Warning: spoilers for Star Wars #8 ahead!
An iconic line from The Empire Strikes Back gets a sinister twist in Star Wars #8 from Marvel. Written by Charles Soule (She-Hulk), with art by Jan Bazaldua (X-Force) and colors by Rachelle Rosenberg (Star Wars: Doctor Aphra), an infamous line of dialogue gets a horrible twist, and it may spell doom for the Rebel Alliance.
The second part of the “Will of Tarkin” storyline finds the Imperial officer Zahra put in charge of capturing Leia and hunting down the remaining Rebels. Zahra, a former protégé of Grand Moff Tarkin, is a cold and ruthless Imperial, very much in the vein of her mentor. She blames the Rebel Alliance, and Leia specifically, for the death of her friends and former mentor aboard the first Death Star. Driven by hatred and revenge, Zahra sets off on a crusade against Leia and the Rebels. And in this issue, Darth Vader twists an iconic line from The Empire Strikes Back, and it actually gives readers some true insight into Zahra’s character and motivations.
Set shortly after the Rebels evacuate Hoth at the beginning of Empire, Palpatine asks Vader to pause his search for Luke and focus on hunting down the remaining Rebels. Vader tells him “No. There is another,” before the story’s focus shifts to Zahra. Longtime fans will recognize this reference - when Luke rushes off Dagobah to save his friends on Bespin, Obi-Wan laments potentially losing Luke, to which Yoda replies: “No. There is another,” in reference to Leia, who fans did not know at the time was Luke’s sister. Here Vader twists that line, and instead of referring to Leia, it refers to Zahra.
Beyond being a cool Easter egg, this line gives us some insight into Zahra’s motivations. The line puts her in Leia’s league. She has a deep hatred for Leia in her heart, but now readers learn she is also on Leia’s level in terms of intelligence, drive and resourcefulness. All of this does not bode well for Leia or the Rebel Alliance. For the first time in her life, Leia will be facing her equal in every respect. Perhaps the only difference between the two is the nature of their motivation: Leia is inspired to fight by a sense of goodness and decency, whereas Zahra is driven by a need for revenge. With Zahra now tied to fans' understanding of Leia's capability and commitment, all of this adds up to a formidable threat for Leia and the Rebels.