– Spoiler Review –
Betrayal! More spooky things! Aphra being Aphra! Doctor Aphra #3 (Vol. 2) delivers even more entertainment after its excellent second issue, splitting the surprises between the creepy environment and those around Aphra.
Last issue focused on frights and surprises from the downright scary city where the Rings of Vaale lay, from walls that come alive, a high pitched whine only one person can hear, to traps, but now it’s the people around them they have to watch out for, alongside more traps and frights. Separated, Aphra and Yao are stuck with Ronen Tagge’s goons while Lucky, Krrsantan, and Dr. Okka must explore the catacombs. Aphra seemingly turns on those who fell, claiming they must all be dead and she wants to cut a deal with Ronen, but it’s pretty easy to tell she’s playing the long game and trying to help their current situation. Yao has one of the funniest lines of the issue, claiming being a grad student on a deadline means she’s suffered more than a threatening goon believes she has, and I absolutely love her sweet and innocent act, distracting goons and helping them break free as new traps launch around them. As she and Aphra stumble into the inner sanctum of the Ring’s creators, only to find one of the Rings missing from its case, Aphra confronts Yao, knowing she’s playing everyone because, well, it’s exactly what she would’ve done when she was Yao’s age (another wonderfully delivered and funny line). Aphra projects herself on Yao as she dissects her motivations, showing how similar their paths were, and I really loved the split panel work here, used a few times this issue, to help hit home their similarities. But she’s only the first, and less surprising of the betrayals, of the issue…
In the catacombs, it’s clear Okka isn’t seeing and hearing what Lucky keeps claiming to, as both her obliviousness to the hands about to close around her and her little comment on it’s like nothing happened, show she’s somehow not affected like he is; it seems Krrsantan might be, as he shoots at one of the creatures about to attack them that suddenly disappear. Lucky points out how suspicious the arrival of Ronen’s goons are with Okka feeding into it and offering Aphra as the possible mole, but they get interrupted as this is when Lucky sees creatures attacking them. They stumble into a mausoleum for the Rings, happening upon a red Ring, and quickly find themselves back with the group. Yao makes her move here, threatening to kill Okka to get the Ring they found, but Lucky’s distraction gives Aphra enough time to shoot her down…only for Ronen’s goons to flank Lucky, betraying them all! This one surprised me, considering Lucky’s history with Aphra, but money is king within their subsection of the galaxy, and his attempt to sow discord earlier certainly makes more sense now.
However, by the end of the issue, I realized the betrayals were in plain sight since issue #2. Out of all the characters who saw/heard strange things, it was seemingly only Detta Yao and Lucky. Yao was the only one who noticed the bone-built walls come to life, scaring her on multiple occasions, while Lucky continued to hear a high-pitched whine, later seeing things as well. What do the two have in common? They both had ulterior motives against those around them. Aphra and Okka also have their own motives, but they are willing to split the credit, and considering there are two rings, maybe whatever ancient people/race built them included some type of test like this to prevent the Rings falling into the wrong hands, so Aphra and Okka ; think the trials for the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and The Last Crusade. Krrsantan might have seen the creatures alongside Lucky, having shot directly at them, but he’s always eager for money but he’s less likely to betray since he knows Aphra usually has a trick up her sleeve to outsmart basically everyone, so he’s the outlier to this theory.
Alyssa Wong’s time on Aphra, while only three issues in, has only gotten better and more exciting with each issue, providing great character drama and a compelling setting full of potential, fun, frights, and lots of potential money for Aphra! The previous volume always seemed to get better with each arc, building to a fitting, excellent finale, but there’s a different, chaotic, energy here that I’m absolutely digging, bringing a new flair to the character and series. And the art team is the integral aspect to this new flair and energy, as Marika Cresta (art) and Rachelle Rosenberg (colors), with lettering from Joe Caramagna provide readers with some really unique and fun panel layouts this issue. As mentioned before, the team has split pages and panels in two at points, with a crack down the middle, as it compares and contrasts what characters are saying and doing, a technique I haven’t seen much of in Star Wars comics and really loved here (also somewhat similar to Valentina Remenar, no?). Whether it was used to highlight the similarities between Aphra and Yao, how Aphra’s “duplicitous” words about the shares dwindling feeds off of Ronen’s words, or Aphra and Okka finding certain important parts of the cavern to show their similar archaeologist abilities, the team utilized the conceit to its fullest; I hope they’ll continue to test and use the medium to its full potential over their next three issues.
Here are a few other things:
- Some of the flashback scenes for Aphra should’ve been a little familiar if you recently had the pleasure of listening to the Doctor Aphra audiobook! This is the first issue since the audiobook came out and Emily Woo Zeller’s voice, who portrays Aphra in the audio drama, was ringing around in my head and I wouldn’t want it any other way. If you’re just getting into Aphra now with this series, the audiobook is an excellent way to get caught up on some of her history, or if you’ve been a fan for a while and on the fence, I couldn’t promote it more!
- While Sana Starros hasn’t been in this volume of the Aphra series yet, all the more apparent after the audiobook since it dives into their fractured relationship, the November solicitations for 2020 revealed we won’t have to wait long! The current art team will switch out too, but I really hope Cresta and Rosenberg aren’t gone too long!
- The next few issues should release as follows: Doctor Aphra #4 on September 30; #5 on October 28; and #6 on November 25.
Doctor Aphra #3 (Vol. 2) showcases some of the best this series can offer and it’s only just begun!
+ Betrayals!
+ Scares!
+ Did we know all along about who would betray?
+ Art team taking full advantage of the medium
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.
DOCTOR APHRA REVIEWS:
Volume 2: Fortune and Fate – #1 | #2
Doctor Aphra (audiobook)
Volume 1: Aphra (#1-6) | The Screaming Citadel crossover (#7, 8) | And the Enormous Profit (#9-13) | Remastered (#14-19) / Arc Review | The Catastrophe Con (#20-25) / Arc Review | Worst Among Equals (#26-31) / Arc Review | Unspeakable Rebel Superweapon (#32-36) / Arc Review | A Rogue’s End (#37-40) / Arc Review | Full Volume 1 Review
Annual: #1 | #2 | #3