Star Wars: Darth Vader and the Cry of Shadows

Star Wars Legends: Comics

by Tim Siedell, Gabriel Guzmán (Illustrations), Michael Atiyeh (Illustrations)

After he is left for dead during the Clone Wars, a single trooper comes to hate the Jedi who abandoned him. Years later, he hears of a great and powerful warrior--the hand of the new Galactic Empire, Darth Vader! Seeking to serve the Dark Lord, this man, Hock, becomes a stormtrooper and works to gain the respect of Vader. During a mission against a group of remnant Separatists, Hock finds himself fighting side by side with Darth Vader, and the bitterness that had grown inside him is brought to rest.
"A fine example of what Vader can and should be all about." -Comic Book Resources 

Genres: Star Wars, Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Fantasy, Fiction

128 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Bookwraiths · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story had a nice premise with a clone trooper loosing his faith in the Republic and the Jedi after being left behind in battle. His return to Imperial service was plausible enough, even his rise up the ranks to favorite of Darth Vader was decent enough, but the conclusion was filled with plot holes and head-scratching moments. Book only gets three stars because it was nice to see Vader shown in his dark glory and the art was interesting.

[Artemy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very solid old canon mini-series told from the perspective of a regular clone trooper. Just like most tales in this time period, it shows exactly how evil the Empire is, and it shows the humanity and the individual perspective of a character who would otherwise be treated as cannon fodder. Nothing truly profound here, but it's still a strong, competently told story with some nice artwork.

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting story told from the perspective of a clone named Hock Malsuum and we find his origins and reasons for hating the jedis but what happens with him in the present joining the empire because he looks upto Vader and on a mission to Ostor, the things that happen that change his life from taking down a general to assuming command and then working with Vader to crush down the insurgency and then finally seeing his brutal sides and what he does next and his life story and all that. Its a good volume and does well to highlight this clone and shows the brutal nature of the wars and how it breaks some men and sure it doesn't have Vader talking and used as a figure, but does well to cover his brtality from other persons perspective and also does well to highlight Clones in an interesting way with good art and point-accurate writing, its a good one-time read for sure!

[Rue · Rating 2 out of 5]

What just happened?

Was it supposed to end like that, so randomly?

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

more clone-centric stories please

[Daniel Burton · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, I can't get the time back. At least it was short.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

Nice to see Darth Vader again. Glad that the stormtrooper left the Empire. Also glad we were able to get the stormtrooper's story. Hope he has a good life with his wife.

Can't wait to read more Star Wars comics!!!!

[Dmitry Yakovenko · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Плач теней", как и "Тюрьма-призрак", отказывается давать место во главе угла Вейдеру, а отводит главную роль простому человеку, в данном случае обычному клону. И о чудо, когда в центре не всемогущий ситх, история становится эмоциональной, человечной, драматичной и непредсказуемой. Ведь всегда понято, что с Энакином ничего не случится, а вот безимянный никому неизвестный клон — это уже другое дело.

Как итог, мощная история про долг, отвагу и мужество, в которой Вейдер лишь фигура второго плана, а на первой линии фронта обычные люди, совершающие необычные поступки. Бонусом идёт симпатичный рисунок и множество экшена.

Да, может и поскучнее будет, нежели в "Тюрьме-призраке", да побанальнее, зато интереснее чем "Девятый убийца" и "Пропавший отряд". Читать можно, неплохое развлечение на раз.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've instantly devoured this one. It's a great story with according art, showing a different perspective on Vader from the viewpoint of a clone trooper, providing some depth into the bad guys of the saga. Loved it.

[Aaron Ortiz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really good insight as to how Vader was after RotS and the presence Vader had as well in the empire.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fast paced comic. Perhaps too fast in my opinion. We have an angry Clone trooper who was 'abandoned' by the Republic and he is forced to survive by other means. When he is finally off planet, the Empire is now in charge so he joins up with them in his admiration for Darth Vader.

I could not connect with characters in this graphic novel at all. The narration was dry and broken. Most of the book I felt as though I was simply reading a list of bullet points for a plot outline. In the end, very little came out and I was left feeling hallow. The concept has a lot of potential, especially as he gets to know Vader's true character. yet the bland script and jumpy images failed to portray that.

I think Vader was reasonably portrayed but original character creation needs a lot of work. The artwork was okay, but the panels did not flow together well on several occasions.

*I was loaned a digital copy of this graphic novel in exchange for a fair, honest review.*

[Simon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of potential, and a really great idea, a clone trooper who slowly loses his faith.

