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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 7, 2021 8:33:22 GMT -5
Star Wars #25Cover dated: July 1979 Issue title: Siege at Yavin!Script: Archie Goodwin Artwork: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Gene Day (inks) Colours: Ben Sean Letters: Joe Rosen Cover art: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Overall rating: 7½ out of 10  Plot summary: The Rebel Alliance base on the fourth moon of Yavin has been coming under repeated attack from squadrons of Imperial TIE fighters. These attacking craft have so far been driven off by the Alliance's pilots, but General Dodonna is concerned that the Rebel forces are being whittled away by the relentless raids. He reasons that the short-range Imperial fighter craft must have a baseship somewhere within the Yavin system, but the Alliance's scanners are unable to detect any large Imperial spacecraft in the vicinity. Meanwhile, following their escape from the Wheel, Princess Leia and Luke Skywalker swap their newly acquired space-yacht for a more robust ship, to avoid being traced through the craft by the Empire. As they depart the planet of Centares, they spot a House of Tagge Mining Explorer on its way to the Yavin system. Knowing of the Tagge family's ties with the Empire, and fearing for the security of the Rebel base, they decide to follow the ship. They discover that the Tagge family is transporting TIE fighters to the Yavin system and hiding them on board a ship hidden within the gaseous atmosphere of the planet Yavin. Luke and Leia attempt to warn the Rebel base, but before they can do so, their ship is intercepted by an Imperial patrol. Comments: Archie Goodwin returns as writer for Star Wars #25 and straight away the scripting is an improvement over last issue. We're thrown straight into the action, with an attack on the Rebel base by a squadron of Imperial TIE fighters, which really gets the reader's attention and sets up the rest of the issue nicely. Goodwin writes some good character moments with Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia in this issue. In particular, Leia's comments about the Empire having been unnerved by the Rebel Alliance's unexpected victory against the Death Star and her theory that the House of Tagge are helping to blockade the Yavin system, in an attempt to prevent news of the Rebel's success from leaking, sounds very plausible. It certainly accounts for the Empire not having sent a huge armada to crush the Alliance on Yavin 4, now that they know where the Rebel base is. Of course, you could argue that it's strange for the Rebel Alliance to hang around on Yavin 4 long enough for this to happen, but Goodwin at least provides a nifty in-universe explanation for the Rebel base's continued survival. In doing so, he also demonstrates how good a grip he had on this material, even in these early days of the expanded universe. In addition to his good writing of the core characters, I love Goodwin's slimy used spaceship salesman Jorman Thoad. Although he's only in the comic for about a page and a half, he made such an impression on me as a little kid that I've always wished we could've seen more of him in the series. Another excellent creation of Goodwin's is Baron Orman Tagge, who we meet for the very first time in this issue. The House of Tagge were first mentioned in issue #18, but here we learn much more about them and their relationship with the Empire. Baron Tagge himself is a very interesting character, with his hate-fuelled vendetta against Darth Vader and his distinctive cyber-vision goggles easily making him one of the most memorable villains from Marvel's original Star Wars series. Tagge's anger at Vader having robbed him of his sight is certainly understandable, but there's an obsessive, slightly mentally unhinged aspect to his desire to master the lightsaber and best Vader using the Dark Lord's weapon of choice. There's also clearly a great deal of pride at play in Tagge's motivations too: he wants to succeed where Vader and Grand Moff Tarkin failed, by destroying the Rebel base on Yavin 4 and, in doing so, supplant Vader as the Emperor's right-hand man. Setting up a villain like Tagge who is bent on destroying our heroes, but also a deadly rival of the franchise's principal antagonist, is a brilliant bit of plotting on Goodwin's part and one that will reap dividends in coming issues. Also, I must just say that the House of Tagge creating a vortex within the atmospheric gases of the planet Yavin, in order to allow the Imperial TIE fighters to journey into the interior of the gas giant without detection from the Rebels, is a really cool idea too. On the downside, just like in issue #23, Goodwin gives us some more slightly uncomfortable moments between Luke and Leia. As I've previously stated, no one had any idea at this point that it would later be revealed that Luke and Leia were siblings, least of all Goodwin it seems. The panel in this issue where we are made privy to Luke's thoughts about the princess are a bit uncomfortable, but a few pages later we have to sit through another cringe-inducing, creepy, eyes-closed kiss on the lips between the pair. In terms of the art, I'm not always the biggest booster of Carmine Infantino's work on Star Wars, but his sequential drawing here is really good and serves to give dramatic weight to Goodwin's writing. This is especially true in the sequence where Luke calls on the Force to help him navigate a safe passage through the space-mines. Also, the opening splash page, showing a squadron of TIE fighters screaming down out of the sky and blasting a Rebel watchtower, is really nice and makes for a dramatic start to the issue (although it's a shame that the word siege is spelt wrongly)...  