Star Wars: Darth Vader #019 (comic)
Star Wars: Darth Vader issue #019.
Beneath Shu-Torun.
Triple-0 speaks over comms to the droids defending the drill. Due to suggestions that he has installed vampiric syringes in all the droids, it decreases the morale of the attacking troops.
Nearby.
Morit and Aiolin continue to fight Vader. As Vader nearly strikes down Morit, Aiolin fires an explosive that breaks the natural bridge that the trio were fighting upon, separating Morit and Ailion from the Sith Lord. Aiolin tells Morit that she doesn’t think they could beat Vader, in which Morit replies that he will and knocks Aiolin down into the lava. He then departs the scene.
Vader looks down at Ailion, who is splashing about in the lava, calling for help. Vader uses the Force to raise her burning body from the lava and to his arms. She tells him everything she knows, even offering him her memory circuit. Upon taking the circuit, Vader drives his lightsaber through her. The next scene shows Vader walking away, but the body is no where to be seen. I’m assuming three things, he either tossed the body back into the lava, he carried the body back and we couldn’t see the body due to his cape, or the body simply disintegrated due to the immense heat.
The next scene shows Vader doing a super hero landing, kneeling on one knee, fist on the ground, other to his side. He finds out that Triple-0’s motivational speech to the droids had made the enemy army cower in fear and surrendor. He also finds out that Queen Trios had pushed her army forward, without waiting for Imperial support.
Baron Rubix’s Delving Citadel.
Queen Trios leads her charge; however, she falls from a peak she stands upon, due to a blast. She recovers and as she does, a new drill comes forth and an AT-AT emerges. The Imperial support she was hoping for has finally arrived.
Within the castle, Baron Rubix gets worried, along with his daughter. Cylo, who had been helping the Baron, had fled. Baron Rubix’s daughter informs him that the elite guard are returning. The Baron grabs his daughters hand and guides her to where it seems he expects the elite guard to be. Upon the bridge, all he confronts is Vader.
The Baron surrenders and Queen Trios orders him to be executed. He is then gunned down by blaster fire. The Queen then assigns the Baron’s daughter as Baroness Bixene and will succeed her father. The Baroness states that isn’t how the line of succession works and that she has an elder brother, but the Queen states that she’s sure the Baroness’ elder brother will not object the Queens decision.
At the landing zone of an Imperial shuttle, Queen Trios asks Vader if he had chosen the right queen and he states there was no other choice. A few words from Triple-0 and the Queen gets angry and suggests the droid leave before she destroys him. Vader leaves a Stormtrooper Captain with the Queen, stating that the Captain will give advice and oversight.
As the shuttle departs, the Queen tells the Captain that Shu-Torun is an intensely courtly culture and that he must learn to dance.
Upon a Star Destroyer, Vader is in a holocall with his master. He tells the Emperor about the betrayal of Cylo and his abominations. The Emperor rells Vader to return to Coruscant so that he may explain everything.
When the holocall ends, Triple-0 tells Vader that Dr. Aphra has been found and the person who found her doesn’t want a reward. He then tells Beetee to play the message. When the holovid comes up, it’s of Inspector Thanoth, stating he has found Vaders girl. He also states that it’s time they had a talk. The issue ends.
Once again, an amazing issue in this series. As I’ve stated in previous entries, the Darth Vader series and the Star Wars series are my two favorite on-going series so far. I feel that they’re better written, have better stories, and are more informed with the lore of the saga. I am also really looking forward to the next issue of Star Wars: Darth Vader, which is issue #020. The cover alone looks pretty epic. Here’s a sneak peek at the cover:
Well, I still got more recaps and reviews to do, so until next time…
May the Force be with you always.
-Ehpik.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #012 (comic)
Star Wars: Darth Vader #012.
The issue starts off with Darth Vader and Inspector Thanoth watching TIE’s follow Dr. Aphra through the dangerous weather. Vader then tells Thanoth this is a waste of time and calls off the chase. The Inspector questions why the Dark Lord would cease the pursuit, to which Vader answers that the Plasma Devils are more important than some thief.
Shortly…
A bunch of Rebel pilots are readying themselves and their starships. You find out that these are the Plasma Devils and that their secret base is being attacked and they need to evacuate. Little do they know that Vader is down there are the last exit they have.
As one of the Y-Wings makes an attempt to escape, Vader hurls his lightsaber at it, destroying the Y-Wing and eventually destroying the entire squadron single-handedly.
Back upon the Star Destroyer, Vader tosses the helmets of the pilots onto the ground before Grand General Tagge. The siblings, Morit and Aiolin, state that it wasn’t Vaders mission to do such, in which Thanoth declares that it was theirs and they had failed to do so. Tagge considers this a great success and dismisses the group.
Thanoth thanks Vader for standing up for him, when Tagge was pressuring them about not retrieving Aphra. Vader assures him that the thief will not escape justice.
