Star Wars #16: All in Luke’s Head

Luke has been on a journey since the events of The Empire Strikes Back. He has new lightsaber, he has a new hand, and now he is burdened with the very secret Ben Kenobi tried to shield him from. Darth Vader was once the Jedi who was Luke’s father. In this series, Luke has really taken a background position almost since the beginning. A lot of the series has dealt with Leia, Lando, and the small bits of the Rebellion around them. Luke has been a bit timid as of late, and it is clear he is going through some serious PTSD. This gets directly addressed in this issue as about half of it takes place in Luke’s mind. There is plenty of Vader fighting action and Leia and the gang in danger and sneaking about, as well as some Imperial officers in space monitoring the events. All these pieces build up to be a very well balance issue, however the introspection of Luke is the real gem in this chapter.

The “Darth Vader” series that has been coming out alongside this one had a running theme of Vader’s memories and thoughts being a centerpiece of the story, often times focusing solely on his confrontation with Luke on Bespin. These images were always tinged in red. This issue of the “Star Wars” series turns that idea around and features Luke in the same theme but now tinted in blue. The images aren’t just memories, but Luke’s active thoughts about what he could have done differently during his fight with Vader on Bespin. In these thoughts, Luke carries his current Yellow lightsaber. This lets the audience know Luke is in the present, and not simply reliving a traumatic memory. Unfortunately the toll that fight took on his morale shows even in his thoughts as he envisions himself dying in various different ways at Vader’s hand. That is completely how The “Darth Vader” series worked, making this issue a fantastic equal but opposite take on it. Both Father and son experience thoughts and memories of each other in a similar but opposing way.

Of course this series is part of the “War of the Bounty Hunters” greater multi-series event, and it moves the overall plot a bit further, but at a slow pace. This could even be considered a skippable issue for the larger tale as most of the stuff with Luke is almost more a nod to the films than the larger event. That being said, there is a bit of pirate and criminal action in this chapter, but it is mostly limited to a page of two. While Luke contemplates his fight with Vader, Leia and her crew are mostly there to let Luke know how things are progressing on planet and how much danger they are in. No pressure. Vader is locked in a battle with Qi’ra, keeping him warmed up for Luke at the same time. However this issue takes a surprising turn at the end when it seems like Luke arrives in time but finds he is not up to the task, making for an amazing cliffhanger to keep readers reading.