STAR WARS: KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC (ISSUE 31)
October 22nd 2008 21:42
Category: Graphic Novels/Comics
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics.
Production Team: John Jackson Miller – script, Alan Robinson – art, Michael Atiyeh – colours, Michael Heisler – letters, Brian Ching & Michael Atiyeh – cover art
Cost: AU $7.95/US $2.99.
Coruscant, the jewelled megalopolis that is the heart of the Republic, nay the very beating heart of the galaxy itself some would claim, suddenly it has become the very nexus upon which will revolve momentous events. There is a sense of ending to this particular story as well as sense of beginnings as well, for it seems to me that there is another story about to unfold within this particular line, possibly the origins of the individual who would become known to the galaxy at large as Darth Revan or simply Revan although I could be drawing a long bow here but there are signs that point this way, and they have been their in previous issues. Still events are proceeding towards a resolution of the ongoing saga that has become the life of Zayne Carrick, a somewhat passing padawan learner, accused of killing his fellow students and of being a Mandalorian spy.
The last time we saw Zayne he was fleeing the ice world of Jebble which had become infested with the rakghoul plague brought about by the meeting of an ancient Sith talisman and a Jedi, never a good thing to occur on anyone’s top ten list of things not to be around. Celeste Morne, the Covenant agent who eventually found herself possessed by the ancient artefact managed to reveal to Zayne the location of one of the Covenants main bases in which he could find some evidence to clear his name as well as reveal the existence of the Covenant. It seems that he has managed to find the evidence needed and is now heading towards Coruscant, a box of Sith artefacts sitting in the hold of the vessel he and his comrades are aboard.
Naturally Zayne has not simply just relied on waltzing on in to the heart of the Republic without someone else going ahead and letting certain people know about his imminent arrival. Masters Vandar and Vrook from the Jedi enclave on Dantooine has been told that there are certain people who wish to meet with them, a certain Captain Malak and his comrade Shel Jelavan. For anyone who has played both the KOTOR computer games produced by Lucasarts the names Vandar, Vrook and Malak should be fairly familiar. Both of the former served as members of the Jedi council on Dantooine whilst Malak was once Darth Revan’s apprentice and loyal comrade, he was noted for a distinctive tattoo on his bald head, a tattoo that we find the erstwhile Captain Malak sporting in a sleazy Coruscant cantina whilst waiting to meet Vrook and Vandar.
It also seems that Alek aka Captain Malak has been instrumental in recruiting Jedi who will enlist in the war against the Mandalorians and helping the Republic throw back these invaders something that the Malak of the two computer games was noted for; it was he who recruited Jedi to fight in the Mandalorian Wars, so called Crusaders who currently have arrest orders out on them as a result of their desire to fight in the conflict raging throughout the known galaxy. Thus as I read the story unfolding in this issue I had the feeling that the whole concept had been to create what was in essence a double layered tale, one where we would see the trials and tribulations of Zayne Carrick as he attempted to prove his innocence and at the same time seeing the foundations of the story that is told in the two computer games being gradually revealed. After all both Revan and Malak were hailed as the heroes of the Mandalorian Wars and considering that this is the time period in which they were active it would seem rather strange if they did not turn up in some shape or form, especially as various other characters in the games have made their presence felt.
Another interesting feature about the entire KOTOR comics line is the distinct absence of the Sith, certainly they are their in the presence of various ancient artefacts and in the case of the Vector storyline they did have a significant part to play but overall from what I have managed to get a hold of they have been very scarce on the ground in comparison to the other Star Wars comics. If we look at Dark Times, Rebellion and Legacy the Sith are dominant and very much a physical presence in the events that occur in these tales, after all two of them are set in the time when the Emperor and Darth Vader reign paramount in the galaxy whilst the later series concerns the activities of a new bold Sith Order that dominates galactic affairs. Yet in this particular era, the Old Republic, when the Sith are still a significant threat in spite of the Republics victory in the Great Hyperspace War a thousand years ago and in the Exar Kun War which ended fairly recently. They are in some ways conspicuous by their very absence yet this makes KOTOR unique in this respect, the enemies that the various Jedi face are those within their own ranks as well as various other ‘mundane’ dangers such as bounty hunters, pirates, and Mandalorians.
When Zayne’s ship emerges from hyperspace in the Coruscant system he suddenly discovers that he has been expected. Lucien Draay, his former master, has taken steps in advance in order to prevent his arrival on Coruscant and that consists of a massive blockade of the planet by the Republic fleet. Admiral Saul Karath aboard his flagship the Swiftsure has gathered the entire fleet to blockade the Republic’s capital; it’s not something that he is keen on as he feels that the fleet should be out fighting the Mandies who seem to be in retreat after the events on the ice world of Jebble (a major setback if ever there was one). He’s also not too keen on having Jedi Master Xamar, one of Lucien Draay’s henchmen, looking in on his operation.
