– Spoiler Review –
Motivations come clear, old foes face a new reality, and Beilert Valance definitely isn’t home anymore on another high-energy Bounty Hunters #39!
I’ve quite enjoyed how these last few issues have jumped around in time a bit, using the past to inform what we’re seeing in the present, and writer Ethan Sacks continues the trend once more in Bounty Hunters #39, filling in some vital details for the road ahead. With Kligson, it gave us a better idea when this all takes place, how he came into control, but also the biting question I had last issue: does he know about the Scourged droids in their halls? The answer to the last one solves so many other things, as Kligson not only knows about the Scourged droids, he actively invited the infection into their halls thanks to its promise to him if he delivers it a hybroid/cyborg it can attempt to take over! Telemak and his group’s treatment of Kligson hasn’t been kind since Jango Fett left him there, dismissing him due to his human bits, and their unwillingness to consider him one of their own plus not allowing him to be fully made into a droid, has certainly weighed on him for some time. The Scourge is presenting the opportunity to be what he’s always wanted, to be the droid he knows he is inside, contingent on his delivery of the blank slate Valance of course, so it’s too good of an offer to not consider. This really helps clarify his intentions and goals, providing opportunity for his future story as well, especially with how the issue ends: the Scourge backs out of its deal after getting Valance, reiterating what he’s heard for all these years from Telemak about having too much humanity left, leaving him devastated. Could he turn course and help T’onga and team retrieve Valance since he didn’t get what he wanted, only willing to help them because he finally re-embraces the humanity still inside? To vindictively mess with the Scourge for screwing him over, just like everyone else? If anyone can help him find himself again, or at least give him some feeling of acceptance that he might reverse what he’s done to Valance, it would be T’onga and her crew of misfits.
Speaking T’onga, we go back in time only a few days before arriving at the station, where Valance makes her promise him one thing: if he completely disappears, if this Kligson can’t save him, he wants T’onga to kill him rather than be some uncaring killing machine used by whomever controls him. She struggles with this promise, as she just got done telling him she’s so eager to help him because she’s lost too many people already and she can’t stand losing another, though she promises him in the momen, but it feels like she’s not being totally truthful/not expecting it to come to that anyways. In the present, she faces the stark truth she can’t avoid his promise, as repeated attempts to reach out to him, and tons of failed attacks by the rest of the group against his uninhibited abilities, show her he’s lost. Wanting to fulfill her promise, T’onga’s focus helps her finally bite down Khel Tanna’s little mini-mutiny, as she puts her foot down hard on Khel by saying they’re done trying to save Valance, instead trying to kill him. Hopefully this helps keep the kibosh on Khel’s designs, at least until they “kill” Valance…or manage to rescue him in the process. And who knows, they might have some help coming their way…
After being absent for a bit as the main storyline got cooking with the Dark Droids event, Bounty Hunters returns to Losha! When she’s not fighting in bounty procurer Syphacc’s secret rings, which has really buffed her up even more than her last appearance, Losha’s helping him out with mundane tasks with running the organization. From the moment the issue catches up with her, we know things are about to go wrong, as the little Pit droids walking around have the Scourge’s tell-tale purple eyes, but it’s about to be the least of Losha’s worries. Syphacc wants her to check in a new bounty hunter looking for work and the issue cuts to an adorable amount of loth-cats surrounding Vukorah!! It’s been even longer since we saw her, which was when she renounced her life with the Unbroken Clan, forever changed from her experience with Losha and the woman’s nexu she killed. Losha found herself readying for revenge in the fighting pits after being left by T’onga, while Vukorah found herself with a need to move away from the violence, and I love the way these two became the other after their experiences. Having them meet here results in some of the best parts of the issue, in my opinion, as these enemies quickly find neither is what they expected, while the attacking Scourge forces them to do the even more unexpected: team up! Their meeting starting with the expected sucker punch by Losha was fitting, but Vukorah offering up her weapon to Losha to kill her took me by surprise, though they don’t get to deal with it when Syphacc comes under attack. As they fight off the little Pit droids, Vukorah attempts to grow on Losha, to funny effect, but Losha comes to the realization T’onga must be in danger too. I’d been hoping we’d get to catch up with Losha soon, mainly for the eventual reunion, but also because I want to confirm what Sacks said I figured out about her upcoming story…was it how Losha’s been training to fight Vukorah or more about the fact she’s saving up to buy back the Edgehawk?! Regardless, having Vukorah and Losha showing up side-by-side to help T’onga is going to be one helluva reunion, as I can imagine Vukorah having Losha’s back when she initially tells T’onga how she feels about her wife’s little stunt.
