– Spoiler Review –
The name Boba Fett sends chills down anyone’s spine, yet he’s still that (clone) kid deep down inside, a dichotomy not always on display when he takes center stage in a story, yet writer Michael Moreci balances both well in a surprising and engaging Hyperspace Stories #7.
Over the last several issues, my reviews of Hyperspace Stories include a little section later on about the way each issue holds a connection to the maxiseries’ larger story, which involves a mysterious, maybe Force-related, object stuffed into a toy doll and handed over from a father to his daughter. Viiveenn, the daughter in question, was reunited with a toy doll back in issue #4 thanks to Rey prior to The Rise of Skywalker, but the question remains if it’s the one holding the mysterious object, as we saw last issue the toymaker made tons of the same toy. While Hyperspace Stories #7 doesn’t hold the answer, it does bring Viiveenn back in a big way, as the issue takes place during the dark times between the prequels and the original trilogies, where she hires Boba Fett to help her track down the doll, as she lost it! There are only 5 issues left, so this was a well-paced reminder of the connecting story’s importance, as well as Viiveenn’s role in it, without making it too difficult for fans of any age to follow. While she’s not reunited with the doll here, knowing how previous issues have slowly revealed more details, this certainly felt like a turning point on how we’ll start getting even more information leading up to the finale.
As for why Boba Fett would ever take on the job of helping a young Wookiee track down a missing doll, Moreci’s script digging into the man beneath the helmet provides a fitting, sappy, and fun answer. Even Boba’s initially not down for the job, only protecting Viiveenn from her well-meaning but target-making announcement she has tons of credits to hire someone because, well, she has credits and he’s not against more. When she reveals to him the lost toy is a final gift from her dead father, Boba flashes back to Geonosis, the famous shot of him picking up Jango Fett’s helmet amongst the detritus of battle behind him, and his past and fondness for his father he lost too quickly opens him up to her request. After successfully saving her from threats like both the Empire and the bounty hunter Bossk, he drops her off on Coruscant in the hopes it’ll help throw off any lingering pursuer’s scent her scent, leaving her with some final advice: never give up looking for the item, something he says as he sees Jango’s reflection on a nearby surface. These moments where we see the hunter’s heart, long before The Book of Boba Fett, add a great layer to the story here and the character himself, giving him greater depth than more of his silent gunslinger shtick, yet there’s still plenty of Fett’s typical deadly maneuvers to satisfy everyone.
And what makes both the little moments and Boba’s slick moves all the more memorable is the fantastic art team of Andrea Mutti on pencils, inks from Gigi Baldassini, Vallerio Alloro as colorist, and of course Tyler Smith & Jimmy Betancourt lettering. Mutti and Baldassini really give Alloro a moody, grimy underworld to start out the adventure, with misty streets, cramped spaces, and a distinct lack of citizens, and the colorist takes it stride, giving us neon lighting and plenty of shadows, helping make the first appearance of Boba all the more striking on the second page after the credits. The quality of Mutti and Baldassini’s Boba on the page, from little scratches and dings, crevices, and familiar patches and markings, remains throughout the entirety of the story, an impressive level of detail which weighs the character down in the world, giving him great impact in his fights with other hunters or presence in any panel; it might just be the best artwork of Boba since Age of Rebellion – Boba Fett #1 by Marc Laming. One standout sequence in the issue happens late in the comic and it’s a testament to the whole team: the final confrontation between Bossk’s dogged pursuit of Viiveenn and Boba’s protection of her comes to a head, as Boba gets a one-up on the Transdoshans and boards Bossk’s ship to rub salt in the wound…only for his seeming arrogance to get the better of him and one of Bossk’s sidekicks nets Boba’s arm to the ship’s walls. Things look bad for Boba, but Viiv appears in the Firespray and gives him enough time to escape before she shoots the Transdoshans’ ship! Smith and Betancourt really help make these scenes work, be it panel where we see Boba looking at Bossk yet in the background we can see the other hunter on board, Bossk’s word bubble placement letting us in on the secret as the net comes flying to capture Fett or when Viiv’s word bubble appears beneath Bossk’s diatribe, the next panel Bossk’s head is looking back, leaving us in suspense, his “No” simple, final, almost a feeling of defeat to its size, and then we see the Firespray hovering over Bossk’s ship, Viiv in control, the day likely won.
Here are a few other things:
- A small look ahead on the series: issue #8 will feature Kylo Ren, issue #9 is Quinlan Vos’ return to (Dark Horse) comics, and issue #10 will star the Bad Batch themselves! We’re really jumping all over the timeline (and between heroes and villains) coming into the final stretch and I can’t yet imagine how the connecting story will feature in each, but I’m eager to see how.
- Much like the wait between this and the last issue was only a week, we won’t have to wait long for #8, as it’s out August 30, but then it’ll be more on a monthly release afterwards.
- Speaking of Boba Fett…he’s one of three new villains players can select in the first Star Wars Villainous expansion, Scum and Villainy. I’ve only played with the new set against my wife once so far, but Boba’s bounty system to win the game is a slow, but well-thought-out new gameplay addition. I’ll hopefully have a review later this month!
Hyperspace Stories #7 captures the many layers of Boba Fett in another great entry in the villainous side of the series!
+ Focusing on Boba Fett’s heart amongst his deadly talents
+ Boba feels as deadly as he looks thanks to art team’s aesthetic
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.
DISCLOSURE: I received a copy of this comic from the publisher at no charge in order to provide an early review. However, this did not affect the overall review content. All opinions are my own.