legacy of Vader #11 – Spoiler Review

Despite having to follow-up issue #10’s crazy journey, Legacy of Vader #11 manages to maintain a similar level as it continues to explore kylo Ren’s internal journey and sets up for what might be the biggest, most impactful issue yet.

What coudl top Kylo Ren visiting the netherworld of the force, both light and dark? While Legacy of Vader #11 doesn’t surpass such a crazy and memorable journey, what it does for Kylo’s exploration of himself and Vaneé’s attempts to mold him as he sees fit manages to be just as memorable.Between this issue and last,Kylo’s facing down his most recent Masters. Confronting Luke in the Force Ghost Afterlife to air his grievances,which only resulted in him hearing his choices are his own. And now Vaneé, who attempts to morph Kylo fully into Vader or let him die in the process. Where Luke reveals to Kylo how the people closest to him want to support ben, Vaneé pushes what he thinks the galaxy needs from Kylo, the strong arm of the Empire, Vader reincarnate. As Kylo breaks free from Vaneé’s weird methods to bring this to fruition, he realizes his expectations of the young man have been misplaced and he won’t become what he wants. Its a point that hits way too close to home for Kylo. As has been clear with more content about the sequel era, expectations for Ben Solo’s greatness followed the young man his entire life, and embracing the dark side and destroying his past to escape those expectations have driven his actions across the films. It’s why his confrontation with Luke last issue was so frustrating for him, as both on crait and in the afterlife, Kylo’s shown the futility of his choices, how he’s not making a name for himself by destroying the past, rather he’s making it even more about the past. Vaneé’s pushed him to do the flip side of the same coin, not destroy the past, but become it instead. With the life-long expectations of who he could become weighing on Kylo, this push from vaneé is once again someone not allowing young Solo to simply be who he wants to, which only his fellow padawan Tai was able to offer accepting, though he did so far too late.

A Dark Legacy Continues: Reviewing Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #25

Charles Soule continues to deliver a compelling narrative in Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #25, the penultimate issue of the Legacy of Vader arc. This issue expertly builds tension as Kylo Ren navigates the treacherous traps within Darth Vader’s personal vault on Mustafar, all while being taunted by the ever-present vanee. The issue doesn’t just focus on action; it delves into Kylo’s psychological state, exploring his ambition and his intricate relationship with his grandfather’s legacy.

Soule’s writing shines in the dialogue, notably the unsettling back-and-forth between Kylo and Vanee. Vanee’s constant questioning and psychological prodding are genuinely unnerving, and Kylo’s responses reveal a character grappling with his own insecurities and desires for power. The mystery surrounding the contents of Vader’s vault deepens, and the final panel – a direct echo of a classic Star Wars moment – leaves readers on a cliffhanger, wondering what will Vader’s vault contain? who was it that asked him if he was scared before entering it at the end of this issue? If how Darth vader: Dark Lord of the Sith #25 ended is anything to go by with where Soule can take things, I suspect we’re about to get a trippy and memorable finale to Legacy of Vader!

On art remains Luke Ross, with colorist Nolan Woodard and letterer Joe Caramagna. There’s some really great work, as usual, but the double-page splash of Kylo’s escape of the Castle’s traps as Vanee drones on about him is quite the damn sight. It really boils down to Caramagna navigating Kylo’s progress, leading us along the traps and narrow escapes via an s-shaped line of word bubbles, which also feel like they are chasing kylo, adding to the effect it’s leading us along his path yet also it’s an annoyance he must endure. As for what’s in the spread itself, there’s a great sense of momentum, be it the traps that attack him or how he evades them, as he’s crawling beneath laser blasts, jumping over pits of lava or explosions, narrowly avoiding a barrage of lasers, or even catching arrows in the darkness. And because of how we see it all at once, yet can chart his journey, it seems like a tough gauntlet, but it also gives us a sense of his skill, of his confidence, that he can run through it so quickly. Woodward has a lot to do about pulling our eye along the path as well, making laser blasts pop and seem like speedy, sudden shots he’s barely able to avoid, or giving the impression the castle’s a cold, dark, uncaring place as the only sparks of color besides the gray-drag of the bricks are the death lurking in its shadows.This even happens in a cool little part where Kylo’s just outlines in the darkness, catching arrows being shot at him, and given he stepped on a little button activating the traps, it felt like a fun little Indiana Jones reference in the process. The whole sequence of Kylo catching the lightsaber and using it defeat the droids,later bleeding it,was another highlight. Here, I really enjoyed how Woodard’s color work felt in concert from the neat effect of seeing a