}); The Road to Episode Infinity: Top Ten Bounty Hunters

Saturday, March 2, 2013

Top Ten Bounty Hunters




Bounty Hunters have been a Star Wars staple since the first film. They are usually background characters, but their costumes are so intricately designed that they have a huge fan following. Today I count down the ten best bounty hunters seen in the films:



#10 – Zam Wessel
"I hit the ship, but they used a decoy."

Zam Wessel was a bounty hunter featured in “Attack of Clones”. She took orders from Jango Fett. Though she looked like a hot human lady, in her true form she was a shape shifting reptile. Wessel tried twice to assassinate Padme Amidalla, but after her second failure and capture, Jango Fett sent a toxic dart into her neck, preventing the Jedi from questioning her. 

Interestingly enough, Zam was not originally conceived as a changeling during the filming of “Attack of the Clones”. This was digitally added late in production and the fact she is a changeling does not affect the films plot in any way. Perhaps Lucas just thought he would sell more action figures if she were also a lizard.




#9 – Zuckuss & 4-Lom

This Bounty Hunting team is first seen in The Empire Strikes Back in the line-up of hunters hired to track down the Millennium Falcon.  Zuckuss is a Gand and 4-Lom a droid. There is no reference to their partnership in The Empire Strikes Back, but they stand close to each other and both have giant insect eyes. In fact, when Kenner originally released the toys their names were reversed.

Neither Zuckuss or 4-Lom appear much in the expanded universe but you can find their backstory in the book “Tales of the Bounty Hunters”



#8 – Aura Sing

Aura Sing is seen in the Phanton Menace for only a second, but hey, most of the Bounty Hunters in Star Wars have only a brief screen time.  Aurua is a human hybrid with white skin and long fingers.  In the expanded universe it is revealed that she was once a Jedi Padawan, but now a Jedi-killer. She has a collection of light sabers from all the Jedi she’s killed. 


Aura makes several appearances in the Star Wars “Republic” comic series as well as the Star Wars Clone Wars series. She is also featured in the book “Tempest” which takes place 73 years after the Phantom Menace, suggesting that Sing has a long lifespan.


#7 – Boushh
“Because I am holding a Thermal Detonator”

Boushh is a ruthless killer. He trusts no one and anticipates being stabbed in the back at every turn. He is a cut-throat negotiator that is willing to blow himself up when things don’t go his way. His only weakness? Boushh is a lie. Inside his helmet is a Princess named Leia Oragana. 

Leia used the bounty hunters costume to infiltrate Jabba’s Palace. The real Boushh was killed a few months earlier by Guri of the Black Sun.  Boushh carries a long force pike and never leaves home without a thermal detonator. 



#6 - Greedo
“Going Somewhere, Solo?”

Greedo is a Bounty Hunter from the planet Rodia. He is the first bounty hunter that we meet in the Star Wars universe, and the one with the most lines. His encounter with Han Solo in the Mos Eisley Cantina is at the heart of a huge debate among fans. Though most fans agree “Han shot first”, the truth is that in the original film, Greedo never shoots at all.

Greedo is also present in a deleted scene from Episode I, where he is seen fighting Anakin Skywalker. When the fight ends he is warned that he is going to meet a “Bad End”. Greedo has recently been fetatured in an episode in Clone Wars season three. 


#5 -  Jango Fett
“I'm just a simple man, trying to make my way in the universe”

Jango is Boba Fett’s father and plays a large role in “Attack of the Clones”. In fact, it is his clones that are doing the attacking. Fett was truly a force to be reckoned with and could hold his own against a Jedi-master. Jango’s armor and helmet is almost identical to Boba Fett’s but the color scheme is blue instead of green. The costume is also more clean & sleek, with less feeling of wear & tear. 

Jango claims he is just a simple man trying to make his way in the universe, but his equipment is far from simple. His equipment is not limited to a rocket pack, grappling hooks, a dart shooter, a wrist blaster, and a flame projector. Jango made a deal with Dooku to become the template for the clone armies and one of his demands was to keep an unaltered clone for himself, his adopted son, Boba Fett. Jango ultimately tangled with the wrong Jedi during the battle of Geonosis. Mace Windu decapitated the warrior with a lightsaber.  


#4 – Bossk 

Bossk is a Trandoshan, a dinosaur-like alien. He was another of the scum that we see in the famous Bounty Hunter line-up in Empire Strikes Back. Interestingly enough, he also appears on Jabba’s Sail Barge in “Return of the Jedi”.

Bossk is literally armed to the teeth. Weapon cartridges are strapped to his belt and his legs and his fangs are nothing to smile at. The expanded universe explains that upon his birth, he devoured his unhatched siblings.

Bossk appears in 5 episodes of the cartoon series, “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”



#3 – Dengar

Dengar is the only human face we see in the bounty hunter line up, yet it is damaged and bruised. His head is wrapped in a turban & his armor is made of a bits of Stormtrooper & Snowtrooper armor. The expanded universe reveals that Han Solo was partially responsible for his injuries.

Dengar recently appeared in two episodes of the “Clone Wars” cartoon series, where he is voiced by Simon Pegg.

#2 – IG-88

IG-88 is an assassin droid and bounty hunter. He’s pretty much the Star Wars equivalent to The Terminator. Like the other Bounty Hunters of ESB, he is visible on screen for seconds, only. When you see IG-88, a skinny hunk of metal with blasters, you know you don’t want him hunting you.

The IG-88 model used in the movies was built out of old aircraft parts. His head is a Rolls-Royce jet engine. His guns were made from Sterling submachine guns.

In addition to books, comics, & video games, IG-88 appeared along side of R2-D2 and C-3PO in one episode of the cartoon series “Droids”



#1 – Boba Fett
“What if he doesn’t survive? He’s worth a lot to me.”

The top spot is indisputable. Boba Fett wins on his costume alone, but also because he is a strong, silent and ruthless killer.

Fett made is first appearance in the Star Wars Holiday Special. An action figure released prior to his appearance in Empire. He had five lines in the original trilogy including such nuggets as “He’s no good to me dead” & “As you wish”.

The character fell into the Sarlacc in Return of the Jedi, but according to the Expanded Universe, he crawled out. He continues to roam the galaxy as a ruthless bounty hunter and his continuing adventures are documented in the hundreds of books & comics of the EU.


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