Story by Greg Pak
Art by Marc Laming
Colors by Neeraj Menon
Lettering by VC’s Travis Lanham
Cover by Terry and Rachel Dodson
Edited by Mark Paniccia

A few years back there was a little bit of controversy around Boba Fett in Star Wars comics when one of the then Assistant Editors at Marvel referred to the character as boring. As a fan who grew up on the Original Trilogy I could see both sides of the inevitable debate that ensued. I was in the demographic that should have been “Team Boba Fett”, but actually found myself secretly agreeing with the then Assistant Editor. I’ve not always shared the fixation with Boba Fett that other fans had; he was rarely on screen and was the asshat that shipped Han off to Jabba. It is a view that I’ve continued to hold to this day, secretly hoping that that standalone film gets left in the concept stage. This week’s comic book from Pak, Laming and company could change my mind on that though. Brilliantly posed and presented, it captures that “less is more” essence of cool around which Boba Fett’s mystique is based.

Firstly the art from Marc Laming and Colors from Neeraj Menon. Boba Fett just looks awesome in every panel. Laming really captures the iconic poise of the character (his head tilt to Boussh/Leia in Return of the Jedi sums up the character for me), the action stances are just jaw-droppingly cool. There were several times when I just wanted to cut the art out of the page and post it on my wall (I still might). The colors really compliment the look. The palette is one of gleaming metal in an otherwise dusty biblical terrain.

In terms of story Pak delivers the perfect structure for a Boba Fett tale. The man with no name (okay well the Bounty Hunter with an infamous name everyone in the Galaxy knows) comes into a desert town looking for his bounty. This is Sergio Leone country. Fett never takes off his mask, the Mandalorian front keeping his mystique presented to the galaxy and the reader of the comic. He is lethal and unrelenting, and his attitude harks back to his appearances in the early Marvel Star Wars books (in new canon) in the Star Wars and Darth Vader titles. Pak saves the best for last though with a reminder that this isn’t a guy with heart, he’s just a guy that gets a job done for money, no more no less.

Final Thoughts:

All in all this book took me by surprise by providing me with the most enjoyable issue so far in these one-shot titles. While other titles in the Age of Republic and the Age of Rebellion books to date may have held more superficial shelf appeal for me, this is the one that now sits at the top of the pile as my favorite issue to date, and is the one that reminded me why Boba holds that special place in fans’ hearts.