The
first Star Wars comics were published by Marvel in April of 1977. This was one
month before the first film released to the public. Marvel continued to publish
Star Wars comics until 1987. In 1991 Dark Horse picked up the Star Wars license
and published thousands of comics for two decades. Then in 2015 (after the
Disney acquisition of Lucas film) the rights to publish Star Wars comics
transferred back to Marvel.
A
few years ago I read the bulk of the Dark Horse Star Wars comics, but recently
I wanted to investigate this new era of comics published by Marvel. Here is
what I discovered...
Star Wars #1 - #29 (Ongoing)
Written By: Jason Aaron
This is the flagship Marvel "Star Wars" series, which follows the adventures of Luke
Skywalker, Princess Leia, & Han Solo between “A New Hope” and “The Empire Strikes
Back”. It may seem that such a premise would be limiting, but Jason Aaron does
his best to explore parts of Star Wars mythology that remain unexplored.
Occasional flashback appearances from Old Ben Kenobi are a good example of
this. We actually get to see how closely Kenobi was watching Luke grow up for
all those years and get glimpses of what young Luke is like. New characters such as Sana Staros keep the story fresh and
interesting. Sana Staros actually claims to have once been married to Han Solo,
which kind of shakes up the history of our favorite smuggler. Could Sana feature in the 2018
spinoff Han Solo film?
Darth Vader #1 - #25 (Concluded)
Doctor Aphra #1 - #5 (Ongoing)
Written By: Kieron Gillen
Star Wars: Darth Vader ran for 25 issues. Though this comic is titled "Darth Vader", he is
probably only the fifth most interesting character in the series. The most
prominent character in the series (other than Vader) is Doctor Aphra. Aphra is
an archeologist who completes missions for Vader and is accompanied by her two assassin
droids. 0-0-0 and BT-1 are essentially evil versions of C3-P0 and R2-D2.
Another wonderfully dark character in this series is Black Krrsantan, a Wookie
Bountry Hunter who is the anti-Chewbacca. "Darth Vader" ended its run last fall,
but the story is continued in the new ongoing comic “Doctor Aphra”.
Poe Dameron #1 - #12 (Ongoing)
Written By: Charles Soule
Poe Dameron is the only Marvel comic that is set in the Resistance / First
Order timeline. Taking place just before “The Force Awakens”, Leia has sent Poe
on a mission to hunt down Lor San Tekka, who could possibly know the
whereabouts of Luke Skywalker. Hunting down Lor isn’t easy, however. Poe and
his “Black Squadron” go on many missions, in what seems like a Galactic Easter
Egg Hunt. Anyone who enjoyed Aaron Allston’s X-Wing series, will enjoy this
comic series. Spending time with Poe, BB-8 and their team (Snap Wexly, Jess
Pava, L’ulo & Kare Kyn) is just plain fun.
Kanan #1 - #12 (Concluded)
Written By: Greg Weisman
Before Kanan Jarrus was Kanan Jarrus, he was padawan Caleb Dume, training under master Deppa Billaba. When Palpatine sets Order 66 into motion, Deppa is killed and Caleb becomes a fugitive. This story is set in Kanan’s past with flash forwards to his time on The Ghost with Ezra, Hera (and the rest). A vice admiral named Rae Sloan also shows up, who Kanan recognizes from his adventures in the book “A New Dawn”. Other fans will recognize Sloan from the "Aftermath Trilogy" where she is promoted to Grand Admiral of the Imperial Navy. “Kanan” is a must read for any fan of “Rebels”.
Lando
#1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Charles Soule
Possibly my favorite mini-series of the new Marvel Comics- "Lando" tells the
story of everyone’s favorite swindler, who has fallen on tough times. Lando is
able to charm his way out of most any situation, and when charm doesn’t work, a
blaster will. This series bravely tackles the origin of Lobot, which is sort of devastating. This is a
must-read for avid Star Wars fans.
