Confessor
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Post by Confessor on Apr 29, 2021 17:52:11 GMT -5
Just catching up with responding to some of your thoughtful replies, dbutler69 . First of all, coloring errors aside, I love the cover! When I was a kid, the scene with the bounty hunters was my favorite, and I played with my bounty hunter action figures more than any of the others. Yeah, it is a fantastic cover. It's surprising just what a draw the bounty hunters had quickly become with fans, given the limited amount of screen time they have in ESB. I mean, Marvel clearly knew they'd be enough of a draw for their readership to feature them on this cover. This was another god installation, but I wish they had more pages to adapt this. They seemed to skip more in this issue than in others, or may I just noticed it more in this issue. I was a little disappointed that they skipped the part where Artoo gets swallowed and spit out by that swamp creature. Also, as you said we also don’t get to see the space “slug” as the Falcon flies away, which was a little disappointing. I know what you mean, although I guess 6-issues is quite long for a movie adaptation really. Of course, don't forget that there were certain things that Goodwin and Williamson weren't allowed to show at George Lucas's insitance...such as the Wampa and the space slug creature. So, it's possible -- likely even! -- that a suspense-filled and humourous scene like R2 getting gobbled up and spat out by the swamp creature was ommitted at Lucas's request, rather than because the writer and artist deemed it unnecessary. Goodwin did actually speak in interviews about always regretting not being able to include more of the comedy involving R2-D2 on Dagobah, so maybe it was a decision that was out of his hands? Vader calls the bounty hunters "your band" to Boba Fett, implying he's the leader. I don't think that's how it really is. I always got the impression that they were independent. Vader Force choking the star destroyer captain ("apology accepted, Captain Needa") is not shown here - only implied in a caption. They certainly weren't Fett's "band" as far as the post-90s Expanded Universe continuity is concerned. But back when this comic came out, things were a lot less fleshed out. So, I guess that Goodwin just assumed that they were all working together -- though there's nothing in the shooting script or the novelization to suggest that. I hadn’t noticed the Lucas cameo. That is indeed very cool! I know, right? On the second page, it looks like Bespin isn't floating, but rather sitting on a long stalk!! Weird. A later panel shows that it doesn't reach all the way down to the surface, though. They also mention Bespin's surface, but it's a gas planet. That’s really a nit on my part, though. Cloud City always was on a long stalk: we see it clearly from above when Luke looks down, as he's hanging onto the communications antenna underneath the city at the film's climax. It can also be clearly seen in the film when Luke's X-Wing approaches Bespin...  The gaff about Bespin having a surface will rear its head again in a later issue, I'm afraid. "Vader" doesn't get beheaded here - his helmet merely falls off. I wonder if that was deemed inappropriate for a “kids” comic or if that was a late script change.I suspect that it was the former. Leia wonders if Luke made it to the fleet all right, but a couple of issues ago she had told him that he was going to Dagobah. Oooh...nice catch. That had never occurred to me, but you're absolutely right. It was in the deleted scene in the Rebel medical centre. Well done...I totally missed that goof. Obi-Wan refers to Luke as "the last Jedi". Really? Luke’s not a Jedi yet. This line of dialogue was in the fourth draft shooting script and the novelization. I guess that what Kenobi means is that Luke is the last potential Jedi. And really, let's face it, Luke is a long way along the road to becoming a Jedi. He's probably at least 75% there by this point, I'd say. Remember, he didn't receive any more training from Yoda, and with the additional experience that his duel with Darth Vader at Cloud City gave him, the next time he and the diminutive Jedi Master meet, Yoda tells him, "no more training do you require..." The combination of Yoda's training on Dagobah in ESB, the learning experience afforded him by the duel with Vader, and Luke's own exceptional natural talent with the Force mean that within 6 months (the accepted amount of time between the events of ESB and ROTJ) he will be a Jedi. His defeat of Vader at the climax of ROTJ was the final proof of that. Boba Fett says Jabba pays double for Han if he's alive. That’s an interesting little fact not mentioned in the movie. Was it in an earlier version of the script, or the novelization?Yes...it was in both. Overall, I thought this was one of the best issues of the TESB adaptation. I agree. It's a fantastic comic and a really thrilling read. Vader give Lando a little Force choke here. I don’t think that happened in the film, unless it was so subtle that I missed it, or more likely, misinterpreted it. Well, in the film, Lando does rub his throat after Vader ominously tells him, "I am altering the deal, pray I don't alter it any further." I think the implication is clear -- especially as we've already seen Vader force-choke Admiral Ozzel and