SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Manga
  • All Ages
  • Young Adult
  • Interviews
  • News

January 9, 2018 by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Review: ‘Star Wars Forces of Destiny: Princess Leia’

January 9, 2018 by J. Caleb Mozzocco   1 comments

StarWars_FOD_Acvr-copy-659x1000

Star Wars Forces of Destiny: Princess Leia
Writers: Elsa Charretier and Pierrick Colinet
Artist: Elsa Charretier
IDW Publishing; $3.99

While the original Star Wars trilogy has always had many female fans, little girls who looked to the space opera for characters that looked like them had Leia and…that’s about it, unless you really wanted to play Mon Mothma, Aunt Beru or…one of Jabba’s dancers, maybe…? That is something that has gradually been addressed in later films and extensions of the brand, to the extent that the current trilogy and the first of the standalone spin-off films starred female protagonists.

To help maintain and accentuate the brand’s appeal to girls, there’s the Star Wars: Forces of Destiny initiative, which has thus far centered on a “micro-series” of online animated shorts, juvenile prose books, a toy line and other merchandising and, most relevant to our interests, comic books. IDW Productions, which publishes the all-ages Star Wars Adventures comic, has produced a suite of five one-shots, each starring one or more of the galaxy’s greatest female heroes, spanning the history from the Clone Wars to the Resistance’s battles with the First Order. Each features a female writer, as well as a female artist (which is important, because kids look up to the real people who make the adventures they love, not just the fictional heroes who go on those adventures).

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

The first of these specials naturally stars Leia, in a 20-page adventure from writer/artist Elsa Charretier, perhaps currently best known for her work on Marvel’s The Unstoppable Wasp, and Charretier’s writing partner, Pierrick Colinet, who appears to be the only male working on the books. (The pair previously created a Leia-focused short story for an issue of Star Wars Adventures.)

It is set on the ice planet Hoth, right before the start of Empire Strikes Back—like, literally right before the start of the film, as the probe droid from the opening scene of the movie appears on the last page of the story. Leia leads a small expedition in search of a lost ship, supplies from which are needed at their base.

Han Solo has a small supporting role, as does, somewhat surprisingly, Hera, from the Star Wars: Rebels TV show and the star of her own future one-shot. And, because the setting is a familiar one, Charretier is able to use familiar elements from the film, from the cast’s costumes to Hoth creatures like their tauntaun mounts and a monstrous wampa.

While that’s the basic plot, the story focuses on the pressure Leia feels as the leader that the whole rebel alliance looks to for guidance, and, more interestingly still, the way that one of her key character traits—her stubbornness—can be both a virtue and a vice at the same time.

It is a rather simple story, but a good one, and a nice overall character sketch.

Charretier’s artwork is, as always, clean and elegant, representational without being slavishly so, and she manages to make the characters—two of whom are of course based on rather famous real people—and the familiar costumes, sets, and overall milieu look like her own. Given the specifics of the setting, there are also a lot of particularly nice uses of whites, with the snow itself sometimes becoming a compelling visual subject.

There are four more specials that will follow over the course of the next four weeks. This Wednesday will bring Rey, the hero of the current film trilogy, by writer Jody Houser and artist Arianna Florean. That will be followed by the aforementioned Hera by Devin Grayson and Eva Wedermann; Ahsoka and Padme, starring the Clone Wars Jedi and Natalie Portman’s character from the prequel trilogy, by Beth Revis and Valentina Pinto; and, finally, Rose and Paige, starring Kelly Marie Tran’s new character from The Last Jedi and her briefly seen sister, by Delilah S. Dawson and Nicoletta Baldari.

Filed under: All Ages, Reviews

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
Elsa CharretierForces of DestinyIDW PublishingLeiaPierrick ColinetStar Wars

About J. Caleb Mozzocco

J. Caleb Mozzocco is a way-too-busy freelance writer who has written about comics for online and print venues for a rather long time now. He currently contributes to Comic Book Resources' Robot 6 blog and ComicsAlliance, and maintains his own daily-ish blog at EveryDayIsLikeWednesday.blogspot.com. He lives in northeast Ohio, where he works as a circulation clerk at a public library by day.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

January 2023

Andy Warner's Oddball Histories: Pests and Pets | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

January 2023

My Sister, the Cat, vol. 1 | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

January 2023

History Comics: Rosa Parks & Claudette Colvin | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

October 2022

A Costume for Charly | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

September 2022

History Comics: The Roanoke Colony | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Your 2023 Caldecott Comment Card

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Will Spring Be Early? Or Will Spring Be Late? by Crockett Johnson

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Evil Secret Society of Cats | This Week’s Comics

by Lori Henderson

Heavy Medal

FREEWATER wins the Newbery Medal, live reactions from Heavy Medal bloggers

by Emily Mroczek-Bayci

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Philosophy and/as/of Literature, a guest post by Amy Zhang

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Be Afraid (but not too afraid): Graphic novel horror for middle grade readers

YA Books Reflect the Activism of Real-Life Teens

Saturday Morning Comics | Stellar Panels

The 2019 Eisner Award Nominations, Reviewed

26 Chapter Books, Middle Grade, and Graphic Novels for Latinx Heritage Month and Beyond

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Suzanne Tecza says

    February 22, 2018 at 9:07 am

    I’m def buying this book for my library. Girl Power!!!

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023