What are the odds that a Han Solo-centric “Star Wars” title written by Matt Kindt wouldn’t be worth taking a look at? Find out in our spoiler-free review down below.
(P.S. Don’t tell me the odds)
Written by Matt Kindt
Illustrated by Marco Castiello
Inked by Dan Parsons
Colors by Gabe Eltaeb
Lettered by Michael HeislerA young Rebel meets one of the Alliance’s best for his first mission. But the young man’s hero worship is crushed by the reality of Han Solo. A botched escape, a ship that doesn’t work—could it be that Solo is just a lucky bumbler whose luck has run out?
At the risk of loading this thing with Star Wars puns and references, “Star Wars: Rebel Heist” #1 is a bit of a scruffy-looking nerd-herder. That is to say that it’s got a fair amount of charm to it, but its storytelling is rough around the edges and struggles to get going – much like Han Solo, himself.
Matt Kindt makes the choice to view Solo from the point-of-view of a young rebel-to-be narrator who he has inherited as his trainee. The young man is a bit green and spends a good deal of time alternating between a form of idol-worshipping disbelief and skepticism for the “hero” he’s following into all of these scrapes. It’s actually a clever way to frame the story, considering what a silver screen legend “Han Solo” has become over the years. We see an in-story meta-commentary on how we all saw Han when we watched Star Wars with a little dash of his flawed side too.
But while the narration choice is a good way to build myth-making into Han’s portrayal, the plot of the story itself trips a little over lengthy diatribes about what a magnificent bastard the guy is. A lot of effort is spent in telling us how reckless Han is and what little regard he has for others, even as he’s saving the kid’s hide. In fact, there’s a sense that this issue could have used a little trimming to shore up some repetitiveness in general. It feels like we’re told that the ship that they’re trolling around in is a “hunk of junk”, in those exact words, about a half a dozen times. The references and parallels to the original films are appreciated, but it does feel like they’re used to redundancy at times.
Once Han and our narrator end up in the belly of the proverbial beast, things pick up speed and intrigue. Han’s personality shines more on his own and less as a product of the narration. Furthermore, while the issue’s first half is a reckless chase sequence that feels chaotic and extremely luck-based in a wide-open environment, the latter half of the issue presents a situation that feels claustrophobic, tense, and calculated in all the right ways. You know – the type of situation where Han Solo shines. The issue’s final moments will have you coming back for more, but the slow build to it isn’t well-suited for a 4-issue miniseries.
The artistic effort from Castiello and Parsons does a great job of entrenching the story in the “Star Wars” universe, where everything looks the way it’s supposed to look without falling into a gross, uncanny valley likeness. Only one or two times does the visage of not-Harrison-Ford look noticeably wonky.
While the best storytelling is done in the back half of the issue, some of the most impressive design-work is done up front. Castiello and Parsons establish the setting of a grimy, unsettling city of scum and villainy with the proper gusto. They pepper the environment with alien-types potentially engaging in elicit behavior, right down to some arthropod-like nightclub “strippers” that might haunt me in my sleep tonight. It’s same world-building effect that the Mos Eisley Cantina scene had all over again – all that’s missing is the iconic music.
Gabe Eltaeb’s colors stick to the vintage Star Wars palette – that is, grays, blacks, whites, and drab greens when in and around the Empire’s base. He gets to experiment a little more in the scummy city, adding purples and blues with neon hues to accentuate the seedy nightlife feel.
“Star Wars: Rebel Heist” #1 performs just like its hero tends to when he allies are in a jam. It comes through as a fully fleshed tale of intrigue by the end and, in the end, gets you with its roguish charm. But it’s messy and takes its time in getting there, all the while kind of telling you what you already know. For fans of Han Solo, the book is a must, because it celebrates the character by embodying the point of view of a fan. For everyone else, it’s worth a browse, because it really does pull through in the final pages.
Final Verdict: 6.9 – Worth a browse
