Star Wars (2020) 50

Publisher's summary

GIANT-SIZED STAR WARS EPIC! A fifty-page extravaganza! JEDI MASTER LUKE SKYWALKER must teach his student BEN SOLO a powerful lesson about the true balance between LIGHT and DARK. He offers up a tale from the days of the REBEL ALLIANCE that touches on ALL ERAS OF STAR WARS HISTORY, and brings this epic run to a thrilling, incredible conclusion!

Opening crawl

As Leia, Lando, Chewie, and the other
members of the Rebellion continue the
fight against the Empire, Luke must
also continue his training to become a
Jedi.

To do so, he must explore the past as
well as the future….

Plot summary

Part 1: You Would Prefer Another Target?

In the Jedi Temple on Ossus during the New Republic Era, Jedi Master Luke Skywalker invites his nephew and protégé Ben Solo on a walk. As they stroll the temple grounds, Luke strikes up conversation with Ben, telling the Padawan that he is almost ready for his Jedi Trials and no longer be under the close attention of his master. Given the boy's lineage, Luke anticipates that Ben could likely hold a leadership position in Luke's Jedi Order, which would mean having to make difficult decisions from time to time. To illustrate that point, Luke prepares to tell a story from the days in which Ben's father Han Solo was frozen in carbonite. Ben wonders how so many major events went on during that single year, to which Luke responds that it was a time of significant change, of a burgeoning which was even palpable in the Force.

Luke's story begins on the Mid Rim living planet of Gazian, whose massive fungal network made imprints of the beings who entered its depths. He ventured to the strange world in hopes of learning more about the Force. Instructing R2-D2 with plans for retrieval, Luke plunges into the fungi, hoping it does not fight too hard to let him go. In retrospect, Luke finds his second journey there to be quite foolish, as not only is it Jedi who ventured into that network.

Within the depths of the Living Sea, Luke is greeted by the form of the fallen Jedi Knight Azlin Rell from the High Republic Era. The form of Rell admonishes Luke for his greediness in hoping for more information than was given in his first visit. He shows Luke the forms of numerous decaying corpses of those who sought more than what was welcome in the past. Rell confirms that it was the collective mind-presence of the Jedi within to give Luke his first Jedi text and that today Luke will only speak to Rell. The fallen Jedi sees Luke's objective and gripping purpose and offers to show Luke a potential solution to his problem.

Later, among the Alliance Fleet, Luke talks with his friends Leia, Lando, and Chewbacca about the mysterious opportunity. Lando feels strange about Gazian as a whole, Leia is skeptical of the nature of what sounds like an assassination weapon that can kill from a distance, and Chewbacca is skeptical if the weapon is even real. The group decides to see if the rumored device is even real before wasting time chatting around about it.

The group, now joined by R2-D2 and C-3PO travel in the Millennium Falcon to the Inner Rim planet Niraya. When they detect only ice and no life signs, C-3PO informs them that Niraya was inhabited centuries early before a gravitational anomaly brought it out of orbit, leaving it to freeze, its cities buried deep below the ice. Since then, the Empire had established a presence on the planet, using massive mining droidnaughts to bore into the abandoned cities and extract rare minerals from the wreckage.

After landing the Falcon, the group strategies how to best breach the ice. It is R2-D2 who develops the strategy of choice: slice one of the droidnaughts to carve a path to the artifact. The astromech's plan works, and he bores a hole deep into the ice at the specified coordinates. Alerted to the irregularity, a squadron of TIE fighters swarms on the Rebels' position, causing Luke to split from his friends to nab the artifact while they protect the Falcon. On his way to the hole, Luke comes head-to-head with a TIE, but Leia is able to destroy the starfighter with the Falcon, clearing the way for Luke to leap into the bored hole. Down in the cavernous hell, Luke sets off to find the weapon.

The object Azlin Rell alluded to is called the Grim Rose, as revealed by C-3PO's translation of the inscriptions of the box-like weapon. The droid explains that when the genetic material of any person is inserted, it leverages an arcane, mystical web of connection of individuals until it finds its target, killing them. The Rebels think the target of choice is obvious: Emperor Sheev Palpatine.

Part 2: You May Fire When Ready.

Leia has the idea of how to acquire a genetic sample of Palpatine, who notoriously does not let others near him. She knows that members of the Galactic Senate were required to supply genetic samples for biometric purposes. She reasons that since Palpatine never technically ended his term in the Senate, his homeworld of Naboo may still have a copy of this material in the Royal Archives in Theed. Chewbacca provides transponder codes to get to Theed, and Lando uses an old Imperial officer's uniform to enter the building in disguise.

Within the former Royal Archives, Lando approaches an information desk and speaks with the records clerk. Using his best Imperial demeanor, he tries to get her to find Palpatine's genetic sample. She informs Lando that those records were deleted soon after the rise of the Empire. She then asks Lando why he is wearing a captain's uniform but never corrected her when she called him a lieutenant. Her finger hovering over the emergency alarm button, she informs Lando she saw right through his ploy, but she admits that she is no friend of the Empire. In fact, since she can tell only a true Rebel would try such a ploy, she gives him something she secreted away many years before: a copy of Palpatine's genetics under the condition that he uses it to kill the deplorable Emperor.

