Into the Unknown is a clever story that begins with Han Solo and Chewbacca aboard the Millennium Falcon being chased by an Imperial Star Destroyer. They make a blind jump into hyperspace and when they come out of it they have to make a crash landing on a nearby planet. At this point in the story, there are already clues about what planet it is with a text box that read "No longer far, far away..." and one panel shows the Millennium Falcon with Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn in the background. They crash on Earth in a forest with giant trees and are attacked by Native Americans. As they depart the ship, Han muses:
Hans Solo: "Great. This looks just like Endor."
And a couple of panels later, Han also gets to utter a variation of the popular phrase from the movies:
Hans Solo: "I have a bad feeling about this place."
All the clues are they have crashed in what will end up being the Pacific Northwestern of the United States. Chewbacca defeats the attackers, but Han is mortally injured. Chewbacca takes Han back to the Falcon and Han says:
Han Solo: "Always thought it would be you... getting killed... saving me or my kids... trying to repay that damn life-debt... But I'm going first into the great unknown..."
With those words, Han Solo dies and Chewbacca, cradling Han's body, lets out a mournful roar which is heard by nearby Native Americans with one commenting "Sasquatch!" The story then jumps to 126 years later and we see a Native American leading someone referred to as Doctor and another companion into the forest. The Doctor and companion are in silhouette and the Doctor is someone wearing a fedora and a brown jacket with a white shirt and also carries a whip. There are some additional clues to the identity of the Doctor in the exchange between him and the Native American:
Native American: "Here, another footprint. We are nearing his home."
Doctor: "Good. The museum isn't paying for footprints."
Native American: "There must be a cave here or... this is no cave."
They are looking at the crashed Millennium Falcon, now covered with overgrowth, which they enter. They are peering at Han's body, now a skeleton, and the final dialogue between the Doctor and his companion continues the cleverness:
Companion: What is this place?
Doctor: I don't know. I've never seen anything like it. Not even in Atlantis. But it's all somehow familiar. Stay close, Shorty. He looks human. Poor bastard.
Companion: What now Doctor Jones? We continue looking for this "monster"?
Doctor: No. Let's leave him as part of the great unknown.
Indiana Jones and Short Round are revealed in a panel on the final page. The final panel in the story shows Chewbacca perched in a nearby tree peering at the Falcon.
It is a fun story that includes Harrison Ford's two biggest roles. It references events from the Expanded Universe including Han's kids and Chewbacca's death. I also like how Chewbacca ends up being the legendary Sasquatch or Big Foot.
No comments:
Post a Comment