Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago...., Vol. 1

Marvel Star Wars (1977-1986) #1-27

by Roy Thomas, Archie Goodwin, Chris Claremont

Collecting the first twenty-six issues of the Marvel Comics Star Wars series that launched in 1977 (the same year as the first film), this first volume of Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago . . . is a must have for any Star Wars fan!

Future volumes will include material not previously collected along with the consecutively numbered Marvel run: the comics adaptation of Return of the Jedi, material from Marvel UK, the Droids and Ewoks series, and other rare Star Wars comics.

Genres: Star Wars, Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Comic Book, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

493 pages, Paperback

First published May 26, 2010

About the author

Roy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.

Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.

Reviews

[Timothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Notes From George Lucas to Marvel Comics, Circa 1978:

1. Can you make Luke and Leia kiss more? I want them to get so into frenching even C-3P0 gets embarrassed. Kids love kissing and romance!
2. Have you seen The Seven Samurai? Nevermind. Have you seen The Magnificent Seven? Think: Han Solo as Yul Brynner. Kids love Yul Brynner!
3. Don't shave Han Solo's head unless you can use hair restorer at the end of the issue. Kids love Han Solo's hair!
4. Steve McQueen should be a green rabbit. Kids love rabbits!
5. No, I mean Steve McQueen should be a green rabbit in real life.
6. The war between The Rebellion and The Empire? Don't worry about that. Kids hate the war part of Star Wars. Add gambling instead.
7. I saw Captain Blood on TV last night. Add some space pirates. Maybe call him Captain Crimson. Or Bloodbeard. Or Crimson Jack.
8. Is The Six Million Dollar Man still on the air? I want to see some cyborgs. Kids love cyborgs!
9. Do you remember that time Six Million Dollar Man fought Bigfoot? Make Chewbacca look more like Bigfoot. Kids love Bigfoot even more than they love cyborgs?
10. Make that cyborg a reoccurring villain. Keep Darth Vader sidelined as much as possible.
11. What about a planet that's a water world where people live on boats or lashed-together platforms? Nah. Kids would hate that.
12. Can you Rasta-fy the rabbit by 10%? He needs to be more proactive! Kids love Rastafarians!

Despite (or because of) the rampant goofiness in these early Star Wars comics, they are the only "Expanded Universe" media I ever care to re-read. Back in 1978, the Star Wars universe was a single film. No one knew the identity of Darth Vader or what Obi-Wan was like before he took to the deserts of Tatooine. Jabba the Hutt had a missing "t". And everything was new and thrilling and bright and bold, in the spirit of the first film. Before the mysticism and angst crept in, before the fans decided everything should be explanation rather than exploration, before it was decided Star Wars should grow up, it was here in four-color glory for $.35 an issue.

Are these stories canonical? Probably not. I'm certain someone has shoehorned in 25 Boba Fett novels into the gap between Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back and Han Solo and Chewbacca are in half of them, which squeezes out the time Han Solo tried to give the money he owed to Jabba back only to be hijacked by space pirates...twice. Luke is sent on a mission and Princess Leia (in a burst of "womanly passion") goes after him. Eventually, they all run into space pirates. Instead of emulating the science fiction samurai aesthetic of the films, these comics aim more for a particularly eventful episode of Maverick. The characters sometimes start quipping like Spidey tangling with Doc Ock. A flashback to Obi-Wan as a young man makes him look like Green Arrow borrowing one of The Punisher's bodysuits. The 70's Marvel purple prose splatters like grape jelly dribbling off your PB&J sandwich as you flip to the next page to see if Luke is going to escape the clutches of an insane cyborg.

Doesn't that sound better than fifteen novels about Luke brooding over death and the burden of leading the Jedi Council?

Get moving, Star-Hoppers! You've got some Bantha riding to do!

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't expect to like this book so much! I've never seen the Star Wars movies, not by choice, necessarily, but maybe because of lack of interest? I'm not really sure. However, I received this book for free from Amazon, so I decided to give it a shot and not waste the opportunity.
The first few issues of the omnibus are a comics version of Star Wars: Episode IV: A New Hope and were published in 1977, the same year as the movie. The rest of the issues collected in this volume continue the story of Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, Threepio, and Artoo after they defeat the Death Star (I figure this isn't a spoiler; I'm 99.9% sure I'm the only American adult who's never seen a single SW movie). The story lines are somewhat episodic but mostly continuous. There are a few "bonus" issues or stories that treat other characters as protagonists, but for the most part, the famous characters from the movies are the heroes (and heroine--I see you, Leia) of the comics too.

