Star Wars - Jedi Academy: Leviathan by Kevin J. Anderson and Dario Carrasco, Jr. (Comic Review)

Kevin J. Anderson is one of those names which evokes decidedly mixed feelings when it comes to Star Wars. When it comes to broader science fiction they tend to be much more negative. While he has helmed his own independent series which retain their fans, his role in the Dune prequels and sequels is rather infamous, as is the quality of certain Expanded Universe novels like the Jedi Academy trilogy.

At least some of those books will likely receive a review at some point in the future, but many people tend to forget his better contributions to Star Wars. While he tends to have very mixed results with novels, his successes when it comes to comics are much more notable. We already covered the first major arc of the Tales of the Jedi epic here, and Leviathan is at the extreme end of that spectrum at the time, showing Luke's rebuilt order starting to move out as watchmen and negotiators once more. It also shows how far reaching the legacy of the ancient Sith could truly be.

The Synopsis

In the wake of Admiral Daala's attack, the New Republic has been offered a brief piece with the Empire. Their enemy might be united under a single ruler, but due to losses they suffered while attempting to wipe out the Jedi at Yavin IV they have kept to themselves. Luke Skywalker has been using this reprieve to build up and expand upon his slowly growing cadre of Jedi Knights, so that they might once more fulfill the role of guardians to the Republic.

Dorsk 82, clone successor to the deceased Dorsk 81, arrives on Yavin IV but is uncertain of his future. Even with the encouragement of his predecessor's friend, Kyp Durron, Dorsk is unsure if he can even truly connect with the Force or his desire to remain in the academy. Unfortunately, he and Kyp are about to face a trial by fire in their role as Knights. Something has emerged on the remote mining world of Corbos. Something old, very evil and very hungry. As the two arrive, they are met only by the sight of a devastated mining village and an unending scream of thousands echoing through the Force...


The Good

The premise behind this story is very simple, but what makes it engaging is just how well executed it is. It's ultimately a very basic monster horror story, utilizing the tropes found in the likes of Them! or Star Trek's Doomsday Machine, where you see the devastation wrought long before the monster itself shows up. That use, however, helps to highlight the terror behind this creature and builds up tension so that, by the time it finally appears, you are utterly hooked. This story could have very easily rushed into simply showing the monster up front. By instead breaking down scenes prior to its attack, pacing them out and showing hints of what is to come it, the story gains a mystery quality which hooks you in.

The time spent prior to, and even alongside, the monster's reveal also serves to help flesh out the setting. The benefit of a comic written in this time is that they tended to spend much more time expanding upon key elements rather than rushing headlong into the saga, and that makes it all the stronger. The introduction features Luke thinking of all that has happened in the past year, and of those training under his direction. Dorsk 82's introduction comes well before it gets to be real meat of the action, while a conversation that he and Kyp hold reflects upon who his predecessor was and how he died. Through this, we gain a recap similar to that of the first Crimson Empire volume, which quickly brings the reader up to speed and outlines all that has happened, so that anyone can go ahead without being lost. The character moments, and interspersed scenes on Corbos, then helps to give something new to even those who have read these past events and are up to date.

What I personally like about this addition is that it offers an easy way to impress upon the reader just type of academy Luke is running. While it's a (sadly clickbait article fuelled) misconception that the old Jedi Order wanted nothing but faceless uniformed clones filling out its ranks, Luke's new Order definitely benefits from a greater variety of faces. We see more people of varying backgrounds here, from an aging former miner to someone raised by Force-sensitive witches making up their ranks, each with more distinctive styles and stances. It helps to show how Luke was willing to give almost anyone a chance to prove themselves, and their brighter scenes contrast well against the later carnage. Especially as, once the fighting starts, it does not stop.