I also like Infantino's depiction of the battle damage to Luke and Leia's spaceship, which leaves one of the craft's engines hanging from a mass of twisted metal at a precarious angle. Infantino's depictions of the Empire's stormtroopers seems to have improved with this issue too, with a very serviceable rendering of one such armour-clad soldier on page 14 of the story. Gene Day returns as inker and, although I generally prefer Bob Wiacek's inks over Infantino's pencils, the much finer line that Day brings to the table, when judged against Wiacek, enhances the detailing here considerably. Unfortunately, with Day on inks we also get a return of the overly-harsh and slightly grotesque facial expressions that marred his earlier work on the series. Still, there's a clarity of line, for want of a better term, to Day's inking that is very pleasing to the eye. The Siege at Yavin arc was a favourite of mine as a kid and I have very vivid memories of being 6-years-old and sitting on my Mother's knee as she patiently read the contents of this and the next issue to me (although she would've been reading these stories in Marvel UK's Star Wars Weekly, issues #53-56). If you knew my mother, you'd know that her tastes in fiction are as far removed from sci-fi and space opera as it's possible to get. I guess motherly love must've given her the strength and resolve to read and re-read these comics to me.  Unsurprisingly therefore, I have a firm nostalgic attachment to the Siege at Yavin arc that no doubt influences my high regard for these comics. But even trying to put that bias aside for a moment, this issue is a really good read and, for me, it's the moment where the Goodwin/Infantino run really took off. Continuity issues: None Favourite panel:  Favourite quote: "From anyone else, that kind of protectiveness might be insulting...somehow, you make it quaint." – Princess Leia playfully comments on how much she appreciates Luke's concern for her safety. I like that Goodwin shows what happens on Yavin after the events of Star Wars and you're right, his explanation seems plausible. Ha ha, I liked Thoad, too! I also agree that Tagge seems to be a good character so far. I thought it was rather clever of Goodwin (And the Empire) to have that hidden base inside of Yavin. Yes, there's more Luke-Leia "incest" and it is quite natural for Goodwin to play up this love triangle, as it legitimately was at the time. Again, it doesn't really bother me personally as nobody had any inkling of their "true" relationship at the time and frankly, Goodwin, or any other Star Wars writer, would have been a fool for not using the romantic intrigue between our three heroes. Some foreshadowing of Return of the Jedi here with Leia talking about the Empire coming up "with something to equal - or exceed - the Death Star". The Tagge ship dropping space mines is sort of like Attack of the Clones. Luke gets to do some fancy flying, not that the art shows it that well. Threepio sort of interrupts that Leia-Luke kiss, like he does between Leia and Solo in The Empire Strikes Back. Leia shown as bold again, which is a good thing. |
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Apr 7, 2021 8:58:35 GMT -5
I like that Goodwin shows what happens on Yavin after the events of Star Wars and you're right, his explanation seems plausible. Yeah...I think it makes enough sense to be plausible. It's also an interesting insight into the Emperor's thinking that he and the Empire "higher ups" would be so shaken by the stunning victory that the Rebels had won and concerned enough with what a propaganda disaster it is to blockade the Yavin system as a way to try stop news of the Death Star's destruction escaping and serving to swell the Rebellion's ranks. Ha ha, I liked Thoad, too! There's just something really likeable about him, isn't there? I also agree that Tagge seems to be a good character so far. I think he's definitely one of the three most memorable villains from the series. Not least because he's hell bent on Luke and the other Rebel's destruction, but he also hates Darth Vader. That's some great plotting and character writing on Archie Goodwin's part. I thought it was rather clever of Goodwin (And the Empire) to have that hidden base inside of Yavin. I agree. The vortex within Yavin that the TIE fighters use to journey into the interior of the gas giant is a really nifty idea. Yes, there's more Luke-Leia "incest" and it is quite natural for Goodwin to play up this love triangle, as it legitimately was at the time. Again, it doesn't really bother me personally as nobody had any inkling of their "true" relationship at the time and frankly, Goodwin, or any other Star Wars writer, would have been a fool for not using the romantic intrigue between our three heroes. Yeah, as I said in my review and a couple of days ago, Goodwin had no clue that Luke and Leia were going to be revealed as brother and sister at this point. The idea probably hadn't even occurred to Lucas yet either, even though he was working on pre-production of ESB by this point. Thing is though, these "incestuous" moments are so at odds with how even casual fans of Star Wars regard Luke and Leia's relationship nowadays that I feel as if I have to address them whenever they rear their slightly uncomfortable head. And especially when we have the pair engaging in a full-on, passionate, eyes-closed kiss on the lips, as we do in this issue. Some foreshadowing of Return of the Jedi here with Leia talking about the Empire coming up "with something to equal - or exceed - the Death Star". The Tagge ship dropping space mines is sort of like Attack of the Clones. Luke gets to do some fancy flying, not that the art shows it that well. Threepio sort of interrupts that Leia-Luke kiss, like he does between Leia and Solo in The Empire Strikes Back. Leia shown as bold again, which is a good thing. Agreed on all points. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 7, 2021 15:27:06 GMT -5
