Review – Star Wars; Purge, why it's the Vader story fans deserve.
Review by Paul Fiander
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Mixed Ceators all listed at end of artile.
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Star Wars; Purge is 4 comics bound together to create one Hardcover volume. This allows four different creative teams to all have a say in our subjects descent into the darkside. You can find the titles along with the covers of the four parts and their creative teams at the end of the article.
This is rather a bold title to an article but it's one that I will put my hand on my heart and say I fully believe in. The Dark Horse published series deals with what many people including myself deem as one of the best villains of all time Darth Vader. Unfortunately the Star Wars prequels did a good job of making Vader an EMO teenager and this in my opinion weakened the character. Thankfully the comics are here to slap the wet blanket that was Anakin Skywalker and help to install some level of menace back to the Lord of the Sith.
First a little background as a child I loved the Star Wars franchise and as I have grown up this has diminished to a fondness mostly coming from nostalgia. The prequels were the straw that broke the camels back for me and this was mostly due to the treatment of Vader.So after finding out the Purge was based on Darth Vader’s quest to rid the galaxy of Jedi I thought this was a Book I had to read.
So why is this series so good?
Simply because it tells the Vader story from a few months after he has turned to his full maturation into the menacing behemoth we saw walking through a destroyed door at the beginning of Star Wars.The stories run in chronological order and manage to show the impetuous young apprentice grow in stature but more importantly in intellect. The first comic shows Vader in much the same light as we saw in Revenge of the Sith (aka Anakin Mode). He has disdain for the orders from his master and will gleefully loose all troops around him to accomplish his goals. The character depicted feels very in keeping with the one we saw in the film, writer John Ostrander does a good job of making a gradual step between the first two issues. However the second two comics are created by new writers and show the character progression coming along in leaps and bounds. What is amazing is even though there are different writers the voice of the character seems to be an evolution throughout the entire story and nothing seems out of place. It’s a credit to the four creative teams that they were able to accomplish this with such fluidity.
Visually the comics to differ and reading in one sitting really reminds you that the books were created by different artists. Unfortunately this does dilute the one voice of the story but I still found myself looking in glee at a lot of the visuals as you get see actual lightsaber battles taking place.
For Star Wars fans and fans of the Lord of the Sith himself I will say this is a must read if you were not fully happy with the treatment Vader was given in the prequels. To everyone else this is a great read with some amazing (if not ever present) visuals and well worth a read.
The Comic is available in both print and digital from Dark Horse comics. Follow this link for more details.
First a little background as a child I loved the Star Wars franchise and as I have grown up this has diminished to a fondness mostly coming from nostalgia. The prequels were the straw that broke the camels back for me and this was mostly due to the treatment of Vader.So after finding out the Purge was based on Darth Vader’s quest to rid the galaxy of Jedi I thought this was a Book I had to read.
So why is this series so good?
Simply because it tells the Vader story from a few months after he has turned to his full maturation into the menacing behemoth we saw walking through a destroyed door at the beginning of Star Wars.The stories run in chronological order and manage to show the impetuous young apprentice grow in stature but more importantly in intellect. The first comic shows Vader in much the same light as we saw in Revenge of the Sith (aka Anakin Mode). He has disdain for the orders from his master and will gleefully loose all troops around him to accomplish his goals. The character depicted feels very in keeping with the one we saw in the film, writer John Ostrander does a good job of making a gradual step between the first two issues. However the second two comics are created by new writers and show the character progression coming along in leaps and bounds. What is amazing is even though there are different writers the voice of the character seems to be an evolution throughout the entire story and nothing seems out of place. It’s a credit to the four creative teams that they were able to accomplish this with such fluidity.
Visually the comics to differ and reading in one sitting really reminds you that the books were created by different artists. Unfortunately this does dilute the one voice of the story but I still found myself looking in glee at a lot of the visuals as you get see actual lightsaber battles taking place.
For Star Wars fans and fans of the Lord of the Sith himself I will say this is a must read if you were not fully happy with the treatment Vader was given in the prequels. To everyone else this is a great read with some amazing (if not ever present) visuals and well worth a read.
The Comic is available in both print and digital from Dark Horse comics. Follow this link for more details.
Wrap Up
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The Good – Drath Vader becoming a Man to fear, Great story telling.
THe Bad – Inconsistent visuals over the four comics can be jarring if read in one sitting. |
4.5/5 |
1) PURGE
Script: John Ostrander Art: Douglas Wheatley Colors: Ronda Pattison Lettering: Michael David Thomas 
3) PURGE: The Hidden Blade
Script: Haden Blackman Art: Chris Scalf Lettering: Michael Heisler |
2) PURGE: Seconds to Die
Script: John Ostrander Pencils: Jim Hall Inks: Alex Lei & Mark McKenna Colors: Ronda Pattison Lettering: Michael Heisler 
4) PURGE: The Tyrant’s Fist
Script: Alexander Freed Art: Marco Castiello & Andrea Chella Colors: Michael Atiyeh Lettering: Michael Heisler |
