Doctor Aphra (2020) #27
CONTROL ISSUES
The hunt for the Spark Eternal has ended in catastrophe! While a Spark-possessed Aphra tormented former friends aboard the ”Vermillion”, the true Aphra learned about Ascendant technology from its creator, Miril, and plotted her escape from a Spark-induced prison in her mind.
Ordered to steal the Spark Eternal by Ronen Tagge, Just Lucky and Ariole Yu narrowly escaped the ”Vermillion” with their lives.
Sana Starros and hear team of Aphra associates were not as lucky. The manipulative Spark seized control of the murderous droids BT-1 and 0-0-0 and convinced Kho Phon Farrus to defect to Crimson Dawn. After fracturing the team, the Spark abandoned the ”Vermillion” and destroyed the pursuing ”Volt Cobra” with Sana and her crew aboard….
Writer: Alyssa Wong
Artist: Minkyu Jung
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Cover artist: W. Scott Forbes
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publication date: December 28, 2022
We ended the previous issue with a huge explosion that cast into doubt the fate of the starship that Sana Starros, Magna and company were on and open the 27th issue of Doctor Aphra in that moment on the Outer Rim as Just Lucky and Ariole Yu look on, acting quickly to pull the detatched cockpit and its survivors aboard. Recouperating in bacta, Sana learns that not only was the Vermillion destroyed by Imperial forces, but she’s currently on Canto Bight, a guest of Ronen Tagge who manages to wrangle their compliance by informing them of the incredible cost of the bacta that was used to save them all. Lucky reminds Sana that there’s no escape from being in debt to Ronan as we swing to the Outer Rim and the Ark Angel IV where Aphra (aka the Spark Eternal), BeeTee and Triple-Zero are travelling until suddenly Aphra’s electro tattoos go crazy, knocking out the droids as the Spark and Aphra begin to converse. Aphra tells the Spark of the deal she made with the droids, how she built in backdoor protocols so they could never be sliced or hacked again (apart from by Chelli herself) and how she was ready to go down in flames to take out the Spark. They strike a deal allowing Chelli control of her body, but for a price – she’s to go Sith hunting, and her old adversary / employer Darth Vader is the target.
We cut to Elsewhere and Kho and the Archivist, stood next to the Fermata Cage. Kho is understandably nervous at the thought of turning it on again, for fear of bringing the Empire back when Palpatine inevitably senses the cage and targeting it. Stepping away, Kho contacts Detta, telling her of their predicament and as we cut back to Detta on Canto Bight, Ronan Tagge enters the room wanting an answer to his offer. The reply he gets surprises him – Sana turns down his offer, making it clear that the Tagge they really don’t want to cross is his aunt Domina, but when he revealsa that he is in fact a member of Crimson Dawn Sana swiftly changes her mind and offers a counterproposal – they kill Domina Tagge instead.
We’ve been saying this for a while, and many agree, that Doctor Aphra and the Spark Eternal storyline is the most interesting ongoing storyline in Star Wars comics at the moment. Using these fresh characters but utilising older concepts like the Tagge family, Doctor Aphra has crafted a corner of the galaxy that is becoming increasingly fascinating to read and integral to the wider galactic storyline. Alyssa Wong is on a hot streak here, making us care about the fate of the characters while continuing to hurl them into improbable situations, and long may it continue.
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Wong, Alyssa (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 23 Pages - 01/25/2023 (Publication Date) - Marvel (Publisher)
