When I interviewed writer Cavan Scott recently, I asked him which of the Star Wars: The High Republic villain factions he enjoyed writing more– the Nihil or the Drengir, and his answer was the Nihil for some pretty good reasons. But as a reader, I have to say I feel the opposite: I find the Drengir so much more appealing as antagonists for the Jedi Order, simply because of how weird they are. I mean, the Nihil are cutthroat marauders with some interesting technology and unique assets at their disposal, but the Drengir are sentient plant-monsters with a connection to the dark side of the Force. How can you go wrong?
Regardless in issue #6 of Marvel’s Star Wars: The High Republic comic book, out today– and written once again by Scott with gorgeous artwork by new illustrator Georges Jeanty (The American Way)– Jedi Master Avar Kriss has traveled to the planet Daivak on the Outer Rim with her unlikely new allies in the Hutt Cartel to confront the ever-expanding Drengir menace.
Meanwhile, back on the Starlight Beacon space station, newly minted Jedi Knight Keeve Trennis is watching over her former master Sskeer as a snake-like doctor attempts to slow the Drengir infestation of his very being. When a transmission comes in from Kriss requesting backup on Daivak, Keeve must decide on the best course of action to help combat the Drengir while still protecting the life and well-being of her mentor. A strange, almost disturbing Force-bond later, Trennis and Sskeer find themselves communing with a presence known as the Great Progenitor (basically the Drengir’s “Alien Queen”) and trying their best to track down the physical location of this source.
It’s all spectacularly outside-the-box Star Wars storytelling, and I’m enjoying every panel of it. I love the images of the Jedi and the Hutts fighting alongside each other on Daivak and the panicked realization that they might have found themselves outnumbered, plus the contrast between Myarga the Hutt’s utter disregard for innocent bystanders when compared to Avar’s desperate efforts to save as many lives as possible, including the Rancor she rode in on. Then the Keeve / Sskeer sequences aboard the Starlight Beacon and in the Drengir’s “Root Mind” left me with a feeling of uneasiness that I don’t think will lift until the threat is eventually eliminated, not to mention a growing respect for the relationship between these two Jedi. I’m looking forward to seeing them continue to work together in the coming months, and I can’t wait to get a glimpse of what other horrors the Drengir have in store for our heroes.
Star Wars: The High Republic #6 is available now wherever comic books are sold.