– Spoiler Review –
After 10 years of filling in the gaps between Original Trilogy films, the Star Wars mainline series journeys into a much larger gap, picking up with the efforts of the New Republic in the wake of Return of the Jedi’s events! Writer Alex Segura and artist Phil Noto shepherd us into this largely unexplored era of canon with a mystery-filled Star Wars #1 (2025).
Before I launch into the review, as a heads up, I will not be reviewing every issue of this series. This decision has nothing to do with the quality of this issue, while I have been eagerly awaiting the comics to venture into post-Return of the Jedi content and quite enjoyed this opener, but rather I’m trying to focus more on my family and creative writing. At this time, the next review I’ll post about the series would be around October, when the sixth issue releases, as issues #1-6 make up the series’ first trade paperback (which is out in January but I won’t be waiting until then). This could change over time, as I might move to this format for another series, like Legacy of Vader or Jedi Knights, and pick up monthly reviews for Star Wars (2025), otherwise if you, dear reader, would like a chance to cover this series, visit our Submission page and reach out, we’d love to add new voices to the Manor! With that out of the way, let’s dive in!
Star Wars #1 (2025) doesn’t pick up immediately after Return of the Jedi, but rather post-Battle of Jakku, an event covered in various media in the years since The Force Awakens’ release, including a comic maxiseries written by Alex Segura which wrapped up earlier this year, titled (you guessed it) The Battle of Jakku. My feelings on the series were very mixed (and one look at the Wookieepedia page will show some of the confusion it caused), but it’s clear, given the on-going nature of this series, rather than the hyperspace skipping speed of which the maxiseries was released, Segura is in a more comfortable rhythm, as this opening issue introduces us to various intriguing mysteries and exciting problems for the Big Three of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Princess Leia to face and overcome!
While Luke, Leia, and Han are all on separate missions in Star Wars #1 (2025), and all face different problems, there are some obvious but also inconclusive connections. We’ll start with Luke, who I enjoyed in this issue more than in TBoJ, where he felt off compared to the other New Republic era content we’ve had, especially Battlefront II’s great, yet dissonant scene. Regardless, the issue starts with him speeding out to deal with pirates harassing the New Republic’s aid shipments, where he’s joined by Rynn Zenat, his adventuring buddy from TBoJ (hope we get to see her partner, Preeti, soon!), Gunny (from Star Wars Squadrons but she’s only mentioned), Jarek Yaeger (first appeared in Star Wars Resistance and had a small part in TBoJ but he’s only mentioned as well), Sandrin (who bites the dust here), and Blade Squadron (we don’t see them, but they’ve had a storied history). What they thought should be a slam dunk encounter turns into chaos when a pirate-controlled Star Destroyer shows up and the numbers of the pirates increase, causing most of the group to flee while Rynn and Luke stay behind, pursuing a downed pirate ship in hopes of capturing the pilot and learning more about the group. Before they find the pilot, Luke senses danger much like he did before entering the cave of evil on Dagobah, though Rynn doesn’t listen to his warning and charges ahead, where they find the pilot, brandishing a knife with a glowing edge. They’re not a species we’ve seen in canon before, but his kind were in Legends: the Nagai, whose war with another species, the Tofs, lead them into conflict with the New Republic. The pilot has some harsh words about the New Republic but he can barely hold his own against Luke, who Force pushes him to the ground and he starts to act injured, asking Luke to come close so he can tell him his “truth” before dying. It’s the oldest trick in the book and works on poor Luke, too eager to learn anything from the pilot, as the Nagai reveals a bomb which kills him and injures Luke. Either the Nagai are the drivers of this plot of pirates or there’s a more powerful person/species pulling their strings, as only fear or a strict loyalty to the cause would produce beings willing to kill themselves to protect a greater secret.
As for Leia, she’s with Mon Mothma on Chandrila for a trade summit (not attending one of their wild weddings, unfortunately), but they plan on meeting with the delegates from Pirros first. Pirros is a new planet, out in the Fenril sector (also new), introduced in The Battle of Jakku: Last Stand #4’s epilogue, where two hooded beings, one a Praetor of Pirros, which this issue we’re introduced to a Praetor of Pirros named Koyon, met to discuss not siding with the New Republic, as one stranger was able to offer Pirros everything it ever wanted as long as they sold their soul to them. If you didn’t read the scene, it’s okay, as it doesn’t take long for the Pirros Prime Minister, Kerzin Almovar, to make the planet’s displeasure with the New Republic known, calling them bullies and pointing out they can’t even protect aid supplies from pirates. Leia keeps her cool better than I’d expect, though she verges on sounding a little threatening, and the resulting fallout sees the New Republic somehow banned from the trade summit. I will say I wish we had a little more context for the summit, as did the NR put it together, as one would guess considering it’s on Chandrila, or who did? And was it a bunch of planets or ones already pledged to the NR and/or those thinking about it? It seems weird they’d be banished from it by Pirros’ demands without a little more information, but it doesn’t matter in the end, as Pirros announces the planets of the Fenril sector have united and no more trade is allowed until a treaty is signed, with trespassers into their sector meeting lethal force, which we see happen to the latest NR aid ship. It’s an interesting development for the young government, as if they push too hard, they could be seen as the bullies Pirros called them, or will they be able to uncover the shadowy presence pulling the strings of this dissent and be the hero? Luke and Leia’s storylines feel the most connected, especially given the shady deal Pirros made prior to the start of this series, and I’ll be interested to see how they collide. As I was wondering earlier, are the Nagai the ones who made the promise to Pirros or is there someone/thing else behind the curtain? My big theory is Atha Prime, the character recently canonized for the very first time in the Jedi Knights series, is behind all of this, finally back after he fled from Yoda and Vetna Mooncrest, fulfilling the role he was originally imagined by the Kenner toys team for: a villain the New Republic would face after Return of the Jedi. Only time will tell if this is him or that’s to come later in the series….
