Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi vol. 3 — Force War
Writer John Ostrander and artist Jan Duursema first collaborated on “Star Wars: Twilight” well over a decade ago. It seems unlikely that either of them would’ve thought that they’d still be working together on “Star Wars”comics after all that time, or that their partnership would prove to be the longest-running and most creatively successful in the comics from this particular license that Dark Horse has produced. Make no mistake, if you’re looking for the best “Star Wars” comics to read, then their Quinlan Vos stories (collected in the “Jedi in Darkness” and “Clone Wars” omnibi) are the ones you want, with the saga of Luke Skywalker’s morally compromised grandson Cade in “Legacy” coming in a close second. As for their work on “Dawn of the Jedi,” it’s definitely your third choice as this particular volume is an unfortunate showcase for their tendency to fall into overwrought melodrama.
Not that “overwrought melodrama” is anything new to the “Star Wars” franchise. The problem is that Ostrander and Duursema’s previous works had some compelling ideas underpinning them that allowed the reader to look past these things and enjoy the story being told. Was Quinlan Vos really working for the Jedi Council, or had he gone too far into the Dark Side in his undercover mission? Would Cade Skywalker ever find true balance in the Force or was he destined for self-destruction? There were also plenty of memorable supporting characters such as the duplicitous Devaronian Villie, and the grandly ambitious Darth Krayt who upended the tenets of the Sith for its own benefit.
The problem is that these things are lacking here in this final volume of “Dawn of the Jedi.” After two volumes of buildup, the evil Rakata have arrived in the Je’Daii’s home system looking for something called the Infinity Gate that will make their rule over the galaxy absolute. However, the Je’Daii now their own forcesabers to use in battle along with the talents of madman-turned-military leader Dagen Lok and former Rakatan Force Hound Xesh to lead them in battle. Yet the use of these forcesabers requires a Je’Daii to draw on the Dark Side of the Force to power them, throwing their user out of balance. There’s also the fact that another Force Hound has infiltrated their ranks with the plan to bring Xesh and his knowledge back to her masters. Even if Xesh has found that there’s more to life than the Dark Side through his relationship with Je’Daii Shae Koda, will that be enough to overcome the hold that his masters have over him?
Let me make it clear: You get no points for correctly answering that question. This is a “Star Wars” story after all, and evil is only allowed to triumph over good at a certain point in the narrative’s progression. Never at the end. The question then becomes, “Is the happy ending here well deserved?” I’d like to say that it is, but I just can’t muster up the enthusiasm for it.
To Ostrander and Duursema’s credit, there’s plenty of action in this volume. Things kick off with the Je’Daii fighting the Rakata’s Flesh Raiders and Annihilators on a swamp planet. It’s a fast-paced encounter that shows the scope and desperation of the struggle at hand. We also get to see Duursema’s talent for alien and mechanical designs, as well as the multitude of different characters created for this particular series. There’s also some flashes of dark humor, seen in Xesh’s description of what the Rakata do to their captives, and even genuine cleverness in the Rakatan leader Skal’Nas does to punish a disobedient subordinate.
The problem is that these good bits are few and far between with the story eventually degenerating into a nonstop mass of battles and expository shouting. Even when things do slow down, it’s only so that the exposition can be given at an (imagined) lower decibel. Given that it involves painfully awkward romance between Xesh and Shae, you’ll be wishing for the action to pick back up immediately.
Most disappointing is that there don’t seem to be any good ideas or payoff for this last volume. I liked the idea in the first volume that as someone who had only known the Dark Side, that Xesh would take to the Light Side teachings and see something worthwhile in them. However, his arc here is a predictable one of heroic fighting, capture, and questionable redemption that you’ll likely see coming from very early on. Even potentially interesting ideas like the fact that the forcesabers are powered by the Dark Side aren’t really developed here. It all wraps up really quickly at the end with most everything put back in its place and a happy ending for those who deserve it.
The best thing I can say about “Force War” is that the execution is at least competent and that I probably would’ve warmed to its excessive approach more back when I originally started reading “Star Wars” comics in high school. However, most of those comics have aged badly for me over the years, and this one is down at their level. On one hand, I’m sad that the Ostrander/Duursema “Star Wars” collaboration had to end on this note. Then again, unless Marvel wants to bring them back for another project next year, I’d be interested in seeing what they can do on a creator-owned project of their own. They’ve clearly had a good working relationship, so maybe all they need for a return to form is to be set loose on something not set a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. We’ll always have the good “Star Wars” comics they’ve created in the past, and then be able to forget about this bad one they’ve left us with now.