I also agree that Tagge seems to be a good character so far. I think he's definitely one of the three most memorable villains from the series. Not least because he's hell bent on Luke and the other Rebel's destruction, but he also hates Darth Vader. That's some great plotting and character writing on Archie Goodwin's part. Plus, it makes sense that Vader would have made some enemies, even aside from the rebels. |
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 7, 2021 16:45:51 GMT -5
I loved Infantino's typical attention to detail of environments--a rare thing in most adaptations, particularly sci-fi prperties. Some foreshadowing of Return of the Jedi here with Leia talking about the Empire coming up "with something to equal - or exceed - the Death Star". The problem is that this series became repetitive with that super-weapon business with "The Tarkin" weapon introduced in SW #51 (September, 1981), so if a reader created their "head canon" by incorporating the comic into the movies' continuity, it would seem ridiculous that the Empire keeps cranking out super-weapons like a 1950s Chevrolet assembly line. The effort to make such a weapon was supposed to be on a scale never seen before by any government in that galaxy, but having another super-weapon sandwiched in-between the movies' Death Stars was taking things too far. I've read that Lucas himself was not to pleased with that storyline, considering what he eventually added to his ROTJ drafts (with Kasdan), and his feelings were justified. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 8, 2021 14:24:40 GMT -5
Star Wars #26Cover dated: August 1979 Issue title: Doom Mission!Script: Archie Goodwin Artwork: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Colours: Petra Goldberg Letters: John Costanza Cover art: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Overall rating: 7½ out of 10  Plot summary: The Empire, with assistance from the House of Tagge, have set up a blockade of the Yavin system. While en route to the Rebel base on Yavin's forth moon, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO are intercepted by a patrol of Imperial TIE fighters. The Rebels are saved by a squadron of X-wing fighters and escorted back to base. Once there, Luke and Leia inform General Dodonna that they have witnessed a House of Tagge Mining Explorer transporting TIE fighters to Yavin and a vortex tunnel opening up in the gaseous atmosphere of the planet, providing the Imperial craft with safe passage to a baseship hidden somewhere in the clouds. The Rebels deduce that the House of Tagge must have developed a signalling device to help guide the TIE fighters through the atmosphere of Yavin to the baseship. Luke manages to retrieve one of these signalling units from a crashed TIE fighter, but R2-D2 is critically damaged in the process. Soon after, Luke pilots a captured TIE fighter, which has been fitted with the Tagge signalling device, through Yavin's atmosphere, where he finds a huge turbine station, which he destroys using proton charges. With the station gone and his shipboard instruments useless in the gaseous murk, Luke uses the Force to find his way back out of Yavin's atmosphere. He little suspects that Baron Tagge has also survived the destruction of the station and escaped by following him out of the swirling atmospheric gases. Comments: This second and final part of the Siege at Yavin story arc is another good read. Archie Goodwin's scripting is tight and nicely paced, with all the usual good characterisation that we've come to expect from him. As I've mentioned in my reviews before, Goodwin seems to have a particularly good grasp of Princess Leia's personality and her dialogue in this issue is very in character. Goodwin also emphasises Luke's reckless, but plucky nature to good effect, by having him dash off to recover the House of Tagge signalling device and then volunteer for a suicide mission. These actions amply illustrate the bravery which had already made him a hero within the Rebel Alliance. We're also reminded of Luke's fondness for the droids in a scene where a pragmatic, but slightly insensitive, Rebel technician suggests that the damaged R2-D2 could be used for spare parts. On a related note, there's a nice little scene in which C-3PO keeps vigil over his damaged counterpart and confesses how much he'd miss the little astro droid if he were found to be beyond repair. We get to see more of Luke's ever-growing abilities with the Force here too. Having recently seen the young Rebel using his powers to inflict pain on Darth Vader with a mental Force-blast, in this issue we see Luke using meditation to become more attuned to the mystical energy field and he also uses his abilities to escape from Yavin's gaseous atmosphere. These small feats of Force use that Goodwin gives us as the series progresses – each one building upon the last in terms of Luke's ability to control his powers – will lead nicely into The Empire Strikes Back, where we'll see Luke using the Force to make his lightsaber fly into his hand during the scene in the Wampa's cave on Hoth. Baron Tagge makes another appearance in this issue and manages to survive to fight another day. However, the sequence where Tagge swears vengeance on Luke doesn't really make a whole lot of sense; how does he know what the name of the pilot who just destroyed the turbine station is? I also want to mention that in this issue Tagge speaks about his desire to win the Emperor's favour and usurp "that blasted wizard, Darth Vader." The term "wizard" here is obviously a reference