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Review: "Star Wars: Jango Fett #1"
Jango Fett is a character who has hardly been touched during the Disney era of Star Wars. Considering how badly Boba Fett and his legacy have been tainted by mediocre and unfaithful writing, I would say that’s more of a good thing. (Bear in mind this is solely my personal opinion and I obviously do not speak for the Boba Fett Fan Club as a whole. It would be amusing if I had that kind of say.)
Now, it’s Jango’s turn to step up to bat, as he takes center stage in the miniseries Star Wars: Jango Fett. This series will only be 4 issues, and the first one has been released. There was also a preview of this issue in the 2023 version of Star Wars: Relevations #1 (a different series, but it also involved Jango Fett in a short story). Be warned, minor spoilers follow for Star Wars: Jango Fett #1.
Based on context clues (negotiations that fell apart between the Trade Federation and Naboo are mentioned) it seems this comic takes place just before the events of Episode I: The Phantom Menace. It opens with Jango Fett bringing in a minor bounty — he owes a Sabaac debt to the Crymorah Syndicate. Curiously enough, the video game Star Wars: Bounty Hunter (which stars Jango Fett as the playable protagonist) opened up in a similar way.
There is nothing notable about the target, but this sequence treats us to something I haven’t seen in a very long time: good old-fashioned Jango Fett gunslinging. Despite being surrounded by blasters, Jango Fett quickly turns the tables in a way that would make even John Wick impressed. Jango is fierce, fast and accurate, quickly making short work of a few goons with his pair of Westar-34 blaster pistols. THIS is the skillset that made him a legend in the Star Wars galaxy. He blasts off with his jetpack after securing the bounty, while blowing everyone up with a thermal detonator he drops behind him. I guess this carnage is what Jango meant when he said he was a “simple man trying to make his way in the universe.” If this is a “simple” man, imagine what a “complex” man of Jango’s composure would be doing.
Jaloria is a planet I haven’t heard of, but apparently it has a Republic headquarters which looks similar in shape in the Senate building on Coruscant. To make a long sequence short, a peace treaty is being broken between the Nautolans (e.g. Kit Fisto) and the Anselmi of, well, Glee Anselm. This peace is symbolized by a rare artifact called The Hope of Glee Anselm. It is sculpted from the royal jewels of both people. This jewel is stolen by a team of black armored thieves.
Meanwhile, Jango Fett is collecting his recent bounty at Y3-99’s Bounty Services, on Halmad in the Outer Rim. The droid Y3-99 quickly gets down to business, bringing to Jango’s attention a bounty from the Republic itself. In the transmission, we see that the people contacting Y3 and Jango are the delegates from the ceremony in which the Hope of Glee Anselm was supposed to finalize the treaty. They explain the heist, and the importance of the artifact, as well as the fact that they don’t want the Jedi involved. Since Kit Fisto is a Nautolan, they believe the Jedi will be biased in their handling of the situation. Jango drops an alternate version of his famous line from Episode II: “I’m no Jedi, just a simple man making his way through the universe.” (Where are my fellow simple men at? Drop a shout out in the comments.)
It’s revealed to us that Jango isn’t the only bounty hunter potentially being brought in on this mission. We are introduced to a new bounty hunter: Vigor Struk. There’s nothing really impressive about him. No armor and minimal weaponry. Realistically, Jango would utterly shred him in a confrontation. If he puts up a “fight” in the later issues, it’s only for the sake of plot convenience and dramatic effect. Jango Fett is on a tier that I call “Jedi Equivalent:” basically a non-Force User who is deadly enough that they can compete with Force users or others on a similar level. This Vigor Struk is nowhere near that level.
We are treated to one more location… and one more hunter. This time, it’s a familiar face. They are housed in the Megalox Penitentiary, in the Expansion Region. She is remanded into the custody of the Republic, to track down a certain bounty hunter (Jango Fett). And by “she,” I mean Aurra Sing. So with this development, it appears a double cross is in the future…
We return back to Jango where, presumably, he has accepted the mission. I must admit, it is kind of odd to see Jango hired by the Republic. Then again, being the best in the galaxy means you are highly sought after. It’s just odd considering the events of Episode ll… but rewarding nonetheless.
The Slave I has been surrounded by the same goons who took the artifact in the first place! It seems that they are loyal to Glee Anselm. I wonder how they found out about Jango’s involvement so soon? Perhaps Y3 is to blame…
Jango once again uses his gunslinging skills to great effect, quickly eliminating most of the goons. There is one remaining left, and Jango uses a unique move not yet seen in Star Wars. He throws a mirrored disc, which latches onto Slave I. He then shoots it, which reflects the shot back at an angle to hit the final goon. This move is akin to something Deadshot would do; he’s a highly skilled assassin from DC Comics known for never missing.
Jango turns back to Y3… who was destroyed during the fight. Now Jango can’t question why this ambush happened. As amazing as his skills are, perhaps saving the last goon for interrogation might have helped. We see the Slave I take off in all it’s blue and grey Firespray glory… and the issue ends.
Yep, it’s over already: the issue is short and sweet, along with the whole miniseries to come. And I have to say, this issue was absolutely stellar. The plot might be simple enough — for now. But it’s rare to see someone portray the Fetts so faithfully. Ethan Sacks, the author, has written other issues involving both Jango and Boba in the past — all canon, mind you. So the awesome work by Sacks is being cemented into canon and is doing a great job of countering the more mainstream mediocrity. Hopefully, this trend continues. This will go a long way towards Jango Fett in particular, who as I mentioned earlier, has hardly been tainted by Disney-era Canon. For some reason Ethan Sacks has a solid understanding of the Fetts, which is much more than can be said for other writers who have handled them poorly.
We are off to a strong start with this series, and I am hoping I can say the same about the ending. In the meantime, I predict Jango Fett and Aurra Sing will team up, and Ethan Sacks will do right by both of them.
The Pros
- Jango Fett is portrayed very well and faithfully
- Awesome action
- Cool shots of Jango illustrated
- Story takes place during an era usually ignored
- Aurra Sing is involved (although I still prefer Zam Wesell)
The Cons
- Story is a bit simple so far
- Both issue and series are a bit short
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So the move Jango used with the magnetic mirror disc HAS been used before, specifically, by one of his clones. Crosshair, an intentionally mutated clone in Taskforce 99 is a highly skilled marksman with hyper concentration and aim. Crosshair does this move, but with several mirrors, down an entire corridor in a CIS ship, and fires one sniper shot, penetrating and killing dozens of droids as the shot bounces perfectly off all the mirrors. This is likely the writer paying homage to that but also sort of showing where crosshair got his idea/tactics from.