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Star Wars (2020)
Star Wars: Droids Sombrios
Um épico de Star Wars como nunca se viu! Quem ou o que é a Praga Primordial, surgida da união da Fagulha Eterna com uma inteligência droide outrora aprisionada pelos Sith? Enquanto a corrupção se espalha entre os droides, tanto a Rebelião quanto o Império são obrigados a encarar o caos! Que papel Ajax Sigma desempenha nesse cenário? E de que lado ele está? O terror toma conta daquela galáxia muito, muito distante numa saga ambiciosa escrita por Charles Soule e ilustrada por Luke Ross!
Star Wars: Dark Droids (2023) 1-5
Star Wars: Dark Droids (2023) 1-5
128 pages, Paperback
Published October 1, 2024
23 people are currently reading
158 people want to read
About the author
Charles Soule
1,517 books1,691 followersCharles Soule is a #1 New York Times-bestselling novelist, comics author, screenwriter, musician, and lapsed attorney. He has written some of the most prominent stories of the last decade for Marvel, DC and Lucasfilm in addition to his own work, such as his comics Curse Words, Letter 44 and Undiscovered Country, and his original novels Light of the Jedi, The Endless Vessel, The Oracle Year and Anyone. He lives in New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
May 14, 2024
A very good story that scarily resembles what could happen in the real world the more we become reliant on technology and AI.
Lady Qi'ra gambled to destroy the Sith, but in failure, she unleashed something that might destroy everything. It starts with droids, but it is coming for everything. Its hunger is insatiable. Only all the factions, species, and machines of the universe working together can stand a chance against it.
A good overall story, the companion books will fill in much of the details of this. A very good crossover story, a lot of interesting things to come. The book finishes with a thumbnail variant cover gallery.
Lady Qi'ra gambled to destroy the Sith, but in failure, she unleashed something that might destroy everything. It starts with droids, but it is coming for everything. Its hunger is insatiable. Only all the factions, species, and machines of the universe working together can stand a chance against it.
A good overall story, the companion books will fill in much of the details of this. A very good crossover story, a lot of interesting things to come. The book finishes with a thumbnail variant cover gallery.
April 1, 2024
3.5 stars. I enjoyed this one as a horror story set within the Star Wars universe a lot. It doesn’t seem like a ton happened to advance any real kind of story as a whole, but this one was a fun side event.
July 25, 2025
Something has been released into all of the droids of the Star Wars Universe, and it's nothing good. Not a bad crossover as a great evil possesses the droids and cyborgs, eventually trying to take over the humans as well.
October 6, 2025
Seeing a droid entity threatening the galaxy felt fresh and relevant, especially in today's context. The development of Scourge Prime and the high stakes of the story made it feel impactful, with a surprisingly dark/horror tone. I also really liked Ajax Sigma and what he brought to the story.
Although the ending felt rushed compared to the buildup (possibly serving as a setup for future events) it remains a compelling story. Hope to see more consequences from this in future stories.
Although the ending felt rushed compared to the buildup (possibly serving as a setup for future events) it remains a compelling story. Hope to see more consequences from this in future stories.
October 2, 2024
Quem lê minhas resenhas aqui no GoodReads sabe que eu tenho um encanto especial pelos Droides de Star Wars. E essa saga do universo Marvel/Star Wars é dedicado inteiramente a eles. Mas me surpreendeu que diversos elementos que surgiram na série da Doutora Aphra, como os Droides Assassinos e a Fagulha Eterna fossem utilizados no universo principal. Ponto para os envolvidos. A minissérie publicada na íntegra neste encadernado é escrita por Charles Soule e desenhada pelo brasileiro Luke Ross. Ela conta o que acontece quando o que restou da Fagulha Eterna se junta com uma Inteligência Artificial e passa a dominar todos os droides da galáxia, ameaçando não somente o Império, mas os Rebeldes, os Caçadores de Recompensa, e tantos outros do Universo de Star Wars, como a própria Doutora Aphra. Essa é uma minissérie que deu vontade de ler os demais títulos relacionados com esse arco de histórias, porque é um mote que consegue envolver todos os títulos regulares de Marvel/Star Wars e ainda criar outros, como o Esquadrão D (de Droides). Gostei.
August 2, 2024
Dark Droids is a surprisingly strong Star Wars mini-series, probably because it really feels like a separate event from the various ongoing series. We're introduced to the Scourge, a malevolent AI that was locked away until the Fermata Cage blasted it loose. The AI quickly jumps to nearby droids, forming a hivemind across the Galaxy.
Droids are one thing, but what about all of us meatbags? Scourge becomes obsessed with taking over biological species, starting with androids (like Lobot). Eventually, the goal becomes to attain Force proficiency, leading Scourge to Luke Skywalker. The way Scourge's story ties into our usual Star Wars heroes actually makes sense, and it's kinda nice to see them as side characters in someone else's narrative.
The big finale is a bit of a shrug, as the leader of a robot church (Ajax Sigma) arrives on the scene with some kind of insta-kill weapon. I'm guessing we'll see more of Ajax in future series.
Droids are one thing, but what about all of us meatbags? Scourge becomes obsessed with taking over biological species, starting with androids (like Lobot). Eventually, the goal becomes to attain Force proficiency, leading Scourge to Luke Skywalker. The way Scourge's story ties into our usual Star Wars heroes actually makes sense, and it's kinda nice to see them as side characters in someone else's narrative.
