Star Wars: Bounty Hunters#42: The best part of this issue is Sacks weaving events from other series into the story. For example, Jabba initially intended to use Ajax Sigma's neural core ("Star Wars: Han Solo and Chewbacca") to power the megadroid ("Star Wars: Yoda") but instead used Gertee's ("Star Wars: Dark Droids"). But the rest of the story is also solid, a fitting end to this series.
Upon arriving at Jabba's Palace, Valance takes out Dengar (and other bounty hunters) before Boba Fett knocks him unconscious, setting up a battle in Jabba's arena with the megadroid. Of course, Valance didn't come alone; our two favorite couples — Losha and T'onga and For-Elloem and Zuckuss — arrive to help.
In a nice turn of events, Boba Fett was actually helping Valance engineer the battle so that Boba Fett (and not the megadroid) would be Jabba's favorite. After Losha shoots open the megadroid's chest, Valance successfully destroys Gertee's neural core (which made me sad). He then radios Chewbacca, telling him that he's on deck to rescue Han now that the megadroid is off the board. Touchingly, he tells Chewie that Han means a lot to him, prompting Leia to comment, "That scoundrel means a lot to all of us."
The band disbands before Jabba can send more guards, and T'onga and Losha return home. Losha is stunned to find them where they started, but T'onga explains her vision of turning their farm into a destination hub for bounty hunters. As she says, whichever side — the Alliance or the Empire — wins the war, they're going to bring order to the chaos, which'll make it harder for bounty hunters. She proposes a place where they can form a community.
As she describes her vision, we're treated to a view into what some of our favorite bounty hunters from this series are doing: Bossk wonders if he made a mistake joining Khel's crew, Dengar is still an idiot, For-Elloem and Zuckuss remain an excellent team, Tasu exults in fighting with his people, and, surprising no one, Vulkorah has a herd of tooka cats. Also, Yura and Kondra survived the attack on the Rebel base.
Returning to T'onga, her vision would give her the community she's always wanted and the happy ending she deserves, something that I almost can't believe she'd get. Losha can't believe it either, wondering how they're going to afford it. Losha then reveals her ace in the hole: Cadeliah, who's going to bank roll it. I almost physically applauded this development, it's so perfect.
In other words, Sacks surprised me throughout this issue by wrapping up the stories of characters that I loved and ones that I had forgotten in ways that were perfect for them. But he's at his best when he gives us Valance's ending, as he rescues Haydenn from the Imps who've found her. Valance is sexy AF here, which is great to see, as he struggled with his appearance and its connection to his humanity for so long. Haydenn happily takes his hand as they ride off into the starlight.
In the end, Sacks uses this issue to remind me how much I loved this series when it met its potential. I assume ending it was a sales-based decision, and you have to wonder if Disney and Marvel missed the chance to move beyond Valance and Losha and approach the series as an anthology, focusing on some of the great characters we saw here. At any rate, I'm glad we got them for the time we had, and I hope Sacks is right that it's only good-bye for now.
The Weatherman, Vol. 3 #1: This issue is honestly the best comic book I've read. I'm going to list it as an "Issue of the Year Candidate," but I don't see any other issue topping it in the next 12 months.
2752
We begin in 2752 as Ian returns home from active duty to visit his father and stepmother. His father is a douchebag former football player who put the medals Ian sent him in his closet since he claims he didn't have room for them in his enormous trophy room. He asks Ian if he's bagged any "off-world fillies" and tells him that he didn't read the letters Ian sent home since he's "not much of a reader." Ian's father takes him to said trophy room and shows him a Trumpesque portrait he commissioned, depicting him with the ball atop two lines of football players colliding into each other. When Ian sees the title is "War," he leaves without another word.
Ian heads to the Little Umbrella, a bar where he's supposed to meet someone. Instead, he's given an enormous surprise party. When his high-school girlfriend, Ember, puts her hand on his shoulder, he startles and strangles her. It's clear that Ian was exactly like Nathan back in the day as his "friends" play holos of his greatest hits, like streaking graduation and break-dancing as the prom king. (I'm not sure why break-dancing got him ejected from prom...) His friends are douchebags like his father, asking if he's got PTSD or if he's killed anybody. A rattled Ian bolts from the bar, but Ember follows him and asks him to stay.
This sequence is pretty crushing, honestly. If LeHeup isn't a veteran, he's certainly done his research, because he nails the disorienting nature of trying to reenter a group of friends that stayed the same when you've become someone else. Interestingly, Ian is obviously from an affluent background, but we don't get the answer to a question someone shouts at him here, namely why he joined the military in the first place.
Mars 2755
On Mars, Jenner introduces Ian to Advanced Warfare Recruiter Trong, who laments that Ian's leaving the military to return to Earth. Ian informs him that he has a family back on Earth, and Trong slips him the ORCA Program précis before telling him that he has to be where he belongs.
