Comic Review: The Warden Aims to Destroy Bri-Phrang City in "Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures" #18
Today saw the release of the 18th issue in Phase III of Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures from Dark Horse Comics, and below are my brief recap and thoughts on this installment.
The High Republic Adventures (2023) #18 begins on the planet Eriadu, where Jedi Knight Farzala Tarabal wrestles with a difficult decision: should he blow up the Warden’s ship the Star Hopper, taking his friends and allies with it, or allow it to destroy the lava reactor under Bri-Phrang City, causing even more destruction? The choice is sadly an obvious one, but thankfully a third option arises when Jackaby Snell betrays the warden and activates a shield around the city from the caverns below. Meanwhile on the Star Hopper, Grandma Snell fights back against the Warden’s lackeys, diving off of the ship into the sky below, and then Jackaby and the “chaos droid" 5A-G3 launch into the battle via a rickety old maintenance wagon, just in time to catch Granny in mid-air, discarding the Nihil she was using as a human sled.
The fight continues, but now that the Warden can’t blast the reactor with sheer firepower, he decides to climb further up into the atmosphere with the Sky Hopper and use it in a suicide drop against Bri-Phrang City. So in the end it ultimately comes down to Farzala using his giant anti-aircraft cannon to make a single perfect shot, and he calls upon the Force and the spirits of the recently deceased Jedi Masters to guide him in doing so.
Naturally the shot lands, the Star Hopper explodes– apparently taking the Warden along with it (RIP)-- and that gives us the cliffhanger ending of this issue of The High Republic Adventures. I found it to be an exciting, funny, and energetically paced entry from writer Daniel Jose Older and artist Harvey Tolibao along with vibrant colors by Michael Atiyeh. To be perfectly honest I’m getting a little tired of the Battle of Eriadu as a setpiece, but thankfully it’s almost at an end, with just two issues left to go in this series… so I’m still intrigued to see what comes next from this creative team and this group of Jedi and Republic heroes and (maybe deceased) Nihil villains.
Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #18 is available now wherever comic books are sold.