Good afternoon everyone,
It's time for me to summarize the seventy-sixth issue of Marvel's first Star Wars title. The cover showed Darth Vader expressing anger, with a hologram of a protocol droid in front of him, and a pair of Imperial officers over his right shoulder. The story was called "Artoo-Detoo To The Rescue." The issue had a cover date of October 1983.
The tale began on the bridge of Vader's Super Star Destroyer. The Dark Lord of the Sith was awaiting his subordinates' reports, noting that the Emperor wanted a status update on the subjugation of the solar system that Iskalon, Gamandar, and Telfrey belonged to. The Empire had already established a base and enslaved the population on Gamandar and was making efforts to ensure that Iskalon fell in line.
Admiral Tower was in charge of Gamandar, although Vader knew that the leader was both brutish and arrogant. An officer informed his superior that they were still searching for the Rebel who had obtained confidential documents. Vader was confident that the Alliance member Tay Vanis would be dealt with accordingly eventually.
Another officer interrupted the proceedings to inform Lord Vader about an incoming transmission from a protocol droid. The droid was K3PX, who was insistent on informing the Sith that Tower had fired a missile at Iskalon, and that Luke Skywalker was one of the Rebels on the water world at the time. This news piqued Vader's attention immediately.
Meanwhile, Luke, Princess Leia Organa, and their new ally Kiro were busy tending to the injured and those who had perished after the bomb's detonation. They were taking a brief respite when a large creature emerged from the water's surface. Kiro instinctively reached for Luke's stinger and fired, keeping the beast known as a Chiaki at bay. He explained that the monsters were drawn to the blood and would easily claim those who were lost or defenseless.
The trio agreed to stay awake waiting for whatever would happen next. They didn't have to wait very long, as Kendle arrived moments later, claiming that the heroes were responsible for the damage that had been wrought. She allied the natives to her cause as the daughter-in-law of their late leader, Primor (who perished during the bomb's explosion). Luke used the Force to propel debris in the air toward Kendle's group, allowing his friends time to retreat to safety.
On Gamandar, several Imperial officers were noticing Artoo's hard work, even though no one knew much about him or his background. The clever astrodroid had learned much from his connections with Imperial computers before deciding to act on his own. Elsewhere on the planet, Lando Calrissian was just waking up inside a detention cell, where he was alongside Chewbacca, C-3PO, and Kendle's mate, Mone.
K3PX had blasted the heroes, who found themselves in custody next. Lando was wondering aloud who had sold them out when Tower admitted that it was Kendle who had tried to buy Mone and Primor's lives and that he'd sent a missile to Mone's homeworld. Angered, Chewbacca lunged at the cell door, only to learn that it had been electrified after Tower had pushed a button on the console on the other side.
Tower knew Lando's identity (after being introduced to Calrissian in his "Captain Drebble" guise in the previous issue) and was about to begin interrogations when K3PX arrived with his own squadron of Stormtroopers. The protocol droid informed Tower that Vader was most displeased with the Admiral's decision to send a missile to Iskalon, and followed the soldiers who placed Tower under arrest.
After the Imperials had left, Artoo approached the cell door and unlocked it. He led his companions back to the Millennium Falcon, informing Threepio along the way that he'd resigned from his Imperial work and instructed the city's central computers to leave the Falcon alone. The ship took off just as Tower faced a hologram of the Sith Lord, who was displeased by the unnecessary missile strike, one that may have affected a particular Rebel that Vader and the Emperor were most interested in. Another officer behind Tower spoke up to say that some survivors had been reported on Iskalon. Vader then ordered his personal ship to be prepared for the journey to Iskalon and instructed the guards to terminate Tower before ending the transmission.
Back on Iskalon, Luke, Leia, and Kiro found themselves outnumbered by Kendle and her allies, but they weren't about to give up the fight. Their foes, which had included several Imperial Stormtroopers by then, continued advancing. One Stormtrooper struck from behind, hitting Kiro's faceplate. Luke cried out and took Kiro's blade, driving it deep into the chest of the trooper who had just fired at his friend.
Luke then realized that Kiro was still alive, but needed to get to water quickly. He carried Kiro as Leia provided cover fire. Another Chiaki surfaced, but this one was bracketed by shots coming from the Falcon. The beast fell right onto what was left of the landing platform and presumably crushed Kendle in the process.
Afterward, Luke helped Kiro into the water, earning his gratitude. The Rebels were glad to be reunited, but Mone still wondered why his mate had betrayed them, as he looked at her corpse. He bid adieu to his friends and announced that there would be no more pavilions or living in two worlds as long as the Empire still existed. Mone then swam on, with his followers flanking him.
This is one of those issues where I really developed more appreciation for inker and sometimes penciler Tom Palmer. By now, he had a firm grasp on the existing and new characters that he worked on, and his covers were top-notch. His portrayals of Vader are probably the best in this entire series. I felt like this issue satisfactorily wrapped up this storyline. Tower got what he deserved, and the Iskalonians learned a harsh lesson, one whose impacts would continue to be felt after the Return of the Jedi movie adaptation.
Well, that's it for now. Next time, I'll cover the seventy-seventh issue of this title. The Rebels return home to Arbra momentarily before Luke and Leia are sent out on a diplomatic mission, which continues the search for Vanis and involves Han Solo. There will also be the return of some of the citizens from planets that we've seen representatives from in recent issues. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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