– Spoiler Review –
With the War of the Bounty Hunters crossover over, every series involved is finding its way to deal with the fallout of a resurgent Crimson Dawn, and for Bounty Hunters #18, that means Beilert Valance is in a unique new position and T’onga and her wife’s crew are looking for new clues to complete their mission. Free of the crossover, the series feels like it’s finding its legs again, to some extent.
Bounty Hunters #17 ended with the reveal that, while everyone else thought Valance dead, even himself, he’s actually been rebuilt by Darth Vader to serve the Empire. As someone who hasn’t ever really been a fan of the character, this was an intriguing new wrinkle in his story: what does Vader need him for and what can he hold over him to keep the hunter in line? I felt like both answers hold enough promise to keep me reading, but they also felt convenient and rote. In the case of how Vader can keep Valance in line, who tests his new found repairs in a quick and devastating fight with the Dark Lord, it turns out the machinery already in Valance is somehow making his memories available for the Imperials to see, so Vader asks for compliance in return for not blowing up the Rebellion’s base with his ex and Cadeliah on it. It’s quite the deal and shows how far Vader is willing to go to fight against the Crimson Dawn’s agents within the Empire, but I felt like the whole aspect of his memories being accessible felt too convenient to make this whole situation work. As for what Vader needs Valance for, it’s to use him as a brunt weapon, pointing him at his former Imperial idol who has now turned coat for the Dawn. We’ve been down this road to some degree in the Target Vader miniseries, where Valance was pointed towards Vader to kill him, so this is where this new normal felt a little rote, while the introduction of this idol this issue in a flashback doesn’t make any qualms Valance might have very compelling. Regardless, I’m trying to give this new development the benefit of doubt, as I can only imagine (see: hope) we’re headed towards a self-sacrifice by Valance similar to the end of his Legends storyline.
Elsewhere, T’onga and Losha are sitting back at a bar, their lead to Cadeliah and uniting the warring factions of Corellia lost with the supposed death of Valance. Their crew, a deadly, restless bunch, Bossk, Zuckuss, and Tashu Leech, aren’t too happy with their lack of purpose, but a convenient shakedown by a group of Kerrakk (insectoid-like creatures) at the bar they are all drinking their credits away at gives them a sense of purpose again. Losha gets in on the ruckus, eventually taught by the deadly hunters how to precisely kill one of the Kerrakk, and the moment has a profound impact on her. T’onga doesn’t step in to stop her, due to Zuckuss’ advice on how the crew might find Losha the weakest link if she always protects her, but the thrill of the moment is enough to cause Losha to want more, which is what T’onga was trying to avoid when they started their little farming life seen at the beginning of this series. A rift between T’onga and Losha was not something I expected with them more in the focus and separate from Valance’s story for now, so I’ll be curious to see how writer Ethan Sacks deals with this drama between the two. Will the hunters influence Losha enough for things to sour between the two or will this be just another bump on the long road of their slowly evolving, fulfilling relationship? Either way, I’m just glad the focus is on them a bit more.
Regular series artist Paolo Villanelli is taking a brief hiatus so for now Ramón Bachs, alongside Bryan Valenza as colorist, takes over, with Travis Lanham of course returning on lettering. Bachs’ style isn’t nearly as kinetic as Villanelli’s, which means I enjoyed it a bit more and while he draws characters slightly differently, it’s similar enough in the end it doesn’t cause any concerns. The action doesn’t let up this issue, with the big bar brawl and Valance trying to stand up to Vader, and Bachs proves he’s worthy of following Villanelli’s action-focused art, though with his style the action feels a little easier to follow, as characters’ motion through panels looks more consistent and their actions are the focus, less their movement ahead of the action. A series of panels as flashbacks to Valance’s past help make this a decent spot to jump in to the series, or continue if the crossover got readers into it, and I liked the POV way they were framed as well as the discolored look to separate them from the rest of the present set panels. Valenza’s colors are very vibrant for the scenes with T’onga and crew and they grow muted, dark, and cold when with Valance, stuck in his Imperial prison. Lanham has a lot of distinct and wild SFX for all the fights this issue and I particularly liked the one-two punch of the nexu joining the fight, its growl and the satisfying chomp as it attacks the insectoids, while his SFX for the panel where Losha commits her kill is more effective than if it had been shown, as the violence of the moment is blacked out.
Bounty Hunters #18 relishes in the new normal with T’onga and crew but has middling results with Valance’s new circumstances.
+ T’onga and Losha at the forefront more
+ New art team
– Middling Valance survival results
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.
BOUNTY HUNTERS REVIEWS
War of the Bounty Hunters: #12 | #13 | #14 | #15 | #16 | #17 — Crimson Reign