C3-PO #1: The Phantom Limb (One Shot)
Written
By: James Robinson
This
single issue could have been a throwaway story to promote The Force Awakens and
to explain why C3-PO lost his arm and now has a red one. It’s not a throwaway
story, however. This issue is possibly the greatest C3-PO story ever told, if
not the greatest Star Wars comic ever published. The story follows a group of
droids who have become marooned on a remote planet. As they attempt to survive,
the droids engage in some philosophic discussions about the nature of droids in
general. How do droids feel about memory wipes? Are droids able to question
orders or disobey their masters? By the end of the 40 pages, the reader feels
greater respect for C3-PO, who spends the whole comic apart from his usual
counterpart. It’s a bit of a heartbreaker.
Han
Solo #1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Marjorie Liu
The Dragon Void Run is the oldest and most dangerous race in the galaxy and Han
Solo has entered. Solo isn’t just racing though, Leia has sent him on a mission
to rescue rebel informants and pull them out of the field. Han is to collect
one on each leg of the race. It’s a strange galaxy out there, and getting
stranger, but Han, Chewie and the Falcon are ready for anything.
Princess Leia #1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Mark Waid
“Aggressive
Negotiation” was a term coined by Leai’s father, but there is no one better at
this strategy than Princess Leia Organa. In this miniseries the Empire is
hunting down Alderaanian refugees from the recently destroyed planet and Leia
takes it upon herself to stop them. This series is notable loaded with female
characters and it tackles many complex issues such as the nature of grief,
military desertion, prejudice against human-alien hybrids, and interfamilial
political disagreements. It’s worth the read and some of the plotlines tie in with the "Aftermath" trilogy novels.
Obi-Wan and Anakin #1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Charles Soule
In this comic Anakin is still young (somewhere between Jake Lloyd and Hayden
Christianson). He is thinking about leaving the Jedi order (mostly because
Palpatine has been trying to convince him that the Jedi are a joke). Obi-Wan
takes him along on one final mission to a steam-punkish planet where
space-travel has not yet been invented. The Jedi Master & his Padawan find
themselves in the middle of a planetary conflict, as they also deal with the
conflict within themselves. Anakin struggles with who he wants to be, whilst
Obi-wan struggles with his failures as a master. There’s good stuff here.
Chewbaccca
#1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Gerry Duggan
On the planet of Andelm IV there is a slave girl named Zarro. Zarro is brave
and defiant, but may need help to save her family from servitude. Help comes in
the form of a seven and a half foot tall furball who happens to be a former
slave himself. In this comic Chewie is on his own, without Han Solo to
translate any of his grunts and groans. Yet he is as faithful a companion as
ever.
Shattered
Empire #1 - #4 (Miniseries)
Written
By: Greg Rucka
Shattered Empire picks up immediately after the celebration on Endor seen the final shots of Return of the Jedi. Basically, the next morning,
there is still some clean-up to do. The Empire hasn’t stopped fighting just
because the Death Star is gone and Palpatine is dead. This series features some
of our favorite heroes, but mainly, it features the parents of Poe Dameron.
Darth Maul #1 - #5 (Miniseries)
Written By: Cullen Bunn
The
newest Marvel mini-series features Darth Maul before “The Phantom Menace”. It
is nice to see a strong-silent young Darth Maul compared to the old, chatty
resurrected Maul that we see in "Rebels". Maul uses his combat skills
to take down Rathtars and Pirates, anything his master demands… but Maul grows
weary of running chores for his master. Maul hungers for revenge. I’ve only
read one issue of this mini-series, the second one releases next week.
It was a delight to catch up with the new Marvel "Star Wars" comics. Dark Horse did some wonderful things with Star Wars between 1991-2015, but it's Marvel's turn to show us some fresh ideas. I love how these new comics also tie into the Novels & Television parts of the franchise. Please do not shy away from the world of Star Wars comics and try to check some out from your Local Library if you have the chance.
Get Reading, Younglings!
Alan Moore is
most famous for “Watchmen”, “V for Vendetta” and “The League of Extraordinary
Gentlemen”. In the early eighties Alan Moore began writing some four or five
page comics for “Doctor Who Weekly”. Moore says this experience taught him how
to construct a story. Moore went directly from Doctor Who to Star Wars.
