THE "TIES" THAT BIND
Reviews by Steve Almond & Matt Hart

Without benefit of Michael J. Fox, the humor in this version of Family Ties doesn't always save it.

X-Wing: Rogue Squadron - Family Ties (Issues #26-27)
published by Dark Horse Comics

STEVE TAKES HIS SHOT
Even an epic storyline can use a little break. After five issues dealing with Soontir Fel's story and Ysanne Isaard's plotting, we get a nice two issue break from the "main" storyline.

After a funeral service for some fallen comrades, the Rogues receive word of their newest wingmate: Soontir Fel! Suffice it to say, not everyone is pleased. The inter-squadron conflict makes for an interesting atmosphere, and there's some nice dialogue about Fel's inclusion in the group. As anyone involved in the war knows, Fel has been personally repsonsible for a great number of deaths. But as Hobbie points out, "Can we punish people because they don't see things the way we do as fast as we do?" (Now, if only Fel hadn't been mentioned in the Wraith Squadron novel, we wouldn't know how his stay with Rogue Squadron turns out in advance.)

The main plot of "Family Ties" actually deals with a special mission for Plourr, Hobbie & Wes to Corellia to protect Fel's wife from those who may harm her if they learn of Fel's deffection. His wife is, as we learned last issue, Wedge's sister. When they get to Corellia, they find that Fel's nephew has been kidnapped in order to get to his wife, who's in hiding. It's up the Rogues and a pair of CorSec agents to help out the Fel clan.

The story goes fairly quickly, and again, Stackpole's characterizations are the the highlight. The three Rogues in the spotlight are definitely the most humorous of the pilots, and there's a good dosage of laughter to keep the story going. The whole "bug bite" running joke seems a little odd at first, but it grew on me. There are some nice tie-ins with the "X-Wing" novels with the use of Corran Horn, Kirtan Loor and (I'm assuming) Iella Wessiri. Horn is definitely a hot shot and great fighter (btw, I can't wait for I, Jedi!) and Loor is definitely the dork the novels make him out to be. The only problem I had with their inclusion was the over-foreshadowing at the end regarding Corran.

The actual dynamics of the story weren't that exciting, and are something of a let down following the great stuff in "In The Empire's Service" and "The Making of Baron Fel."

We've also seen better artwork for the series. Closeups seem a little odd looking with some cartoony facial expressions, and when characters are in motion, they seem very awkward. There was little background detail, but I did like the interpretation of Coronet City. I think the best art is the awful-looking "ugly" (chopped up combination starcraft made from pieces of X-wings, TIES, Y-wings and others) that John Nadeau illustrated for the cover of Part II. With these things though, the uglier it looks, the more realistic it is.

Overall, this is only an average X-Wing title, but for some funny characterizations, it's worth picking up.

STEVE'S Grade: B+

MATT FIRES BACK
I'll begin by pointing out that I've never read the "X-Wing" novels, so my only experience with Baron Fel and his associates are through the comics. I thoroughly enjoyed the introduction to Fel in the "Empire's Service" series, and expected to see his commanding presence dominate any comic he was featured in.

"Family Ties" was a real disappointment. Fel seemed to be playing "follow the leader", even though "Empire's Service" made it clear that Fel would always BE the leader. The other pilots seemed to be on some kind of college road trip rather than a surgical strike into enemy territory. The comics seemed to jump from scene to scene without any connections.

My colleague points out that the Rogue Squadron pilots have appeared in the novels, so I'm guessing that you need to be familiar with the back (forward?) story to enjoy "Family Ties". Unfortunate for the rest of us. A comic should never assume familiarity with a related novel and should build a character you can love (or hate). Instead, we have half a dozen characters who share the spotlight in just two issues, only one of which has been built in the current continuity.

I found myself reading scenes with the Rogues and having to turn back a few pages to find out where in the world they came from and who they were. In the end, I didn't really care what happened to any of them, nor if they succeeded in their mission, whatever that might be.

John Nadeau is one of my favorite artists, so the covers for "Family Ties" are excellent. I was disappointed with the overall artwork inside. While there were exceptions, most of the scenes seemed static, as if a choreographer lined everyone up and made them hold that position until the sketch was finished. Comic art is, of course, a collaboration between at least four people, so there's no telling which one of these just struck the wrong chord with me. The scene structure was good, the quality of the pencilling seemed pretty good, the inks were good, the colors were a bit too solid. As Steve pointed out, the art was cartoonish. Compare it with something like the strong images of Twin Engines of Destruction and you'll see what I mean.

If you are a Star Wars fan, you're going to pick this one up anyway, and nothing I say is likely to alter your buying decision. Maybe I'll need to have understood this storyline for a future series. Perhaps if you've read the novels, you'll thoroughly enjoy seeing some familiar characters in action. If you're like me, you'll probably put the comics in the "To Sell Later" bin and wonder what THAT story was written for.

(Steve Almond is a regular Star Wars Lit junkie. Matt Hart is a computer programmer, full time Star Wars and Batman fan, technical writer for PC Magazine and others, and aspires to see his "The Long Run" comic and "Reality Bites" cartoons published.)

Return to Index