Back on the Falcon, the Rebels debate whether or not they should go through with this assassination attempt, especially without consulting the Alliance High Command. Chewbacca decides to take matter into his own hands and pours the blood into the Grim Rose.

Part 3: Commence Primary Ignition.

Chewbacca requests C-3PO to give a clear translation of his motives: Since the Empire took Kashyyyk, enslaved the Wookiees, and isolated him from his wife and son, for him there is no room for debate. This satisfies the other Rebels. Luke decides to search into the weapon with the Force to understand what is happening. He sees a gardener who once worked for Palpatine, and numerous other individuals, each who knew or have known Palpatine more closely than the previous.

In light of Luke's insights, C-3PO reexamines the inscriptions, and realizes that once the weapon finds its target, it not only kills them, but every individual it encounters in its meandering path. Luke figures they need to find a way to stop it, but Lando disagrees due to importance of killing the Emperor and the fact that most of the people in Palpatine's circles are Imperials. Luke, searching through the box once more comes to understand that the number of people searched is already in the thousands, which could spell disaster, especially if Palpatine finds a way to hide himself away as the device captures more and more individuals to slaughter.

The Rebels decide to stop the Grim Rose. C-3PO informs them that there is no off switch, so Luke attacks it with his lightsaber. It strikes back in a small explosion, unfazed.

Part 4: As If Millions of Voices Cried Out in Terror

In Luke and Ben's conversation years later, Ben realizes the Grim Rose likely would have gotten Darth Vader killed as well as Palpatine, eliminating the threat of the Sith. Luke says how he was conflicted, since he was starting to believe he could redeem his father, even if that was potentially naive.

Back in the story, the Rebels return to Gazian to see if they can learn from Azlin Rell any way to stop the Grim Rose. With his tether attached, he dives into the Living Sea. Luke encounters the imprint of a young man named Lor San Tekka, who does not provide Luke any insight. Before long, he transforms into Rell, whose maniacal presence celebrates the chaos of Luke's decision to use the weapon. Rell confirms there is no way to change the weapon, but Luke finds out that the target could be changed, even to someone dead so long they have no one for whom the Grim Rose could even find in a path. Luke tries to find the oldest bodies in the Living Sea, but Rell's imprint engages Luke in a lightsaber duel just as R2-D2 starts to pull Luke back to the surface. Luke grabs a decayed body as his friends pull him to the surface.

On Ossus, Ben asks his master what happened next. Luke reminds Ben he knows what happened with the Second Death Star and how Palpatine died, but that his plan to use a long-dead sample worked. He reveals that the message of the story is to not become evil to defeat evil, and the two men go on their way.

Development

The issue was confirmed to be the finale to Charles Soule's series on June 20, 2024.^[3] Soule turned in the lettering draft of Star Wars 50 on July 2 and thanked artist Madibek Musabekov for his "gorgeous" artwork.^[4] In his July newsletter, Soule promised to do a more dedicated post on issue 50 once it was released and revealed the four individual chapter names.^[5]

As Soule considers War of the Bounty Hunters, Star Wars: Crimson Reign, Star Wars: Hidden Empire, and Star Wars: Dark Droids to be part of his main Star Wars run, Soule stated the issue is more of an issue seventy than an issue fifty.^[6] The fifty-page issue^[3] is broken up into individual chapters which he likened to a graphic novel.^[5] With its release, Soule intended to take a moment to sit with the accomplishment^[7] and considered doing a look back on the series in a newsletter-like format.^[8]

Continuity

Star Wars 50 links together the various Star Wars eras author Charles Soule has written in—stretching from the days of the High Republic Era to the sequel trilogy time period^[4]—and brings together a great deal of content from the Star Wars series and its spinoffs.^[3] The issue itself, however, is designed to be largely separate from the overall Star Wars line, ensuring fans not up to date with the comic could read it.^[9]

Media

Cover gallery

Final cover by Leinil Francis Yu

Solicit cover by Leinil Francis Yu

The Phantom Menace 25th Anniversary variant cover by Chris Sprouse

Textless The Phantom Menace 25th Anniversary variant cover by Chris Sprouse

Action Figure variant cover by John Tyler Christopher

Variant cover by Stephen Segovia

Action Figure variant cover by David López

Connecting variant cover by Giuseppe Camuncoli

Virgin cover by Leinil Francis Yu

Collected in

• Star Wars Vol. 9: The Path of Light

Appearances

This Appearances list is incomplete. You can help Wookieepedia by expanding it.

Sources

• Giant-Size 'Star Wars' Finale Issues Make Way for the Next Era of Comic Book Storytelling on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)
• SDCC 2024: The Acolyte Publishing Program and Other Reveals from the Lucasfilm Panel on StarWars.com (backup link)
• Darth Vader & Princess Leia Rule the Galaxy as Father & Daughter in Derrick Chew's 'Darth Vader' #50 Cover on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)
• "Launchpad" — Star Wars Insider 227
• Star Wars Year in Review 2024 on StarWars.com (backup link)

Notes and references

External links

• Star Wars (2020) #50 on Marvel Comics' official website (backup link)
• Star Wars (2020) 50 on the Aurebesh Wiki