ADVANCE REVIEW! Star Wars: Dawn of the Jedi #0 will go on sale Wednesday, February 1, 2012.
Are you an aspiring Je'daii? A reader looking to learn everything about Dark Horse's upcoming Star Wars title; Dawn of the Jedi? Are you just really curious about the beginning of the Force? Well if you are any one of these things then look no further than Dawn of the Jedi #0. This issue serves as a guide for series they're launching in February. Is it necessary? Probably not, but it does give the reader a good jump start on everything that is going on.
This guide is really for the Star Wars enthusiast. It gives detailed information on planets and ships you should expect to find in this series. It catches you up on all the heroes and even introduces a supposed villain in Xesh, the Force Hound. Dawn of the Jedi brings you to the earliest point of understanding with the Force. There are no Jedi, there are no Sith; at least not as we know them. Those who have mastered the Force remain neutral in balance. If you are too far into the light, you must go study the dark and vice versa.
So far there is a lot of infrastructure that mirrors the current Star Wars universe. They really seem to follow the mantra of history repeating itself. The ships even seem to have similar feels to their descendants. Some may harp on this as a cop out, however I feel like it fits in the annals of history. The Republic was built on this fledgling civilization so it makes sense that a lot of future tech came from this early mecca of science and meditation. Think of this as the "Egyptian" era in the Star Wars universe, or perhaps the renaissance.
The guide is filled with some pretty wonderful artwork. Duursema delivers some great sketches throughout the guide. From places to people, and even tech, it all looks good (mostly). Some of the color drawing towards the end, specifically Tasha Ryo and Shae Koda, look kind of silly in the face. Other than that it all flows well and the black and white sketches really stand out. The landscapes of Tython are varied and each one holds a certain beauty. Duursema truly stands apart when it comes down to the landscapes.
This issue really isn't key, but for those who really like to have as much knowledge as they can it should be considered a must buy. This guide chock full of back story and character bios. It will give any reader who picks it up a firm base to start the series on. They'll know what is going on and know just exactly who are the players in the galaxy.
Dylan B. Tano is a relatively new reviewer powered by a love of bacon and constantly distracted by a kitten who would rather use his laptop as a bed. He grew up idolizing Spider-Man and can’t believe he gets to review comics all day.
You can read some of his short stories at tanoworks.tumblr.com