Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order – Dark Temple #1

Leading into Jedi: Fallen Order™ the upcoming third-person action-adventure Star Wars™ title from Lucasfilm and Respawn Entertainment, DARK TEMPLE follows the Jedi Master ENO CORDOVA and his impulsive Padawan CERE JUNDA on their most dangerous mission yet. The Jedi Council has sent them to the remote planet Ontotho to oversee the peaceful excavation of a mysterious temple that has been uncovered. But they will come to find that what surrounds the temple may be even more dangerous than the mysteries within it. Clandestine local resistance forces and ruthless corporate security troops in a war for the fate of Ontotho – and the Jedi are caught in the middle!

As a long time Star Wars fan, I love what Marvel is doing in the Star Wars comics – splitting them into three clear ages, each with their own heroes and tones. It’s a near-perfect solution for someone wanting to like Star Wars, but not wanting to hear all the hate. If you don’t like Hux, don’t read his comic, and I won’t have to hear you rant about it.

But the comics themselves aren’t always as bright and promising as this strategy is. Take, for instance, Jedi Fallen Order – Dark Temple. I was super excited to pick this one up, expecting new stories from an age in Star Wars history that doesn’t get as much attention as I think it deserves. And sure, the names and settings have changed. There’s new characters to meet and new planets to explore, and that’s great. And it’s pretty – the art is this volume is beautiful, which I’ve come to expect from almost every Star Wars book. Still, this issues fails to impress. The time and location jump all over, so little is seen in any one setting. Sure, it introduces a lot, but it doesn’t make me care about any of it. And I just don’t want to read about ANOTHER impulsive padawan who doesn’t listen to their master’s guidance. This is, like, the fourth one! That’s not original. And an original story about the Age of Republic is what made me want to buy this book before I even opened it.

I have to admit, I’m a sucker for Star Wars, and I want all the ages to do well. So I’m going to read this series. I am going to pick up issue two, and unless it’s horrible, I’ll buy three and four and all the rest. I just hope I’m as excited for those as I was for this one, before I read it.