to Vader's ability to use the Force, but the Emperor is also a Force user, a fact which Tagge seems ignorant of. The reason for this is that, although we now know that Emperor Palpatine was a Force using Sith Lord, back in 1979 details about him were very sketchy indeed. However, an in-universe explanation could be that Palpatine's Force sensitivity wasn't widely known of outside of his inner circle, explaining Tagge's ignorance on the matter. As such, I don't really count this as a bona fide continuity error. Carmine Infantino's artwork in Star Wars #26 is as reliable as ever, both in terms of the negative aspects of his art (his angular tenancies and shaky grasp of Star Wars spaceship design) and the positives (his panel composition and the clarity of his sequential storytelling). Throughout his tenure on this series, Infantino's grasp of how to effectively tell a story with sequential art is always impeccable, but the staging and "camera angles" he chooses in some of the panels in this particular comic are especially good. Here are a few of my favourites...    Bob Wiacek's inking works as well as ever with Infantino's pencils and I definitely find his work preferable to Gene Day's. However, the inking does look a little rushed in this instalment, compared to recent issues, as if Wiacek was struggling to meet a deadline. As a result, some of the spaceship detailing suffers, I feel. The Infantino/Wiacek front cover, with its arresting image of a damaged R2-D2 and a panic-stricken Luke Skywalker, is one of Infantino's most memorable from the series. All in all, this is another decent issue of Star Wars. As I said in my last review, the Siege at Yavin story arc is one of my favourites from the Goodwin/Infantino era, but putting aside my own nostalgic love of this storyline for a moment, this issue is every bit as good as the last and concludes the arc in a satisfying manner. Continuity issues: None Favourite panel:  Favourite quote: "Every mission can't be a success...war just isn't that simple." – Princess Leia tries to make Luke Skywalker see that his failure to find a new location for the Rebel base is just one of those things. Yup, one of the things that got my attention was the scene with Luke defending Artoo from being used for spare parts. I also really liked the scene with him meditating. It just makes sense and seems consistent with later developments. General Dodanna is shown as a pragmatic leader, risking the hero from the Death Star battle on a suicide mission because he's the best one from the job, and in our monthly "incest" alert, I really did like the scene with Leia by herself, crying when Luke left on this supposed suicide mission. I also like how Luke used the Force to guide himself out of Yavin. This ability seems to make sense, based on the Death Star battle in the movie, and Goodwin doesn't make it seem like it's too easy for Luke, as he's still learning about the Force. As far as Tagge calling Vader a "wizard" wasn't it the other Tagge who derisively referred to Vader's "sorcerer's ways" in the movie? Same general thinking there. As far as the art, business as usual. Yes, Infantino knows how to tell a story, but I don't particularly like his artistic style, and those TIE fighters are sure lousy looking. |
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Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Apr 9, 2021 2:45:14 GMT -5
As far as Tagge calling Vader a "wizard" wasn't it the other Tagge who derisively referred to Vader's "sorcerer's ways" in the movie? Same general thinking there. Actually, it was Admiral Motti who referred to Vader's "sorcerer's ways" and got Force choked for his troubles, but yeah, General Tagge was also present in that scene. I guess you're right though, it was made pretty clear in the original Star Wars film that plenty of people (Han, Uncle Owen, Motti etc) didn't believe in the Force at all. So, it's not so surprising that Baron Orman Tagge should refer to Vader as a "wizard", I guess. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 9, 2021 10:40:54 GMT -5
Star Wars #27Cover dated: September 1979 Issue title: Return of the HunterScript: Archie Goodwin Artwork: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Colours: Petra Goldberg Letters: John Costanza Cover art: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Overall rating: 6½ out of 10  Plot summary: Luke Skywalker and C-3PO are travelling to the backwater world of Junction to find spare parts for R2-D2, who has been damaged by Imperial blaster fire. Upon arrival, Luke and 3PO locate a salvage yard owned by a human named Skinker. Unknown to the pair, Skinker is being paid by the droid-hating bounty hunter Valance (who is currently working on Junction) to keep a look out for Luke. The greedy salvage dealer dispatches a lackey to alert Valance that, against all odds, his quarry has arrived on their doorstep. In the meantime, Valance stalks an Imperial spy who has spotted Skywalker and is attempting to alert Darth Vader of the Rebel's whereabouts. Valance kills the spy before he can transmit a signal to the Empire, ensuring that the hunter will have his prize to himself. Meanwhile, Luke and 3PO have managed to acquire the parts that they need for R2, when they are suddenly confronted by Valance in Skinker's yard. Luke manages to deflect the bounty hunter's shots with his lightsaber, causing a laser bolt to ricochet back and hit Valance, revealing the cybernetic parts beneath his skin. Valance eventually disarms Luke and is just about to kill him when, in a rare moment of bravery, C-3PO puts himself between Luke and the bounty hunter. The droid announces that he is prepared to sacrifice himself to save his master. Valance is moved by this behaviour and, in a moment of