Today saw the release of the first issue in Marvel Comics’ adaptation of the 2018 Timothy Zahn novel Star Wars: Thrawn – Alliances, and below are my brief recap and thoughts on this debut installment.
The recent conclusion of the first season of Star Wars: Ahsoka on Disney+ brought with it some references to Lucasfilm Publishing materials that a good number of fans watching may not have been familiar with, so it makes perfect sense that this Marvel adaptation is arriving right now. In that live-action series, the character of Grand Admiral Thrawn mentioned that he knew Ahsoka Tano’s former master Anakin Skywalker and the Sith Lord he would become, namely Darth Vader. And here, we see how those characters first became acquainted with each other, brought to life in full color on the comics page after those events were detailed in Zahn’s excellent novel from six years ago. I should note that Timothy Zahn is also credited as a co-writer of this comic miniseries, though I’m not sure if that means he actually collaborated with the other credited writer Jody Houser (Star Wars: TIE Fighter) in adapting the novel or if he’s simply listed because his work provided the original source material.
Thrawn – Alliances is the story of the titular Grand Admiral being assigned to investigate a disturbance in the Force on the outskirts of the galaxy by Emperor Palpatine, alongside that Sith Lord’s apprentice Darth Vader. On the way to the planet Batuu (yes, that Batuu – the one you can visit yourself at Disney Parks’ Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge themed lands), Thrawn’s Imperial Star Destroyer is suddenly pulled out of hyperspace by a mysterious unseen force, so the Chimaera must take an alternate route to get there via another planet called Mokivj. In flashbacks, we see a mission that Senator Padmé Amidala once took to Batuu, and then Mokivj, somewhat coincidentally. Then we get parallel narratives of Thrawn visiting Black Spire Outpost with Vader in the “present” (the events of this story are set between seasons of the animated series Star Wars Rebels, in which Thrawn served as a key player) and Thrawn visiting the same location in the past (during the Clone Wars) with Padmé’s husband Anakin Skywalker.
As a fan and regular visitor of Galaxy’s Edge, it’s cool seeing Batuu and Black Spire pop up again in visual storytelling, though it was interesting to note how the familiar sites sometimes appeared as accurate to what you would encounter in the parks, and sometimes not quite as much so. Credit/responsibility for that should go to the artists Pat Oliffe (Spider-Girl) and Andrea Di Vito (The Invincible Iron Man), who– all nitpicking aside– do a great job of bringing the appropriate tone to the illustrations, alongside colorist Rachelle Rosenberg, who has become a familiar name to readers of Star Wars comics. Vader comes across as just the right amount of intimidating in the dialogue and drawings, while the likenesses and personalities of Padmé and Anakin also match what we’ve come to expect from them quite well. It was also neat to see Thrawn’s Chiss exploratory ship rendered in sequential art here, as I don’t believe we’ve actually seen it depicted outside of prose before, and it has a very nifty-looking design.
I haven’t made a secret about my distaste for Star Wars stories adapted from movies or TV into other media (I would almost always rather read something fresh and new), but bringing a tale I enjoyed from a novel into comic form is different to me. Here, for the first time, we get to see in what I could only picture in my head while revisiting a narrative that has only become more relevant in recent years thanks to developments in the ongoing Star Wars canon. And whether they are indeed working together or if Houser is merely translating Zahn’s existing contributions, these writers are absolutely excelling in keeping things interesting as the plot moves along. The dual confrontations (at two separate points in the timeline) that make up this premiere issue’s climax are the perfect way to keep readers coming back for more next month, and even knowing where things ultimately end up, I can’t wait to be reminded of the paths these characters take to get there in a new medium.
Star Wars: Thrawn – Alliances #1 is available now wherever comic books are sold.