I go on and on about action figures, then buy this one for the comic...

I picked up the Star Wars Comic Two-Pack with Luke and Lumiya the other day, and while it's a pretty good pair of figures, the tipping point for buying it was the enclosed comic, Star Wars #96. From back in the day after Return of the Jedi when Star Wars fandom was going into a low ebb, Marvel still managed a few decent issues before the series ended. (Although it says Dark Horse on the reprint cover, since they have the license now!)

This month, Luke faces off against a mysterious female, who wields a whip with energy and barbed tendrils, and beats his ass with it. The mysterious Lumiya, allied with the unknown alien race the Nagai, plots an invasion against the still-unsteady galactic Alliance.

Luke's friend Kiro, a water-breathing Iskalonian, was beaten and left for dead in the previous issue; but manages to recover and free Luke. Seeing Kiro's short-sword, Luke has an idea on how to take Lumiya; and also promises to try and train Kiro as a Jedi, if he still wants.

After preparing, Luke faces Lumiya again, but this time ready:

With a second lightsaber (somehow cobbled together, seemingly without a crystal, or whatever) Luke recovers his original, and turns the tables. He also lets on that he recognizes her now, infuriating her. Lumiya wraps her whip around Luke's long saber, but it's a trap, and she loses her whip in the attempt. Lunging at him, Luke slices her mask and armor off...revealing an old friend.

While I love this issue, the Nagai invasion introduced didn't seem to catch on, and there were only eleven issues left of Marvel's series. I don't know if the art caught on at the time either, but I dug it then and still do now. "Duel with a Dark Lady!" Written by Jo Duffy, pencils by Cynthia Martin, inks by Bob Wiacek. Dig up a copy from 1985 or try and find the figures!