I particularly enjoyed Roy Thomas's issues. He's the one who writes the story from the first movie, and he continues the plot for several more issues. Once Archie Goodwin takes over, some of the plotting becomes a little convoluted, and some of the action is hard to follow. Also, Thomas's plots feel more original, while Goodwin's rely more on cliches and tropes from superhero comics and science fiction. Still, I commend him for maintaining the characters and personalities developed by George Lucas, first, of course, but handled so well by Thomas. When Goodwin takes over, the characters still sound and act like themselves. The artwork is also very consistent. There are some frames that don't look as sharp or in which Leia looks a little more masculine, or Luke randomly has a tail at the back of his head? But overall, consistency is a huge positive in this series.

The stories themselves are very entertaining. I've always been interested in stories of rebellion, so I enjoyed the plot line of a rebel army fighting against the Empire and trying to defend their lands against tyranny for the cause of the Republic expunged by imperialism. I love the world that Lucas created. I'm not sure which of the various planets and solar systems he invented and which were invented by Thomas and Goodwin, but this is a rich world with various races, humans, cyborgs, droids, varied landscapes, gaseous planets, uninhabitable realms, arid land, and anything else one's imagination could conjure. My favorite character is by far Han Solo, and I think I'll feel the same way when I watch the movies. He's the quintessential "bad boy" who acts like he doesn't care but really has a heart of gold. And Chewie is one convenient wookiee.

I also love the artwork. The scenes with just characters or inside ships are decent, but the images in hyperspace are beautiful. The coloring is varied and really shines. Granted, I read this on my phone through the Kindle app, so there's a sharpness and clarity that might not be present on paper, but I believe the hard copy is just as gorgeous. I had to stop and really look at some of these images to appreciate them. The artists did an amazing job conveying the beauty of deep space in a comic.

I highly recommend this series. I was a little overwhelmed when I saw that there are five volumes, each of which is over four hundred pages, but it didn't take too long to get through between reading other things, and it's a fun, entertaining read. Reading this also made me really excited to see the movies (finally!). I watched previews of them on YouTube and couldn't stop smiling to see the characters I've grown to love come to life (I know that's paradoxical because they were live in the movies first, but for me, reading first, knowing the movie is the original, makes it even better and more exciting to think about). I definitely look forward to reading Volume Two and eventually to getting a comics version of the second movie! I'm also likely to read Dune sooner than I thought being in a spacey kind of mood.

[Sud666 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Star Wars is one of my favorite stories. Whether in novel or comic book, I have always enjoyed the vast universe and the great tales of the Jedi and the Sith. So I was interested to see what this volume had to offer. Well I can say I am disappointed. I understand that at the time that this was written the Star Wars universe had not been fleshed out so the writers had to go off the cuff- from Jabba not being a Hutt, to Vader and Luke's father being two separate people, etc. So even taking that into account I just never got into this omnibus. The first drawback is the atrocious artwork. This was from 1977 through the 1980's-not exactly a great time for artwork in the comics industry. The stories which take place after the telling of the Star Wars movies are also not good. Bad characters, worse writing and awful dialogue all led to me just reading the first several issues and then flipping through the rest. I just could not get into this mediocre mess. If you are a fan of 70's/80's artwork and are one of those people for whom nostalgia trumps actual quality then this is for you. But, if you love Star Wars and enjoy great artwork and good writing then do yourself a favor and take a pass on this dreck.

[Keith Jones · Rating 1 out of 5]

Found this at my local public library about a week ago. It reprints the original comic book published by Marvel Comics beginning with the movie adaptation. My brother and I had actually found the first issue of the comic at a 7-11 at Lake Tahoe, California, before the movie had been released. We had seen a trailer for Star Wars, which just looked awful, but picked up the comic anyway. We actually followed the comic way back in 1977 after the movie finally came out. Basically don't remember any of it. I remembered that the issues following the movie adaptation were Han Solo and Chewbacca helping out a small village, which I now know was an adaptation of Seven Samurai. Nostalgia wouldn't let me not check this omnibus out of the library. Oh man, is it terrible. Also, really funny/vaguely disturbing how often Luke and Leia kissed, which just goes to show how long before Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi this comic was produced.

[Paul Riches · Rating 4 out of 5]

Star Wars From Marvel Comics Are Marvelous




As the old saying sorta goes……

“A Long Time Ago, In A Comic Stand Right Nearby…..”

Marvel Comics published a Star Wars comic.

And while this might sound like a big non deal, the long time ago I am going on about is 1977, the year the massive cultural juggernaut that is Star Wars was first unleashed onto the Galaxy.

