Review: Star Wars: Lando – Double or Nothing
Quick Summary
Pros: There are moments where Lando is charming and fun. Some of the humor is good, especially for those looking for a lighthearted book.
Cons: Lando’s personality is exaggerated and comes across as annoying in most places. The focus on humor distracts from the narrative. The book has plenty of unnecessary moments that leave the plotline underdeveloped.
Overall: This is a mediocre book that disappoints in a number of places. The best an worst aspects of the book come from Lando himself. There are a few moments where Lando is as cool as readers want him to be, however, there are far more moments where he is downright annoying and does not seem like the character fans are familiar with. In addition, a lackluster story and average art do little to alleviate this problem. Those looking for an overly lighthearted take on Lando can find it here, as long as they are willing to look past his flaws.
Story
Star Wars: Lando- Double or Nothing, by Rodney Barnes, starts out alright but starts to get annoying over time. In the beginning, Lando’s over-confident attitude and antagonistic personality is charming and makes him a more entertaining character. However, the volume overemphasizes aspects of his personality to annoying levels. Nearly every page has Lando making quips or bragging about something, to the point where it feels overdone. When paired with the volume’s lackluster storyline, this flaw damages the collection’s overall appeal. In the end, this is an underwhelming book that is really only worthwhile for those who only care about Lando’s humor.
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At its core, Double or Nothing has a solid concept and a decent story. It has Lando take on the role of the self-centered smuggler who becomes involved with a job far beyond his usual realm of operations. This causes Lando’s egocentrism to evolve into something closer to altruism. Watching this change take place is enjoyable and is one of the volume’s positives.
However, the narrative is also plagued with a number of moments that detract from the story and only manage to provide cheap thrills. This can be seen in Lando’s flirtatious relationship with Kristiss, which is dropped almost immediately, or his fights through the sewer system, which feels auxiliary to the main plot. The time wasted on these moments could have been spent humanizing Lando or developing a more intricate storyline. Instead, they simply provide brief periods of generic interest while leaving the main storyline feeling generic.
Outside of the actual storytelling, most of this collection focuses on Lando as a character. In some places, this focus is well managed. It allows Lando to be the charming, yet narcissistic, character that most fans love. It also packs the volume with quick jokes and plenty of humor, though this humor is of varying quality levels.
The problem is that Lando’s personality is overdone to the point where he feels like a caricature of his former self. Nearly every page has Lando self-aggrandizing over his own ego or mocking the actions of his compatriots. His playful fights with L3-37 are more ridiculous than before and dominate their interactions. Most scenes also have Lando acting like a petulant child, rather than the composted smuggler that he should be. All of this takes away from Lando’s appeal and, thus, the appeal of this volume as a whole.
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Art
The artwork in Double or Nothing isn’t bad but also isn’t incredibly noteworthy. Paolo Villanelli’s work here presents a neatly stylized take on Lando and the rest of the Star Wars universe. Characters are instantly recognizable and the planets feel creative enough to exist in this universe. However, there are a number of pages here that are underwhelming, especially those depicting outer space or any sort of starship-based battles. In this way, the art works as a companion to Solo: A Star Wars Story but isn’t going to be winning any awards.
Continuity
Star Wars: Lando- Double or Nothing takes place immediately before the events of Solo: A Star Wars Story. The conclusion of this volume mirrors Lando’s introduction in that film.