Doctor Aphra (2020) #20 - Comic Review

Back at the University of Bar’leth, the Sith wannabe Kho Phon Farrus is found underneath the classroom of Occult Archeological Studies with their old teacher Iglan’tine Nos. The two of them stand in the chamber of the ancient ruins of the Ascendant, an ancient cult focused on giving Force abilities to those who lacked them. Kho quickly realizes that Nos has known about this place for ages as the two of them start discussing how to call to the Ascendant’s most prized artifact, the Spark Eternal. Of course, not long after they start setting up the ritual, Doctor Aphra appears, with Sana Starros in tow, in an attempt to screw everything up for Kho, but unlucky for her they actually need a third person to complete the ritual. Will the ritual for the Spark Eternal work out in Aphra’s favor, or will the desperate Kho Phon Farrus be the one to control its dark power?

Writer Alyssa Wong has absolutely knocked it out of the park with Doctor Aphra (2020) #20! They crafted such a well paced and intense action story while at the same time continuing to push the character development between Aphra and Kho, as well as showing more of the relationship between the two and their old teacher. Wong also continues to explore the Ascendant in fascinating, if brief this time, ways. Not to mention the epic finale of the issue that can only lead to incredible and wild events to come!

The visual artists who worked on Doctor Aphra (2020) #20 are artist Minkyu Jung, color artist Rachelle Rosenberg, and letterer VC’s Joe Caramagna. All three of them come together to craft an exquisite work of art that elevates Wong’s already wonderful writing to an even better place. The action sequences are stunning and the character designs as always are beautiful. The varying emotions littered throughout the panels of this comic are probably the highlight of this overall stunning issue.

The main cover art of Doctor Aphra (2020) #20 comes from artist W. Scott Forbes and gives a breathtaking depiction of our two leads of this issue, Kho Phon Farrus and Aphra. Forbes’ cover is probably my new favorite piece of Kho at this point! This issue also comes with two variant covers. First up, Paul Renaud gives us another awesome Traitor of the Dawn variant with The Archivist standing strong and epic. The second variant is by Steven Cummings and Rachelle Rosenberg, and features wonderful renditions of Aphra, Sana, and Kho!

The next incredible chapter of the best current Star Wars comic is here with Doctor Aphra (2020) #20. It’s intense, daring, and witty, with stunning artwork and one incredible cliffhanger of an ending! So hop in your X-wing and fly on down to your local comic shop to pick up your copy today!