self-reflection and mercy, lets the pair leave unmolested. Comments: Issue #27 of Star Wars serves as a follow-up and conclusion to issue #16, in which we first met the droid-hating bounty hunter Valance and learned of his vendetta against Luke Skywalker. Carmine Infantino's artwork displays all the usual artistic traits – good and bad – that I always make mention of, but, interestingly, Luke Skywalker seems to have gotten an off-panel haircut between this issue and last. Gone is the Conan the Barbarian-style mane that Infantino has been drawing him with since issue #12 and in its place is a hairdo much more in keeping with how Luke looked in the original trilogy films. Bob Wiacek's inking seems to be back on point in this issue, after the slightly rushed-looking effort he turned in last time and as a result, much of the artwork in this issue really shines. In fact, some of Infantino's panels in this comic are simply gorgeous and a real pleasure to look at. In particular, the scenes in the spaceport town on the planet Junction are excellently rendered, with lots of detail and exotic atmosphere. Infantino's art here almost makes you want to climb into the comic panel and go off exploring the streets of this alien spaceport. Here are two of my favourite spaceport panels from this issue...  On the downside, there's a particular instance, on page 5 of this story, where Infantino seems to be ripping off or swiping from Walt Simonson's artwork in issue #16. Take a look at the two panels below; the left-hand panel is by Infantino and is taken from this issue, while the right-hand one is by Simonson and is from issue #16...  Note that the panel of Infantino's isn't a flashback to the scene in issue #16 or anything. It's an entirely different moment in the character's life. I'm not sure why an artist of Infantino's abilities would resort to copying Simonson so obviously, but there it is. Unfortunately, Infantino isn't the only one being unoriginal in this issue: Archie Goodwin also repeats himself somewhat, by attempting to keep Valance's cybernetic secret hidden from the readers on the opening pages of this comic, before "shockingly" revealing the bounty hunter's true makeup. I appreciate that some readers of this comic may not have picked up issue #16 and Goodwin obviously wanted to give those newcomers the "big reveal", but for a long-time reader of this series it just seems like a cheap reuse of an old gimmick. Goodwin also writes a really weird moment between Princess Leia and General Dodonna, where we see Leia put her arm around the older man and seductively caress his hair and beard, while apparently whispering into his ear (or maybe even puckering up to kiss him!). The dialogue that Goodwin ends this scene with only reinforces the impression that the princess is hitting on Dodonna and that nookie is imminent, when he has her say "Now, let's go inside...this night air makes me talk too much." The ending of this scene is a real head-scratcher. Leia's relationship with Dodonna is not supposed to be like that at all and nothing else is ever mentioned in the Marvel comic series to indicate that there is any suggestion of a romantic connection between the two. It makes me wonder whether this scene was accidentally misinterpreted by Infantino and that he maybe thought that Leia was supposed to be hitting on Dodonna or something. Like I say, it's a real head-scratcher. On the upside, "Return of the Hunter" is a pretty gripping, done-in-one storyline, with plenty of action and some good dialogue. Goodwin continues to write the droid-hating Valance as a self-loathing nutjob, which I like a lot. The scene in which we see the bounty hunter destroying a group of droids, for no other reason than the sheer pleasure he derives from watching droids suffer, marks Valance out as a real weirdo. Having a hatred of something as ubiquitous in the Star Wars Universe as droids is odd enough, but this kind of "sport" aptly illustrates just how deep the bounty hunter's issues are. I also love the scene where, due to damage caused by a deflected laser bolt, Valance is revealed as a cyborg and the shocked reaction that this provokes in Luke, prompts Valance to accuse Skywalker of being a hypocrite. In Valance's mind, even this supposed droid-lover is repulsed by the idea of someone who is half man, half droid. The fact that Valance then suddenly gives up his hate-fueled vendetta against droids in general and Luke in particular because C-3PO is prepared to sacrifice himself to save his master, further marks the hunter out as a very complex character. This is some powerful writing on Goodwin's part. We also see how much improvement Luke has made with his lightsaber skills in the scene where he deflects Valance's laser bolts. I guess that all that practicing with the training "remote" that we saw in the Star Wars movie and again in issue #18 has paid off. Goodwin also has Luke make reference to one of Han Solo's piloting manoeuvres called "threading the asteroids", which ties in nicely with the expertise we'll see Solo using in the asteroid field sequence of The Empire Strikes Back. Overall, issue #27 of Star Wars is a fairly flawed creation. Parts of it are excellent – especially the artwork – and it's certainly quite an exciting story. Also, the way that the confrontation between Luke, C-3PO and Valance is resolved is very interesting and pretty thought-provoking. However, the out of character scene between Leia and Dodonna, the reusing of the big reveal from issue #16, concerning Valance's cybernetic secret, and the weird Simonson swipe by Infantino all serve to diminish the comic's quality. Continuity issues: - Luke Skywalker's lightsaber is coloured yellowy orange instead of blue/white on the front cover and inside the comic.
