
Published: April 16, 2025
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Rated: T
Writer: Charles Soule
Artist: Luke Ross
Colour Artist: Nolan Woodard
Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover: Derrick Chew
The synopsis;
KYLO REN – PRISONER ON TATOOINE!
• KYLO REN has been imprisoned by the ruthless GARDULLA THE HUTT!
• The young tyrant must survive the harsh conditions of his grandfather DARTH VADER’S homeworld!
• And who is the mysterious FORCE USER in Gardulla’s employ?
The review;
Slashing across the page in a clash of green and red, Kylo Ren is leaping at his enemies in Chew’s vibrant direct cover. Using the contrasting colours makes this composition come alive, lending a beautiful array of highlights across Ren’s dark armour. Meanwhile Hans’ variant is far stiller, almost reflective, as Ren stares off into the distance surrounded by smoke and trailed by flames. And finally, Albuquerque’s variant embraces fire as Ren’s helmet is licked by flames, the reflection-less visor adding a chilling sense of darkness to this rendition.
After travelling the sands of Tatooine for clues surrounding his past, Kylo Ren infiltrates Gardulla the Hutt’s lair. Furious at the Hutt’s part in his grandfather’s enslavement, the young Knight of Ren is determined to bring a reckoning. He wants to destroy Gardulla and erase her from his past. However, he underestimates Gardulla’s knowledge of the Force and ends up captured in her dungeons. But Kylo Ren refuses to break.
Brutal would be the most succinct way to describe Legacy of Vader #3. After being captured by Gardulla the Hutt and his Force powers overcome by her weird alien minion, he’s forced into chains within the dungeons. Gardulla thinks she can break the Force user into submission – just as she had done to Anakin Skywalker and his mother decades ago. And so she tortures Ren for hours that seem like days. It’s a brutal opening to the story and Soule highlights the brutality of the Hutt cartel.
And Kylo Ren is torn between diplomacy and vengeance throughout Legacy of Vader #3. A part of him wants to bargain with Gardulla – to offer her a chance to join the ranks of the galactic underworld who work alongside the First Order. The other part, the angrier one, simply wants to destroy her. Even while under tremendous pain, Kylo channels it into fuelling his Dark Side powers, much like the way he deliberately hurts himself in the forest battle at the end of The Force Awakens to be stronger when facing Rey.
Although Ren is an extremely powerful Force user, his connection to the Dark Side is not absolute. He must channel either anger or pain to make full use of such powers. It appears that Vaneé might realise this fact and that he set up this trap as a chance for Ren to connect even further to the Dark Side. We already know that Vaneé has read the files left by the Emperor, which likely hinted at Vader’s internal struggle between Light and Dark, so Vaneé could be recreating that with Ren. He doesn’t want him tempted by redemption.
Yet even while experiencing torture, Ren thinks about Rey. Whether this is because Gardulla is trying to goad him by saying, ‘You are nothing’ as he once told Rey aboard the Supremacy. Or it could be because Ren is trying to ground himself with memories he holds dear. What stronger way to face pain than picturing something positive or someone beautiful? But Gardulla eventually goes too far, goading Ren past reason, and he finally snaps. Not into submission – into power.
He channels the Force with incredible strength, razing part of Gardulla’s keep to the ground and escaping into the shifting Tatooine desert. It’s reminiscent to how Leia and Luke help Han escape from Jabba the Hutt, and there’s a panel where Ren dons a makeshift poncho to survive the blustering sands that feels similar to the deleted scene of that sequence from Episode VI. He soon finds a comm station to signal the First Order and General Hux is likely disappointed that Ren’s disappearance isn’t permanent.
The Supreme Leader demands the General to bring the Finalizer to Tatooine for a full orbital bombardment of Gardulla’s keep. Is that overkill? Well, he is destroying part of the Hutt cartel and their slavery operations, so there is an element of justice, even if Ren makes the order from anger. I also found it quite amusing that General Hux doesn’t even blink when he sees the coordinates for the bombardment are Ren’s location. He’s either completely used to Ren’s brazen attitude or hoping that he might accidentally get rid of the current Supreme Leader. Even in such a brief exchange, Soule perfectly captures their constant power-plays and bickering. Honestly, I hope we get to see more of them interacting because the banter between them brings some much-needed lightheartedness to this series!
Ross’ artwork throughout Legacy of Vader #3 is absolutely incredible and visceral. Ren’s pain is palpable on the page and the way he captures the darkness of those scenes is tremendously skilled. Every expression and micro-expression perfectly captures Ren’s pain and anger in a way that feels authentic to Driver’s performance across the films. And then the sheer drama of his destruction across Tatooine is so grand in scope and scale, that it truly seems like breaking free when reading it.
Legacy of Vader #3 is unafraid to embrace its darkness and have Kylo Ren overcome the odds. It’s raw and gritty. Soule writes an unapologetic exploration of anger and hatred as Ren takes vengeance against those who dared to hurt him – and his family in the past. It’s morally ambiguous storytelling at its finest. Next issue sees Kylo Ren visit the royal residences of Naboo as Vaneé awaits at Varykino.
Availability;
Star Wars: Legacy of Vader is an ongoing series published by Marvel Comics. This issue retails at $4.99 and is available online from Amazon (comiXology) and your local comic book store.
The post Comic Review: Legacy of Vader #3 appeared first on Jedi News.