For the Muggles, Star Wars is a space fantasy film series that was created by George Lucas and launched with Star Wars, later renamed Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope. Don’t ask, Lucas tends to do that. In this first film, the evil Empire is trying to stop the Rebel Alliance from using stolen plans to defeat their master secret weapon, the Death Star. The plans accidentally fall into the hands of a naive farmboy Luke Skywalker, and he attempts to get the plans delivered. And along the way he discovers that his late father was a Jedi Knight, a fighter from the old Clone Wars who possessed special abilities. This is a rather simplified explanation of a truly magical story that captivated millions. If you haven’t seen Star Wars, seriously go see it. And why have you not seen it yet??

And now back to Marvel Comics and Star Wars and 1977.

They begin by doing a six issue adaptation of the film, with legendary writer Roy Thomas and up and coming artist Howard Chaykin being the creative team. Using an earlier draft of the script, it is interesting to see the small changes that happened. Geeks with a massive Star Wars knowledge will not be surprised by any of this.

After that, Thomas and Chaykin needed to chart a new path for the story with Lucas’s approval. They have little road map, so Thomas puts a different trope into this trope, and we get a multi part story of the Magnificent Seven in space, starring Han Solo and Chewbacca. And for another deep cut into this new lore, one of the characters is named The Starkiller Kid. Originally, Luke the farmboy was gonna be called Starkiller. This was also the story that gave us the infamous giant green rabbit, that Lucas is rumoured to have hated.

Issue eleven brings on the new creative team of legendary writer Archie Goodwin and artist Carmine Infantino and a water world multi parter. Thomas knew the genre extremely well, but Goodwin knew it even better. But we also get Infantino, an artist I rarely like, and this is no exception. His Millennium Falcon in particular looks awful.

Goodwin and Infantino give us Valance the cyborg bounty hunter who hates droids, which is interesting, and The Wheel storyline, that makes little sense and is abit long, but has all the characters involved, which is cool.

We also get our first look at Jabba The Hut, and no he is not a giant slug who speaks in subtitles. It’s obvious they were given permission to resolve that storyline, and that was reversed by the sequel. Also, the subplot of the villain Darth Vader searching to find out who blew up the Death Star, which follows the Lucas edict that Luke and Darth not meet in the comic.

Issue thirty has a very nice Princess Leia story about hope, and issue thirty-one has Luke return to the family farm on Tatooine and we see what happened to it after the events in the movie. Thirty-five to thirty-seven are the setup for the heavily anticipated sequel, The Empire Strike Back.

Marvel pulls out all the stops here. Goodwin adapts the heckers out of the script, again an earlier version, and for the art, they get Al Williamson, the legendary creator. The two work wonderfully together and it is a fantastic retelling of the story, which is not even my favourite Star Wars movie.

With Empire comes changes to the story, with Han Solo being frozen and everything, and another scoundrel, Lando Calrissian, is brought in. Now Lando is different, less scruffy then Han and a whole lot more charming, which gives it all a new flavour. One big sticking point is how their is no repercussions over Lando’s betrayal in Empire, it is rarely mentioned, but otherwise all seems fine between him and the rest of the Rebels.

After issue fifty-one, a new creative team comes aboard with writer David Michelinie and artist Walt Simonson. They bring a new energy to the title, and it is fun and interesting. One of their storylines involves Luke becoming a Pariah to the Rebels, which was simply wonderful, but also feels like it is truncated by Lucas edict. This is also the first time Luke expresses doubt in The Force, the all powerful spiritual energy the Jedi’s use. It is not even a page, so methinks Lucas put the kibosh on this as well.

We get an awesome story of survival featuring minor character Wedge in number seventy-eight, followed by new writer Jo Duffy the next issue. Part of the setup for the final film in this particular Star Wars trilogy, The Return Of The Jedi, happens in issue eighty, and is also a very touching story that delves into how droids feel.

Marvel did Return as a separate mini series, which I did not realize during my read through, so I can’t comment on this momentous event. But issue eighty-one of the comic picks up after the events of the movie, with Han back and the even bigger event of the end of the war. The creators have to chart an even more new course here, and I wonder how much guidance Lucas gave them as they do lots of solo stories. One of the subplots is our Star Warriors being sidelined by the Rebels, now the Alliance, as diplomacy is needed more then action. Also shown is the repercussions from the Empire falling, and things get interesting for sure. Issue eighty-six has a touching Princess Leia story that takes place before Return, and is The Defiant Ones with a fellow Alderaan survivor.

Star Wars number ninety-one does the most best thing ever, as this Han and Chewbacca story makes the dreaded Star Wars Holiday Special part of this comics continuity. Lucas gave the okay for the Special, which featured Chewie’s Wookie family, comedy bits, singing and the idea of Life Day, and has disavowed it forever since then.

For the landmark issue one-hundred, they gave us a whatever story. Which is why I think number ninety-two was meant for that. Luke is reluctant to train new Jedi, and changes his mind after helping another world. This also marks one of the few appearances of Yoda, the famous Jedi Master, in the comic. This is a personal favourite of mine, and features a great painted cover.

