Maybe it was the disappointment of the prequels. Maybe it was the entire Expanded Universe being written off. Maybe it was a fandom that had somehow gone from holding Han Solo as the epitome of coolness to worshiping Boba Fett as the embodiment of bad-ass.
(Okay. So maybe one good thing came of the EU being sacrificed. But is losing Mara Jade really worth insuring that Boba Fett died as he was meant to - accidentally catapulted into a giant space anus?)
Regardless, I wasn't quite as hyped as some of my colleagues were about a new Marvel Comics Star Wars series. At least, I wasn't before I picked up this first issue. And suddenly my inner five-year-old was making WOOOSH noises while wielding a cardboard tube and squealing in glee inside my head.
The story opens sometime shortly after the end of Episode IV, with our favorite group of Rebels infiltrating an Imperial weapons factory with the intent of blowing it up. The good news is that - for once - the infiltration goes smoothly. The bad news is that what was meant to be a simple act of espionage suddenly becomes a rescue mission once the timer is already running...
Writer Jason Aaron perfectly captures the feeling of the classic Star Wars movies. Not only in how the story opens with a familiar opening scroll of yellow text and a long shot of a spaceship but in terms of how all the dialogue scans. You can almost hear the voices of Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and company throughout the book.
Artist John Cassaday does a good job caricaturing the cast of the movie. Indeed, the only flaw to Cassady's work is how lifeless some panels appear, with more work being put into emulation of the famous faces than in conveying expressions. Still, the action sequences are well-laid out and exciting. The colors by Laura Martin are well chosen. And Chris Eliopoulos's letters subtly enhance the dialogue.
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