Force Matters: Han Solo Punches Up ‘Doctor Aphra Chaos Agent’ #3 To Great Effect

It’s eel men, puffer pigs and Pepe Larraz in this week’s assortment of Star Wars comics!

Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Chaos Agent #3 by Cherish Chen & Gabriel Guzman

Aphra teams up with Han Solo to facilitate the return of an ancient relic from a crime lord.

• Han appears in his “white vest” variant, consistent with his appearance in the main Star Wars book.
• The New Republic is working on behalf of the Campi, a race of purple-skinned humanoids with three arms. This is their first appearance.
• Similarly, criminal organization Quarter Clan of Felucia and their leader, Sabi Sabo, are appearing for the first time (though Felucia is a well-established planet; it’s where Ayala Secura died in Revenge of the Sith).
• Sabi Sabo and his species look like giant eel men; fitting for a universe which also features various types of squid and fish men.

• Sparks flying between Aphra and Campi Lady Xiering is a nice touch of characterization.
• Between the presence of Han and shenanigans involving relics changing hands amidst questions of authenticity, there’s big Indiana Jones vibes throughout this issue.

I’m still not 100% sold on the idea of building this series around Aphra teaming up with the “big” Star Wars characters (Chewie is up next), but in a vacuum, this is an entertaining done-in-one that takes of advantage of Han and Aphra’s status as “scoundrels” on different points of the redemption path while also highlighting the differences in the types of scoundrels they are.

Star Wars Hyperspace Stories: Codebreaker #3 by Ethan Sacks & Marc Yarza

Poe and the First Order codebreaker escape Nar Kaaga but end up in a Clone Wars museum.

• It still boggles my mind that LucasFilm outsources a subset of Star Wars comics to Dark Horse.
• Grummgar is a bounty hunter and mercenary who first appeared in The Force Awakens, continuing this story’s anniversary celebration.
• At one point Poe says that the day hasn’t been a “camtono of laughs.” Camtonos are basically Star Wars buckets, made semi-famous by the Ice Cream Man in The Empire Strikes Back and officially given that name in the first season of The Mandalorian.
• Puffer pigs debuted in an early episode of Rebels, in which Lando traded Hera Syndulla for one, hoping to use it to find minerals on Lothal.
• The droid that delivers Poe and the codebreaker to the museum is an RX series pilot droid, the same model as used in the Star Tours Disney ride (the ship they’re on also resembles a Starspeeder 3000, the Star Tours ship).

• The Battle of Bothawui being commemorated by the museum occurred in the first season Clone Wars episode “Downfall of a Droid.” It is considered a key Republic victory, preventing the Confederacy from establishing a foothold in the Mid Rim.

I always appreciate it when the Prequels get worked into the Sequel trilogy; it’s fun to see stuff like BB-8 bumping into old Battle Droids, and I assume we’re heading towards Poe fighting in an old Clone Wars-era fighter next issue.

Star Wars Epic Collection: Kanan the Last Padawan by Greg Weisman & Pepe Larraz

The chronicle of Kanan Jarrus’ transformation from the Padawan to rebel in the wake of Order 66.

• This is a one-and-done Epic Collection, collecting the entirety of the 12 issue series.
• The series is written by animation veteran Greg Weisman, who created the animated series Gargoyles, and illustrated by Pepe Larraz, a few years before House of X.
• The first issue of this series is considered the first comic book appearances of most of the Rebels crew, including Ezra Bridger, Hera Syndulla, Zeb, and Sabine Wren, though their appearances are brief and considered cameos by some; they appear in full in issue #6.

• Issue #10 is the first appearance of the Mandalorian Fenn Rau, while #12 is the first appearance of the Grand Inquisitor and Admiral Rae Sloane.
• Obi-Wan’s message in issue #2 first appeared in the first episode of Rebels, “Spark of Rebellion.”
• The flashbacks in the first story arc depicting Order 66 from Kanan’s perspective were later retconned by the premiere episode of Bad Batch, which tied the titular clone troopers into Kanan’s Order 66 fate.

Even though some of the details have been retconned, this is still a fun series, especially for fans of Rebels, buoyed by the Larraz art.

Cover of the Week: Doctor Aphra Chaos Agent #3 David Lopez Variant

Lopez manages to capture the somewhat madcap energy of the story, and features a less Uncanny Valley-ish Han compared to the main E Ejikure cover.