Princess Leia #5, September 2015
Of all the characters in the classic (original trilogy) Star Wars Universe, Leia is the most intriguing.
Nearly all of the other characters in the saga are archetypes found in dozens, if not hundreds of myths, fables and tales. George Lucas revered the late author Joseph Campbell who dissects these concepts ad nauseum in in his brilliant and well-known tomes on mythology.
But Leia… She’s a bit off model, certainly from a Hollywood depiction of a damsel in distress. (Possibly with the exception of Dorothy in Wizard of Oz, who gets her act together in similar but less assertive fashion.)
As one pop culture podcaster put it recently: “She (Leia) hijacked her own rescue.”
And from there, it only gets better. She’s clearly the smartest, most pragmatic member of the Star Wars gang. She’s also strong, decisive and strategic. And she can out wise-ass Han, no easy feat.
After Alderaan goes boom, Leia is the one holding entire rebellion together. No offense, Mon Mothma, Admiral Ackbar, or anyone else in the rebellion ruling class. It’s pretty clear Leia is a — pun intended — driving force of the story.
Here we have a knockout Star Wars page from Terry and Rachel Dodson featuring a lovely half splash of Leia. It’s from the eponymous — and terrific — Mark Waid-authored series, published not long after the franchise reverted back to Marvel from Dark Horse.
More on Leia on Thursday and Saturday.
See you then.
