Review: ‘Darth Vader’ #38 – Vader Is in a Race Against Time For Survival in ‘Executor Extirpatus’
The Droid Scourge steps up its efforts to possess Vader in the 38th issue of Darth Vader, who faces a fight against time to overcome them before a fleet of Star Destroyers blow up the Executor. Executor Extirpatus keeps the pace up to an appropriate level with plenty of tense action as the walls begin to close in around Vader, his remaining loyal droids and living crew members.
There are a few surprises in this issue, from the existence of Imperial officers with a sense of honor to the final pages that set up the next issue, as Vader sets his eyes on a target completely unrelated to the Droid Scourge. It’s funny that even though he comes so close to death in this issue, Vader is barely concerned with the imminent threat of a droid invasion. He is still far more focused on regaining his mastery of the Force, and he’ll be damned if an army of killer droids gets in his way.
This is a very entertaining issue that takes a bit of a left turn in its final pages, so I’m very excited to see what comes next.
Spoilers ahead…
Armed with his staff and shield, Darth Vader is busy repelling endless waves of droids while his remaining loyal ones work on getting the Executor‘s fail safe back online, which once triggered will deactivate every droid on the ship.
However, he needs to do it soon as Admiral Corleque’s fleet has arrived with orders from Mas Amedda to blow them to smithereens and stop the containment — though the real priority is killing Vader — and it’s through his discussion with a subordinate that we learn he has a relationship of sorts with Admiral Piett. Piett once saved his life by delaying an evac transport by four seconds; it was against Imperial regulation, but it gave Corleque just enough time to escape. He feels he owes Piett his life and decides to repay him in kind by delaying the order to fire on the Executor.
It’s not often we see Imperial officers with a code of honor. Normally their own ambition and self preservation tends to override any desire to help others, so it immediately makes Corleque interesting. Despite him being a space fascist, I warmed to the man immediately. He also admits that as long as they kill Vader it doesn’t matter, so clearly he’s not entirely altruistic. His method to instead send gunships of troops and KX droids to the ship backfires incredibly, as the droids are immediately possessed by the Droid Scourge and kill the rest of the troopers, merely adding to the scourge’s army.
Nevertheless, Zed and the others eventually manage to fix the failsafe and activate it, deactivating every droid on the ship as Vader stands alone, surrounded by fallen enemies. It’s another excellent piece of artwork illustrating just how much of a badass Vader is. With the Droid Scourge beaten, Vader turns his attention back to the Force Wave affecting his abilities and returns to Mustafar in his TIE Fighter.
It’s soon revealed that Corleque’s Star Destroyer has become infected by the Droid Scourge and Piett is forced to initiate the same protocol that Corleque had delayed for his ship. As he did in that previous battle, Piett gives Corleque four seconds… and then he orders the rest of the fleet to open fire on the Star Destroyer, obliterating Corleque and his men in an absolutely gorgeous piece of artwork with green turbolasers really popping in contrast with the reddish-orange explosions. Honor counts for nothing in the Empire unfortunately, and Piett’s self preservation kicked in. It’s an absolutely brutal way to repay Corleque’s kindness and a reminder that those serving the Empire will only look out for themselves.
Meanwhile, Vader arrives on Mustafar and immediately visits the Eye of Webbish Bog, seeking answers on how to regain his control of the Force. The Eye asks him if he’s a Jedi or a Sith, once again reinforcing the idea that Vader’s commitment to the cause is whithering. He reminds Vader that a Sith takes what he wants and doesn’t ask for it, and reminds him of the tale of Darth Plagueis the Wise.
Of course, this reference is bound to excite every Star Wars fan reading, and seems to suggest that if Vader wants to regain his mastery over the Force, then Palpatine is likely the one with the answers. I hope this means Vader intends to enter into some “aggressive negotiations” with his master in an attempt to get the knowledge he desires, even if it means he will likely just be defeated and sent on another mission.
It should be an intriguing encounter regardless. While this happens, we discover that the dependable Zed has been possessed by the Droid Scourge and has taken control of the old Techno Union droid factory on Mustafar. It seems the scourge has found some hulking new droid to possess as it increases its army. Perhaps the scourge will make its way to Coruscant in the next installment, hot on Vader’s heels?
This was a fun, action packed installment that sets up some intriguing possibilities for the future. I’m all in.
Rating: 8/10
Josh is a huge Star Wars fan, who has spent far too much time wondering if any Star Wars character could defeat Thanos with all the Infinity Stones.
