‘Star Wars: Jedi Knights’ #2 Suggests A Fun Template For The Series — Review

There is a lightness to the first two issues of this young series. That’s not to say this is a comedy book, or that there’s no narrative stakes. But compared to, say, the angst-ridden Legacy of Vader or the ongoing Star Wars volumes that carried the weight of advancing the main narrative of the saga, Jedi Knights has a much more carefree, swashbuckling tone to it.

It’s only two issues, but it seems like writer Marc Guggenheim‘s approach to this book will be something much more episodic on an issue-by-issue basis, while still maintaining some larger connective narratives. If so, Jedi Knights #2 is a good example of what that might look like, issue-to-issue.

The premise of this issue is basically, “Yoda fights xenomorphs from the Alien movies.” The opening recap page — reading very much like the introductory crawl that opens the nine films of the Skywalker Saga — tells us that Yoda and original-to-this-series character Vetna Mooncrest are investigating rumors of dark science on a world populated by one person — Atha Prime — and his droid attendants. They end up running afoul of Atha Prime’s creations: savage creatures with a strong resemblance to the Alien xenomorph.

The ensuing action-filled conflict offers plenty of opportunities for the kind of “delivering pearls of wisdom amidst seemingly-deadly circumstances” and “snatching victory from the jaws of the defeat” moments that are common to Jedi-led stories set in this era of Star Wars. Overwhelmed by Atha Prime’s creations, Yoda reminds Vetna that numbers “matter not”, before leaving her to deal with them herself as he goes after Atha Prime. But the real draw in Jedi Knights #2 is clearly “Yoda fighting xenomorphs.”

Artist Madibek Musabekov continues to showcase his skills in action-storytelling and likeness-rendering. The way he manages to invoke the general vibe of the xenomorph in Atha Prime’s creations enough to make the point without outright aping their look is particularly impressive. Also impressive is the way he uses the light from Yoda and Vetna’s lightsabers to control the action, creating little pockets of light that the creatures move in and out of, and which naturally follows the action as the Jedi fight back.

Jedi Knights #2 isn’t entirely a done-in-one issue, however. Guggenheim concludes with a check-in on the running mystery of the book, Obi-Wan’s vision of Qui-Gon’s death at the hands of a mystery foe. And while the Jedi succeed in shutting down Atha Prime’s experiments, Atha Prime itself notably escapes, possibly setting the stage for a return appearance.

These are important elements to keep the book from becoming a pure anthology series, which would likely become tedious fast. For now, the central gimmick at the heart of this issue is enough to make it both an entertaining experience in its own right, as well as a possible roadmap to success for the series going forward.