Crimson Dawn returns as plot threads come together in Star Wars #22, written by Charles Soule, drawn by Ramon Rosanas, colored by Rachelle Rosenberg and lettered by Clayton Cowles.
Though the series has been operating under the “Crimson Reign” banner since the end of “War of the Bounty Hunters”, Crimson Dawn hasn’t really factored into the stories much. Following the crossover, the book had too much unfinished business pushed aside by its tie-in obligations to cover. So we got two issues featuring Luke’s continued efforts to become a Jedi, and an overdue catch-up with Shara Bey. This issue marks the series’ first proper “Crimson Reign” tie-in as it starts to pull some of its disparate plot threads together.
It begins with Qi’ra herself coming to visit the Alliance and, specifically, Leia. She comes bearing gifts in the form of knowledge: confirmation that there’s only one remaining Rebel division still on its own following the Battle of Hoth (dashing Leia’s hopes that more remained waiting to be reunited with the fleet) and the expected whereabouts of Commander Zahra’s Tarkin’s Will Star Destroyer. The interaction between the two women towards the end of “War of the Bounty Hunters” was some of the better material from that crossover, and while their interactions here are more business-like than anything, there remains a charge between the two of them that livens things up.
Their shared experience as powerful women in charge of two very different organizations with occasionally-shared interests (as well as their connections to Han Solo’s past and present, respectively) give their scenes an energy that is uncommon to Star Wars. It remains to be seen how trustworthy Qi’ra actually is, and while Leia is smart enough to be suspicious and suss out the business interests motivating Qi’ra actions here, hopefully writer Charles Soule is smart enough to not allow Qi’ra to play Leia for a fool in an effort to build-up her own bonafides.
Picking up on the thread that concluded the previous issue, the Leia/Qi’ra meeting segues into the back half of the issue. As Leia prepares to mount an attack on Tarkin’s Will and a rescue of Shara Bey using Qi’ra’s information, she discovers Kes Dameron, the Pathfinders, and the Starlight Squadron have already left to do that on their own. Their subsequent efforts – from Starlight Squadron’s clearly-staged space battle to the Pathfinders sneaking aboard Tarkin’s Will just as it jumps to hyperspace and its encounter with the Rebel fleet acting on Qi’ra’s information – promises to bring together a number of the series’ ongoing plot threads: Commander Zahra’s quest to destroy the Rebel fleet, the Rebels’ efforts to reunite their scattered divisions, Shara Bey’s extended odyssey on the Tarkin’s Will, the “Crimson Reign” material. All that’s left out is Luke’s plotline, but it nevertheless finally feels like the series is building towards some level of climax after keeping a number of different plates spinning for months.
There’s a few missteps here. Last issue seemed to suggest that Zahra killed Shara Bey as a sort of issue-ending cliffhanger, but then her survival is revealed in this issue before the story even starts, via the recap page. Obviously, most readers were probably well aware she wasn’t actually dead (because she’s appeared in stories set after this one) and the story itself reveals her survival soon enough, but it still seems odd to set up the narrative tension last issue only to defuse it via the “Previously On…” text in this one.
On a similarly-nitpicky level, it’s revealed that Kes Dameron’s rescue mission launched thanks to him simply telling the deck officer that Leia had given the mission her blessing; while the Rebel Alliance is traditionally presented as a more of a ragtag organization, especially compared to the Imperial military, it seems odd that they’d have no procedures in place for verifying such a thing before letting two high-profile special forces squads requisition equipment and set out on a dangerous mission.
I’m also not sure how I feel about the sequence that provides the issue with most of its action quotient (this is an especially talky issue) and inspires its cover. In it, Chewbacca seemingly storms Jabba’s palace, bowcaster ablazin’, to rescue Han. But the entire sequence turns out to be, essentially, an extended Danger Room training session, with Chewbacca attacking training remotes while visualizing his opponents and the layout of the palance in his mind (this “Star __” property lacking the holodeck technology of its Trekkier counterpart). I can’t decide if shoehorning action into the story (and giving Ramon Rosanas something to draw other than people talking or sneaking around) through a combination of training remotes and the power of Chewie’s imagination is dumb, or genius. It’s probably a little of both.
Ultimately, these are admittedly minor nitpicks. For the most part, while not terribly exciting, this issue hums along nicely. The Leia/Qi’ra interactions continue to have juice, and the sheer presence of narrative momentum is enough to paper over the rough edges. The work the series did coming out of “War of the Bounty Hunters” was necessary, but it’s still entertaining to finally see so many lingering plot threads start to come together after dangling for so long.
Force Facts
- They meet directly in this issue, but we don’t get much from a Qi’ra/Chewbacca reunion, which is a shame.
- The troop transport used by the Pathfinders to reach Tarkin’s Will is a U-wing, the same type of ship used by Rogue squadron in Rogue One.
- Qi’ra’s point of contact in the Alliance to facilitate the sale of supplies is Leia’s friend Amilyn Holdo, later of The Last Jedi’s Holdo Maneuver.
Austin Gorton also reviews older issues of X-Men at the Real Gentlemen of Leisure website, co-hosts the A Very Special episode podcast, and likes Star Wars. He lives outside Minneapolis, where sometimes, it is not cold. Follow him on Twitter @AustinGorton
