Im-Poe-ssible Escape: Poe Dameron #6 Review

Overall, Poe Dameron #6 is a decent enough ending to the current story arc, but it lacks any real depth or weight, and it has one element in particular that bugs me.

[Spoilers beyond this point.]

This issue picks up right where the last one left off, and seeing how plot-light that one was, I feel they could have easily trimmed them down into one issue. Regardless, this is the one where we finally get to see Poe’s big escape plan.

So, basically the same as Rocket Racoon's plan, but in reverse.
Alternative joke: Well, I guess they're Pink Squadron now.

It’s all well and good as a plan, but it has a slight side effect of killing at least one of the other prisoners thanks to the increased gravity. That’s my first issue with the um, issue.

Breaking an evil crimelord out of prison to get information is morally ambiguous enough, but if your plan results in the death of other prisoners? You may want to rethink your level of heroism here. And it would be fine if Poe was ever portrayed as anything less than 100% heroic. He swoops back to save the prisoner escape pods getting away from the planet when Terex attacks them, but it’s also his fault that they were in such a vulnerable position in the first place.

Look, I’m generally against heroes angsting about how everything is their fault, but a little bit of it here wouldn’t hurt. Especially since it is mostly his fault.

I'm almost beginning to think people talking about how awesome Poe is while he does almost nothing is a running gag.

The rest of the issue is pretty standard. My opinion on the art remains unchanged – good faces, bad action. There are a few bits of good dialogue sprinkled in with all the heavy exposition, and Terex remains smarmy as ever, even if his plan wasn’t exactly amazing.

I dunno, I think it would be better on a pizza. Like... Pizza Hutt, amiright?

Overall, it's one of the better issues of Poe Dameron. That may not be saying much, but it's saying something.

Aranwe Quirke is a totally real, definitely not made up name. No, you may not see the birth certificate.

Poe-nitentiary Blues: Poe Dameron #5 Review

I’m going to start doing my comic book reviews in two parts from now on: a brief spoiler-free paragraph with my general opinion, followed by a more spoilery, more detailed analysis. This way, you can get a feel of my opinion of the comic even if you haven’t read it yet.

So, my spoiler-free take on Poe Dameron #5 is that while it does do a decent enough job of continuing the narrative of the last issue and setting up the next one, it has no real memorable or even very interesting elements of its own to define it. So, overall, I was not very impressed.

Spoilers from this point onwards.

Poe Dameron #4 left us with an interesting promise for the next issue. Not just a jailbreak, but a jailbreak race between Poe and Anti-Poe (Agent Terex).  Rather disappointingly, and weirdly enough, Poe is once again relegated to doing nothing in his own comic. While Terex dashes about the place, making deals with Grakkus’ enemies to double cross the Hutt, or perhaps even pull off a triple cross, Poe… sits with the rest of his squad outside Grakkus’ mansion.

It wouldn’t be that bad if the dialogue between him and the rest of his team was interesting, but it’s comprised of little more than repeated plot points and still unfulfilled promises of how awesome Poe is.

I'm sure Hutts used to wear pants, but then Poe charmed them all off. 

He contacts BB-8 up at the station and gives him and the rest of their droids (henceforth known as Black Squadron: Robo Force) some unknown instructions, resulting in a fun little interlude.

Overly weaponized astromechs seem to be the trend lately. Not that I'm complaining.

And that’s pretty much all there is to this issue. Terex’s plan results in the compound getting surrounded by an angry mob, but that just leads into the cliffhanger for the next issue. 

The art and coloring is the same as ever, with Phil Noto once again showing off his penchant for drawing nicely detailed and recognizable faces, but unfortunately his action scenes remain somewhat static.

Once again, Poe Dameron is let down by how unmemorable it is, which is a real shame, since a comic about the charming, roguish Rebel Resistance pilot should be anything but that.

You know there a problem when the Hutt is making the most sense.

Aranwe Quirke is a totally real, definitely not made up name. No, you may not see the birth certificate.

Do Not Pass Poe: Poe Dameron #4 Review

I will admit that I didn’t have high expectations for this issue of Poe Dameron. Up to this point, the series was, frankly, boring.

Fortunately, my fears turned out to be unfounded this time around, as Poe Dameron #4 is actually a pretty fun comic, and seems to be kicking off a decent story arc.

After a few panels teasing what’s to come later in the issue (a kind of unnecessary plot device in this instance), we get an extended scene of Black Squadron enjoying a drink together after the events of the last issue. I’m not quite sure what they’re celebrating, since the Egg Monster Chronicles were pretty much an unqualified disaster.

Regardless, it’s a well written scene that really helps flesh out the various members of Poe’s team, which is something they desperately needed.

BB-8: Droid Detective! Make it happen, Marvel!

The members of BS (they need a new acronym) then head off to Megalox, a privately owned galactic prison that holds Grakkus the Hutt, who may know the whereabouts of Lor San Tekka. Grakkus isn’t a new character; he was introduced in last year’s Star Wars #9 as a powerful crime lord (the Hutt family business) and collector of Jedi related artifacts.

Megalox is less like a prison, and more like Arkham City, an entire town that is run by the criminals, with the wardens just keeping them all in place. Naturally Grakkus is already the kingpin of this place, and Poe and Co. manage to fight their way to his mansion with some degree of difficulty, their guards having been paid to abandon them.

I like the fact that Poe, like the rest of us, has no clue how Star Wars money works

Grakkus reveals that he does indeed know the whereabouts of San Tekka, but he’s also housing Poe’s foe, Agent Terex. He’s promised the information to them both, but now that he’s seen how desperate they both are, he alters the deal: whoever gets the information has to first break him out of prison…

Hutts be trolling

It’s a fun set up for the issues to come, and the dialogue is sparkling with life and energy. I’m still not the biggest fan of the artwork, but it works better for this mostly dialogue based issue, as opposed to last month’s more action packed one. The re-introduction of Grakkus is a nice tie-in to the main Star Wars comic, and really helps with the interconnectivity of all the various series, even if they are set 30 years apart. 

Overall, Poe Dameron #4 is a much needed improvement of the title, and it's also a pretty good jumping on point if you skipped the first three issues. I highly hope this level of quality is maintained as the series progresses.

Aranwe Quirke is a totally real, definitely not made up name. No, you may not see the birth certificate.