But, and this is a huge but. There's a HUGE plot device that makes no sense.


Spoiler.


Basically he is captured by his enemies, who rescue him from his downed ship, put him in a hospital, no guard, he gets up, walks into the generals planning area, tells them they're all doomed, then walks down the hallway and switches off their city shields, allowing Vader to storm in and brutally slaughter everybody.

So, uh... why on earth did the rebels let the enemy soldier wander about freely and sabotage a key system? Makes. No. Sense. And loses a whole star for this alone.

[José Pedro Gomes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've already seen this episode on the animated Clone Wars series, interesting theme but only scratched by its superficiality.
The illustrations are unbalanced and the script is lame, easy with the touch of a 2nd World War poster or an politician ideological speech. Touchy for a kid, but not for an Star Wars adult veteran that wants to see explored the evil metamorphosis: the Darth Vader's click, what's so magnetizing and where's the true lesson of its opposite.

[Sud666 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly wonderful story. Told from the perspective of a Clone Trooper who was left for dead by the Jedi during the Clone Wars. The trooper finds someone who hates the Jedi as much as he does- Lord Vader. He joins him in his quest to further the goals of the Dark Lord. A truly great look into the ways of Darth Vader as the Emperor's fist. Superb artwork and well written. A must read for any fan of Vader.

[Noah · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I accidentally read this comic when I meant to read the newest Vader comics, whoops. This has gotten a lot of low ratings but I really liked it and I liked the character development!

[47Time · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story seen through the eyes of a clone trooper is certainly rare. It has several flashbacks in the beginning and keeps you on your toes throughout. It features a clone that defeats its conditioning and develops into an individual with a mind of his own.

The clone soldier CT-5539 is left behind on a desert planet half-dead after a failed attack during the Clone Wars. His predicament seeds a hatred of the Jedi in his soul. He manages to survive for years on a farm. When he discovers the existence of Darth Vader, another man who hates the Jedi with a vengeance, he heads off to offers his services.

While in the desert he adopts the name Hock - an unusual act for a clone. The idea came to him after meeting another clone that stood out during training on Kamino. Kaddak excelled at everything his trainers threw at him, but his rebellious nature got him imprisoned. The only purpose he was left alive for was to investigate how he became so different. Then he disappeared.

After enrolling in the Imperial army, Hock distinguishes himself in front of Vader and earns a promotion. He is the only survivor of Vader's failed attack on a separatist base. He kills the Imperial commander with his own two hands and then lies to the emperor that Vader was disobeyed. He earns Vader's trust and becomes his right hand man for the second assault. He encounters Kaddak on the battlefield and his fighter is destroyed.

Hock wakes up in the infirmary from the separatist base. They know they are fighting a losing battle and instead focus on creating awareness of the Empire's brutality in the galaxy. They are wiped out by Vader's next attack. He also kills the people in the infirmary - this is the act that changes Hock's mind about Vader. He leaves the war behind in favor of building a family.

[Jared · Rating 1 out of 5]

Star Wars Legends Project #196

Background: Darth Vader and the Cry of Shadows was released in July 2014, collecting the 5-issue series of the same title (December 2013-April 2014). It was written by Tim Siedell with art by Gabriel Guzman. Siedell also wrote Darth Vader and the Ninth Assassin (my review). Guzman did some of the drawing for the Fire Carrier storyline from Dark Times.

The story takes place about a year after Order 66 (17 years before the Battle of Yavin). Darth Vader is a major character, but not the main character.

Summary: A former clone trooper, left for dead during battle by his Jedi general, believes he's found a leader worth following when he hears about Darth Vader's exploits hunting down the remaining Jedi. Joining the Empire, he soon catches Vader's eye with his loyalty and skill, but Vader isn't fighting the kind of war he thought.

Review: It's a real shame, a travesty even, that this is one of the final titles Dark Horse published before the end of the old Expanded Universe. Honestly, most of the "Darth Vader and" arcs have totally squandered the opportunities presented by the title character, but this is easily the worst of the bunch. The title is totally meaningless and the story never even attempts to suggest a connection to it. Vader himself is a bit player in this story, which is all the more lame because the main character is totally uninteresting. He has a name, but it's really stupid and he doesn't matter, so don't worry about it.

The whole story feels as underdeveloped as its central character, too. Each issue reads like a subheading in an outline of a plot that never made it to the fleshed-out stage. The end of the issue would totally catch me off-guard because nothing had really happened yet, but the stinger at the end would promise something to the effect of, "Next issue: The story ACTUALLY starts" . . . and then it never did. It looks nice, like all of these titles do, but otherwise, it's a total waste of time and effort on the part of everyone involved.