The big finale is a bit of a shrug, as the leader of a robot church (Ajax Sigma) arrives on the scene with some kind of insta-kill weapon. I'm guessing we'll see more of Ajax in future series.
December 28, 2023
This was a great way to finally tie together the last 3 events and continue the canon story set between Episodes 5 and 6. It seems like it’s not fully over yet and I look forward to seeing how things progress from here. It keeps seeming like this story line between 5 and 6 is ending and then it kicks up more. They really built up some sort of team up but all the characters were still pretty separate in this fight. Overall a solid read and a good event. Excited to see how all the main series wrap up their individual involvements in this event.
June 21, 2024
3.75
Enjoyed the build up.
***SPOILER***
The conclusion was a lazy, kill the mother ship and all the battle droids deactivate ending. It didn't make any sense. And was too easy. A droid just walked in there with a sword and ended it all. Ok?
Enjoyed the build up.
***SPOILER***
The conclusion was a lazy, kill the mother ship and all the battle droids deactivate ending. It didn't make any sense. And was too easy. A droid just walked in there with a sword and ended it all. Ok?
July 1, 2024
these droids ain't right
May 25, 2024
A rare side story that seems to set up something we haven't seen yet (at least that's my prediction). A corrupt AI known as The Scourge begins replicating itself and taking over droids everywhere, both in the Rebellion and the Empire. Wanting the whole galaxy to be one in itself, it begins conquest.
I think the more important part of this story are the "good, yet sentient" droids from the Colony of the Second Revelation (The First being "I", the Second being "we"). I have a feeling we will see Ajax Sigma again, maybe in High Republic stuff or post RoS.
The story ends how you think it would, and the rest of the titles in the SWU have tie ins before heading back to their main storylines. Overall, pretty good, but I need to see the long lasting effects of what happened here.
Recommend.
I think the more important part of this story are the "good, yet sentient" droids from the Colony of the Second Revelation (The First being "I", the Second being "we"). I have a feeling we will see Ajax Sigma again, maybe in High Republic stuff or post RoS.
The story ends how you think it would, and the rest of the titles in the SWU have tie ins before heading back to their main storylines. Overall, pretty good, but I need to see the long lasting effects of what happened here.
Recommend.
August 20, 2024
The core book of the Dark Droids crossover event, set between 'The Empire Strikes Back' and 'Return of the Jedi'.
An intelligence which comes to be known as the Scourge arises and begins taking control of droid across the galaxy, expanding its own consciousness as it does. The Scourge then becomes obsessed with finding a way of seizing control of organic beings and, through them, touching the Force. However, a group of sentient droids led by Ajax Sigma launch a mission to destroy the Scourge before it can consume all life in the galaxy.
This is the fourth crossover event that Marvel have forced into the year between Episodes V and VI, which in itself is pretty tiresome, with not even Star Wars escaping Marvel's desperate attempt to capture that sweet crossover money by having one every single year ('Secret Wars' and 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' have a lot to answer for).
Things aren't helped in that this book falls into the habits of most Marvel crossovers where large portions of the story actually take place in other books and we're just supposed to accept things like suddenly Lobot is infected or Artoo has assembled a team of killer droids, all of which just seemingly falls out of the sky here.
It's a shame too, because behind all the cynical marketing ploys, there is a core of an interesting story here.
The exploration of the lines between droid sentients, cyborgs and fully-organic beings was a nice touch and addressed issues such as how Luke's bionic hand fits into the Force or what it means for Vader to be more machine now than man. I also liked some of the design elements too, with the Scourge's prime unit being quite a good horror-story robot, with it's glowing eyes, spiky appendages and grafted-on organic limbs. Similarly I liked the look of the Star Destroyer which the Scourge subsumes (it's got a bit of a Warhammer 40,000 vibe to it).
Ultimately though, this book isn't coherent enough to be as compelling as it should be and, frankly, feels totally out of place in the time period it's set. When these comics should be covering the build-up to 'Return of the Jedi', instead we're side-tracked by another needless crossover.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
An intelligence which comes to be known as the Scourge arises and begins taking control of droid across the galaxy, expanding its own consciousness as it does. The Scourge then becomes obsessed with finding a way of seizing control of organic beings and, through them, touching the Force. However, a group of sentient droids led by Ajax Sigma launch a mission to destroy the Scourge before it can consume all life in the galaxy.
This is the fourth crossover event that Marvel have forced into the year between Episodes V and VI, which in itself is pretty tiresome, with not even Star Wars escaping Marvel's desperate attempt to capture that sweet crossover money by having one every single year ('Secret Wars' and 'Crisis on Infinite Earths' have a lot to answer for).
Things aren't helped in that this book falls into the habits of most Marvel crossovers where large portions of the story actually take place in other books and we're just supposed to accept things like suddenly Lobot is infected or Artoo has assembled a team of killer droids, all of which just seemingly falls out of the sky here.
It's a shame too, because behind all the cynical marketing ploys, there is a core of an interesting story here.
The exploration of the lines between droid sentients, cyborgs and fully-organic beings was a nice touch and addressed issues such as how Luke's bionic hand fits into the Force or what it means for Vader to be more machine now than man. I also liked some of the design elements too, with the Scourge's prime unit being quite a good horror-story robot, with it's glowing eyes, spiky appendages and grafted-on organic limbs. Similarly I liked the look of the Star Destroyer which the Scourge subsumes (it's got a bit of a Warhammer 40,000 vibe to it).
