Comics Darth Vader #25: End of Games, part 6 (of 6) (Series Finale!)

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Excellent ending to an excellent series! I loved the twist with Vader mind tricking the whale to basically kill itself (and it's crew) by flying into the star. The panel where Vader gains control over the Executor and Tagge looks at him with his eyes begging...priceless. An interesting way to wrap Tagge's story and "begin" Ozzel's. As for the whole Aphra being thrown through the airlock thing, it reminded me of the way Starkiller was "killed" aboard the Executor in TFU 1. I must admit, it kept me at the edge of my seat while reading it, although I was not surprised that she survived. It was a convenient way to cut her ties with Vader (possibly) for good while leaving the door open for future stories with her. Oh, and the ending where she jumps to hyperspace with her crew also reminded me a bit of the ending from the Shadows of the Empire video game. In any case, cool references to old Legends stories if done intentionally. The additional story with the tusken's was eerie in a good way.

 

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Just finished. Now we know what happened to Tagge, eventually. Interesting to see Aphra saved, sticking along with Beetee and triple zero. Decent issue, didn't really care that much about the last story. Cylos conclusion wasn't as awesome, because of the other events.

One thing I don't get though, did Vader actually try to kill her? Or did he do it to fool the emperor, and had his two droids and black Krrsantan waiting?

 

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Well, I think Aphra surviving was put in because of ... Marvel. It's still cleverly made, but I'm not sure if Gillen didn't plan to perma-kill her.

Some really chilling moments in this book. Tagge's panicked ramblings, Aphra's "death" ... Some very good lines too like the "I will make you ash." Loved all the Vader/Palpatine interactions. Palpatine constantly touches him on the shoulder like he pretends to be his friend. He's still trying to present this father figure to Vader which fits with the movies. Vader's vision of connecting to Luke was touching. There's just the tiniest hint of humanity, but it is drowned out by monstrous evil. It's nice to see that Gillen remembers just how evil Vader can be.

I'm very curious what happens with Aphra, the droids and Black Krrsantan. He seems to be part of the team now!

 

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I'm now believing that Star Wars: Classified will be about Aphra and not about Rogue One.

 

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We actually know exactly when Darth Vader #25 takes place thanks to Lost Stars, which previously placed Vader assuming command of Executor to almost exactly one year after the Battle of Yavin. So the entire Vader series happens over the course of about nine months to a little less than a year, depending on when one dates DV #1 (I personally place it at about three months after ANH to allow some room for HTTJ and other "right after ANH" stories), and ESB is still about two years away.

 

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OMG that issue was amazing. Kinda surprised about Tagge, kinda not. Aphra surviving is wonderful, she is one of my new favourite Star Wars characters and I am glad she got to live. I cannot wait to see more of her. Also the CODA was amazing, I really enjoyed it. I am hoping that we learn even more about Tusken Raiders now.

 

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Ah OK, I forgot that quote in Lost Stars. But I also placed the first story arcs of Star Wars and Darth Vader about two or three months after ANH.

 

Just read it.

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Awesome finale for an outstanding series (minus the art from time to time). Aphra is such a smart girl, I suspected Vader to kill her but I didn't expect her to fake her death this way, I originally thought she would use the emperor as some ind of protection which she admitted herself. Goodbye forever Cylo and co, you won't be missed. Goodbye Tagge, I wanted you to last a little bit longer but I guess it can't be helped.

Ozzel already? So does it means he's been the admiral for 2 years at least? That's kinda unexpected and not that bad compared to Legend. Definitively think the new ongoing will be about Aphra and the droids adventures with maybe Black Krrsantan. The emperor knows about Vader's activities but Aphra did say she didn't tell him his real secret. Yesterday, I saw an interview with Kieron Gillen admitting this series is NOT about the emperor finding about Luke, he says it's for another story but it's okay I'm not complaining.

The last panel was just so sweet, Vader was kind of being...well Vader and so it was nice to see a little something where Luke is concerned. The Tusken story was a nice touch and despite not having a single bubble, the story was easy to follow. Anyway, I usually have problems with the art but it wasn't as blatant as in other issues, so I'm glad it didn't lessen my enjoyment this time.

 

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I LIVE! Can't wait for the trade to actually read this one.

 

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Yeah, I'm happy for you. How was it in space, BTW?

 

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was I the only one getting a Darth Krayt vibe from the ending there?

 

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For now. Who knows how long the new book will last? It might be merely sentence postponed, not cancelled. Do not trust Darth Gillen.

 

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Please bear with me, I rarely let my Tagge fangirl flag fly, and today it's riding at half-mast.

Tagge was always my favorite minor character of the OT (and his scheming family's goofball antics were my favorite arcs of the original Marvel SW series), so I was overjoyed to see him live beyond ANH in the NEU. I knew he had to be out of the picture by the time of ESB, though, and I knew his condescending behavior toward Vader in issue #2 demanded comeuppance... I was eager to see how it would be delivered, and I'm most pleased!

It was entertaining to see Tagge's "Tarkin had vision, you have graphs" characterization pop up again. He staked his career on his models and statistics and at the bitter end he fell back on them to defend himself. "Well, that was quite a shake-up! But before you make any hasty decisions about my life, Lord Vader, please check out this sweet 7.4% gain in the shield array's short-term recharge, married to an efficiency increase of-- Kkkkkkk..."

I can't stop laughing at Tagge's dramatic reactions to Palpatine and Vader. The sheepishness! The incredulity! The puppy dog eyes! Aphra fans got the Frog Face, and now I have this wonderful series of expressions. Thank you for this gift, Gillen and Larroca. My starved fangirl heart was so happy to have him back for as long as we did.



