Star Wars: Thrawn: Alliances #2
THE ADAPTATION OF THRAWN: ALLIANCES CONTINUES!
As THRAWN and DARTH VADER carve their way through the galaxy, get a glimpse of their early partnership as THRAWN and ANAKIN are on the hunt for PADMÉ.
JODY HOUSER and original THRAWN: ALLIANCES novelist TIMOTHY ZAHN continue to plot the course of Thrawn’s rise with PAT OLLIFFE and ANDREA DI VITO!
Writers: Timothy Zahn, Jody Houser
Artists: Andrea Di Vito, Pat Olliffe
Letterer: VC Travis Lanham
Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg
Cover artist: Rod Reis
Editor: Daniel Khazem
Release Date: February 28, 2024
We open the second issue of Thrawn: Alliances on Batuu, in the present day as Darth Vader and Thrawn face down an increasingly agitated crowd of thin-faced Darshi attackers, who communicate using only the sound of clicks. Thrawn reminds the dark lord that they need some Darshi alive to interrogate, and we watch as a brawl erupts which sees Thrawn and Vader use their combat skills to take down and disarm their attackers as we flash to the past and Anakin Skywalker and a younger Thrawn meeting after a similar attack in a Batuu bar that saw Thrawn take the high ground to escape the effects of a disabling gas. Thrawn learns that Anakin is a Jedi, and we see his skils of deduction as he breaks down the manner of the attack upon them and works out that of their four attackers, one remained to send information back to their superiors.
Back in the ‘now’ as the brawl continues with Vader using the Force to throw the Darshi aim off, and as one makes a break to escape Vader is hit with a powerful vision, and he asks ‘what has the Emperor discovered?‘ As Thrawn arrives they are attacked by thousands of small insects, and back to Batuu in the past we go as Anakin reanimates the corpse of a dead attacker in the hope they can fool their enemy and gain access. Thrawn has been hit in the attack but seems unconcerned as they make their way through the town to Anakins ship, to make it appear they have taken a prisoner. Artoo, Anakin and the corpse blast off, only for the ships rear end to erupt in an explosion – sabotage. As Anakin takes the ship down near Black Spire we’re back in the present as Vader and Thrawn realise they are being attacked by threads of quick thickening permacrete and soon they are immobilised.
Back to the past and as Anakin flies over Thrawn, realising he can’t slow down without losing altitude – so instead he blasts high into the skies and leaps from his Jedi Interceptor, falling and igniting his lightsaber to deflect back the bolts coming towards him and takes out the droid. Together, Anakin and Thrawn enter the ship, calling for Artoo to join them as they look around and find a consignment of crates. Using his saber, Skywalker opens the crate only to find what appears to be the blaster resistant metal quadranium….only it isn’t, it’s merely a thin layer with scrap beneath. The Darshi smugglers are also thieves, meaning they are now dealing with two separate groups. They learn of their intended destination, but as Thrawn points out they could easily stop off at any point along the way, and as Artoo works out their likely location along that route, with Batuu being the only world he has decent intel on.
Thrawn and Anakin leave to try and narrow down the list of worlds as we step back to the present as the permacrete block covering Vader is exploded and he ignites his lightsaber to take down their attackers. Freeing Thrawn from the ‘crete, they order he bartender to not move the bodies and as Thrawn takes a blade from one of the prone bodies we step to our final scene as Padmé Amidala steers her Naboo yacht over Mokivj only for a Vulture Droid to land on the hull and start tearing the ship apart, her only option an escape pod into dangerous enemy territory with no one – including Anakin – knowing where she is.
Another intriguing issue, though much like the TV adaptations, one that suffers slightly if the reader isn’t overly familiar with the source material. There are parts that require prior knowledge of the book or a copy of issue 1 to hand to refer back to (for instance, are they being attacked by insects or permacrete?) which only makes the lack of an opening scroll up to recap what’s happened in the first issue or the much-missed third-person narration boxes which can set a scene, explain who characters are and give exposition when pictures are unable to convey precisely what’s happening. Here, any of those devices would be a help, but despite the absence of such devices in modern comics Thrawn #2 is an attractive read with compelling characters, spot-on depictions (the difference between the cool deduction of the younger Thrawn and the icy detatchment of his ‘present’ self is clear) and as Padmé heads towards the surface of Mokivj every reason to continue enjoying the oddest of buddy cop stories and look forward to issue 3.
