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Star Wars: Poe Dameron (collected editions)

Star Wars: Poe Dameron, Vol. 2: The Gathering Storm

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Continuing the adventures of the ace pilot hero of Star Wars: Episode VII The Force Awakens! Poe Dameron faces the wrath of a vengeful Agent Terex! But how does Terex always seem to know what Black Squadron is doing? Could there truly be a traitor in the Squadron's midst? Poe will undertake a secret mission from General Organa herself...to escort none other than C-3PO on a dangerous mission to the planet Kaddak! But what will be revealed in a peek into Terex's past?

COLLECTING: POE DAMERON 7-13

144 pages, Paperback

First published July 3, 2017

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697 people want to read

About the author

Charles Soule

1,520 books1,691 followers
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.

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5 stars
413 (20%)
4 stars
957 (47%)
3 stars
565 (28%)
2 stars
56 (2%)
1 star
10 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews
Profile Image for Calista.
5,432 reviews31.3k followers
December 10, 2018
This story was miles better than the previous volume. Poe really comes into his own. He finds out information is leaking and there must be a spy somewhere and he is concerned. So C3PO tells him of the network of informations they fun and they go to find a droid. Terex is waiting for them and the cat and mouse game is on again.

The action mostly made sense and the characters had more focus and voice here than previously. I had fun reading it unlike the first volume. The one thing that didn’t happen is we do find out who was the leaker, but Poe doesn’t find out as far as we know at the end. I guess we are to assume he does. Still, this was a good outing and Poe and 3Po have chemistry. It worked well. I almost think these novels have been better than the movies, well, the last movie before Luke was ruined anyway.

I’ll continue on.
Profile Image for Chad.
10.3k reviews1,061 followers
January 4, 2018
Poe heads off with C-3PO on a secret mission to recover one of his spies. Yes C-3PO is actually useful. He's created his own network of droids to spy on the first order. Meanwhile, Terex has decided to do things his way to bring down the resistance. We find out his origins and get a little peak into what happened when the Empire fell. This series takes place before Force Awakens which is good because Last Jedi turned Poe into a useless character.
Profile Image for Alexandra Elend Wolf.
650 reviews318 followers
January 14, 2020
You see, droids are everywhere. We don't have to sneak. Our very existence grants us access to some of the most sensitive spots in the galaxy. This base, for example. No one pays attention, no one cares, as long as we do our duty with diligence and precision, and why would they? After all... we're just droids."

Welp, this was fun.

I wasn't the biggest fan of the first volume. It was fun but not as good as I wanted it to be. Well, all that is fixed on this one.

One of the things I loved the most was getting Terex's backstory, it was certainly fascinating. Understanding his reasoning behind being loyal to The Empire and why the galaxy needed it was great. We don't often get to see that side of the story.

Oh, and his transformation from stormtrooper to... whatever he was to The First Order and the process that took him there.

Of course, we can't forget Poe. Seeing him struggling with the revelation that someone from his squadron, one of his friends, is a spy for the enemies was an interesting arc. Sure, I knew how the mole was since the moment he was introduced to us in the last volume, but it was still fun to see Poe get to that conclusion.

And he does, in a rather great little moment. Which I liked, because I was starting to get worried that he wouldn't realize what was going on. I was proudly cheering him on.

The droid importance that this volume raises was a neat point. I love seeing the droids in action but the arguments that are raised through this comic were as interesting as unexpected. I was not expecting that dept.

When the final battle/encounter comes to happen I'll admit to having been getting anxious. The sad undertones that we were left on were not something I was expecting either.

In diplomacy, words can indeed be a very potent weapon..."
____________________

Here's to hoping this one is better than the last... or at least keeps the tone with which the last one ended.

I don't know if I have any expectations regarding this volume. Well, no, I do have one expectation, get more Poe time.

