"High Republic Adventures #6: Mission to Bilbousa, part 1" by Daniel Jose Older

"High Republic Adventures #6: Mission to Bilbousa, part 1" written by Daniel Jose Older, illustrated by Harvey Tolibao, Pow Rodrix, and Rebecca Nalty

This was a fun one with some fantastic humor!! Daniel Jose Older really knows how to hit the sweet spot of character development and comedy. I really am enjoying this series very much. 

In this arc, we veer away from Zeen and Lula's story as we hone in on the adventures of Qort and Farzala. The two Padawans are in way over their heads as Farzala attempts to negotiate with the Hutts on the capital city of Nal Hutta--Bilbousa--...only to have all hell break loose. 

But the best part about this new direction is that the crew of the Vessel from the young adult novel Into the Dark are characters in the story as well!!! I adored how weird and loveable they were in the novel and man does it carry over into this comic!! We have Leox Gyasi, Geode, and Affie Hollow (see below). Leox looks exactly as I pictured him and I am so here for this pirate-esque, hippie dude. Geode is indeed just a rock but his shape is different than I had imagined. He's more like a thick rectangle than a natural rock. But goodness gracious he acts exactly the way I had imagined. He was perfection! Bravo Daniel Jose Older for taking Claudia Gray's character and doing him so much justice! Affie is brave and skeptical which fits...and gorgeous I might add. The Vessel itself was not how I imagined (see below). It seemed an awful lot bigger than I thought it would be...especially with the way the Jedi talked about the ship in Into the Dark. But overall this was a fantastic transition between mediums!

Master Obratuk, Farzala's Parwan Master, has gone into some sort of hibernation (see below), snoring up a storm (Leox dubs him, "Master Snoozies" *snort*), leaving Farzala as the only one left to carry on with the negotiations. Qort speaks in characters that aren't even in Aurebesh so it's doubtful he would know Huttese. And the Vessel crew certainly aren't trained in any sort of diplomacy. Leox does go with the Zygerrian as back up though.

Farzala and Leox are greeted by a female Nikto named Ishnar, Skarabda the Hutt's muscle, who unfortunately, instantly refers to Farzala as "the kid" and Leox as "weirdo." Yeah, this doesn't bode well. But things get worse when Jabba's cronies infiltrate the Vessel and start firing its weapons at Skarabda and crew (see below) down on Nal Hutta's surface. Needless to say, Farzala ends up imprisoned for the "obvious betrayal" of the Hutts by the Jedi...

But along the way, Farzala and Leox make an escape attempt and run into both a giant Rancor (see below) and...the Drengir!! What are the Drengir doing in Bilbousa?? It almost seems like Ishnar is going to pardon them...until...it doesn't... The two amateur negotiators appear to be in hot water now!

So here are the great Geode moments (see both below). 1) Qort has a lot on his chest and he just pours his soul out to Geode (as seen by paragraph after paragraph of his language's characters), leading the Aloxians to give Geode a big comfy hug!! D'awww!!! 2) One of Jabba's henchmen, Gargo, is in the cockpit of the Vessel, trying to take control when Geode suddenly appears out of thin air! The man's facial expression in response is freaking priceless. This panel is followed by him screaming, "How did that rock get in the cockpit with me?!" heehee. Gargo later calls Geode, "that evil stone thing."

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Trivia: 

-Master Tal Bota was an ancient storied Jedi who single-handedly battled Sith henchman by the droves and pulled star cruisers out of the sky (see below). 

-I never noticed this before but Qort's face is actually a skull he's wearing over his head...so we don't really know what he looks like at all... At one point, Leox calls him, "Skullhead." And one of Jabba's henchmen even refers to him as "the creepy little dead-looking kid." Aww, poor guy!

-Some Parwans "hibernate in time with the seasonal changes on Parwa, even when they're off planet. But their seasons are several centuries long..."--Leox. Dun dun dun!!!! Is Master Obratuk ever going to wake up?!?!

-Below is an image of the statues that the Jedi released the dark energy of the Drengir from in Into the Dark:

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So a lot went on in this issue, and the comedy/plot balance was wonderful! For those enjoying the adult side of The High Republic publishing campaign, I highly suggest delving into some of the young adult and middle grade entries because they include some truly fabulous characters and story. The whole program is just chef's kiss so far.