The first FORCE AWAKENS era comic series continues! Who is Captain Terrex of the First Order...and how did he find Poe's squadron? Can Poe and company beat Terrex to their prize?
Charles 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.
The bad part about prequels are that you can't help but know who survived their ordeals. If there are no significant physical injuries or things like that you also can't help but know that the characters recovered from anything that happened to them. Prequels to war stories like Star Wars take a lot of the tension away because the future has already been seen. That being said all prequels can do is tell their story and Poe Dameron #2 was a solid issue.
I haven't been super impressed with this storyline so far. Poe lacks his movie-charisma. He's still likable, but his personality isn't as clearly defined. His squadron is cool, but we're not lead to be super attached to them. There's no real tension, since we know Poe doesn't die. The villain is interesting, though somewhat comical. I guess most of the characters just lack depth. The artwork and coloring is good, though.
Continue to be shocked by how good this book is. Not as much Poe and BB-8 this time, but Soule has given us a really fantastic villain I can't wait to spend more time with. This did so much for the two characters while also giving us a larger sense of the world and the place of this story in it. Noto's art and coloring also continue to be fantastic. Can't wait for next month.
This got better, but Poe still lacks his on-screen charisma. The other characters try, and succeed, to steal the show. And the plot is interesting. The disappointment really is in Poe.
"I did not like it." - 1.5 star rating, rounded down to a 1.
There's a bit too much 1950's Batman style forecasting here. "Here I come to get you!" ... "Oh no! They are going to come and get us! If only we had enough time to do xyz." - you get the drift. Instead of things happening more naturally, there is way too much talk-through across the board here within the comic.
If that wasn't bad enough, Agent Terex is very much D-Tier status when it comes to being a villain. The fact that he is a former Stormtrooper... somehow miraculously turns into a super wealthy turn-coat spy for the First Order, just has so many holes in it. We all know how the First Order feels about traitors aka Finn.... yet this dude is having casual peer-level conversation with Captain Phasma? It feels so wrong. Again with the previously mentioned broadcast speech, Terex is the worst when it comes to this found here.
Another just awful content delivery here is X-Wings vs TIE Fighters... where the Resistance crew aka Black Squadron has some sort of code where they cannot engage TIE Fighters first. I kid you not - they say in the comic "We can't engage the First Order unless they shoot first!"... "We need to figure out a way to get the TIE's to attack us somehow."
I just puked in my mouth a little bit reading that. The cringe level is through the roof. Are you kidding me? They literally have a Star Destroyer in orbit, loaded to the brim with a full fleet, their commander is trapped in a cave with Stormtroopers and the spy leader Agent Terex... in which Poe does a cry for help that he in dire need of assistance.... the surface of the planet is loaded with TIE fighters and Pilots just hanging out on the landing strip... and you cannot engage?
This is not a good Star Wars comic, about probably the least interesting pilot of all of Star Wars (Anakin, Luke, Mando, Lando, Han, Hera, even Boba all being superior), and wrapped in the Sequels - the worst trilogy of all of Star Wars.
The path of the completionist of not for the feint of heart... 29 more to go...
Poe is trapped in a cave complex with a community of fanatics defending their “savior” while the rest of Black Squadron is running out of fuel overhead. But everyone is trapped between a First Order marshalling platform and a fully-staffed and equipped Star Destroyer!
Agent Terex is mostly the focus of this issue. The First Order officer leads a group of stormtroopers into the caves after Poe. Terex is smarmy, self-important, and a braggart - in other words, the perfect First Order officer! He actually has some really good dialogue and it’s very easy to “hear” his voice. Soule does a great job with this guy; he’s honestly the best-developed character in the issue. We get to see him command his squad, and interact with Captain Phasma and he is unfazed in either case. He’s so confident and self-assured as to really be annoying! He’s actually more interesting than General Hux by a long shot.
We still only get a little bit here and there of the Black Squadron pilots. Tiny little tidbits that illustrate a little of some of their characters. It’s not enough for me! If these are the characters we’re supposed to like and root for I want more out of them. Similarly, Poe spends most of the issue hiding and doesn’t really get to do much. Disappointing when he’s the title character.
Not a bad issue, but I’m still waiting for this book to hit the afterburners and really hook me.
As usual, the artwork and the coloring were great. I liked this issue but I found that Poe lacked his movie-charisma. Also, his squadron, even though very cool, was not really likeable and I thought I'd get attached to them faster. The villain was interesting, though!
Ughhh I hate the cliffhanger they left this on. I now need to go get the next two comic books to continue the story. However I LOVE Poe so I can’t wait to get my hands on those.
Since this series came out a long time ago it’s harder to find the comics for not an absurd amount of money.
This second issue sees Poe stuck on a planet that is now swarming with First Order troops who have tracked him and his squadron down through a beacon hidden on Poe's X-Wing. Which begs the question who put it there and how? On the planet, Poe has been trying to convince a local religious group to tell him what they know about the travels of Lor San Tekka - information that the First Order also want (think back to the beginning of TFA). And their obsession with the egg-like thing they are guarding makes you wonder - exactly what *IS* inside it?
I like the fact that this issue gives us some background on Agent Terex, so we get some hints about our villain that make it feel like he is going to be an important character in future, not just in this story. We also see the rest of Black Squadron in action, emphasising how this is a team effort - although Poe is the title character of this series, he wouldn't get half as much done without his team-mates and I'm glad the writers acknowledge that. A really solid issue and I look forward to reading #3 and #4.
This issue introduces a brand new character - Agent Terex - another strong character that works for The First Order; among Captain Phasma, a strong fan favourite.
It's a very interesting development of the plot and story in the second issue, introducing more obstacles for Poe which develops his character and shows us the calm, loving Poe we all know from the movie.
We're shown a little insight into Black Squadron, how they work and manoeuvre as a team. It's hard to not to laugh at their almost childish comebacks as they fly; it genuinely feels like any one of them could be your friend.
A much better comic than the first issue - it's always a shame when the first issue of a comic seem weak - but issue 2 was a marvellous come back and I can't wait for issue 3.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Good graphics, good bad guy if somewhat a bit old school, Eastwood type of bad guy. I am looking forward to next month's installment. A bit pricey but worth it.
It is really strange to say that I might like a new villain more than our favourite main character. Enjoying the nods to the other characters in the Force Awakens universe.
Awesome read! Poe's antagonistic pilot is such a great villain and id love to see made in the big screen if he makes it throughout Poe's comic franchise!!!!
Excellent intro to the big bad, Terex, who I've come to like a lot in the second story arc. Well done complications, while introducing characters at the same time. But...I didn't quite get what was going on with the egg-monster thing. Where did the second monster even come from? It was just: hey, the egg is a monster. And now here's a random second monster to fight the egg-monster. I guess what good is a single monster if you can have two monsters who fight? I'm sensing allegory.