I do enjoy his character quite a bit.
Profile Image for Lata.
4,931 reviews254 followers
August 5, 2017
Enjoyable continuation of Poe's story (leading up to The Force Awakens). In fact, I liked this set of issues more than those in volume one. Threepio gets to show off a little why Leia keeps him by her side, and a character from Chuck Wendig's Aftermath makes a brief appearance (yay!)
Profile Image for Cale.
3,919 reviews26 followers
December 31, 2017
This is the closest the Marvel Star Wars comics have gotten to the classic Rogue Squadron series. It's... not particularly close, but you do get a little bit of X-Wing combat. And more of Poe and his Black Squadron (most of whom are sidelined for the majority of this collection), as Poe goes on a mission to rescue one of C-3PO's spy robots.... Yes, you read that correctly. 3PO is now a spymaster, and it's a plot point that works surprisingly well. At the same time, Poe's nemesis Terex is on the same planet, for very different reasons, and the two inevitably collide. I like what they did with Terex here - he's not your traditional First Order goon, and the events from Volume 1 have had a significant impact on him. The two stories are coincidental at first, but dovetail together to a rather surprising ending. And there were a couple callouts to other new Star Wars canon that were a very welcome surprise. Overall this volume is about on par with the first volume; it's got some good humor, decent intrigue, and action (although it's more ground-based action than in space).
Profile Image for Jesús De la Jara.
820 reviews101 followers
January 20, 2020
En este segundo volumen continúan los pleitos entre Poe y la Primera Orden, o mejor dicho entre el rebelde Terex. Luego de contactar a una amiga Poe es enviado por la general Organa con C-3PO a buscar a un androide, N1-ZC que al parecer tiene información sobre el paradero del líder supremo Snoke y la Primera Orden. Para ello van al borde exterior rumbo al planeta, Poe decide llevar como compañero a Oddy quien parece ser el más leal del grupo. En el planeta los esperan los peligrosos Ranc unos criminales con antecedentes con el enemigo más tenaz de Poe, Terex.
Profile Image for Scott.
2,256 reviews269 followers
April 10, 2018
Slight improvement over Vol. 1 and a little more fast-moving, but still sort of bland. This time C-3PO shares the cover with Poe, and for good reason - he pretty much successfully plays the trusty sidekick role on their mission. Elsewhere, readers finally get a backstory on returning villain Terex (snotty as usual, but still not very colorful or intimidating) and his past is not exactly earth-shaking.
Profile Image for Stephanie.
796 reviews98 followers
October 21, 2017
I really loved Threepio's spy network and the cameo from my favorite droid. <3 Like all Star Wars, the implicit slavery of droids (and the ease with which human heroes replace the droids' personalities/identities???) is extremely problematic.
Profile Image for Matěj Komiksumec.
324 reviews20 followers
January 19, 2021
Tak nevím nevím, rozhodně lepší než první book, což není tak těžké neboť ten byl vážně špatný a níž se nedalo jít. Tady se nám dostává aspoň hodně postavy Terexe která se mi extrémně líbí a na hned bych si přečetl spíš něco z jeho života. To je zkrátka problém, že v řadě o Dameronovi mě nejvíc baví vedlejší postava a sám Poe mi tu je jedno. Příběhově je to prostě tuctové a nezajímavé, z nudy to právě vytahuje Terexův origin. Ale obecně bych od této série očekával sakra jiné příběhy než tuhle telenovelu. Notova kresba je ok ale asi by zasloužila nějakého šikovného inkera.
Profile Image for Ivy.
1,505 reviews76 followers
April 24, 2018
5 🌟

RIP L'ulo. Glad Poe was able to find out who the spy was. Happy to see Black Squadron again. Nice to see Poe and C 3PO on an adventure together. Wonder what will happen to Terex.

Can't wait to read Poe Dameron #3: Legend Lost!!!!
Profile Image for Peace.
62 reviews10 followers
August 11, 2017
I like the art and love Poe and Co. TM, but the plots in these are pretty meh. I think they suffer from the "nothing much happens before TFA" syndrome. Hopefully it will pick up in the next volume.
Profile Image for Anchorpete.
759 reviews6 followers
December 7, 2017
C-3po - Droid Spymaster.

