Star Wars: Kanan #10 Review

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Caleb learns a lesson of sacrifice in this issue. Mandolorians too.

Warning: this article contains spoilers for Kanan #10.

Kanan #10

Writer: Greg Weisman | Artist: Pepe Larraz | Colors: David Curiel | Cover: Mark Brooks | Letterer: VC’s Joe Caramagna

The situation is dire. Kanan still floats in a bacta tank, recovering from a stab wound under the watchful eyes of his comrades. The medical center, which has been surrounded, comes under attack from stormtroopers. The rest of the crew of the Ghost takes up the fight and protects Kanan. The story then flashes back to when Kanan was Caleb Dume, a Jedi Padawan. He too was recovering in a bacta tank after sustaining injuries while battling Separatists during the Clone Wars on Kardoa. Despite his wounds in his last battle, Caleb is looking forward to Master Depa Billaba’s battalion moving on to Mygeeto. The Republic is outnumbered there. Their arrival coincides with what will come to be called the Third Battle of Mygeeto.

During the battles that ensue, some of Master Depa’s outer robes are destroyed by droid blasterfire. She and Caleb remark that it is a sacrifice, but a minor one for the greater good. The Jedi Master turns this into a teachable moment, and imparts to Caleb that some sacrifices aren’t so easy. They involve painful losses, and despite that, they should not prevent a Jedi from taking risks that benefit a higher purpose. As this series, John Jackson Miller’s A New Dawn, and Rebels have all demonstrated, it is not an easy lesson for Caleb to learn. The sacrifice of his master and the betrayal of the clones during Order 66 take Caleb/Kanan more than a decade to overcome.

Shortly after this lesson, Depa, Caleb, and a pair of clones are cornered on a spire without immediate reinforcements. The spire is under siege from countless battle droids that swarm to the summit to attack the quartet. They appear to be overrun when a Mandalorian squadron of attack fighters arrive under the direction of Fenn Rau. The rescue was Rau’s way of reminding Depa that “not all Mandalorians have forgotten their honor and obligations.” These panels are notable for a couple of reasons. First, Fenn Rau’s reference is most likely tied to events that occurred during the Clone Wars. The television show of the same name had many plot lines that covered the rise and fall of Mandalore as the Death Watch and later Darth Maul attempted to control the planet. The Jedi, most notably Obi-Wan Kenobi, assisted at times.

Second, this event was referenced by Kanan during the latest episode of Star Wars Rebels. In “The Protector of Concord Dawn,” the Rebels attempt to seek safe passage through Mandalorian space. The Mandalorians, under the command of none other than Fenn Rau, initially do not permit the use of their system’s space. Kanan attempts to negotiate a resolution with Fenn Rau and references this very event. Negotiations ultimately fail, but it was a notable achievement for LucasFilm and the story group that they managed to tie an issue of the comic with an episode of the show and release both on the same day.

The rescue is short lived. Depa, Kanan, and the clones that retrieved them return to base camp aboard a Republic gunship only to have the gunship destroyed right after their arrival. Once again, they face impossible odds against an overwhelming droid army. Caleb’s friend, Stance, is an early casualty at the hands of the same Kage warrior that attacked the Jedi Temple on Coruscant in issue eight. If matters aren’t bad enough, the most overrated general in the Separatist army or the scourge of the Jedi (depending on who you ask) takes the field. If you have seen the cover, and you have if you are reading this, then you know who this is.

There is a great joke early on in this book. After Caleb emerges from the bacta tank, Stance admits he had been waiting for him to recover. He tells Caleb that since he saved Caleb’s life, he was responsible for the “kid.” What is funny is that Caleb thanks him, but admonishes him not to call him “kid,” because he is “way older than him.” It was a great, and humorous, way of reminding the reader that while the clones may look like adults, they are actually very young and have only benefitted from advanced aging techniques pioneered by the Kaminoans.

There is a mystery in this issue as well. As Caleb receives congratulations from Captain Styles, he asks how the Separatist would have known to find them on Mygeeto. The enemy seemed ready for them. Depa responds that the attack was surprisingly elaborate and bore further study. It is unclear whether there is a Separatist spy among their ranks, someone within the battalion has betrayed them, or whether a certain general’s presence has added a dimension of preparedness that the battle droids usually lack.

If you wish to avoid speculation and possible spoilers for the upcoming issues, then skip this paragraph. The presence of General Grievous is really an empty threat. The very first issue of this series occurs chronologically after this issue. Depa, Caleb, Commander Grey and Captain Styles are all present in that issue. Therefore, any damage that Grievous may inflict is to secondary characters at best. This creates an interesting issue for Weisman: how do you allow for Depa and Caleb to defeat Grievous? First, Grievous has a shaky reputation at best. As many times as he defeated Jedi in The Clone Wars, he suffered a defeat and ran. He will need to be handled carefully to make the threat of his appearance both real and believably overcome. Second, Grievous and his army have already decimated Depa and her former battalion before. That is the backstory to this series. This is where upcoming issues really have a chance to shine as Depa has the opportunity for redemption.

Favorite Panel:

It really is going to be a shame to see this series end. Larraz’s artwork is simply fantastic. It contributes to a great Star Wars story while also giving it a real comic book vibe. One of Larraz’s strengths is how well he captures emotions and how well his art sells dialogue without having to use an adverb in the speech bubble. As an example of this, I have selected for this issue’s favorite panel a panel depicting Depa and Caleb’s reaction to the oncoming droid army scaling the spire. Depa’s face portrays urgency and determination as she radio’s Commander Grey for an extraction. On the other side of the panel, Caleb’s profile portrays doubt and worry as he wonders if they really have time for a rescue. There are plenty of great action scenes that I could have picked, but a story telling panel seemed in order here.