Star Wars: Poe Dameron #23 Review

Come fly with me

Written by: Charles Soule 
Art: Angel Unzueta
Colors: Arif Prianto 
Publisher: Marvel 
Reviewer: Andrew McAvoy 

You know that feeling after Christmas when you just want the Christmas decorations taken down and put out of your sight? I'm a bit like that about the Sequel era of Star Wars at the minute. It's like I binged on The Last Jedi so much over Christmas that now all I want is to shuffle off somewhere and watch A New Hope  - an elegant film from a more civilized age. Before the dark times...before...the Twitters....anyway, like it or not I read Poe Dameron issue 23, lets see if it got me in the mood again...

Well, I have to say this was one of the good Poe Dameron issues, perhaps one of the best in the 23 issue run. I don't think that when this series started that I really envisaged it lasting so long. It seems to even be running on past the 25 issue mark (milestone bitches!!) according to the solicits. Nonetheless this issue shows why the series has outlasted and outperformed a lot of others. It has a crackling energy to it when they get the formula right, and there seems to be so much going on in the issue. 

The action kicks off with Leia's plan getting up ended because the First Order have swiped Lor San Tekka out from under them. Agent Terex is the one who has grabbed old Lor, hilariously finding him hidden in a container containing a bunch of Leia's royal gowns (ooh er missus!!!). Old Lor - for someone so old and wise he really has look like a bumbling old idiot in these last few issues.

Meanwhile Commander Malarus has stolen Poe's X-Wing, she flies off fooling Black Squadron into a false sense of security in the process, meanwhile Poe and Leia  commandeer a new fighter, so that Poe can soar up and swipe BB-8 out of his X-wing. Mararus crashes and is arrested by the Cato Neimoidians. The book then ends with Terex having fried the circuits in his brain-based retraining bolt, and using San Tekka as leverage to find out how to remove it permanently. Phew. Now I need a lie down.

Bits and Pieces

It was an exciting book, and it flew by faster than one of Poe's many X-Wings (that man has destroyed/lost/suffered damage to more X-Wings than you or I have had hot breakfasts). The art was great. Sometimes I think it looks a bit off in this series, but Noto really nailed this issue. It was a fun Saturday morning matinee special - exactly what Star Wars is supposed to be. 

Score 8.7 out of 10