Outlander (Star Wars (Dark Horse)) [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

On Tatooine, the Tusken Raiders have been mobilized and organized as never before under a new war chief, known to the locals as "ootman," which is Huttese for outlander, and feared by the locals as a demon. The Tuskens have been raiding settlements and killing people for no apparent reason. When news reaches the Jedi Council on Coruscant, it is found out that this mysterious new war chief is none other than the Jedi Sharad Hett, presumed dead more than fifteen years ago. Because all the other members of the Jedi Council have personal connection with Hett, Ki is chosen to return to Tatooine and determine Sharad's standing. If the Jedi still follows the light side of the Force, Ki is to convince him to return to Coruscant to help deal with the new Sith threat, but if he's fallen to the dark side, Ki is to kill him.

What follows is a fast paced adventure on Tatooine with lots of familiar faces. Returning is Aurra Sing, the bounty huntress who appeared for about three seconds in `The Phantom Menace' and has since developed a huge fan following. Tim Truman practically invented her character - he had previously written the Aurra Sing portion of the Bounty Hunters comic, and has also written the upcoming `The Hunt for Aurra Sing' comic. Besides Aurra, we get to see Jabba, Gardulla, and all of their lackeys, and on Coruscant we meet the Dark Woman again. The writing as I've noticed is terrific, but the art is another matter. In this six-issue comic series, there are at least four different art teams, each with a distinctly different style, which makes it sometimes awkward going from issue to issue. I liked the art on four of the comics, but the other two didn't thrill me. In addition, for the first two issues only, Ki is somewhat out of character. For some reason he seems very bitter, sarcastic, undiplomatic and somewhat mean. He grows back into character as the story progresses, though. On the up side, there are some good head jokes aimed at the Cerean. :) In this comic we get to see Aurra Sing in action, some good old convoluted wheels-within-wheels Hutt business ethics, lost of deception, and some cool new characters.

Overall, this is a fantastic story, two-thirds of which is well illustrated. An excellent addition to your Star Wars library. Highly Recommended.

That said, Truman gave me a pleasant surprise. 'Outlander' is a truly good read. The switching of artists is a bit annoying, but in general it tends to flow fairly well. The art styles are generally similar and most are quite good. Truman is a good writer, and he proves it here.

It also provides an interesting look at the Tuskens and their lifestyle. It presents them a truly intelligent race, with a strong foundation in honor and survival. Truly not the barbarians that most of the non-Tusken characters view them to be. The story is interesting as well, setting up the Hutt's operations on Tatooine well. The intro scene itself, I thought, was quite well-done and provides and interesting base upon which the rest of the story develops.

I'll also say that I've never been too fond of Aurra Sing. she always seemed to me like a transplanted Boba Fett made female. It always seemed like they went a bit too far just to prove how bad she was. (Like the stupid scene with the Trandoshan in the cantina.) Nonetheless, she does become a bit more interesting here. Her narration of scenes is a very nice touch, too.

Kudos to Truman. As I said, I was wary going into this series and story arc, but 'Outlander' proved me wrong. Highly reccomended, especially for its insight into the Tuskens and the background of Tatooine.