Star Wars #93
Cover dated: March 1985
Issue title: Catspaw
Script: Mary Jo Duffy
Artwork: Sal Buscema (pencils)/Tom Palmer (inks)
Colours: Petra Scotese
Letters: Rick Parker
Cover art: Cynthia Martin
Overall rating: 6½ out of 10




Plot summary: While on a diplomatic mission to the planet Saijo, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia spot a battle damaged X-wing being pursued across the skies by three Y-wing fighters. Rushing to the Millennium Falcon, they take off and engage the Y-wings in combat, since Han has decided that three against one isn't fair odds, even though both types of ship are used by the Alliance. With the Y-wings destroyed, Han, Luke and Leia land the Falcon and pull the X-wing pilot from her wrecked craft.

Back at the medical centre of the nearest Alliance base, the Cantrosian pilot, who is named Minka, tells Han, Luke and Leia that the Y-wings were Imperial ships and her base in the Cantros system has been under continuous assault from the Empire. The three assure Minka that this is impossible, partly because the Empire has now been defeated, but also because captured Imperial intelligence proves that there was no Imperial presence in the Cantros system. Nevertheless, they decide to investigate Minka's claim and head back to Cantros 7. Once there, Han, Luke and Leia meet with other Rebels who maintain that they are engaged in an ongoing fight with the Empire, prompting the trio, with Minka and her comrade Sami in tow, to travel to the Imperial base in the Falcon.

After coming under attack and making an emergency landing, Luke, Han and Sami are apprehended by a group Cantrosians, while Leia and Minka evade capture. The three prisoners are taken back to a base, where they are surprised to learn that their captors are also part of the Rebellion. Suddenly, they see Durne – a member of the same group of Rebels that they had met earlier – instructing their captors to torture them. It quickly becomes apparent that Durne has been manipulating both groups of Rebels and playing each side off against the other. Leia and Minka appear to rescue their friends and, in the ensuing firefight, Luke saves the life of the Cantrosian leader who captured him, convincing the other Rebels at this location that he and his friends are not with the Imperials. The Cantrosians turn on Durne and take him prisoner, as Luke ponders who the scheming Rebel was working for and what has really been happening in the galaxy recently.


Comments: Star Wars #93 is drawn by Sal Buscema, who is probably most famous for his work on Marvel's toy tie-in comic ROM and for a 10-year run on The Incredible Hulk. This is one of only two contributions that Buscema made to the Star Wars series (the other being issue #102), which is a real shame because his ability to tell a story with sequential art is marvellous, with some really interesting panel composition and clever "camera angels" on display here. Take this panel, for example...




I love how we have our heroes' confiscated weapons in the foreground and we, the readers, are sort of peering around that rock at the scene unfolding beyond. It's only a little thing, but as a compositional choice it accentuates the tension of the scene and this could almost be Princess Leia and Minka's view of their friends, as they plan their rescue attempt.

Regular inker Tom Palmer brings his usual high quality draftsmanship to the issue, although, like his work on issue #91, some of the pages here look much more polished than others. Cynthia Martin again handles the cover art – which is pretty unspectacular – and she will take over as the series' new regular artist from next month.

Jo Duffy's plot and script is solid, as we've come to expect from her, and, actually, this issue works as something of a mystery story, with the reader trying to figure out what's going on and who the "Imperials" that the Cantrosians are fighting really are. In that respect, this is a real page turner. Speaking of the Cantrosians, they are the second feline-inspired race we've seen in the Star Wars comic recently, what with the Imperial adjutant Ssssk!, who appeared back in issue #84, and, just like Ssssk!, I'm afraid that they look a little too much like bipedal housecats for my tastes.

Something that I find interesting about this issue is that we begin to see that Han Solo, Luke Skywalker and Leia are being lionised as legendary heroes of the Rebellion by the peoples of the newly liberated galaxy. At one point, Leia says that the further away from the galactic centre planets are, the more distorted the stories will become, with the result that the three of them will become living legends. This is perfectly in keeping with what we saw many years later in Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens, when Rey asks Han about the stories that she's heard concerning what happened during the Galactic Civil War, what with the Dark Side and the Jedi, and Han tells her it's true – all of it.