Having page after page of fights would typically be quite boring, and rather tedious. Without good pacing, the occasional break or something to raise the stakes, it could quickly become white noise. However, Anderson keeps finding new things to throw at the reader during these points. There's always some grand "wham" moment to get you invested, from a surprising display of power to a shock reveal, ensuring that you can never fully predict how things will play out. These are rarely the stunts which seem like they were just pulled out of a character's rectum, as each receives some small foreshadowing or implication of difficulty. As such, when a character wins something, it's more out of guile or skill rather than a move which reeks of I'm-more-powerful-than-a-Skywalker! writing. Given that Kyp Durron is one of the main characters, that seemed as if it was worth emphasizing.

This is further helped by the monster itself which, as the review cannot show you for the sake of spoilers, is increasingly horrifying as you learn more of it. Much of this is conveyed through implication or half-seen horror moments, but there really was a twisted genius behind its design which stays in your mind. Especially once you find out just where that screaming is coming from.


The Bad

A definite problem within the overall story is how it hinges upon the plot over everything else. Anderson's main strength as a writer tends to be these grand ideas and big concepts. It's why Tales of the Jedi retained such ambition, and how he finds ways to offer odd links between various eras without it seeming as if it shortens them. Exar Kun is the big one, of course, but there are others. However, while characters are given moments to really help them express themselves, they are usually just that. As a result, their major developmental arcs in this story are rather truncated, and neither Durron nor Dorsk gain much beyond a few fleeing passages. It's a real shame as well, because Durron hearing the voices of the dead could have helped to seriously emphasise his desire for redemption. This was someone who killed millions while under the influence of the Dark Side, after all.

The other characters beyond those two also do not leave much in the way of impact. Luke is a largely background presence, while both Leia and Ackbar show up in a welcome scene which covers a few possible plotholes but they soon disappear from the story. The others, meanwhile, show some hints of what they can offer stories but they either quickly fit into very secondary roles or disappear from the story. The characters themselves quite often serve the plot, but are given little to help stand out by themselves.

Another definite problem is how the story requires you to accept certain things without question, but then to turn a blind eye to errors relating to them. A fair few of these are logical errors rather than story inconsistencies, but it is nevertheless eyebrow-raising. A fairly facepalming one is how Tionne - the closest thing the Order had to an archivist at the time - is curious about Corbos following the Knights' departure. She researches into it, and within a space of seemingly seconds is able to put together how towns have been repeatedly massacred on the world hundreds of years apart. There are a few such moments in the book, and they often undermine the very drama they try to construct.

The art is also hit and miss at certain points. It does extremely well in big grand and defining scenes, but character expressions and moments which need more detail are somewhat lacking. How much this will influence your enjoyment is very much down to the individual so my advice would be to look over a few panels and decide for yourself. While these reviews would typically offer more positives and negatives on the artwork in question, and the delivery of sequential scenes, it seemed that it did one thing wrong for every two right. So, keep that in mind when you go to read this.

Finally, the story's end is not only very abrupt but it closes out with few questions answered. The nature of the monsters, a greater resolution in terms of the Jedi as a whole or something to better close out the story is all lacking. We get a few thoughts from Durron to help somewhat, and the indications that Dorsk might well be Force-sensitive, but that's it. It could have worked, but without something more to help with a sense of closure, it comes across as too sudden for its own good.


The Verdict

It would be easy to write this one off just as "Star Wars does Aliens" and that film is admittedly a clear influence here. However, there are enough changes in the premise, approach, characters and style to make it more than a simple rehash. The story does a good job in showing many aspects of how the modern Jedi Order could be shown combatting threats even as it built its numbers, of the efforts to introduce individuals foreign to even the concept of Jedi to their order, and how Kyp Durron could be written as a likable person. The story is still definitely flawed in spite of this, with a few too many conveniences and shortcomings in the character department, and the character arc of Dorsk 82 is rough at best. As such, it proves to be a good story rather than a truly outstanding one.

It's honestly a shame that we didn't get more of this sort of thing in the following years, as Leviathan did show serious potential for an ongoing Jedi Academy comic. Still, what we get is still an entertaining read, and later stories would build on some of the ideas introduced here. We should be thankful for that. If you're interested in this era I would give it a look, but if not there are some heavier going sagas out there.

Verdict: 6  out of 10