Naked Reading 2023 XVI and XVII

I've updated my Naked Reading 2023 page with two new reads this time! Star Wars: Darth Vader #28–32, and Star Wars: Yoda #4-6. Here they are with my mini reviews:

Star Wars: Darth Vader #28–32: Return of the Handmaidens. This five-issue run of comics sees the continuation of Darth Vader’s interactions with Padmé’s old handmaidens; in particular Sabé, who seeks to redeem him, and in doing so gets sucked into his darkness, even being vetted by the Emperor. Other Clone Wars era elements play into the story which is fun, as is much of the sneaking and conspiring Sabé and the other handmaidens undertake to go about their missions. But the whole setup of them interacting with Vader isn’t among my favourite plots, and so while it’s a good enough story, it’s not one I was hugely into. See my more extensive thoughts on my book review blog.

Star Wars: Yoda #1–3: Light and Life. This second story arc in the Yoda maxiseries sees Yoda encouraging a younger Dooku to take some time to join him in teaching padawans. Together they navigate the difficulties arising out of one of the students having a negative vision of the future, with each of the Jedi masters taking a different interpretation and offering different guidance to the students. A solid and enjoyable story in a little-explored era of Star Wars, which felt like it built nicely on the characters and the mythology. And again see my book review blog for my longer form review.

Plus as usual as a little bonus for my Patreon supporters, I've shared some alternate takes of both of these self-portraits there.