- "Luke, you've got to leave this to a man with some style, a man of subtlety, a man who knows his way around cities."
- ―Lando Calrissian
| Star Wars 71 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Vital statistics | |
| Series | Star Wars |
| Title | "Return to Stenos" |
| Volume | 1 |
| Number | 71 |
| Cover date | May, 1983 |
| Cover price | 60¢ (US) |
| Publisher | Marvel Comics |
| Credits | |
| Editor-in-Chief | Jim Shooter |
| Writers | Jo Duffy |
| Pencilers | Ron Frenz |
| Inkers | Tom Palmer |
| Cover Artists | Tom Palmer |
| Colorists | Christie Scheele |
| Letterers | Joe Rosen |
| Editors | Louise Jones |
| Issue navigation | |
| Previous | Star Wars #70 |
| Next | Star Wars #72 |
Plot[]
The Millennium Falcon lands on the planet Stenos. Inside, Luke Skywalker and Lando Calrissian discuss their plan for tracking down the whereabouts of their captured friend, Han Solo. They believe that the bounty hunter known as Bossk is on Stenos and has had prior dealings with Boba Fett, the man who succeeded in capturing Han Solo. Luke recalls the last time he came to Stenos and is concerned how the native Stenaxes might react to their presence. Chewbacca and R2-D2 want to go with them, but Luke and Lando are afraid that they might attract too much attention so they have them remain on the Falcon.
After checking their weapons, Luke and Lando head out down the main thoroughfare of the capital city. The streets are filled with alien pedestrians and a few Imperial Stormtroopers can be seen patrolling the crowded causeway. Lando believes that the best place to begin searching for a bounty hunter is at a tavern. They find a cantina and sit down at the bar while trying to keep a low profile. Surprisingly, one of the patrons, a man named Drebble, recognizes Calrissian and begins shouting at him over some past transgression. He makes an open statement to the room, offering a reward of 10,000 credits to anyone who captures Lando for him. Nearly every alien in the room takes Drebble upon his offer and Lando and Luke find themselves surrounded by greedy, blaster-slinging drinkers. They knock over a table and duck behind it for cover while Lando trades shots with the other patrons. Luke spots Bossk in the back of the room leaving the bar with a Jawa. He ignites his lightsaber and cuts his way through a wall, allowing them to escape the cantina. Some of the revelers follow after them, while others remain behind. Nobody appears to notice the quiet assassin droid sitting motionlessly in a dark corner of the bar.
They run through the streets of Stenos, ducking between various people as they try to catch up to Bossk. Luke thinks that he's cornered him, but the person he stops is actually just a female Trandoshan. As more of Drebble's followers chase after them, Luke and Lando split up.
Luke opens a door on the side of a building, but as he enters, he finds that it is occupied by two others; Rik Duel and the Zeltron Dani. Luke remembers them from the last time he was on Stenos and how Rik betrayed him to the Stormtroopers. Rik acts defensively as Luke brandishes his lightsaber saying, "The way I got it figured, we're about even for what happened the last time we ran into each other. I betrayed you to the Stormtroopers. You betrayed me to the Stenaxes". An uneasy truce is forged between the two and Luke realizes that he might just require Rik's help if he's going to escape the mob and meet back up with Lando. He asks Rik about his other partner, a Rodian named Chihdo, and Rik says that he hasn't seen him for several hours now.
The three venture out into the streets, but as they turn a corner, Luke hears Lando whispering for him. Luke leaves Rik and Dani and talks with Lando. Calrissian tells him that he's found Han hear on Stenos and if they are quick, they might be able to rescue him. Luke is overjoyed by this news and Lando radios the Falcon to tell Chewbacca that they've found Han.
Luke and Lando spot Bossk and another man carrying a carbonite storage block through the back streets of the city. They silently follow them into a building and wait until they have a chance to inspect it. When they overturn the storage block however, they find that it is not the one in which Han Solo had been imprisoned. In fact, it is Chihdo, Rik's second partner, who lies frozen in a brick of carbonite. The lights suddenly turn on and the two find themselves surrounded by Bossk, the assassin droid IG-88 and several armed thugs.
Appearances[]
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Villains:
Other Characters:
- C-3PO (In flashback only)
- Chihdo (Cameo appearance only)
- Han Solo (In flashback only)
- Imperial Stormtroopers (Cameo appearance only)
- Leia Organa (In flashback only)
Races:
Locations:
Items:
- Bowcaster (In flashback only)
- Carbonite (Also in flashback)
- DL-44 heavy blaster pistol
- Holoprojector
- Lightsaber
Vehicles:
Notes & Trivia[]
- This issue is reprinted in Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... - Fool's Bounty
- Rik Duel, Dani and Chihdo all appeared last in flashback in Star Wars #70.
- Second issue of the series colored by Christie Scheele. She also colored Star Wars #49.
- The scene with Luke and Lando standing on the bluff overlooking the capital city of Stenos is reminiscent of the scene from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope where Luke and Obi-Wan Kenobi are standing on a similar bluff overlooking Mos Eisley on Tatooine.
- First appearance of members of the Trandoshan race other than Bossk. Bossk was introduced in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.
- Lando Calrissian says the line, "Drebble! With all the watering holes on all the worlds... why did I have to run into him here?" This is an homage to the famous Humphrey Bogart line from the 1942 film Casablanca, "Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world, she walks into mine."