In the Empire's Service (Star Wars: X-Wing Rogue Squadron, Volume 6) (Paperback)

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In the Empire's Service (Star Wars: X-Wing Rogue Squadron, Volume 6)

Authors: Michael A. Stackpole, John Nadeau, Jordi Ensign

 Average Customer Rating: 5/5.00
Amazon Sales Rank: 93,847
Paperback Release Date: 05 May, 1999
Manufacturer: Dark Horse Comics

 View on Amazon (ISBN: 1569713839)
Number of Paperbacks: 1
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours
 List Price: $12.95, Amazon Price: $10.36

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Amazon Customer Reviews of this item: (Average Rating is 5/5.00)

Rating: 5 [ The Best of Star Wars ]
Stackpole takes over writing the series and immediately kicks it into high gear by throwing the Rogues right into the midst of the war. The Republic is beginning its campaign for Coruscant and starts by heading for the Core Worlds. In this case, the first step is Brentaal, the rich and influential Core world.

This arc is unique in that it gives both the Rebels and Imperials almost equal time. The faces of the Empire are many, and this arc shows a depth to it not acheived in anything else thus far. The scheming by Ysanne Isard is great, while you also see the varying faces of the Empire on Brentaal itself. Admiral Lon Isoto and Baron Soontir Fel are both Imperials, yet completely opposite characters. Isoto is an incompetant, vain, corrupt, lazy, and perhaps even slightly insane man, while Fel is a very smart, strong, moral, yet somewhat flawed figure. He is the greatest pilot in the Empire, and serves that Empire not because of who leads it, but because of simple loyalty to its people. As time goes on, it becomes more and more apparent to him that perhaps his view on things was flawed, and perhaps he need to rectify it. Along with Grand Admiral Thrawn, he is perhaps the best Imperial character to come out of the comics and novels.

The Rebels are interesting as well, and the Rogues are for the only time in the series at full strength. Balancing the stories of 12 pilots is not easy, but as events transpire some paths are split and some interconnect. Some, like Wedge, Tycho, Janson, Ibtisam, and Nrin, get more time, wheras ones like Dar Keyis and Standro are forced into the backdrop. But that's alright, for reason I won't get into lest I spoil things.

The art by Nadeau perfectly fits the whole 'war movie'-type feel of 'In the Empire's Service.' His technology and cityscapes are, as always, superb, and although his faces may be a little choppy at times, each person has his or her own face, which is very important with such a large cast. And David Nestelle's coloring prowess is once again demonstrated. Never slips, always consistent, always fitting the scene perfectly.

And who can forget the cliff-hanger last line of the series?

Bravo to the creators of 'In the Empire's Service'. They've produced one of the most insightful, well-written examples of 'Star Wars' ever published, and the series' lack of sales is truly shameful. Highly, highly reccomended work.


Rating: 5 [ The Classic Rogue Squadron Comic ]
In The Empire's Service is the sixth Rogue Squadron comic series, and it happens to be one of the, if not the, best. Taking place not long after the comic "Mara Jade: By The Emperor's Hand," this is the first title in the "Rise of Isard" story arc which will link all of the remaining comics in this series, and lead into the novel series. And it is just a great and classic story. No more of those stories where the Empire is thrown in only as a convoluted plot twist, where various rogues and scoundrels uncover secret caches of Imperial ships and weaponry. This is a straight up Alliance vs. Empire story. It's full of good art, good dialogue, a plethora of dogfights, and lots of humor.

In this story, Sate Pestage has basically assumed Palpatine's role at the head of the Empire, and is struggling to hold it while an alliance of various other high ranking Imperials (the "Cabal") is also seeking to gain control of the Empire. Enter Ysanne "Iceheart" Isard, who, while presumably advising both sides as to the best way to defeat the Rebels is actually expertly playing them off against each other. Taking her advice, Pestage vows to hold a wealthy Imperial world, which the rebels promptly start planning to liberate. Thus begins the power struggle between Pestage, the Cabal, and the Rebel Alliance on Brentaal.

As I've said, this comic has an awesome number of dogfights, and it introduces several new Rogues to make up for attrition in the last comic. In addition, it introduces Salm and his wing of Y-wings, as well as Imperial fighter legend Baron Fel and his feared 181st Fighter Group, which is basically the Imperial equivalent of Rogue Squadron. Also, Kapp Dendo and his SpecOps squad show up again. The art is nice and easy to follow, and the pilot chatter is good as always. Unfortunately, Baron Fel is somewhat stiff, starting as just a perfect superpilot, but he does evolve into a more human character by the end of the series. Also, why is Plourr still with the Rogues? Wasn't her return at the end of the previous comic just a very temporary reprieve from her duties on Eiattu?

Just as a note of interest, you'll notice that the main battle in this comic was adapted as one of the levels in the Rogue Squadron 3D game for PC and N64.

Overall, this is an excellent comic, one of the best Rogue Squadron stories out there. Definitely and highly recommended.


Rating: 5 [ One of the Best SW Comics Ever ]
This is one of the greatest SW comics I have ever read.The Art and writing just meld in a perfect mixture. Stackpole's script is awsome, with its comedy, drama, and pain. The essentials of Star Wars are all here. The continuity between this and the X-Wing books is also nice, as this was the first four issue story arc in the 'Rise of Isard' arc of books, comprising a total of 12 issues. The plot is excellent, introducing what has become one of the most popular EU characters, Baron Soontir Fel. Nadau's pencils are great, with facial expressions and explosions all rendered realistically. Nestelle's colors are, as usual, are stunning. This is one book that belongs in all comic lovers and Star Wars maniacs Library's. 5/5.