Captain Needa. I've always thought that Lando probably felt a little threatening squeeze on his throat as Vader delivered that line, which is what causes him to reflexively reach for his throat. Here's the relevant clip from the film... This force-choke in the carbon freezing chamber is in the ESB fourth draft shooting script, exactly as it is in the comic. They don't really show Luke's hand getting chopped off. Not that the film really showed it graphically, either. No, that's correct. I think I addressed this though in my review. Let me quote myself from that... Another quite noticeable difference between the events of the film and this instalment of the comic adaptation is that Luke doesn't have his hand chopped off by Vader. Goodwin's narration simply says that Luke's hand "will never grasp anything again." Likewise, Williamson's artwork shows Luke's lightsaber falling away, but his severed hand is not clasping onto it, as it is in the film. It's tempting to assume that this was something that Marvel insisted on, perhaps feeling that having the hero's hand severed was too violent for their comics. However, a look at the film's shooting script shows that Luke's hand is not severed there either, and instead the exposition describes Vader's lightsaber coming "down across Luke's forearm, cutting it", but not entirely removing it. Obviously having Luke's hand chopped off by Vader was a change that was made on the set by director Irving Kirshner, while the comic -- being based on the shooting script -- doesn't included this change. Luke's rescue scene different, as he actually falls from the weather vane and the Falcon has to catch him in mid-air. Yes, that's right. Again, this is just as it happens in the shooting script and the novelization. |
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
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Post by Confessor on Apr 29, 2021 18:25:22 GMT -5
I definitely had a problem with Luke and Artoo surviving the destruction of their X-Wing. That was too much, and spoiled things a bit for me. I know what you mean. I had just turned 8-years-old when this issue was published over here in Britain – in the pages of The Empire Strikes Back Monthly #140 – and this scene really bugged me back then. Even as an 8-year-old, I knew that it was stretching suspension of disbelief to breaking point. I wasn’t as enamored of the art as you in this one, though we do share similar views on Infantino’s art. While normally an excellent storyteller, I did have a little trouble following the battle with that hold-tender robot. But yes, like you said, the recap page showing the events of TESB is wonderful. Fair enough. Myself, I'd go so far as to say that this issue is the best looking example of Infantino's art in the whole series. He's also inked by Gene Day here, who -- though he was a fantastic artist in his own right -- I don't usually like inking Infantino's pencils. But the pair do a really great job here. In particular, those signature awkward and ungainly poses that Infantino sometimes puts the characters in are totally absent from this issue and his rendering of the various Star Wars space craft are much more accurate than usual. The ESB recap page is a beautiful piece of art (I can't believe I'm saying that about Infantino!  ). Of course, Infantino is consciously aping Williamson's style here, in order to more authentically forge a link with recent issues...and as a kid, I really appreciated that effort on Infantino's part. I think I probably said this in my review, but it has long been my opinion that the high quality of Williamson and Garzon's work in the ESB adaptation was a bit of a wake-up call for Infantino. He had to really up his game in the wake of that incredible artwork and this issue is the result. I didn’t quite understand how Luke was using the Force to hide his actions from the probe droid, when the droid believe Luke was still unconscious. Well, I guess suppressing ones own life function levels isn't that much different from influencing other peoples bodies, such as with performing the Jedi mind trick? Maybe?  However, I thought it was kinda neat, and a nice little twist, that Luke was indirectly saved by the fact that the probe droid found out who he was, and wanted to take him to Vader. Yes...and the probe droid's prior program to bring Luke Skywalker to Vader plays well into the last few issues of the pre-ESB Marvel series, when Vader had finally found out his name. It also links in nicely with Vader and the Emperor's obsessive desire to capture Luke and turn him to the dark side, as seen in ESB. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 29, 2021 18:28:25 GMT -5
