“Crimson Reign” continues to hum along, apparently, as Darth Vader finds a sandstorm in Star Wars: Darth Vader #25 written by Greg Pak, art by Raffele Ienco, colored by Carlos Lopez and lettered by Joe Caramagna.
Welp, it turns out this was the conclusion to nothing.
Last issue, it seemed like the series was building to a climactic conclusion to the “Crimson Reign” arc for the series’ twenty-fifth issue, but now that Darth Vader #25 is here, it’s clear that isn’t the case.
Instead of ending the story, Darth Vader #25 merely furthers it. Picking up more or less where the previous issue left off, Vader is in hot pursuit of the traitorous Imperial Governor Tauntaza, while Sabé and a reluctant Ochi work to save the colonists now that the governor’s world-devastating machine has been turned on the planet. The governor escapes (thanks to Crimson Dawn and some powerful engines) but Vader puts her Star Destroyer under the guns of the Executor, then returns to the planet to disable her weapon of mass destruction, as Sabé is maybe killed (but probably not) amidst the massive sandstorm being generated by Tauntaza.
It’s all…perfectly fine. Vader is the usual unstoppable force, though his routine is getting a bit repetitive: his attempts to use the Force to haul a ship out of the sky unintentionally echoes a similar move in the recent Obi-Wan Kenobi series (this ship apparently has better engines, and manages to escape) while his storming of Governor Tantaza’s Star Destroyer has shades of his closing act appearance in Rogue One. Artist Raffele Ienco also repeats an artistic trick, using a full page splash of Vader surrounded by smaller panels of close-up action to present his assault. It’s still effective, but lacks the punch it did the first time.
Meanwhile, Sabé projects an air of inscrutability that masks genuine concern for others, Ochi is snarky and self-serving, the one-dimensional Governor Tauntaza twirls her metaphoric mustache. This is all what we’ve come to expect from the series at this point, and it’s all competently handled.
But it feels like writer Greg Pak has lost the threads of the story a bit (or perhaps I just have). Valance is gone, the weird team of assassins and freedom fighters he ostensibly leads in pursuit of Crimson Dawn agents is nowhere to be found. Governor Tauntaza’s endgame and motivations remain unknown, beyond “harness a planet’s energy” and “because Crimson Dawn.” Vader started this storyline intent on bringing order to the galaxy, and that led to his encounter with Sabé, which led to him testing Sabé, which led him to this planet, and now’s he’s fighting a sandstorm, and it all just feels like we’ve gone too far afield of where it all began.
The best moments of this issue are the ones which, rightly, ground Vader himself in the narrative. His particular fury at the weapon being deployed against him coming in the form of a sandstorm is a hilarious nod to the character’s memeworthy hatred of particulate rock, and the cliffhanger – in which Vader is poised to ride the unrideable podracer built by his childhood friend – resonates because it serves as a bridge between present day Vader and the innocent child of The Phantom Menace. That connection – and contrast – is what makes Sabé’s presence in the story arc so electrifying. When the issue zeros in on that, it crackles. But unfortunately, those moments are few and far between, surrounded by a different storm of fleeting action and minor plot advancements.
To be clear, there’s still space to resolve all this and wrap up the arc with satisfaction (though the lack of the “Crimson Reign” banner on both this issue and next issue’s covers suggest even the graphics department is unsure whether this is all still part of that larger narrative arc). The whole thing might also end up reading better when it’s over, with the full view of the plot and the character arcs revealed. There’s also plenty of enjoyable stuff happening on the margins – Ochi still has his moments, Sabé’s continued involvement remains intriguing, and there remains a raw thrill in watching Vader do bad things to bad people. But the longer the story goes on, the harder it’s becoming to see what the point of it all is meant to be.
Austin Gorton also reviews older issues of X-Men at the Real Gentlemen of Leisure website, co-hosts the A Very Special episode podcast, and likes Star Wars. He lives outside Minneapolis, where sometimes, it is not cold. Follow him on Twitter @AustinGorton
