By George Bate
Qi’ra captivated audiences in Solo: A Star Wars Story and fans clamored for more of her story for years. At last, the character took the spotlight again in Charles Soule’s War of the Bounty Hunters. This led to Crimson Reign, which concluded earlier this year. Now, the third installment of the Qi’ra trilogy has been announced – Hidden Empire.
Star Wars: Hidden Empire is an upcoming five-part comic miniseries written by Charles Soule with illustrations by Steven Cummings. The Qi’ra trilogy so far has followed the leader’s attempts to reassert Crimson Dawn’s power in the galaxy. Crimson Reign concludes with Qi’ra’s defiant proclamation, “This is my hidden empire.” Now, as Crimson Dawn has become a threat to the empire itself, Hidden Empire will follow the long-awaited confrontation between Palpatine and Qi’ra.
Regarding the new series, Soule said, “This new story is designed to deliver the big finale to Qi’ra’s story — at least this phase of it. She emerged from years of hiding with an elaborate, incredible plan to bring down the Sith, and Hidden Empire is the endgame. It brings in players from all over the Star Wars universe, from Darth Vader to Doctor Aphra to the Knights of Ren, and I think it’ll be really satisfying — but tragic. As I had a character say in the very first issue of Crimson Reign, Qi’ra’s story is a tragedy. But… in a good way.”
Hidden Empire will expand upon Qi’ra’s motivations for furthering Crimson Dawn’s role in the galaxy. As its set between Episodes V and VI, Soule acknowledges what the story can and cannot explore. “Hidden Empire is set between Episodes V and VI. So, there are things this story can do and things it can’t. That said, I think it will deliver a deeply satisfying conclusion to Qi’ra’s arc here, and readers will understand how her choices in this story impacted events all across the Star Wars galaxy at this time. As with many of the comics and novels and ancillary stories beyond the films, the idea is to deepen the experience and understanding of the characters,” he says. “There are direct connections here to both The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi — and beyond — and I think the fans will be very happy.”
Star Wars: Hidden Empire starts this November.