With Marvel celebrating the first year of The High Republic, it’s as good a time as any to pick up some of the various multimedia releases set in this new era of Star Wars lore. Even though this trade collects #6-10 of the comic series by Cavan Scott, it’s a perfectly approachable run that doesn’t require much knowledge of the first few issues to enjoy. The Heart of Drengir arc is colorful, action-packed and provides enough newness to justify digging into this corner of the Star Wars universe.
This run focuses on the Jedi’s conflict with the Drengir, a plant-like species hellbent on devouring the universe. Their tentacle-like amorphous form works under a collective hivemind and is generally impervious to blasters and lightsabers. The Jedi Keeve Trennis is put center stage in this arc, and Scott’s script develops the character, giving new insight into her internal and external struggles. It’s a surprisingly dark story for a comic I initially assumed was for a younger audience; once Trennis is aboard a Nihil marauder’s ship, her moral foundation is challenged, opening many narrative doors for future runs. This some of the plot points established in this trade come to fruition by the end, it also leaves our cast with a cliffhanger to be addressed in a future arc.
Artists George Jeanty (#6-7, 10) and Ario Anindito (#8-9) do an admirable job giving each of the book’s characters distinct expressions and visual mannerisms. Seeing that readers are thrown into a sizeable, interconnected world, these clear character designs help keep the extended cast comprehensible. As this arc is action oriented, both artists do a respectable job giving the fight scenes vivacity while keeping the blocking comprehensible. The colors by Annalisa Leoni, Rachelle Rosenberg, and Carlos Lopez give this universe an animated feel, well in keeping with its tone and spiritual ethos.
The trade is well bound and includes variant covers at the end, although only some are full page prints. It’s also affordably priced, making this an easy way to pick up these five issues in a lean, collected edition for less than the cost of the individual cover prices.
I quite enjoy the initial rollout of The High Republic but found myself underwhelmed by the first releases. Thankfully, with this second collection of the comic series, this era of the Star Wars universe is getting some of the energy and worldbuilding it needed, opening interesting doors to new avenues of the galaxy far, far away.
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