Review: ‘Mace Windu’ #3 Just Blew the Wind Out of Its Sails
And to think that things were going so well. With only two issues left in this mini-series, the penultimate issue should be a highlight for Star Wars: Mace Windu. With the last issue setting up exciting backstories for Mace Windu, I looked forward to where the creative team would take it.
However, that anticipation may have been for naught as issue #3 of Mace Windu stumbles. Almost every aspect of this comic — from the writing to the art — feels like a downgrade in quality. What happened between issues 2 and 3?
Spoilers below …
Cover by MATEUS MANHANINI
After Mace Windu and Azita Cruuz’s journey through the caves, the pair make it to Azita’s speeder. The two of them hope to soon get off the planet and secure the coaxium fuel with them. But on the way, they encounter other hunters and armed guards who are after them as well.
Mace Windu’s backstory takes a backseat role in this story. In this issue, the main focus is on the action and the encounters that ensue when Mace Windu and Azita Cruuz come under attack. My only qualm, however, is that this isn’t the writer’s strong suit. Writer Marc Bernardin was at his best when conveying the more introspective, somber thoughts of Mace Windu. Here, Marc Bernardin tries to still convey that in the action, but it feels out of place and forced. There’s a confusing and overly-philosophical internal monologue that Mace Windu has during the action and it’s confusing.
While I have praised artist Georges Jeanty in the past for having good flow in his battle sequences, it’s his other panels that are lacking. While the close-ups of the characters do look good, any of the far shots lack any interesting detail. And while there are big “hero poses” and interesting two-page compositions, nothing really caught my eye. Perhaps it’s the coloring, or maybe the overall art style of Georges Jeanty, but the art just sort of washed over me, as I moved on to the next page.
This is a shame because the last two issues set up for interesting character examination. But this issue provides none of that as readers get a sub-par issue that takes a dip in quality. And there’s no better example of that than in the provided image below, where the art has literally been copied and pasted from one panel to the very next one.
Granted, this series can still end on a high note. There’s one more issue still left. Yet, at the end of this issue, it teases the comic’s higher villains: a cultist group that seeks to violently overthrow society’s dependence on technology. Let’s hope that these villains are a lot cooler than they sound.
Score: 5/10
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.