I would not be surprised if Duffy is an anime fan, with themes and planet names having that feel to them. Cynthia Martin joins an artist with issue ninety-four, and with her comes a slightly more cartoony style that fits well with Duffy’s.

Now they know the Star Warriors need a new enemy to fight, so the fragments of the Empire join with a new bad guy from outside the galaxy, The Nagai, and this is revealed after multiple clues in issue ninety-seven. This leads to yet another great Princess Leia solo story in number one-hundred and three all about what the Alliance is and their values.

The final Star Wars Marvel Comics story arc is one featuring our heroes joining with their former enemies and defeating another new enemy. And unfortunately, it all ends with a whimper, not a bang. And not very well. It feels like Lucas and Marvel just pulled the plug and walked away.

What started in 1977 with glorious fanfare just stopped in 1986 at issue one-hundred and seven.

The series was a great companion to the evolving and continuing at the time Star Wars Expanded Universe. It had its bumps along the way, where you can tell Lucas made them change plans. Because of this multiple times fill-in stories are plopped all over the run, and you can tell they are old inventory stories from some other science fiction or space fantasy series or some such. These are jarring and not good and drag. This description also fits two of the three Star Wars Annuals put out as well. Another side effect of being a licensed property is that new characters come and go on the whims of Lucas. Even the ones we like are erratic in appearances. My favourites here are the Hoojibs, telepathic kinda bunny animals.

But one of the cooler aspects of this series is seeing the development of our main character, Luke Skywalker. He slowly goes through the heroes journey, and practices his emerging Jedi powers, with the series reflecting really well the changes each movie brought. The only weird parts is early on when Luke thinks about his love for Leia, and not the brotherly love kind. This is of course never mentioned again after Return comes out and we find out they are siblings.

One of the absolute magics of Star Wars is how all of it became part of the myth and the legend to our culture, one that endures to this day with prequels and sequels and spinoffs and books and comics and videogames and cartoons and who knows what in the future.

I have been a fan since the beginning in 1977, and got a Millennium Falcon for Christmas that same year. Decades later, I got a second one, because why not? In the 1990s, I went to comic conventions and dived into back issue bins, all to complete my then scant collection of this series. It took a few years, but soon I had everything but the fabled final issue. At Fan Expo I acquired it, at a dealer who had the foresight to stockpile the last one. And they were charging $20 for a copy. Now I am notoriously super cheap, but I shelled out the cash because, well, it was the final issue of Marvel Comics Star Wars.

That’s the power of Star Wars.

[Clint · Rating 3 out of 5]

My inner 10 year old wants to 5/5 star these and rant about how great they are; but in truth, they are not for everyone. Older fans like myself will dig the nostalgia.

Consider the fact that the comics movie adaptation came out before the movie, and consider the fact the movie adaptation was drafted from an early script by my all time favorite comics writer Roy Thomas and illustrated by none other than Howard Chaykin; you have a whole mess of awesomeness to weigh.

That’s the first six issues. Little things that make older Wars Nerds shiver with excitement:

• The cut scene of Biggs Darklighter and Luke is included

• The cut scene of Jabba harassing Han is there and Jabba is depicted as a sickly yellow skinned humanoid with green whiskers instead of his slug self in Return of the Jedi.

It’s little things like that which I dig. When these comics were being written in ‘77 Star Wars lore was non-existent except for one movie known as Star E’ffin Wars (the New Hope garbage came later).

Instead of Explaining Star Wars Lore, Marvel was Exploring Star Wars Lore.

Favorite parts:

• Roy Thomas first (and only) post movie story is an adaptation of Han Solo in a Seven Samurai story. After that point Archie Goodwin took over writing and Carmen Infantino took over art.

• a great rogues gallery (Vader is sparingly used) of Valence the Cyborg Bounty Hunter, Crimson Jack the worst dressed space pirate in history and Baron Tagge a blind imperial Merchant hell bent on mastering the art of lightsaber dueling so he may one day crush his political enemy Darth Vader (and get even for Vader blinding him).

Not So Favorite Parts:

• I’m not a big Carmen Infantino art fan
• Since Marvel didn’t have much to go on, there are some creepy scenes involving Luke making out with his sister

But those two facets makes these stories fun. No, with things later revealed these are in no way Cannon but, they are fun.

Jaxx the Giant Green Carnivorous Rabbit is a bit much, but compared to Jar-Jar....you decide.

Younger fans who lay their hand upon Cannon will hate it.

[Dawn Livingston · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this omnibus by accident, I found the 2nd one in this series and I have fond memories of the comic as well as being a kid and being blown away by the Star Wars movie. I had to get the first in the series so...

