‘Star Wars’ July 2023 Comic Preview: Aphra and Luke Meet the Starweird, ‘Dark Droids’ Approaches, and More
Comic solicitations for the month of July are here with another healthy helping of Star Wars titles. The road to Dark Droids continues as Charles Soule prepares to kick off what could (and probably should) be the final major chapter of this era of Star Wars comics.
While that event miniseries doesn’t begin until August, the solicit for issue #1 is included in this month’s selection to allow as big of a pre-order window as possible for local comic shops. Also on tap for July: the misadventures of Luke and Doctor Aphra continue as they find long-lost obscure Star Wars Legends lore; Boba Fett is targeted by the Black Sun; and Admiral Ackbar prepares for a trap. Let’s dig in…
Star Wars: Dark Droids #1
“SCOURGE OF THE DROIDS!” A STAR WARS EPIC LIKE YOU’VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE!
• Who or what is THE SCOURGE, and why is no droid safe?
• As a corruption spreads from one droid to the next THE REBELLION and THE EMPIRE face chaos!
• What role does AJAX SIGMA play in all of this? And whose side is he on?
• Find out when horror comes to a galaxy far, far away!
Charles Soule continues his legendary run on STAR WARS with the most ambitious event in STAR WARS comics history! Joined by his WAR OF THE BOUNTY HUNTERS collaborator Luke Ross, the superstar team carves a new path for the future!
Star Wars: Darth Vader – Black, White & Red #4
FRANK TIERI (W) • LEONARD KIRK,
PAUL DAVIDSON, DANNY EARLS (A)
COVER BY TAURIN CLARKE
TRAPPED ON THE FROZEN PLANET HOTH!
• FRANK TIERI sends VADER to HOTH.
• STEVE ORLANDO goes cerebral with THE CORRUPTION OF DARTH VADER’S MIND!
• PLUS: The Final Chapter of JASON AARON & LEONARD KIRK’s dark tales!
Star Wars: Return of the Jedi – The Rebellion #1
Cover by RYAN BROWN
MON MOTHMA MUST DIE!
• ADMIRAL ACKBAR is the only one with the knowledge of THE EMPIRE’s plans to kill Mon Mothma.
• Enter POE DAMERON’s parents, SHARA BEY and KES DAMERON, to thwart the threat!
• But do they have what it takes to take down the unknown assassin in time?
Moving on to the four ongoing comics, one of the bigger shockers during the Marvel’s Star Wars Celebration panel was a variant cover for Doctor Aphra #32 featuring Jedi Master Shaak Ti. We now know her involvement has to do with a flashback regarding the Starweird, humanoid beings that are anything but human. They are an incredibly deep-cut Legends reference from Ultimate Adversaries, a 2004 sourcebook for Wizards of the Coast’s roleplaying game. They have since been mentioned in BioWare’s The Old Republic MMORPG.
After the conclusion of the Spark Eternal arc, Alyssa Wong seems to be sending Aphra back to her roots of searching for the wackiest artifacts in the galaxy. But the big question is what does Luke Skywalker or Darth Vader have to do with any of this?
Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #34
ENTER THE STARWEIRD!
• Long ago, Jedi Masters SHAAK TI and AAYLA SECURA sealed away a GREAT AND TERRIBLE POWER…
• …a horrifying, ancient creature that RESONATES WITH THE FORCE…
• …and DOCTOR APHRA and LUKE SKYWALKER have just released it!
Star Wars #36
DISASTER LOOMS FOR THE REBEL ALLIANCE!
• With the discovery that the Empire is building a second DEATH STAR, the Rebels are on the verge of despair.
• But LEIA ORGANA has devised an impossible mission to remind both the Rebels and the galaxy how to hope.
• It’s the FALCON’s time to shine, as the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy flies into the belly of the beast!
Star Wars: Darth Vader #36
DEATH BY DROID!
• With his Force powers still out of control, Darth Vader’s more powerful and vulnerable than ever before…
• Which makes this the perfect time for him to be BETRAYED by one of his most trusted associates (and astoundingly, it’s not APHRA or OCHI)!
• Featuring the return of TRIPLE-ZERO and BEE TEE – and the deadliest team up of droids Vader has ever faced!
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #36
BOBA FETT: MARKED FOR DEATH!
• THE BLACK SUN SYNDICATE wants BOBA FETT’S HEAD!
• But the new team of BOUNTY HUNTERS has something to say about that!
• Featuring DURGE, BOSSK, 4-LOM, ZUCKUSS, DEATHSTICK, VALANCE, KHEL and T’ONGA!
One last thing to note, longtime Bounty Hunters artist Paolo Villanelli recently announced he will be moving on from the series after issue #34 releases next month. Eisner Award winner Lan Medina (Fables) will take over in the interim, although it is unknown if he will be doing more after issue #36.
Star Wars: The Mandalorian Season 2 #2
THE PASSENGER!
• The Mandalorian must ferry a passenger with precious cargo on a dangerous journey.
• STEVEN CUMMINGS (CRIMSON REIGN, HIDDEN EMPIRE) joins RODNEY BARNES for issue #2 of this galaxy-spanning series!
Star Wars: Yoda #9
WELL, HELLO THERE…
• The MEGADROID is on the march! And only Jedi Master YODA and ANAKIN SKYWALKER can stop it.
•But what is the lesson Yoda is trying to impart on young Skywalker?
•Guest-starring: OBI-WAN KENOBI!
Hyperspace Stories #9
Jedi Knight Quinlan Vos arrives on the crime ridden world of Bevana, on a mission that could be the key to ending the Clone Wars. But it turns out the defector he’s tracking has more than Dooku’s secrets, he’s also made off with a sizeable amount of the count’s fortune! Now Vos finds himself in a lethal race against time with the deadliest bounty hunter in the Galaxy, Cad Bane!
And that wraps it up for the month of July. It seems unlikely Hyperspace Stories #9 will drop in July due to the delays plaguing the series, but that issue and everything else listed here is available for pre-order at your local comic shop now.
Sources: Bleeding Cool and Previews World
Nate uses his love for Star Wars and movies in general as a way to cope with the pain of being a Minnesota sports fan. When he's not at the theater, you can usually find Nate reading a comic, listening to an audiobook, or playing a Mario video game for the 1,000th time.