Favourite panel:  Favourite quote: "Now step back...before killing you, I mean to melt your pet junk into slag." – Captain Valance prepares to destroy C-3PO, prior to killing Luke Skywalker. I thought this issue was a lot less satisfying than the first issue with Valence. You brought up some of the reasons. I thought the scene where he buys droids just to blast them was a bit silly. I know he's a crazy droid hater and all, but that was a bit too much for me. Does he plan to blast every droid in the galaxy? After paying the going rate for them, of course. I did like, though, when the cantina patron told Valence that carrying off the dead body was "droid work" Valence got angry over that. I also didn't think it was quite convincing how Valence changed his tune at the end, seeing how Threepio was willing to risk himself for Luke. On the other hand, Luke "threads the asteroids" to escape a Star Destroyer, just like Han in The Empire Strikes Back! That was cool. Makes me wonder if George Lucas was reading this and getting ideas. Well, possibly the screenplay for The Empire Strikes Back was pretty well along by now. I also liked Luke's wide-eyed wonder at the big city on Junction. You pointed out how Luke blocks a blaster blast with his lightsaber, and even deflects it back at Valence. That reminded me of the prequels, the way the Jedi would deflect a blaster bolt back at the antagonists. |
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 9, 2021 12:38:26 GMT -5
I thought the scene where he buys droids just to blast them was a bit silly. I know he's a crazy droid hater and all, but that was a bit too much for me. Does he plan to blast every droid in the galaxy? That character development was (to a point) mirroring race hatred in the real world, particularly in the United States; historically, there were white people who hated black people so much, they would drive around looking for any random black person to assault or kill (in the U.S., this was happening well into the 1970s). They have a hunger rooted in hared and it would never be satisfied with just one act or abuse or murder. Similarly, Valence despises droids to that degree; its his all-consuming life-motivator, so it was likely that he would just randomly destroy droids whenever he wanted to. You never know, since most filmed depictions of asteroid fields rarely--if ever had ships zooming around the field in this manner. Usually, filmed sci-fi had asteroids as a couple of large rocks slowly threatening a ship, a meteor shower passing by like bugs past a car window, or one massive rock in need of a good blasting. Actually, that tactic was introduced in Return of the Jedi, when Luke deflects laser bolts back at Jabba's killers on the deck of the Sail Barge. |
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Post by aquagoat on Apr 9, 2021 17:37:02 GMT -5
I get that the Imperials building superweapon after superweapon seems repetitive - and anticlimactic as nothing beats the Death Star - but that is how war works. Each side is desperately trying to build better weapons. It happens even outside wartime.
I always assumed the Empire's superweapon obsession was based on that of the Nazis in World War 2. For instance, they built a gun so huge that it had to be moved on rails, and was eventually abandoned as unfeasible in battle.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Apr 9, 2021 19:18:03 GMT -5
I agree 'The Tarkin' was a bit silly... but of course there was no 2nd death star at the time... and yeah, the Nazis were fans as well. didn't work out so well for them, either. I guess the rebels should be happy they didn't listen to Thrawn . Tagge is really a good bad guy.. definitely one of the better ones. I didn't mind the droid blasting... a little heavy handed, sure, but it was to provide the contrast, between him and Luke, which I think was effective. |
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 9, 2021 20:21:42 GMT -5
I agree 'The Tarkin' was a bit silly... but of course there was no 2nd death star at the time... and yeah, the Nazis were fans as well. didn't work out so well for them, either. I guess the rebels should be happy they didn't listen to Thrawn . Tagge is really a good bad guy.. definitely one of the better ones. I didn't mind the droid blasting... a little heavy handed, sure, but it was to provide the contrast, between him and Luke, which I think was effective. Yes, in 1981 (when the "Tarkin" storyline was first published), there was no ROTJ publicity informing everyone that a 2nd Death Star would be a part of the then-forthcoming film, but for the SW comic's writers/editors, they should have avoided the "Tarkin" on the principle of not retreading the movie. Unfortunately, trying to get that movie vibe would continue in the post-TESB comics, and not just with visual references. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 10, 2021 15:22:14 GMT -5
Star Wars #28Cover dated: October 1979 Issue title: What Ever Happened to Jabba the Hut?Script: Archie Goodwin Artwork: Carmine Infantino (breakdowns)/Gene Day (finished art & inks) Colours: Glynis Wein Letters: John Costanza Cover art: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Bob Wiacek (inks) Overall rating: 4 out of 10  Plot summary: Following their escape from The Wheel and Darth Vader, Han Solo and Chewbacca are forced to make repairs to the Millennium Falcon in a smuggler's hideout on the rainswept world of Orleon. Unbeknown to Solo, Jabba the Hutt has placed a hidden alarm device in the cavern where the Falcon is concealed, to alert him if the Corellian smuggler should ever use that particular hideout. Jabba soon arrives on Orleon and his henchmen launch an assault on the cavern, in an attempt to flush Han and Chewbacca out. However, the two smugglers soon discover that they have another problem: the cavern they have hidden in is infested with Stone Mites, biological weapons from the days of the Clone Wars that can eat through anything. The destructive mites attack the Falcon, but using the ship's main guns, Han manages to blast away the cavern's ceiling – which has been weakened by the mite's corrosive activity – and the freighter escapes. Once beyond the planet's atmosphere, Han and Chewie are confronted by Jabba's ship, the Voidraker, but the