Review: ‘Darth Vader – Black, White & Red’ Ends With a Whimper In Issue #4
It’s unfortunate that Darth Vader: Black, White & Red ends on such a disappointing note given the excellent quality of its first two issues. Even issue #3 wasn’t that bad. I still enjoyed it, even though the short stories included didn’t provide much of anything new or insightful. But with issue #4, the dark lord of the Sith’s anthology series doesn’t end with a bang, but with a soft dud without any impact.
In our reviews of issue #1 and issue #2, we pointed out the fascinating character study that the series offers. Combining visually stunning art with unique stories showcasing the impact Darth Vader has on others, the comic series was an easy recommendation I could make for anyone wanting to read Darth Vader comics. I could even recommend issue #3 despite its less-than-inspiring stories because the artwork was still amazing. But with issue #4, the stories are neither new nor contain any visually impressive artwork, which makes me frustrated for being so invested with the series all this time.
Spoilers ahead…
The first story is the conclusion to Jason Aaron’s series-long plot. In issue #3 Vader broke out of Cyn’s holdings and practically eliminated most of Cyn’s group. After that last issue, I thought that there wasn’t much left to that story considering Vader had already escaped. And issue #4 proves that theory to be right.
Issue #4 simply sees Vader eviscerating the last of Cyn’s fellows, only for Vader to keep Cyn alive long enough to torture him. Cyn tries to prove that he did the impossible: he shut down Vader’s mechanical body. To which Vader simply replies, “Haha, nice try bro. But I can fix that. You, however, will now be paralyzed forever. Sucks to be you,” (not an exact quote, but you get the idea). I don’t mean to be too diminutive, but really, not a lot happens.
The second story sees Vader investigating a desolate planet for the Empire. The planet seems empty with no one living there, but upon going back to his bacta tank to recover, he learns that there was something living down there: a psychological pathogen that’s now infected him. What ensues is a mental battle with a giant mold-like creature that happens all in Vader’s mind.
Like most of these stories, Vader is seen bruised and broken. His suit shatters, and he gets seriously hurt. But like the awesome villain that he is, he gets back up and always obliterates his foes. That’s cool and all, but we’ve seen that repeated multiple times, even within this exact series. This problem is exasperated even more so because the monster Vader fights is a generic-looking demon creature, and the whole story plays out in Vader’s mind.
Lastly, the final story, titled “Return to Hoth,” sees Vader returning to the snowy planet of The Empire Strikes Back and investigating the remains of the Rebel base. You might think, “Okay cool. We get to go back to Hoth. This could be an interesting story about Vader rummaging through the base on Hoth, contemplating his failure at being unable to capture Luke and the escaping Rebels.” But no, what transpires is so much more disappointing.
Vader gets warned by one of his officers, telling him Hoth is dangerous and asks Vader if he wants any help. Vader essentially says, “Nah, I’m good bro. I got this. Don’t ever doubt me again, dude,” and hangs up on him. But while searching the abandoned Rebel base, Vader gets ambushed by Wampas. But instead of taking them out easily, demonstrating how much of a beast he is, like what happens in all the other stories in this anthology, the Wampas ACTUALLY get the better of him. I’m not joking.
Vader actually gets injured by Wampas. He does eventually take them out, but the dark lord of the Sith who we’ve seen take down so many other imposing threats gets hurt by the fluffy white yetis. He limps all across the snow, gets saved by stormtroopers, and manages to escape, but is badly injured. Upon returning to his Star Destroyer, his officer goes, “I told you so,” to which then Vader chokes him out. All the other stories in this series focus on making Vader look cool and menacing. Except this one … the very last story, which practically embarrasses him.
The art in this issue is okay. In fact, there are some panels where the red explodes on the page and is totally noticeable, creating an interesting composition. But compared to all the outstanding and breathtaking art that was on display in the previous issues, the art here pales in comparison. And that’s not to mention the lackluster and antithetical stories contained here that either repeat past storylines or almost undo them. Would these stories have been better if they were included in another series? Maybe. They’re actually fine on their own. But for the final, concluding issue of this otherwise awesome series, it’s sorely disappointing.
Rating: 4/10
Born and raised in Hawaii, Jay Goodearl runs the YouTube Gaming channel “Good Games, Dude” His channel aims to open up video games to beginners and immediate players and help them understand what makes games the art form that it is.
