Star Wars is a massive universe encompassing films, television shows, video games, novels, comics and manga. With such rich lore to build from, just about every medium has attempted to claim a corner of the Star Wars world, resulting in decades of stories and fan-favorite characters. In a new story by Justina Ireland and Shima Shinya, with art by Mizuki Sakakibara and Nezu Usugumo, Star Wars: The High Republic - Edge of Balance Vol. 1 follows that same decades-old tradition.
Set in the years before Palpatine was elected chancellor and Anakin Skywalker began his Jedi training, the story follows a Jedi Knight named Lily Tora-Asi and her Wookie Master, Arkoff. The Jedi Master and his apprentice escort refugees from the recently-destroyed planet Ta'klah to their new home on planet Banchii -- except things don't quite go as planned. While the refugees of Ta'klah are getting settled on their new planet, things start to go missing and a new alien threat endangers the lives of natives and refugees alike. It is up to Lily to investigate this new threat and -- at the same time -- train her Padawan, Keerin Fionn, and Younglings Viv'nia and Nima.
While Edge of Balance builds on Jedi lore as established by the Star Wars prequel trilogy, it's also written in a way that doesn't require readers to know anything about previous Star Wars films or series, as they're literally hundreds of years in the future in-canon. Instead, Edge of Balance tells a self-contained story with original characters that explores the Jedi lifestyle, making for an easy entry point for readers new to the franchise.
For fans already familiar with Star Wars, they'll immediately recognize the Jedi core values of selflessness and protecting the lives of others that are at the core of the Edge of Balance's storyline. Star Wars fans will especially recognize the Jedi rankings of Master, Knight, Padawan and Younglings while newer fans get introduced to those rankings for the first time in this volume. There is also mention of the Jedi Council and the existence of Jedi temples on various planets throughout the galaxy, including a new one on the manga's main world, Banchii.
In addition to reintroducing the Jedi lifestyle to readers, Edge of Balance also introduces some of the challenges that come with it. This is most notably explored with the main heroine, Lily Tora-Asi, who is a committed Jedi Knight but is also barely older than her Padawan, Keerin. As such, she barely sees herself as a Master, despite being a highly-skilled fighter, and does not feel ready to work independently of her own Master. When she is given the responsibility of training the Younglings Viv'nia and Nima, her shortcomings become even more prominent. Not only does she find it difficult to work while watching over them, but she also doesn't have the patience to work with Younglings.
In terms of artwork, two artists handle different stories for this first volume. Fortunately, they have similar enough art styles that it doesn't disrupt the overall visual flow of the manga. Artist Mizuki Sakakibara does the artwork for the main feature while Nezu Usugumo handles the artwork for the backup. Both artists use clean contours and give each character their own distinct look, which makes them easy to distinguish. Their action sequences are dynamic, while their panel layout is simple and easy to follow.
On the whole, Star Wars: The High Republic - Edge of Balance Vol. 1 is a straightforward story that builds on existing Star Wars lore fans of the franchise will readily enjoy. It's also easily accessible to readers who are completely new to the franchise who want to dive right in without any prior knowledge of the larger Star Wars story.
Star Wars: The High Republic - Edge of Balance Vol. 1 is available now from Viz Media.
