Review: Han and Chewie Steal From Grand Moff Tarkin in Marvel’s Han Solo and Chewbacca #8
Reunited and ready for payback, Han and Chewie are back at it in issue #8 of Marvel’s Han Solo and Chewbacca. Each issue seems to be getting bolder and more outrageous. It’s been mostly outrageously fun, don’t get me wrong, but this one may have topped it for me. I had such a blast reading this issue. It isn’t the best story or most artistically original, but just so absolutely over-the-top outrageous that I couldn’t help but say: why the hell not!
Chewie and Han have spent much of the last few Han Solo and Chewbacca issues apart, but in this one, they are finally back together from the start. This certainly helps the issue, as the two have a back-and-forth so intrinsic to Star Wars that it’s unnatural when they are separated. Guggenheim has gotten better and better with each issue at nailing the dialogue between these two as well. As I said, this issue is a bit over-the-top, is this really happening kind of crazy. I raised my eyebrows momentarily but had so much fun just letting it happen I really didn’t mind. In this issue, our favorite smugglers are stealing from Grand Moff Tarkin.
Spoilers ahead…
The journey begins in Han Solo and Chewbacca #8 just how you’d want. With Chewie and his new ally Phaedra out of prison and reunited with Han, they are ready to get the Falcon back. This meant finding the one Rodian in the galaxy Han despises above all others: Greedo. Greedo left Han for dead earlier, and there’s no love lost between the two already. After Greedo divulges the location of the Falcon to Han, he leaves the Rodian a parting gift. A gift in the form of a right hook to the face. The Greedo and Han dynamic has been a pleasant surprise during this arc. I hope Greedo pokes his way back into the story in the coming issues.
After reacquiring the Falcon, the crew begins to discuss the other tidbit of news Greedo gave them before departing: the whereabouts of the urn. It turns out the Empire took the priceless urn during a search, and it’s now in the office of one Grand Moff Tarkin. Now, I saw the cover same as you and wondered how Tarkin would be involved in this story. It felt too big and random for him to pop in. I was skeptical to say the least, and even more so once I realized they planned to steal the urn from him. It felt too disconnected, and as I have said already, too outrageous to take seriously.
Han felt similarly to me as he voiced his concern over whether this heist could even be pulled off. Once Phaedra started outlining her plan, I, like Han, shrugged my shoulders and said: why the hell not? To break into the Tarkin’s office on Coruscant, they would need a killer plan and a whole lot of luck. The plan came in a few stages. The first part involves Han and Chewie going for a dive into the sewer system in the galaxy’s capital.
As someone who hates the idea of getting dirty, I certainly empathized with Han as he moaned and groaned his way through phase I of Phaedra’s plan. Outside of grimacing as I flipped the sewer-filled pages, I had to wonder who Phaedra is. She is incredibly connected and clearly brilliant. She’s gotten Chewie out of prison and hatched this plan. She has people owing her favors all over the place, getting her critical intel. Who is she, and what is her endgame?
While Han and Chewie are trudging their way through Coruscant’s underbelly, Phaedra is putting her part of phase I in motion. Disguised as a droid, she gets the attention of Tarkin. To lure him away from his quarters, she tells him Palpatine suspects Mas Amedda of plotting to kill him. While Tarkin finds this highly unlikely, he feels compelled to check in anyway. He immediately leaves to discuss this with the Emperor in person, and takes several of his personal squad of Death Troopers with him.
This was all we see of Tarkin in this issue, and it was still funny to me thinking about ow Phaedra, Chewie, and Han are stealing from one of the most notorious villains in the galaxy at the time.
With Tarkin and several troopers gone, it opens the door for Han and Chewie to blast their way through. Han and Chewie can’t believe the plan is working this well. After rushing into Tarkin’s quarters, he finds what they came to retrieve! The urn was just sitting on the shelf. Even Phaedra was smiling at their luck so far.
Things have been working great thus far, but as it usually goes with a Han and Chewie plan, things go south pretty quickly. Having heard the blaster fire from before, stormtroopers rush in to overwhelm the smugglers. Of course, Phaedra has a plan. I don’t know who this girl is or where she comes from, but she has a backup plan for every backup plan. Exploring who she is will probably be an integral piece of the rest of these comics.
With the troopers having them cornered, Phaedra’s next part of the plan kicks in. She blasts a hole through the window and jumps out. As she jumps, she hollers for Han and Chewie to follow. The choice of whether to follow or not comes down to one choice. Do they want to take their chances jumping from a Coruscant skyscraper or battling dozens of stormtroopers in the most heavily guarded military building in the capital. Suffice it to say, they jumped.
Once on the train, Han can’t believe Phaedra’s escape plan hinged upon this train being on time and them being ready to jump when it arrived. He certainly hesitated before jumping and voiced his displeasure once he landed safely. Remember, this is the same guy who will later tell Rey “I never answer that question until after I’ve done it.” after she questions him on a maneuver.
The joy of having survived quickly wears off as there happen to be troopers on the train. It turns out they didn’t like having three people jump on top as the vehicle was in motion. What came next was my least favorite part of the comic. Chewie gets blasted by the trooper in his shoulder, and it causes him to fall off the train. Our last image is of him falling with a roar into the depth of the capital.
I didn’t care much for this ending for a number of reasons. We have had a few Han Solo and Chewbacca issues ending in a Han or Chewie near-death or in-peril scenario, and we already know how their stories end essentially. I would have much preferred something to do with Phaedra for this ending. The second reason this troubles me is that we have already seen Han and Chewie separated multiple times in the last few issues. It was nice having them reunited. The best issues in this arc have come with them on the pages together. It felt a bit redundant given what has happened. I am curious to see what takes place next, and this bit at the end didn’t take too much away from a non-stop fun adventure.
Rating: 8.5/10
Finding ways to nonchalantly incorporate Star Wars quotes into 8th grade classroom, Tyler lives and breathes Star Wars. His morning tradition is sending the latest number in the countdown for different Star Wars projects and loves engaging in uplifting Star Wars dialogue. If you are passionate about Star Wars you can follow him on Twitter at TyBrad5.
