Doctor Aphra: Worst Among Equals

This might be my favorite volume of Doctor Aphra yet. The last arc was Spurrier’s first solo as Aphra writer, and it was a clunker that tried a bit too hard. But everything’s been ironed out in this volume, with Spurrier and his great art team focusing on the best aspects of Doctor Aphra and, in my opinion, Star Wars – a fun planet romp with great characters and monsters.

The book opens with the annual, as our titular archaeologist employs monster hunters and odd-orable married couple Winloss and Nokk. Even though it was disappointing to see so little of Aphra in her annual, Winloss and Nokk are fantastic characters who belong perfectly in this corner of Star Wars (and if it were up to me, every DND campaign) and it was a delight to see them later in the main arc. Wijngaard’s art was also impressive.

“Odd couples” is certainly the theme of this volume, as Aphra and Triple Zero are stuck together thanks to two implanted bombs that won’t let them get several meters away from each other. (Off-world is our third odd couple, Dr Evezan and Ponda, the Mos Eisley duo from Episode IV and the reason behind Trip and Aphra’s implanted bombs. They had minimal investment and didn’t add much, which is fine.) Aphra and Trip’s banter was sorely missed in the last volume, and it’s in spades here – especially Trip’s hilarious yet disturbing delight in torture – as the two hit their lowest point (metaphorically and figuratively) and fight to survive.

The classic “enemies forced to work together” trope still bears meaningful and believable payoff by the end, not an easy task for volume five, or for morally ambiguous characters. I’m continuously impressed by Spurrier’s ability to gradually introduce hints and glimmers of redemption and self awareness from Aphra (and even Trip), without being unearned or too saccharine. Aphra’s selfishness and self-sabotage make her a compelling and deeply flawed character, and she is gently nudged towards growth while staying believable as a character. And as in previous volumes, her queerness is part of Aphra’s identity, but not window dressing or decoration – her regret and love for Tolvan is an important but minor part of the story.

Spurrier and the art team also take us on a fun planet romp with great world-building, fun monsters, and solid secondary characters, including the return of an undead force-infused warrior maniac. This is campy and lighthearted Star Wars at its best, and Laiso and Rosenberg continue their impressive character design while also elevating Spurrier’s humorous one liners. The sketchy, black and white flashback panels are gorgeous, and I’ve never seen a droid as creepy as Triple Zero. Andrea Broccardo assists with pencils on 31, and unfortunately it was a dip in quality, which was tough for the final issue.

The ending felt a little predictable, and the televised aspect was trite at times, but that could have been the product of reading as a trade rather than individual issues. This is probably one of the best volume fives in any series, and I’m excited for the next chapter.