Oh… baby.
Creative Staff:
Story: Charles Soule
Art: Alex Maleev
Colors: Paul mounts
What They Say:
It began as the heist of a lifetime…now it’s a fight to survive! When Lando and Lobot took this gig, it seemed like an easy payday. But with this conclusion, they will never be the same.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The Lando series draws to a close here and it brings a few different things together while also bringing closure elsewhere. The series has been a surprisingly strong one for me in a way I didn’t expect. While I really got into the other series have have been produced so far I was wary of this one. As much as I enjoyed those really old original novels from the early 80’s, I just wasn’t sure how well this character could translate with more modern sensibilities. But Soule and Maleev hit it out of the park, installment after installment, with something that just oozed smooth and cool while also having a surprising amount of heart along the way.
The convergence of events has played out well and with all the main players on the ship now it all comes down to the last frantic moments. Action is mostly the name of the game here as we get Maleev working up several good scenarios that involve dealing with the deadly brothers that have now become Sith-infected. There is a little Darth Maul kind of style to them to be sure, but it doesn’t feel like it’s existing solely on that. What we get out of them, especially as they reveal more of themselves to those that are about to die, is something that just adds a bit more menace. Interestingly, though, is that when Chanath begins to really face off with them we realize that as good as they are there are those that are much better. I really enjoyed the action aspects and some of the character interactions with it, especially with Korin trying to find the right path amid it all, and we get some good overall atmosphere and tension with it to make it feel like it’s got enough weight and meaning.
The best material revolves around Lobot, so much so that it makes me want to revisit Empire in order to look more closely at the character there. With Chanath on the ship and there being more meaning between the relationship that the three have, everything turns chaotic when the only option is to blow the ship up in order for her to protect Lando and Lobot. It’s not convoluted but it takes a little wrangling to get there. The downside is that Lobot hasn’t fully healed and taking him out early means a strain on how he pushes back against the neurological side that’s trying to take over. That it forces him into a position of giving into it is no surprise as we’re getting the reveal of how Lobot became what he is in the film, but it’s surprisingly strong with its emotions and meaning, both with the whole Wrath of Khan moment and the recorded message afterwards. It explains some of what Lando tries to do in the future and the nod towards his really becoming invested in the Rebellion eventually. It’s a great tie that still leaves an immense amount of story potential between the two.
In Summary:
The finale for Lando ties a lot of things up and mostly provides some good closure. There are areas that one would like to explore more to be sure, but this series really did a great job of expanding our understanding of how your average folks view the Empire, Jedi myths and more. Soule and Maleev really bring Lando to life here and infuse him with what Billy Dee Williams did with him in the films. The result is a book that feels far more connected than most of the others do simply because of that personality. I don’t truly hear the voices of the other actors in these books. I thoroughly enjoyed this series issue by issue and I imagine those that read it all in one sitting will find it to be an even better read. Great stuff that has me hoping this creative team gets another stab at the character in the future.
Grade: B+
Series Grade: A-
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Marvel Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: October 7th, 2015
MSRP: $3.99