On a related note, I like that Luke shows concern that he and his friend's "legend" doesn't become too big and diminish the sacrifices made by other Rebels. As he says, "everyone who's willing to risk his life for freedom is a hero, no matter who gets talked about." Knowing that it's impossible for the Rebels on Cantros 7 to the have been fighting the Empire, Luke clearly doesn't want them to feel as if they've been fighting for nothing – although, of course, they essentially have. This humility suits Luke well and is a testament to how clearly Duffy understands the essence of Skywalker's character.

On the down side, the fact that the traitor Durne is so surprised to see Han and Luke at the so-called "Imperial base" makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. Durne was there only a handful of pages earlier when our heroes clearly stated that they were leaving to travel to the base, so why would he not be expecting them to have been there? I mean, OK, maybe he didn't know that the other Cantrosians had captured Han and Luke, but he definitely shouldn't have been as surprised as he was to see them there.

Still, I like the fact that it's revealed that Durne was working for someone else, which ties in nicely with the hints about a shadowy power working behind the scenes that Knife was making, back in issue #91. It also ties this otherwise stand-alone story into the larger Nagai invasion a little later on in the series. The Wookieepedia website tells me that it was actually later retconned to have been Knife that Durne was working for in Rich Handley and Joseph Bongiorno's article "The University of Sanbra Guide to Intelligent Life: The Marvel Series" from Star Wars Gamer magazine.

Something that doesn't sit well with me is Han's decision to attack and destroy the three Rebel Y-wing fighters that we see chasing Minka's X-wing at the start of the story. Han says, "when I see three against one, I draw my own conclusions about who the good guys and bad guys are", but that makes no sense at all, especially when all four ships sport Rebel markings. Simply destroying the three Y-wings because they outnumber the X-wing doesn't seem like a very good idea at all. On top of that, Luke and Leia go along with the Corellian's flawed logic, resulting in them killing other Rebels, as is pointed out later.

Anyway, overall this is an enjoyable issue, with a pretty gripping plot. It was something of a favourite of mine as a kid, but these days I can see that, despite its engaging script, it's actually quite flawed in some respects. Nonetheless, this is a decent enough issue, with some rather nice Buscema art.


Continuity issues: None

Favourite panel:


Favourite quote: "Sami, everyone who's willing to risk his life for freedom is a hero, no matter who gets talked about." – Luke Skywalker states his belief that all those who serve in the Rebel Alliance are heroes.

Although Star Wars #92 was yet another uninspired Duffy story, I disagree with your issue about Flint's connection to / use of the Force, after all, Luke had no training with a Lightsaber or even tapping into the Force for specific reasons before his brief training session aboard the Millennium Falcon (in Star Wars), yet with short instruction, he's able to deflect laser bolts with a blast shield covering his head. In other words, there are others who could be just as connected to the Force as early Luke was.

The Jan Duursema / Tom Mandrake art combination was atrocious. It is clear by this time in the monthly title's run, Marvel cared little about this IP, and just dumped whoever they could find on the title. Sales were consistently sliding toward an inevitable fate since the dawn of the decade, and this issue is one of many strong examples of why. Moreover, the cover left no doubt that Cynthia Martin--even with the brilliant Bill Sienkiewicz painting her penciled work--could not be turned into a competent artist. With only a handful of issues left in the monthly series, one can say with confidence that the worst is yet to come.

Star Wars #95
Cover dated: May 1985
Issue title: No Zeltrons
Script: Mary Jo Duffy
Artwork: Cynthia Martin (pencils)/Steve Leialoha (inks)
Colours: Glynis Oliver
Letters: Rick Parker
Cover art: Kent Williams
Overall rating: 7 out of 10




Plot summary: On the planet Kinooine, the Dark Lady of the Sith, Lumiya, learns from a captured former Rebel that he and his party were sent to the planet by her nemesis, Luke Skywalker. Realising that she now has the means to lure her enemy to her, the Sith Lord prepares a trap for the young Jedi.

