“Crimson Havoc”
Creative Staff:
Story: Greg Pak
Art: Raffaele Ienco
Colors: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: VCs Joe Caramagna
What They Say:
With all secrets smashed and all traitors revealed, DARTH VADER unleashes his endgame! But is his target CRIMSON DAWN — or the EMPIRE itself? And where does that leave the heroes and assassins who have fought at his side? Plus, a shocking reveal that cuts to the very core of the DARK LORD’S dark heart!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The current storyline is one that certainly makes a lot of sense to be happening amid other events between films and but it’s also feeling like it’s eating itself with all the characters involved. Greg Park has made it interesting to see how it flows thanks to those that are aligned around Vader, such as Ochi and the various people working with Valance, which offers some solid variety. Raffaele Ienco’s artwork and layouts continue to be a great thing overall as he has such a solid take on these characters that stands out well. We’ve had some solid guest artists stepping in but I love the way Ienco lays out the page, the particular close-ups that he focuses on, and just the overall style of movement and intensity. Sinclair’s color design also works really well, especially in the more Imperial aspects of this installment, making for a really good return to form.
What we get here is the uncertainty of what Vader is up to, to a degree, but we know that it comes down to his servitude under Palpatine by the Return of the Jedi. And considering he’s spent a couple of decades in his grasp at this point, even with what we’ve seen we know he’s still got that bent knee here. Watching him use what’s in front of him is the main thing here as his involvement with Ochi and Sabe has him using them to understand just how big the infestation of Crimson Dawn is. And how he can use that to deal with the problematic side of the Empire as well. That key moment does come up here in talking about the factions of monsters that exist while trying to see what Sabe really represents has him again going back to his Anakin days about making people listen when someone knows what to do. He’s still in that position of believing his way is the way.
But that also proves to be the moment that has Sabe really coming to grips with who Vader truly is and calling him out on it by the end. This really isn’t any surprise and honestly she likely has known since much earlier. Being in the midst of reading the Queen’s Peril book about how the handmaidens were chosen and became such a key part of things for Padme highlights just how seriously Sabe would be taking all of this, and why she’d fall in with Crimson Dawn to do what she could for Padme and her legacy, even if only Sabe would know. It’s what makes the issue work for me even as we get a bit action set piece involving Ochi manipulating Romodi to bring Crimson Dawn and his Imperial forces against each other, resulting in them basically fighting to a standstill. Vader’s goal here is still elusive to me in a way but that leans into the general enigmatic aspect of the character.
In Summary:
While I enjoy a lot of the Vader book in general, this Crimson Dawn material has left me uncertain about what’s trying to be accomplished. It’s plans within plans and it’s unclear what’s actually true or not in terms of motivations. Which can be compelling at times but it’s just falling a bit flat for me in a number of ways. Where the book does succeed is with what we see with Sabe in how she composes and handles herself against Vader, easily reminding why she was the first and closest of the handmaidens of Padme’s and why she’s able to deal with Vader as she can. Part of me wishes they’d go into adapting and expanding some of those novels from that period, or just really giving us a lot more on Sabe in general. There are a lot of good stories to be had there and the taste of it we get here is strong.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Marvel Comics
Release Date: April 13th, 2022
MSRP: $3.99