Next scene shows Triple 0, Beetee, and Aphra in a cave. Vader shows up and questions Aphra on the where abouts of Luke. She tells him, apologizing about her screw up earlier. She asks Vader not to kill her because she enjoys working for him. He boards his TIE Advanced x1 and leaves. Little to his and Aphras knowledge, Karbin, a cybernetic Mon Calamari, watches through a probe, spying on them. He states to himself that Luke will not be alone on Vrogas Vas. Issue ends.
May the Force be with you always.
-Ehpik.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #013 (comic)
Star Wars: Darth Vader issue #013.
This issue continues off where Star Wars: Vader Down issue #01 leaves off. Vader stands surrounded by Rebels, ordering him to surrender. He uses the Force to pull the pins on all the Thermal Detonators on each Rebel, causing a huge explosion and bloodshed. A tank blasts a large bolt at him, but he deflects it with his lightsaber, returning the bolt to the tank and destroying it.
I like this scene, because it shows just how powerful lightsabers are, being able to deflect such large blasts.
The next scene shows Han and Leia arguing. Leia wants to go capture Vader, but Han wants to go find Luke. Leia wants revenge for what happened to Alderaan, but Han thinks it’s more important to find a missing friend, so they part ways, showing Han walking towards the Falcon.
In orbit, Dr. Aphra is shows with Triple 0 and Beetee. They devise a plan on rescuing Vader, while at the same time capturing Luke, in-order t0 get back on Vader’s “good side”. Aphra makes the comment, “The Rebel Army, I can deal with. Darth Vader is a whole lot scarier.”
Scene starts off with Leia speaking to pilots of T-47 Airspeeders. She tells them to be careful because there could be a trap. They report they found Vader and Leia commands they form a perimeter around him.
Also, I just want to note that the pilots refer to Leia as “Commander Organa”. So this could possibly be around the time that Leia dropped the title of Princess. I know a lot of fans were curious about it due to finding out that Leia will be called General Organa in the upcoming movie: Star Wars: the Force Awakens.
Some Rebel ground forces find out that the TIE’s blaster cannon was stripped from the vehicle, cutting back to the scene with the airspeeders approaching Vader, blasts from an unknown area occur and bring down the speeders.
The next scene shows Luke and R2-D2, walking towards the ruins of a Jedi temple. Dr. Aphra secretly watches him and eventually paints Triple 0 to look like C-3PO. She then sends him in and Luke falls for it; however, before this, he sees a blurry image of Obi-Wan and Anakin.
Triple 0 ends up shocking Luke to unconciousness, leaving him on the ground, and reaching out to R2. Dr. Aphra remains in the background and the issue ends.
I just want to state how impressed I am with the Vader Down event. The Star Wars and Star Wars: Darth Vader series have been amazing so far, but now with the Star Wars: Vader Down and it’s event, it really shows just how epic Vader truly is.
Well, I’ve got two more recaps to go!
May the Force be with you always.
-Ehpik.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #011 (comic)
Issue #011.
The Spire, Anthan Prime.
Doctor Aphra, accompanied by BT-1 and 000, visit the Ante. Aphra gazes out a window, admiring the deadly electrical clouds surrounding the Spire. The Ante explains that flying through them is foolish. The Ante leads the trio down a hall, where 000 and BT-1 state they’d like to go play holochess. Aphra then hands over some credits to 000 and they leave her and the Ante alone.
Panel changes to Vader overlooking a formation of Stormtroopers. Inspector Thanoth enters the room, telling Vader that he’s discovered that the Ante has all the information they seek and he’s managed to set up a meeting with him.
The next panel shows Aphra, sitting near a fireplace, talking to the Ante. She inquires the where abouts of Luke Skywalker. The Ante states that others are looking for him, as well, but wouldn’t say who. He then shows her the cost of the information, which she pays in full, per Vaders orders. The Ante tells her that she is trusting, carrying that much credits to a deal such as this and only being accompanied by two droids. The Ante then speculates that the credits are from the Son-Tuul Pride. He then tells Aphra that Luke is located on Vrogas Vas. Upon the delivery of the information, an alert comes onto the speakers stating an Imperial Raid is approaching.
000 and BT-1 seem to be gambling on their holochess game, which 000 seems to have lost. He suggests that his opponent was cheating, but before 000 could kill him, he gets a comm call from Aphra, telling him and BT-1 to return to the ship because they’ll be having visitors soon. Just then, a part of the wall is blown in and Stormtroopers enter the gambling room with Vader and Inspector Thanoth in tail.
000 complains that he’s rather annoyed that he couldn’t kill his holochess opponent and with that, BT-1 draws for a heavy blaster gatling gun and kills 000’s holochess opponent before they run off.
