Star Wars: Age of Resistance - Captain Phasma // Review
Since Marvel has taken over the Star Wars Expanded Universe (EU) under the Disney umbrella, they have managed to put out several quality comics over the years. The Darth Vader volumes have been amazing. Marvel has placed their best writers and artists on these titles. Unfortunately, when a new Star Wars movie is about to be released, Disney pulls out all the stops to promote it. Marvel is releasing a series entitled Age of Resistance. Some of these titles aren't up to par will still be put on the stands. Captain Phasma may be one of those.
Critically acclaimed comic book and screenwriter Tom Taylor pens the story. Leonard Kirk is on pencils with Corey Hamscher on the inks. The colors are done by the dope talent of Guru eFX. Again, Marvel assembles a good team for a Star Wars comics. Despite the talent, this story falls short.
Captain Phasma first appeared in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Her action figure and story was hyped before the movie aired on-screen. Her appearance, much like the famed Boba Fett in the original Star Wars trilogy, was brief and easily missed. The writers and director of the 8th installment of the franchise continued to hype her appearance and promised more of her in that sequel. Once again, her appearance was mostly comical. She has appeared in other Marvel Star Wars comics. In this Age of Resistance story, she is given more of a story.
'Taylor's story centers around a stormtrooper on the front lines of the First 'Order's galactic expansion. Just like the Empire, the First Order uses overwhelming force to spread its hegemony. The stormtrooper, KM-8713, is in the thick of things. She watches as her comrades are thrown up against overwhelming odds and are vaporized for it. In the middle of it, she watches as Captain Phasma plows through battle after battle almost unscathed. KM-8713 aspires to be like her superior officer.
There is this underlying theme throughout the Star Wars movies as well as the TV series that the clones and troopers are just cannon fodder for whoever is in charge. In this discussion, the Empire, the Republic, and the First Order seem to wear the same mask: their cause is the most righteous one no matter the cost. Taylor does a good job keeping this narrative going. The problem is that Captain Phasma is just not a compelling character. KM-8713 is not given enough time to be developed. So the story 'doesn't work.
The artwork is glossy and amazing. It is everything a reader expects from a movie franchise. Leonard 'Kirk's lines are clean, and Corey 'Hamscher's inks really emphasize them. The battles are drawn with big explosions. Oftentimes several big explosions in comics blur the details. The team of Kirk and Hamscher avoid this dilemma. The reader can actually see what is going on. Guru eFX always provides quality works. Guru consistently avoids blurring the pencil and ink lines. You can see each character. While the story focuses on two people, there are several stormtroopers and vehicles in several battle scenes. The colors are distributed equally, and there's no confusion.
As stated above, Marvel puts on some great Star Wars titles because of the writers and artists they schedule to work on them. Age of Resistance feels like a chance to promote the movies and make more money. The artwork is what saves the overall book.