Back at the Alliance base on Endor, Princess Leia reluctantly accepts a group of four male Zeltrons – a race that Leia is not at all fond of – as her escorts and personal attendants, in order to facilitate closer diplomatic ties with their homeworld. As Luke, Kiro and Dani depart to investigate the disappearance of the scouting party on Kinooine, Leia, Han Solo and the Zeltrons leave for a summit on the planet Kabray. Once there, it soon becomes apparent that they have walked into an ambush, and the group is quickly captured by the slaver, Knife, and other members of his species. The Alliance delegation are thrown into a prison cell, but with much help from Leia's Zeltron attachés, they soon manage to escape and overpower their captors.

Meanwhile, on the barren world of Kinooine, Luke begins to set up camp, while Kiro and Dani scout the nearby terrain. Some time later, a wounded Kiro stumbles back to the camp, pleading with Luke to save his lover Dani from a mysterious assailant. Grimly, Skywalker heads off in the direction of his friend's encounter and soon comes face to face with Lumiya. Igniting his lightsaber, as Lumiya simultaneously activates her lightwhip, the pair silently engage in a vicious duel. Although Luke puts up a valiant fight, Lumiya eventually manages to gain the upper hand, disarming the young Jedi and knocking him to the ground unconscious.


Comments: Star Wars #95 features the first instalment of the Dark Lady story arc, which will continue through to issue #97. The story is certainly a gripping one, with the return of Lumiya, the Dark Lady of the Sith, who looks fairly different to how she did during her first appearance in issue #88. We get a striking splash page showcasing Lumiya's new look, which I'd have to say is a big improvement over her earlier design...




Interestingly, Kent Williams's front cover painting, which is a rather nice piece of artwork, by the way, has Lumiya clothed in the armour that she wore during her earlier appearance. Regardless, the Lady of the Sith comes across as a much more sinister and much more threatening adversary here than she did in issue #88. I also really like her lightwhip weapon, which is part-real whip and part lightsaber, with the weapon's metal and leather tails encased in a crackling sheath of energy.

Along with the reappearance of Lumiya, writer Jo Duffy also introduces us to the Nagai warrior, Den Siva, although he is not named in this issue. Several other Nagais appear here too, along with Knife, who we met back in Star Wars#91, but their species are referred to as "Knives" by the Alliance members, after the first one of their type that Han Solo encountered.

The Nagai race were actually named after the legendary Japanese manga artist, Go Nagai, creator of the popular Cutey Honey series, whom Duffy was a big fan of. Talking to starwars.com in 2002, artist Cynthia Martin recalled that she came up with their visual design by looking at Japanese comics: "Jo Duffy suggested that I look at anime for inspiration for the Nagai. This was back when anime was scarcely known in the mainstream; Jo was really ahead of her time. She showed me a Japanese comic about a tragic vampire that had a strong influence on my concept drawings." To my eyes, however, the Nagai look more like Elves – particularly Dark Elves – from fantasy literature, with their slender, slightly androgynous appearance and pointed ears, rather than exuding a manga influence. But maybe that's just me.

Martin's artwork in this issue is still not really to my tastes, but Steve Leialoha's tight inking works wonders at tempering the worst excesses of her cartoony style. Nonetheless, the quality of the art in this issue is a little uneven, with some of it working better than other parts. Martin's quite good at conveying the high tension of Luke Skywalker and Lumiya's duel though, with this page in particular being heavy on operatic drama...




Plus, I also really like the inventive way that Martin uses jagged, rough-looking panel borders in the scenes set on Kinooine. This serves to highlight the planet's rugged, inhospitable terrain, while also lending these scenes a nightmare-like quality.

