Star Wars Special C3P0: The Phantom Limb

Of all the Star Wars characters in the entire universe, few would say that C3P0 is there favorite. However, in the first Star Wars Comic Special we get a glimpse at a side of the golden droid that the old expanded universe never introduced us to. The theme of this book is simple. What if you were on the other side of the war? What if you were somebody entirely different then who became?

It’s a deep thought considering this is a comic about droids, especially coming from C3P0. The story of this book revolves around several resistance droids; VL-44, PZ-9, CO34, medical Droid 2Med2 and of course Threepio. The lovable droids are escorting Omri, a First Order protocol droid, who has been captured because he knows the location of the captive Admiral Ackbar. Thanks to a crash landing and some unforeseen luck the droids survive the crash, but will they survive the planet they’ve landed on?

In this special issue long time Marvel and DC writer, James Robinson, takes us into a mindset about droids that we rarely consider. If a droid’s memory is erased, will he remember what happened prior at some point? Can droids become artificially human because of their programing, or can they become more than a simple robot programmed to behave like you and I? For a moment we get to delve deep into the memory banks on the golden droid that we met almost 40 years ago, and see glimpses of Naboo, and a hints that he remembers a time when Anakin Skywalker was his owner.

As the story unfolds we see the band of droids sacrifice themselves for their mission. Is this part of their programing or do we see the robots make choices of sacrifice by their own will? By the end of the book we learn how C3P0 gains a new red appendage in The Force Awakens. It’s a heart warming story of robots questioning their existence, and the anthropomorphism will have you questioning the Isaac Asimov’s three laws of robotics.

We’ve seen R2D2, BB-8 and C3P0 all banter back and forth before, however this time it’s different, adventurous and leave you feeling heartbroken for the choices the droids have to make. I never would have imagined ever liking Threepio but somehow James Robinson’s story telling and Tony Harris’s visuals left me excited and curious about our old golden friend.