D-

[Guilherme Smee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nesta HQ, cujo título é Darth Vader: O Clamor das Sombras, o protagonista não é bem o grande e sombrio lorde Sith. O protagonista, na verdade, é Hock Malsuum, um clone trooper que conquistou a individualidade depois de ter sido ferido no crânio e ter ficado com uma cicatriz gravada em seu rosto. Assim, para se diferenciar na clone troop, ele pintou um risco vermelho em sua máscara. Assim, acompanhamos Hock e sua lealdade ao Império, mas principalmente da Darth Vader. Ele ajuda Vader como um de seus capitães para derrotar vários rebeldes. Até que ele se depara com um outro dele. Um homem que mantinha na prisão e que o chamava de "escravo". Hock percebeu que seu irmão de clonagem tomou outro rumo, diferente do dele: se tornou um homem que cultuava seus músculos e que tinha uma verve rebelde. Os dois, então, acabam se enfrentando, como nêmeses similares um do outro, com o mesmo rosto, mas com intenções diferentes. Um quadrinho que, pela premissa, o roteirista Tim Siedell poderia ter trabalhado melhor. Já o trabalho dos desenhos de Gabriel Guzman é bastante competente.

[Kyle Berk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though I can appreciate what the book was trying to say every other Star Wars media has already said it, and this is an admittedly entertaining way of it.

It’s about a clone trooper who gains the respect of Vader but then changes his mind and he is memorializing his thoughts in a journal.

It’s lackluster and the ending is unfulfilling. Maybe that’s the point to leave you unsatisfied, maybe to show how evil the empire is. But it just spins the wheels for five issues.

Art is good does its job with the Darth Vader money shots.

2 stars.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever since I started watching "The Clone Wars," I've been more invested and interested in the clones. This tells the story of a disillusioned clone who decides to serve under Vader. We're so used to seeing people serving Vader out of fear that it is interesting to see how someone could, at least at first, serve him out of admiration or respect. Recommended reading, even though I don't think it's considered canon with the April 2014 cutoff.

[Sean Goh · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you ignore the plot holes like a captured POW running willy-nilly around rebel HQ sabotaging systems unhindered, the story of a clone trooper's journey from idolising to losing faith in Vader is pretty good. Also, the jab at stormtroopers' aim (I envisioned an army of troopers who couldn't hit anything they shot at) was hilarious.

[Rizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Other people seem to dislike this because it's not actually a Vader comic, but a clone comic. However, that's precisely the reason I enjoyed it. Seeing what happens to a clone in the transition from Republic to Empire was genuinely interesting. Seeing Vader from the perspective of his soldiers isn't something you really get anywhere else. It works.

[Andrew Kline · Rating 4 out of 5]

It seems a common theme of these Dark Horse Vader comics is people believing there is any wiggle room in Vader's resolve. He is a tool of the Emperor, period. In this one, a clone survives a battle but is left for dead. He survives and finds inspiration in Vader, but as he rises through the ranks, he gets more than he bargained for when he finally gets the Sith lord's attention.

[Anwar Vázquez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una gran historia en retrospectiva de un clon que por azares queda a la deriva en un planeta. Luego se integra a las filas de Vader y conoce de cerca los horrores y acciones del Imperio.
Muy bien escrita e ilustrada, con un ritmo ágil de lectura.

[Mati · Rating 4 out of 5]

The left to die clone trooper who returned back to service under lord Vader. It started very good and journey of the trooper was well made, but the ending was kind of rushed and bit disappointing.
The art of this piece is very nice one of the better ones.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting read, though by no means unique - there are plenty of tales about clones learning hard truths. And also, for a story with a title bearing Darth Vader's name, there is very little of Darth Vader within it.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick and easy but enjoyably read. Faultless artwork, but not a great deal of depth.
Having said that, it does offer a few insights not often seen.

[Neil Hepworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the basic premise of the story, but good heavens, that was an idea stretched thin, thin, thin, thin over 120+ pages...needs more meat on the bones.

[Roberto Diaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast-paced, four-part mini series about a Clone Trooper, Darth Vader, the guilt of war crimes, and the lingering doubt of fighting for the wrong side of a major conflict.

[Dave Foss · Rating 3 out of 5]

had big hopes for this one, but very disappointed. was more about the trooper than vader.