Davide Tinto remains on art, with Arif Prianto on colors and Travis Lanham on lettering, as usual. The series of pages where several members of T’onga’s crew attempt to take down Valance both feels like an ode to Paolo Villanelli’s time on the series but also stands on its own as one of the series’ best! It all begins when Valance grabs T’onga by the collar and winds up to punch, then BAM, Zuckuss, who helped 4-LOM escape (for now, at least!), breaks up the moment, Lanham’s sound FX making it seem clumsy and barely in the nick of time, while Tinto’s pinwheel, circular background really gives the moment a sense of heaviness, while Prianto’s colors really make the background pop, the effect of all three things somewhere between Zuckuss is a savior and T’onga’s just pure lucky he was there. From there, Zuckuss, Bossk, and Deathstick all get one page each for their efforts to stop him, with Zuckuss putting up the best fight since he’s able to dodge the handblasts for a bit, while Bossk and Deathstick find their offensives done before they really get started, Tinto making each one full of expression or exaggerated movements compared to Valance’s sudden, swift, and methodical movements. Giving each one a single page only serves to show Durge’s attempt, and Valance’s efforts to stop him, are the most considerable considering it’s shown in a double splash. After all the violence, there’s a big change of pace when we meet Vukorah on her ship, surrounded by the loth-cats, starting with the lighting, which isn’t as moody, instead brighter and cheery to some extent, helped by the big smile and happy demeanor Tinto provides Vukorah. It’s interrupted by an insert of Vukorah looking frightened and surprised at whomever she sees when she opens the door, Lanham’s word bubble giving the impression she’s barely able to squeeze out the last word before the next panel where she’s sucker punched by Losha, conveyed with Losha being in the shadows and her right hook given a massive SFX to match its impact. Vukorah’s at least back to smiling as they work together to fight off the droids, so maybe there is some happiness ahead for her (and Losha).
Here are a few other things:
- Ethan Sacks and his daughter Naomi co-wrote a comic called A Haunted Girl, a series focusing on a 16 year-old who tries to reintegrate with her old life after depression drives her to near-suicide, starts seeing ghosts. It looks to responsibly cover mental health challenges and its inspiration stems from a personal place for both of them, as they cover in their CBS interview, which is well worth a listen. A Haunted Girl is out on Image Comics’ imprint, Syzygy Publishing, October 11. Good luck to both of them with the series!
- Not only can you glimpse at what’s to come at the end of the Dark Droids event for this series, but the December solicitations also offer plenty of questions on what story he’ll contribute to the Revelations #1 (2023) one-shot!
Bounty Hunters #39 continues to make the best of the Dark Droids event and push its characters to their limits.
+ T’onga and Kligson exploration
+ Losha and Vukorah forced to deal with one another
+ Tinto and team making Valance a deadly threat
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Bluesky, Twitter @MynockManor, and Instagram @mynockmanor.
BOUNTY HUNTERS REVIEWS
Galaxy’s Deadliest: #1-4 — War of the Bounty Hunters: #12-17 — Crimson Reign: #18-22 — The Raid on the Vermillion: #23-28 — Bedlam on Bestine: #29 | #30 | #31 | #32 | #33 | #34 — #35 | #36 — Dark Droids: #37 | #38