Comic Review – Clone Force 99 Has a New Mission in “Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories – The Bad Batch: Ghost Agents” #1
Today saw the release of the first issue in Dark Horse Comics’ new miniseries Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories - The Bad Batch: Ghost Agents, and below are my brief recap and thoughts on this debut installment.
Hyperspace Stories - The Bad Batch: Ghost Agents #1 is set during the Clone Wars era (between Episodes II and III of the larger Star Wars saga) and begins on the planet Vikir (newly introduced here), where Clone Force 99 has been sent by the Republic to sabotage a Separatist Army plan to force the locals into joining their side. In doing so, the Bad Batch has trapped an enormous creature inside a mountain and their next target is a hyperfuel refinery, which Crosshair manages to blow up with a single shot to the highly explosive depot. Then they get a holo-message from Jedi Master and Republic General Mace Windu summoning the team back to Coruscant, where they are briefed on their next mission… even though Wrecker would like a break.
It seems that a list of Republic “ghost agents" (read: spies) has been stolen by an unknown party, and Windu wants Clone Force 99 to track this person down and retrieve the data before it falls into “worse hands." This plot reminds me an awful lot of the NOC list MacGuffin from the first Mission: Impossible movie, but it makes for a fun transposition of another familiar storytelling trope into the Star Wars franchise. Fortunately for the Bad Batch, the thief has thus far been unable to escape Coruscant due to their ship having been damaged, so it’s up to our heroes to venture down into the lower levels of the planet in search of their quarry. There they visit a seedy bar seeking information while dressed in casual clothes, but that doesn’t stop the denizens of Coruscant’s underbelly from recognizing them as clones. But after making a few threats, the team is able to extract the location of a transport vessel heading off-planet.
This leads them to a covert hangar bay and a confrontation against a Kyuzo bounty hunter who’s after “something valuable" and his pet. This scuffle delays the group in pursuing their prey, and the target manages to escape aboard the ship, leaving behind only the single clue that they were dealing with the Pyke Syndicate. Thankfully that points the Bad Batch toward their next destination: the Kessel system, from which the Pykes operate their spice trade. That’s the cliffhanger ending of this first issue, and so far I would say it’s a great joy to see Clone Force 99 back in action during their heyday. Star Wars devotees who missed seeing this crew operating with all four of its original members (sadly this story takes place before Echo joins the team in the final season Star Wars: The Clone Wars) are going to get a kick out of reading the adventures of Hunter, Crosshair, Tech, and Wrecker on the comics page. I’d also say that writer Michael Moreci (from Dark Horse’s 2022 Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories miniseries) has really captured the voices of these fan-favorite characters, and the art by Reese Hannigan definitely embodies the spirit of the acclaimed Star Wars: The Bad Batch animated series that came to a close after three seasons last spring. Looking forward to the remaining four issues!
Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories - The Bad Batch: Ghost Agents #1 is available now wherever comic books are sold.