Leialoha, who had previously done such a fantastic job inking some of the Star Wars movie adaptation and Star Wars Annual #1, provides some sharp detailing, particularly in the backgrounds. However, while he minimises the cartoon-ish elements present in Martin's work, he also brings a hard-edged quality to her art, which seems to accentuate its ugliness and leaves it looking rather harsh. Ultimately though, the end result is probably some of Martin's best looking artwork on the series, although that's hardly saying very much.

It's probably just a coincidence, but the title, "No Zeltrons", is actually something that Princess Leia exclaimed in Star Wars #88, which was also the issue that featured Lumiya's debut. It's actually kind of a throwaway title for, what is, quite a dark story.

The group of Zeltron males that are assigned to Leia look rather like a red-skinned boyband, dressed up in camp '80s fashions...




Fortunately, the Zeltrons provide some real laughs, which serves to lighten the otherwise heavy script somewhat. It's also nice to see that, after initially establishing them as little more than comic relief, Duffy has the Zeltrons play an important part in Leia and Han's escape from their Nagai captors. That's a nice way to show up Leia's irrational dislike of their race for the narrow-minded attitude that it is. In fact, this is really the point at which Leia's dislike of Zeltrons, which could have previously been dismissed as a simple dislike for Dani, tips over into blatant racism. I mean, just what is it that Leia has against this race?! Duffy's characterisation of the princess as being bigoted towards a particular race seems really at odds with what we've previously seen in the series and in the Star Wars films.

Something else that niggles me slightly is how Kiro and Dani seem to be a couple now. Where the hell did that come from? I mean, don't get me wrong, it's a nice piece of character development for Dani, but it just seems to have come out of nowhere. Where was the set up for this development? The only evidence of any vague romantic connection between the two that we've seen was in issue #87, when a frightened Dani cuddled up to Kiro for comfort and called him "darling". However, Dani's still all over Luke later on in that same issue, so it's not apparent that she's developed any special feelings for the Iskalonian. Like I say, I don't mind the Kiro/Dani relationship at all, but I would've liked to have seen a little bit more set up for it.

On the political side of things, Duffy gives us some interesting hints at the developing, post-Empire situation, with some worlds feeling that the former Rebellion is too "rough and ready" and too much of a military organisation to administer peace throughout the galaxy. That sounds like a very plausible thing for certain systems to think, as far as I'm concerned, but fortunately Han and Leia demonstrate to the delegates on Kabray that that it is precisely its military experience that makes the Alliance the ideal organisation to secure peace. It's also nice to revisit the Kabray system, which is home to Kabray Station, where issue #77 was set.

All in all, this is a much more gripping tale than we got last issue. Duffy and Martin both do a good job of building the tension in the story, as Luke heads to Kinooine and unknowingly into Lumiya's trap. The writer ratchets up the drama further with a second plot to capture Han and Leia on Kabray. The duel between Luke and Lumiya is really well handled and the final page, with Luke seemingly defeated by the Dark Lady, gives us the best cliffhanger we've seen in the series for a while. Martin's cartoon-like art is still bothersome and Leia's inexplicable racism towards the Zeltrons doesn't sit at all well with me, but nonetheless, this is definitely one of the better issues from the latter part of the series. Had this comic been drawn by the old art team of Ron Frenz and Tom Palmer, it would have no doubt scored higher than 7 out of 10.


Continuity issues: None

Favourite panel:


Favourite quote: "Y'know, when I first met you, I thought you were unique. An' I gotta say, the thought of a whole race of your kind is really depressing." – Han Solo sarcastically taunts the Nagai warrior Knife, who has the Corellian at blasterpoint.

Star Wars #97
Cover dated: July 1985
Issue title: Escape
Script: Mary Jo Duffy
Artwork: Cynthia Martin (pencils)/Art Nichols (inks)
Colours: Petra Scotese
Letters: Rick Parker
Cover art: Cynthia Martin (pencils)/Art Nichols (inks)
Overall rating: 5 out of 10




Plot summary: A Nagai invasion fleet, intent on conquering the galaxy, has arrived at the remote world of Kinooine. Landing on the planet, the starships disgorge Nagai warriors and renegade Imperial troops onto the surrounding landscape, as they get to work setting up base. Watching from a nearby trench, Luke Skywalker and Kiro take their prisoner, Lumiya, the Dark Lady of the Sith, back to their ship and tie her to its landing support, before leaving to rescue their friend Dani, who has been taken prisoner by the Nagai warrior Den Siva.

