KENIX KIL

While hiding from the new Imperial council he has alienated, Kir Kanos becomes a bounty hunter and takes up a hunt.

It is a good story, too; engaging, and well drawn. It also gives Kanos some motivation to go after the Imperial council members in the next set of stories. The nephew of one of the members is in charge of the system where Kanos lands, trying to hide from a vengeful council after he killed Carnor Jax in the last book.

And it seems that Banjeer has given bounty hunters free reign on this planet, Baramorra. So Kanos decides that the man is dangerous to the Imperial rule, such as it is. He takes on a disguise, and becomes Kenix Kil, bounty hunter. He proves himself to be an expert shot to Banjeer, and leads his men into the wastelands, where he kills them all. He then returns and kills Banjeer, and goes off to infiltrate Black Sun.

The story is very simple, but in other ways, it seems much more complex than it truly is. It is quite enjoyable, even for such a short tale. Kanos sees injustice being done, so he does something about it. I wonder why he wasn't so righteous when he worked as an Imperial Guard for the Emperor...

I wonder who his contact is; the son of another Royal Guard, no doubt. He probably showed up in Council of Blood, too. I don't see the motivation for these two to go off to the Hutt, though, as Kanos didn't learn here that the Hutt was behind an effort to undermine the Empire, or that he had the daughter of a council member hostage.

Another cameo comes from an alien who is possibly a relative of Bar Kooda, who was killed by Boba Fett in Death, Lies and Treachery.

But the art was fantastic, as it has been for all Crimson Empire tales. It was dark and moody, with lots of real detail and color. Kanos is also a lot like Boba Fett, in that he doesn't talk much. He obviously talks more than that famous bounty hunter, but he is still ruthlessly efficient. The fight scenes highlight this, as he just kills the other hunters, after revealing who he actually is, the one they hoped to capture in the first place. And the fight is quick and well drawn. Kanos even gets to use his tongue to start another confrontation after he is surrounded. He manages to escape them all, and kill them all. It was quite impressive.

I would have liked some more motivation, but what we got was fantastic, and well worth reading this short story, both in terms of plot and artwork.