That is enough to make you want to read this book, right?

Ok, let's move beyond that.... This has the best villain introduced in the new star wars canon. In this volume, we get to read about his super interesting backstory. This book really beefed up my excitement for The Last Jedi
Profile Image for Lance Shadow.
236 reviews18 followers
January 3, 2018
The second Volume of Charle's Soule's Poe Dameron comic has released this month. After a one shot storyline with Poe Dameron #7, we go back to a full length story arc with issues #8-13 in "The Gathering Storm".
While Charles Soule as a writer for Star Wars comics has been hit or miss for me, I enjoyed the first volume of Poe Dameron, Poe Dameron, Vol. 1: Black Squadron, quite a bit. Despite being overall a bit of a cheese-fest and having a story that lacked tension, the characters and the dialogue were so much fun for me.
Unfortunately, "The Gathering Storm" is a followup that has many of the same flaws as its predecessor, while much of what made Black Squadron enjoyable is lacking. While I rated "The Gathering Storm" 3 stars, that's being fairly generous and truthfully I could flip flop between 2 stars and 3 stars based on what day you ask me.

THE STORY: Poe Dameron is sent to the planet Kaddak with C-3PO, BB-8, and Oddy Muva to find a droid. However, Black Squadron has a mole and Poe needs to find it. Agent Terrex, of course, is going to go after them.

THE BAD: I've read several reviews on this site saying that this is an improvement over the first volume, but I just don't get it.
Not only does the plot have absolutely nothing to do with the previous volume, it's dull in concept and a complete misfire in execution. I'll admit that the identity of the traitor was spoiled for me before I read this story arc, but even if I hadn't had it spoiled it was so obvious that I almost rolled my eyes at its predictability (probably the only reason I didn't was because again, it was already spoiled for me). While I'll give Soule credit for not going a cliched route after the mole is revealed, the motivations came out of nowhere and the way the character arc plays out feels unearned. The clue scenario done in the Han Solo comic wasn't that great either, but that one felt like masterful storytelling compared to how it plays out here.
Poe may have been a wonderful character in The Force Awakens and pretty fun in Black Squadron, but his charm is lacking in "The Gathering Storm". While Soule does fine in making sure he stays in character, there's nothing but flatness beyond that. And this comic also reveals the problem with Poe Dameron's character so far in the canon: he must have the right characters to make quips with and work off of. Again, in The Force Awakens, Poe's character works so well because he can throw quips at Kylo Ren and Finn. In Black Squadron, it was with Agent Terrex and the other pilots in the squad. But Poe isn't given a good character to work off for most of The Gathering Storm. Add to the fact that Soule does not use the chance to flesh out Poe's backstory, and you have a pretty boring lead character in this.
Once again, I still can't call myself a big fan of Phil Noto's art. It's not BAD, but it just feels so lackluster. I didn't think he had amazing artwork for Chewbacca, but I think you need a better artist if you're going to write a multiple volume ongoing series. Why couldn't they just keep with the amazingly talented Angel Unzueta for this volume after getting him to work on issue #7? Oh well, it's still passable and nowhere near the worst artwork I have seen in a star wars comic, so I'll deal with it.

