The doctor has returned.
Doctor Aphra is actually Marvel's riskiest Star Wars project to date. It's the first series to focus on comic book-specific characters rather than those made famous by the movies and TV series. That also happens to be one of Doctor Aphra's biggest selling points. The distance from the movies gives Doctor Aphra a greater sense of freedom in terms of tone, style and plot possibilities. And it's immediately clear that writer Kieron Gillen and artist Kev Walker intend on taking advantage of that freedom.
This new series picks up in the aftermath of Gillen and Salvador Larroca's recently concluded Darth Vader comic. As far as Vader and the galaxy at large are concerned, Aphra is dead, leaving her free to resume her work as an opportunistic archaeologist. But that's not to say she doesn't have her fair share of problems. With Aphra owing massive piles of credits to both a criminal cartel and her "partner," Black Krrsantan and barely managing to keep a leash on her homicidal droids, her problems have hardly ended with her staged death.
The result of this status quo is a book that feels very much like a Bizarro Han Solo story with a dash of Indiana Jones thrown in. Aphra has all of Han's swaggery, scoundrel-y charm, but little of his noble streak. Black Krrsantan is basically Chewbacca, if Chewie were only hanging around Han to collect on a literal debt rather than fulfill a Life Debt. And fans of Gillen's Darth Vader work no doubt understand the appeal of Beetee and Triple Zero by now. The book thrives on its dark sense of humor. Only Gillen would be able to work a Star Wars-themed poop joke into his script and actually pull it off. But none of this is to say the series doesn't engage on a deeper level. Aphra and her motley crew are fun, but the fact that her life seems perpetually balanced on a razor's edge gives the book a sense of danger and unease as well. Perhaps the biggest advantage to a Star Wars comic featuring comic-exclusive characters is that no one is safe and anything can happen.
Kev Walker immediately proves to be a great match for Gillen's storytelling sensibilities. Walker's quirky style channels both the seedy darkness of this corner of the Star Wars universe and the rampant humor. Unlike most of Marvel's Star Wars projects, realism isn't really the goal here. Instead, Walker focuses more on crafting unusual character designs and viscerally thrilling action scenes. Together with colorist Antonio Fabela, Walker gives these pages a gritty, grimy texture that very much suits Aphra's world.
This issue also boasts a backup feature from Gillen and Larroca, one that flashes back to Aphra's time as an archaeologist in training. This story doesn't impress much, visually. It showcases Larroca at his worst in terms of inconsistent character details and sparse line-work that requires colorist Edgar Delgado to fill in most of the finer detail. But in terms of the script, Gillen's younger Aphra is every bit as entertaining as the older version. There's a lot to be said for a Star Wars comic with such a morally dubious protagonist.
The Verdict
Doctor Aphra is already a worthy addition to Marvel's Star Wars lineup. It offers a funnier, quirkier take on the franchise, one bolstered by a strong cast that aren't constrained by the limitations of the movies or other Star Wars projects. Whether you followed Gillen's entire Darth Vader saga or are simply diving in fresh, this first issue has a lot to offer Star Wars fanatics.
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