– Spoiler Review –
Bounty Hunters #13 barges ahead with its own story, all wrapped up in the overarching War of the Bounty Hunters plot, revealing a deadly new nemesis for Valance and Dengar, hints of the wider plans of the resurgent Crimson Dawn, and how T’onga might wrap everything up this series’ has been building too.
Arriving on Nar Shaddaa far too late to catch up with Boba Fett—like everyone but 4-LOM and Zuckuss though that didn’t go well for them—Valance and Dengar trudge after another of Dengar’s contacts to figure out where he might be and why Jabba the Hutt put a giant bounty out on him. While Dengar cautions tact with this contact, Valance can’t help but punch him, claiming anything else would be a waste of his time and a scuffle ensues, because I guess this wouldn’t be the Bounty Hunters series if there wasn’t random acts of aggression. This of course leads them to no information, and while trying to catch up with the escaped informant, they run into Chewbacca and Threepio, already on Nar Shaddaa chasing down a lead from the Wookiee Sagwa (so this issue technically takes place as the same time as last month’s Star Wars #13). Chewie isn’t happy to see either hunter, as he believes Valance was trying to kill him and Han some years ago (as revealed in last week’s flashback), while he hasn’t forgotten his scuffle and electrocution by Dengar when they last met on Nar Shaddaa (as seen in Star Wars #11, back in 2015). So of course this leads to more fighting, but Valance is able to talk Chewie down, making him understanding his honorable intentions on rescuing Han Solo too. The best line of the issue has to be Chewie’s…well, technically Threepio, as he delivers Chewie’s rather graphic departing words to Valance and reiterates they are Chewie’s, not his. Valance’s desire to repay Han is commendable, but all his needless punching continues to leave me feeling meh on the character.
When the two hunters catch up to the informant, he reveals what everyone is slowly beginning to realize across the galaxy, first made known in last week’s War of the Bounty Hunters #1: Crimson Dawn is back! Valance and Dengar don’t believe him at first, as the organization hasn’t be relevant since whenever Maul lost his throne, an event we haven’t learned yet, which has been almost a decade. The informant tells them how Crimson Dawn has been operating for some time now, and that he’s been dealing with a “her” in the organization, though I’m curious if he meant the big surprise at the end of WotBH #1 or the one who shows up at the end of the issue to murder him: Deathstick. I had to Wookeepedia her when the solicitations first revealed she’d be part of the series: the daughter of a Nightsister, Deathstick is a hired assassin who, post-Return of the Jedi, gets caught up with the fight against Imperial Remnants, as seen in the mobile game Uprising (which didn’t get to finish its story since it was shut down early). Considering we know she’ll survive hunting them, though maybe won’t get her prize, she’s likely a very formidable opponent I look forward to seeing more of in this series.
Elsewhere, we pick up with T’onga and her wife, Lasha, visiting the Mourner’s Wail syndicate to try delivering the news about Cadeliah and end a needless war that’s already taken so much, including T’onga’s brother. The Mourner’s Wail syndicate has been in a lengthy war against rivals the Unbroken Clan, though the young Cadeliah is the connective tissue that might bridge their differences: she’s the daughter of the original Unbroken Clan leader’s daughter and the Mourner’s Wail leader’s son. T’onga obviously wants to get back at Fett for severely injuring her, but I like how she and her wife have decided to try bridging the gap between these two factions first, in the interest of preventing further bloodshed. Though when they arrive, they’re almost too late, as Crimson Dawn has ravaged the Wail, though its leader, Lord Khamdek, is still alive and T’onga teams up with them against the surrounding Dawn. Considering the war between the two factions has touched Corellia, it doesn’t surprise me Crimson Dawn would be out to take the Wail down considering who its leader is now (I’m not mentioning them here, so if you haven’t read WotBH #1, you really should!), so I’ll be curious if the Unbroken Clan was ravaged as well, which probably wouldn’t happen if their top enforcer Vukorah wasn’t out chasing down Doctor Aphra. Either way, the threat of the Dawn, plus the news of Cadeliah, looks to be the best bet yet these two factions might broker peace and join forces. I like the potential here for the storyline building from the opening issue to finally be resolved, despite the series now tying into the WotBH crossover event, and it’s definitely enough to finally make me go back and catch up on all the issues I missed since walking away from the series initially; writer Ethan Sacks eluded this would happen in his letter at the end of the previous issue, but it’s great to see it in action already. Otherwise, as far as continuing the overall crossover’s story, this issue basically catches up Valance on what the rest of the galaxy’s learning, though T’onga’s encounter with the Dawn opens up the scope of their plans.
As always, the team for all this aggression or action is certainly Paolo Villanelli (artist), Arif Prianto (colors), and Travis Lanham on lettering, as they capture the action with gusto and make the punches and battles feel weighty and dynamic. Also, Villanelli’s Chewie, distinguished with Prianto’s colors, might be a bit of a hairy blur, but it’s one of the better Wookiees that doesn’t try too hard and still makes for a convincing overall look. I liked the darker colors in the ravaged Mourner’s Wail facility, befitting the tragedy that unfolded there. Lanham has some fun with the Wookiee growls by varying their size and length, and while he’s a bit reserved again, allowing the art to capture the kinetic action, he makes a few SFXs count, like a few WHACKS in the brawls. There’s a few panels in a row of closeups of characters’ eyes which melted into one another and it felt sloppy, but it’s the only small hiccup in an otherwise good enough issue.
Here are a few other things:
- Don’t forget, the War of the Bounty Hunters crossover lasts through October, and we’ll be covering the whole thing here. Each month we’ll have our Hunters’ Guide, an article that rounds up the month’s issues about the event, detailing what happened and what it might mean for the rest of the event, which is a handy way to keep on top of the large story in case you’re not reading all of the content. The crossover was made modular in design, so you could read just the eponymous miniseries, but reading these tie-in issues expands and adds context to the larger story!
Bounty Hunters #13’s moments with T’onga really shine, offering the potential resolution of the series’ own big story, while it tries to catch up with the crossover’s own unfolding tale to middling effect.
+ T’onga bringing the series full circle
+ Deathstick potential
– Feels like it’s playing catch-up
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
May: Alpha #1 | Star Wars #13 | Bounty Hunters #12 | Darth Vader #12 | Doctor Aphra #10 / Hunters’ Guide for May
June: War of the Bounty Hunters #1