Elsewhere, Dani is undergoing excruciating torture at Den's hands, as her Zeltron physiology is probed by analysis beams, which do not inflict psychical wounds, but which do generate tremendous pain. Though the process leaves her weakened and emotionally scarred, Den begins to become fascinated by his captive's inner strength and beauty.

Meanwhile, back at the Alliance base on Endor, a gathering including Han Solo, Princess Leia, Lando Calrissian, Chewbacca, and the droids R2-D2 and C-3PO, listen to Admiral Ackbar and Mon Mothma, as they relay the news that the Nagai have declared war on the galaxy. Realising that Luke, Kiro and Dani are in danger, Han volunteers to travel to Kinooine and rescue his friends, but is forbidden from doing so by Ackbar. The Admiral explains that the Alliance has more important concerns regarding the invasion than rescuing Skywalker, which is ultimately a personal matter. This angers Solo to the point where he storms out of the briefing, vowing to leave the Alliance.

Back on Kinooine, Kiro manages to rescue Dani from her cell, while Luke steals important data about the Nagai from the computers in the complex. After escaping onto a high, rocky pathway, Kiro and Dani come face to face with Den, who threatens them with a knife. Kiro leaps at the Nagai warrior, engaging him in a vicious fight, but as the pair wrestle, they topple into a river below. While Dani watches anxiously from above, she is joined by Luke, just in time to see blood beginning to spread upon the water's surface. Unsure of whether Kiro has survived the fight or not, Luke and the distraught Zeltron return to their ship, where they find Lumiya gone, having been rescued by Knife, who has evidently survived his clash with Kiro.


Comments: As well as being the culmination of the "Dark Lady" story arc, Star Wars #97 has particular significance for me because it was the last story of the series that I read as a kid. I decided to stop buying Return of the Jedi Weekly in July 1985, with issue #107 being my last...




I stopped buying the British comic, after years of being an avid reader, because I felt that the stories were deteriorating; I really disliked Cynthia Martin's artwork; I hated the Power Pack backup strip, and the magazine was becoming full of reprints of older Star Wars stories (stories that I already had in my collection), with barely 4 pages of new content per issue. So, the publication really wasn't providing great value for money to someone who was on just £1.50's worth of pocket money per week. In some ways, it's a shame that I chose this particular issue to stop buying the comic because a new Al Williamson drawn story began the very next week, and he has always been my favourite Star Wars artist. Ah well...

Anyway, I didn't get to read the remaining ten issues of Star Wars until the mid-1990's, when I completed a collection of the original U.S. issues. But I digress...

This is really the point in the series where the Nagai invasion begins in earnest. Having an alien race coming from outside of the known Star Wars galaxy to conquer the newly formed Alliance of Free Planets is a pretty cool idea of Jo Duffy's, I think. It's also a concept that subsequent expanded universe writers have used for themselves, and I'm specifically thinking of Kathy Tyers' The Truce at Bakura here, with its invading Ssi-Ruuk race. Clearly Duffy's intention with the Nagai was to create a credible threat to the Alliance, which is something that had been sorely missing from the book since the fall of the Empire. Of course, the Nagai aren't anywhere near as big of a threat as the Empire was, but nonetheless, the invasion does inject a renewed sense of urgency and story impetus into proceedings.

In this issue, the Nagai warrior Den Siva is revealed to be a real nasty piece of work. He's cruel, callous and cold. In other words, he's a great villain! The way that he cruelly tortures Dani, in order to satisfy his scientific curiosity – regarding her as little more than an insect in a Petri dish – is very sinister. Especially as it's made clear that his probing with the analysis beams will leave the Zeltron psychologically scarred.

