I’ll be straight with everyone, I had zero expectations for this comic and it blew me away on how good it is. The previous Black, White & Red series from Marvel Comics, and even DC Comics, had colored my perspective on them due to their often mediocre to poor short stories. Essentially, I had a very sour opinion on these types of series in Marvel Comics really being fulfilling after a while. Even the release of the Star Wars: Darth Vader – Black, White & Red series didn’t inspire confidence that this one was going to be good.

They tried it with Carnage multiple times and recently with Darth Vader, but aside from two or three stories, these anthology series just never panned out for me, or others apparently. So, it’s a great breath of fresh air to see that this issue in particular was so good. It’s not the greatest thing or anything, but it is undeniably good and above all a good Darth Maul story that feels perfect for him.

Now, there are some things that make this issue work not just in the context of previous Black, White and Red series, but as a Darth Maul story that explores another aspect of the Dark Side at play in the Star Wars galaxy. The first thing that works here versus many other past attempts to show horrific dark side users, powers, and factions outside of the Sith Order in the Disney Canon continuity is simple: these new villains are actually scary in their appearance and powers.

The main villains, the trinity of the Final Occultation (long name, I know), look like they’re straight up eldritch alien horrors, at least two of them. And the way their powers work is unexplained but fits just enough because it’s not that they have some new power, they’re still using the Force, it’s how they’re using to effect everyone else around them. And this links up with the overall goal of their faction, to engulf the entire Galaxy in utter chaos.

Now, all of that is thanks to two people: Benjamin Percy and Stefano Raffaele. On the one hand we get solid work from Percy on writing these new villains, the dialogue, etc. while it’s thanks to Raffaele for visually establishing the general tone and horror atmosphere of the comic. It’s like a mixture of the film Aliens with a dash of cosmic horror. But the best part is Darth Maul, obviously. Like how he’s written as the cold, vicious, and brutally efficient Sith that he is, and this comic allows him to go all the way with that in the violence. Granted, it’s nothing too graphic but it’s on point for what you’d like from a Darth Maul story. Plus, the Black, White and Red color scheme gimmick perfectly suits him, and the red visual atmosphere just pushes the morbid atmosphere even further.

I believe the last thing that makes this comic work is that it’s a genuine story told with a beginning, middle and end. The typical formula for Black, White and Red series is that there are multiple very short, short stories told with one or two that have overarching stories that continue in later issues. That’s not what we get here. We get an actual standalone story for Darth Maul that doesn’t have to share space with three or four others, it doesn’t have to force itself to go any longer than it really needs to, and it can begin and end in one enjoyable issue. Essentially, it’s never too little or too much, it’s just the right amount of everything. I can’t say I’m hyped for the next issue since it’s written by Mark Russel of all people, and the writer on the third issue doesn’t inspire confidence either. But who knows, I might review those two if they actually end up being good stories. I’m not holding my breath, but I don’t mind being surprised.