Warning! Spoilers ahead for Darth Vader #19
Thanks to new first looks at Marvel Comics' upcoming Star Wars titles for December, it's been teased that Darth Vader will surprisingly lead heroes into battle against the criminal organization Crimson Dawn. In the aftermath of the War of the Bounty Hunters event, Darth Vader will be setting his sights on the syndicate that was first created by Darth Maul, hunting them down in the Crimson Reign event that will spin out of the current crossover. However, the solicitation for Darth Vader #19 provides the twist that Vader will be leading heroes to do so.
In previous issues of Darth Vader from writer Greg Pak and artist Raffaele Ienco, the Dark Lord of the Sith has been put through several trials after his son Luke rejected him during their duel on Cloud City. Not only did he receive a brutal punishment from his master Darth Sidious, but Vader also learned the true extent of Palpatine's power, motivating the Dark Lord to abandon his wish to rule with his son by his side. Instead, Vader now wants to kill Luke during the War of the Bounty Hunters event. As such, Vader has been attempting to obtain Han Solo who's still encased in carbonite at Crimson Dawn's auction of the smuggler, wanting to use him as bait to draw Luke out. However, it seems as though discoveries made regarding Crimson Dawn's power and connections throughout the galaxy will make them a threat to the Empire that Vader won't be able to ignore.
As a result, Vader will soon be directing his full wrath on Crimson Dawn with the coming Crimson Reign event, though the tie-in issue Darth Vader #19 from Pak and artist Guiu Vilanova will see him working with a surprising collection of characters as revealed by StarWars.com's first look at December's titles. Apparently, the upcoming issue will follow Vader as "he leads an unlikely crew of heroes and assassins". Here's the cover art for the issue from Ryan Stegman and the synopsis from the new solicitation:
- STAR WARS: DARTH VADER #19
- GREG PAK (W)
- GUIU VILANOVA (A)
- COVER BY RYAN STEGMAN
- LUCASFILM ANNIVERSARY VARIANT COVER BY CHRIS SPROUSE
- VARIANT COVER BY RUSSELL DAUTERMAN
- DARK ORDER!
- In the bowels of Bespin, DARTH VADER told his son he wanted to bring order to the galaxy.
- Now Vaders’ promise is put to the test as he leads an unlikely crew of heroes and assassins against the criminal organization known as CRIMSON DAWN.
- What does “order” mean to a DARK LORD OF THE SITH? How far will he go to fight for it as the depth of Crimson Dawns’ infiltration becomes clearer?
- And what fate awaits the heroes who follow him into battle?
Clearly, the addition of heroes is what's most interesting about this upcoming issue. Who are these heroes exactly? Being such a subjective term, one has to wonder whose side they're on. Are they simply Imperials who Vader himself views as heroes? If not, would he work with Rebels? If that's indeed the case, perhaps the threat of Crimson Dawn and their dangerous endgame will become so great that he'll indeed be resorting to a temporary alliance in pursuit of galactic order.
That being said, Vader working with Rebels would put a dark spin on the final line of the synopsis that questions the heroes' fate after following Vader. If they are Rebels, whatever Vader does to them when and if Crimson Dawn is destroyed can't be anything good. As result, Darth Vader #19 seems likes it's going to be an issue Star Wars and Darth Vader fans won't want to miss when the issue releases in December.
Source: StarWars.Com