smuggling czar reveals that his craft is infested with Stone Mites and he needs to take refuge aboard the Falcon. Han allows the Hutt to come aboard, but not before he forces Jabba to cancel the debt he owes and the attendant price on his head. Comments: This issue sees us finally catching up with Han Solo and Chewbacca, who have been absent from the pages of the comic for five months, since they departed The Wheel at the end of issue #23. We also get to catch up with the Marvel Comic's version of Jabba the Hutt (spelt with one "t" here because the official spelling wouldn't be changed to Hutt until 1983 and the release of Return of the Jedi). I noted in my review of Star Wars #2 that Lucasfilm hadn't come up with a finished design for Jabba when the first Star Wars movie was made, so artists Howard Chaykin and Steve Leialoha chose to depict Jabba as a human-sized, bipedal, yellow-skinned alien in the film's comic adaptation. This design was heavily based on an alien from the Mos Eisley cantina who would later be named as Mosep Binneed. Once that precedent for how Jabba looked was set, Marvel stuck with it for the crime-lord's subsequent appearances – at least, up until the comic adaptation of Return of the Jedi. This is why the Marvel Comic's version of Jabba the Hutt looks so different in these early appearances to the bloated, slug-like gangster we all know and love. Issue #28 is a stand-alone, done-in-one adventure, but it's not one of the better comics from the Archie Goodwin and Carmine Infantino era. Some of Han's dialogue is pretty corny here and it's certainly hard to imagine Harrison Ford speaking any of these lines. I definitely feel as if Han is the character that Goodwin has the least good grasp on, in terms of writing suitable dialogue. That said, Jabba is quite well characterised and the fact that he prizes the Millennium Falcon over Han and Chewie's lives ties in nicely with Greedo's threat that Jabba "may only take your ship" in the Star Wars movie. Another nice touch that I really liked is that every time Jabba has to go outside into the pouring rain of Orleon, one of his henchmen holds what looks to be a force field generated umbrella over him. I also love that Jabba's ship is called the Voidraker; that's a cool name for a spacecraft. Of course, the major flaw in this issue is the fact that Jabba looks nothing like he does in Return of the Jedi. An in-universe explanation that later writers concocted for Jabba's markedly different appearance in these early issues of the Marvel series, was that Mosep Binneed was actually Jabba's accountant and that he sometimes used the Hutt's name in interactions. This somewhat improbable justification for the two Jabbas still doesn't explain why Han calls Mosep "Jabba", since its obvious that he knew the real Jabba very well – well enough to recognise him by his laugh alone in Return of the Jedi, in fact. Despite the glaring continuity error that he represents, I must say that I quite like the Marvel Comics' version of Jabba and I remember being slightly disappointed at the Jabba that George Lucas gave us when Return of the Jedi came out. I guess I was just used to the comic version. These days I probably like the Marvel version of Jabba just about as much as the movie one. It has always seemed to me that a two-legged Jabba would be able to rule his criminal empire much more effectively than a slow moving, slug-like beast. The Stone Mites are a nifty little plot device and it's interesting that they are a biological weapon from the days of the Clone Wars. As a young kid, I remember being creeped out by the huge swarms of these insects in this issue. The acid that the mites produce, which can eat through anything, is somewhat reminiscent of the blood of the xenomorph in Ridley Scott's movie Alien, which had hit cinemas a couple of months prior to this comic being published. That close proximity to the film's release probably means that it's just a coincidence, but I guess it could be possible that Goodwin was inspired by Alien to some degree. The artwork in this issue sees inker Gene Day doing embellishing and finishing over Carmine Infantino's breakdowns. I think I kind of prefer Day in this capacity, although we still get some of those weird, overly-harsh facial expressions that I always note whenever Day inks Infantino. Still, there's some reasonably nice art in this issue, even if Infantino's overly-angular artistic tenancies and poor grasp of Star Wars ship design have never really been my cup of tea. That said, there is a slight discrepancy between the art and Goodwin's scripting in one sequence, when one of Jabba's henchmen tells him that only one of his goons was killed in their last assault, despite the artwork clearly showing two men being gunned down. All in all, issue #28 is an odd one. It's not a bad story really, although not a particularly excellent one either. Yes, there are continuity issues, but in the days before the Star Wars sequels came out, there's no reason why this tale wasn't a totally plausible instalment from The Adventures of Luke Skywalker. However, time and the evolution of Star Wars continuity has not been kind. The fact that we have an entirely different looking Jabba the Hutt means that pretty much the entire issue doesn't align with continuity. Also, the cancelling of Han's debt and the removal of the price from his head is problematic and would prove troublesome for Goodwin, when, in issue #37, he had to hastily reinstate it in time for the release of The Empire Strikes Back. Given how closely Goodwin had to work with Carol Titleman, who was the Star Wars Corporation's Director of Publications, it's surprising that the contents of this story were ever approved – especially when shooting of The Empire Strikes Back was already underway at the time. With perhaps the exception of "Hoth Stuff!" in issue #78, it's tough to think of another issue of Marvel's original Star Wars comic that clashes so badly with established continuity. As such, this comic can pretty much be regarded as the poster child for those who dismiss the series as being frivolous and not in keeping with George Lucas's vision. Continuity issues: - Jabba the Hutt looks entirely different from how he will appear in Return of the Jedi and subsequent films.
