February’s Star Wars comic solicitations look to be dominated by The High Republic’s Phase I finale content, so much so I don’t think any amount of chocolates on Valentine’s Day will help with the fallout. Cataclysmic and galaxy-shaking events reverberate throughout all High Republic content, while Sabé returns to haunt Darth Vader’s life, the Star Wars hotel tie-in has some exciting faces to explore, and a few of January’s issues slip into the month. Check them out below!
MARVEL
The High Republic #14 (on sale 2/2)
Cavan Scott (Writer), Ario Anindito (Artist) Cover by Phil Noto
THE EDGE OF DESTRUCTION!
- From Hero of Hetzal to…murderer? Can Keeve Trennis stop Marshal Avar Kriss from making a fatal mistake?
- Death and danger await the Starlight Jedi as they finally close in on their enemy.
- Tying directly into Claudia Gray’s Star Wars: The Fallen Star, phase one of Star Wars: The High Republic enters its cataclysmic final wave of stories. Everything is about to change.
The High Republic #15 (on sale 2/23)
Cavan Scott (Writer), Ario Anindito (Artist) Cover by Phil Noto
EVERYTHING CHANGES!
- Phase one of Star Wars: The High Republic reaches its galaxy-shaking conclusion.
- Only one person can save the Jedi from the mysterious monsters that stalk Starlight Beacon.
- Who will live and who will die?
January sounded rough for The High Republic, but it looks like Phase I’s final breathes happen in February, and it looks and sounds even more dire than expected. Words like ‘cataclysmic’ and ‘galaxy-shaking’ don’t inspire much confidence for a shining, hope-filled ending to the first Phase, but it does promise some edge of your seat drama to read and I guess that’s what we’re all here for in the end; tear us down before you build us back up again. The comics have run parallel to events in the books for awhile, so it’s interesting in these final two issues of Phase one, they’ll actually directly tie into the events of The Fallen Star, Gray’s adult novel out in January. As for Kriss nearly murdering Lourna Dee, well, we just saw the Hero of Hetzal attempt to pull her down for a fight, but could she be pushed far enough to hurt Dee? I’m not so sure she will, but it remains to be seen! And as for the monsters stalking the halls of Starlight Beacon? I’m assuming it’ll be the Leveler and others of its ilk, more “Nameless” as they seemed to be called, while I have a good idea on the one Jedi who can defeat them: Sskeer! Since he’s losing his connection to the Force, which has been a little frustratingly strung out as to why, they might not have any effect on him since they only seem to bother those with the Force. It’s kind of handy he’s lost his connection! Sorry not sorry about the arm/hand joke, Sskeer. But that’s not all The High Republic goodies for February….
The High Republic — Eye of the Storm #2 (on sale 2/16)
Charles Soule (Writer), Guillermo Sanna (Artist)
Cover by Ryan Brown
ACT TWO: Marchion. The Wreckage. The Hunt. The Storm.
- In which the Eye of the Nihil exults after a job well done.
- In which Marchion Ro reveals the source of the Jedi’s greatest fear.
- In which the future of the Nihil is revealed.
The two-part mega special dive into the history and backstory of Marchion Ro drops it’s final issue and it looks to set up the next part of his plans for the Nihil and therefore a glimpse at what might be in store for readers in Phase II: Quest of the Jedi, which will start sometime in 2022 (my bet is June). But there’s still one more The High Republic comic for fans in February…
The High Republic – Trail of Shadows #5 (On Sale 2/9)
Daniel José Older (Writer), Dave Wachter (Artist)
Cover by David López
- It all comes crashing together in this finale as Emerick and Sian come face to face with mystery they’ve been hunting.
- Who will survive?
- Phase one of Star Wars: The High Republic culminates in this crashing conclusion.
Alongside his Young Adult novel Mission to Midnigh in February, Older also has the finale to his Trail of Shadows miniseries to haunt us High Republic readers with! Seriously, the first issue was an eyeworm of spooky proportions and I can’t wait to see how far down the rabbit hole it goes, especially alongside all the less than hopefully teases for the finale to this Phase of the overall story.
Halcyon Legacy #2 (on sale 2/23)
Ethan Sacks (Writer), Will Sliney (Artist) Cover by E.M. Gist
YOUR TICKET TO THE HOTTEST RIDE IN THE GALAXY!
- The Halcyon comes under fire from pirates – with little chance of escape!
- Who is the mysterious Resistance spy on board that may lead to the fiery end of the ship’s 275-year run?
- And find out how, years earlier, bounty hunter AURRA SING and a mysterious partner gambled with their lives during the galactic starcruiser’s era as a flying casino!
