In the most recent issue of Star Wars: Darth Vader, Vader begins a new quest to bring damage to the Rebellion and Skywalker.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: Darth Vader #12, by Greg Pak, Guiu Vilanova, Dean White, Giada Marchisio and Joe Caramanga, on sale now.
While frozen in carbonite, Han Solo has become the most sought-after man in the galaxy. After Boba Fett took possession of the smuggler on Bespin, he noticed an issue with the carbonite. This led him to bring Solo’s body to Nar Shaddaa in War of the Bounty Hunters Alpha by Charles Soule, Steve McNiven, Laura Martin and Travis Lanham. Luke and Chewie were the first to attempt to reclaim Solo in Star Wars #13 by Soule, Ramon Rosanas, Rachelle Rosenberg and VC’s Clayton Cowles but that proved unsuccessful.
The Rebels’ attempt was followed by Beilert Valance and Dengar’s failed attempt at tracking Solo in Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #12 by Ethan Sacks, Paolo Villanelli, Lanham and Arif Prianto. This issue also depicted 4-LOM, Zuckuss, Bossk and a plethora of other bounty hunters in pursuit of Fett and Solo’s body. Unfortunately for Fett, he lost possession of Solo’s body and the bounty had become anyone’s game. Now, it appears that Darth Vader is throwing his hat into the ring as he plans to collect Solo for his own reasons.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #12 sees Emperor Palpatine repairing Vader’s body after he ran his apprentice through the gauntlet on Exegol. After Vader’s repairs were finished, Palpatine granted him the freedom to do whatever he felt best. Vader gathered his newfound apprentice, Ochi of Bestoon, and headed toward the Outer Rim.
While on a planet within the Outer Rim, Ochi approached Bokku the Hutt and demanded that he acquire Solo. Ochi was operating for Vader during this discussion, showing that Vader was aware that Fett had lost possession of Han’s body. Vader does not want to openly oppose the Hutts and diminish the Empire’s relationship, thus he used this workaround.
It might seem strange that Vader is interested in reacquiring Solo after giving him away recently, but the Dark Lord of the Sith has his reasons. He’s come to realize that Han is a source of strength for Luke. Vader may believe that he can use Han as a pawn in an effort to turn Luke to the Dark Side. This could also be seen as an attack on the Rebellion and simply a way to weaken Luke as Vader has come to realize his place with the Sith after visiting Exegol. It would appear that Vader is now more interested in destroying Luke rather than turning him. This would not speak well of Han’s fate if Vader were to capture him.
Regardless of Vader’s intentions, this makes the war for Han Solo all the more dangerous for everyone involved. The Rebels now have to worry about an active Empire threat also hunting for Han Solo as they attempt to retrieve him for their own. Luke’s situation has also become more serious as he could come face-to-face with Vader with the new knowledge that Vader is his father. This becomes even worse when you consider Vader’s new outlook on the Sith and the threat he brings to Luke.
The bounty hunters involved also need to be wary of Vader’s actions. The cover of Star Wars: Darth Vader #13 gives a preview that the ultimate assassin droid IG-88 will also be joining the war and will come face-to-face with Vader. The other bounty hunters will have to worry about their image in the eye of the Empire if they go against him. Not to mention that Vader would not think twice about cutting through any of them. A future interaction between Vader and Fett could prove to be extremely interesting as Boba would realize that he lost the prize that Vader entrusted him with.
Darth Vader truly brings a new sinister outlook to the hunt for Han Solo. It’s unclear who has possession of Han Solo currently, but it is known that they have reached out to the Rebellion to negotiate. This could very well change though, as the introduction of Vader to the conflict is sure to bring a level of fear to everyone involved — including whoever currently possesses Han. Vader has found a new level of hate and whoever crosses his path will surely regret it.
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