I wasn’t as enamored of the art as you in this one, though we do share similar views on Infantino’s art. While normally an excellent storyteller, I did have a little trouble following the battle with that hold-tender robot. But yes, like you said, the recap page showing the events of TESB is wonderful. Fair enough. Myself, I'd go so far as to say that this issue is the best looking example of Infantino's art in the whole series. He's also inked by Gene Day here, who -- though he was a fantastic artist in his own right -- I don't usually like inking Infantino's pencils. But the pair do a really great job here. In particular, those signature awkward and ungainly poses that Infantino sometimes puts the characters in are totally absent from this issue and his rendering of the various Star Wars space craft are much more accurate than usual. The ESB recap page is a beautiful piece of art (I can't believe I'm saying that about Infantino! ). Of course, Infantino is consciously aping Williamson's style here, in order to more authentically forge a link with recent issues...and as a kid, I really appreciated that effort on Infantino's part. I think I probably said this in my review, but it has long been my opinion that the high quality of Williamson and Garzon's work in the ESB adaptation was a bit of a wake-up call for Infantino. He had to really up his game in the wake of that incredible artwork and this issue is the result. Correct, you did say that in your review. Good memory! |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 29, 2021 18:33:34 GMT -5
This was another good installation, but I wish they had more pages to adapt this. They seemed to skip more in this issue than in others, or may I just noticed it more in this issue. I was a little disappointed that they skipped the part where Artoo gets swallowed and spit out by that swamp creature. Also, as you said we also don’t get to see the space “slug” as the Falcon flies away, which was a little disappointing. I know what you mean, although I guess 6-issues is quite long for a movie adaptation really. Of course, don't forget that there were certain things that Goodwin and Williamson weren't allowed to show at George Lucas's insitance...such as the Wampa and the space slug creature. So, it's possible -- likely even! -- that a suspense-filled and humourous scene like R2 getting gobbled up and spat out by the swamp creature was ommitted at Lucas's request, rather than because the writer and artist deemed it unnecessary. Goodwin did actually speak in interviews about always regretting not being able to include more of the comedy involving R2-D2 on Dagobah, so maybe it was a decision that was out of his hands? I didn't know that Goodwin had said that. Good information! |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 29, 2021 18:40:10 GMT -5
It's been a while since I've commented here, but I'm still a regular reader! Still enjoying all of the comments and discussion, and an extra big thanks to dbutler69 for kicking this thread (which, to be clear, never disappeared) into high gear again. Yeah, I agree. I've been really enjoying reading and responding to dbutler69's comments. Gawrsh, you fellas are gonna make me blush. Overdue Compliments Department: Confessor, your 6-part Classic Comics Forum Star Wars podcast with Crimebuster was a real pleasure to listen to (even if I never changed your mind about Star Wars Annual #3!  ). I spent many an hour doing yardwork or out for a run while your enthusiastic and informed back-and-forth brought back all kind of nostalgic memories of reading these books the first time around. Much as this thread has done! Awww...that's really nice of you to say, thanks. I'm glad you enjoyed listening to me drone on.  I do have a new appreciation of SW Annual #3 though, since you and I discussed it earlier in the thread. I definitely rate it higher these days because of you, so thank you for that. I've never listened to a podcast in my life - don't even know how - but now you've got me interested. |
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 10,220
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Post by Confessor on Apr 29, 2021 18:56:55 GMT -5
I've never listened to a podcast in my life - don't even know how - but now you've got me interested. It's pretty easy to listen to the CCF one. Just go to the relevant CCF Podcast sub-section and open the paarticular thread you want to hear. Once there, click on the link in the first post (part one of my incoherant babbling about the SW comic is here: classiccomics.podbean.com/e/classic-comics-forum-podcast-21-star-wars-by-marvel-comics-part-1/ ) and a podbean.com page will open up. Whether you're on a PC or mobile device, just click on the green "play" button and it should just begin. Mine and Crimebuster's Marvel SW discussion is 6 parts long! Remember, you don't have to listen to it all. |
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Post by Roquefort Raider on Apr 30, 2021 6:31:16 GMT -5
One aspect of the Star Wars saga that always irked me was how long it took to train a Jedi.
I'd assume that like a martial art, it would take several years to just get the basics, then several more years to become proficient. When Yoda told Ben's ghost that Luke was too old to begin training, I supposed that it was easier to mold a young person into the Jedi way, or that said training could take one or two decades... And in The Phantom Menace, when baby Anakin was brought before the council, he, too, was said to be already too old to begin training. However, after just a few days with Obi-Wan, a few years of training with no teacher at all and something like one week with Yoda, Luke was almost ready to face Darth Vader.
I get that Yoda could have used Luke's age as an excuse because he didn't feel comfortable training Anakin's kid at first, fearing he'd turn evil like his dad. But the council strikes me as a bunch of elitist snobs who want to maintain the illusion that their training is way harder than it actually is!
