Comic Review: Tales from the Nightlands #3 – The Final Haunt
The Nightlander’s spooky journey through Star Wars concludes in this Sequel Era thriller!
By
Dec 10, 2025
Dark Horse Comics/Youtini Illustration
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Writer: Cavan Scott
Artist: Robert Hack
Publisher summary:
As the First Order spreads fear across the galaxy, Leia, Rey, Chewie, and Finn rush to deliver aid to a Twi'lek colony. But upon arriving, they find something much worse than Stormtroopers: the terrifying Nightlander! The heroes must scramble to stop the otherworldly fiend, lest it escape into the land of the living and make the galaxy its ghastly domain!
Dark Horse Comics
Why it matters: Cavan Scott’s Halloween series ends with a stunning conclusion. Now that she has taken on the Sequels, the Nightlander might just be the best new villain in Star Wars.
Key moments:
A new era: Sequel Era storytelling has become much more common lately, but it’s still exciting to see these characters having their own adventures. Linking all three trilogies together with this story has been a love letter to the entire saga.
What do we fear?: Cavan Scott is no stranger to horror, continually drawing upon the history of the genre to bring spookiness to Star Wars. But here, the fear is more personal, relying less on the supernatural scares and more on the personal anxieties of the post-Last Jedi Resistance.
Every page a painting: Robert Hack (Tales and Ghosts of Vader’s Castle) returns to Star Wars horror with more stunning visuals.
Dark Horse Comics
The big picture: Cavan Scott’s horror anthologies continue to be an annual treat. They allow the galaxy to tell new types of stories and provide an opportunity for artists to shine as they dig into the ethereal side of Star Wars. Tales from the Nightlands breaks the mold by eschewing the framing narrative from previous series and instead tells a tale that connects all three major eras of Star Wars.
The result is a fascinating exploration of these characters, driven by the fascinating new villain of the Nightlander. Where young Anakin was guided by naive overconfidence and Luke by his quest for knowledge, Finn finds himself caught up with feelings of inadequacy. Despite all the good the Resistance is doing, Finn fears that it’s not enough. In a saga of larger-than-life heroes, this presents a very human struggle that anyone can understand. While I might have preferred Rey to be the focus of the issue instead, the ensemble here showcases just why hope lives on through the whole series.
And as always, the visuals are beautiful. Robert Hack’s pallet perfectly fits the tone, creating continuity with the previous issues despite a very different style. There is a big reliance on photo reference for the characters, but not in a way that holds back his unique style. The characters are expressive, driving home the fear, and there are some truly frightening monster designs.
Without question, Scott and Hack stuck the landing. Tales from the Nightlands is not just a fun entry to the ongoing Halloween stories, it’s a miniseries that offers something for every Star Wars fan.
Our rating: Incredible
For a deeper discussion of this issue, be sure to check out this week’s episode of The Cosmic Force podcast!
Oz Davis is a co-host of The Cosmic Force and Bounty Hunt at Youtini. He's kept up with every Canon release since 2014 and has a particular soft spot for lesser-known books like "Servants of the Empire." As part of Youtini's "Dad Batch," he's also developed an affinity for the multitude of Star Wars children's books, and he's always looking to expand his collection.
