Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail of Shadows #3
THE HIGH REPUBLIC
TRAIL OF SHADOWS
Chapter III: COLD COMFORT
Jedi Master Emerick Caphtor and Republic private investigator Sian Holt have been paired to uncover the truth behind the unusual death of a Jedi.
Emerick and Sian narrowly escaped an encounter with the Nihil and the mysterious figure Arathab Fal which impeded their investigation.
Now they must race to piece together the few scraps of information they’ve uncovered before another Jedi is killed….
Writer: Daniel José Older
Artist: David Wachter
Letterer: Joe Sabino
Colorists: Giada Marchisio, Ian Herring
Cover artist: David López
Publication date: December 22, 2021
The race is well and truly on to uncover the plot in issue three of Trail of Shadows. As the threat to the Jedi intensifies, Sian and Emerick are more focused than ever to put the pieces together and as they relay the state of play so far to Jedi Master Stellan Gios it’s clear that while Sian has her own thoughts on the escalating situation, Emerick isn’t so sure.
We step to the eye of the Nihil Marchion Ro as he speaks via hologram to the Chadra-Fan Kisma Uttersond, who claims to know nothing about a black market sale of a weapon capable of killing Jedi. Ro clearly isn’t buying it, and Uttersond knows that but doesn’t know that Ro has put a number of his own warriors on the ‘mange-crusted gutter rat‘s tail, with a view to Uttersond leading them to the Tarnab Arathab Fal who Ro believes is selling the weapon.
Meanwhile, at Vaba Blanks Midnight Den Sian is performing to a packed audience which includes Gios and Caphtor, giving the two Jedi time to discuss their options. Sian is playing a version of the lullaby that has been humming whle it plays incessantly in Emericks head, a dead end that Gios believes leads nowhere but will follow up another time. Their chat is interrupted by a call from Avar Kriss, and Stellan steps outside for only a moment to receive the news – Starlight Beacon has been attacked. We briefly step to Uttersond, telling his men how he has spoken to the Eye when his own vessel comes under attack.
Now on Starlight Beacon, Emerick and Gios see the calcifying bodies of Ceret and Terec, and speak with Keeve Trennis who was there when Terec was attacked. Clearly shaken, she wants to stay with the twins and we see Sian and Emerick discuss this frightening weapon with Stellan. Sian wonders if it’s an hallucination, but Stellan vehemently denies that, apologising for his understandable outburst just as Avar appears.
The attack on Uttersond’s ship continues and he manages to hold his own just as the Squall Spider of the Nihil arrives and they find a beaten Uttersond – presumably attacked by Arathab Fal – near death but alive and staying that way thanks to Ro’s instruction. Back on Starlight, Emerick takes Sian on a guided, silent tour of the station, where we see familiar characters (Buckets ‘o Blood, Ram Jamoram) and a walk that ends with a fascinating conversation as Emerick explains to Sian why is so fearful of this weapon. He doesn’t fear for the end of the Jedi, or the Republic but for all those he cares for. All of those people are Jedi…until now, and we end the issue with Sian and Emerick embracing.
As ever in The High Republic, there are a lot of moving parts and interlacing storylines from other books and comics. For example, back in the day it was understood that to follow the entire story of the New Jedi Order, every book needed to be read. That storyline was told only within print and audiobooks, but The High Republic covers young adult and traditional novels, the VIZ Manga comic, the main Marvel title, Trail of Shadows, Older’s excellent The High Republic Adventures as well as The Monster of Temple Peak and the audiobook Tempest Runner. It’s a lot of ground to cover, but the effort reaps the rewards. Here, even in fleeting glimpses, there are allusions to stories told elsewhere (the Great Jedi Rumble Race from The High Republic Adventures #11) and mention of the planet Dalna from Justina Ireland’s A Test of Courage but even if you’ve not yet managed to read everything, a bit of digging around online gives enough detail to make these scenes shine.
As always, DJ Older delivers memorable dialogue (arguably his strongest suit) while artist Dave Wachter lays down a strong selection of panels, filling the pages with multiple scenes while never making the page feel cluttered. The writing team of The High Republic must be revelling in the scope of this story, bouncing between stories that zip along like this and others that breathe more easily. That’s a good place to be in, and in this third issue that shows.
Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail Of Shadows #4 (Ferry Variant) @ ForbiddenPlanet.com
