in a while the come across a bridge that looks right but that is about it
oohh… I’m gonna stay out of this one…
That is the No True Scotsman Fallacy. You don’t have to like everything with a Star Wars logo in order to be fan of the franchise.
The “invisible ship” is actually a reference to a line in ESB, “no so that small has a cloaking device!” Other than that, I imagine it is tough to find people who are as imaginative as Lucas.
I’m loving the freshness of this mini series so far. It’s different and in a good way. It’s not quite classic SW, not quite Clone Wars…I can’t put my finger on it. But as the only canon story in the era between TPM and AOTC it should have a feel all its own and imo it succeeds in that. And as for the Checchetto and Mossa duo…their artwork is a feast for the eyes…I loved their work on Shattered Empire and I hope they team up for an ongoing series in the future.
I was enjoying the hell out of this series until they decided to have Palpatine don his Sidious garb while still being Palpatine. WTF, guys? Big, big mistake.
His face is scarred too. Major fuckup there.