Still in spite of this irritation Admiral Karath is confident that he can bring the suspected spy, traitor and rouge Jedi knight to justice through his cunning application of force and tactics. He obviously hasn’t completely taken the measure of Zayne, and despite the immense firepower and resources at the Admiral’s disposal he is unable to get a hold of his quarry in spite of said quarry’s vessel crashing in his flagships hold (pun intended). But Xamar who does have some notion of his adversary has taken steps to put him in a commanding position, a position that will hopefully aid the agenda of his leader and the Jedi Covenant…
Production Team: John Jackson Miller – script, Alan Robinson – art, Michael Atiyeh – colours, Michael Heisler – letters, Brian Ching & Michael Atiyeh – cover art
Cost: AU $7.95/US $2.99.
Coruscant, the jewelled megalopolis that is the heart of the Republic, nay the very beating heart of the galaxy itself some would claim, suddenly it has become the very nexus upon which will revolve momentous events. There is a sense of ending to this particular story as well as sense of beginnings as well, for it seems to me that there is another story about to unfold within this particular line, possibly the origins of the individual who would become known to the galaxy at large as Darth Revan or simply Revan although I could be drawing a long bow here but there are signs that point this way, and they have been their in previous issues. Still events are proceeding towards a resolution of the ongoing saga that has become the life of Zayne Carrick, a somewhat passing padawan learner, accused of killing his fellow students and of being a Mandalorian spy.
It also seems that Alek aka Captain Malak has been instrumental in recruiting Jedi who will enlist in the war against the Mandalorians and helping the Republic throw back these invaders something that the Malak of the two computer games was noted for; it was he who recruited Jedi to fight in the Mandalorian Wars, so called Crusaders who currently have arrest orders out on them as a result of their desire to fight in the conflict raging throughout the known galaxy. Thus as I read the story unfolding in this issue I had the feeling that the whole concept had been to create what was in essence a double layered tale, one where we would see the trials and tribulations of Zayne Carrick as he attempted to prove his innocence and at the same time seeing the foundations of the story that is told in the two computer games being gradually revealed. After all both Revan and Malak were hailed as the heroes of the Mandalorian Wars and considering that this is the time period in which they were active it would seem rather strange if they did not turn up in some shape or form, especially as various other characters in the games have made their presence felt.
Another interesting feature about the entire KOTOR comics line is the distinct absence of the Sith, certainly they are their in the presence of various ancient artefacts and in the case of the Vector storyline they did have a significant part to play but overall from what I have managed to get a hold of they have been very scarce on the ground in comparison to the other Star Wars comics. If we look at Dark Times, Rebellion and Legacy the Sith are dominant and very much a physical presence in the events that occur in these tales, after all two of them are set in the time when the Emperor and Darth Vader reign paramount in the galaxy whilst the later series concerns the activities of a new bold Sith Order that dominates galactic affairs. Yet in this particular era, the Old Republic, when the Sith are still a significant threat in spite of the Republics victory in the Great Hyperspace War a thousand years ago and in the Exar Kun War which ended fairly recently. They are in some ways conspicuous by their very absence yet this makes KOTOR unique in this respect, the enemies that the various Jedi face are those within their own ranks as well as various other ‘mundane’ dangers such as bounty hunters, pirates, and Mandalorians.
When Zayne’s ship emerges from hyperspace in the Coruscant system he suddenly discovers that he has been expected. Lucien Draay, his former master, has taken steps in advance in order to prevent his arrival on Coruscant and that consists of a massive blockade of the planet by the Republic fleet. Admiral Saul Karath aboard his flagship the Swiftsure has gathered the entire fleet to blockade the Republic’s capital; it’s not something that he is keen on as he feels that the fleet should be out fighting the Mandies who seem to be in retreat after the events on the ice world of Jebble (a major setback if ever there was one). He’s also not too keen on having Jedi Master Xamar, one of Lucien Draay’s henchmen, looking in on his operation.
Still in spite of this irritation Admiral Karath is confident that he can bring the suspected spy, traitor and rouge Jedi knight to justice through his cunning application of force and tactics. He obviously hasn’t completely taken the measure of Zayne, and despite the immense firepower and resources at the Admiral’s disposal he is unable to get a hold of his quarry in spite of said quarry’s vessel crashing in his flagships hold (pun intended). But Xamar who does have some notion of his adversary has taken steps to put him in a commanding position, a position that will hopefully aid the agenda of his leader and the Jedi Covenant…
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