Anyway... I found the comics' depiction of Luke's journey very well handled. That he had reached a point where he could use telekinesis in TESB didn't strike me as odd in any way.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Apr 30, 2021 8:17:13 GMT -5
That's actually a good point... I don't think we ever really see padawans failing much. I mean Ashoka is pretty kick-ass in the cartoons, and Obi Wan seems pretty competent in Phantom Menace. I always pictured it was more an issue of mental discipline and focus that required the long teaching, not the nuts and bolts of using the Force or wielding a light saber. That would vary quite a bit from person to person.
OTOH, all the characters we see with shorter training have issues with the Dark SIde, so maybe they knew what they were talking about...
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 30, 2021 8:41:21 GMT -5
I'd assume that like a martial art, it would take several years to just get the basics, then several more years to become proficient. When Yoda told Ben's ghost that Luke was too old to begin training, I supposed that it was easier to mold a young person into the Jedi way, or that said training could take one or two decades Lucas has said that the idea of anyone becoming a Jedi was not a overnight process--it took years of dedication. The only reason Luke was accepted for what was a crash course in Jedi training was his familial connection to Vader gave him the strength be capable of defeating the latter, if they faced each other. Ah, but Luke was not ready--or even close to it, hence the reason Obi-Wan and Yoda warned him against trying to face Vader, and in the end, they were right--Luke tried to put up a fight, but was mutilated and placed in a position where he opted to attempt suicide rather than join a victorious Vader. |
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Post by tarkintino on Apr 30, 2021 10:26:58 GMT -5
I wasn’t as enamored of the art as you in this one, though we do share similar views on Infantino’s art. While normally an excellent storyteller, I did have a little trouble following the battle with that hold-tender robot. But yes, like you said, the recap page showing the events of TESB is wonderful. More than that in bold, since the man was--by the time he graced Marvel's Star Wars--already one of the few, true legends of the industry and one of the key, foundational talents in launching the Silver Age, helping to save Batman, and so much more. Aside from being a fantastic artist, it should be noted that this is the same man who art directed everyone from Neal Adams, Gil Kane, Irv Novick and so many others, in cover and some interior layouts. That's how immense his talent was as an artist and understanding how to use the medium to achieve great results. There was a very specific reason he worked on Star Wars, and his approach paid off handsomely for the publisher. As noted weeks ago in another post: despite the awful, sloppy adaptation of the first Star Wars film, the run to follow saw some of the series' highest sales numbers. According to John Jackson Miller of the site Comichron: Comics' History By the Numbers: 1979 was well into the Infantino period, and if Miller is correct, it was likely Marvel's second best-seller. That speaks to two facts: one, readers clearly enjoyed what was published at that time, otherwise they had the free will to drop the title--but did not. Two, historically, movie and TV adaptations--no matter the publisher, creative team or how popular the subject--rarely lasted more than a couple of years; the majority of Marvel's movie and TV adaptions before and during the first few years of Star Wars popularity consistently under-performed or in one case-- Logan's Run--was allegedly cancelled due to rising licensing costs triggered by the development of the short-lived TV series. But titles such as Adventures on the Planet of the Apes (1975-76 - a poorly colored, 11-issue reprint of the 1st two movies originally adapted for the POTA magazine), Man from Atlantis (7 issues in 1978), Star Trek (18 issues, 1980-81), and endless TV and movie adaptations failed to capture the interest of readers. Again, for the fact Marvel's Star Wars during the Infantino period was so successful-- up there with the biggest flagship superhero titles (instead of dropped by readers), spoke to its creative strengths which captured the film's sci/fantasy feel. Also shining a light on who was more successful at bringing readers to Marvel's Star Wars, Miller's research concluded: So, with 1979--the Infantino era--being the height of the title's sales (yet the title would see a steady decline in every year to follow--which includes the Williamson and Simonson periods), there's no denying Infantino was one of the central factors for the title's greatest successes. There's no way to separate him from that (if anyone were to try). As expressed by none other than Neal Adams about Infantino as an artist: ...and Jim Steranko: As accurate as anyone can be about Infantino's artistic gifts, and it was certainly on full display on Marvel's Star Wars. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 30, 2021 13:33:39 GMT -5
