Star Wars: Han Solo & Chewbacca #1
THE CRYSTAL RUN, Part I
It is a golden age of criminal enterprise. With the evil Galactic Empire preoccupied with bringing the galaxy under its thumb, scoundrels and thieves are free to ply their criminal trades with abandon.
For the past several years, HAN SOLO and CHEWBACCA THE WOOKIEE have been scamming, smuggling and thieving for the vile gangster JABBA THE HUTT.
Business has been good, but Han and Chewbacca are always looking ahead to the next job and the payday that will score them more wealth than they can imagine….
Writer: Marc Guggenheim
Artist: David Messina
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Cover artist: Alex Maleev
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publication date: March 9, 2022
“How’re you doing you old pirate, so good to see you!”
Set sometime between the events of Solo and A New Hope this new series follows our rogues as they take on a new job for venerable gangster Jabba The Hutt and, as always, things are already starting to spiral out of control.
Tempted by a huge pay day, the job in question takes Han and the ever loyal Chewbacca back home to the industrial planet Correllia. It’s suggested that this is the first time Han has been back since he ditched the crime group The White Worms and enlisted in the Imperial Army. That’s complication number one. The job itself came with a condition, namely of the green and untrustworthy kind. Greedo. Han makes a point of highlighting the fact that Greedo has quite the reputation for double crossing his cohorts and is understandably suspicious and reluctant to work with him. The 500,000 credit pay wins out though and they gain an unlikely third crew member of the Falcon. That’s complication number two. Sprinkle in rival gangbangers and a fascinating new robotic lawman with his crosshairs trained on Solo and we find ourselves in quite the galactic pickle.
What a breath of fresh air! With Han having to sit out of mainline series as it’s set between Empire and Jedi and he has checked into the Carbonite motel, its good to have him back. There’s a certain levity than only Han brings to Star Wars and already we have all the hijinks, heists and wisecracks we can shake a Gaffi stick at. The art is colourful, vibrant and fun too which perfectly fits the characters and really sets the tone for the series.
I’m unapologetically a big fan of the movie Solo and whilst we undoubtedly have Fords version of the character here I love that we’re back on Corellia. The Solo prequel Most Wanted by Rae Carson did such a good job detailing these grimy streets that it almost feels like we’re coming home too, not just our resident Nerf-herder. The High Republic novel Midnight Horizon was all the better for being set there and I hope we get just as many references and nods to Solo and Most Wanted here as we did there.
It’s worth mentioning that there’s a plot development in this issue that, if proven to be correct and not a deception, has huge ramifications for Solo and fills some huge gaps in the lore. I won’t spoil it for you though as it’s played so beautifully.
I cant wait for the next issue and I think this has the potential to be something special. If I had one criticism its that this series is titled “Han Solo & Chewbacca” and it’s very much a Solo show. More Chewie!
Star Wars: Han Solo & Chewbacca #2 (McKone Variant) @ ForbiddenPlanet.com
