– Spoiler Review –
After a nearly two month wait, with Sskeer’s unknown fate making it excruciating, The High Republic comic returns for its next arc, “The Heart of the Drengir,” both picking up where we left off and propelling the story forward in a big, emotional way.
The High Republic issue #6 is out one day after the release of Phase I, Wave II novels The Rising Storm and Race to Crashpoint Tower, but it’s actually set prior to the events of those books, though they do mention Avar Kriss’ work alongside the Hutts to tackle the Drengir infestation. Reading this issue will help fill in the blank of Kriss’ work, as we begin to see the formation of the plan to go after the root of the Drengir menace, which is what the books reference, that coming final battle that’ll play out in the comics. You don’t need to read the novels to enjoy the comic, simply reading the issue before this will help, but this also feels like a good enough spot to jump on, though you’d miss the incredible and emotional journey Jedi Knight Keeve Trennis and Master Sskeer have gone through and continues here.
Ssker’s sacrifice, allowing his former Padawan Keeve Trennis to use a Mind Touch and convince the Drengir the current harvest of meat was tainted, wasn’t totally in vain, as they managed to win the day then, but the Drengir have come back two-fold in the months since. It’s left Sskeer in a coma, watched dutifully on Starlight Beacon by Keeve, while the pact Avar Kriss made with the Hutts has helped her beat back their growing threat, but it doesn’t seem like the battle will ever end at this pace. Kriss is one of the best and brightest of the Jedi, the Hero of Hetzal now after the events in Light of the Jedi, but that doesn’t mean the Jedi Council is happy with her decisions, as life-long friend and councilmember Stellan Gios informs Maru, the head of operations of Starlight. Stellan and the Council’s misgivings with Avar’s choices don’t end and you’ll hear more of them in The Rising Storm. As for Avar herself, she understands this opportunity, despite her own misgivings as the Hutts show a lack of respect for life, and continues to take advantage of their pact, riding on rancors to slay the Drengir and save citizens of the frontier from their onslaught. Last issue, Avar showed her diplomacy wouldn’t be slowed despite the growing battle around her and this time she won’t let the battle stop her from chastising the Hutts on their methods, showing she’s compassionate and cares about all life, even as her rancor falls to the Drengir, and won’t compromise the tenants of the Order. There’s a reason she’s such a symbol of this era, in and out of universe, as she’s the strongest in wills of the Order, especially compared to her friends Stellan and Elzar Mann, and represents what the authors are trying to show makes the Jedi of this era unique. I love there’s more of Avar calling the Force a song, which is how she perceives it, as I enjoy how it helps her sense more than most Jedi and the sheer imagery of it is fantastic.
And now, the moment I’ve been trying to avoid, because I didn’t want to revisit my emotions again already, but have been desperate to talk about because we’ve had to wait nearly two months to see what comes next: Sskeer and Keeve! Keeve knows she should be out with Avar, fighting back the Drengir, but she can’t abandon him, because she wants to help him through the Drengir infestation and understand his slow disconnect from the Force, the latter which worries her more because if it can happen to him then she’s worried it can happen to any Jedi; her worries about herself among that list are unsaid but clear. It is an interesting thing to ponder and want to learn more about, as if the Jedi want to continue to bring peace and justice to the galaxy, losing their connection to the Force make that job impossible and someone could easily take advantage of it. If you can see the thread I’m trying to tie this too, then you understand the implications if more than Sskeer begins to lose their connection to Force, as eventually it means Yoda and Mace Windu chatting about hiding their diminished connection to the Force, shrouded by the dark side. What happens as Keeve tries to help Sskeer with his connection might not directly lead to those threads, there are still over 200 years before Yoda and Mace’s chat after all, but I’ll be curious to see what it could mean for the Jedi going forward and what’s behind it, if anything, beyond some type of psychological issue Sskeer is facing. It could even lead to whatever ends up making Keeve, or we’re still assuming it’s her, part of the Lost Twenty of the Jedi Order.
