With less than a week before Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2022, here are the August Star Wars comics solicitations, which include the beginning of Dark Horse’s return to the Saga with their all-ages input! Most of the issues in the solicitations will actually hit in August, as it seems the delays are back under control for now, but a few issues from prior months are scheduled to come out in August 2022 as well, so I’ve made sure to reference them too. Otherwise, feast your harvest-season eyes on T’onga’s final bid to save Cadeliah from Qi’ra’s Crimson Dawn, the next glimpse of Obi-Wan’s past, Chewie behind bars (again, but like can’t he just bend them?), and Darth Vader facing his most feared enemy…sand??!!?
Here are the other issues coming out in August, already solicitated for July: Han Solo & Chewbacca #5 (on sale 8/10) Star Wars #26 (on sale 8/17), The Mandalorian #2 (on sale 8/17) Doctor Aphra #23 (on sale 8/24).
It means August might be quite the packed month, if these all hold, but I’ll update these like I have the others as soon as I hear things have changed! The rest below I have in their current release order (Dark Horse is separated however), though you’ll notice two are actually going to arrive in September.
MARVEL
Bounty Hunters #26 (8/10)
Ethan Sacks (Writer), Paolo Villanelli (Artist)
Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli
THE SHOCKING ENDING TO THE BOUNTY HUNTERS’ RAID ON THE VERMILLION!
- T’onga must face Crimson Dawn on her own to save the girl she seeks.
- Meanwhile, one of her crew may not survive Vukorah’s deadly revenge.
- And Dengar may finally be getting exactly what he deserves.
A few of the hunters in T’onga’s crew have plot armor, so once you subtract them, you get a rather harrowing list of potential characters to die in the big, epic, shocking ending. While it doesn’t seem to imply the series also comes to an end, I’m hoping it does wrap up the Cadeliah thread and pushing forward with some new stories, wherever it goes next.
Darth Vader #26 (8/24)
Greg Pak (Writer), Raffaele Ienco (Artist)
Cover by Rahzzah
- We all know about Anakin Skywalker’s aversion to finely ground particulate matter.
- But what does sand mean to the Dark Lord of the Sith?
- When Sabé, Vader’s unlikely new ally, goes missing, Vader must confront his own dark heart in the maelstrom of a terrible sandstorm – while tapping into one of his earliest skills in a wildly unexpected way!
Fitting solicit to read, what with the 20th Anniversary of Attack of the Clones, and Anakin’s infamous line about sand, earlier this week! It seems like Ochi might exit the series for a time after issue #25 and somehow, someway, Sabé continues to stay in the story, which is both exciting and intriguing. The series has been a little too complicated for its own good lately, with characters and storylines that don’t really pop, but wittling things down to sand, Vader, and Sabé is really promising. Also, love this cover, as it finally breaks from the last 20 plus of Vader standing menacingly.
Obi-Wan #4 (8/31)
Christopher Cantwell (Writer), Madibek Musabekov (Artist)
Cover by Phil Noto
- As the sandstorm overtakes his home, Obi-Wan has more time to reflect in – and on – the darkness.
- He looks back on a time when he and Anakin Skywalker were pulled off the front lines of the Clone Wars to confront a lost soul from Kenobi’s wartime past.
- Can the two Jedi bring a man back from the heart of darkness to which he has fallen?
Heart of darkness sounds right with that downright spooky cover! While I’d have wished this wasn’t another Clone Wars-era tale, think of all the Anakin/Obi content from the 10 yearsbetween Ep. 1 and 2, having them go off the beaten path to help a wayward soul is a welcomed change of pace. I’ll be curious to learn who this man is, if we’ve met them before or not! With only one more issue to go, it’s disappointing to see a series with a new artist each issue continue to have only male artists work on it, but I’m still excited for a new one like Madibek Musabekov to have a crack at Star Wars!
Han Solo & Chewbacca #6 (9/21)
Marc Guggenheim (Writer), David Messina (Artist)
Cover by Phil Noto
“CHEWBACCA BEHIND BARS!”
- Chewie is held captive on the prison planet of Gulhadar!
- And you’ll never believe who his cellmates are. None other than Maz Kanata and Boba Fett!
- And whatever happened to the Millennium Falcon?
Intriguing that the cover shows Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba, not the aforementioned Maz Kanata and Boba Fett. I know cover artists like Phil Noto aren’t given all the details before they make these, so I wouldn’t blame him for picking two of the more recognizable ne’er-do-wells to put behind bars with Chewie, though I wouldn’t be surprised they are in prison alongside the three already mentioned considering the last time we saw them, they had been captured. So why is Chewie captured, and with Maz and Boba?! I’m beyond curious to find out why!
Doctor Aphra #24 (9/28)
Alyssa Wong (Writer), Minkyu Jung (Artist)
Cover by Rickie Yagawa
“DESCENT”
- Desperate to rescue DOCTOR APHRA at any cost, SANA STARROS and her CREW’s search leads them to an OLD HAUNT…
- …and two FAMILIAR FACES they might not survive!
- Meanwhile, Aphra delves deeper into the secrets of THE ASCENDANT…and the true origin of the SPARK ETERNAL!
I’m still sort of floored by the events of the latest issue, Doctor Aphra #20 (Vol. 2), so reading a solicit of the story yet to come so many months away is soothing. I love how this thread of the Ascendant has permeated the comic, and if you’ve read issue #20, you know it’s been a VERY intriguing tale, full of twist and turns, and I can’t wait to see what the creative team has in store for us next. Who are the two familiar faces? The return of BT-1 and Triple-Zero?! Winloss and Nokk? Panda Baba and Dr. Evazan (who do appear in the Han Solo & Chewbacca cover above)? Should be fun, no matter who! And also I want to know who this fuzzy friend is Aphra on the cover!
DARK HORSE
Hyperspace Stories #1 (on sale 8/10)
Amanda Deibert (Writer), Lucas Marangon (Artist/Cover Artist)
When the members of a Republic mission led by Senator Padmé Amidala are abducted by the ruthless Separatist General Grievous, Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi jump to the rescue. But the operation quickly goes awry, and the Jedi find themselves cut off and surrounded by an army of battle droids! Danger and deception at the height of the Clone Wars, in Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories #1.
- Series features fan-favorite heroes, vile villains, and unexpected twists and turns, brought to you by all-star authors Cecil Castellucci, Amanda Deibert, and Michael Moreci!
- All-new all-ages adventures from throughout the galaxy!
Dark Horse returns to Star Wars comics this August! The first details on their return were released yesterday, including these Hyperspace Stories will be 12 issues long, but now we have a release date! I’m very interested to see what these three writers can bring us in 12 issues!
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.