Star Wars 45: Death Probe

Star Wars 45: Death Probe is the forty-fifth issue in the Marvel Star Wars series of comics.

Plot summary
Imperial Admiral Damon Krell sends a prototype Infiltrator probe droid on a direct course for a damaged blockade runner. The Probe smashes through the ship's hull and begins slaughtering the entire crew. It attaches itself to the main power grid of the ship and takes command of all of the vessel's automated functions.

Luke Skywalker's X-wing fighter comes upon the runner, but the larger ship's weapons systems blow his ship to pieces. Luke and R2-D2 jettison from the X-Wing and space-walk to the blockade runner. Using his lightsaber, he cuts himself a path inside through a service conduit. Luke encounters the probe droid but realizes that he cannot tamper with it, less he accidentally initializes a self-destruct sequence. Worse, he determines that the probe droid intends on piloting the blockade runner into the Rebel fleet and detonating the ship. But the probe droid registers that the intruder aboard the ship is Luke Skywalker. A red flag in its programming activates, with prior orders to capture and bring Skywalker back to Darth Vader, alive. This order supersedes all others and the Probe Droid redirects its course. The Rebel fleet is now alerted to the danger. Luke succeeds in having R2 hack into a section of the ship's controls, enough to activate one escape pod. Luke sends a message to the fleet before R2 and he get into the escape pod. The probe droid detours the blockade runner through hyperspace back to Admiral Krell's ship. However, the reactor core is still primed to go into meltdown. The runner collides with the Imperial Star Destroyer destroying both in the process.

Behind the scenes
This event takes place immediately after Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.

Darth Vader and Yoda appear in cameo flashback to The Empire Strikes Back.

Luke inexplicably has a lightsaber in his possession. It is not known how he got it, since he lost his in The Empire Strikes Back.

Collections

 * Classic Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... Volume 3: Resurrection of Evil
 * Omnibus: A Long Time Ago... Volume 2