Star Wars #46Cover dated: April 1981 Issue title: The Dreams of Cody Sunn-Childe!Script: J. M. DeMatteis (credited under the pseudonym of Wally Lombego) Artwork: Carmine Infantino (pencils)/Tom Palmer (inks) Colours: Glynis Wein Letters: Diana Albers Cover art: Ed Hannigan (pencils)/Tom Palmer (inks) Overall rating: 9 out of 10  Plot summary: While searching the space ways for their friend Han Solo, Lando Calrissian and Chewbacca have a mechanical problem with the Millennium Falcon's engines, which throws the freighter off into another dimension. Coming upon a mysterious floating city, the pair land and soon come face to face with the long lost Rebel hero Cody Sunn-Childe. The near-legendary warrior explains that after gaining powerful mystic abilities he turned his back on the violence of his past and created a floating "City of Dreams" using his psychic powers. Sunn-Childe tells the pair that he is now content to live with his friends in peace, far away from the violence of the Empire and the Galactic Civil War. Lando rejects Sunn-Childe's philosophy, arguing that sometimes violence is necessary in order to combat great evil. Appalled by what he perceives as Cody's cowardice, Lando readies the Falcon for take off, just as a fleet of Imperial Star Destroyers launch an attack on the floating city, having found an opening in the space-time continuum leading to the alternate dimension. As Lando and Chewbacca blast off and engage the Imperials in battle, Cody gives in to his warrior instincts and unleashes a horde of psychic demons that attack the Star Destroyers. However, the one-time freedom fighter suddenly comes to his senses and decides to hold true to his pacifist ideals, allowing himself and his beloved city to be destroyed. Surveying the shattered remnants of Sunn-Childe's paradise-like retreat, Lando tearfully concludes that the former Rebel was wrong to believe that his pacifist ideals would lead him along the right path when dealing with the Empire. Turning the Falcon towards a rapidly closing rent in the fabric of space that leads back to their own galaxy, Lando and Chewbacca leave the Imperial fleet imprisoned in this strange dimension as part of what Lando calls "Sunn-Childe's revenge." Comments: The first thing to say about issue #46 of Star Wars is how much better Carmine Infantino's artwork looks here, when compared to the previous issues that he'd drawn. We know from comments that writer and comic historian Glenn Greenberg posted a few days back in this thread that the book's new editor, Louise Jones, had decided to make a concerted effort to have the comic be more visually faithful to the movies – and there's ample evidence of that here! Pairing Infantino with a strong and highly detailed inker like Tom Palmer serves to smooth out all those annoyingly over-angular tendencies that I've moaned about time and time again during these reviews. As is often the case with Palmer's inking, he very much puts his own stamp on the finished art, while simultaneously still managing to be sensitive to the artist's pencilling. That being said, on occasion it's kind of hard to see Infantino's influence at all in some of the artwork in this comic and, as a result, I definitely suspect that parts of this issue were completely redrawn by Palmer. For example, in some of the panels in which appear, the fleet of Imperial Star Destroyers look very much like Infantino's work...  While in others, the Empire's warships look a little too much like they did in the Star Wars films for them to be based on Infantino's pencils, I feel...  Still, for the majority of the time, Infantino's signature style is clearly discernible. In addition, the staging, the "camera angles" chosen and the sheer clarity and fluidity of the storytelling very much have Infantino's mark on them. What Palmer brings to the table is making this issue actually look like it's set in the cinematic Star Wars universe. Indeed, based on this issue, I kinda wish that Palmer had been brought in to ink Infantino much, much earlier – say, from issue #18 onwards, when Bob Wiacek and Gene Day came on board as the series' regular inkers. Palmer really does elevate the artwork here to a level that we've rarely seen in the series. This is hardly surprising though: like I said in my review of Star Wars #8, I long ago realised that when it comes to comic books, everything's better with added Tom Palmer! Star Wars #46 was the first and only issue to be written by John Marc DeMatteis (more usually known as plain ol' J. M. DeMatteis), although he's credited as Wally Lombego here. DeMatteis was relatively new to Marvel at the time, having only recently begun working as a writer on The Defenders, though he would later go on to write such high profile titles as The Amazing Spider-Man and Justice League International for Marvel and DC respectively (as well as penning the celebrated Spider-Man classic "Kraven's Last Hunt"). The reason for the pseudonym was because DeMatteis became infuriated by editorial changes that were forced upon his story by Lucasfilm and he decided that he no longer wished to be associated with it. DeMatteis takes up the story himself in this edited excerpt from a 2010 post on his personal blog... "I got to work crafting a tale about Lando Calrissian and his encounter with a legendary rebel fighter, of my own creation, named Cody Sunn-Childe. Note the name, please: Cody Sunn-Childe. You see, my son Cody was born right around the time I got the assignment and, y'know, he's my son. And my child.
