Star Wars #11 Review

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If only everyone would listen to the droid….

This article contains spoilers for Star Wars #11.

STAR WARS #11

Writer: Jason Aaron | Artist: Stuart Immonen | Inker: Wade Von Grawbadger | Colorist: Justin Ponsor | Letterer: Chris Eliopoulos | Cover Artists: Immonen, Von Grawbadger, Ponsor

Issue eleven was a pure Star Wars swashbuckling adventure, and that adventure commences with C-3PO lamenting the difficulty of sneaking into the palace of Grakkus the Hutt so that he and Chewbacca might rescue Luke Skywalker. The giveaway that it is Threepio speaking is a twist on two of his iconic lines. The first is the calculation of the overwhelming odds of sneaking into the palace, and the second is that Luke is quite doomed. While some might consider this fan service, and too much of a nod to the movies, it seemed to help sell Threepio. He even acknowledges that he overuses the phrase that someone is doomed, but in classic Threepio form, he displays his self-centered concern and self-importance that things would be so much better if only everyone would just listen to him. However, Threepio does something rather unexpected. He exhibits character growth. He plays the hero to the extent that his droid mind will allow.

The setup is this: Dengar gets the drop on Chewbacca with a restraining device that Dengar calls a “shock bolt” that delivers debilitating shocks to the wookiee. He then begins to intimidate Threepio, who acknowledges that Chewbacca saved him on Cymoon-1, and then removes the shock bolt, which appears to have severely damaged Threepio in the process. Chewbacca is then freed to brawl with the bounty hunter, which he does quite a bit.

Luke also undergoes some much needed growth and development in this issue. One might say that he exhibits some Jedi characteristics. First, he reasons that participating in Grakkus’s arena as a spectacle is really a no-win situation. He either dies, or he wins and will be forced to fight another day. Contrary to what Yoda says about him in The Empire Strikes Back, Luke’s mind is on what he is doing and on the consequences of his actions. Second, when he seems overwhelmed in the arena against the beast Grakkus unleashes on him, he puts all his doubts aside. He reflects on his past successes and the lessons Obi-wan taught him. Granted, he is not successful, but he is trying and he isn’t brooding. On the other hand, he does give into his anger when Grakkus taunts him with the reveal that he has found Obi-wan’s journal. So, its baby steps for Luke, and he still has plenty of room for improvement.

While Luke fights in the arena and Chewbacca fights with Dengar, Han Solo, Princess Leia, and Sana make haste in their trip to Nar Shadda to attempt a rescue. Finally, the answer to how exactly Sana can claim to be Han Solo’s wife is revealed. Well, at least part of the answer was revealed. Han pursues the Princess through the Volt Cobra insisting that he and Sana are not married. He has finally had enough of not being able to tell his side of the story. One can hardly blame him. Every attempt he has made to get his version of the truth out there has been interrupted by either Sana, Leia, bickering between the two, or the Empire’s stubborn and rude insistence on trying to blast them. Han finally gives up on trying to get her attention and tells the story with his back to the door Leia slammed behind her. The story goes that Han was attempting a job against a local crime lord that owned a gambling operation on Stenness, and as a distraction, they planned a fake wedding that had to appear very real. Perhaps nobody told Sana, or maybe she had real feelings for Han. She hasn’t had the opportunity to tell her side of the story yet. However, at least the basis for the claims are out there.

You may have noticed that Han Solo is desperate for Princess Leia to believe him that he is not Sana’s husband. This severely impacts his ability to pretend that he doesn’t have just as much a reason to regret leaving the Rebels and Echo Base on Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back as he insists Leia does. Issues like this one lead me to believe that perhaps his threat to leave, and the manner in which it was delivered were at least partially designed to force Leia’s hand. The Princess is devoted to promoting the cause of the Alliance. Han, scoundrel that he is, has arguably stuck around out of devotion to his friends Leia and Luke as much as he has for the cause of the Rebellion. While Han had a bounty to pay off, it is unclear that it necessitated his abandoning the Rebellion to do it. Scenes like his pleading with Leia underscore his affection for her and his motivations.

The intrigue builds around the Gamemaster at the arena as Luke battles Grakkus’ beast, Kongo. The Gamemaster slips away from Grakkus and reports in to Imperial forces while identifying himself as an agent. The revelation occurs in two panels, and then action moves on, but who exactly is this agent? Why was he on Nar Shadda? How would he have cause to know how to use a lightsaber in the first place?

Finally, Dengar manages to employ yet another trick to get the upper hand on Chewbacca during their fight. As he stands over the battered wookiee with a pulsating blade, he demands to know where Han Solo is. Jabba the Hutt has a large bounty out on the smuggler after all. Just when everything appears lost, Dengar takes a blaster shot to the back. In a panel that calls back to A New Hope, Han announces his arrival to the bounty hunter while he and Leia stand on top of the Volt Cobra weapons drawn and aimed at Dengar. You can just hear Harrison Ford’s raspy voice as Han demands, “take your damn hands off my friend.” Great issue.

Favorite Panel:

There was so much great art in this issue to love. Luke looked amazing in the arena with Kongo, the beast Grakkus unleashed on him. The fight between Chewbacca and Dengar looked every bit the knock-down, bare knuckle brawl that it was. But, the best panel of all was Han’s arrival on Nar Shadda standing atop the Volt Cobra. That panel screamed Han Solo and is the favorite panel of this issue.