By July, with the War of the Bounty Hunters mega-crossover in full swing, you might find yourself if the frozen popsicle of Han Solo will really be worth all this trouble or you might be enjoying the shenanigans of this interconnected, multi-series story too much to sweat the small stuff. As the solicitations for July’s Star Wars comics promise (so far, as these are only initial ones via the official site’s blog, so expect updates later this week. Update 4/22: now they’re all in!), there will be tons to get caught up in, from Doctor Aphra and Sana Starros trying to survive one another and a gangster-filled party, Luke Skywalker having more Force visions, a deep-dive into the Emperor’s inner circle, and so much more; head below to see what to expect!
{As we don’t have the on-sale dates as of initial publishing on 4/21/21, I’ve ordered these as the official site did, which I’m hoping is release/story order}
{UPDATE 4/22: I’ve adjusted the order of the War of the Bounty Hunter related issues according to their release dates, as this is also story order}
MARVEL
Bounty Hunters #14 (on sale 7/7)
Ethan Sacks (Writer), Paolo Villanelli (Artist)
Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Lucasfilm 50th Variant Cover by Chris Sprouse
“THE FOLLOWING”
- Hunted by the mysterious assassin DEATHSTICK, a wounded VALANCE and his reluctant partner DENGAR are running out of options!
- T’ONGA is outgunned and outnumbered… but she does have one last surprise up her sleeve!
- And the shadowy force behind all of the danger makes its move!
I played the mobile game Uprising VERY briefly, but gaming on my phone hasn’t ever really been my jam, but if I had, then I’d have gotten reference right away: Deathstick is the daughter of a Dathomir Nightsister who left the planet before their extinction in the Clone Wars! I love the name (it made me laugh but sounds great) and the look of her outfit and I’m curious to learn more about her, while this is a great and cool way to revisit a character long since dropped and languished in limbo once Uprising itself was cancelled after a year. Anyways, T’onga still being front and center in the comic is a huge plus, considering her whole terrible situation last year, something I’m going to address prior to War of the Bounty Hunters’ start since I’ll be covering this series again. And lastly, with this “shadowy force” supposedly being revealed in the Darth Vader issue from June 2021, this’ll be the issue to watch to see what they are up to next, and why!
Doctor Aphra #12 (on sale 7/14)
Alyssa Wong (Writer), Minkyu Jung (Artist)
Cover by Sara Pichelli | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Lucasfilm 50th Variant Cover by Chris Sprouse
“PARTY TRICKS”
- A MYSTERIOUS INVITATION leads DOCTOR APHRA and SANA STARROS to an exclusive party… teeming with scum and villainy!
- Will Aphra and Sana be able to survive the underworld social event of the century?
- Or will their cover be blown by A FAMILIAR FACE with an agenda of their own?
The last two times Aphra’s been at a party, beyond her snazzy dresses or getting Luke in formal wear, either everyone nearly ended up dead or she sold Luke to a parasite-controlled being, so her track record isn’t stellar, but at least it’s always a blast! It’s great to see Sana Starros is sticking around for so long, though having them together at a party seems like a far more volatile situation than anything they’ve dealt with before, even over Durge and whatever else they face in June’s issue; are things slowly getting better between these two or will this be a growing list of last straws? I hope the former!
War of the Bounty Hunters #2 (On Sale 7/14)
Charles Soule (Writer), Luke Ross (Artist)
Cover by Steve McNiven | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Trading Card Variant Cover by John Cassaday | Action Figure Variant Cover by John Tyler Christopher | Variant Cover by Marco Checchetto
THE BIGGEST COMIC EVENT OF THE STAR WARS GALAXY CONTINUES!
- Notorious bounty hunter BOBA FETT has tracked his missing prize — heroic smuggler HAN SOLO, frozen in carbonite — to the remote, frozen world of JEKARA.
- But representatives from many of the galaxy’s most powerful factions have gathered, and they all want the same thing — Solo.
- Things go from bad to worse, as Boba Fett realizes that he himself has become almost as valuable to the galaxy’s hunters as Han Solo, and he must turn to the least trustworthy person in the galaxy for help…DOCTOR APHRA…
As I said in the opening, will frozen Solo be really worth all this trouble for everyone? I’m assuming no one tells Solo about all the hubbub over him so his ego doesn’t grow any further, or else he would be telling little Ben Solo all about this and I’d want to get away from my dad if he did that too. Roping Aphra into events, and making her vital to Boba, sounds like a fun lead, while I’ll be curious if Aphra mentions how she fooled him, and called him Boba Man, as we saw in her hilarious audiobook (its script was just released in hardcover!). {UPDATE 4/22: It’s hard to judge by the solicits what you’ll need to read first this day, but we’ll make sure to mention it in our reviews!)
Darth Vader #14 (on sale 7/21)
Greg Pak (Writer), Raffaele Ienco (Artist)
Cover by Aaron Kuder | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Lucasfilm 50th Variant Cover by Chris Sprouse
“THE BLADE BEHIND THE CURTAIN”
- For decades, no figure has stood as close to the EMPEROR with so much mystery surrounding her.
- Who is the UMBARAN? What is her role within the EMPIRE and in the WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS? And what happens when she emerges from the darkness to challenge Darth Vader himself?
