Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters: Boushh #1
FOUND
When a dangerous job needs doing the crime lords and underworld power brokers call the Ubese bounty hunter known as Boushh!
The War of the Bounty Hunters rages between Boba Fett, Crimson Dawn, and the great powers of the galaxy. The acquisition of smuggler Han Solo is just one of Crimson Dawn’s many nefarious plans.
Their rise has disrupted the delicate balance of power, threatening to usurp
Domina Tagge’s position….
Writer: Alyssa Wong
Artist: David Baldeón
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Colorist: Israel Silva
Cover artist: Mahmud Asrar, Matthew Wilson
Editor: Tom Groneman, Mark Paniccia
Publication date: September 15, 2021
UPC: 75960620111200111
In what is an interesting departure from the main War of the Bounty Hunters storyline, the Boushh one-shot does an effective job of changing the narrative on the diminutive bounty hunter who’s armour ends up in the hands of Leia Organa in her rescue of Han Solo in Return of the Jedi. Here, in the safe hands of Doctor Aphra writer Alyssa Wong, we meet Boushh as the leader of a cadre of exiled Ubese warriors, banned from Uba IV for crimes committed against their people, the only evidence of which are two panels of burning fields and dead bodies. Whatever their crimes are must have been severe enough to justify exile, and to see the five exiles band together under their leader Boushh, a clear bond running through the group, was unexpected and very welcome. This is a crew, a team, and Boushh their commander, but that’s not to say they aren’t a lethal crew, as shown in the opening scenes on Ord Mantell (a planet scarcely seen over the decades, now almost a permanent ficture in the War of the Bounty Hunters and The Bad Batch) where they lethally interject themselves into the sale of a rare Silvercore speeder, taking out the buyers on behalf of their employers, Black Sun. After the obligatory Deva Lompop cameo we dig into the story, as Boushh mourns the loss of Keln, who we presue must have been his son or daughter, and the crew go for food and a drink or three. They’ve all lost, and are in this together.
The main War of the Bounty Hunters overlap comes aboard the Crimson Dawn ship the Vermillion as Qi’ra’s head honcho Margo offers them 200,000 credits to take out the Tagge family, led by Domina Tagge and here the story takes a turn as the focus shifts to the Tagge Corporation and its leader Domina. Her corporation are attempting to craft a blade simiar to a lightsaber, to limited success. We see Domina test the blade, her fighting skills hugely impressive, and see the rare occurance of a meeting of the Tagge family, all in one place at the same time.
Enter the Ubese gang as they break into the ship the Acquisitor and take down the crew, making their way to the boardroom. Using her blade to cut a slender escape hatch Domina leaves, the rest of the family left in the room under guards protection as the Ubese gang split up. Ilini and Hareck are taken down by Tagge as Boushh finds Silas Tagge who tells him he was the one who organised the attack with Crimson Dawn, so he could take control of the Tagge Corporation from Domina. Enter Domina who breaks up the moment, now knowing Silas organised the hit, and offers Boushh 300,000 to learn more about Crimson Dawn, after running her brother Silas through with a blade. In addition, she offers to erase their black mark and get the five Ubese back home to Uba IV, a deal Boushh shakes on.
Again, this was a very unexpected issue, diving into territory such a spin-off issue would not be expected to go. The detail on the warring Tagge family was fascinating, as were nods to other stories including ‘dragging this family kicking and screaming into the current century‘, the mention of ‘century’ a nod to the Lando Calrissian books. The art by David Baldeon is energetic, with a panel showing the Tagge family against the stars a real highlight of the book. The storyline will continue in Doctor Aphra, a title that feels like it’s been spinning its wheels of late, and with the Tagge Corporation spanning the galaxy, the inter-family emnity and Domina being such an unapologetic ‘baddie’ it should set up some interesting stories with Aphra at the center. As for Boushh, this has set out a backstory well worthy of further investigation, something we may see more of in the ongoing Bounty Hunters series as well as Aphra. Either way, while adding little to the main War of the Bounty Hunters storyline this is an enjoyable one-shot from Wong, Baldeon and colourist Israel Silva.
Star Wars: War Of The Bounty Hunters: Boushh #1 (Noto Variant) @ ForbiddenPlanet.com
