‘Darth Maul’ Turns ‘Black, White, & Red’ In Marvel’s New Star Wars Series
by Scott Redmond
Black and white comics with a particular splash of color (or two) have become a staple in recent years. Following the success of Star Wars: Darth Vader – Black, White & Red, Marvel Comics is taking another trichromatic trip to a galaxy far far away.
Launching in April, Star Wars: Darth Maul – Black, White & Red will follow in the footsteps of its predecessor with a notable change: one story per issue. Rather than multiple stories per issue, this four-issue miniseries will rotate creative teams and give them an entire stand-alone issue to explore the twisted Sith apprentice and his relationship with his master Palpatine.
The first issue will see Benjamin Percy and Stefano Raffaele paired up. Their story sees Darth Maul tasked by his master to investigate why a prison ship carrying a mysterious group known as the Final Occultation has stopped. He finds a nightmarish scenario brought on by a chaotic dark force with its sights set on the galaxy.
Speaking with StarWars.com, Percy said, “The silent assassin has a busy inner world. He is loyal to Palpatine, but that does not make him a puppet or a tool.” The writer added, “He is willing to make his own decisions – ones that could shake the very fabric of the galaxy – as is the case in this chiller and thriller of a story, ‘The Final Occultation.’”
Marvel editor Mark Paniccia said that the Darth Vader series was a “huge success” and that they “immediately started getting requests to feature Darth Maul” in a similar series.
“Ben and Stefano serve a story filled with horrors you haven’t seen in a Star Wars tale,” Paniccia said.
A brief interview with Percy about the series is featured on StarWars.com. Star Wars: Darth Maul – Black, White & Red #1 with an Alex Maleev main cover, as well as David Marquez & Ben Harvey variants, arrives in comic shops and digitally on April 25th.