Ultimately though, this book isn't coherent enough to be as compelling as it should be and, frankly, feels totally out of place in the time period it's set. When these comics should be covering the build-up to 'Return of the Jedi', instead we're side-tracked by another needless crossover.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
September 15, 2024
So it turns out that one of the things I have inexplicably strong feelings about is the issue of droid rights in Star Wars, and a side effect of that is that I get irritated every time Star Wars actually tries to engage the subject, because they inevitably end up brushing it under the rug. They did it in Solo, they did it here.
"None of us are looking for a cause, Ajax," says Triple-Zero at the end, and I shake my fist at the book and say, "well, maybe you should be."
. . . anyway, I think I'm due for a break from Star Wars comics now.
"None of us are looking for a cause, Ajax," says Triple-Zero at the end, and I shake my fist at the book and say, "well, maybe you should be."
. . . anyway, I think I'm due for a break from Star Wars comics now.
May 14, 2024
So after tracking down a reading order for the Dark Droids series, I decided to dip into these volumes in what I found was a near-chronological ordering of the issues, with Dark Droids wrapping up shortly before Star Wars, Bounty Hunters, and Doctor Aphra (which all felt like epilogues to this in their own ways). As such, I'm going to have this review in EVERY Dark Droids TPB review to open with my thoughts on the series before then moving into the specific TPB in question.
The Dark Droids Series:
I have VERY mixed feelings about this run. I didn't think it was bad, really, outside of one particular TPB -- everything else received 3s and 4s from me. However, nothing really excelled or really excited me. I think one of the major reasons for this is the framing -- this is all meant to take place in between ESB and RotJ, and it just don't make sense that come RotJ, we don't see ANY fallout from a mass droid uprising and the deaths of what in the series looked like thousands but given the galaxy-wide spread, was likely BILLIONS and BILLIONS of lives lost. Also, RotJ doesn't feature an uptick in cyborgs or hybroids (I really didn't love that name either!) which leaves this series feel like it only has stakes for characters we don't see in RotJ. Unfortunately, there aren't really any major character deaths either -- and to top it all off, any side characters for this run were mostly relegated to such a background role that we don't know a ton of what happened to them (sorry, Magna's cool squad!).
This idea is a really cool one, and I do like how it spins (somewhat clearly) out of all the stuff that happened around the Spark Ascendant stuff from Hidden Empire. I honestly think keeping the scale smaller and maybe relegating this to one system with some convenient story contrivances (or hey, I dunno...maybe drag all the important characters back to No Space?) would help this to make more logical sense within the larger framework of the Star Wars stories.
Star Wars: Dark Droids:
While I enjoyed that this was leaning into aspects of body horror that, on the whole, I felt never fully materialized (they get close, but nowhere near the levels of something like Mass Effect), I think what really held back this run was the disjointedness. Threepio seems like a funnel perspective for a bit, but then gets ditched as the story turns to focus more on Scourge. There were some internal consistency issues, like in the jump from issues 4 to 5 where Scourge killed the Elder droid he had created, only to then get a few panels into issue 5 and see he was in fact alive and the other three droids Scourge had created (the Scholar, the Child, and the Soldier?) were all slain...by Scourge? Who knows? The sudden nature of the ending too, with Ajad reappearing and essentially going through the same effort to breach a Star Destroyer felt silly and rushed. I also did enjoy the art in this run -- it was dark and detailed, and the splash panels were especially compelling given some of their layouts.
The Dark Droids Series:
I have VERY mixed feelings about this run. I didn't think it was bad, really, outside of one particular TPB -- everything else received 3s and 4s from me. However, nothing really excelled or really excited me. I think one of the major reasons for this is the framing -- this is all meant to take place in between ESB and RotJ, and it just don't make sense that come RotJ, we don't see ANY fallout from a mass droid uprising and the deaths of what in the series looked like thousands but given the galaxy-wide spread, was likely BILLIONS and BILLIONS of lives lost. Also, RotJ doesn't feature an uptick in cyborgs or hybroids (I really didn't love that name either!) which leaves this series feel like it only has stakes for characters we don't see in RotJ. Unfortunately, there aren't really any major character deaths either -- and to top it all off, any side characters for this run were mostly relegated to such a background role that we don't know a ton of what happened to them (sorry, Magna's cool squad!).
This idea is a really cool one, and I do like how it spins (somewhat clearly) out of all the stuff that happened around the Spark Ascendant stuff from Hidden Empire. I honestly think keeping the scale smaller and maybe relegating this to one system with some convenient story contrivances (or hey, I dunno...maybe drag all the important characters back to No Space?) would help this to make more logical sense within the larger framework of the Star Wars stories.
Star Wars: Dark Droids:
While I enjoyed that this was leaning into aspects of body horror that, on the whole, I felt never fully materialized (they get close, but nowhere near the levels of something like Mass Effect), I think what really held back this run was the disjointedness. Threepio seems like a funnel perspective for a bit, but then gets ditched as the story turns to focus more on Scourge. There were some internal consistency issues, like in the jump from issues 4 to 5 where Scourge killed the Elder droid he had created, only to then get a few panels into issue 5 and see he was in fact alive and the other three droids Scourge had created (the Scholar, the Child, and the Soldier?) were all slain...by Scourge? Who knows? The sudden nature of the ending too, with Ajad reappearing and essentially going through the same effort to breach a Star Destroyer felt silly and rushed. I also did enjoy the art in this run -- it was dark and detailed, and the splash panels were especially compelling given some of their layouts.
