Doctor Aphra (2020) #36
ACTION AND APPREHENSION
After Clone Wars-era Tagge prototype battle droids massacred the pirates who attempted to steal them, Domina Tagge assigned Doctor Aphra to check on the droids stored at another Tagge warehouse to see if they were malfunctioning as well.
Doctor Aphra has dragged Just Lucky along on her task, making time to party on Galator III before finally finding their way to the Havel Prime warehouse, where they were greeted by the deadly droids….
Writer: Alyssa Wong
Artists: Minkyu Jung, Jethro Morales
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg
Cover artist: Derrick Chew
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publication date: September 27, 2023
As the scourge of the dark droids continues to invasively cause damage and destruction across the galaxy we open with Leia Organa, listening to panicked messages recieved from a usually reliable Rebel supply transport. The vessel has been compromised by the scourge as their droids turn against them, and as she asks about the whereabouts of Magna Tolvan and her team we see it land as we turn our attention to the Tagge Warehouse Faclity on Havel Prime where last issue we left Aphra and Just Lucky surrounded by Tagge constructed prototype droids. The odds are against them and the siuation is grim, but as they run and discuss their meagre options Just Lucky pulls out what looks like a Repulsor Grappling Gun and is pulled high out of sight, leaving Aphra alone. Droids are closing in when she looks to her left to see a familiar face also hiding; Teviy, who stole her datastick on Galator III and used the information to come to Havel Prime.
We switch back to the Rebel outpost as Magna and her team arrive after yet another successful mission to find Leia waiting for them. She details the situation; the Rebel supply ship Silver Dart has gone silent for a week after sending its distress signal, and Leia needs them found. With Magna and her team holding such a high reputation in missions like this, they’re tasked with finding the ship, a mission Tolvan promises will be successful.
Back to Havel Prime and Teviy and Aphra taking cover under heavy droid fire. Ironically the light-fingered Aphra is annoyed at Teviy for stealing her stuff, to which Teviy retorts that you should know better than to take valuable things to Galator III. As they run Aphra trips Teviy and they swiftly dispatch her in seconds. Aphra continues to move silently through the dark, trying to find the exit as the droids close on, and as they finally close in on her position in a very Jurassic Park-like manner we cut back to the Hawk’s End and Magna Tolvan and her crew as they roar through hyperspace, trying to raise the ship to no avail. As her pilot Kelb makes note of how easy it is to lose things in space, even huge starships, Magna thinks back to a private moment with Chelli Aphra and a conversation about leaving their lives behind and disappearing forever. That snaps her back to the moment as she tells Kelb she trusts in his skills and their coordinates are set.
Back on Havel Prime a Mousedroid sneaks up on Aphra, bumping into her foot – she’s found, and the droids close in on her just as Just Lucky opens fire from an elevated position, distracting the droids enough for Aphra to break cover and run for the door on the east wall as a droid aims for the struts holding up the walkway and Lucky crashes to the floor. Aphra is unable to slice the door, not due to any lack of skill but the age of the lock, and as the scourge controlled droids move in for the kill they suddenly grind to a halt and fall immobile. A quick check shows the reason, they were using their back up power supplies which only holds a minimal charge. Lucky believes that solves their mission, but Aphra isn’t so sure as we return to Magna and her crew who have located the Silver Dart. The ship is silent and in the dark, not answering the Hawk’s End calls and we see a protocol droid looking out of the windows as they cruise past.
We roll to the enormous Casus Belli in Tagge space as Lucky and Aphra return, where Lappin Tagge walks them to their next destination; the office of Domina Tagge. Another fast-paced issue as the threat of the droids continues to evolve and grow, but an issue that’s likely to be best remembered for a shocking moment as Aphra purposely trips Teviy, sacrificing her to the bloodthirsty droids. No classic last minute save here, she is gunned down with zero chance of survival as Aphra moves to her next hiding place, and although brutal it does feel like that dark action by Aphra mirrors her state of mind. She’s as lost as the Silver Dart, and while we’ve followed the long-running Spark Eternal storyline and moved into this Dark Droids era, the mental wellbeing of Chelli seems to be as much of a thread through these recent issues as anything else. Consistently and reliably enjoyable from Alyssa Wong and the artistic team, Doctor Aphra continues to be a monthly must-read.
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Wong, Alyssa (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 23 Pages - 10/25/2023 (Publication Date) - Marvel (Publisher)