- Featuring an unprecedented look at the inner workings of the Emperor’s inner circle — and the return of IG-88!
The assumption regarding the Umbaran watching over Vader’s moves is none other than Sly Moore, someone we saw in the Prequel Trilogy, but the way they still refer to her as the “Umbaran” makes me wonder if that’s just to ‘protect’ that reveal or she’s someone else entirely. Regardless, this sounds like an interesting way to end the month’s WotBH tale, as she becomes a bigger player potentially, while the issue dives into the Emperor’s inner circle to sweeten the pot. As for the return of IG-88, he’s already back in the June issue of this story, so saying he returns again seemed a little silly here.
War of the Bounty Hunters — Jabba The Hutt #1 (on sale 7/21)
Justina Ireland (Writer), Luca Pizzari (Pencils)
Cover by Mahmud Asrar | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Variant by Aaron Kuder | Variant Cover by TBA
JABBA NEVER FORGIVES! JABBA NEVER FORGETS!
JABBA THE HUTT is one of the most powerful and ruthless gangsters in the galaxy—and BOBA FETT, his most trusted bounty hunter, has failed him. How will Jabba deal with betrayal? VIOLENTLY. And what does this have to do with a bounty hunter with ties to the HIGH REPUBLIC?
This is the first of 4 one-shots that further expand on characters in the story, first revealed two weeks ago. The other characters will be 4-Lom & Zuckuss, Boushh, and IG-88. I don’t quite know if there’s an order to reading these alongside the main story, but it maybe won’t be clear until we’ve read the thing. Either way, curious who this bounty hunter and what their ties to the High Republic will be, as Justina Ireland could be laying the groundwork for more stories and characters yet to come in the new era. {Considering this is part of the side-narrative, I imagine it won’t matter which you read first on 7/21, this or the Vader issue}
Star Wars #15 (on sale 7/28)
Charles Soule (Writer), Ramon Rosanas (Artist)
Cover by Carlo Pagulayan | Headshot Variant Cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli | Lucasfilm 50th Variant Cover by Chris Sprouse | Variant Cover by Paul Renaud
“FRIENDS AND ENEMIES”
- LUKE SKYWALKER embarks upon an epic mission with WEDGE ANTILLES and the brave pilots of STARLIGHT SQUADRON to rescue a lost division of the REBEL FLEET.
- LEIA ORGANA, CHEWBACCA and LANDO CALRISSIAN attempt to save HAN SOLO from the evil clutches of BOBA FETT.
- But what hidden vision will the Force send to Luke about the troubles to come?
Luke has been absent from the current Star Wars story and now he’s smack-dab in the middle of it all, even piloting alongside the legends-filled Starlight Squadron; I’m most curious to learn what this vision brings, as they are almost certainly more fun for us readers than they are for the one experiencing them. {Surprised this is the final issue of the month’s story, but I guess we’ll understand more once we get to read these!}
The High Republic #7 (on sale 7/28)
Cavan Scott (Writer), Georges Jeanty (Artist)
Cover by Phil Noto | Variant Cover by Ray-Anthony Height | Action Figure Variant Cover by John Tyler Christopher
A JEDI FACES THE DARKNESS!
- KEEVE TRENNIS has put everything on the line to saver her former master, but the scars run deep.
- As AVAR KRISS summons a task force to deal with the DRENGIR THREAT, a desperate NIHIL REMNANT attacks a distant outpost. Can Keeve fight back the shadows long enough to stand for light and life?
- Guest-starring ORLA JARENI, Jedi Wayseeker.
There are no hints on why there’s A FREAKING RED LIGHTSABER clashing against Keeve Trennis’ in this solicit, but there’s plenty of interesting content to consider about her future hidden in this text. I’m curious if these scars and the shadows she has to fight off are some type of vision of the future, while the shadows heavily lean into the giant easter egg about her potentially being one of the Lost Twenty eventually. Either way, excited to have Orla Jareni in the comic, as I can’t wait to see what she’s up to next as a Wayseeker, which basically allows her to follow the Force as it sees fit, instead of what the Jedi Council might want/assume the Force wants. Also, very impressed how this solicit does a great job about not giving away anything from the upcoming THR novels in June.
IDW
The High Republic Adventures #6 (on sale 7/07)
Daniel José Older (Writer), Harvey Tolibao (Artist)
Cover by Harvey Tolibao
As the galaxy prepares for its Republic Fair, Qort and Farzala leave their Padawan friends to join in on the effort to fight against the fearsome Drengir, in this first issue of a two-part adventure!
Writer Daniel José Older, bestselling author of Star Wars: Last Shot and artist Harvey Tolibao bring IDW into The High Republic, a massive publishing crossover spanning comics and prose!
The Republic Fair is an event that kicks off the next wave of books for The High Republic era, so this looks to take place around the same time as those. And the Drengir aren’t going away any time soon, judging by this solicit, so it’ll be interesting to see how they are incorporated into this all-ages comic!
The situation with IDW’s mainline Star Wars Adventures is once again all over the place, as issues solicited for earlier in 2021 have yet to arrive or are now a few months delay. Things were looking good for a while, and thankfully The High Republic Adventures hasn’t been affected yet, but hopefully they can finally, truly get these things on track again, especially for the younger fans!
2021 Comic Solicitations: January | February | March | April | May | June
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.