I thought it would be an interesting touch to have Cody Sunn-Childe, this great warrior that Lando Calrissian idolized, go through a spiritual transformation and become a pacifist. In the end, although an attack by the Empire tempts Sunn-Childe to return to his old ways, he decides that it's better to allow himself to be killed, to die for a dream of peace, than to go down fighting. Keep in mind that I didn't belittle the Star Wars characters, or their beliefs, in any way: I was just presenting another point of view while keeping Calrissian and company true to their roots. They had their views, Sunn-Childe had his: let the readers decide who, if anyone, was right. "The Dreams of Cody Sunn-Childe" wasn't a brilliant piece of work by any means, but I think it had something of value to say. And it was a "something" I wanted to pass on to my newborn son – which is why I named that new character after him.
The book went off to the Lucasfilm reps for approval. They weren't happy. It seemed that, to them, the very idea that a character in the Star Wars universe would voice an opinion that in any way contradicted the Skywalker Worldview was offensive. The word came down that Sunn-Childe, in rejecting violence, made their characters look bad.
Marvel had to keep the Lucas people happy: new dialogue was written for the last page – not by me! – and I’ll never forget this line that was added: "He died for his dream of peace," Calrissian said, "but he was wrong." No maybes about it: Cody Sunn-Childe was an idiot who sacrificed his life for nothing.
To me, the Lucas people were the ones who were wrong; so wrong, in fact, that I took my name off the story, replacing it with the admittedly, and intentionally, ridiculous nom de plume Wally Lombego."So there you have it! Well, almost...because what DeMatteis may not have known is that over here in the UK, his story was published in its unaltered form and with his real name listed in the credits! Below is a scan of that heavily edited final page of Star Wars #46, which so upset its author, followed by a scan of the same page as it appeared in Marvel UK's The Empire Strikes Back Monthly #141. The latter version is how DeMatteis originally intended for his story to end...   Of the two endings, I find it hard to decide which one I actually prefer. DeMatteis's unaltered ending definitely fits the tone of the tale better and I like that Lando actually learns something of Sunn-Childe's philosophy at the story's conclusion. However, I also liked the revenge angle of Lando just leaving the Imperials trapped in that other dimension to rot. That felt very in character to me and I liked seeing them get their just deserts, with Lando's actions providing an interesting juxtaposition to Sunn-Childe's. I think ultimately it's a pity that DeMattis's original ending couldn't have included Lando leaving the Imperials trapped, while still having him realise that Cody's course of action was a noble one and not wrong. Leaving behind the controversy about this issue's ending for a moment, it's really cool to see Lando and Chewbacca in an adventure together for the first time. In Lando's case, this is the first time that we've seen this newest addition to the central cast in a story outside of the Star Wars films. To his credit, DeMatteis gets Lando's character pretty much spot on straight away. He also writes an interesting dynamic between Lando and the Wookiee, with it being pretty obvious that Chewbacca still doesn't wholly trust his partner and, considering recent events in The Empire Strikes Back, that's very understandable. On the downside, there's possibly a slight continuity problem here when Lando states that he saw Sunn-Childe in action against the Empire as a boy. Lando is in his mid-30s and we know from the prequel trilogy that the Empire didn't replace the Old Republic until 18 years before Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. That means that even if Lando saw Sunn-Childe resisting the Empire very soon after the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, he would've still been 14 or 15 at the time. That's not really a boy, more like a young adult. Still, I'm gonna let this one slide because I guess that a 15-year-old could still legitimately be termed "a boy." My suspicion though is that DeMatteis really meant for Lando to be much younger than that, but subsequent revelations in Star Wars continuity have made that impossible. Another complaint about this issue would be that, during the battle against the Imperials, Lando seems to be ramming the Millennium Falcon against the edges of the attacking Star Destroyers. Surely that would cause a lot of damage to the Corellian freighter? Maybe the Falcon's shields were up full or something, thus preventing the ship from sustaining any damage itself. Still, it seems like an odd way to do battle. Overall, this is an interesting and very thought-provoking issue. The fact that Cody believes that it's more important to stay true to his beliefs and die, than it is to give in to