Scan barcode
zare_i's review
4.0
This short story (only 50-something pages long) is about the rise of Dark Force cultists on Onderon with goal of restoring the overthrown royal family of city of Iziz.
Master Arca and his apprentices, brothers Ulic and Cay Qel-Droma and Twi'lek Tott Doneeta will soon find out that demise of the old witch-queen of Iziz did not end the influence of the Freedon Nadd, Dark Jedi from the times forgotten, on the planet Onderon.
I liked how cultists were portrayed - organized militia like troops led by Dark Force adepts. Images of them clashing with the Jedi's are very much like conflicts between Chaos cultists and Adaptes Custodes of Warhammer 40k Universe. Just like in W40K universe characters are truly legendary figures, strong beyond belief and wielding great powers.
Dark side's effect on the Jedi's shows that in old times Dark Jedi's were truly force to be reckoned with. I liked how corruptive effect shows on exhausted faces of master Arca's force as they fight the cultists and seek the source of the Freedon Nadd's influence.
Art here is your standard action comics style from the 90's. It might not be every-bodies cup of tea, sure took me a while to adjust but in the end I liked it.
Highly recommended to fans of Star Wars and SF/Fantasy.
Master Arca and his apprentices, brothers Ulic and Cay Qel-Droma and Twi'lek Tott Doneeta will soon find out that demise of the old witch-queen of Iziz did not end the influence of the Freedon Nadd, Dark Jedi from the times forgotten, on the planet Onderon.
I liked how cultists were portrayed - organized militia like troops led by Dark Force adepts. Images of them clashing with the Jedi's are very much like conflicts between Chaos cultists and Adaptes Custodes of Warhammer 40k Universe. Just like in W40K universe characters are truly legendary figures, strong beyond belief and wielding great powers.
Dark side's effect on the Jedi's shows that in old times Dark Jedi's were truly force to be reckoned with. I liked how corruptive effect shows on exhausted faces of master Arca's force as they fight the cultists and seek the source of the Freedon Nadd's influence.
Art here is your standard action comics style from the 90's. It might not be every-bodies cup of tea, sure took me a while to adjust but in the end I liked it.
Highly recommended to fans of Star Wars and SF/Fantasy.
jaredkwheeler's review
4.0
Star Wars Legends Project #8
Background: Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising was released in two issues August/September of 1994, but the trade paperback didn't come out until December of 1997. At one point, it was included with the other comics in [b:Tales of the Jedi: The Collection|390087|Tales of the Jedi The Collection (Star Wars Tales of the Jedi, #3)|Tom Veitch|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1174372740s/390087.jpg|379704] (my review here), and has since been republished solo. It was written by [a:Tom Veitch|59137|Tom Veitch|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66-251a730d696018971ef4a443cdeaae05.jpg] and pencilled by [a:Tony Akins|148764|Tony Akins|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66-251a730d696018971ef4a443cdeaae05.jpg]. This is Akins' only foray into Star Wars, but his work (for DC, Vertigo, and Dark Horse) is highly-acclaimed (particularly in Jack of Fables) and spans multiple popular franchises, including Terminator, Aliens, and Wonder Woman.
The Freedon Nadd Uprising takes place a year or two after the previous series, approximately 3,998 years before the Battle of Yavin. Nomi Sunrider and the characters introduced in her "Saga" join Ulic Qel-Droma and his supporting cast on Onderon, bringing the two previously-featured Jedi into a single story. There is also a pair of characters from the Empress Teta system, which features heavily in The Golden Age of the Sith and The Fall of the Sith Empire.
Summary: The war-torn world of Onderon should have found peace at last, thanks to the marriage between Galia, queen of the sprawling city of Iziz, and Beast-Lord Oron Kira. Unfortunately, the influence of the dark side remains strong, and a rebel group calling themselves the "Naddists," after Dark Jedi Freedon Nadd, aren't going to give up without a fight. Somewhere, far in the background, sinister forces are pulling the strings, and it will be up to the best and brightest of the youngest generation of Jedi Knights to stand firm against it.
Review: Bizarrely short. That's the first thing that's got to be said about this comic. 2 normal-length issues, and that's it, making it less than half as long as any of the previous story arcs. As I mentioned, it was first published as part of a collection with the previous 2 arcs, but it has since been republished twice on its own.
That said, this is a really good story. It does a great job building off of the previous two arcs, allowing it to jump right into the action: a sizeable contingent of Jedi Knights (10) waging full-on warfare. And they aren't just unstoppable, invincible forces of nature, either. Some are injured. Some even die. The outcome of the conflict genuinely feels like it's in doubt, and the peril feels real. Also, while it introduces a couple of new Jedi characters, who feel a bit disposable, the majority are characters that have gotten a fair bit of development in previous stories. I cared whether they lived or died, and I was invested in the story as a result.
This comic, and actually Tales of the Jedi in general, takes a really interesting approach to differentiating between the dark and light sides of the Force, or at least between Jedi power and Sith power. The Sith villains are more than just Dark Jedi who tap into the Force with negative emotions, maybe throw out a little lightning or a Force choke here and there. Their powers are legitimately evil and creepy, and it is always clear both why they are an incredible danger, and why they must be stamped out.
