It’s only been one week since the previous issue of Star Wars: Bounty Hunters was released to comic shops, but (I’m guessing) in an effort to catch up on the sizeable gap before that, #22 came out today.
Bounty Hunters #22 opens with T’onga, Losha, Bossk, Zuckuss, and Tasu Leech trapped in Unbroken Clan territory deep within the heart of Corellia’s Coronet City. Meanwhile Zuckuss’s partner, the droid 4-LOM, waits nearby in their getaway vehicle the Edgehawk as our antiheroes attempt to clear out the remaining gang members and escape now that they have General Vukorah in custody.
This is another action-heavy issue, but I enjoyed it quite a bit more than last week’s– first because the artwork by Paolo Villanelli worked a lot better for me in this context, and secondly because Ethan Sacks’s scripting and dialogue feels crisper and tighter now that the overarching plot of Bounty Hunters has found some forward momentum. There’s a big chase scene through Coronet City with more than a couple explosions, but it’s all exciting enough with the sniper Losha running along the rooftops to catch up with the others before they reach their rendezvous point. We also get a very welcome interlude-style cutaway to an undisclosed location, where Crimson Dawn (hence the “Crimson Reign” crossover tie-in advertised on this issue’s cover) is holding star-crossed crime syndicate heiress Cadeliah in captivity. Lady Q’ira has an extended cameo– for the first time in this title outside of War of the Bounty Hunters– and we get a little taste of what her plans for Cadeliah might eventually be.
I’ve also started enjoying the interplay between the rogues gallery band-of-misfits members of this bounty hunter team more, as they bicker relentlessly between saving each other’s lives and furthering the mission. And then there’s the tease of Dengar, who carries out an attack on the Unbroken Clan’s rival organization Mourner’s Wail. He wants an audience with Lord Khamdek, but we’ll have to wait until next month’s issue to find out why. There’s a great splash-page moment in the final few pages of this issue, with 4-LOM bringing the Edgehawk up over the precipice of the rendezvous point just in the nick of time, lights burning brightly. That panel gave me chills and also had me rooting more for both this cast of characters and the creative team bringing them to life on the page than I have in a long time. I’d love to see more of that kind of thing in Star Wars: Bounty Hunters, and I hope Sacks and Villanelli can deliver that kind of visceral thrill much more often as the Cadeliah storyline (hopefully) comes to a crescendo.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #22 is available now wherever comic books are sold.