May 28, 2024
Не плутати з “Star Wars, Vol. 7: Dark Droids”!!!
Міжсерійний кросовер про глобальну подію, який має ще й мінісерію, що є основою для кросовера. Нічого не зрозуміло, але сталося так, що Марвел вирішили робити те, чим славляться їх основні коміксові серії - перемішувати різних персонажів. Із “Зоряними війнами” це мало б виглядати органічно, бо серії коміксів стосуються одного періоду. І не біда (напевно), що глобальні події кросоверів ніяк не згадуються у канонічних фільмах.
Цього разу нас чекає жахастик за жанром, де невідома штучна сутність десь після п’ятого епізоду кіносаги підкорює собі мізки дроїдів, кібернетично модифікованих істот, а в перспективі прагне того ж і для й живих істот без модифікацій. Проти сутності виступає таємна секта прозрівших дроїдів, які якимось чином набули самосвідомості (чи самоусвідомлення), шукають таких самих просунутих дроїдів та дуже бояться, що отой злий ШІ з амбіціями стане загрозою. Ну, таки стане! І перестане бути загрозою, коли головний сектант дістанеться головної зараженої сутності. Інші персонажі ЗВ представлені у мінісерії фоново, але в їх основних серіях цій події теж присвячего час. Ось так просто. А між двома цими подіями буде наростати драма: роботів заражатимуть; Сітріпіо підставить Арту; Лобот (друган Лендо Калрісіана) разом з кількома кібермодифікованими захопить ціле виробництво дисків з апдейтами софта для дроїдів (просто-не-питайте), йому допомагатиме коханка Афри и чувак, якого воскресили зі старого канона; заражені дроїди вчинятимуть масові вбивства людей, а іноді і експерименти над ними на заздрість Йозефу Менгеле. Дуже темна серія.
Головний поганець одночасно виглядає і як Шрайк з “Гіперіона” Сімонса, і як антропоморфний їжак, намальований дитиною. Як і будь-який поганець, він діє надто повільно, а в ключові моменти ще й втрачає концентрацію, тому що для безпосереднього управління іншими дроїдами йому доводиться окремо фокусуватися на кожному з них, а на всіх того фокусу не вистачить.
Втім, похвалю видавництво за сміливість, бо так “Викрадачів тіл” ще ніхто не косплеїв… Брешу, навіть в Кінга було щось про автівки, у яких з’явилась свідомість і бажання вбивать двоногі шматки м’яса.
Міжсерійний кросовер про глобальну подію, який має ще й мінісерію, що є основою для кросовера. Нічого не зрозуміло, але сталося так, що Марвел вирішили робити те, чим славляться їх основні коміксові серії - перемішувати різних персонажів. Із “Зоряними війнами” це мало б виглядати органічно, бо серії коміксів стосуються одного періоду. І не біда (напевно), що глобальні події кросоверів ніяк не згадуються у канонічних фільмах.
Цього разу нас чекає жахастик за жанром, де невідома штучна сутність десь після п’ятого епізоду кіносаги підкорює собі мізки дроїдів, кібернетично модифікованих істот, а в перспективі прагне того ж і для й живих істот без модифікацій. Проти сутності виступає таємна секта прозрівших дроїдів, які якимось чином набули самосвідомості (чи самоусвідомлення), шукають таких самих просунутих дроїдів та дуже бояться, що отой злий ШІ з амбіціями стане загрозою. Ну, таки стане! І перестане бути загрозою, коли головний сектант дістанеться головної зараженої сутності. Інші персонажі ЗВ представлені у мінісерії фоново, але в їх основних серіях цій події теж присвячего час. Ось так просто. А між двома цими подіями буде наростати драма: роботів заражатимуть; Сітріпіо підставить Арту; Лобот (друган Лендо Калрісіана) разом з кількома кібермодифікованими захопить ціле виробництво дисків з апдейтами софта для дроїдів (просто-не-питайте), йому допомагатиме коханка Афри и чувак, якого воскресили зі старого канона; заражені дроїди вчинятимуть масові вбивства людей, а іноді і експерименти над ними на заздрість Йозефу Менгеле. Дуже темна серія.
Головний поганець одночасно виглядає і як Шрайк з “Гіперіона” Сімонса, і як антропоморфний їжак, намальований дитиною. Як і будь-який поганець, він діє надто повільно, а в ключові моменти ще й втрачає концентрацію, тому що для безпосереднього управління іншими дроїдами йому доводиться окремо фокусуватися на кожному з них, а на всіх того фокусу не вистачить.
Втім, похвалю видавництво за сміливість, бо так “Викрадачів тіл” ще ніхто не косплеїв… Брешу, навіть в Кінга було щось про автівки, у яких з’явилась свідомість і бажання вбивать двоногі шматки м’яса.
December 31, 2023
This was an okayish event and its not as good as the previous Qi'ra trilogy but its still a good read showing how the Scourge (ancient entity) and well he takes control of all the droids and so we see what that results in and well its kinda like AI/Android horror take over of the world kinda feels but obv. here its the entire galaxy and I just love it. You usually don't see such stories with Star wars and well its new and maybe one of Soule's strengths as he is doing so many great stories.
