“Yesterday’s” Comic> Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures Vol. 4

Someday they will be friends.

Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures Volume 4

Dark Horse (September, 2005)

This digest-sized collection of four original tales set during the first Clone Wars cartoon but the last two stories actually take place around the ending of Revenge Of The Sith. However, I bought it for the first story, because I love R2 and 3PO hijinks.

“Another Fine Mess” (writers/artists: The Fillbach Brothers | colorist:Pamela Rambo)

As Padme tries to get a planet on their side, the Separatists talk some disgruntled types into disguising themselves as Clone Troopers and killing both the Senator and the leader deciding to join the Republic in the war. Enter our two favorite droids as R2 crashes a sky sled they were using and C3PO is damaged. Hijinks ensue as the pair inadvertently take out all of the activists. It’s why I want these two to have their own series again. You hear me, Marvel? I’ll work cheap!

“The Brink” (writer: Justin Lambros | artist: Rick Lacy | colorist: Dan Jackson)

Anakin responds to a distress call from another Jedi on a space station loaded with killer…well, imagine what Cybermats from Doctor Who probably looked like before the Cybermen converted them (and if that’s not their actual origin that’s not my point) and you’ll have an idea. Anakin’s kind of a jerk here and I think he was flirting with the other Jedi at the end, which is wrong both for the Jedi Order and the fact that he was still married to Padme at the time. I may be misreading that but I didn’t get into this story.

“Orders” (writer: Ryan Kaufman | artists: The Fillbach Brothers | colorist: Ronda Pattison)

A boy named Evan gets a bad introduction to the Clone Troopers when his home is destroyed by Clone fire during a battle with the Separatist battle droids. However, the four that find him start to earn his trust when they save his life from a spider droid. He learns of their origins and that all the Clones have are their orders. So when Executive Order 66 is called and the Troopers kill the Jedi at the refugee camp, it’s because those where their orders. Not that the boy isn’t scared of them again. This gives us insight into why the Troopers were so willing to turn on the Jedi but after what we saw in the second series I wonder what would have happened if Rex was given the order to kill Obi-Wan. Maybe with both Rex and Ahsoka making a return in Rebels we’ll have our answer.

“Decent” (writer: Haden Blackman | artists: The Fillback Brothers | colorist: Dave Nestelle)

What happened on Kashyyk (the home of the Wookiees) after Order 66 was declared and the Wookiees helped Yoda escape? In this story the Clone Troopers decide to kill all of the Wookiees. Unfortunately for them they’re on Wookiee turf and they easily take the Clones out. It’s one thing for the Clones to be following orders, but they sound more like Stormtroopers than Clone Troopers in how they talk about the Wookiees. And one of them was Chewbacca. Tartakovsky’s art style never did the Wookiees any favors. I’m just not into this story but it could be personal bias more than the quality.

Overall this was a fun set of stories, my favorite being the R2 & 3PO story. It’s worth checking out but some of the action from the series didn’t translate well here. They needed Jim Zub. He’s shown in IDW’s Samurai Jack than he knows how to write in his style.

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