The Good
From the opening pages, I'm immediately filled with surprise over how much I love this comic. Like many, I'm a huge fan of Star Wars. The comics have sometimes been a let down. Having a series take place within the original trilogies' timeline is completely fascinating. There was a bit of time that transpired between Episode IV and Episode V. There may be some limitations as to how much could actually happen but you do not get that feel.
Of course if you throw in Boba Fett going after Han Solo, I am completely sold.
But it's something like Boba Fett vs. Han Solo that could easily be used to get the fanboys excited. That's not what is happening here. You can feel that Boba Fett's appearance here makes sense and is not used to spice up the story.
Seeing Leia in a role to try to figure out her secret mission is a side of her we don't usually see. We know she's a great leader and speaker (in the Senate) but so far in this series we're seeing how truly strong of a character she can and should be. What I find absolutely fascinating is the idea of seeing how Leia will react over the loss of her entire homeworld. In the movies, there was never really the time to see her deal with the loss of everything and everyone she's known. It feels like there is an untapped goldmine here. Luckily for all involved, her Jedi abilities were not developed otherwise there could be the possibility of it leading to anger and hatred and you know the rest.
As Leia goes about her secret mission, we get introduced to several new characters. How they'll interact with the ones we know is going to be fun to watch.
The Bad
The art is really great and the ships and items look like they should. There's the same minor problem I had in the first issue where Leia looks a little different than she should.
It's good to mix up the pacing of the story but Han's portion feels separate from Luke and Leia's part of the story. When the story switches scenes it's a tiny bit jarring.
The Verdict
This is a comic that really makes me happy. As a big Star Wars fan, I love reading new stories. With the comics, it's sometimes a mixed bag in terms of the quality of the story and art. This series is refreshing and brings back the hope that we can get really really good Star Wars comics. Brian Wood must truly be a big fan. You can feel the finesse he has when it comes to depicting the characters in the script. They don't appear to be mere carbon copies from the movies. They are allowed to grow a little given the new and different situations they're in. The art by Carlos D'Anda is amazing. I've seen too many Star Wars and sci-fi comics that have made me cringe.
As a big Star Wars fan, I highly recommend this series. Find the first issue and gobble both of these up.