It really is kind of like a dystopian story with the Scourge taking over everything and so its man vs machine and the fear of only intelligence prevailing is there, most of the story is told from this villains perspective and you really get to see his plans and all and then the resistance aka AJAX sigma and what he is doing.. like leading a revolution against this scourge.. it was fun and I liked his character overall, especially with the ending and yeah there's a lot of theological and philosophical concept you can get with this character but the ending as a "redeemer" was interesting.
Luke ross art here was awesome, though sometimes it felt like the dialogue was way too much like the exposition and the ending might not be the favorite of some people after all this build up and might feel like deus-ex-machina but then again its upon the reader.. how they interpret it. So be aware of that.
I like the focus on Luke a bit and the concept of "the new force" and really makes you think what the force is.. but yeah to end the review, its a fun horror fueled event which I highly recommend!
It really is kind of like a dystopian story with the Scourge taking over everything and so its man vs machine and the fear of only intelligence prevailing is there, most of the story is told from this villains perspective and you really get to see his plans and all and then the resistance aka AJAX sigma and what he is doing.. like leading a revolution against this scourge.. it was fun and I liked his character overall, especially with the ending and yeah there's a lot of theological and philosophical concept you can get with this character but the ending as a "redeemer" was interesting.
Luke ross art here was awesome, though sometimes it felt like the dialogue was way too much like the exposition and the ending might not be the favorite of some people after all this build up and might feel like deus-ex-machina but then again its upon the reader.. how they interpret it. So be aware of that.
I like the focus on Luke a bit and the concept of "the new force" and really makes you think what the force is.. but yeah to end the review, its a fun horror fueled event which I highly recommend!
July 16, 2024
Review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Star Wars: Dunkle Droiden
Star Wars und Horror waren schon immer eine tolle Kombination und konnten in Werken wie „Death Trooper“ eine breite Fangemeinde hinter sich versammeln. Dazu passt herausragend Charles Soules neues Crossover. Die Offenbarungen der Lektüre: Ich. Wir. Jene. Alles (ihr werdet sehen 😉)
Die Handlung:
Nach dem Finale von „Hidden Empire“ vereinigen sich der Ewige Funke und der im Fermata-Käfig eingesperrte Droide zu einer neuen Intelligenz. Eine Intelligenz, die alle Droiden befallen kann und so über sich selbst hinauswächst: die Plage. Doch der unstillbare Hunger des Infekts geht weiter über das Metall hinaus und sucht...nach Fleisch...
Meine Meinung:
In „Dunkle Droiden“ durfte Charles Soule eine durchaus komische Idee voll ausleben. Die Geschichte verliert zwar nie völlig ihren Star-Wars-Bezug, doch manchmal vergisst man durchaus, dass man sich im selben Universum wie Yoda und die Ewoks befindet. Die Horror-Elemente sind stark ausgeprägt und sorgen für viel Spannung. Das erkundete Szenario erinnert an eine Zombie-Apokalypse und geht doch weit über dieses Schreckensszenario hinaus. Mit den Kämpfern der „Zweiten Offenbarung“ steht gleichzeitig eine Gruppe freiheitsliebender Droiden bereit, die die Plage bekämpfen will - ein Konflikt, der religiöse Züge annimmt. (Tipp: Den vollen Umfang des Crossovers erhält man mit der Lektüre, der noch erscheinenden Bände der anderen Star-Wars-Reihen und dem Spinn-Off „D-Squad“). Die Zeichnungen von Luke Ross sind herrlich düster und laden zum Gruseln ein. Und dabei geht es nicht nur nicht zimperlich, sondern teils sogar verstörend zur Sache.
Fazit:
Droiden-Zombie-Horror in düsteren Vision der weit weit entfernten Galaxis.
Werbung: Vielen lieben Dank an Panini für die Bereitstellung des Rezensionexemplares!
Star Wars: Dunkle Droiden
Star Wars und Horror waren schon immer eine tolle Kombination und konnten in Werken wie „Death Trooper“ eine breite Fangemeinde hinter sich versammeln. Dazu passt herausragend Charles Soules neues Crossover. Die Offenbarungen der Lektüre: Ich. Wir. Jene. Alles (ihr werdet sehen 😉)
Die Handlung:
Nach dem Finale von „Hidden Empire“ vereinigen sich der Ewige Funke und der im Fermata-Käfig eingesperrte Droide zu einer neuen Intelligenz. Eine Intelligenz, die alle Droiden befallen kann und so über sich selbst hinauswächst: die Plage. Doch der unstillbare Hunger des Infekts geht weiter über das Metall hinaus und sucht...nach Fleisch...
Meine Meinung:
In „Dunkle Droiden“ durfte Charles Soule eine durchaus komische Idee voll ausleben. Die Geschichte verliert zwar nie völlig ihren Star-Wars-Bezug, doch manchmal vergisst man durchaus, dass man sich im selben Universum wie Yoda und die Ewoks befindet. Die Horror-Elemente sind stark ausgeprägt und sorgen für viel Spannung. Das erkundete Szenario erinnert an eine Zombie-Apokalypse und geht doch weit über dieses Schreckensszenario hinaus. Mit den Kämpfern der „Zweiten Offenbarung“ steht gleichzeitig eine Gruppe freiheitsliebender Droiden bereit, die die Plage bekämpfen will - ein Konflikt, der religiöse Züge annimmt. (Tipp: Den vollen Umfang des Crossovers erhält man mit der Lektüre, der noch erscheinenden Bände der anderen Star-Wars-Reihen und dem Spinn-Off „D-Squad“). Die Zeichnungen von Luke Ross sind herrlich düster und laden zum Gruseln ein. Und dabei geht es nicht nur nicht zimperlich, sondern teils sogar verstörend zur Sache.