I admit to skimming the book after the first series of comics that covered the Star Wars movie. The artwork was terrible. For example the only thing that was constant was that Luke had blonde hair and wore white, with Leia that she had dark hair in buns of a sort and wore all white. But there is still fond nostalgia about it.

The stories didn't keep me interested, the artwork was terrible and there was a giant green rabbit. That alone was a huge sour note for me. I know this is sci fi but... a giant green rabbit?! I know I know. Guardians of the Galaxy has a racoon. I never did like that comic and I'm not keen on the movies but... somehow the GotG movies... the racoon fits in better than a giant green rabbit in Star Wars.

I guess you could say there was a kind of zest, enthusiasm, naivete that was appealing and I grudgingly agree but, I just couldn't get over the negatives. Not even for nostalgia's sake.

Oh, and I forgot to add that the female characters, except for Leia all wore very little clothing. Very cliche. That didn't help.

Okay to read, nice to walk down memory lane and have a little nostalgia but not great. Maybe give it to your kids to read? They might like it better.

Though I recommend this to Star Wars and comic fans just because it's Star Wars and it has it's place in the Star Warns pantheon, the comics shouldn't be forgotten, I would say it's nothing special. No, I'm just realizing I'm having a contradictory opinion. It's not worth reading yet it is worth reading because it's old Star Wars comics. Okay, it's worth reading, and it should be read just to get a feel for the comics of the time, for the view of Star Wars at the time, for nostalgia's sake. Okay, so read this book. It's unusual, but it's STAR WARS, it captures some of the fun, the naivete, the newness of the movie.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is very much a book of it's time. I say that not to denigrate it in any fashion, but just to say that the writers obviously had very little input from LucasFilm. The stories are all well told, inventive and very well illustrated. However, some of the characters created for the extended stories do not really fit with our image of the Star Wars universe.

In particular, the character of Jaxxon (a giant green bunny rabbit) kind of breaks the story when he's featured, although he's no worse than Jar Jar Binks I suppose.

However, the portrayal of Jabba the Hutt was very much the image Lucas had in mind for him before Return of the Jedi, and therefore Han could easily walk around him without treading on his tail. Plus, the romance between Luke and Leia is played to the hilt, rather uncomfortably now we know the familial relationship between the two.

The writers also did not have the luxury of seeing The Empire Strikes Back before composing their stories so they treat Darth Vader and Anakin Skywalker as two separate individuals.

All that being said, this is a fun read and very much in the vein of the old Flash Gordon comic strips.

[Rich Weber · Rating 1 out of 5]

HA! I remember having a few issues of Marvel's "Star Wars" series back in the late 1970s (never that much of a comic book reader). They're just as horrible in this 500-page omnibus as I remember them! But in all they're ridiculousness, they're hilariously fun! My 7- and 9-year-old enjoyed laughing at how poor the artwork is, and the absurdity of many of the characters (the worst was the 6-foot-tall green rabbit gunslinger -- apparently played by Jimmy Stewart's "pooka" friend, Harvey).

So horribly bad, I couldn't, in good conscience, give this more than one star -- but good for a laugh with the kids. (Although well nigh 500 pages of this was a bit much...but...on to Volume 2).

[Thomas · Rating 1 out of 5]

Whoo nelly, this was bad. It's not just that it's dated (because it is; it started the same year Episode IV came out, so it's from the late '70s), but that the stories are just hokey and silly and dumb. If you don't believe me, look up Jaxxon. He's a six-foot tall, anthropomorphic rabbit, complete with long ears and a puffy tail.

What really stinks, though, is that the first six issues recaps Episode IV, and does a decent job at it. I expected it to be a rushed retelling, but not only does it take its time going through the story, it even gives us a little more backstory that was cut from the movie. Readers who have listened to the NPR audio adaptations will already be familiar with it, but new readers should find some good stuff.

Now. Are those six issues worth reading the next twenty-one? Absolutely not. But if you want to see how the creators adapted the original story, at least read the first quarter of this behemoth.

[kesseljunkie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Spectacular Collection of Early Star Wars Work

This is such a perfect time capsule in so many important ways. The story development highlights how tough it can be to align with a specific vision for something, but also how skillfully someone can make course adjustments so subtle that when the books were month to month we didn't notice what was happening until it was already done. It's also a treat to see the art styles of the time echoing the era that preceded it, and how complementary it was to the vibe that shaped what we understood Star Wars to be before The Empire Strikes Back happened. Well worth revisiting this collection or, if you truly love Star Wars but only recently came to it, reading to see what it was like to be a kid with a front row seat to the expansion of a galaxy far, far away.

