Age of Republic: Special comic

"Age of Republic: Special"

     This was three stories in one! For some reason I thought there were going to be four, but oh well. I was super pleased with the three I did get!! The flow was odd as all three stories were introduced in the very beginning with synopses and then only introduced in the comic itself by way of new location tags, the endings of the previous story stamped with the symbol of the Jedi. I wish they had been delineated more clearly. Aside from that super picky thing, I loved these!! They were short and sweet and crazy enjoyable, spanning a wide swath of the prequel timeline. I am most content.

"The Weapon" written by Ethan Sacks, illustrated by Paolo Villanelli and Erick Arciniega

     This story takes place before The Phantom Menace with Chancellor Valorum having sent the Jedi to investigate terrorists in the Outer Rim. 

     We start on Oosalon in the Outer Rim Territories with Mace Windu in captivity at the hands of a band of adherents to the Warlord Guattako the Grim who calls his people "freedom fighters" and says his goal is to "bring true freedom to this quadrant." Quia and Kyossk are Windu's immediate captors--I have no idea what species they are. Apparently 26 of Guattako's "followers" are mere children who he kidnapped after killing their teachers! Mace won't let this rest.  

     We get a glimpse of Plo Koon, Qui-Gon Jinn, Kit Fisto, and Depa Billaba although they really have nothing to do with the story.

     "The Weapon" is a poignant title for this tale, but I won't give away why. I will say we learn what the first 2 lessons Mace learned as a youngling were (see a picture of him at this age below) and one of them was intriguing (although makes sense if you think about it) while the other was not so surprising and ties in directly to this story.

     I quite enjoyed this one! It had a twist in it that I did not see coming and a fascinating new warlord--again, no clue what species he is...is Grim a species??? or just a reference to his attitude? It was the perfect story for Mace and although short, I think delved into his character a bit (showing his true heart) as the story came to its conclusion. 

"Sisters" written by Jody Houser, illustrated by Carlos Gomez and Dono Sanchez-Almara

     This story takes place in the middle of Season 5 of The Clone Wars--between episodes 18 and 19 which is right after Ahsoka gets accused of enacting the Jedi temple bombing and right before Asajj teams up with Ahsoka to escape capture. And it turns out this story directly ties into that Clone Wars story!!...at least it acts as a direct segue...

     We start on Coruscant where Asajj has just gotten the money for a bounty she collected and sees the advertisement for Ahsoka's bounty. She immediately determines to accept the challenge. But along the way she gets tangled up in a dispute between locals over some food--one huge guy and two tiny Zygerrian-esque sisters (see image below). Asajj decides to do what's right and attacks! 

     Although this one felt super short, I really liked seeing Asajj be real and human. She reflects on her past with her sisters and displays caring behavior toward those in need. I think that plays along nicely with some of the other hints we get of her true character in The Clone Wars and Dark Disciple. And the title of "Sisters" is an obviously good choice for a couple of reasons.

"501 Plus One" written by Marc Guggenheim, illustrated by Caspar Wungaard and Cris Peter

     This story takes place toward the beginning of Season 1 of The Clone Wars--between episodes 4 and 5 which is after the Malevolence arc and before Rex and Cody go to the Rishi moon to check in on the cadets stationed there.

     We start at the end of The Battle of Arantara where Anakin imparts a lesson to Rex that he takes to heart and implements in the following battle.

     We then get The Battle of Mimban with the 501st!!! So our first chronological glimpse at action on the swampy planet! Rex is yelling to Hardcase (as they are in the midst of heated battle with the Separatists), "Get the senator out of here!" To which Hardcase replies, "Would love to! He shouldn't even be here in the first place!" And Rex responds, "We needed a swamp native to interface with the Mimbanese." And lo and behold if it isn't Jar Jar Binks on the next panel!!! See image below. I guess he certainly is a swamp native! But to engage him in important diplomacy...hmmm...may not have been the best choice...

     Jedi General Laan Tik is there, saying he can hold his own, but he gets hit and authority then falls...to the senator...Jar Jar! Well, Rex asks all the men to fall back and evacuate but has other plans for himself. I won't give it away here, but I will say that Jar Jar helps him enact some heroics and it is *chef's kiss*. I love seeing my favorite Gungan in action and acting the hero nonetheless!! Without him, who knows where Rex would've ended up. So good!

     I loved this one for the lesson it taught and the good side it put on Jar Jar while also incorporating the wariness all the characters have toward him. It was perfection and made my little fangirl heart super happy. And as for the title, well that one's self explanatory.

     So overall this was a fabulous collection of stories and I am so pleased with the range of timelines incorporated! It was super cool too how they placed two of the stories within the Clone Wars timeline in the midst of the TV show's action! This is story-telling at its best, getting into the nitty gritty details of everything and not letting up until all is known. I loved it! Can't wait to see how the specials go with "Age of Rebellion" and "Age of Resistance"!