The Wookiee Gladiator In The Book Of Boba Fett Chapter 2 May Be Setting Up A Major Character Reveal
Boba Fett, former bounty hunter and current ruler of Tatooine, has returned to "Star Wars" for another adventure in this week's episode of "The Book of Boba Fett." Picking up where the first episode of the series left off, we got more of Fett's ongoing navigation of the new world he finds himself in, while also giving us more flashbacks to what happened in the time between "Return of the Jedi" and his return in "The Mandalorian." But unlike last week, this episode came with a pretty big reveal ... if you knew where to look. And it all has to do with that badass Wookiee. We're going to go over who that probably is, and what it might mean in terms of another big reveal down the line.
Warning: major spoilers ahead for "The Book of Boba Fett." Proceed with caution.
Who Was That Wookiee?
Early on in the episode, Boba Fett is trying to sort through the fallout of the first episode, where he and Fennec were attacked by a group of assailants. Ultimately, it is discovered that a pair of Hutts, cousins of Jabba the Hutt, were behind the whole thing, as they were looking to lay claim to the throne that was once occupied by their family. Boba outright refuses to give up any ground and threatens violence to keep what he has taken. During this confrontation, we see that these new Hutts have brought some muscle with them in the form of a badass, black-furred, gun-toting Wookiee.
If the visuals are any indication, this is likely a character that has been introduced in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" titles, specifically in the 2015 "Darth Vader" series. He is a bounty hunter by the name of Black Krrsantan, who actually worked with both Vader and Jabba the Hutt, much in the way that Boba Fett used to. Aside from bringing a cool bounty-hunting Wookiee into the fold — which is certainly something new for live-action "Star Wars" — this heavily implies that we might be building to a reveal of another known associate of Black Krrsantan's. Namely, Doctor Aphra.
Doctor Aphra (Maybe?) Reporting for Duty
In that very same "Darth Vader" series, we were introduced to an archeologist by the name of Chelli Lona Aphra, aka Doctor Aphra. Created by writer Kieron Gillen and artist Salvador Larroca in the pages of "Darth Vader" #3, Aphra is a character who operates in the gray, not necessarily an ally to the Empire or the Rebellion. Ultimately, she teamed up with Vader for a series of secret quests, including building a droid army and finding the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker.
After their adventures proved no longer useful to Vader, the Sith Lord attempted to dispatch her, but Aphra survived. And because she became so popular with the fanbase, a solo "Doctor Aphra" comic was set in motion. She is one of the most popular "Star Wars" characters to be created under the Disney regime, and certainly the most popular to not have appeared in a TV show or movie. As such, it would make sense to bring her into the fold. With the appearance of Black Krrsantan on "The Book of Boba Fett," we now have at least some connective tissue to connect the dots.
The only real issue is (and it's not really an issue) is that Aphra's stories, up to this point, have taken place closer to the events of "A New Hope" and "The Empire Strikes Back." The show would have to age her up a bit. Then again, since the star of this show, Boba Fett, has been aged up from that same timeline, that really shouldn't be an issue. We'll see if this thread gets pulled any further in the coming weeks, but a big section of the "Star Wars" fanbase may be in for a pleasant surprise.