It’s been quite a while since we’ve had a regular stream of new Star Wars comic books. Other than Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #1 (which was released on May the Fourth for Star Wars Day, followed by a print edition later in May) the last comic review I wrote for Laughing Place was for Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #2, which came out almost three full months ago.
Today, Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #3 finally hit store shelves and I was pretty excited to get out to my local comic book shop here in Burbank to grab a copy, because it means we’ll (hopefully) be getting back into the swing of things in what was to be a very exciting year in the world of Star Wars comics.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #3 picks up where the previous issue left off, with a gaggle of titular bounty hunters all on their own separate missions to track down a single target– another fellow hunter named Nakano Lash, who previously betrayed some of them while on a job that went terribly wrong. The bulk of this issue sees Bossk facing off against Bailert Valance, whose droid contains information leading to Lash’s current whereabouts.
Bossk and Valance have an explosive showdown on the graveyard planet of Galmerah, while yet another hunter named Ooris Bynar is also on Valance’s trail with similar intentions. Readers are also treated to a flashback that further enlightens us as to the Bossk / Valance relationship, a couple brief interludes to the planet Ruusan where Lash is holed up, and even a handy cross-section diagram explaining Valance’s cybernetic upgrades.
Writer Ethan Sacks’ (Star Wars: Allegiance) plotting work remains solid, and though I’ve complained about Paolo Villanelli’s (Star Wars: Lando – Double Or Nothing) artwork being overly busy and confusing in the past, in this issue I feel he’s made a lot of progress in keeping things simple and clear. The action is well-staged, fun and exciting, and I enjoyed seeing two major players in this series– not to mention legendary Star Wars bounty hunters in their own right– go toe-to-toe with each other across so many pages.
Sadly, we don’t get any Boba Fett in this title this time around, but I assume we haven’t seen the last of the would-be Mandalorian. We are, however, introduced to an intriguing new character named General Vukorah, who I’m sure will prove to be an effective foil for our many anti-heroes. After three entertaining issues, Star Wars: Bounty Hunters is shaping up to be a less-comical version of It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World in A Galaxy Far, Far Away, and I’m very curious to see where its story goes in the coming months.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #3 is available now wherever comic books are sold.