In March of 2015, Marvel Comics began publishing their first Star Wars mini series since re-acquiring the license. The title, and subject, was Princess Leia. The five issues of the limited series were written by Mark Waid, with art by Terry and Rachel Dodson. It was collected in its own trade paperback.
Synopsis (Part I)
Where's Bob Hudsol?
Our story opens at the tail end of the medal ceremony following the destruction of the Death Star. Princess Leia makes a quick speech memorializing the Rebel losses in the battle as well as the obliteration of Alderaan. In fact, the speech may be a little too quick as a couple of people in the audience remark on Leia’s apparent coldness. I wonder what they would think of her snubbing Chewbacca after Han died? Anyway, Dodonna steps up and tells everyone to get in gear and commence evacuation of the base. Following the ceremony, Leia seeks out Dodonna to find out what her next mission for the Alliance will be. He tells her she isn’t getting out of his sight because the Empire is seeking out surviving Alderaanians for reprisals and has a 10,000,000 credit bounty on her head. Making her way through the base, Leia comes upon Evaan Verlaine, an Alderaanian pilot who survived the attack on the Death Star in her Y-Wing. Evaan is at first deferential to her princess, but when pressed by Leia reveals her anger at Leia’s coldness and reserved reaction to the loss of their home. Evaan was mentored by Queen Breha and is loyal to the throne; she explains that showing Leia respect, even if she doesn’t like her, is her way of preserving what little of Alderaan is left. Evaan tells Leia that it’s not just some, but all Alderaanians, that the Empire is hunting down. That’s when Leia realizes what her next mission is. She sends Gen. Dodonna a holo explaining that it is her sacred duty to gather and protect every last surviving son and daughter of Alderaan. At the same time, she, Evaan, and R2 are making their escape from Yavin. Luke and Wedge are dispatched to stop them, but a cunning ruse (a clever attempt to trick them) by Evaan allows them to slip away into hyperspace. Their first stop: Naboo.
Leia has a fateful encounter on Naboo.
In the ship, en route to Naboo, Leia recalls a lesson taught to her by her father. In particular she remembers him telling her that, as Queen, it will be her responsibility to protect the people and traditions of Alderaan; to keep their culture focused on creativity, love, and life. “I’m sorry father...for failing you”, a downcast Leia says as she sits alone. As they arrive on Naboo, Leia tells Evaan that there is an Alderaanian cloister on the planet; little known but long standing. It’s actually a group of musicians who only perform via holo. The keep themselves sequestered in order to avoid polluting their music with outside influences. While Leia is entering Theed from the spaceport, she sees a large profile picture of Queen Amidala. She is captivated by it, and for an instant it seems to turn and look at her. She shakes it off as an illusion and keeps going. They meet with Lord Junn, an old acquaintance of Leia and her father. He tells them that the melodic order can be found working for a club owner in the city of Keren. He tells Leia to use his name to get in and get them, the club owner is in deep debt to him. Meanwhile at the club in Keren, Madame Pareece, a fellow Alderaanian who acts as go between for the musicians and the club owner, is approached by Tace, one of the musicians. She wants to send a message to Alderaan to check on her sister, she senses something is wrong. It turns out Pareece has not told the performers about the destruction of their planet; she has been pressured by the club owner to keep it from them in order to keep them performing. Leia and Evaan arrive and the club owner grudgingly agrees to turn them over to her (she is impersonating an Imperial minister); however, one of his Besalisk bouncers slips up and calls her princess. They know who she is! A fight ensues and although they take out the three Besalisks, the club owner is about to get off a shot when he is felled from behind. It was Madame Pareece. She recognized Leia when she arrived and now sees her chance to make things right. Leia addresses the cloister, telling them that their creativity will keep their planet alive. She invites them to come with her, and reclaim every last orphan of Alderaan. Leia then returns to Lord Junn’s palace and confronts him at blaster point. She knows he betrayed her. In exchange for his life, Leia asks for and receives a ship, capable of carrying at least 20 in comfort. Both ships set course for Sullust. On board their new ship, Tace is able to contact her sister. She tells her that she must mourn with her in person, and that she is leaving the order. Her sister objects. Tace must stay with the princess; but her sister insists that she stay in contact, tell her where she is going and what she is doing. In the final panel of the issue, we see that Tace’s sister is an Imperial officer.
