Marvel's new comic miniseries Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail Of Shadows promises to take the sci-fi space opera in a murder mystery direction. Announced alongside Star Wars' October 2021 solicitations, Trail Of Shadows will feature a Jedi Investigator and a private investigator working together to solve a murder, one that the solicit text promises will change the High Republic forever.
In the realm of comics, Star Wars has been receiving quite a boom in the number of titles put out taking place within the fan-favorite franchise. Marvel originally worked on the Star Wars comic book series during the '70s and '80s, though the space opera eventually found its way to Dark Horse Comics. Dark Horse began printing dozens of Star Wars comics, publishing works within the series for a few decades, before Disney bought Lucasfilm and reacquired the rights to the comics. Marvel's new canonical Star Wars universe, which is growing stronger with the Force by the day, began in 2015. These series have been expanding the universe more than ever before and include the likes of Star Wars: Darth Vader, Star Wars: Doctor Aphra, and Star Wars: Bounty Hunters. IDW Publishing is also regularly publishing Star Wars comics.
The official Star Wars website announced Marvel's October 2021 solicitations related to Star Wars comic titles. This included the finale to The War of the Bounty Hunters crossover series. However, this is the first time readers are hearing about the five-issue miniseries Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail Of Shadows. The solicit information sets up that a Jedi Master has been murdered and it's up to Jedi Investigator Emerick Caphtor to solve a case with no clues, leads, or motives at his disposal. His Jedi ideals will be tested as he needs to call upon Private Eye Sian Holt, who is much more used to working in the shadows. The solicit text further ups the stakes involved with solving this case by saying that "The fate of the Jedi, the Hutts, the Nihil and everyone in the galaxy, hangs by this tangled thread of lies and deceit."
The creative team behind the book includes writer Daniel José Older, who is also writing the upcoming middle-grade Star Wars novel Race to Crashpoint Tower. He's joined by artist Dave Wachter, whose work includes IDW's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and its Godzilla: Cataclysm miniseries as well as the Marvel miniseries Iron Fist: Heart of the Dragon. The main cover for the first issue is by David López (Catwoman, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) with variant covers provided by Ario Anindito (Star Wars: The High Republic) and Julian Totino Tedesco (Thunderbolts).
While there are plenty of unsolved mysteries from the Star Wars canon, Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail Of Shadows promises to be a very important mystery that will hopefully actually get solved over the course of the five-issue miniseries and have real consequences for the comic book world of Star Wars at large. The idea of combining what's considered a classic sci-fi series with a murder mystery that plays with noir tropes could make for a unique miniseries experience. The first issue of Star Wars: The High Republic: Trail Of Shadows kicking off the galaxy's most impactful murder mystery will be released in October.
Source: Star Wars