THE GOOD: I'll admit the second half of this comic starts to have the charm of volume 1 again, and there are some other good ideas here too.
The first and biggest positive I can give to The Gathering Storm is with Agent Terrex. Is Terrex still pretty cheesy? absolutely . But Soule goes into his backstory pretty effectively and gives him a pretty strong character arc for this volume. Once again he still proves to be pretty menacing, and his portions were by far the best parts of this volume.
I also like the idea that 3PO has this network of droids, and that it actually makes him useful. Sure it's another idea in this series that seems a bit silly, but it's refreshing to see 3PO not pointlessly dragged on another mission because he's C3PO-Human-Cyborg-Relations, and it's good to not just see him whine and complain all the time.
When we FINALLY get to see the Black Squadron pilots make a return, that charming and likable pilot dynamic I liked so much in the first volume of this series makes a return and man was it fun. Charles Soule also continues to demonstrate his talent with dialogue here and after how much of a slog the first have of this story arc was, it was much appreciated. It's just too bad this was nothing I haven't already gotten in the first volume of the series, and even then, there could have been more time with the pilots instead of a ridiculously obvious and predictable revealing the traitor plot line.
The easter eggs from other star wars canon novels and comics are still used very well. The ones that have already made an appearance in Black Squadron are carried out in an interesting way and new easter eggs are cleverly integrated. Much like volume 1, "The Gathering Storm" will have some value in rewarding readers who closely follow the new Star Wars canon.
And of course, Poe Dameron is in character with what he was in The Force Awakens and the first volume.

THE CONCLUSION: 3 stars is too high, but 2 stars is too low. "The Gathering Storm" isn't terrible, but it definitely is one of the weaker story arcs released by the new star wars canon. I guess the best thing I can do is in celebrating the release of "The Emoji Movie" and its plastering by film critics by helping guide you with a probably rating for this thing: If The Emoji Movie was so bad that you want to find some positivity in entertainment, give "The Gathering Storm" 3 stars. If The Emoji Movie was so bad that it makes you hate everything a little more, I'd understand your inclination to go with 2 stars. Look, I know that was a pretty terrible parallel, but I'm sorry, I've got nothing! I'd feel guilty for being too harsh on "The Gathering Storm" with a 2 stars but I feel like I'm going to easy on it for rating a 3 stars. Ok, 2.5 stars! Happy?
Oh well, you can definitely give "The Gathering Storm" a pass, but if you're straight up dying to read it, you won't have any regrets. It will probably underwhelm you overall but I think there will still be some satisfaction from certain parts of it.
Profile Image for Chris Greensmith.
942 reviews11 followers
August 16, 2019
"Book III, Part V
THE GATHERING STORM
It is a time of uncertainty in the galaxy. Standing against the oppression of the First Order is General Organa's Resistance, including Poe Dameron and his team of ace pilots - Black Squadron.
A new enemy has emerged: Terex, an officer of the First Order Security Bureau. Redoubling his efforts to destroy Poe and his team, Terex has retaken control, of his previous crew, the ruthless Ranc gang-a move that has attracted the ire of First Order leader Kylo Ren.
While evading capture with droids C-3PO and N1-ZX, Poe suspects he has been tricked into leading Terex to the Resistance base. In confirming his suspicion, however, he is shot out of the sky by the Rancs, crash-landing on a desert planet..."

3🌟
Profile Image for Robert.
2,191 reviews148 followers
February 27, 2023
So I finally get back to this series I enjoyed immensely over five years ago.



And yes, Poe, I am so happy! In a sense it's a shame that Star Wars publishing has decided tomostly look backward into the High Republic time period (and earlier!) as opposed to continuing to tell stories during the Sequel Era, but I am grateful we got some of the great stories we did including this run by Charles Soule that essentially works as a Prequel to the Sequels (or at least The Force Awakens).

Highly recommended if you never got around to it!
Profile Image for Matthew Ward.
1,046 reviews26 followers
May 31, 2023
I’m still enjoying this series a lot more than I thought I would. I love the unhinged Terex and getting to see a bit of his origin! The chess match looks to have possible come to a halt here, but there’s potential for maybe a rematch or a new opponent for Poe. Intrigued to see where this story goes!
Profile Image for Liz (Quirky Cat).
4,986 reviews84 followers
February 8, 2018
3 1/2 Stars.

