Throughout the entirety of the Star Wars saga – movies, television shows and of course comics – there’s been one subject that’s barely been touched upon. That subject? Droids. On the one hand, they’re machines who can think and even feel. On the other hand, they’ve more or less been in some form of servitude to flesh and blood beings. Enter Star Wars: Dark Droids #1 from Charles Soule, Luke Ross, Alex Sinclair and Travis Lanham.
Spinning out of the events of multiple Star Wars books – including the Crimson Reign storyline – Dark Droids #1 unleashes the artificial intelligence known as the Spark Eternal upon the galaxy. Having infused its consciousness in a droid, the Spark now turns to other droids…including droids that serve the Empire as well as the Rebel Alliance. Suffice it to say, if you have a favorite Star Wars character, they’re in deep danger.
At this point, I’m probably beating a dead horse but it bears repeating: Soule is one of the best things to happen to the Star Wars universe. No matter what title he tackles, he’s been able to expand upon nearly every era. Soule’s also tackled a lot of areas that other Star Wars stories haven’t, particularly when it comes to fan-favorite characters like Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker. Here he delivers a truly terrifying tale, which builds up the dread and ends on a whopper of a final page. “Droids are everywhere,” is a mantra repeated throughout the issue and never has that been more terrifying. What happens if the droid piloting your spacecraft sends it plummeting through the atmosphere? Or what if the droid trusted to save your life does the exact opposite?
To help bring this macabre storyline to life, Soule turns to Ross and Sinclair. Ross does a wonderful job of cross-cutting between various characters, as well as showcasing the intricacies of their relationships. The opening pages feature a quiet moment between Luke and R2-D2, showcasing the bond the young Jedi has with his droid; then it cuts to a page of Darth Vader violently carving a training droid in half, which once again reinforces that the Dark Lord of the Sith is far less merciful than his son. Nearly every important droid, from Chopper to fan-favorites 000 and BT-1, show up, rendered in exquisite detail by Ross.
Sinclair understands that this is a horror book through and through, and to that extent he drenches the book in shadows. In fact the only light at times comes from the reflection off of Imperial droids’ cold steel surfaces, as well as the purple aura glowing in their eyes when the Spark takes over them. Purple also seeps into Lanham’s lettering, which takes on the hard-edged and cold form you’d expect from a machine.
Star Wars: Dark Droids #1 is a horror-tinged tale that finally touches upon one of the unanswered questions of the Star Wars universe. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next issue, especially as it looks like no character is safe from the Spark Eternal’s influence.
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