Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews

Star Wars Invasion #5Star Wars Invasion #5 of 5
Dark Horse Comics
Taylor, Wilson & Dzioba

Star Wars Invasion wraps up the first arc with the core Solo group figuring out that the Vong are masquerading as humans while the counter offensive led by factions of Finn's family seems to be working well. The issue has some sneaking around and some level action, but for the most part it is not a big bang ending that you might expect from a finale. On the other hand the arc's ending doesn't leave any wide open cliffhanger either. Instead what the issue has is simply a gentle ending to the beginning of a much larger story. It's a perfectly good comic book, but doesn't deliver the usual Star Wars fanfare that you might expect in an ending issue.

Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle ReviewsThe issue opens with the jailbreak, led by Kaye, on the Vong's ship. This part of the comic may be the best as Kaye's character advances to become a full fledged leader. It's not just that she barks out orders and people listen to her, but she has the sarcasm and snappiness that you might have come accustomed to from Leia or Han from the movies. Kaye proves herself to be an interesting character and one worth watching.

The comic moves to Finn and the Solo family as they begin to track down a smuggler that has information about the Vong's invasion. The cat and mouse game that has Finn tracking various scum around the city is okay, but nothing too exciting. The plot development when they determine how the Vong have been infiltrating humans for years is where the story really jumps off the ground.

The comic ends as the reader begins to understand how the traitors are operating while some of the new characters begin to form a more widespread plan to fight back.

The issue has its ups and downs. Probably the most frustrating part of the comic is how difficult it is to distinguish the Solo children. Perhaps the majority of the audience has read the novels, but for those that have not it doesn't feel like any of the kids were established at all. To me, their dialogue is completely transferable to any other character and that's not a good thing.

The high point is the array of new characters we have and how they have been fleshed out. Whether it's the warrior, Arbeloa, Finn or the Queen, we have a bunch of new and interesting characters that are capable of supporting stories on their own. Sure, they fall into familiar stereotypes, but they have just enough uniqueness to make them likable.

The artwork is perhaps the best in this issue out of the whole series. I found the suspense and limited action to really add to the mood very well. I liked the color choices as well as I felt it turned away from the darkness of the previous issues which lends itself to some level of symbolic hope.

This mini series is just the first piece of the first act of the larger story. The comic book doesn't contain chases, huge gunfights or light saber duels. Instead it relies on laying out a long term plot using the slow burn style. It's a good comic that ties in new characters with established original trilogy characters very well. I enjoyed the story.

3.5 out of 5 geek goggles