Dark Droids #4
PART 4
“SCOURGE OF THE DROIDS”
In an effort to stop the Galactic Empire, Lady Qi’ra gambled on an ancient Sith device to disrupt their connection to the Force. She failed, and out of the ruins of her plans emerged an evil entity.
The entity is a scourge to droids in both the Rebellion and Empire and continued to spread its consciousness to any artificial mind that it could, including the trusted protocol droid C-3PO.
As the droid revolutionary, Ajax Sigma, continues to lead a charge against the corruption of free droids, the scourge continues to spread elsewhere….
Writer: Charles Soule
Artist: Luke Ross
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Cover artist: Leinil Francis Yu
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Release Date: November 15, 2023
Coruscant is our opening venue for the 4th issue of Dark Droids, as a table of Imperial commanders sit with Mas Amedda, who explains – unaware the eyes of the scourge are watching – that there’s a problem with droids across the galaxy, and warns his officers to adopt caution. We see a quartet of Stormtroopers take no chances with a GNK droid as we switch to Elsewhere as the droids become aware of the Empire’s cautious approach towards the droids, and we see droids across the galaxy being taken down purely on the offchance they could be a threat to Imperial biological life.
Meanwhile aboard the former Imperial Star Destroyer Scourge One, a council of droids confer, essentially the different thoughts of the scourge presented through a council of droids, and while there’s an element of doubt, the scourge seems eager to progress from metal to cyborgs to ‘meat’, and we turn to what appears to be the prime physical entity of the scourge, who explains that the additon of cyborgs – hybroids – to the pool of the scourge has become a problem, hence the creation of this droid ‘council’. The prime is concerned that it isn’t doing well, and asks the council, who give their advice. One says they are closer than ever, another that they need to adapt to the ‘meat’ before the meat ends them. A third wants to fight, a fourth has strategy while the childlike fifth is scared, but knows ‘prime’ is hiding something.
We head to Epikonia, where Lobot, Valance and Magna Tolvan attempt to get past a duo of Stormtroopers, but when it’s clear they won’t get past, they end them. Their plan is to send a message across the galaxy to co-opt droids remotely, and initiate a local test which works to incredible effect as the droids turn on the biologicals in the township, attacking without pause and taking many of them away to be experimented upon. The prime is advised they stay, even though the Empire will undoubtedly be following to quell the threat and destroy the city, but the droid ships need to be protected. Here, the ‘child’ droid has a question regarding the droid attack force that attacked them, but the prime knows full well what that is – the colony of the second revelation, who we turn to as Ajax prepares to put the final parts into a droid that he believes will awaken ‘visioned’, but pauses and throws the piece away. Even Ajax has doubts, but turns to see none other than R2-D2 there, who has with him 000, BT-1, IG-88, 4-LOM and QT-KT. Ajax realises that these droids understand his vision, and are ready to fight. With that, he agrees to join them.
Dark Droids #4 then hits us with the revelation that this fractured psyche is struggling with the weight of what it’s trying to do. The child aspect is concerned at the millions of flesh test subjects, and we see ‘prime’ say those words, but the elder reminds ‘prime’ that the choices made were by the whole, by ‘we’, and after decimating the body of the eldest droid we see those droid ships launch and the ‘prime’ intone the words of the elder – ‘We all gotta eat’.
We’re in the home straight of Dark Droids now, allowing us to get away from Epikonia where the last wave of issues have mostly remained, and how the galaxy fights back to eliminate this huge threat will be fascinating to see. It’s continued to be engrossing to read with twists and turns galore, but now we have just 9 issue left to wrap up the storyline and continue rolling us towards Return of the Jedi. What shocks await us in those issues?
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Soule, Charles (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 23 Pages - 12/27/2023 (Publication Date) - Marvel (Publisher)
