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Knights of the Old Republic 2: Commencement, Part 2

What is it ? : We begin some years before the main plotline, Zayne's mother is speaking to Master Vandar at the Dantooine Jedi Academy, he tells her that Zayne has been tested as marginal in The Force, but they will accept him into the order as he has special abilities in bonding to other people which might manifest in a different way to most. She asks him if there is any danger from the Sith, and he reassures her that the Jedi aren't just teachers to their Padawan's, but also their protectors.
Switching to current day, Zayne flees from the Jedi Masters who advance on him wielding their lightsabers. Master Lucien tells him that he has never been punctual, but he can save them time now by not running, and Zayne ignites his lightsaber, which an exasperated Lucien responds to by saying, one last exercise then.
But Zayne slashes the controls from the door and flees through the Jedi Tower, reaching the vehicle platform where Gryph remains handcuffed to Zayne's Speeder Bike. Gryph sees Zayne, and a group of Jedi Masters all charging towards him lightsabers draw and panics they're all there for him, but Zayne leaps aboard and they speed off over the city.
As they flee Zayne explains what has happened, and Gryph asks Zayne to uncuff him so he can help, but while he's doing that, he crashes into a classroom of children. But by the time the Jedi Masters catch up, he and Gryph have escaped down a trash chute, emerging into the under city.
Gryph suddenly wonders if Zayne might have killed his fellow Padawan's, and grabs Zaynes lightsaber. Zayne explains that the other Padawan's were ready to be tested and become full Jedi, so he would never have been able to beat them, using the number of times he's tried to catch Gryph and failed as an example of his incompetence.
Gryph slashes out with the lightsaber, taking out a security drone, and explains that the entire government will now be looking for him not just the Jedi, but fortunately they rarely journey into the undercity.
However as they turn a corner they see screens informing of a bounty on Zayne's head, which warn that he's armed and deranged. Gryph prepares to abandon Zayne, telling him to get lost in the city, but then the screen updates and offers a bounty of Gryph, saying he is a Small Time Hood and Accessory, which Gryph rages about, claiming he is a mastermind.
Back at the Jedi Tower, Lucien and Q'Anilia speak, as they have informed the constable of the murder, and Q'Anilia questions if Zayne is the one they were looking for, which Lucien doubts, but says they must be sure.
Zayne and Gryph head into a Kedorzhan bar, since those aliens are nearly blind, so won't recognise them. On the news screens images show images of the dead Padawan's. and Zayne sadly watches, realising that his friends are dead, and their families will blame him for the murders, especially Shel Jelavan who he liked and has a crush on.
They duck down behind the bar as a some non-Kedorzhan enter who might see them, and Gryph wonders if his new bounty will raise his street rep with the undercity gangs.
With time to think, Zayne becomes angry, that their masters who were sworn to protect them, murdered the Padawan's, and Gryph asks if the masters might be Bith, which Zayne corrects to Sith. Saying that no, they hated the Sith, before realising there's something wrong as hate leads to the Dark Side, so there was always something wrong with his masters, and Gryph tells him that they must seek help in the Undercity to get away.
Meanwhile in the Jedi Tower, the masters are meditating on Zayne and overhear the mention of the Undercity . . . .

High Points : A rather minor point I really adore is Zaynes realisation late in this issue that the Jedi order, especially his masters hate the Sith, and hate is a path to the Dark Side. That there is something basically dishonest about the Jedi, something wrong with their teachings. This revelation leads him to want to explore all the teaching's he has had to discover what is wrong which has led to the deaths of the other Padawan's.

Gryph also is providing a solid supporting character who gets many of the funny lines, his mistake with calling the Sith the Bith is amusing, but mainly his outrage at being called an Accessory, when he thinks he should be referred to as a Mastermind.

Low Points : The fact that the Jedi Masters need to scry on Zayne to discover he's in the Undercity, rather than just realising that's where the trash chute led seems pointless. And the fact that Taris is a city planet, so knowing he's in the undercity doesn't narrow it down to where on the planet Zayne is, adds to this, it would make more sense if they'd overheard a mention of a particular district or area.

So what do you really think ? : While they tried to leave a little mystery as to whether the Jedi Masters actually committed the murders, it's fairly obvious they did. Lucien and Q'Anilia conversation about whether they think Zayne is the one is supposed to sound like they're unsure if they think he murdered the other Padawan's, while also leaving the possibility that they killed the Padawan's for something that Zayne has done, or might do. But since Lucien says Zayne is always late during their encounter, it's obvious they know that he wasn't the one to do the murder, as he was late.
I do like that they're trying to preserve some mystery, but it doesn't hold up against any scrutiny, so could have been done better.

Final Words : Zayne and Gryph are making a solid team, with Gryph showing some heart and concern towards the Padawan who has been nothing but a thorn in his side for ages, and now has led to a bounty being posted on him. Although in the criminal circles that Gryph usually moves in, that's just a badge of honour.
And I have to say I'm really enjoying re-reading through this series again, it's far stronger than I remember thinking at the time.

Score : 8.5/10

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