...Oh, uh, I guess other things happened in this issue too. Non-Tagge things. Like the airlock scene. That was good. Extremely good.

 

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I'm still thinking she's eventually going to get a lightsaber in the back of her neck.

 

A great ending to a great series.

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I'm in two minds about Aphra's survival; part of me wanted see all lose ends tied up, but she was too great a character to dispose of. I hope she stays off the radar for a while, perhaps until after ROTJ. I loved how cruelly Vader tried to end her though, what a jerk.

I was sorry to see Tagge go, but it made sense that he was gone pre-ESB.

 

This was incredible........the comics have been ok I suppose, pretty good stories but i keep thinking DH would have done better, but this finale is the first time i have been completely blown away by a single issue since Marvel took over. I actually wish I'd written a page by page commentary during my first read

 

Great final issue. Well done, KG!

 

I thought the issue was amazing!!! Except for one thing.....sigh, so disappointing...

 

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Poor Tagge.

 

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Daaaaamn this was good.

I came into this issue already spoiled about Aphra’s survival, but nonetheless it was still awesome. I love love LOVE how Gillen writes Vader and how he convincingly managed a smooth transition between ANH!Vader and ESB!Vader. When Vader threw Aphra into an airlock, that was probably the coldest of Vader I have seen. He deliberately chose her worst nightmare to punish her and kill her. Brutal. But at the same time it wasn’t out of nowhere, Aphra did sell him out. Makes me wonder if Aphra had remained 100% loyal, would he have honored her a lightsaber death?

And I’m glad that Aphra, even though she tried to do everything she could to save her skin as expected, she still consciously kept Vader’s secret about Luke to her. I don’t know if she did it out of genuine loyalty or just principles, but it’s little things like this that enrich her character. I’m glad Gillen found a way to have her survive because it would really be a waste to kill off such a rare female character who is genuinely a “bad guy” out of choice, and not because she believed in some fake ideology or was raised like that.


Vader mind-tricking the ship’s brain to fly into the sun was great. And this baddass line:



Palpatine was so fun in this issue! He was having a blast with the whole situation and I love it when Palps is happy. He did come across as the evil version of a Proud Father to Vader, which I thought it was kinda sweet in a twisted way.

Tagge’s death was funny and unromantic, and so suitably in-character. I like how he died talking about graphs.

Also loved the little story with the raiders. In a way that’s how many religions come to be, when bad things happened and people attributed it to the gods being angry. I like the irony of Vader being worshiped by the people he hates the most.



Overall, this was a great ending for a great series. I’m going to miss these issues, but I’m also glad they ended this way.

 

Considering the initial promise of some of the story elements, I was a little disappointed with the finale:

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I'm not sure why the Cylo storyline is that easy to resolve other than "because". There is a model of Cylo's consciousness within databanks. Why is it confined to actual bodies? I would have expected that after 20 years and access to the Empire's best technology, he would have put in place an infrastructure that would allow his consciousness to be distributed along the Imperial data net. Indeed, I got that impression after the talk between Vader and Palpatine about how deeply Cylo's influence ran.

Tagge. Why fish him out of his assumed Death Star demise to have him die like he did? There seemed to be an opportunity missed here. Much was made of his graphs and bureaucratic way of doing things but in the end it was all talk and no show. (not to say that I took no satisfaction in watching the smug little man get what he deserved...he seemed to forget that he and Vader were on the same side of the Death Star issue)

The problem with these series, I always feel, is the scope of the writer's ambition and the slow burn method of writing that is popular within modern comics. Fan interest never sustains the series long enough to finish the grander story they may have in mind, and then they end flatly. Yes, I suppose I'm saying that I don't necessarily believe Marvel when they say that the series was always meant to stop at #25.

After 25 issues, the only thing that really happened is that Vader has slightly more hatred for the Emperor. The most significant character development has occurred within Aphra, and even that won't be fully realized until her own series is released.

Vader throwing Aphra out the airlock: It reminded me of Starkiller's death. I wonder if he suspected that she had a back up plan It was really the only way she could actually be allowed to live. If Palpatine knew Vader let her live, it would have diminished Vader in his eyes. Throwing her out of an airlike seems like the best option if you want the remote possibility of retaining the doctor's services in the future.

She appears dead so Palpatine doesn't think you're weak.
For all she knows, you tried very hard to kill her so she doesn't think you're weak for letting her live.
If she survives she's around for the future in case you need her. You're Vader. No one in the galaxy can hide if you want to find them.

After Vader's own experience, and his experience with people like Maul and Trench, he should know that if you really want someone dead, make their brain Force explodes in their skull or slice them down the middle like Captain Supervisor from Splinter of the Mind's Eye.

Finally, if she truly died, then she'd be unworthy of keeping her hide. It's all very Sith-y

So is Vader and the Executor going to show up in the main Star Wars series now?

 

Oh, I'm sure the Executor will turn up subtly, with no fanfare or bombast in the main book.

Oh wait, it's Marvel, no.... Expect a massive event say Vader Rampage! 8 issues, with spin-offs. Your bank account will never have been so crippled.

 

I am wondering which book they will use to feature Vader since he obviously sells and sells very well. They can only use him so much in the SW series. I think it's still possible that we'll get a new Vader series.

 

I'd love another Vader series set shortly after episode 3 where we see him and the 501st hunting down surviving Jedi, and it could include the inquisitors as well!