The Gathering Storm, like the volume before it, occurs before the events in The Force Awakens. After reading a couple of these volumes I’m starting to feel like I should go back and watch the movie (for the hundredth time) so I can try and see what Poe’s current squadron looks like. Maybe that’ll give me an idea of which characters to avoid getting attached to? Or maybe not. Their lack of appearance in the movie could simply be a continuity or communication issue.



For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Profile Image for Michael Mills.
354 reviews23 followers
April 27, 2017
A huge improvement over the first volume. As far as inevitable endpoints go, finding Lor San Tekka isn't the theft of the Death Star plans, but Charles Soule's having fun exploring the period immediately prior to The Force Awakens. It's a time of cold war between the New Republic and First Order, which Soule plays as akin to Britain/America and the Nazis circa 1936 (as with Doctor Aphra, Indiana Jones casts a long shadow).

description

With the films understandably keeping the future of the Star Wars Universe to themselves, this series inevitably ends up drawing on the better established period of the original trilogy for a lot of its material – but again it's well leveraged. Terex, who came across as a generic moustachioed Imperial in the first volume, is here fleshed out to fanboy-ish delight.

Unexpectedly, Poe Dameron is one of the best Star Wars comics Marvel are putting out.
58 reviews3 followers
April 7, 2020
Jestliže jsem první díl hodnotil shovívavě, protože šlo o začátek série, tak pro nudu, kterou jsem zažil u pokračování už žádnou omluvu nemám. Po další tuctové misi, "vypravíme se na nejnebezpečnější místo v galaxii a tam něco získáme" už mám problém najít nějaký důvod, proč číst příběh Poe Damerona dál.
Zatímco u předchozího dílu jsem měl alespoň pocit, že čtu průměrný akční příběh, nyní se obě tato slova v souvislosti s The Gathering Storm vůbec neodvažuji použít. Minimálně v prvních čtyřech sešitech se žádné akce nedočkáme. Když už to na nějakou vypadá, tak See-Threepio (Ano ten C-3PO) vy táhne z rukávy droidy a střih všichni jsou v pořádku a jede se dál.
Poslední dva sešity sice už nějakou akci přinesou, ale na závěr zase všechny zachrání Deus ex machina.
Jediný důvod proč bych se možná někdy do pokračování pustil je hlavní záporák Agent/Lord Terex, který má ve druhém díle velký prostor. A kde můžeme sledovat jeho příběh. Jako postava mě baví.
Ale já nechci, aby v sérii Poe Dameron bylo nejlepší, co se dá číst, origin záporáka...
Já si chci číst fajn týmovku s Černou eskadrou, kde bude fungovat chemie mezi členy týmu. Když se jednomu z nich něco stane, tak chci něco cítit. Když se objeví zpráva, že je mezi nimi zrádce, tak si chci spolu s Dameronem říkat, že to není možné, protože jsou to přece naši přátelé. Ale mně jsou úplně ukradení a vůbec netuším, proč tam jsou. K čemu mají v příběhu sloužit. Buď je využijte nebo rovnou škrtněte. Chybět nikomu nebudou. A nejspíš si toho ani nikdo nevšimne.
Já si chci číst nějaký zábavný napínavý heist se skvělým plánem, který se podělá. A ne řešení věcí, nakráčíme tam a ono se něco stane a pak nás něco zachrání.
Profile Image for RG.
3,084 reviews
June 1, 2019
Poe heads off on a mission with his trusty droids. Terex has the strangest outfit, to me it doesnt work. Solid story.
Profile Image for Julie.
1,034 reviews297 followers
November 24, 2019
It's been a while since I read Volume 1, but I think this one may even have been a bit better than the first volume: now that everything's established, it's getting to sink its teeth into the characters a bit more. Suspecting a First Order leak within Black Squadron, Poe is at loose ends and losing his rock-solid foundation and doubting who to trust within his found family. The plot centers on a clandestine mission to retrieve some intel from a droid spy, when Poe & co collide once more with Terex, the First Order security officer hunting him in an ongoing cat-and-mouse dynamic -- except you also get some fascinating backstory to this villain, this interesting figure who went from Imperial to criminal king to First Order.