[Evan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting bit of comic history, a series of comics that adapt and then expand on the original Star Wars movie. Early amusing moments include Vader casually force levitating a hot beverage for himself during the Death Star meeting where he choked an imperial officer, and Han Solo teaming with a 7 Samurai style group of misfits including with a supposed Jedi crazy man fashioned after Don Quitoxie and a green rabbit man named Jaxxon. This early part of Star Wars media is fascinating as nothing had been set in stone. Vader wasn’t Luke’s father, Leia wasn’t his sister, the possible love triangle was still in question, the Emperor hadn’t been seen, and who knows what Obi Won had been like or what the Clone Wars actually were. So, no these are no longer “canon” but that’s the charm. I wouldn’t say this is a must read even for comic fans but it fun.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading this was a hoot, and much more fun than I expected it to be -- I remember seeing some of these early Star Wars comics back when they were published, and being appalled, but from this perspective, when we have Star Wars comics in staggering numbers and to varying levels of quality, the sheer innocence and zest of these stories is kind of charming. While at the point these were made there was no micromanaging Lucasfilm division policing the Extended Universe, it's easy to see that some ideas might well have been filtered in to the comics for a bit of a test drive -- one of the later story arcs in this volume pretty much test-runs the Bespin Cloud City story from The Empire Strikes Back, while other elements presage bits of Luke's arc in Empire.

Mostly, though, it's some wonderfully goofy storytelling with lifts from famous western movies (The Magnificent Seven, although I rather hope that this was also a nod to Lucas' Japanese influences), an outright pirate arc with outlandish costumes, and even a proto-Waterworld story, also featuring pirates, this time in the form of a Star Wars version of the fabled Cornwall wreckers. Some of it is painfully eye-rolling stuff, mind you...such as female pirate Jolli, a man-hating harridan in a bikini and a beret (many of the women in this series wear little more than a skimpy bikini) who's softened up by the rogueish Han Solo and the wisdom of Princess Leia...just in time for her to die.

Eventually, however, Archie Goodwin took over the writing duties on the comics, and things did start to straighten out somewhat and become more sensible...not to mention the artwork being more on-model and the characterizations more in keeping with the first film. I'm looking forward to getting started on the next volume.

[Jay Hancock · Rating 4 out of 5]

You get it all:
The comic adaptation of a new hope, Han Solo and Chewbacca starring in an adaption of Seven Samurai, darth Vader strangling some people, jabba the hut being an irish guy, Luke and Leia making out like eight times, and the force or whatever.

[Will Hoover · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's hard to give this collection of the first 27 issues of Marvel Comics' Star Wars a full 5 star rating, NOT because quite a few of these classic tales don't have a whole lot going for them, but because the adaptation of the original film (which could easily merit something pretty close to 5 stars) only lasted the first 6 issues. Granted, even those first 6 books aren't flawless by any means. Mostly because the art by Howard Chaykin and Steve Leialoha, though certainly not bad, is just adequate, and not exceptional -- despite how ground breaking and truly game changing that first film in the Star Wars saga was, and still remains, even to this very day.

Issue number 7, the first truly Marvel Comics conceived story in the series, is actually probably the biggest stinker among these first 27 issues, and looks an awful lot like it was rushed into production, most likely because it came as a huge surprise to an awful lot of people back in the days before sci-fi and superhero fare had become entertainment industry gold, that Star Wars was going to turn out to be such a record setting colossal blockbuster of a film. Not to mention the mere fact that it has since become a multi-generational pop cultural phenomenon. And who could have foreseen THAT way back in the summer of 1977, right?

At any rate, even with Frank Springer's help (credited as "embellisher") Chaykin's art doesn't really impress, though again, it is certainly adequate. Perhaps given the fact that the now long since highly accomplished and much lauded artist was also listed as a co-plotter of the first story arc in the series written by Roy Thomas, Marvel apparently thought it was okay to keep the guy around for a little while longer after those first 6 issues. Au contraire!

Bringing Tom Palmer on board as "embellisher in residence" in issue 8 definitely improved the look of the next batch of Chaykin drawn stories, but sadly, not enough to compensate for the rather disastrous ripoff of The Magnificent Seven/Seven Samurai story arc that Thomas and Chaykin apparently originally thought would translate well enough to the Star Wars universe. Actually, to be fair, having Han Solo and Chewbacca go off on their own adventure for a few issues was fine and dandy. The idea at least presented a number of interesting possibilities, but the characters that were created to fight alongside Han and his stalwart Wookie companion not only don't feel like genuine denizens of the Star Wars universe, they look totally contrived and just plain silly.

