Review: Shadows of Starlight 2 – The song of failure

WARNING: This review contains SPOILERS for The High Republic: Shadows of Starlight 2.

This week in Star Wars comics saw the release of the second installment of an ongoing miniseries from Marvel — and the continuation of The High Republic publishing initiative.

Shadows of Starlight 2, which also takes place in the year following the fall of Starlight Beacon (the end of Phase I), features the adventures of Jedi Masters Avar Kriss and Elzar Mann. While Avar is lost in Nihil space, Elzar is doing everything he can to find her — even though he’s not even sure whether she lives or dies.

The issue begins shortly after the fall of Starlight Beacon. Avar and Elzar grieve over the loss of Stellan Gios and the other casualties of the disaster. Convinced that her failure to protect Starlight must be rectified, Avar ignores the Council’s order that all Jedi return to Coruscant.

Shortly after she disappears, the Nihil establishes something called the Stormwall. Ships cannot pass through the wall while in hyperspace, and communications through the wall are blocked. Trapped behind the Occlusion Zone, Avar must now survive on a world where the Nihil are attempting to convince citizens that the Jedi are a common enemy and must be eliminated.

The longer Elzar spends trying to find a way to get a message to Avar, the more desperate he becomes. The moment she hears his voice, her determination to defeat the Nihil and save the galaxy resurfaces.

But she’s going to have to fight for her life in order to make sure others are saved.

This is one of my favorite comics across the High Republic initiative so far. It’s great to have these characters back and to finally learn what happens in the aftermath of the fall of Starlight. It’s the connection between these two central characters that make the story work so well. The emotions absolutely leap off the page. There’s also one panel where Elzar looks like he’s about to lie down on the floor and give up just from the look on his face — it’s heartbreaking, and so well done on all fronts.

Reading this issue before the release of The Eye of Darkness next week will do a lot of heavy lifting to set you up for the beginning of the story and will add a lot of important context, so you’ll want to check it out (I haven’t spoiled everything for you here — that wouldn’t be fair).

Next month’s issue will focus on Bell Zettifar and Ember, so don’t miss out on the continuation of the story to come!

The High Republic: Shadows of Starlight 2 is available now wherever you get your Star Wars comics.

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