Shadows of the Empire (the comic) could have been an interesting story. It's set right after The Empire Strikes Back and deals with the planning of the rescue of Han Solo, recently encased in carbonite. A grand bad guy -- Prince Xizor -- gets introduced, but then gets dispatched pretty easily for such a powerful enemy. (Just like a few years later when The Phantom Menace came out, poor Darth Maul was built up but never fulfilled his promise.) Another great bad guy -- Boba Fett -- has a big role in this story, as he encounters and keeps escaping the plots of other bounty hunters. Interestingly, in the Original Trilogy, Fett spoke five sentences (and screamed once); here, he is constantly talking to himself.

While the story is just fair, the concept around the story is actually very interesting (and the subject of another book I'll review later). Along with this graphic novel was a (prose) novel, a videogame, and a soundtrack, all to keep Star Wars fans busy until the release of the Prequels. The intense planning and coordination almost makes me want to bump up the rating, but the characters and the story deserve a little more.

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LT Haiku:

Rebels on the run,
Vader takes on a crime lord;
Fett outwits them all. ( )