Yoda #5 - Comic Review

Yoda #5 from Marvel comics tells part two of Students of the Force titled Growing Shadows and is aptly named for the series of events that take place. In part one of this story, Jedi initiate Krrsish received a Force vision that opened his eyes to the tortured relationship between Wookiees and Trandoshans, creating tension in his friend group. Krrsish confided in Jedi Master Dooku, whose advice to keep the vision to himself hinted at a creeping darkness. Yoda #5 delves even deeper into Krrsish’s tortured psyche while giving some backstory to how Trandoshan Gheyr became a Padawan. Krrsish continues to receive conflicting advice from Yoda and Dooku, and by issue’s end the shadows that have been hinted at take steps towards utter darkness.

Writer Jody Houser is telling one of the deepest and most profound stories in Star Wars canon so far this year. Her tale of a young Padawan asking deep questions and struggling through choices is heartbreakingly beautiful. Knowing what we know about Dooku, Houser smartly hints at what’s to come with him, showing how his influence on more immature Force users laid the groundwork of destruction years before his own turn to the dark side. Houser is making it crystal clear that life is all about choices. Choices on how to live with those who are different, choosing on how to forgive ourselves as much as others.

Artist Luke Ross does an amazing job of capturing these emotions in the Wookiee Krrsish, his internal struggles are painfully evident in his face and body language. Seeing the pain and fear in Krrsish’s eyes had an emotional impact on me that I was not expecting, the sign of an amazing feat of art. Color artist Nolan Woodard and letterer Joe Caramagna take a relative backseat; their work serves the story well but is subtle in that it lets the emotional weight take precedence. Weighty, intense and altogether beautiful, Yoda #5 is a triumph in Star Wars storytelling.

While it doesn’t fully capture the emotional weight of the story inside, Phil Noto’s cover for Yoda #5, featuring Master Yoda training younglings in lightsaber combat, is still a sight to behold. David López’s variant cover shows how baby Gheyr’s giftings in the Force earned her a spot in the Jedi Temple, and David Messina’s shows a contemplative Yoda under the Great Tree. Gheyr is once again featured in Peach Momoko’s Women’s History Month variant cover, bringing the grand total of covers for Yoda #5 to four for collectors to hunt down.

If Yoda #5 is any indication, the finale to the Students of the Force storyline in the next issue will most likely be an emotional roller coaster, and I can’t wait to jump on. Yoda #5 is in comic books stores everywhere now!