Amidst the fighting, the Inspector and Vader find the Ante, who states he’s destroyed all files and physical evidence to any information they’re looking for and that all information is now stored within his brain. The Inspector then asks who stole the Son Tuul Pride’s treasures and the Ante immediately gives up Aphra, without saying her name. He basically points her out as she’s running and dodging blaster fire. Thanoth asks for her name, but Vader uses the Force to move a firing blaster in the direction of the Ante, the shot killing the alien before he could reveal her name.
The Inspector then orders the stormtroopers to chase down Aphra. Vader leaving in the opposite direction. Aphra has BT-1 close blast doors to separate her from them. As she continues forward, Vader suddenly stands before her. She greets him, but he Force chokes her instead. She tells him in gasping breaths that she knows where Luke is. Vader asks for the information, but Aphra informs him she’ll reveal it later. She was about to speak to him further, but he tells her to be quiet and that she’ll answer to this situation later. Vader then uses the Force, having the roof above crumble atop of him.
As Aphra escapes with BT-1 and 000 in their shuttle, the stormtroopers and Thanoth enter the area. Vader then uses the Force to unbury himself in a burst of debris, taking the Inspector by surprise. Vader tells him that she had a trap set, which he replies that it’s always good to set a trap. As Aphra leaves the area of the Spire, TIE fighters and a Star Destroyer are based outside of it and take it down. Aphra then pilots her shuttle into the deadly clouds in the area, meaning to hide from the Imperial blockade.
The final panel shows Thanoth telling Vader that they’ll soon have her and then they’ll see what she has to say.
This issue wasn’t as exciting as every previous issue of Darth Vader, but that’s fine. You got to see that Vader and Aphra’s relationship is strictly business, so much that I feel he was going to kill her when he Force choked her, but the only reason he didn’t was because she knew where Luke was and he needed that information, especially now since the Ante had died. I also like how it showed that even droids want to have some fun every now and again, with 000 and BT-1 wanting to play holochess. Well, I hope you enjoy this entry, as well.
May the Force be with you always.
-Ehpik.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #010 (comic)
Issue #010.
The Dragon’s Mansion, Anthan Prime.
This issue starts off with an Ortolan being interrogated by Darth Vader. He asks the little Ortolan if he’d reveal who he sold explosives to and out of fear, the Ortolan said yes. Vader then Force choked him to death. Upon doing so, Inspector Thanoth enters in the room, questioning what had happened. Vader lies to him, saying the Ortolan stated he’d blow the place up. The Inspector then begins to investigage the safe and eventually opening it. Vader is a little puzzled by this and Thanoth then explains, “Ortolan secretions are quite distinctive. The amount of sweat on each button shows how often it’s in the sequence.”
Vader congratulates the Inspector. Thanoth tells Vader that he’ll take care of the final part of the mission alone, due to Vader standing out too much and will draw too much attention. Vader agrees and tells him not to fail.
Naboo.
Commodex Tahn rests in his living room, drinking a glass of wine. A protocol droid inquires if he is expecting visitors, showing him a holo image of a ship approaching his home. The ship then crashes into his home and Doctor Aphra and a bunch of Droids, including BT-1 and 000, exit the ship. Aphra tells the droids that she needs the mortician alive.
Tahn retreats, retrieving a blaster rifle he has hidden away in a back room. He takes a few shots at some droids until BT-1 comes up from behind him, blowing the head off of his protocol droid, BT-1 then destroys Tahn’s blaster rifle and injures the morticians hand. Aphra gets mad, stating she wants him alive. Tahn concedes to the group. Droids seat him upon a chair and Aphra questions him.
She inquires about Queen Amidala, along with telling Tahn about her own childhood. She then leaves him alone with 000, who takes over the interrogation. In a short manner, 000 let’s Aphra know that the mortician is willing to talk. He spills the beans that Padme was pregnant and gave birth to a son. He did, however, leave out that she had twins and Leia was one of them. After the information was given, 000 pretty much electrocuted Tahn to death and the team leaves Naboo.
Anthan Prime.
Vader meets up with Aphra, who gives her the information she retrieved from Tahn. She reveals that the mortician really loved Amidala, that he spoke of her as if she was something special. Vader seemed to get oddly quiet that even Aphra noticed. Vader then tells her about the Inspector poking around in their affairs and that they must find Luke before anyone else does. Aphra inquires, “Anything to worry about?” and Vader replies with, “I have no fears. He suspects nothing.” The final panel then shows a spy droid, the size of a fly, to be near Vaders helmet.
I’m really liking Aphra a lot. She’s very cut throat and not necessarily a villain at the same time. I also like that she mostly surrounds herself with droids, especially crazy killer droids like 000 and BT-1. I feel like Vader didn’t really do much in this issue, other than Force choke an Ortolan, but at the same time, I never really expect Vader to do too much of anything if it doesn’t involve fighting someone who’s at least on a near equal level as he. Well, I should be writing about the next issue soon. Stay tuned!
May the Force be with you always.
-Ehpik.
Dominate the Force 