For someone that’s really tired of reading Star Wars, I sure seem to be reading a lot of it lately. When I first saw this I kind of sighed because there is more Star Wars parody these days than actual legitimate franchise content. But something about the idea of Vader being involved in Leia’s life during her adolescence interested me, that and it’s Jeffrey Brown. I dig his stuff! There is no narrative. This is not a story that has a beginning, middle and end; it’s actually just a series of one page comic strips. Think of The New Yorker or any other variety of one panel strips from the newspaper and add Star Wars. Now there are some pages that have two to four panels since someone is bound to correct me on that, but they don’t dominate the book.

Really all of the stories are just father daughter moments, but with Vader and Leia. On the opening page Vader is about to choke a guy out when Leia interrupts by hugging his leg. Her cuteness takes Vader out of the moment. One of the best was Vader giving orders to IG-88 only for him to be Leia and Luke’s babysitter.

It’s a quick read and something that everyone can enjoy for sure, but again it’s just a series of shorts. Some of them are touching and all of them are funny and relatable. Brown does a great job of capturing the Star Wars universe both with the art and dialog. His style has come a long way and it was cool seeing him take on such a big franchise.

If you’re into Star Wars, this is definitely one of the best things to come from the franchise in recent memory. It was good enough that I will probably check out Darth Vader and Son next. If you’re a parent you’re sure to love it, but even if you just like Star Wars you’ll appreciate the quality of this book.

Score: 4/5

Writer/Artist: Jeffrey Brown

Publisher: Chronicle Books

Price: $14.99 (Hardcover)

Release Date: 4/23/13