Star Wars: Darth Vader Volume 1 - Vader (Star Wars (Marvel))

Good solid start to this series, to a degree it's involved in setting the scene/setting things in motion, which will hopefully pay off in future volumes. So (given that it's the first of several volumes) it does feel like the first act of a larger story, but it's well done so you'll want to keep reading.I'm a fan of Kieron Gillen's writing and Salvador Larroca's art from their other work.If you're coming to this from a Star Wars background and aren't as familiar with this writer and artist, I'll say that Kieron Gillen is an excellent writer, he handles action well but is also a great observer of character.Salvador Larroca's art is very slick, it feels very well suited to space-age settings and starships. The characters from the films look like the actors (which helps both with recognizing who they are and also means you're not brought out of the narrative by thinking a character doesn't look like the film actor).Salvador Larroca is also well known as being a fast artist. From a comics point of view, this is a good thing in terms of consistency.Slower artists can slip behind schedule and sometimes (to keep the monthly issues of the comic on schedule) another artist might be used for an issue or two.When the individual issues of the comic are collected into a trade paperback like this, if there have been fill-in artists it can be a bit jarring if their styles are different and change back and forth partway through a storyline. However, Salvador Larroca does the art for all of this volume, so the style is consistent.Edgar Delgado's colouring in this volume complements the artwork well. Shading and "lighting" are well done and the result is some great-looking art.There are several characters who are created for the comic, particularly some "sidekicks" for Darth Vader who are interesting in their own right (and have been popular enough that there's a "Dr Aphra" spin-off comic for them).Darth Vader himself is well written, his character feels in line with the film version.Not being the most talkative of chaps, we see his emotions as much from his body language as from his words (this is where a good artist is important, as seeing a fist clenching can show a character's rage just as effectively as some angry dialogue).We also get to see some of what Vader is thinking about, with flashbacks to events in his past. It's a good way to give insight into what he's thinking without having him ramble on about what's on his mind.I enjoyed the story and it drew me in well; I've ordered the second volume to continue reading. I enjoyed the writing, particularly the characterisation, and the artwork was easy to follow (I was never unsure of what was happening) as well as looking great. The plot kept me interested, and I was as invested in the new characters as in the film characters.I imagine it's not an easy thing to fit a creative and interesting tale into an existing universe and timeline- we know Vader's ultimate fate, and what happens in the films. The film characters will all have to be returned to their respective places in the narrative. It's testament to Kieron Gillen's writing, then, that he's able to craft an engaging drama within these very specific boundaries, without it ever feeling contrived or like "filler".All in all I found this very enjoyable and would happily recommend it.

This book is a great read and picks up on the fallout of the destruction of the Death Star. So many consequences happened because of the Death Star and we see them here. I love the path Vader is put upon here. So much doubt surrounds Vader and his ability to aide the Emperor, Vader is in a position much similar to when he was Obi Wan's padawan. His views aren't conventionally Sith and it's up to Vader to prove that he is a worthy apprentice. From start to finish I asked myself will Vader prove himself or will be become something far greater than the Emperor? It starts to tease what we already know to happen by the end of the Original Trilogy and throws some memorable characters such as Boba into the mix also. Combine the Great storytelling with an evil version of our favourite pair of droids (Artoo and Threepio) and you can't go wrong!5*

This volume strives to fill the gap between A New Hope & The Empire Strikes Back, running parallel with Skywalker Strikes. It's mostly entertaining, but there are definitely some head-scratcher moments that feel out of place in the context of the original trilogy.

Disney hasn’t done the Star Wars saga a lot of justice since they bought it from George Lucas however, these Vader comics are probably the best thing to come from Disney within this franchise. The art style is beautiful and the references to the movies are so well done it’s as if they had it planned from the beginning. Vader is a very interesting character with a lot of history that is very over looked. These comics do his story justice in ways that the movies never could while keeping the story fresh. Granted some comics are better then others but on the whole these stories let us see deeper into the Star Wars universe and what Vader did during the original trilogy. This comic is not the first one of the series, so if you’re looking to start from the very beginning start with Imperial Machine which takes place right after episode three if I’m correct. But yes this is a must have for any Vader or Star Wars fans, the ending hits hard.

The comic itself is fantastic, and something I'd recommend to any Star Wars fan, young or old, long-term or new... together with Marvel's flagship Star Wars comic, it perfectly captures the atmosphere of the original trilogy and feels like a natural continuation of A New Hope, and is packed with interesting details, compelling worldbuilding, and amazing artwork. However, I have to knock off a star because my product arrived damaged, the parcel had been folded to fit through my letterbox which caused the comic's last few pages to be horribly creased. I've always had a positive shopping experience with Amazon and had no issues with the Star Wars Volume 1 TPB I ordered earlier this week, so this was quite disappointing.

Very good, very cool, like very much. Very good.

This is absolutely beautifully illustrated and I’m sure that this will be the start of the collection for this person bought as a Christmas gift will be buying more for their birthday in January

I thought this was such an interesting story (especially if you've read Skywalker strikes comic) all the characters are really well established and it's very emotional and very deep for a comic.It does vader justice gives a good insight into the events after a new hope. I haven't read the next book in the series but plan to.I love the artwork in this comic it's some of the best I've seen but in places the comic can feel a bit slow and I'd you haven't seen the film's of star wars or read any other novels I'm not sure you'll like this.So I would recommend this to Darth Vader fans and general fans of star wars if you are into comic but if your not into reading you can probably give this a miss.