We also see the beginning of Den's obsessive, quasi-romantic fascination with Dani, which will have ramifications later on in the series. It's a fascinating development for the Nagai warrior, which sheds light on the wider nature of his race. At one point, Den finds a beautiful flower outside his base and Duffy takes the opportunity to make an analogy between the plant's ability to survive on a harsh planet like Kinooine and Dani's own inner strength and outward beauty. As a Nagai, Den has been raised to respect strength, logical efficiency and elegance, rather than fragility, but in the flower – and, by extension, Dani herself – he sees that not everything that is fragile is necessarily weak.

Duffy also gives us an excellent cliffhanger at the close of this issue, by showing Lumiya and Den still at large, while Kiro is seemingly dead. Lumiya has really come into her own in this arc, after that rather lacklustre debut in issue #88. Unfortunately, the promise of the character will go largely unfulfilled in the Marvel Comics run. She will only make two further appearances in the series (in issues #100 and #107), and it would be down to later expanded universe authors to use the character to her fullest potential.

Something that I think is great in this issue, is that we see Luke Skywalker using the Jedi mind trick. It's a Jedi skill that, outside of the movie adaptation issues, is seldom utilised in the comic. I'm guessing the reason for that is because it makes it too easy for Luke to get out of tight situations. Anyway, it's nice to see the young Jedi using that power here.

Duffy also has Luke using the same distraction trick that Obi-Wan Kenobi used when he was deactivating the tractor beam on board the Death Star, by using the Force to create a low, rumbling noise, as a diversion...




Other things of note in the script are how Pilf hints at a connection between Han Solo and Knife, which is something that will be explored a little later on in the series. We also glimpse the ramifications of Han, Luke, Princess Leia etc not being allowed to sit on the Alliance of Free Planets' ruling council, following their having missed the inaugural council meeting, back in issue #90. Personally, I have a hard time understanding Admiral Ackbar and Mon Mothma's reluctance regarding Han going off to rescue Luke. That seems more than a little short-sighted, since Luke is not only the last remaining Jedi Knight in the Alliance, but also one of its most important figureheads and greatest warriors.

On the artistic front, I really, really do not like the combination of Cynthia Martin's pencils and Art Nichols' inking. The combination produces some horribly angular art, while simultaneously accentuating the worst of Martin's cartoon-ish qualities. In particular, the Imperial stormtroopers look, in their own way, just as angular, stylised and dissimilar to their cinematic counterparts as they did during Carmine Infantino's tenure on the book. However, I find this curious variation of stormtrooper armour on the opening page pretty interesting...




What is this supposed to be? A Vader-trooper?!

Anyway, Martin and Nichols' art really turned me off as a kid and it continues to turn me off as an adult. Four issues into her term as the series' regular artist and Martin's style is still proving to be a very jarring change from the polished, cinema-authentic work of earlier artists, such as Ron Frenz, Walt Simonson and Tom Palmer. The front cover of this issue is every bit as ugly as the interior art too, unfortunately.

However, I do think that Martin's design for the various Nagai spaceships look suitably alien and un-Star Wars-y – which is exactly how they should look, given that they have come from outside of the galaxy. There's also some nice background detailing on occasion in this comic, but overall, the art still is really unsatisfactory to me.

Star Wars #97 ends promising us an episode entitled "Far, Far Away" but, in fact, we will get a fill-in story next issue. The promised episode, which directly follows on from this issue, won't appear until Star Wars #101 – even though it's set before issue #99. Confused? To quote Yoda, "you will be."

All in all, the "Dark Lady" story arc is an important one. It provides us with the only real clash between Luke and Lumiya that we will see in the series and it also kicks off the Nagai invasion proper. Unfortunately, for me, this is the story arc in which the regular cast of Han, Luke, Leia etc, begin to feel like they're being squeezed out of the picture and pushed a little bit from centre stage by all the new Nagai characters and the return of Lumiya. Unfortunately, this impression of the main cast becoming somewhat sidelined in their own book will only intensify as the series progresses and the likes of the Hiromi, the Tofs and various Zeltrons flood the comic.

