Bounty Hunters #12 - Comic Review

Check out the review of the previous issue before moving on!

The Bounty Hunters prelude to the most epic Star Wars comic book event, War of the Bounty Hunters, is finally here, and it’s the perfect setup for what’s to come in the next issues and the larger story. Despite their known rivalry, Valance and Dengar come to an agreement and team up to find Han Solo—who is at this moment frozen in carbonite in the hands of the notorious bounty hunter Boba Fett.

Bounty Hunters #12 is divided into two timelines, the current one following Valance and Dengar trying to get away from the relentless Zuckuss and 4-LOM who are still looking for Cadeliah and a not for far past—where Valance lands a bounty hunting opportunity that will lead to apparent betrayal. The opportunity is to take down his former Imperial comrade Han Solo! Will Valance pull the trigger? Or will he stay loyal to the smuggler who stood by him at his lowest?

Author Ethan Sacks once again creates an engaging story that is truly meaningful to the major arc of War of the Bounty Hunters. Valance keeps proving his humanity as he is faced with tough moral decisions while still being in the cruel business of bounty hunting. The end of Bounty Hunters #12 is the perfect appetizer to what’s to come as we see all the big players of the greatest bounty of all time beautifully portrayed by Paolo Villanelli.

Speaking of Villanelli, the artwork in Bounty Hunters #12 is as impactful as ever, accompanied by the bold brushes of colorist Arif Prianto and engaging lettering by VC’s Travis Lanham. In particular, the space slug run is a spectacle for the eyes—the intricacies of composition portraying a family of vicious slugs trying to take a bite of Valance’s stolen vessel paired with stunning light blues and grays visually elevate the issue to a whole new level. Let’s not forget the amazing main cover by Mattia De Iulis featuring a young Solo seeing through the red cyborg eye of Valance (the same cover available in a crimson variant) and the variant cover by Chris Sprouse, Neeraj Menon, and Karl Story for the 40th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back!

Bounty Hunters #12 is an exciting and meaningful prelude to the War of the Bounty Hunters. What are you waiting for? Retrieve the coordinates to Boba Fett’s whereabouts and join in the hunt today by grabbing a copy from your favorite comic book shop!