Figuring out his psychological problems won’t be quick or easy, and for the time being, not as urgent as the situation of the Drengir’s hold on him. As Avar, Ceret, Terec, and their Hutt allies find themselves overrun by the Drengir, sending out a call for help from Starlight, Keeve decides to take a drastic step to help: letting down the containment field around Sskeer and letting his Drengir appendage snake into her mind. She finds her mind pulled into the remaining place Sskeer has sequestered for himself in his own mind against the Drengir infestation, and the two embrace immediately, despite knowing it’s not totally the Jedi way the attachment they have for one another, like father and daughter, and you’re totally the one on the edge of tears, not me, not me again thinking about this tender, wonderful, sweet moment between these two. Ugh, there’s me cursing writer Cavan Scott again (read The Rising Storm for an endless array of reasons to curse him!). They don’t dwell on the hug too long, moving right to business, as Sskeer explains their root mind (like a hive mind, but you know…with roots) and how he’s been trying to find what it’s hiding, what’s communicating with all the Drengir: the Great Progenitor, revealed in issue #4 as the first and greatest of the Drengir. When the Sith locked it up, so too were the rest of the Drengir, but when it was released on the Amaxine station by accident by the Jedi there (as seen in Into the Dark), the Drengir awoke again. Keeve tries to help Sskeer, but even together they aren’t strong enough…until Maru and Obralin, an archivist Jedi (who has some great moments in TRS), help out. Together, Sskeer and Keeve find themselves before the Great Progenitor and as it attacks Keeve, Sskeer breaks the connection to the Drengir…not before Keeve peers with the Progenitor’s mind and discovers its location! It knows they know and the Drengir begin to retreat against Avar and the Hutts, falling back to find a way to protect their leader, perhaps. It’s no surprise Keeve is able to connect and uncover such a secret, as we saw her connect to the creatures in the opening issue in a similar way, and it’s neat to see her use the skill again. But mainly I’m just glad Keeve cares so much for her former Master, as she uses their bond to help him break free, uncover a great secret, and promise to help him through whatever comes next. I’m happy Sskeer is okay, for now, and I look forward to more of these two together.
As for the Great Progenitor’s location? Mulita! If you’re scratching your head, that’s okay, so am I and the Jedi are too. Maru scrambles through the Republic records, not finding a planet by the name, but rather a system out in Wild Space, with the records dating back to something called the Nightmare Conjunction. Sounds terribly ominous, doesn’t it?! We don’t know much about it, but we’ve actually already heard about the Nightmare Conjunction in Scott’s Dooku: Jedi Lost, an event quelled by a Darth Krall, a former Jedi Master. Krall is important to mention because a day before this issue released, a variant cover for the next issue revealed our first look at Krall, while the regular cover by Phil Noto has Keeve clashing sabers with a red-bladed lightsaber, its holder off-page. Could Krall still be alive? Are we just getting a flashback here? Or something like what Keeve just went through in Sskeer’s mind and the Drengir’s root mind, where Keeve might be able to ‘battle’ Krall somehow? Or is this all a misdirect? Luckily we won’t have to wait very long! Krall and his history with the Nightmare Conjunction is also interesting because it’s covered in the journal of a Jedi expelled from the Order during this era, Kilas Teradine (as we found out in Dooku: Jedi Lost), who we’ve yet to meet but has a connection to a character we’re introduced to in some Wave II material (you’ll have to read those to find out!). A lot of pieces are coming together now and I can’t wait to see what this all means and what happens in the fight against the Great Progenitor!
Series regular artist Ario Anindito takes a two-issue break, with Georges Jeanty providing pencils and Karl Story on inks alongside him, while Joe Caramagna takes over lettering duties from Ariana Maher, but Annalisa Leoni returns for colors at least. Anindito is a powerhouse so Jeanty and Story had a hard act to follow and it’s definitely not at the same level, but I’d prefer not to compare too much and instead focus on what the team does well. I particularly liked the look inside Sskeer’s mind, with the roots all over, enclosing them and making the space feel claustrophobic, while the panel edges were made of the same roots. And when they see the Great Progenitor, the lightning flashing in the background, Leoni’s colors give the scene a spooky blue hue, while the giant Drengir and the hoards around it paint a difficult picture of the task ahead of the Jedi. When Keeve’s eyes turn to star fields, accessing the Progenitor’s mind for information, it’s a cool, almost reverse look at what everyone else sees when Keeve connects to the Force so deeply, compared to the moment in issue #1 where she’s floating amongst her visions in a rather arresting panel.
Here are a few other things:
- We have a page dedicated to The High Republic, which is where you’ll find all our reviews, news articles, and a list of what content is yet to come! So check out our Wave II reviews and look ahead at what’s been announced and when it’s releasing.
- There’s a panel, hosted by Krystina Arielle of The High Republic Show, at SDCC later this month and it’s likely when we’ll get more details what’s next for the era!
- And if you think the red lightsaber on a cover was a big one…beware of potential spoilers when checking out the solicitations for September because the cover had me screaming in worry for our Keeve!
The High Republic #6 ends the long cliffhanger and reunites Keeve and Sskeer (for now), revealing new information on the Drengir, and pointing us towards a giant confrontation ahead in the comics.
+ Keeve and Sskeer hugging!
+ Locating the Great Progenitor
+ All the potential of Keeve and Sskeer figuring out his problems
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.
THE HIGH REPUBLIC COMIC REVIEWS:
There Is No Fear: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5