Ania’s been kidnapped by someone she thought was a friend!  Issue #12 of Star Wars: Legacy by Corinna Bechko and Gabriel Hardman is out today and now almost everyone in the galaxy is looking for one Ania Solo.  (Honestly, can this woman’s life get any worse?)

Betrayed by her friend Ramid, Ania Solo finds herself stuffed unceremoniously into a storage locker with no comlink and therefore no way for her real friends to track her.  Ramid, on the other hand, is holding a grudge against her for leaving him for dead outside a prison camp and he’s happy to hand her over to the Triumvirate in exchange for a sizable bounty.  Across the galaxy, Master Val learns that he’s not in nearly as much trouble as he expected for his actions on Dac and that the Imperial Knights have a new mission he doesn’t quite agree with.  Meanwhile, Jao, Sauk, and AG-37 are doing everything they can to find Ania and get her back but they aren’t the only ones in pursuit.

At this point, I’m fairly sure that no other writers can possibly slip little tidbits and hints about a character’s past so seamlessly into the dialogue without actually giving readers answers quite like Corinna Bechko and Gabriel Hardman.  This time it involves a sly mention of how there were also political prisoners in the prison camp where AG-37 first met Ania Solo.  I’ll just mention that this further backs up this reviewer’s theory that Ania is a wayward Hapan Princess and leave it at that.  There’s also a very interesting panel towards the end of the book that is a bit of a blast from the past that will undoubtedly leave readers with more questions.  Beckho and Hardman?  You are the Queen and King on intrigue when it comes to Star Wars comics.

Intrigue and fascinating backstories aside, Legacy continues to be a solidly good read.    Beckho and Hardman are telling a tale that’s new and different and yet still feels solidly like a part of the Star Wars universe.  In particular, it’s a great example of a story that has broad implications but that doesn’t also drag the entire galaxy into the conflict.  To top it off, they’ve also created interesting and distinct characters who fit right in with those from the previous Legacy run.  They all have their talents and they all have their weaknesses.  It’s also the relationships that the characters have with each other that make them fun to read about on a monthly basis because at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how good your plot is if your characters are not compelling.

As usual, there are nothing but good things to say about Hardman’s art on the book.  The transition between him and Thies is rather seamless even with the switch to Jordan Boyd on colors.  I almost feel bad not saying more here but it’d simply be a repeat of what I’ve said in all of the previous issues.

Legacy continues to be a book that gets a wholehearted Tosche Station recommendation.