And it's mostly in the way that this odd collection of truly misfit characters are drawn and colored -- which pretty much makes reading issues 7 through 10 feel almost like a waste of precious time. The oddest thing of all however, may be that these issues in the series actually aren't quite as bad as they seem on the face of it. To be sure, the idea of having Han and Chewie team up with a gang of interstellar misfits is, after all, mostly sound (obviously, since it worked well in both the Japanese film, Seven Samurai, and the American version, The Magnificent Seven), but it's the way it all ends up on the printed page that makes it look so doggone ridiculous.

And when this interstellar wild bunch includes a man sized porcupine creature in yellow boots, green undies and a cape (no joke) who doesn't carry a gun, but uses the quills that shoot from his body to fight bad guys, and a former female gangster who dresses like... well... a scantily clad space faring prostitute packing twin laser pistol heat, it's only the beginning of what's totally off the wall zany about these early Star Wars issues from Marvel.

But wait! There's more! Believe it or not, that's not all by a long shot. Throw in an elderly Don Juan Quixote ripoff character (who's actually named AND misspelled "Don-Wan Kihotay"), who comes complete with medieval Earth looking armor, a tilting staff, and a cheesy mustache with goatee, along with a farm boy who looks suspiciously like a poor man's Luke Skywalker, who just so happens to join up with his sassy robot companion, that looks, with it's tank tread lower body, like it couldn't fight its way up a stairwell, and... to top it all off, "Jaxxon -- a six foot rabbit, who gnaws on hambones instead of carrots."

I kid you not.

Now just try and tell me that all that's not the makings of a pathetic injustice to the Star Wars saga! And people thought Jar Jar Binks was bad! Yet despite all this ill conceived tomfoolery, giving credit where credit is due, writer Roy Thomas has long been a legend in the comics industry. And artist Howard Chaykin is no slouch either. So it's not that Marvel didn't initally toss the reigns to some highly competent people, but rather that those people seem to have simply made some really bad choices. One way or another though, the real problem is that issues 7 through 10 simply don't FEEL like authentic Star Wars stories. And much is the pity.

Thankfully, Marvel's classic Star Wars series finally began to take on some semblance of quality with the introduction in issue number 11 of regular writer and editor, Archie Goodwin, and artists Carmine Infantino and Terry Austin, the team that actually, finally made the series look somewhat highly polished and professional for a change. The only problem with them doing the vast majority of the rest of the issues that appear in this Omnibus, is the fact that, as good as Infantino's highly stylized work was... yet again, it simply never looked quite enough like authentic Star Wars. To be sure, Infantino's comic book art is gorgeous in its own right, but while reading the books he drew in the series, it's hard to stop thinking about just how much Infantino's drawing style doesn't really do the Star Wars characters he's supposed to be portraying any real favors.

For starters, all of his female characters look essentially the same, and even his male characters don't look all that different from the female ones, in that everybody (fat, thin, tall, short, mechanical, organic, human OR alien) seems to have a hook nose, ultra sharp and angular facial features, squinty eyes, and impossibly arched eyebrows. This look works reasonably well for SOME of the characters Goodwin created for the various story arcs in the series, but it gets a little tiresome to continually see Luke, Han, Leia, and the rest of our otherwise familiar rebel heroes and dastardly imperial villains with that monotonously slanted, almost distorted and elongated look that, more than anything, actually detracts from Goodwin's more than admirable storytelling.

And honestly, those are pretty much the ONLY reasons (as perhaps nit-picky and arguable as they may indeed be) why I really cannot in good conscience give this wonderful book a full 5 star rating -- as much as I really would love to. And believe me, I'd love to. Because let's face it, THIS IS STAR WARS! Classic Star Wars! And if you love Star Wars as much as I do, you'll probably still enjoy reading this first "A Long Time Ago" Omnibus collection originally published by Marvel. But again, that brings me back to my main point. This IS Star Wars, but... then again, it also... isn't. Many of these first 27 issues, despite their extraordinary merits in many cases, simply do not have quite the ring of Lucasfilm authenticity they really ought to have. But then, come to think of it, a whole lot of people still say that about the prequels, don't they? And Lucas himself directed all of those!

So if you haven't read most of these issues, or haven't read them in years and years, don't shun these wonderful early Star Wars efforts from mighty Marvel Comics. Surprisingly enough, even though there are things in the stories that may make die-hard Star Wars fans wince (like the number of times Luke and Leia smooch - despite the fact that they later turn out to be brother and sister, no less), there are some very interesting instances in which the creatives at Marvel really got Star Wars down totally RIGHT. In some cases, the stuff they introduced way back in the late 1970s, was actually even somewhat prophetic. Stuff we didn't even see until The Empire Strikes Back premiered in 1980, and Return of the Jedi hit in 1983.