New York City 2757
Ian is enjoying an ice cream with his daughter, who tells him that she wants to be a weather scientist when she gets older. When he asks why, she tells him that you make friends talking about the weather, so the more she knows about the weather the more friends she'll have. (Yeah, it's sad.) He asks about a stuffed lightning bolt that she's holding, and she introduces her as "Mrs. Lightning Bolt," who keeps her safe when it storms.
Ian's daughter then asks if she can come live with him, since they could do fun things every day and be "whole people." Ian asks why she used that term, and she confesses she got in trouble at school again and overheard her step-father tell her mom that she's broken like Ian. (Oof. Ian needs to kill this asshole.) A stern Ian tells her that she isn't broken and she asks if he is.
On cue, Ember appears, and Ian complains she's early while Ember complains he's late (meaning with child support). He promises to send the payment the next day, and Ember tells him that she's heard that before. Ian tells Ember that he needs to see his daughter more, but Ember doesn't think it's a good idea — we learn that Ian just got his second DUI in three months. Ember tells him that it's his last visit for a while, and Ian says that it isn't her decision. Ember says Roger (her husband) is a good lawyer, and Ian tells her that Roger needs to keep that "cliche veteran bullshit" to himself. Ember shoots back that Roger puts in the work and she doesn't have to worry that he's going to drive her daughter to school while drunk. (Fair.)
Ian tells Ember that his daughter is all he has, and Ember softens, telling him that she'll be in touch to formalize things and to take care of himself. Ian's daughter returns and hugs him, telling him that she loves him and handing him Mrs. Lightning Bolt, since he needs her more than him. Three days later, Ian joins the ORCA program.
This entire sequence is devastating. I totally get Ember's position, and it seems pretty clear she's just trying to keep it together for her daughter. As such, LeHeup makes this development so impactful, as he doesn't make Ember the bad guy. It's all just sad.
Now (2770)
In an interrogation room, Cross stops Djinn from recounting this story. She asks how Djinn came by this information, and Djinn tells her that she was a founding member of the Sword of God and part of Jenner's inner circle. She was also Ian's and Jenner's lover at various times. Cross asks if Ian and Jenner had any bad blood over that, and Djinn explains that came later.
In the beginning, they were part of the ORCA team, "warriors without peer," that carried out "stealth incursions, high risk rescue ops, arms deals, assassinations..." Djinn notes that, in the end, they only had each other to maintain their faith in humanity.
Argentina (2760)
Djinn continues her narration as we move to Argentina, where Ian and Jenner are surrounded by hundreds of bodies. Djinn notes that Ian retained hope, which we see as he opens his canteen and waters a blood-covered plant. Meanwhile, Jenner looks at a woman who died shielding her baby, and, if I'm reading between the lines correctly, kills the baby as he decides there is no hope for humanity. According to Djinn, "The only way to end hate, fear, and greed...to end death...is to end life itself."
Now
Cross is flippant here, asking if she means also ending gophers and cilantro. Djinn is then super convincing - to the point where I was ready to join the Sword - that humanity truly is life's enemy. She tells Cross she understands that it hurts too much to think of their species as an engine of destruction. As such, people dismiss the thought but, when they lose someone they love and can't accept our innate destructiveness, they turn to revenge to make sense of the loss. Djinn says this need for revenge triggers the same cycle of denial and projection that result in destruction.
Venus (2762)
After ORCA is defunded, Ian and Jenner meet again as guns-for-hire, where Jenner recruits Ian to join the Sword of God. Seemingly knowing Ian is an idealist, Jenner tells him that their goal is to destroy all WMD - starting with extinction grade munitions - to end war. Ian makes one condition: they destroy whatever they find.
Now
Djinn informs Cross that Ian recovered the sample and gave it to Jenner. He tries to kill Jenner when he learns he used it on Earth, but, when Jenner's men prevent him from doing so, Ian breaks free to get to the bomb on time. Cross asks why Djinn is telling her everything, and Djinn responds that she's denying her the ability to torture her to avoid her own pain — it hurts Cross more to know the truth. Djinn also mentions a second reason and Cross suddenly realizes that she doesn't know what happened to the girl.
New York City (April 14, 2763)
Ian's daughter is in the park with Ember and Roger when she sees a flash of light. Ian is in a space ship heading for the site when the blast detonates. He runs through the crowd fleeing the blast and, on the last page, we see him scream, "Sadie!", the name, if you recall, of the dog he lost in the first issue.
As I said, it's brutal. LeHeup does a spectacular job of making no one the bad guy. Instead, they're all people having pretty reasonable responses to the horrible things that they've done and seen. Not only do I not know where we go from here, but I also don't know who I hope wins. That, ladies and gentlemen, is the hallmark of a good comic.
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