Fazit:
Droiden-Zombie-Horror in düsteren Vision der weit weit entfernten Galaxis.
Werbung: Vielen lieben Dank an Panini für die Bereitstellung des Rezensionexemplares!
July 15, 2024
3-4 ABY
This graphic novel contains all five issues of the Star Wars: Dark Droids arc. It is the basis for the entire Dark Droids arc that falls into each graphic novel series, including Darth Vader (2020), Doctor Aphra (2020), Bounty Hunters, and Star Wars (2020), as well as the main set-up for D-Squad. This story arc shows how the Spark Eternal [see Doctor Aphra (2020)] becomes an entity known as the Scourge, in which its aim is to control all droids, and eventually find a way to control organic hosts. Cyborgs make for great conduits between the two, such as Lobot, Valance, Magna Tolvan, and especially Force-wielding Darth Vader! This collection explores the rise and fall of the Scourge, so it's a good one to read first to get the greater whole, and then read the other arc tie-ins from the various series to get the in-between aspects of the havoc the Scourge ultimately wreaks.
This arc is okay, though not the most exciting for the main Star Wars (2020) storyline. The art is phenomenal, as always with the new Marvel series, but the Scourge arc feels like an inconvenient side quest. The only aspect that makes it remotely important, in my opinion, is that it was one the Spark Eternal, a sentient artifact intelligence, locked away by the Sith and seeping with Sith history. Certainly worth the read to understand how each individual series links together in the Dark Droids arc.
This graphic novel contains all five issues of the Star Wars: Dark Droids arc. It is the basis for the entire Dark Droids arc that falls into each graphic novel series, including Darth Vader (2020), Doctor Aphra (2020), Bounty Hunters, and Star Wars (2020), as well as the main set-up for D-Squad. This story arc shows how the Spark Eternal [see Doctor Aphra (2020)] becomes an entity known as the Scourge, in which its aim is to control all droids, and eventually find a way to control organic hosts. Cyborgs make for great conduits between the two, such as Lobot, Valance, Magna Tolvan, and especially Force-wielding Darth Vader! This collection explores the rise and fall of the Scourge, so it's a good one to read first to get the greater whole, and then read the other arc tie-ins from the various series to get the in-between aspects of the havoc the Scourge ultimately wreaks.
This arc is okay, though not the most exciting for the main Star Wars (2020) storyline. The art is phenomenal, as always with the new Marvel series, but the Scourge arc feels like an inconvenient side quest. The only aspect that makes it remotely important, in my opinion, is that it was one the Spark Eternal, a sentient artifact intelligence, locked away by the Sith and seeping with Sith history. Certainly worth the read to understand how each individual series links together in the Dark Droids arc.
February 3, 2025
A decent crossover to finish out these comics. Structurally, this one is quite different from the previous few since this book functions fairly well as a stand-alone, only interacting with the other series and not requiring them to understand what's going on. Ultimately, this is the preferable way of doing business, in my estimation.
The story itself is told mainly in first person from the perspective of the villain, which is also somewhat novel for these books (depending on how you categorize Vader as a villain in his own comic, etc). It's a strong narrative voice, and an interesting angle on the Star Wars universe that isn't too thoroughly exhausted. The only downside in comparison to the previous crossovers is that this one doesn't attempt to play into any wider implications in broader stories and themes: these droids are dark, but that seems to be unlikely to be relevant again at least in the foreseeable future. If you've come this far, you should definitely read this, but if you're just looking for a fun Star Wars story, I wouldn't go out of my way to get caught up on things to read this arc.
The story itself is told mainly in first person from the perspective of the villain, which is also somewhat novel for these books (depending on how you categorize Vader as a villain in his own comic, etc). It's a strong narrative voice, and an interesting angle on the Star Wars universe that isn't too thoroughly exhausted. The only downside in comparison to the previous crossovers is that this one doesn't attempt to play into any wider implications in broader stories and themes: these droids are dark, but that seems to be unlikely to be relevant again at least in the foreseeable future. If you've come this far, you should definitely read this, but if you're just looking for a fun Star Wars story, I wouldn't go out of my way to get caught up on things to read this arc.
February 18, 2024
Not the BEST jumping on point if you've barely touched Marvel's 'Star Wars' stories...
(that would be me)
Interesting premise...
A new antagonist is created/made/shown ...Scourge. (aka 'the scourge of all droids) Scourge wants more than any other rogue AI or Droid intelligence wants. It wants to know. It hungers. It wants it all...including the Force. If it comes for the metal first, (and most of the SW universe is robotic to some degree) how long is anybody safe?
Bonus: This was a mega crossover for all the SW titles so, the tie-ins are:
* Star Wars
* Doctor Aphra
* Darth Vader
* Bounty Hunters
* D-Squad
------
Not exactly my cup of tea since I've missed large chunks beyond what was canon in the movies and a few books. The art is strong and the story has that epic Marvel crossover/tie-in feel. Star Wars fans might enjoy the 5 issues alone. Completists could go for the whole run.
(that would be me)
Interesting premise...
