Today saw the release of the third issue in Dark Horse Comics’ Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures – Saber for Hire miniseries, and below are my brief recap and thoughts on this installment.
The High Republic Adventures – Saber for Hire #3 begins with the young Force-sensitive girl Lene Kostana having been returned to her parents on the planet Temerance by monster hunter (and former Jedi Padawan) Tylera “Ty” Yorrick. But Lene soon senses that Ty is returning to their village, and when she does, Yorrick asks to claim the Nihil ship left behind on Temerance as payment for her services. Lene helps Ty prepare the ship and Yorrick sends the girl back home again, but as soon as Ty (who remains Force-sensitive herself) takes off in pursuit of her assistant Drewen, she feels a disturbance in the Force regarding Lene. Indeed, it seems that the Nihil have returned to the Kostana family’s village and, with the help of a “Child of the Storm” (another Force-user, but this time on the villains’ side) are demanding to know Lene’s location.
The Child of the Storm kills both of the Kostana parents, and then Ty arrives at the village to confront the Nihil. Unfortunately for her, they’ve also brought a Force-eating “Nameless” creature with them. Yorrick runs and hides inside one of the tree-based huts, where she finds Lene cowering in fear as well. Together they attempt to escape, but their way is blocked by the Child of the Storm and the Nameless. Then at the last second, Ty’s droid Rover (or R0-VR) buzzes the villains using the Nihil ship’s blaster cannons. Our heroes are able to make their egress, leaving the Nihil to prepare a pursuit. Then in its final few pages, the comic cuts to the planet Abtin, where Chancellor Lina Soh’s son Kitrep and his boyfriend Jom Lariin are camping out on the beach in an attempt to dodge the Nihil forces who have recently annexed that system.
Spotting Nihil “cloud fighter” ships approaching in the sky, Kip and Jim seek shelter in a cave, where the former is attacked by a multi-tentacled creature. Here’s where Drewen shows us, blasts the beast, and takes the last name “Yorrick” for himself, claiming to be a monster hunter who will return the couple to Republic space. But as they quickly discover, the only thing standing in their way is a nasty horde of Nihil soldiers. I thought this was a really fun issue and that writer Cavan Scott’s script felt as sharp, dynamic, and well-paced as is usual for the Star Wars regular. Similarly, artist Rachael Stott (with colorists Nicola Righi and Vita Efremova) have delivered appealing, beautifully rendered illustrations that capture the energy and mood of Scott’s writing perfectly. With only one issue left to go in Saber for Hire, I’m very curious to see what state Drewen and company will find themselves in by the time Ty Yorrick catches up to them. And with the Child of the Storm (who seems to know Ty from a previous life) hot on their tail, the conclusion should prove to be a fairly explosive one.
Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures – Saber for Hire #3 is available now wherever comic books are sold.