Star Wars 1: Doctor Aphra Omnibus

“Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Omnibus Vol. 1” collects “Darth Vader” #3-4, #8, #21, and #25; “Star Wars: Doctor Aphra” #1-40 and Annual #1; “Star Wars” #13, #19, and #31-32; “Star Wars: The Screaming Citadel”; and “Star Wars: Empire Ascendant.” The work was written by Kieron Gillen, Jason Aaron, and Simon Spurrier with art by Salvador Larroca, Mike Deodato Jr., Leinil Francis Yu, Kev Walker, Marco Checchetto, Andrea Broccardo, Marc Laming, Will Sliney, Caspar Wundaard, Emilio Laiso, Wilton Santos, and Elsa Charretier. The stories introduce Dr. Chelli Lona Aphra, a rogue archaeologist specializing in finding and reactivating ancient weapons. She initially works for Darth Vader until their arrangement ends and she goes her own way, occasionally running into Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, or other Rebels as well as members of the Empire. She partners with her assassin droid companions 0-0-0 and BT-1 (Triple-Zero and Beetee) as well as the Wookiee Black Krrsantan. The stories begin with the fun adventure tone of “Indiana Jones” or even the earlier “Star Wars: Galaxy of Fear” YA novels, with Aphra and her team looking for ancient weapons they can reactivate and sell while occasionally encountering Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, and even Dr. Cornelius Evazan from “A New Hope” and “Rogue One.” What sets this apart from other adventure stories set in the “Star Wars” galaxy is the sense of consequences. Doctor Aphra does not simply use people and move on in a roguish manner; rather, she begins to show more and more guilt, especially as she meets people like Luke Skywalker and develops a relationship with Magna Tolvan, an Imperial Inspector. The writers perfectly balance Doctor Aphra’s transition from a slightly whimsical adventurer to a fully three-dimensional, complex character. Doctor Aphra is one of the best additions to the “Star Wars” canon in recent years.

"Doctor Aphra" is a wonderful take on the Indiana Jones scholar/adventurer tale (heavy on the adventurer). And while Indiana Jones is clearly the hero, the good guy with the heart of gold to match, Aphra is, on the contrary, an anti-hero with a heart of gold for when it suits her purposes. Having miraculously escaped from Darth Vader’s watchful gaze, Aphra and her droid companions return to doing what they do best – artifact hunting.There’s a wrinkle in her relationship with the droids that makes for some really interesting character dynamics, and her run-in with her father rings true even for those of us who have great relationships with their parents. They/we always think they/we know better. Gillen’s writing is tight and funny, and his characters can be bitingly dry or sarcastic when they want to be. Kev Walker’s art likewise captures the subtle nuances of Doctor Aphra’s ever-shifting expression. Even the stone-faced droids can be made to show nuance under Walker’s able pen."Doctor Aphra" is a wonderful addition to the Star Wars universe. I counted myself among the many who were happy to see her get her own series, and I’m excited to see where the book goes from here. I look forward to future hardcover volumes.

Traded in my paperbacks of the original run for this, so glad to have all her stories in one nice collection. For those who haven't read the Aphra comics this is by far the zaniest thing in all of Star Wars, in the best way possible.

I gave up on most Star Wars comics years ago but decided to give this a try based on some recommendations from people who were reminded of one of the supporting characters after watching the Book of Boba show. It’s still a little hesitant to land all punches as hard as the characters and story would justify, but it at least takes a more fun, humorous approach than most Star Wars comics. As usual, there’s too much reliance on too many of the major Star Wars movie characters. Marvel should have more confidence in other characters and not feel like the really big names always need to be involved. It’s still a fun read. I just wish they’d let the potentially harder content land fully.

What was great about this book, is that the reader doesn't know the ending. Even though she exists in the Star Wars universe her story is unique. Other star wars books are eventually going to lead to ," Luke I am your father". Dr Aphra story is yet to be told.Great artwork ..highly recommended

I love that this is a HUGE book and it's only #1! great content and I love having it all in one solid volume! This thing is huge, well made and filled with great art/awesome storyline/Star War's #1 Dr!

Even with the weight i couldn't put it back down. Could have done without the awkward patch work collection of Aphra issues from the 2015 Darth Vader and Star Wars series. It takes up the first small chunk of the volume. Besides that, this was the omnibus I've been waiting for. The series is excellent and the book is perfect. Thank you Marvel for delivering! Now how about that Dameron omnibus ......

Nothing against the story but the whole top corner is smashed and sadly a lot of the books pages have been bent. I had ordered the vader omnibus as well and they were shipped together in the same box but it’s fine and the box it came in is fine so I know they sent this as is which is not cool. Its an expensive book! It’s a great omnibus but buy it elsewhere

Was keen to get this book even though I suspected that I already read good parts of it in previous Dr Aphra and Darth Vader omnibuses. So yes, there is overlap, but only to a certain extent, for about 1/3 of the book.. After that all was new to me.Most stories give you a somewhat sketchy perspective on Dr Apha’s exploits, as often with US comics the narrative is fragmentary and sometimes it’s hard to distinguish from the art what is happening. I had less of these issues with other Sar Wars comic book series, and I own quite few. Most of the stories in this collection seem to be those few pages of wider stories where the Doctor herself features or that are relevant to her back story. Nevertheless the majority of the stories are exciting and very entertaining. It remains quite a joy to read about Aphra’s dubious character traits, let alone her mischievous droids. It all adds up. Her sexual orientation gets more colour throughout the book and this very welome in a Star Wars galaxy that so far has been unequivocally straight (or pansexual, as in Lando’s case). The art is excellent for most of the stories, though less spectacular and more cartoon-style in others .This book, while expensive, will provide many hours of joy in the Star Wars galaxy. The super heavy volumes book make a great coffee table book, even my wife agrees to that. However given its weight it’s actually a bit uncomfortable to read, other than on a table in front of (as opposed to reading it in bed or on a couch). the interesting thing is that this is volume 1 - so more Dr Aphra seems to be on its way.

I was instantly captivated when Doctor Aphra, a witty rogue archaeologist was introduced in the Marvel Vader series. The self-preserving character itself is quite fascinating; smooth-talking, Solo-esque, but with a slippery moral. Moreover she comes accompanied by an odd set of bloodthirsty droid sidekicks; 000 and BT-1 that by themselves make the story worth reading. On top of this the doctor has managed to double cross the Dark Lord himself! – with whom she had a troublesome relationship. This story is partly about her real father, takes you to Yavin-4 and involves bounty hunters, but also Luke and Liea..This hardcover collection is of high quality comic story telling. While the artwork is beautiful. So I would highly recommend.The Doctor has quickly become one of my favourite Star Wars characters, so recently I had to get hold of the Dr Aphra 3.75” figure as well.

Not great

This is a fantastic omnibus - its a great story, with strong writing, a fantastic set of arcs and nice artwork. If you like Star Wars, you'll like this.

The book was everything i wished for and more!