Outlander

This is the best story of the Ongoing Series, it has loads of action and lots of plot twists from all different directions. Also a great introduction of the new character A'Sharad Hett. He will play an important role in the next story plus The Hunt for Aurra Sing and The Clone Wars. Also Truman does great stuff with Aurra Sing giving a us a sampling of her backround and her hatred for Jedi.

I bought this trade paperback after reading the excellent Aurra Sing story in the "Star Wars: Bounty Hunters" collection. I was disappointed that this comic was not drawn by Tim Truman, but his storytelling abilities still come through in this collection. "The Exile of Sharad Hett" follows the same style of frontier crime and rebellion plot that make the Star Wars expanded universe stories great. There are some interesting plot twists, epic battles, and Truman's take on Aurra Sing, always a pleasure to read. If Tim Truman had drawn this, it would have gotten five stars. The story, art, and characters are still good, and well worth adding to your Star Wars collection. If only the movies could be this good.

Outlander is one of those comics that is almost great in every respect---and precisely just why they named it the "Ongoing" series I have yet to ascertain.Jedi Ki-Adi-Mundi is the star of the show, bounty hunter Jedi Aurra Sing the villain. And hold on to your pony, it's a race against time to find their target first: a reclusive Jedi hermit, missing for a decade and a half, now rediscovered. This story doesn't lack action, and action there is plenty. Never a dull moment, it doesn't hurt this tale actually has intrigue. Hett the Howlrunner doesn't reveal his self-imposed isolation from his fellow Jedi till the end, an end that could spoil you if you're silly enough to peruse the last page first!Art quality is great, it just really is. Not as breathtaking as Twilight or anything from the Duursema/Parson illustartor-colourist ace team, and it does make a difference to have a comic this visually appealing. Not withstanding much of this is on Tatooine, where you just know yellow and tan colours are going to predominate on that dustball.It was a pity, though, when the artistry team changed halfway, it just wasn't quite the same. On the plus side, the variation is so subtle that you'd really have to notice the changeover. Well done indeed.Dialogue doesn't dare disappoint. The primary characters of Mundi, Sing and Hett have their own style of "voice." Fans of Jedi killer Sing will get a kick out of her lines, and her tendency to speak in that odd way gets extra points for creativity. She's overconfident, rude, impish and mean; and her presentation on page shows it.You're left wondering who and what Hett is. Once a fearles Jedi warrior, now a Tusken tribal chief, his enigma will leave you guessing till the end what's really behind the disco dancing. Which will leave you asking why he just didn't enlighten his fellow Jedi kinsman sooner, but hey, you gotta wait.And Mundi doesn't leave anything for the takers. After the obligatory conehead joke---okay, it had to happen sooner or later---he's all business and no humour. The only non-Master on the Jedi Council, this is one character who doesn't messes around. Standing there, alone, finger pointing at Jabba as he tells the fat Hutt what he thinks of him, that's just gotta smile your face. Mundi doesn't lack skill, too--from chucking an Empire Strikes Back Yoda demonstration to self-healing, he's not as passive as you thought he was from the prequel movies.And as for the storyline the real mastermind behind the conflict is always the unexpected. With good humour scattered in and some nices touches, like that sociologist's name from the Children of the Jedi book, it was a nice tie-in.Overall, Outlander's quality of art, dialogue and storyline is just too strong to pass up on, not with so many substandard comcis out there.

I found the first arc of the ongoing series to be rather average, but I can say that it's picked up here. I'll also admit that I was a bit wary of this ongoing series. The previous ongoing series, 'X-wing Rogue Squadron' has always been what I've considered some of the finest examples of Star Wars ever written. I was very disappointed when the series ended, plus I liked the setting of that ongoing series more than this one.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.

`Outlander,' the second story of the ongoing Star Wars series, resumes Ki-Adi-Mundi's tale shortly after the events of `The Phantom Menace.' Outlander is one of the best of the ongoing stories so far, second, in my opinion, only to `Twilight.' Tim Truman's writing is outstanding, and the plot moves at a brisk clip, with an interesting backstory revealed and many interesting characters introduced. The comic isn't without flaws, but it manages to more than hold its own even with them.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.