REVIEW: ‘Star Wars Adventures: The Weapon of a Jedi,’ Issue #1

Star Wars Adventures: The Weapon of a Jedi #1 is a comic book adaptation of the junior novel of the same name by Jason Fry. The adaptation is published by IDW Publishing, written by Alec Worley with art by Ruairí Coleman, colors by Chris O’Halloran, and letters and design by Amauri Osorio and 49 Grad-Medienagentur. Luke Skywalker is sent on a rather boring mission for the Rebel Alliance, but strange visions from the Force and his mandate to find a new master after the death of Ben Kenobi have him rather distracted on Devaron.

This comic adaptation of a 2015 junior novel is lightyears ahead of the last one from IDW, Smuggler’s Run. Where that comic was a colorless, dry story, this series is intriguing and full of life. You know it has excellent art when even the scenes in deep space are full of color. They’re adorned with stars, little color variations that almost look like nebulas, and brilliant greens and reds lighting everything up in dogfights. Planetside, there’s this really soft color palette. The sky isn’t exactly sky-colored, it’s a bit lighter, but it adds a character to the whole book that feels well-balanced. The whole planet is just lovely to look at, day and night.

It’s hard to critique a comic that’s adapted from a 6-year-old book printed at the beginning of the modern Star Wars publishing line. Since then, so many other stories have been told, and the overall shape of the Star Wars universe has changed. But the story is entirely serviceable, if not a bit oblique. I don’t fully know what is going on, what Luke’s Rebel mission is supposed to be, or what mystery of the Force is puzzling him. But, at the same time, it’s Luke Skywalker, and I don’t feel like I need to know much else to know the general shape of what kind of story he’s getting himself into. If I didn’t know this was an adaptation, though, I wouldn’t have guessed it. The translation of the book script into a comic script is seamless and never feels like it’s over-encumbered by exposition or narration in place of dialogue.

I also really appreciate the diversity of the Devaronians. It can sometimes feel like, in Star Wars, every member of a species looks exactly the same. Placing a story on a planet not primarily inhabited by humans is rare enough as it is. I enjoyed that the different Devaronians shown in the comic have different body shapes and sizes. The one complaint I have is the inconsistency of Luke’s face. Sometimes, it looks just as stylized as everyone else looks in the comic. Other times, especially in closeups, it just looks awkward and unpleasant.

Star Wars Adventures: The Weapon of a Jedi #1 is a great adaptation of a junior novel many fans may never have read, especially thanks to it its brilliant colors.

Star Wars Adventures: The Weapon of a Jedi #1 is available wherever comics are sold.