Han Solo & Chewbacca #1 - Comic Review

Set a few years before the events of Episode IV: A New Hope, Han Solo & Chewbacca #1 titled The Crystal Run Part I, starts off with a bang as the BFF duo finish up a heist on the casino planet of Galator III and escape by the skin of their teeth. Without even a moment’s rest, Jabba the Hutt has another job for Han, a heist to nab a verillix urn which contains the ashes of one of Jabba’s most hated enemies, Krestrel D’Naran, which just so happens to be located on Solo’s home planet of Corellia. Jabba wants the urn so badly he’s willing to fork out 1 million credits for it, but Han must split that with the tipster who is none other than the Rhodian Greedo, whom Solo begrudgingly agrees to team up with. Little do the pair know that they’re not the only bounty hunters with their sights on the million credit job.

Meanwhile on Hosnian Prime, Solo’s heist on Galator III isn’t without consequences as corporate lawman Marshal Buck Vancto is tasked with hunting him down. This is Vancto’s canonical debut and boy is it impressive. Artist David Messina’s character design of this humanoid being is simply stunning with his gold plated headpiece, red turtleneck and black trenchcoat (cosplay inspiration for sure). His appearance in issue #1 is short but effective, it will be fun seeing him hunt Solo down in issues to come.

Solo and crew take steps to achieve their goal as Han Solo & Chewbacca #1 wraps up. Han does his best strategizing over drinks, and it’s at a bar that he meets a friendly stranger who also calls Corellia home. As it turns out Solo and the stranger may share more than just drinks.

Writer Marc Guggenheim has done a terrific job of dropping us right into familiar territory but keeping us on our toes. We’re used to seeing Han scheme his way through a job and get out of sticky situations, but with the combination of new characters and plotlines, this title injects freshness and fun. It will be interesting to see how Greedo and Solo’s interaction plays out, giving greater depth to their final interaction on Tatooine in Episode IV.

Artist David Messina gets to flex his creativity with new characters and settings but he also shines in his take on characters we already love—his Harrison Ford as Solo characterizations are particularly spot on. Colorist Alex Sinclair and letterer Joe Caramagna add their skills to the title while cover artist Alex Maleev gives Drew Struzan vibes with his painted take on the titular heroes.

Han Solo & Chewbacca #1 packs in the familiar, fun, and mysterious. It’s a title you won’t want to wait to catch up on later, so head to your local comic book dealer and pick up the first issue today!