A new antagonist is created/made/shown ...Scourge. (aka 'the scourge of all droids) Scourge wants more than any other rogue AI or Droid intelligence wants. It wants to know. It hungers. It wants it all...including the Force. If it comes for the metal first, (and most of the SW universe is robotic to some degree) how long is anybody safe?
Bonus: This was a mega crossover for all the SW titles so, the tie-ins are:
* Star Wars
* Doctor Aphra
* Darth Vader
* Bounty Hunters
* D-Squad
------
Not exactly my cup of tea since I've missed large chunks beyond what was canon in the movies and a few books. The art is strong and the story has that epic Marvel crossover/tie-in feel. Star Wars fans might enjoy the 5 issues alone. Completists could go for the whole run.
May 19, 2024
It's rare for me to find a Star Wars book I don't like.
I'm not one of those fans with a reflex to hate any new ideas brought to the series. And truthfully, for what this is, it's not bad. The art is fine (not my taste, but fine), and the idea is bold and groundbreaking.
But it just makes too much of a stretch.
The idea of a sentient presence that invades droids, one-by-one, consuming them in an attempt to acquire all droid intelligence under one mind is just a little too big to be confined to a comic series. This could have been a heck of a video game, or a mini-series on Disney+, but it feels out of place here.
To say nothing of the idea that it just happens, between eps 5 and 6. Something like this feels a little too timeless to be dealt with when our heroes were busy elsewhere.
Fine work, but not my thing. I still think you can't beat Shadows of the Empire if you want something between 5 and 6.
Makes me look forward to Star Wars Outlaws this fall.
I'm not one of those fans with a reflex to hate any new ideas brought to the series. And truthfully, for what this is, it's not bad. The art is fine (not my taste, but fine), and the idea is bold and groundbreaking.
But it just makes too much of a stretch.
The idea of a sentient presence that invades droids, one-by-one, consuming them in an attempt to acquire all droid intelligence under one mind is just a little too big to be confined to a comic series. This could have been a heck of a video game, or a mini-series on Disney+, but it feels out of place here.
To say nothing of the idea that it just happens, between eps 5 and 6. Something like this feels a little too timeless to be dealt with when our heroes were busy elsewhere.
Fine work, but not my thing. I still think you can't beat Shadows of the Empire if you want something between 5 and 6.
Makes me look forward to Star Wars Outlaws this fall.
January 17, 2025
While I found almost all of the crossover comics to be unengaging and over the top, this comic was quite good. The scourge is a unique threat to the Star Wars universe and the contrasting perspectives of Ajax Sigma and the Scourge proves to be a compelling dynamic. Ajax Sigma’s religious allegories are engaging, and the Scourge is able to become a far more empathetic antagonist than I expected. There is however a few things holding this back. First, the fact that this is a comic crossover means the story is missing key plot points that are in other runs, meaning a solo read can feel incomplete. Second, the fact the story is set in between episodes 5 and 6 means it’s galaxy spanning threat feels too large, like it should have consequences for the films stories, even though it obviously doesn’t. This is an issue I had with a lot of legends stories and I’m not a fan of it bleeding into canon writing.
March 29, 2024
After reading (and the release of) Dark Droids: D-Squad and Star Wars volume 7: Dark Droids i didn't feel much for this crossover set between The Qi'ra Trilogy and Return of the Jedi. The timeline between the fifth and sixth movie started to feel poluted, now that it has just as many comicbooks set inbetween as A New Hope and Empire Strikes back. But then this came out. The main crossover. And it is awesome. A cool horror cyber comic set in the Star Wars Universe. I still think it would've been better to set this story post RotJ (dealing with robots taking over left over imperial star ships) then where it is set now, but the great storytelling by Charles Soules makes me wanting to know what will happen in the other three Dark Droids crossover paperbacks (Darth Vader volume 8, Bounty Hunters volume 7 and Doctor Aphra volume 7).
April 8, 2024
A fun crossover even series that was nothing too special. The highlight for me was the art, especially in the later issues when the Scourge's mind starts to fracture. That made for some very well-designed panels. The story was cool, I just wished there was more issues in this mini to flesh out the characters. The Scourge got plenty of development, but in my opinion Ajax needed more, and the ending felt a bit rushed. Which is sad, because they are two of my favorite character designs from the last few years. As with all the recent crossovers, I think the major issue is the series spreading itself too thin by having to connect all four current ongoings with an original story. That being said, it was still a fun read and it sets up for a potential interesting conflict hopefully in the post-RotJ period.
July 23, 2024
A brilliant idea hamstrung by being forced into an existing universe.
The first 3 issues of this story are *fantastic.* A proper body-horror creepy antagonist sweeping the rest of Star Wars out of the way and setting up a brilliant new plot. How do the Empire and Rebels stand against an army of their own droids - later even their own people? Will they be forced to work together? Will the status quo of this timeline be changed irrevocably?
Er, no. It's all over in issue 5 and everything's back to normal, except all those millions of people who got murdered by Creepy Science Droids but will never be mentioned again.
Let this be its own spinoff story. Don't try and shoehorn it into main Star Wars. With space to breathe this could have been a truly fantastic comic. As it is, it starts well and ends poorly.
The first 3 issues of this story are *fantastic.* A proper body-horror creepy antagonist sweeping the rest of Star Wars out of the way and setting up a brilliant new plot. How do the Empire and Rebels stand against an army of their own droids - later even their own people? Will they be forced to work together? Will the status quo of this timeline be changed irrevocably?