Nevertheless, this concluding part of the "Dark Lady" storyline is, just like earlier instalments, a gripping read, with plenty of action and intrigue. It's just a pity that the art lets things down and does such a disservice to the story.


Continuity issues: None

Favourite panel:


Favourite quote: "You can trust me, Luke. Trust me to stick a knife in your back if you ever turn it on me." – Lumiya rages defiantly at Luke Skywalker, as he ties her up in order to prevent her escaping.

Star Wars #98
Cover dated: August 1985
Issue title: Supply and Demand
Script: Archie Goodwin
Artwork: Al Williamson
Colours: Glynis Oliver
Letters: Ed King
Cover art: Bill Sienkiewicz
Overall rating: 7½ out of 10




Plot summary: While visiting the starship yards of Fondor, Han Solo sees Lando Calrissian and Nien Numb arrive in the Millennium Falcon, bringing word from the Alliance that he is to be sent on a mission to the ore mining world of Vandelhelm, to stabilise the dropping supply rate of metals to the shipyard. With Nien Numb serving as a temporary co-pilot, Han takes the Falcon to a former Imperial prison planet, where he picks up two children – a young boy and his older sister – who are known as "The Venerated Ones". He then transports the pair to Vandelhelm, in order that they can sort out the problem with the Metalsmith's Guild and its supply of ores and alloys to the Alliance.

Unknown to Solo, the head of production on Vandelhelm, Guildmaster Orrk, has allied himself with Admiral Mordur and his small band of renegade Imperials. Mordur plans to kill the "Venerated Ones" as a way of maintaining his and Orrk's complete control over the planet's ore production. After a failed attempt at destroying the Falcon as it drops out of hyperspace, the Guildmaster meets with Solo, explaining that his passengers are the last remaining descendants of the families who initially founded the mining operation and that the superstitious metalsmiths of Vandelhelm believe that they can't produce high quality alloys without them. The Guildmaster also explains that the facility has been storing stockpiled metal on drone barges orbiting the planet.

With the "Venerated Ones" returned to Vandelhelm, Han assumes that his mission is over. However, upon returning to the Falcon, he finds Nien Numb being held at gunpoint by Imperial stormtroopers, as Orrk arrives outside the ship, having taken the "Venerated Ones" hostage. As the Guildmaster reveals his arrangement with the Empire, the young boy bites Orrk's leg, causing a distraction and allowing Han to gun down the Imperials. Leaping towards the Guildmaster, Han wrestles with him until Orrk is thrown from a high docking platform to his death.

Han then flies to the drone barges and docks on the command ship, where he finds that Mordur has set the container ships on a collision course with a nearby sun. Donning a spacesuit, Han guns down Mordur's stormtroopers and engages the Admiral in battle on the ship's flight deck, where the Imperial is ultimately sucked into the vacuum of space. An Alliance frigate arrives soon afterwards and draws the command ship into its docking bay, by means of a tractor beam, while the drone barge's course is changed and the ships are saved.


Comments: Star Wars #98 sees the return of writer Archie Goodwin and artist Al Williamson to the series. The pair had previously worked together on the comic adaptations of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, as well as "The Crimson Forever" story in issue #50. They had also, between 1981 and 1984, been the creative team on the Star Wars syndicated newspaper strip. Ultimately, "Supply and Demand" would turn out to be the duo's final Star Wars story, which makes it somewhat significant.

If you've been following my reviews, you'll know that Williamson is just about my favourite artist to have worked on this series and, right off of the bat, as soon as you flip open the cover of this comic, the artwork is stunning. The story opens with a couple of panels showing Han Solo dashing through a corridor within the shipyards of Fondor, as startled onlookers are shoved aside, but when you turn the page, you're treated to this gorgeous double-page splash...




