The past and present of the princess..
Creative Staff:
Story: Mark Waid
Art: Terry Dodson
What They Say:
When Princess Leia Organa was captured by the Empire as a Rebel spy, she never betrayed her convictions, even in the face of the complete destruction of her home world, Alderaan. When her rescue came, she grabbed a blaster and joined the fight, escaping back to the Rebel Alliance and helping strike the biggest blow against the Empire, the destruction of the Death Star. But in the aftermath of that victory, the question remains: what is a princess without a world?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
While I didn’t doubt that I’d enjoy a Princess Leia series as there’s so much material to mine there with the character, and especially with the team involved here, I was surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did. And that the book went for one of the least expected directions by having Leia deal with the fallout from the destruction of Alderaan, giving her a new sense of purpose for at least a while. Though it’s an unsanctioned mission, it’s one that works well in getting her out of the Rebellion for awhile and working with a very distrustful person that will be much needed as she goes out and about in the galaxy to find more of her people and bring them together in order to save what she can of her home world.
With her having secured a craft, this installment has her and Evaan (and Artoo!) making their way to Naboo where she knows there will be a cloister of her people that she has to get to. It may feel like it’s too much to go to Naboo and tie to the movies, but I like that it works the idea that this is the Emperor’s home world and that makes those Alderaanians there even more vulnerable. There’s some interesting if superficial material with the group that’s there and the secrets being kept from them, but the real fun is when Leia lands using Imperial codes and calling herself First Minister Solo and she ends up being recognized by former Senator Juun, now just a Lord on Naboo. That has a good kind of reunion to it, but it’s based on deceit as Juun has his own plans for her and her people. What’s really well done about it is the way that when it’s all said and done, Leia isn’t above using people to her own ends with what deal she makes with Juun, That could backfire down the line, but it’s an interesting look at how she views things and definitely goes back to her past as both a princess and a senator in working people.
While that plays out well and moves the story forward, I definitely liked the flashback aspect of the story here and the continuing exploration of the “relationship” between her and Evaan. Evaan has some serious issues with her that definitely make a lot of sense – their home world was just destroyed within days or weeks of this happening – so there’s a rawness to her that’s being clamped down on. Leia’s trying to break through that, which comes with who she is and the positions she’s held, so the back and forth and the prodding and poking that Leia does works very well. But the flashbacks are really fun in seeing a young Leia with how she was raised by Bail with things like eating her food and setting the right example to her desire to learn how to fight more. It’s a different view of her than we usually see, but it expands her in the right ways. Especially in regards to her father and the kinds of roles she has to take in order to be the heir as she is.
In Summary:
The second installment of the series carries events forward from the first very well and provides for an engaging and fun book while also keeping it properly serious and even a little threatening at times with what’s going on. Leia’s not a blank slate even based just on the movies, and what we get here is a solid exploration of her in the post-ANH world where she’s had a lot of loss and is refocusing herself on a mission that’s smart, makes a lot of sense and isn’t something that I’m aware of being done before, at least not in the comics. Waid’s dialogue is on point and there’s a lot of good stuff here throughout and he’s really making me like Evaan even though I know I shouldn’t on some level. Combined with the beautiful artwork from Dodson, who does some great stuff with young Leia in the couple of ages we see her, it just leaps off the page and has a whole lot of appeal in providing these new views of her. A great book all around.
Grade: A-
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Marvel Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: March 18th, 2015
MSRP: $3.99
