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In Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #6, a familiar foe sabotages the Jedi’s negotiations with the Hutt clans, jeopardizing their alliance.
WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #6 and Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters #2, on sale now from Marvel Comics.
Throughout the Star Wars: The High Republic subseries, the Drengir, a species of sentient plants determined to devour all “meat,” have forced the Jedi to make questionable alliances in order to save the Outer Rim, including an alliance with the Hutt clans in the Star Wars: The High Republic comic series. In Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures’ new arc, Padawans Farzala Tarabal and Qort head to Nal Hutta to aid Jedi Master Obratuk in negotiations with the Hutt cartel in regards to their alliance with the Jedi in the fight against the Drengir. However, they face a surprising adversary to their goals: Jabba the Hutt, who seeks to sabotage the alliance for unknown purposes, in an appearance that solidifies Jabba’s role as a driving force behind this summer’s Star Wars stories.
The Jedi’s alliance with the Hutt cartel takes the focus in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures #6 by Daniel José Older, Harvey Tolibao, Pow Rodrix, Jake M. Wood, Rebecca Nalty, Elizabeth Brei, Heather Antos and Riley Farmer. At the beginning of the issue, Farzala, Qort and Obratuk travel on board the Vessel with pilot Leox Gyasi, navigator Geode and the ship’s owner, Affie Hollow to Nal Hutta. When Obratuk unexpectedly goes into hibernation, Farzala assumes the role of negotiator. However, before the negotiations with Skarabda the Hutt, Myarga the Hutt’s sister, can even begin, shots fire on the proceedings from the Vessel. Believing the Jedi are responsible for the attack, Farzala and Leox are arrested, and while they try to escape, they are unable to get away.
Back on the Vessel, a group of mercenaries have taken Affie, Qort and Geode hostage, but Affie and Qort are able to escape and hide on the ship. While the mercenaries’ motives and allegiances are initially unclear, at the end of the issue, the head mercenary states that “Jabba said no one gets out alive, so we’re gonna tear this ship apart until we find them!” This statement shows that Jabba was still ruthless even in his younger years, especially when focused on a goal.
While Jabba does not actually appear in the issue, the evidence shows that Jabba is trying to sabotage the Hutt’s alliance with the Jedi. His reasons for doing so have not been revealed, there are some distinct possibilities. First, he may be acting out of distrust for the Jedi Order, especially in regards to their intentions for the Hutts after the Drengir threat is dealt with. A more likely possibility is that Jabba is acting for his own personal gain and to rise in status on Nal Hutta. The truth may be somewhere in between.
Jabba’s appearance in Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures adds to Jabba’s influence in the current Star Wars comics lineup. In the comic series set during the Original Trilogy era, the current crossover event, the War of the Bounty Hunters, centers on Boba Fett’s loss of Han Solo’s carbonite encased body, originally meant to be delivered to Jabba himself. With Crimson Dawn currently in possession of Han, multiple factions are fighting for custody of him, including Jabba himself, as seen in Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters #2 by Charles Soule, Luke Ross, Neeraj Menon and VC’s Travis Lanham. While Jabba is only one player in the storyline, the impetus for the entire arc across multiple titles is Jabba’s initial bounty and desire for revenge against Han Solo.
It’s proving to be the Summer of Jabba in the Star Wars comics universe, and the latest arc of Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures shows that Jabba is an active force during the High Republic era. Unlike the original trilogy era comics where Jabba’s motivations are clear, his overall plan in the High Republic era is yet to be revealed. Regardless of his reasons, Jabba will prove to be a thorn in the High Republic Jedi’s side moving as Star Wars’ Hutt boy summer continues.
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