What Comes After Hoth? Star Wars #1 Reviewed
by Josh Davison
Mild Spoilers Ahead
After the Rebel defeat at Hoth and their narrow escape from Cloud City, Luke, Leia, Lando, and Chewie have been left reeling. Luke is coping with the loss of his hand and Darth Vader’s claim that he is Luke’s father and he can’t reach out to Ben or Yoda for some reason. Leia and Chewbacca still don’t fully trust Lando Calrissian, but they need all the help they can get. Leia takes the Millennium Falcon to a Rebel Alliance rendezvous point in the Mid Rim, only to discover that the fleet there has been ambushed by the Empire. The Imperials have set up a blockade backing the Rebel ships up against the system’s star. It will take some gambles and fancy flying on the part of the Millennium Falcon to save their Rebel allies.
Star Wars #1 relaunches the flagship series after the world-shattering events of Empire Strikes Back and the “Destination: Hoth” arcs of the previous Star Wars Marvel Comics series. Our heroes are at their lowest points and barely able to move forward. Of course, the relentless Galactic Empire won’t give them a moment to breathe.
Charles Soule skillfully captures this feeling in the character work. Empire Strikes Back or Return of the Jedi really allows for us to watch the long-term shock of Luke learning that Darth Vader is his father. Of course, we have the high melodrama of the encounter at the end of Empire, but we don’t really get to watch Luke sit with it. I’m sure Expanded Universe stories likely touched on this in the past, but it’s nice to see Soule try his hand at depicting it. He does so excellently.
Lando Calrissian is a favorite of mine, so it’s also enjoyable watching him try to integrate himself into the Rebel Alliance cause despite the distrust of Leia and Chewie.
We also get to meet the smart and sadistic Commander Zahra, who is looking to be a compelling antagonist. ‘
Jesus Saiz is the artist on this Star Wars relaunch and he doesn’t disappoint in the slightest. His work is brilliant here, and it never ceases to amaze me how he can craft his texturing, like you could reach out and touch the characters and surfaces of the world he’s drawing. The color work of Saiz and Arif Prianto gives it all the vibrant and cosmic coloring the book wants.
Star Wars #1 is a fantastic new start for Marvel’s flagship Star Wars title. We get to pick up with our heroes at the very edge of defeat and watch as they try to build themselves back up. It’s a compelling comic with phenomenal artwork and it easily earns a recommendation. Give this one a read.
Star Wars #1 comes to us from writer Charles Soule, artist Jesus Saiz, color artists Jesus Saiz and Arif Prianto, letterer VC’s Clayton Cowles, cover artist R.B. Silva with Guru-eFX, and variant cover artists Arthur Adams with Jesus Aburtov; Jen Bartel; Adam Hughes; Mahmud Asrar with Matthew Wilson; Phil Noto; and Chris Sprouse with Karl Story and Neeraj Menon.
Final Score: 9/10