The hotel tie-in continues at a much cheaper price to enjoy than the actual thing, so it might be worth checking this series out in the meantime as you put aside your life savings, take out a second mortgage, and get a home equity line of credit (I work at bank…)! The first issue dove into the past with The High Republic-era fun, while this second one has a tale about not only Aurra Sing, but Tam Wessel as well!!! These are two bounty hunters we’ve seriously never gotten enough of and I’m actually excited for this issue simply because of them.
Crimson Reign #2 (on sale 2/23)
Charles Soule (Writer), Steven Cummings (Artist)
Cover by Leinil Francis Yu | Sabacc Card Variant Cover by David Lopez | Knights of Ren Variant Cover by Rahzzah | Warriors of Dawn Variant Cover by Valerio Giangiordano | Enemies of Dawn Variant Cover by Clayton Crain | Syndicate Variant Cover by Khoi Pham | Connecting Variant Cover by Ario Anindito
THE ASSASSINS!
QI’RA sends two killers to do what they do best to continue with her plan to plunge the galaxy into chaos. The relentless, Force-blinded OCHI OF BESTOON and the mysterious, unstoppable DEATHSTICK each have a target, and nothing will get in their way!
(This is a transplant from January and I haven’t altered my original response to the solicit) Well, this wasn’t the team-up myself or Ochi saw coming…get it?! Sorry, not sorry. While we just had the end to War of the Bounty Hunters, we’re still not totally close to learning Qi’ra’s ultimate plans or reason for wanting all this chaos, so I don’t know what to say about this solicit other than I’m intrigued as hell to learn more. The final part of Qi’ra’s return trilogy was revealed with the title of The Hidden Empire, while Ochi’s fateful mission to bring Rey to Palpatine and Luke’s quest for Exegol will be revealed in 2022’s Shadow of the Sith.
Star Wars #21 (on sale 2/16)
Charles Soule (Writer), Ramon Rosanas & Marco Castiello (Artist)
Cover by Ramon Rosanas | Variant Cover by Carlo Pagulayan | Action Figure Variant Cover by John Tyler Christopher | Lucasfilm 50th Anniversary Variant Cover by Chris Sprouse
STRANDED ON A STAR DESTROYER!
- After a mission gone wrong, ace Rebel pilot SHARA BEY (POE DAMERON’S mother) was left for dead aboard the TARKIN’S WILL, a huge Star Destroyer.
- Shara survived and has been hiding deep inside the massive ship ever since, evading COMMANDER ZAHRA’S notice.
- But her time is up. Can she live long enough to escape?
(This is a transplant from January and I haven’t altered my original response to the solicit) Last time we saw Shara Bey, stranded on the Tarkin’s Will, it was back in Star Wars #12 (Vol. 2), which came out in March of 2021…so it’s almost a whole year before we’ll get an update on her plight! I feel like this means we’ll depart from Luke’s Jedi journey, which is the center of the previous two announced issues (#19 & #20), and I hope Shara gets the main character treatment she deserves to wrap up her return to the Rebellion.
Darth Vader #20 (on sale 2/9)
Greg Pak (Writer), Raffaele Ienco (Artist) Cover by Ryan Stegman
THE QUEEN’S SHADOW RETURNS!
- Darth Vader continues his quest to destroy the agents of Crimson Dawn, abetted by an unlikely crew of heroes and assassins.
- But every twist in the tale gets thrown into question with the shocking return of SABÉ, handmaiden of Padmé Amidala!
- Who’s the hero? Who’s the villain? And will they choose chaos or order in the age of Crimson Reign?
The Darth Vader series took a January break and comes back in February in a big way: the return of Sabé!!! As part of the series’ excellent opening arc of issues, the handmaidens and their quest for vengeance over the death of Padmé was one of the most intriguing ways to start this series, though their very sudden and not well-explained departure was disappointing, but at least it seemed like they could come back…and now, at the very least, Sabé is! Why is she back now? What does she want? Is she and the other handmaidens working with Crimson Dawn?! I’ve been underwhelmed by this series for some time now but this is a ray of hope.
IDW
The High Republic Adventures #13 (on sale 2/??)
Daniel José Older (Writer), Harvey Tolibao (Artist/Cover Artist)
Join Daniel José Older and Harvey Tolibao in this emotional finale to phase one of The High Republic Adventures!
With their latest mission behind them, the Padawan face their greatest challenge yet: the future. Farzala and Qort are ready to take the next steps, but Lula can’t shake her emotions, as is the Jedi way. She’s been trained for battle, for diplomatic relations, for rescue missions… she was never trained for a heart that aches for more. Through it all, though, they are guided by the wise words of the Jedi: for light and for life.
With IDW losing the Star Wars license in 2022, this being the finale isn’t a surprise, but at least it tries to iterate it’s just the finale to Phase One of the series, meaning the likelihood of Dark Horse picking up with this for the following Phases of The High Republic story increases ever so slightly. I’ll be curious to see where this series all leads to in its final pages, considering the darker nature of Wave III, and this tease about Lula wanting more…
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.