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Knights of the Old Republic 33: Vindication, Part 2

What is it ? : The Republic Fleet is firing on the Jedi assaulting the Draay estate, and Master Vrook orders them to retreat. Taking cover from the explosions, Zayne asks Lucien who Haazen is, and is told that he's a retainer, a flunky, that they've got a lot in common.
And we flashback to Arkania many years before, a young Haazen is trying to catch a Nautolan Smuggler, but she taunts him as being the hireling of Barrison Draay, and she sets off some explosives collapsing a structure on him, while she escapes, only for Barrison Draay to save Haazens life by levitating the structure.
It turns out that Haazen was late for a ceremony, but Barrison is used to him being late, so delayed it. The ceremony is celebrating them being made to full Jedi Knights, but the rich friends of Barrison are also commiserating as they're losing their friend to a life of service in the Jedi order. Krynda arrives and Barrison introduces her to his friends, and it is made clear that Haazen is just considered a servant by these people, whereas as a Jedi he is equal.
Later, Arca Jeth knights Barrison and Krynda, but Haazen has failed to become a Jedi.
Haazen blames Barrison, claiming that he has bought his and Krynda's postitions within the Jedi, but Haazen will remain a servant, but Barrison strikes him, telling him he'll forgive his words because of his family's service to the Draay family.
Then on Topwara 10 years later, Barrison has led a purge of the Sith forces there in the Sith War. And Haazen is serving, piling up the dead bodies of Massassi Warriors for burning, when he encounters the Nautolan Smuggler once again. She is working for the Sith, she offers him a chance to become victorious against Barrison, and he agrees, saying that he wants everything Barrison has.
Later he tells Barrison he has seen the smuggler, and followed her to a hidden Sith encampment in the caves beneath the surface, so they lead a group of Jedi in the caves where the Smuggler sets off an explosion killing Barrison and all the Jedi, but Haazen cries out to wait as he's too close.
He awakens later with most of his body replaced by Sith cybernetics, including an artefact which will hide his thoughts from the Jedi. She flirts with him, and while he is disgusted by the way he looks, he decides to go ahead with his plan to take control of the Draay family.
Many years later, Haazen is serving Krynda, updating her on the latest students arriving for training, and various financial activities of the Draay trust, such as acquiring a company providing systems for the Republic Navy. She thanks him for his service, and comments on his families service, but also talks about their friendship when they were younger. But she dismisses these comments, telling him to remember his position and forget the past, only thinking of the future.
Returning to the modern day, Haazen stands among the fire from the Republic Fleets attack, and remarks that he has always thought of the future, and now it has arrived. . . .

High Points : This issue does a lot of work making Haazen into a more empathetic character, the Draay's, Barrison and Krynda do treat him badly, even though most of his troubles are created by his own actions and behaviour. Even though he was training to be a Jedi, they always thought of him merely as a servant, as is shown even before he fails to become a Knight.
But we also see some parallels between Zayne and Haazen, both are shown distain by the Draay family, both are failed Jedi who has taken their own path. But Zayne never allowed the treatment he received to become hatred, in many ways Zayne believed he was deserving of the treatment, whereas Haazen believed he deserved better.

Low Points : While we are seeing this issue through the filter of Haazen's memories. The behaviour of the Draay's is absolutely horrible to him, with Barrison, a supposedly newly knighted Jedi, striking him out of anger. It really doesn't make the Jedi look good at all, even Arca Jeth comes out of it looking bad, but the way that Haazen is just discarded after failing his test, does echo the way that Exar Kun is left to fall to the Dark Side at roughly the same time.
And it's difficult to empathise with him, because while he's badly treated and left disfigured by the explosion, it's an explosion he arranged and led dozens of Jedi including his lifelong friend into, killing them all.
Finally the events during the Sith War don't seem to resemble what we saw happening in those comics. The idea that Ulic or Exar would be hiring smugglers (and surgeons) to serve alongside the Massassi horde that Exar was controlling, seems very different. And that some Sith Artefacts just happened to be left around along with Sith Cybernetics, that the surgeon could implant in Haazens shattered body, really doesn't align with the events of those comics at all. Even the combat on Topwara doesn't match up to what we saw at all, and I can't match up these events to the actions of the Sith War, except perhaps at the very end if they're just mopping up remaining forces.

So what do you really think ? : A strong issue, fleshing out everything which has led Haazen to this, and the failings of the Draay family along the way to see the monster they helped create and the way he manipulated them to use their power to raise himself up.

Final Words : So with the scene set, we get a very different end to the Covenant than we thought was coming. Instead of Zayne facing them down and revealing their actions, a corruption behind their actions has been revealed and the Covenant is already destroyed, but a fight to save Coruscant and the Jedi order itself now begins.

Score : 9/10

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