It’s that time once again and the solicitations for upcoming Star Wars comics have rolled on in! August 2018 from Marvel will see a new one-shot focusing on Solo: A Star Wars Story character Tobias Beckett aka Han Solo’s mentor, Poe Dameron‘s second Annual brings an exciting debut, Aphra has the toughest challenge yet with her ex meeting her current girlfriend, Vader’s Mustafar Fortress being built, and so much more. Check out the details below!
MARVEL
Beckett #1 (on sale 8/15)
Gerry Duggan (Writer), Will Sliney (Artist), Edgar Salazar and Marc Laming (Colors)
Cover by John Tyler Christopher (pictured) | Variant by Terry Dodson
“THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE DEADLY!
TOBIAS BECKETT taught HAN SOLO everything he knows about surviving hoodlum-filled cantinas and backwater worlds. But who is this career outlaw and why is ENFYS NEST— one of the galaxy’s most dangerous and brutal marauders — so dead set on taking him down once and for all? Find out in this original tale of a man who has gamed star system after star system, but at a cost that no heist can make up for.”
One-shots haven’t quite impressed me so far, but I’m always ready to give them a chance again, especially to fill in backstory for a new character in a tie-in capacity for one of the films. Beckett is one such character in Solo: A Star Wars Story, and is probably the one that will have the least backstory explained in the film, so he’s probably ripe for the pickin’s as a one-shot story. I’m more intrigued by how Enfys Nest fits into everything, from the movie (out in a few short days!) to in this story, so I hope they are just as big of a focus as Beckett despite this one-shot being named after him. The cover also seems to hint we’ll see more of Thandie Newton’s Val and Rio Durant (Jon Favreau). Here’s my review of Beckett #1!
Doctor Aphra #23 (on sale 8/22)
Simon “Si” Spurrier (Writer), Kev Walker (Artist)
Cover by Ashley Witter (pictured) | Galactic Icon Variant by Rod Reis
“GOOD NEWS: THE IMPERIALS HAVE ABANDONED ACCRESKER JAIL. BAD NEWS: FIRST THEY SHOT IT AT A REBEL PLANET.
• For unscrupulous inmate DOCTOR APHRA, accompanied by former flame SANA STARROS and current flame INSPECTOR TOLVAN…
• (NB: Awkward.)
• …chances to escape are dwindling fast. Good thing Aphra’s not distracted by an expensive relic, right?
•Oh, dear.”
This arc sounds like everything I have ever wanted from this series, which is crazy considering they pretty much just delivered it with the last arc, “Remastered.” Sana and Tolvan meeting might be the most epic moment in Star Wars comics’ history because they both have some stubborn personalities and we all know Aphra’s no good with people, only weapons, so she won’t be much help either. No mention of the murderbots, which is interesting, as they are still free to roam the galaxy and Aphra has something they want. Also, the solicitations from last month revealed Aphra might also have to deal with a Force Ghost of some kind, now seen in the cover for this issue!
Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith #19 (on sale 8/8)
Charles Soule (Writer), Giuseppe Camuncoli (Artist)
Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli & Elia Bonetti (pictured) | Galactic Icon Variant by Rod Reis
“FORTRESS VADER” BEGINS!
• A JEDI makes a desperate deal.
• THE INQUISITORS’ mission evolves.
• DARTH VADER discovers a theft.”
(LOVE this cover being essentially the villains version of the original A New Hope poster)
Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith #20 (on sale 8/22)
Charles Soule (Writer), Giuseppe Camuncoli (Artist)
Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli & Elia Bonetti (pictured)
“FORTRESS VADER,” PART TWO!
• A thief faces the consequences for their crime.
• EMPEROR PALPATINE rewards DARTH VADER with three gifts.
• A thing, a choice and a voice.”
Soule recently teased the “Fortress Vader” arc on Twitter (more details in my review of the latest issue), revealing it will deal with Vader getting his Mustafar castle as seen in Rogue One. These solicitations for the two issues in August don’t seem to hint at all how a Jedi, change in Inquisitorious mission, or a theft tie into the castle but damn am I curious to see how they do. I’m surprised there will seemingly be another Jedi character unless this means Farren Barr (thanks to his Order 66 trick) will survive the current arc, which would be interesting because he’d technically be a recurring villain for the series (a Jedi for a villain, so to speak)! I’m OKAY with it being someone new, but the potential is interesting. As for the change in Inquisitor mission, could we see them begin the hunt for Force sensitive children, as seen in Star Wars Rebels, meaning we’re taking another time jump for this arc? Whatever it all means, this team has been at the top of their game every single issue so cannot wait to see this new story unfold.
Lando – Double of Nothing #4 (on sale 8/29)
Rodney Barnes (Writer), Paolo Villanelli (Artist)
Cover by W. Scott Forbes (Pictured) | Variant Cover by David Nakayama
“THE GALAXY’S MOST DEBONAIR ROGUE!
• Having been freed from BATALLA and his warrior clan, LANDO now faces a host of new obstacles.
• Will he get past the STORMTROOPERS, find RYTHUS and get the arms to him and his people?
• Is all of this possible while wearing a cape? Will his mustache start a grooming trend? All will be answered in this issue!”
I appreciate some tongue-in-cheek as much as the next bloke, but the final line of this solicitation sounds like it was written by 13 year-old me, because I did write stuff like this in my little notebook paper comic books back in the day. It doesn’t take away from my interest in this series in the slightest, and I did find it funny, but at the same time I was a little surprised by it. Anyways, it certainly sounds like it’ll be a fun little adventure romp and I really hope it doesn’t skimp on capes because then it might just be the best series of the year. The first issue debuts next week, May 30, so we’ll have our first inkling of what this series is like very soon! UPDATE: A few issues in and the series is fun, but has a bit of a problem…check out my reviews for more details.