Williamson's art in this issue is, as always, pure eye candy. It combines incredible, sumptuous detail and photo-realism, with effortless panel-to-panel storytelling chops. His lush inking and bold use of shadow, when combined with his tendency to utilise interesting and inventive "camera angles" or staging, delivers some truly eye-popping artwork. The action sequences are fluid and full of movement, while the quieter character driven moments are handled with equal skill. Yep, Wiliamson once again proves that he is quite simply a comic book master.

I have to say that the art here is so good that it really throws the shortcomings of the series' regular artist, Cynthia Martin, into sharp relief. I know that it's unfair of me to compare somebody like Martin to an all-time great like Williamson, but it's hard not too when this issue comes on the heels of four issues featuring artwork that I've been very critical about. For example, I've been bemoaning Martin's angular and highly stylised take on the Imperial stormtroopers of late, and seeing Williamson's exquisite, movie-authentic renditions here, it's hard not to think, "yeah, now that's how you draw 'em"...




If I were to make one criticism of Williamson's work in this issue, it would be that the older, female "Venerated One" looks a little too grown up. It's clear from Han's dialogue that these two are children, but the older sister looks to be in her mid-to-late 20's, rather than in her early teens, as she should be. This is strange because Williamson actually used his own teenage daughter and young son, Valerie and Victor, as his models for these characters. Anyway, that little nitpick aside, Williamson once again shows us just how good the art in a Star Wars comic can be.

Actually, it's a shame that this issue doesn't sport a Williamson drawn cover. Bill Sienkiewicz's painted image is quite nice, but it's a little too murky for my tastes. When "Supply and Demand" was reprinted as "The Vandelhelm Mission" by Dark Horse Comics in 1995 – with recoloured art by James Sinclair and some minor dialogue alterations – Williamson was asked to knock up a new cover for the story and delivered this minor masterpiece...




Unfortunately, Goodwin's story doesn't come close to matching the grandeur of the artwork. The basic plot about delayed ore shipments to the Alliance is sound enough, I suppose, but it's also overly complex and not terribly interesting...or at all rewarding. Goodwin's characterisation of Han and Lando Calrissian is spot on and he certainly captures their "voices", but the plot feels kinda lightweight and I'm not entirely convinced it really makes a whole lot of sense. There's also a clumsy attempt on Goodwin's part to set Han up as being irritated by the two children he's escorting, before eventually learning to love them, but it never really comes off. In addition, neither Guildmaster Orrk or Admiral Mordur seem very threatening or particularly memorable.

On a more positive note, I suppose it's interesting to see the unique pairing of Han and Nien Numb, even if the latter isn't utilised all that well in the story. It's also nice to see Goodwin bringing the Shipyards of Fondor – a location he created for the Star Wars newspaper strip in 1981 – into the Marvel Comics' continuity.

It's difficult to know when this story is supposed to take place. I suspect that it's meant to be set soon after Return of the Jedi, but personally, I've always placed it directly after issue #91, "Wookiee World", because it's mentioned here that Chewbacca is away on leave on Kashyyyk. So, I guess that Han and Lando must've left the Wookiee on his homeworld to keep an eye on things after they'd thwarted the Nagai warrior Knife's slaving operation on the planet. This also explains why Lando is using the Millennium Falcon, rather than his own ship, the Cobra, since Knife stole it at the end of issue #91.

Summing up, this fill-in issue is bit of a mixed bag. The artwork is utterly gorgeous, but Goodwin's plot is lacklustre and overly complicated, without ever giving the reader much to care about. Nevertheless, the story does feel quite Star Wars-y to me, in a way that recent issues maybe haven't. Ultimately, despite its workaday plot, it's hard not to view this issue as a last glimpse of the magic that could be found in Marvel's original Star Wars comics.


Continuity issues: The Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk is misspelled here as Kazhyyyk.

Favourite panel:


Favourite quote: "Listen to the man! He has to do a little temporary duty … assume a bit of responsibility … and he turns all surely." – Lando Calrissian teases Han Solo over his irritability and over-protectiveness of the Millennium Falcon.