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Plot Summary: Before their military heroism in the Clone Wars, before their tragic battle on Mustafar, and many decades before their final confrontation on the Death Star...they were Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan learner, Anakin Skywalker. It’s been a few years since Obi-Wan pledged to train the young “chosen one,” but even as they have grown closer through training, it has been a difficult road. Now, called to a remote planet for assistance, Master and Padawan may be pushed to the breaking point. Writer Charles Soule (Lando, She-Hulk, Daredevil) and artist Marco Checchetto (Star Wars: Shattered Empire, Avengers World, Punisher) bring us a tale of the Jedi at the height of their power...

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Writer: Charles Soule

Artist: Marco Checchetto

Colors: Andres Mossa

Letterer: VC's Joe Caramagna

Editor: Jordan D. White

Assistant Editor: Heather Antos

Comic Length: 5 Issues

Review by: Anthony

The current Marvel Star Wars comics are amazing. Great stories being told with great writers and artists. When I found out there was a short 5 issue story being written by Charles Soule, I knew I had to check it out.

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These issues tell a story that’s set approximately 3 years after the events of Star Wars: Episode 1 – The Phantom Menace. Master Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and his Padawan Anakin Skywalker respond to a distress call for Jedi assistance on a remote planet while also giving some flash-backs to Anakin’s Jedi training at the Jedi Temple on Coruscant and Anakin’s time being mentored directly by Chancellor Palpatine.

While short, this series hones in on a few key points throughout this story. Anakin Skywalker is easily manipulated, the Jedi order is not perfect, and sometimes the ends justify the means.

I really enjoyed how Anakin Skywalker is shown here. He’s a 12-year-old boiling pot of teenage angst and defiance ready to explode at the slightest frustration or setback not to mention he’s undergoing the vigorous and ever stressful Jedi training while simultaneously being preyed upon and groomed by Chancellor Palpatine.

Something I liked seeing in the movies was also shown here, awesome lightsaber skills. Anakin’s proficiency with the lightsaber is years ahead of his peers and their jealousy is on display when they mock him in not so hushed tones. During a lightsaber training session, he modifies his training droid to use a double-bladed lightsaber to mimic the foe his Master Obi-Wan defeated in Darth Maul in an attempt to show off in front of his peers and the Jedi Masters. Rather than praise and encouragement his arrogant and prideful actions are met with antagonization from his peers that state while he is gifted with lightsaber he’ll never be a good Jedi as he’s a *slave* to his emotions.

I also liked seeing one of the many instances where Palpatine gets his hooks into Anakin. We see him being taken on a field trip to the underworld of Coruscant by Chancellor Palpatine and is told of corrupt Senators that like to indulge in all manner of wretched behavior up to and including the trafficking of others for slavery. Knowing this is a touchy subject for Anakin, Palpatine has twisted young Anakin right into his hand.

Anakin’s age and emotions lead him to ask questions of Obi-wan. Anakin can’t understand why The Republic would allow tragedy to befall some planets, why the Jedi don’t help, and that if these are the results of “the system” then the whole thing needs to change. In reading this I would have some of the same questions too.

When being counseled by Chancellor Palpatine, Anakin questions “the system” again. He cannot understand why the Senate cannot act on corruption, he cannot understand why if the Senate cannot act then why don’t they make the Jedi act on corruption and if no one can step up and do what is right then who can.

It’s this type of questioning of authority and questioning of “the system” at large that lead to Anakin being taught that the end can justify the means by both Obi-Wan and Chancellor Palpatine.

Chancellor Palpatine laments to Anakin about a corrupt Senator. If only this unscrupulous Senator’s gambling addiction were nudged just a little bit in the right direction then the correct dominos could fall and justice could be served. The end would justify the means.

Obi-Wan intervenes in the ongoing war between The Open and The Closed saving many lives in the process. Master Kenobi calls for a massive Republic fleet to arrive as he claims to have found a valuable natural resource on the planet which the Republic would have a great interest in acquiring, and during the survey and acquisition there were not be any more warring between the two factions and peace might be born. Obi-Wan tells Anakin that it matters not whether there’s any true value in the natural resource that he claimed to have found because this war stoppage would save the people of this planet. The end would justify the means.

I loved the story told over these 5 issues. Emotional manipulation, lightsaber battles, and weighing the outcome versus the actions needed to get there.

The artwork is solid throughout. There’s a nice mixture of panel layouts, the faces for the characters aren’t lazily duplicated, and the text bubbles are well placed making it easy to follow the conversations.

Overall: This is a really good short story on the adventures of Master Obi-Wan Kenobi and his young Padawan Anakin Skywalker. The core elements of the story are seen over the prequel trilogy. If you’re into the current Star Wars comics, give this one a read.

You can purchase this comic from Amazon here!