Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters written by Charles Soule and art by Steve McNiven, Luke Ross, and David Messina
This story is set between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Boba Fett has flown off with Han Solo encased in carbonite. He has to make a pit stop because the carbonite is not holding together. Jabba the Hutt is annoyed by the delay and puts a bounty out on Fett, so every other bounty hunter in the galaxy is after him. If that wasn't bad enough, someone snatches the frozen Solo, so Fett has to regain his prize and fight off other greedy lowlifes.
The story suffers from a lot of problems. The biggest is continuity--how can this tale fit in with the larger stories around it?* There's hardly a break between Episodes V and VI. Any dramatic possibilities for change are not suspenseful. Readers know Fett isn't going to die and he will have Solo back in his clutches by the end. Luke has a non-confrontation with Vader. Leia, Chewbacca, and Lando try to rescue Han at a few points though failure is inevitable within this series. Another problem is that the title promises something the book doesn't deliver. Sure, Fett has run-ins with Dengar, Zuckuss, Bossk, and all those other action figures I had as a kid. But the fights are short and pre-determined (see problem #1). The situation is hardly a war between bounty hunters. The third problem is that much of the story sets up the Crimson Dawn as a new, dangerous force in the galaxy that's ready to challenge groups like the Hutts, the Rebels, and the Empire. Their introduction sets up further comic book series, making those parts read more like marketing filler than genuine storytelling. I was very unsatisfied.
Not recommended.
*Actually, this is not impossible to do. The obvious exception is Rogue One, which tells a Star Wars story where you know how it will end but the filmmakers do such a great job that it is exciting and engaging. This book needs some of that magic (or is it The Force?).
No comments:
Post a Comment