Star Wars Fans Can Now See What The Force Feels Like To A Jedi

Star Wars has been thrilling fans with its mystic notions of the Force since the series began in A New Hope, but a lot of the actual mechanics about how the Force and Force-sensitivity work has been left to the imagination. Until now. The new Star Wars: The High Republic line takes place in an era where the Jedi are at the height of their powers and connection to the Force – and thanks to Marvel’s new Star Wars: The High Republic comic series, we get one of the best visuals yet depicted what a Jedi “sees” when reaching out through the Force!

Warning: SPOILERS for Marvel’s Star Wars: The High Republic #1 Follow!

The main focus of The High Republic #1 is young Jedi Padawan Keeve Trennis, who is trying to complete her trials to become a Jedi Knight. That trial is held on the planet Shuraden, in the frontier lands of The Republic. On that strange planet, Keeve befriends a local sprite-like creature named Kanrii, who tags along with the Jedi both providing information and asking annoying questions.

Jedi Master Sskeer has a specific test designed for Keeve, but that all goes out the window when the young trainee finds out that Kanrii’s people and village are under attack. The perpetrators turn out to be a species of “Star-Locusts” called Ridadi, which migrate through space. normally, the Ridadi use a pulse signal to chart their path through space and avoid inhabited worlds, but something has thrown that process way off. To investigate why, Keeve reaches out through the Force, to commune with the Ridadi.

As you can see in the picture above, the comic book medium allows writer Cavan Scott, and artists Ario Anindito, Mark Morales and Annalisa Leoni to create one of the more comprehensive visual depictions of Force sensitivity. The sequence is even better when you add the internal dialogue from Keeve Trennis, as she “asks” the Ridadi why they’re so far off course:

“The Force is in all. The Force connects. Wow. I hear them. All of them… Moving as one. Forward. Never back. Toward home… Toward… No!”

The visual “story” that Keeve sees through the Force reveals the truth – that it is the Jedi’s new Starlight Beacon base that is throwing off the space locusts signal. With that understanding, Keeve is able to set things right and pass her trials in the process.

Star Wars has explored different modes of Force visions going all the back to Luke’s trials with Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. However, comics are uniquely suited to combine the depth of words and pictures, and truly make the Force powers of the Jedi come alive.

Star Wars: The High Republic #1 is now on sale.