This might sound bold, but Lando is the most interesting character in comic book fandom today. I don’t recall the character making all that big a splash in any Dark Horse Comics book either, so it’s with great anticipation I review the latest issue. Is it good?
Lando #4 (Marvel Comics)
Lando is in way over his head, but that’s typically where Lando is anyway. He’s captured Emperor Palpatine’s personal vessel, escaped three Star Destroyers and survived the attack of two Imperial Guards. Basically a very hard day. Last issue Lando and his partners in crime opened some sealed doors that revealed Sith treasures, but his best bud Lobot got a massive thrust of a lightsaber for his trouble. Oh, and one of the greatest bounty hunters in the universe has been ordered to acquire the ship and bring Lando and his buddies directly to him for punishment.
As far as penultimate issues go, Charles Soule delivers some interesting detail on what exactly is going on with the Sith artifacts. The coolest element at play here is how these elements are almost magical in their ability to imbue hate. It’s an interesting element that makes the Sith even more Boogeyman-like and it’s fun to see Lando shrug it off. He’s a man of reason it seems, and this whole Jedi/Sith stuff is not interesting in the slightest. Lando’s cowardice is at play here too, as he and his compatriot talk about fleeing and he also makes a bold move near the end.
Creepy.
I’m not a big fan of these robot cat people though. They got a lot of attention last issue as they fought the Imperial Guards and again they take more of a center stage here. The fact that they’re brand new (at least to me) makes it hard for me to care what happens to them in this issue. The cliffhanger, which uses them in a new way, is less foreboding because I really don’t see them sticking around anyway.
Ultimately this issue is quite slow and appears to be biding its time until the climactic finale next month. The threats are mounting on both sides of Lando and even though there is an interesting twist when it comes to the bounty hunter, this issue is too slow to make it a must read. Lando is still a very strong aspect of the series and I’m greatly anticipating the next issue.
The art by Alex Maleev continues to impress. I’ve seen other critics argue it’s too dark, but I think it suits the positive attitude of Lando nicely. Plus with all the hoodoo going on with the Sith stuff the story is satisfied nicely by a darker tone. Lando continues to look exactly like the actor who played him and the pace is quite nice too.
So Lando is basically an atheist.
Is It Good?
It’s good, but not great and it suffers the penultimate issue syndrome so many comics go through. It’s all setup for the big climax and it feels like a bridge issue.
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