Poe Dameron Annual #2 (on sale 8/29)
Jody Houser (Writer), Andrea Broccardo (Artist)
Cover by Rod Reis | Variant Cover by Declan Shalvey
“CAN POE DAMERON OUTMANEUVER ONE OF THE GALAXY’S GREATEST PILOTS?
• Rebellions may be built on built on hope, but they need more than that to survive.
• LEIA sends BLACK SQUADRON on a new mission, one that will raise important funds for THE RESISTANCE.
• Can a group of pilots really do the work of smugglers and scoundrels?”
Yay, Jody Houser finally gets to write an original story! She’s only done adaptations so far (Rogue One, Thrawn), so I’m excited to see her let out to play in the sandbox a bit more (and she certainly seems excited too). As for who this “greatest pilot” will be, I’d obviously bet Han, but I’d LOVE FOR IT TO BE HERA SYNDULLA, because yes, she is a much better pilot. Andrea Broccardo’s art for the Kanan series’ final issue was great, but I wasn’t too impressed with The Screaming Citadel work, so hopefully this is more Kanan and less TSC.
Poe Dameron #30 (on sale 8/15)
Charles Soule (Writer), Angel Unzueta (Artist), Arif Prianto (Colors)
Cover by Phil Noto (Pictured)
“AWAKENINGS,” PART FIVE
• BLACK SQUADRON had its own mission during the events of THE LAST JEDI, a desperate trek across the galaxy to find aid for THE RESISTANCE, all without the help of their fearless leader, POE DAMERON. This is the beginning of the end.
This is a pretty ominous solicitation, not due to story content, but about potential for the series to end. Poe‘s sales numbers haven’t always been the greatest and if there’s any place to end this series, it’s with it diving just briefly into post-The Last Jedi territory with a little tease or two for Ep. IX, so I’d not be surprised this arc was the last. However, I hope it won’t be because it’d be awesome to begin fleshing out the potential time-jump between TLJ and IX here in this excellent adventure series, though one must remember all good things do come to an end. We should have a better idea with the solicitations for September. UPDATE: Do not, I repeat DO NOT, read this issue without a tissue.
Star Wars #52 (on sale 8/1)
Kieron Gillen (Writer), Salvador Larroca (Artist), Guru-eFX (Colors)
Cover by David Marquez (Pictured) | Action Figure Variant by John Tyler Christopher | Galactic Icon Variant by Rod Reis
“HOPE DIES,” PART THREE
• The MILLENNIUM FALCON versus the whole IMPERIAL FLEET? No problem.
• A certain TIE ADVANCED STARFIGHTER piloted by a certain SITH LORD? Problem. Big problem.
• No human can save the day. But maybe a droid can…”
Despite the whole artist situation, I am very excited for this arc. I love the good guys winning just as much as the next fan, but they can’t always come out on top so it’ll be nice to see them on the run, coming up short, and taking a few losses. As for the droid who can save the day, I’m assuming this means we’ll get some classic Artoo heroics and it’s been a bit since he’s got a chance to shine, especially against his old master, Anakin! Part of me wonders if he knows about Vader…
The Last Jedi #5 (comic adaptation) (on sale 8/1)
Gary Whitta (Writer), Michael Walsh (Artist)
Cover by Paolo Rivera (pictured)
“REY CONFRONTS SNOKE AS THE
RESISTANCE FACES EXTINCTION!
• KYLO REN brings REY before the SUPREME LEADER — but who will turn?
• ADMIRAL HOLDO reveals a stunning plan to save the RESISTANCE!
• Plus! The return of CAPTAIN PHASMA as FINN and ROSE are betrayed!”
Like I said last month, no reviews of this until it’s complete, but in the meantime we have reviews of the film (from both Chris and myself), as well as Chris’ review of the novel adaptation.
August will benefit, like plenty of months before it, from the tag-team of Doctor Aphra and Darth Vader, but it looks like there’s plenty of other goodies to be found, like the Beckett One-shot and both of the Poe Dameron issues could hold a few surprises.
IDW
Star Wars Adventures #13
Elsa Charretier & Pierrick Colinet (Writers), Elsa Charretier (Artist/Colorist)
“Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala embark on an action-packed adventure where not all is as it seems in a story by fan-favorites Elsa Charretier and Pierrick Colinet!”
This continues the Anakin and Padmé story started in the previous issue, out in July.
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website @MynockManor.
2018 SOLICITATIONS: July | September | October | November
CURRENT MARVEL COMIC REVIEWS:
Doctor Aphra
Aphra (#1-6) | And the Enormous Profit (#9-13) | Remastered (#14-19) | The Catastrophe Con (#20-25) | Annual: #1
Darth Vader – Dark Lord of the Sith
The Chosen One (#1-6) | The Dying Light (#7-12) | The Rule of Five (#11-12) | Burning Seas (#13-18) | Fortress Vader (#19-25) | Annual: #2
Poe Dameron
Black Squadron (#1-3) | Lockdown (#4-6) | The Gathering Storm (#7-13) | Legend Lost (#14 – 16) | War Stories (#17-19) | Legend Found (#20-25) | The Awakening (#26-31) | Annual: #1
Star Wars
Ashes of Jedha (#38-43) | Mutiny at Mon Cala (#44-49) | Hope Dies (#50-55) | Annual: #4
Lando – Double or Nothing (comic miniseries) | Beckett (one-shot)