Er, no. It's all over in issue 5 and everything's back to normal, except all those millions of people who got murdered by Creepy Science Droids but will never be mentioned again.
Let this be its own spinoff story. Don't try and shoehorn it into main Star Wars. With space to breathe this could have been a truly fantastic comic. As it is, it starts well and ends poorly.
September 8, 2024
A story about what would happen if all the droids in the galaxy, regardless of affiliation, rose up against any oppressive force to make the galaxy their own.
It starts with Lady Qi’ra releasing a program that is supposed to help with something but then invades all robotic lifeforms and alters their programming. At this time, the Scourge arrives to take control of these robots and turn them k to a rebellious force primarily against humans. But first, they must find less fallible hosts.
It’s a horror story set against the backdrop of the Star Wars universe and resembles in many ways Kevin J. Anderson’s “Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88” from the Legends collection Tales of the Bounty Hunters crossed with Stranger Things 4. It’s good but I got a little lost knowing who was fighting with whom and all that. Maybe a second read sometime down the line?
It starts with Lady Qi’ra releasing a program that is supposed to help with something but then invades all robotic lifeforms and alters their programming. At this time, the Scourge arrives to take control of these robots and turn them k to a rebellious force primarily against humans. But first, they must find less fallible hosts.
It’s a horror story set against the backdrop of the Star Wars universe and resembles in many ways Kevin J. Anderson’s “Therefore I Am: The Tale of IG-88” from the Legends collection Tales of the Bounty Hunters crossed with Stranger Things 4. It’s good but I got a little lost knowing who was fighting with whom and all that. Maybe a second read sometime down the line?
June 24, 2024
Star Wars: Dark Droids collects issues 1-5 of the Marvel Comics Star Wars event series written by Charles Soule, art by Luke Ross, and colors by Alex Sinclair.
Spinning out of Hidden Empire, a presence released from the Fermata Cage has bonded with the Spark Eternal to create a new techno virus known as The Scourge that is obsessed with spreading across the universe and is hungry for knowledge. Not satisfied with only being able to take over droids and machinery, it will stop at nothing to make the jump to organics and touch The Force.
This should have been a really fascinating book and horror story within the Star Wars universe but it is overly wordy and boring. The book also struggles between wanting to be a horror book while also being enlightened and deeply philosophical, but cannot make up its mind. We know all the major (and most of the minor) characters are safe again due to when the story takes place. I really like Charles Soule and a lot of his Star Wars books, but I think it’s time for a creative change on these books. The events are played out and do not add enough character development.
Spinning out of Hidden Empire, a presence released from the Fermata Cage has bonded with the Spark Eternal to create a new techno virus known as The Scourge that is obsessed with spreading across the universe and is hungry for knowledge. Not satisfied with only being able to take over droids and machinery, it will stop at nothing to make the jump to organics and touch The Force.
This should have been a really fascinating book and horror story within the Star Wars universe but it is overly wordy and boring. The book also struggles between wanting to be a horror book while also being enlightened and deeply philosophical, but cannot make up its mind. We know all the major (and most of the minor) characters are safe again due to when the story takes place. I really like Charles Soule and a lot of his Star Wars books, but I think it’s time for a creative change on these books. The events are played out and do not add enough character development.
January 27, 2024
[2.6]
I read this in single issues and in tandem with the respective runs of Star Wars and Star Wars: Darth Vader (and a couple of other single ones), so will lump them together here.
I liked the premise of an AI running wild, and the story was interesting enough. Everything written by Charles Soule was pretty good, and most other stuff was mediocre or bad.
If you're a fan of SW or AI's going rogue, then it's an alright read. Otherwise, there are many other things I would read instead of this
I read this in single issues and in tandem with the respective runs of Star Wars and Star Wars: Darth Vader (and a couple of other single ones), so will lump them together here.
I liked the premise of an AI running wild, and the story was interesting enough. Everything written by Charles Soule was pretty good, and most other stuff was mediocre or bad.
If you're a fan of SW or AI's going rogue, then it's an alright read. Otherwise, there are many other things I would read instead of this
March 28, 2024
I really like the idea of Dark Droids. The set-up and the spread are well executed, and the threat feels real and worrying.
But then it falls into the same tropes that plague other stories about characters getting corrupted etc. - when you've lost most of your main cast, you know they're all going to get their problems reversed at the end, and there's an all-too-convenient way to kill the bad guy that doesn't seem to feel right when put next to how the Scourge has spread beforehand.
That said, this is still pretty compelling for 4 of the 5 issues. It's just a shame about the ending.
But then it falls into the same tropes that plague other stories about characters getting corrupted etc. - when you've lost most of your main cast, you know they're all going to get their problems reversed at the end, and there's an all-too-convenient way to kill the bad guy that doesn't seem to feel right when put next to how the Scourge has spread beforehand.
That said, this is still pretty compelling for 4 of the 5 issues. It's just a shame about the ending.
September 11, 2024
This series has made me consider if the actual Force began in a similar way. We don't really know what it is, maybe it did begin as a mechanical entity that made the jump of forms to flesh, before becoming a singularity. Maybe all of this has happened before, or it's still happening, is this real or is this a memory, or is there even a difference? Is all action just reaction to reaction to reaction to reaction, is that choice or is that control? I breathe but am I alive? If I am alive than what am I? What are we? And who is them?
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