violence and survive, makes this a morally complex story. As such, it blows a great big raspberry at those who would dismiss the old Marvel series as being childish or unsophisticated. This is heavy, mature, philosophical stuff. That said, Star Wars #46 still has enough action in it to thrill fans of space opera and I certainly liked this issue a whole lot as a kid. I read and re-read this story until my copy almost fell apart and today I get a warm, fuzzy glow of nostalgia from revisiting it, which will ultimately cloud my judgement when it comes to rating this comic. It's a pity about the editorially mandated ending in the U.S. comic, but being a Brit, the way the story ended for me is exactly the way that DeMattis intended. Either way though, I consider this to be a really top draw entry in Marvel's Star Wars series. Continuity issues: None. Favourite panel:  Favourite quote: "Your truth is not my truth." – Cody Sunn-Childe cryptically espouses his non-violent philosophy to Lando Calrissian. The art was really good in this one. Chewie has never looked better! Lando looked good, in most panels, too. I wonder if there’s a lot of Tom Palmer influence here, or maybe, as Confessor suspects, the high art quality in the TESB adaptation caused Infantino to raise his game. This story didn’t feel too Star Warsy to me, but was interesting nonetheless. However, I felt that Lando was acting a bit out of character. Too gung-ho for the rebellion and for fighting, perhaps too quickly after events of TESB. Lando doesn’t strike me as the type to idolize a warrior. Very interesting facts about DeMatties’s issues with Lucasfilm! I think I like the original ending better. I didn’t love either ending, to be honest, but the original ending did fit the rest of the story better, as you (Confessor) said. However, didn’t the original ending also have Lando leave the Star Destroyers stuck in that dimension? I can’t really tell from just that last page shown in the post. However, this brings up one of the real problems I have with this story. Captain Plikk was willing to use up their ships’ power, leaving them stranded in that other dimension, for the “glory” of destroying Lando and Cody Sunn-Childe. However, what glory can there possibly be, when you know you’ll be stuck in that other dimension, and thus nobody in the Empire (or anywhere else, for that matter) will ever know what you accomplished?? That really didn’t make sense to me. That sort of sacrifice would have made more sense from a desire to be selfless and sacrifice yourself from the greater good, rather than something somebody would do for glory. Not that important, but Lando was surprised that Sunn-Childe was helping him leave, since Lando believed that they “loathed” each other. However, if Sunn-Childe loather Lando, wouldn’t he have been more than happy to get him out of there by helping him repair his ship? I agree that it’s great to see Lando & Chewie team up on an adventure, but it looks like we disagree on Lando’s characterization here. The part early on where they landed on that world and Lando was trying to think of a way to make a fortune out of it, and Chewie angrily reminded him that they are trying to save Han was very good, and in character for both, but later on, as I said, I thought Lando’s tough guy, warlike mentality didn’t feel right. Sure, he’s probably changed since getting hosed by Vader in TESB, but this just seemed a bridge too far for me. For that matter, Chewie seemed to forget all about Han once he discovered another wookieee there, but I guess I’ll give him a break, since he might not have seen another of his kind in years. Yes, I will agree that this was a thought provoking story, but Captain Pikka’s illogical maneuver and Sunn-Childe being a bit too eager to commit suicide, plus some somewhat out of character (to me) characterization made this story fall a bit short for me. But hey, the art was really nice! Edit: Oh, and I liked how Luke referenced his "There is no try. Do or do not" lesson from Yoda. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Apr 30, 2021 14:05:36 GMT -5
Sounds like you're opinion on that issue is closer to mine than COnfessors... but not quite that same. I have to say that it's got to be a good one if it generates that much feeling and discussion. (If you haven't already, my thoughts and Confessors responses to them are around pg. 97-98 of the thread)
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Post by berkley on Apr 30, 2021 14:45:36 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't think I could take Infantino's 70s-80s art for long, so I doubt I'll ever read many of those issues . But I'm coming round to the idea of reading the Williamson Star Wars, in spite of my continuing preference that he'd worked on something else.
Looking at some of the samples of Williamson's SW work posted in the thread, how much of the costume and clothing designs was dictated by the movies? Luke's khaki outfit, for example - was that Williamson's choice or taken from the films?
