Canon Comic Review: Star Wars #17 (Vol. 2) – War of the Bounty Hunters

– Spoiler Review –

Father and son dogfight, one to save what he loves the other to destroy his perceived replacement, while Lando, Leia, and Chewie struggle to repair the Falcon to save Han Solo, but it might only take a personal moment between two old friends to save the day in an emotional Star Wars #17 (Vol. 2).

We’ve had three issues show us varying parts of Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader’s dogfight in the skies and space above Jekara, War of the Bounty Hunters #4, Darth Vader #16 (Vol. 3), and now Star Wars #17 (Vol. 2), and instead of it making the moment feel epic, I felt like I’ve lost the plot at this point. It’s somewhat obvious to see where WotBH #4 and SW #17 match up with their parts of the dogfight, but the two issues almost make it seem like DV #16’s part didn’t happen. If you’re not reading that series, you did miss quite the weird part of the battle, where some droids help Luke against Vader because one of the Emperor’s administrators wants Luke to kill Vader for her AND he gets attacked by space hooks, but where it fits within everything in this issue is a big question mark. The Vader series’ entry also featured a lot of Luke’s POV during the fight, though this issue does offer a little moment of dialogue between the two and the most important part: why Luke holds off on trying to actually destroy his father, as he knows he’s not ready to face him yet. He’s said that a few times already, so it’s not necessarily new information, just enough to make this all fit into what we already know will happen. There were some fun parts to their fight here, be it Vader erupting from the frozen sea or Luke using the climate against Vader, though just reading this issue or WotBH #4 is enough to make it clear this was only meant as a fun opportunity to have them fly against each other.

Whereas the dogfight might not capture the attention, Lando Calrissian commands the panel time he has in some truly stellar moments that expand on him as a character during this era and help show his shift from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. For starters, during Solo, he seemed all bluster and no bite at times, and while it was obvious his care for the Falcon was deep due to its pristine condition, one had to wonder how much of that was his own doing or people he hired. With the Falcon knocked out by a dialed down seismic charge by Boba Fett (non-lethal thanks to Valance, but this issue doesn’t worry about the details and just says it was probably Fett), Lando and Chewie work hand in hand to diagnosis the problem. Once they figure it out, it turns out to be a rather dangerous procedure since fixing it too slow will result in one’s death, but Lando steps up to the plate and takes the risk, which seems uncharacteristic for him even after his turnaround on Cloud City. Not only does he know what he’s doing, but he has something none of the others on-board have: a deep, but broken connection to the Falcon. In the tubes making the fix, Lando apologizes to L3-37 finally, after all these years, trying to mend the disconnect with her and what happened, saying he knows what he did wasn’t right but he’s changing and trying to be the man she always believed he could be. Especially after getting a recent update on her time within the Falcon thanks to From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back, this scene hits on a few emotional levels, while it’s just great to have Lando admit his choices were wrong and show remorse for the decision and a hope to make it worth it. L3 and Lobot hold a similar part in Lando’s life, as either have made a sacrifice or have been made a sacrifice, but both had hopes he could change his life from self-involved to selfless, and Lando’s learning the reality of those choices this arc. Lobot’s sacrifice came back crystal clear a few short issues ago when the Talky droid the Rebellion used for a new code helped Lobot resurface from the implants and now L3’s forced role in the Falcon couldn’t escape Lando’s notice as he begs her to let him help others that he can right now. After she delays the reactor exhaust from firing, he tells the others to go and check out the diagnostics kit to see what they all need to fix now, taking the alone time to say thank you to her. It’s not enough to ever make up for what’s happened to her, or to explain why he or Han haven’t tried to get her out of the Falcon yet, but it was a terribly needed moment to help alleviate what happened.

Since the beginning of Charles Soule’s run, Lando and Leia have been at odds thanks to his choices on Cloud City, and Leia struggles to gain trust in him again after that. Once she sees what he did here, putting himself at risk to help rescue Han, she thanks him afterwards, though Lando interrupts her and confronts her over the surprise in her voice. He lays down some truth, pointing out he’ll always come through for something or someone he cares about, which gives Leia the opening she needs, pointing out that’s why the Rebellion even exists: saving those they love. Her speech is enough for Lando to begrudgingly admit she’s good at what she does, don’t we all know it, and it sets the stage for why he’s full on Rebellion by the time of Return of the Jedi, leading the strike against the Death Star II. It’s a big issue for Lando and its why both this issue and this arc have shined more often than not.

Without a soundtrack to back it up, how do comics bring to life an epic or prolonged dogfight? In comes Clayton Cowles on lettering, going all out this issue with SFX of all shapes, sizes and directions, giving tons of sounds for readers to imagine as Luke and Vader swirl around one another. I also like how it started big, especially with the second page’s big SFX for Vader’s ship swooshing out of the water, Artoo screeching, and Luke’s yell of surprise, and then the SFX slowly got smaller as the action winds down, sizzling out as Vader deactivates his saber once Luke chooses not to fire on him even though he has his dad dead-to-rights. Cowles wouldn’t have anything to accentuate if not for the rest of the art team and once again Ramon Rosanas’ art and Rachelle Rosenberg’s colors provide much for everyone to enjoy. In particular, the dogfight had great, natural progression from panel to panel, as reading it through almost gave it a flipbook like feeling if you read it fast enough. In the panels where Lando’s reaching out to L3 as he fixes stuff, it starts all dark and somber and then gets redder as the SFX for the coming reactor pulse grows larger, the sweat dripping from Lando’s face, all together adds tension and emotion to the moment; I loved the panels for the silent moment afterwards, as they are two simple panels that are identical besides Lando’s understated thanks, the red corridor Lando was in talking with L3 remaining the focus. As Lando dons his cape, with a signature smile somewhere between Billy Dee Williams and Donald Glover, you know it’s going to lead to a fun finale for this series’ part in the crossover.

Here are a few other things:

• The sequel to the overall War of the Bounty Hunters story, Crimson Reign, has been pushed back to December instead of November. The whole crossover comes to a close next month, meaning all the big moments for this story and all the tie-ins hit in October. We’ll have our September entry for the Hunters’ Guide, our monthly recap of the crossover, early next week, but expect a delay with reviews towards the end of October, as my wife and I will finally be on our honeymoon!
• After War of the Bounty Hunters ends in October, this series will go back to focusing a bit more on Luke and his quest to become a Jedi, though I’ll be curious if it’ll crossover/tie-in to any of Crimson Reign and how much Lando and Leia will still share the spotlight with Luke.

Star Wars #17 (Vol. 2) might drag on the dogfight of father and son if you’ve been reading all of the tie-in issues, but its stellar layered Lando content is worth the price of admission alone.

+ Lando’s Confessions

+ Leia’s good speeches

+ Art team making the dogfight fun…

– …though we’ve lost the plot on it by now

Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.

WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS CROSSOVER REVIEWS

STAR WARS (Vol. 2)
The Destiny Path: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 | #6 / Arc Review — The Will of Tarkin: #7 | #8/Arc Review — Operation Starlight: #9 | #10 | #11 | #12

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