No, that's not Nein Nunb.
On Sullust, a group of Alderaanians have purchased land in a labyrinth of caves, become basically paranoid about their security, and aggressively defend themselves against outsiders. A Sullustan guide leads them to the enclave. Leia and Evaan overcome a sentry and the princess comes face to face with the leader of the colony: Preserver Jora Astane. Jora seems unimpressed with Leia’s royal pedigree. They use the group’s surveillance equipment to scan Leia’s ships in orbit. To Leia and Evaan’s shock they discover an Imperial transmission was sent to the Lord Junn (the name of the ship that Lord Junn gave them) not three hours ago. Tace has remained in contact with her sister, feeding the Empire a steady stream of information about the group’s activities. At the same time, an Imperial cruiser enters orbit above Sullust. Jora is convinced that Leia and Evaan are Imperials and orders them shot. Meanwhile, an Imperial shuttle heads toward the planet to deliver a squad of stormtroopers. In their attempt to avoid death at the hands of their fellow Alderaanians, Leia and Evaan are aided by R2 and find themselves in an isolated sub-level. One of their pursuers remarks that the three won’t last long among the rockrenders (large beasts who consume the minerals in the rocks). The stormtroopers breach the compound from above, and Leia is afraid that more of Alderaan’s legacy is about to be wiped out when Artoo herds a bunch of the aforementioned rockrenders into knocking down the wall that separates them and tearing into the stormtroopers. Having witnessed Leia’s resolve to protect the remnants of Alderaan, and knowing now that she’s no Imperial, Preserver Jora Astane kneels in deference to her princess. Leia invites them to join her, and tells them she will need their help in uncovering the spy in their ranks. In orbit, the commander of the Imperial cruiser decides against sending in more troops; rather, he would like to see where Leia leads them next.
Review (Part I)
Princess Leia Issue 2 Cover A
When this series was initially released and I read it for the first time, I recall being pretty unhappy with the art. It’s not that it’s bad; but it’s very different from what Cassaday and Larroca were doing with the Star Wars and Darth Vader series at the same time. Reading it again now, I find my opinion has softened. As I’ve been exposed to more artists working on these comics I think I’ve come to better appreciate some of the different styles. In retrospect, I see now that this art is actually well suited to the subject matter. How so? Well, the subject is primarily Leia Organa, and secondarily the people and culture of Alderaan. Leia represents hope and defiance at the same time. She’s a woman who witnesses the complete destruction of her planet and yet never, for a second, thinks of giving up the fight. Alderaan and her people have always been defined by their dedication to art and peace. Somehow, I feel all that comes through in the art. There is almost a feminine quality to it, like if you took the FoD animation style but made it better. Princess Leia doesn’t look exactly like Carrie Fisher; but now that we live in a world were Han Solo doesn’t necessarily look like Harrison Ford, I guess it’s a little easier to accept. I’ll talk about the story/writing as a whole next week, but I would like to comment on a couple of aspects now: At one point Leia comes across Adm. Ackbar in the Yavin temple; he’s overseeing a loading crew and yelling at them about “being cursed with human hands is no excuse for clumsiness” and “stop looking at only one thing at a time!”. This doesn’t seem like Ackbar to me; he’s always come across as a fairly dignified figure. Well, as dignified as a fish man who dresses like an orderly in a 1930’s mental hospital can be. I also think the premise about some of the troops, including Evaan, thinking Leia is an ice queen is stretched a little thin. These are combat veterans who, you would think, would appreciate the need and ability to compartmentalize and stay in survival mode; or at least consider that Leia is still in shock and unable to express her grief. On the positive side, we are introduced to Evaan Verlaine, who I think turns out to be a good supporting character; and the Queen Amidala reference was a nice touch. Next week the conclusion of this mini-series.