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 30, 2021 15:28:27 GMT -5
#45 'Death Probe' So we're back to Infantino on art.. he did pretty good on the Star Destroyer and the probe here, but why the heck does the blocade runner have a giant satellite dish in the middle of it, taking up a 3rd of the ship? Confessor talked about how Luke shouldn't have a light saber, and, much more importantly, how his flight suit suddenly has it's own life support, and that he was able to survive his ship blowing up around him unhurt... all very silly things. I'd add that a probe droid, which in the past is simply an drone with a laser, suddenly can defeat the entire crew of a ship and take it over? That's a bit more 'augmenting' that makes sense IMO. It was a fun story, but it enough off to annoy me. Not as off as the next one though... #46 'Dreams of Cody Sunn-Childe' Ok, so I'll give it a pass that clearly there can't be a rebel leader we don't know about.. there could have been at the time, and there wasn't really a time line for how long the rebellion and been around. There are plenty of other issues to go around. First, that's, what 5 Star Destroyers? The Falcon should have been blown up in pretty short order... especially when it got close... tractor beam? Never mind that a rift in time-space where there's a hidden planet with a super powerful pacifist on it is totally a Star TREK plot, not Star Wars. The Lando I know in the movies was barely part of the Rebel cause at this point, so he shouldn't have a hero from being a kid he was looking up to.. he was happy to work with the Empire when he thought it would be a good deal for him, and only 'joined' because he had no other good option. I'll buy that by the end of RoTJ he's on board, but not weeks later. Also, Chewey getting sucked into new wave peacenik philsophy in like one conversation to the extent he's forgetting his life debt just because another wookie is there is ridiculous. First, life debt. Second, this is a guy that threatening pulling peoples arms off when he's losing at space chess.. he's not a pacifist. The crying thing was dumb, too.. the revenge angle makes alot more sense, unless you're going with they were brainwashed into accepting the beliefs of the planet. Finally, there's the end... it seemed to imply the Falcon could jump to hyperspace and leave, but the SDs couldn't.. why? Lando had already said they were lost, so how are they jumping? If there's in a pocket dimension, how does that work anyway? I'll give them the SDs used to much power to get in and couldn't get out, but that should have been something they were aware of and had a contingency for, not just 'whoopsie, we're trapped forever'. SO yeah, while I feel like I've seen and enjoyed this Star Trek episode before, it didn't work for me at all as a Star Wars one. It sounds like you and are are mostly of the same mind on this one, though I didn't care for the revenge angle...then again, I didn't love the crying one either, I just thought it the better of the two. As to why the SD's couldn't leave, it was because Captain Plikka stupidly used up most of their power in destroying Sunn-Childe's floating city. As to why the Falcon could leave...well, I'm not quite sure, since like you said, they're in another dimension and I'm not sure how Lando & Chewie know how to travel back to their own dimension. But at least the Falcon still had enough power to get the job done, should they be able to figure it out, whereas my impression was that the SD's didn't have enough power left over for that. And...I was actually going to say that this seemed more like a Star Trek episode than Star Wars, but I had already said the same thing about #38 (the Michael Golden issue) and didn't want to get too redundant. |
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Post by dbutler69 on Apr 30, 2021 15:29:48 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't think I could take Infantino's 70s-80s art for long, so I doubt I'll ever read many of those issues . But I'm coming round to the idea of reading the Williamson Star Wars, in spite of my continuing preference that he'd worked on something else. Looking at some of the samples of Williamson's SW work posted in the thread, how much of the costume and clothing designs was dictated by the movies? Luke's khaki outfit, for example - was that Williamson's choice or taken from the films? I think the Infantino art was one major reason that I never became a regular reader of this series back in the day. And yeah, the Williamson Star Wars will be easy on the eyes.  |
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Star Wars #42First of all, coloring errors aside, I love the cover! When I was a kid, the scene with the bounty hunters was my favorite, and I played with my bounty hunter action figures more than any of the others.
). Of course, Infantino is consciously aping Williamson's style here, in order to more authentically forge a link with recent issues...and as a kid, I really appreciated that effort on Infantino's part.
). I spent many an hour doing yardwork or out for a run while your enthusiastic and informed back-and-forth brought back all kind of nostalgic memories of reading these books the first time around. Much as this thread has done!
I do have a new appreciation of SW Annual #3 though, since you and I discussed it earlier in the thread. I definitely rate it higher these days because of you, so thank you for that.
