Darth Vader Returns to Marvel
Technically he never left, but the black-clad Sith Lord has had two ongoing monthly series from Marvel in recent memory with this being the third. The most recent was the 25-issue series that was absolutely brilliant from start to finish (and one I hated to see come to an end). While that prior series took place during the tale end of Order 66, the new series picks up during the events of The Empire Strikes Back when he and Luke faced off in person for the first time.
The latest Darth Vader series is written by none other than Greg Pak who has an extensive resumé with Marvel, penning such titles as X-Treme X-Men, Chaos War and World War Hulk. Marvel definitely has their man here as Pak has proven time and again to be more than capable at the storytelling helm. He is joined in the series with Raffaele Ienco. Ienco’s body of work includes tales like Batman: Sins of the Father, Fantastic Four and also Black Knight. After reading the first issue, this tandem looks to be a solid match-up with Ienco’s visuals working expertly with Pak’s dialogue.
The premier issue of the newest Darth Vader ongoing series was, at the very least, an enjoyable read. It will be very difficult, in my opinion, to top the greatness that came out of that prior series. Nevertheless, there are plenty of gaps to fill during time spanned between the original trilogy films and these monthly series help fill in those blanks.
Darth Vader is on the hunt for Luke Skywalker after the debilitating injury Luke suffered during the lightsaber duel on Bespin. Accompanied by a platoon of Death Troopers, Vader sets off to begin his search for a son he unsuccessfully tried to convert to the dark side. Based on the run of Darth Vader series over the past four or five years, I would expect this journey to also have a run of about 25 issues, provided it maintains a large enough audience, which I do not see being a problem.