My two biggest complaints about the story have to do with some of the villains. That awesome-looking Vader-esque figure on the cover there is (rather poorly) named Warb Null. The epic greatness of his appearance is inversely proportional to the significance of his role in the story. His departure was abrupt and anti-climactic, and I was left feeling confused about who exactly he was and what his story was. Then there are the two cultists, the spoiled royalty from Empress Teta who swoop through a parallel plotline. There are some interesting things about them, but most of what happens in their story makes very little sense. It's all setting up the next story arc, but it feels incredibly obvious and forced. Just a really, really clumsy way of attempting to keep the threat introduced here going into the next series. Could have been worse, I guess, but this is a significant failure in the writing.
Neither of these complaints, though, really get in the way of the actual enjoyability of the comic, and although it isn't quite as fun as the previous arc, it also avoids some of the hokiness as well. It's another keeper.
B-
Background: Tales of the Jedi: The Freedon Nadd Uprising was released in two issues August/September of 1994, but the trade paperback didn't come out until December of 1997. At one point, it was included with the other comics in [b:Tales of the Jedi: The Collection|390087|Tales of the Jedi The Collection (Star Wars Tales of the Jedi, #3)|Tom Veitch|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1174372740s/390087.jpg|379704] (my review here), and has since been republished solo. It was written by [a:Tom Veitch|59137|Tom Veitch|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66-251a730d696018971ef4a443cdeaae05.jpg] and pencilled by [a:Tony Akins|148764|Tony Akins|http://www.goodreads.com/assets/nophoto/nophoto-U-50x66-251a730d696018971ef4a443cdeaae05.jpg]. This is Akins' only foray into Star Wars, but his work (for DC, Vertigo, and Dark Horse) is highly-acclaimed (particularly in Jack of Fables) and spans multiple popular franchises, including Terminator, Aliens, and Wonder Woman.
The Freedon Nadd Uprising takes place a year or two after the previous series, approximately 3,998 years before the Battle of Yavin. Nomi Sunrider and the characters introduced in her "Saga" join Ulic Qel-Droma and his supporting cast on Onderon, bringing the two previously-featured Jedi into a single story. There is also a pair of characters from the Empress Teta system, which features heavily in The Golden Age of the Sith and The Fall of the Sith Empire.
Summary: The war-torn world of Onderon should have found peace at last, thanks to the marriage between Galia, queen of the sprawling city of Iziz, and Beast-Lord Oron Kira. Unfortunately, the influence of the dark side remains strong, and a rebel group calling themselves the "Naddists," after Dark Jedi Freedon Nadd, aren't going to give up without a fight. Somewhere, far in the background, sinister forces are pulling the strings, and it will be up to the best and brightest of the youngest generation of Jedi Knights to stand firm against it.
Review: Bizarrely short. That's the first thing that's got to be said about this comic. 2 normal-length issues, and that's it, making it less than half as long as any of the previous story arcs. As I mentioned, it was first published as part of a collection with the previous 2 arcs, but it has since been republished twice on its own.
That said, this is a really good story. It does a great job building off of the previous two arcs, allowing it to jump right into the action: a sizeable contingent of Jedi Knights (10) waging full-on warfare. And they aren't just unstoppable, invincible forces of nature, either. Some are injured. Some even die. The outcome of the conflict genuinely feels like it's in doubt, and the peril feels real. Also, while it introduces a couple of new Jedi characters, who feel a bit disposable, the majority are characters that have gotten a fair bit of development in previous stories. I cared whether they lived or died, and I was invested in the story as a result.
This comic, and actually Tales of the Jedi in general, takes a really interesting approach to differentiating between the dark and light sides of the Force, or at least between Jedi power and Sith power. The Sith villains are more than just Dark Jedi who tap into the Force with negative emotions, maybe throw out a little lightning or a Force choke here and there. Their powers are legitimately evil and creepy, and it is always clear both why they are an incredible danger, and why they must be stamped out.
My two biggest complaints about the story have to do with some of the villains. That awesome-looking Vader-esque figure on the cover there is (rather poorly) named Warb Null. The epic greatness of his appearance is inversely proportional to the significance of his role in the story. His departure was abrupt and anti-climactic, and I was left feeling confused about who exactly he was and what his story was. Then there are the two cultists, the spoiled royalty from Empress Teta who swoop through a parallel plotline. There are some interesting things about them, but most of what happens in their story makes very little sense. It's all setting up the next story arc, but it feels incredibly obvious and forced. Just a really, really clumsy way of attempting to keep the threat introduced here going into the next series. Could have been worse, I guess, but this is a significant failure in the writing.
Neither of these complaints, though, really get in the way of the actual enjoyability of the comic, and although it isn't quite as fun as the previous arc, it also avoids some of the hokiness as well. It's another keeper.
B-
kellylynnthomas's review
4.0
Pretty sure if GL had read Tales of the Jedi before making the prequels, they would have been so much better.
ekansthepokemon's review
3.0
Better than the previous collection, but the art still leaves something to be desired. The story is much better and doesn't feel rushed until right at the end.
More...