Thrawn too soon
Written by: Jody HouserArt by: Luke Ross
Colors: Nolan Woodard
Letters: VC's Clayton Cowles / Travis Lanham
Publisher: Marvel
Publication Date: 11 July 2018
I have to say this was one Star Wars series I was not in the mood for. Firstly the announcement of the series was soured from the off by the Associate Editor at Marvel who combined its unveiling with a session on Twitter trashing Boba Fett. Secondly, as I was sitting down to read this it was in the middle of a bad time in Star Wars, with a lot of negativity surrounding the franchise. Thirdly, I was dubious as to how a book that was quite dry and dusty (by Timothy Zahn's standards) would translate into the comic form. Now we have reached the concluding installment it's time to see if my anticipated grumbles came to fruition or whether I was pleasantly surprised.
Thankfully the latter - this series has turned out to be a true delight. Two main highlights. The first highlight was that Houser brought a real expert eye to the novel and judiciously selected the core material to draw out within the comic book form. The second was Ross and Woodard's art on the series, which despite the attractions of Rebels, is for me the definitive image of Thrawn in this new canon. Going back to the writing, this comic book miniseries is the place I will go to to get this story. I also really hope that they bring the Houser-Ross team back for the second Zahn novel Thrawn: Alliances in due course.
As for this specific issue, the conclusion to the book was the most exciting and most important in terms of drawing all the elements of the puzzle together. This translates neatly into this closing installment. There is a neat wrap up, and one is left in no doubt as to why Pryce and Thrawn have made it up the ranks. There are also some fantastic touches with the artwork nodding to the crew of The Ghost and Governor Pryce's and Thrawn's task in the coming months. Meanwhile, intriguing issues are raised with regards to Nightswan, Vanto and importantly the role that Thrawn will play in relation to the Chiss and The Empire. Gripping stuff - a lot is packed into a short space here.
Bits and Pieces
This was a thoroughly enjoyable conclusion and although there were a couple of dips in this series - which were a result of the source material - it finishes on a definite high. Ross's art and Woodard's colors sing on the page. This issue and this mini-series in the round have presented us with the definitive work on Thrawn so far in the new Disney Lucasfilm canon. Well done to all involved.