I also really enjoyed the touch about C3P0 running an intelligence network of droid spies, because then you get a sense for how useful he can be, rather than just constant dead weight comic relief.

Anyway I love Poe with all my heart, what else is new.
Profile Image for Teresa.
Author 4 books89 followers
July 15, 2017

30-34 ABY

The second installment in the Poe Dameron graphic novel series features Poe continuing his work for Leia and the Alliance, but knowing that there is a potential spy among his Black Squadron is almost too much to bear. When See-Threepio seeks Poe's help, he finds himself bringing back a droid that may or may not have vital information on Snoke and the First Order, while being followed and tracked by ex-stormtrooper Terex. Terex has his own plans in mind when he aims to bring the entire Alliance to the First Order!

While I enjoyed the first graphic novel, this one seemed to be lacking; but it wasn't! It was even more interesting than the first volume, with higher stakes for Poe and his Black Squadron! Phil Noto does not disappoint. As he is both the cover artist and issue artist, you can easily judge this book by the cover, because the art is phenomenal, and Marvel knows what it is doing when contracting for the new canon comics!
Profile Image for Jeff Lanter.
718 reviews11 followers
December 9, 2017
It is nice to see what was good about Poe Dameron Vol. 1 continue on here. This is still a fun action/adventure oriented series with above average art. This volume fleshes out the villain in this series a bit more and I found him to be surprisingly likable and competent in a way that Imperials often are not. The stakes for Poe's adventures seem to rise too which is appreciated. I thought the plot was fun once again even if this volume did provoke some Star Wars continuity questions for me. Starships cobbled together with imperial and rebel parts? A "commando" droid which looks like a battle droid and talks like a character from Knights of the Old Republic video game? C3P0 as some kind of spymaster who has laid traps? None of these things seem to fit Star Wars as I know it but even with these headscratchers, I still enjoyed it and will continue to follow Poe Dameron in the future.
Profile Image for Paul Decker.
854 reviews17 followers
December 20, 2017
This second volume of the ongoing Poe Dameron series continues the story from the first volume involving Terex. It fleshes out Terex more as a character, showing his origins at the Battle of Jakku. This is a good completion to the Terex story, unless he comes back in volume three.



The droids absolutely shined in this comic. BB-8 is always awesome, using his skills in creative ways. C-3PO utilized his own talents in this one. We even got to see a Mister Bones reference! Hurray for Snap Wexley!



This was a fun volume. I enjoyed it more than the first volume. I give this graphic novel a 4/5. I will continue to read this ongoing series just for Poe's charm and BB-8's badassness.



--PAUL
Profile Image for Monica (Tomes Project).
644 reviews145 followers
May 7, 2017
This is so much better than the first volume in that the story feels far more natural, as opposed to the issue-by-issue adventure that we saw in the last one. This has a more cohesive story and more connecting dots. We also get such added depth to all of our Black Squardron members. It's interesting going into a story where you know the overall endpoint, finding Lor San Tekka, but Soule is having fun with it and that's what I wanted. And as always, Noto's art is some of my absolute favorite.
Profile Image for Lainy122.
784 reviews31 followers
October 5, 2017
Still a fun read, but lost my momentum on this one a bit.

The story just didn't grab my interest like the first installment did, and I'm still unclear why the speech bubbles kept flickering back to the phonetic sounds of druid names (spelling See-threepeeoh instead of C3PO for example). It was incredibly distracting and diverted my attention more than it probably should have, which is likely why I had more difficulty focusing on the plot.
Profile Image for Dreximgirl.
1,485 reviews25 followers
February 5, 2018
Another fun instalment of Poe Dameron's adventures pre-Force Awakens. I'm really enjoying getting to know him more and see how he leads his team and the decisions he makes. It makes me feel like I understand his motivations and personality more. 4 and a half stars.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews

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