Which leads us to Han, who has been largely absent from the comics over the past 5 years on the account of being a frozen popsicle, helping bounty hunter Beilert Valance, made canon famous in the excellent Bounty Hunters comic! On some Outer Rim world, Valance is investigating the Zantarrk Gang, the members of which we see are all decked out in mismatched and colored various trooper variant armor, and he claims they should be on the New Republic’s radar. We don’t see what or how they’d be a big threat, but what Valance tells Han, how they’ve gone from small timers to heavily armed problem, paints enough of a picture. But the question remains, who is arming them? Is it the mysterious hooded being who offered the same deal to Pirros, the Nagai? And are the Nagai working for someone, like my theory with Atha Prime, or are they the major player here? We’ll find out in the coming issues of the series, of that I have no doubt. I’m curious how Leia feels about Han going off on his own, especially with baby Ben at home, which brings me to a big hope for this series: we get to explore the Big Three’s dynamic together, more often than not, as while I’m glad to have all three doing their own thing and it being in this era, we’ve had so little of them all together in this era in canon.
And then on art, we have the luck of Phil Noto on interiors, not just covers, with Clayton Cowles lettering (a Star Was series stalwart)! Phil Noto has provided covers for various releases over the past 10 years, but only a handful of times has he done interior work, be it the Chewbacca miniseries, the final run of Star Wars (2015), and early issues of Poe Dameron, so it’s been a while! One thing that really stood out to me where outfits this issue, starting with the Pirrosi delegates, their black and yellow color scheme not something we’ve seen a lot of in Star Wars, so it’s striking beyond its association with bees for readers in this galaxy, but said association also hints at their secret stinger, they have some benefactor, hiding, which is prompting them to be so unfriendly to the New Republic. The sleekness to their armor was also impressive, with some Black Panther vibes, and I’m curious if this was how they looked before making the pact with the hooded individual or only after they made the pact. And after years of main characters in roughly similar outfits, I enjoyed the new ones Noto gave Leia and Han, though his is more a riff on the usual than anything too new. Leia’s outfit, a pink dress with the shoulder cape and some gold pieces ringing the shirt’s next area, it’s far more diplomatic and less mission orientated, which tells us a lot about how she’s been operating since Jakku. As for Han, he’s in the inverse of his iconic look, so the ladies will have to reconsider their outfits for “Han Solo Season” in the fall, as his vest is white not and his shirt under is black, while his pants are brown, not blue anymore; it feels like an attempt to show he’s turned a new leaf, the light side being more prominent than before, as it were. Overall, like Luke is in his X-wing outfit but it makes sense given he’s, well, in an X-wing, it’s nice to have Han and Leia in new outfits every once in a while, as we know people change clothes even in a GFFA, and hey, maybe it’ll inspire some new action figures! Outside of the characters, there’s a lovely double-page splash, X-wings swooping around space, avoiding for chasing the pirates, explosions popping up everywhere, with some dynamic and final sounding sound FX by Cowles, while the Star Destroyer, a dirtier coloring to it and patchwork noticeable on the undercarriage, does all combine to make the NR’s situation seem very, very dire. It did take me a moment to adjust to Noto’s style, as character faces are very prominent in many of the panels, almost too much at times, as while the faces he draws are excellent and some of the best (though recent artists like Luke Ross and Madibek Musabekov are right there with him), the static nature, from one panel to another, didn’t always work for me given the dialogue, plus the close-ups give this character jumping story that launches us into the next era of storytelling feel smaller than expected. These are minor given how good the rest of the work is, so plenty to look forward with Noto at the helm!
Here are a few other things:
- Love coffee? Chai? A really good café/coffee shop? And want some fun Star Wars themed coffee goodness for the month of May?! Well, if you happen to be in the greater Chicago area, make your way to Folklore Coffee in Lemont, IL, as one of our best friends owns Folklore and we collaborated on a special Star Wars menu for May!!! The Froth is strong with these specials!!
- I liked the continuity of seeing two returning The Battle of Jakku characters Segura created: Bastion, an intelligence agent, and Kith Alaytia, a former Imperial who was working for the Rebellion.
- Over at ComicsXF, there’s an interview with Alex Segura about the series and working with Noto, while ComicBook has more discussion of the series alongside the first unlettered preview for issue #2, out June 11.
- Speaking of June, it comes with another year of Pride Month variants!! For Star Wars #2 (2025), Sana Starros graces Luciano Vecchio’s cover, which is another stunner in what’s part of a trilogy {so far} with Magna Tolvan and Chelli Aphra!! I need this cover something fierce!!
- And speaking of Aphra…she’s back in June with Doctor Aphra: Chaos Agent!! In the only other New Republic era comic from Marvel or Dark Horse, Aphra will team up with Luke and hunt down some artifacts, but someone might have it out for her…though who doesn’t, really?! Given Luke’s storyline here and how prominently he’s in the opening of Aphra’s new series, I’ll be interested to know when we’ll learn where Star Wars (2025) and Chaos Agent fit in together. I will be reviewing that per issue because it’s Aphra and she’s my favorite character, of course!!
Star Wars #1 (2025) is a fun and intriguing start for our first New Republic-era comics, as the big and maybe connected storylines and mysteries all seem like appropriate and exciting new problems for our heroes to face and readers to dive into.
+ Luke, Leia, and Han all back and dealing with interesting new mysteries
+ Phil Noto narrows in on the heroes…
+ How our heroes respond to the new situation has lots of potential ramifications
– More context could’ve helped in small ways
– … though maybe too narrow at times
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him and the website on Bluesky.