Star Wars: Shadow Of Maul #3 (Marvel Comics)
Hello there! Padawan J here, the resident Star Wars expert from the ODPH! This week I'm going to be reviewing the 3rd issue of Star Wars: Shadow Of Maul from Marvel Comics!
Darth Maul is on the loose, and he’s working in the shadows trying to build his empire. All the meanwhile Sidious is building his Empire and it’s total domination. So just what is Maul’s plan to rule the underwold? Let’s jump into it!
Credit: Marvel Comics // Star Wars: Shadow Of Maul #3 by Benjamin Percy (Writer), Madibek Musabekov (Artist), Luis Guerrero (Color Artist), VC’s Joe Caramanga (Letterer) & Derrick Chew (Cover Artist)
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
The Story
Reading this issue through the lense of someone who’s already watched all of the episodes for season 1 of Darth Maul: Shadow Lord made for an interesting reading experience with this issue. There isn’t anything in it that spoils the show, but knowing what happens to certain characters made the book a little bit more interesting.
Benjamin Percy does a fantastic job capturing the feeling of the television series in a brilliant way, and also keeps some of the same tone of mystery around it. It makes for a really interesting reading and one that really works for Star Wars. We’ve seen a lot of different sides of the galaxy throughout the years in various forms. However one we’ve not really seen a ton of is the underworld side. So to be able to get to explore the seedy underside is a nice breath of fresh air, and for the record the fact that Maul is involved does not hurt this at all.
The story in this issue is another great entry into the series and it’s chockful of crime drama that would give Law & Order creator Dick Wolf a run for his money, subterfuge and double crossing. I really like how the issue focused on Brander Lawson and explored a little bit more of his character. He’s new the universe and I’m always a big fan of giving the new characters a lot of time under the spotlight, and this comic series is doing just that.
It’s going to be interesting to see where this comic ultimately goes, because it’s now halfway done. This is only a miniseries with only 5 issues being in the series, so with it being a prequel to the animated series it’s going to be interesting to see how close Benjamin Percy gets to the start of the television series. I like the path he’s taking with the series, and the job he’s doing is absolutely brillant.
The Artwork
Madibek Musabekov & Luis Guerrero continue their incredible job with the artwork in this issue. They do a great job capturing the look & likeness of the characters who appear in the animated series in a near perfect way. The way the issue is drawn and colored really do a great job establishing the tone and setting the mood for how things are going. It’s an extremely dark time in the Star Wars galaxy and Madibek & Luis do a fantastic job capturing that feel with their artwork.
Overall Grade: 9/10
If you’re a fan of the animated series & hate that you have to wait for season 2 this series is a fantastic way to fill the void. This series establishes Maul in a way we’ve never seen and needs to be experienced by all. Percy’s writing is stupendous & together with artwork that is immaculate, this is an issue you cannot pass on!
