Star Wars: Han Solo – Hunt for the Falcon #1
“PART ONE”
He was a smuggler.
A scoundrel.
Then a rebel hero and a family man.
Years after the fall of the Empire, he’s a man who finds himself wanting to relive the excitement of those early adventures, with the ship that took him all across the galaxy….
Writer: Rodney Barnes
Artist: Ramon Rosanas
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Colorist: Guru-eFX
Cover artist: Ramon Rosanas
Editor: Mark Paniccia
One of the original characters we met way back in 1977, few comic adapted characters ‘speak’ in the voice of their actor quite like Han Solo, and here in writer Rodney Barnes Star Wars: Han Solo – Hunt for the Falcon- drawn beautifully by Ramon Rosanas (and it really does include some eye-catching pages) – we see Solo in his prime, flying the Falcon with Chewbacca as well as later in his career when he has lost the freighter and life is a lot less interesting.
We open with Han and the Falcon roaring ahead of two pursuers, fighters trying the damdest to down the freighter, and watch Han utilise his innovative piloting style to evade and destroy as we hear him speak of the thrill and adventure of his life among the stars, and step foward decades to the present as he sits alongside old pal Lando Calrissian on Malastare, watching his racing team and frustrated at his substandard driver. He leaps up and takes the racers place, blasting around the course and winning the race in impressive style. Naturally it’s not that simple; he’s the team owner, not a registered racer and his victory is nullified, much to his visible annoyance.
While Solo rages at the officiating droid, Lando calls him off, and we see them share a drink as Lando’s team take part in their own heat, his team falling further and further behind. Han is confused at Calrissian’s chilled out reaction to the impending defeat, reminding Han that there’s always another race. He’s clearly moved on from the fast-paced life he led in his youth, while Han yearns for the adrenaline thrill of his smuggling days, pining for his lost Falcon. Lando is keen to relax, to ‘drink all the good ale‘ but Han’s mind is set; he’s determind to get his life back, ‘be’ Han Solo once again, and as he gazes into the stars of Pixelito, small against the backdrop of his apartment balcony and the stars, he tells his droid C-4DO he’s leaving civilian life to go and get his ship back.
His mission is vast, scouring the stars for clues to the whereabouts of his freighter, and as we see him asking questions in a variety of locations (all beautifully coloured by Guru-eFX) he finally lands in a cantina where he addresses a hulking alien called Barbon, who demands paying to tell Han the Falcon might be on Oskatoon, but on arrival after breaking in they’re caught in a firefight; no Falcon and the trail cold, he makes the decision to visit an old friend on Kashyyyk.
It’s clearly been a while since Chewbacca returned home to Mala and Lumpy, and we see father and son take on a huge wyyyschokk spider, managing to evade it before the family are sat around the dining table as Han tells his old friend of his determination to find the Falcon. Asking of Chewie misses the adventure and the money, he also tells him there’s only room for the two of them, and saying goodbye to his family he once again takes to the stars with his co-pilot and friend by his side.
Back on Oskatoon we see a meeting between two underworld types, one who claims to have bought the warehouse and the other somewhat surprised at this turn of events, and we learn that none other than Ducain had been hired to watch over the warehouse. The purchaser is now annoyed, ripped off and wanting his money, and we cut to a space-bound vessel, a hulking alien turning to a red-skinned Nikto – Ducain – that they’ll make a handsome profit by the deception, and to pay up. However, Ducain seems uninterested in honouring their agreement and we end the issue with the alien being spaced, the arc of the planet visible as he falls to his inevitable death while Ducain ponders on why none of his partnerships ever seem to work out.
It’s great to see Solo back in comics, leading his own series (as he should be in the cinematic world) and drawn so skillfully by Rosanas and scripted by Barnes, the characters desolation at his life – unfulfilling, unexciting and in his own eyes unimportant – is very evident. Now he’s back out in the galaxy and seeking the Falcon – something we know he never quite manages to achieve – the purpose of the series isn’t to find his beloved ship, but to see him get his mojo back, buy the Eravana, get mixed up with Kanjiklub and the Guavian Death Gang and bring him (in much the same way Andor has just done on Disney Plus) to the character we reunite with in The Force Awakens.
An engaging start as we’re off to the races with Han and Chewie, travelling the hyperspace lanes once again.