Favourite panel:  Favourite quote: "She's vibrating like a cantina dancer at a Tatooine moisture festival, Chewie!" – Han Solo colourfully describes the sudden shaking that has seized the Millennium Falcon to his co-pilot. I thought this was a decent enough story but yeah, Jabba's appearance is a real issue. That's neither Goodwin nor Infantino's fault, of course. It was probably ill advised of Goodwin to cancel Han's debt to Jabba, too. And yes, the stone mites were a nifty plot device. I thought it was cool that the film Jabba was non-humanoid and so different looking, and certainly vile looking but you're right that it seems like it would be tough for him to rule a criminal empire with such a lack of mobility. Marlon Brando wasn't thin, but he was certainly no Jabba, either. And I like your favourite quote! |
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 10, 2021 16:23:13 GMT -5
It was probably ill advised of Goodwin to cancel Han's debt to Jabba, too. And yes, the stone mites were a nifty plot device. Yet more reasons the comic--from start to finish--was never going to be able to fit into the movie events and continuity. To be honest, weight has little to do with how hard your fist or how you wield it. In fact, several notorious real life Mafia members were obese, and were among the most notorious in U.S. history, including Paul Vario (the Lucchese family), Vincent "Fat Vinnie" Teresa (Patriarca family) and Fat Tony Salerno (Genovese family) who lost some weight as he aged, but he earned that nickname. In the SW universe, the worlds are so accustomed to alien life, that it never appeared to be a stumbling block to their activities. Jabba finally being a true alien (similar to the storyboards made for ANH's possible FX placement) was one of the better ideas to go into ROTJ |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 10, 2021 18:37:27 GMT -5
It was probably ill advised of Goodwin to cancel Han's debt to Jabba, too. And yes, the stone mites were a nifty plot device. Yet more reasons the comic--from start to finish--was never going to be able to fit into the movie events and continuity. To be honest, weight has little to do with how hard your fist or how you wield it. In fact, several notorious real life Mafia members were obese, and were among the most notorious in U.S. history, including Paul Vario (the Lucchese family), Vincent "Fat Vinnie" Teresa (Patriarca family) and Fat Tony Salerno (Genovese family) who lost some weight as he aged, but he earned that nickname. In the SW universe, the worlds are so accustomed to alien life, that it never appeared to be a stumbling block to their activities. Jabba finally being a true alien (similar to the storyboards made for ANH's possible FX placement) was one of the better ideas to go into ROTJ I was referring to Confessor's comment about Jabba's lack of mobility " It has always seemed to me that a two-legged Jabba would be able to rule his criminal empire much more effectively than a slow moving, slug-like beast" (and I was focused more on the slow moving, slug-like part of that comment rather than the bipedal aspect) not about an ability to throw a punch. However, with those short stubby little arms, I don't imagine Jabba throws much of a punch, either. Anyway, overall, I do like Jabba's movie look, but in the back of my mind, his lack of mobility was always an issue to me. After all, Leia strangled him with her own chain, and he couldn't even move to defend himself. |
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Post by brutalis on Apr 11, 2021 0:02:42 GMT -5
Think of Jabba as a reflection of greed and desire taken to the ultimate visual physical representation and you get an idea of what Lucas was saying. Or see it in an historical/mythological way as a fat, over stuffed Roman Senator grown rich and soft, luxuriant in his stealing from the people in ruling. Bacchus overindulging in his wares. The slothful slug one can become in wanting, needing, demanding more riches in whatever way they can get it.
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Unsurprisingly therefore, I have a firm nostalgic attachment to the Siege at Yavin arc that no doubt influences my high regard for these comics. But even trying to put that bias aside for a moment, this issue is a really good read and, for me, it's the moment where the Goodwin/Infantino run really took off. 
