Star Wars (1977) 81

Talk about a welcome! Upon Han, Princess Leia, and Artoo's return to Tatooine to settle some lingering affairs, things are anything BUT ordinary—as some of Tatooine's most dangerous inhabitants form the reception committee! "Jawas of Doom" features writing by Jo Duffy, pencils by Ron Frenz, and inks by Tom Palmer.

In the aftermath of the Battle of Endor, Han Solo discovers a shortage of available credits. Regrettably, his credit rating isn't stellar among his fellow Rebels. When Leia proposes that either the House of Alderaan (of which she is a member) could extend a loan or the Rebel Alliance could provide an advance, Han angrily departs, asserting that he operated independently long before joining the Alliance. He seeks solace aboard the Millennium Falcon for the first time since the battle and becomes overwhelmed.

Han, Leia, and R2-D2 pilot the Falcon to Tatooine, where Solo maintains an account with a bank in Mos Eisley. Upon arrival, he finds that his account has been frozen due to the bank's notification that the customer (Han, who had been encased in carbonite for a year) had been frozen. Unable to clarify the situation to the bank's computer, Han storms out of the bank and meets up with Leia in a cantina.

Simultaneously, Boba Fett has been ejected from the Sarlacc's maw after his fall (as depicted in Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi). He awakens on Tatooine's sands, suffering from complete memory loss. A Jawa sandcrawler discovers the unconscious Fett and mistakes him for a droid upon seeing his armor. The Jawas have grown increasingly hostile following Jabba the Hutt's demise, even to the point of confronting the Sand People. They confine Boba Fett within the sandcrawler and proceed toward Mos Eisley.

Returning to the cantina, Leia realizes that R2-D2 could communicate with the bank's computer and rectify the error. She accompanies Han back to the Falcon to retrieve the droid. However, Artoo is absent from the hangar, and several small footprints are visible around the Falcon. The dockmaster, Garrick, informs them that he didn't observe anyone entering the dock as he was occupied with his landspeeders. Unbeknownst to the group, Artoo was captured by the same Jawas who found Boba Fett. Han and Leia commandeer two landspeeders from Garrick and pursue the sandcrawler, which is being chased by sand people riding banthas for trespassing on their territory. As Han and Leia close in on the sandcrawler, it accelerates toward the Great Pit of Carkoon with the sand people in pursuit.

Han jumps from the moving landspeeder and boards the sandcrawler's cargo hold to locate Artoo and Boba Fett; he expresses surprise that the bounty hunter survived the Sarlacc. Fett, still amnesiac, doesn't recognize Han, allowing Solo to persuade the bounty hunter to help Artoo escape the sandcrawler and board the pursuing landspeeder. After rescuing Artoo, Han resolves to return for Fett and rescue him as well. However, when Leia calls out Han's name as he prepares to assist Fett out of the sandcrawler, Fett's memory returns, and he fires his blaster at Han. Han evades the attack and leaps from the sandcrawler back to the landspeeder. As the Rebels speed away, the sandcrawler—with Boba Fett still inside—plummets into the Sarlacc's pit.