Seriously! There are actually a number things that I noticed while rereading these wonderful classics that very much foreshadow the character developments and situations that we see in the later films in the series. But don't take my word for it. Have a look for yourself. And whether you love Star Wars or not, this is an excellent book of collected classic comics. It just doesn't include what I personally consider to be all the very best of the original Marvel run. Those issues came later, of course, but why miss out on this first set of stories? After all, the original film adaptation all by itself is more than worth the price of the book. So, happy reading, and may the Force be with you. Always.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually enjoyed this more than I thought I would. It definitely satisfies that need to see what the Star Wars galaxy was like according to Marvel back in those early days when there was just the one movie. They adapted the movie into the first six issues - even including the deleted Biggs Darklighter scenes and the Jabba the Hut scene with the character designed VERY differently - but it's clear that the coordination and communication wasn't the best. The colors of settings and lightsabers feel VERY off, some spelling ("lightsabre" and "astroid droid") is different, some of the dialogue is slightly different, a cheesy yet fitting line in which Kenobi compares Vader to a spoon that picks up food but doesn't taste it, the interrogation droid looks more like a walking droid, and Kenobi even seems to be set on fire when Vader strikes him. It's so out there and wrong, but it's just so ridiculously fun to read!

I also can't help but be amused by the headline of subsequent issues: "At last, beyond the film, beyond the galaxy!" (Or something like that.) Right away, in the Star-hoppers arc, we get an explanation for how Han and Chewie lose the reward money to a pirate called Crimson Jack. So Marvel was ahead of the game on that. This is also where we see mercenary green rabbit called Jaxxon, a creature called a Behemoth, and some weirdly colored dragons in the arc after that. Heck, we even get Don-Wan Kohotay, which is such an on the nose literary reference in the form of a madman who thinks he's a Jedi Knight. I can forgive Marvel for thinking that all this feels natural to the look of Star Wars just based off of the one film. But now that we've had much more content, some of this doesn't quite match the aesthetic of the galaxy far, far away as we've come to know it. Nevertheless, I'm glad that Jaxxon has appeared in canon, and I'd honestly like to see him in a live-action film. There's also a weird line where Han mentions skipping Sunday school as a kid, which is weird when one would think that the days of the week are different from ours. But we also get the Cloud Riders whose name was the inspiration for Enfys Nest's marauders in Solo.

We also get to deal with the aftermath of the Battle of Yavin, with Luke scouting for a new place for the Rebel Alliance to relocate from Yavin 4. Over the course of this, we see the return of Darth Vader. Plus, we're introduced to a cyborg named Valance, a bounty hunter trying to kill Luke. I have to question how early we knew that Vader was a cyborg, because Valance seems like he'd be an appropriate rival and counter-point for Vader. (Valance has also made his way into canon via Han Solo: Imperial Cadet.) It's in these issues that we also get a space station known as The Wheel, which I first read about in Star Wars: Legacy, my gateway into Star Wars comics. The zero-gravity arena showdown between Han and Chewie is interesting to watch, especially when Han says Chewie has to shoot him since there can only be one winner. If Han hadn't been in any sequels, this could've been written as a tragic yet poignant end for him. But of course, it's good that we got more of him. And I like Luke's cerebral encounter with visions of Kenobi and Vader. Plus, we get Leia telling a story of Kenobi doing a mission during the days of the Republic. He doesn't resemble Ewan McGregor, obviously, but this could be chalked up to the characters imagining him differently.

Overall, the early Marvel run was weird. Some of the artwork even feels cluttered to the point where one might not know everything that's going on. But it added some great stuff to the Star Wars galaxy, even if it didn't always quite fit with the direction that the franchise would be heading. It's cheesy, it's imperfect, but it's also fun.

[Jedi Sunni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starwars:

I would not call this nostalgic from my perspective because I missed this by a generation. On the other hand I will say this was a very good start. Being a true star wars fan I love everything about this story a love the art and feel of the story.

Six against the Galaxy:

I am really enjoying the flow of the story and how well it says inline with the movie. I will say the Dr.Evazan was right on point from my perspective but walrus man looked really weird. I thought jabba was pretty cool as well even though he looked nothing like the jabba from the movie. My rating for this issue is 4.5 out of 5.0.

Death Star:

This was exactly what I expected as the story continued on. There was nothing that surprised me as far as the storybline goes. With that being said I can can see that leia and han are going to have a wonderful relationship. My rating for this issue is 4.2 out of 5.0.

In battle with Darth Vader:

This was just a great continuation of what happened in the previous issue. The story was just as smooth and there were plenty of moments that allow me to reminisce. My rating for this issue is 4.4 out of 5.0.

Lo, the Moons of Yavin:

The relationship between leia and luke is weird with them locking lips once again. Everything else seems pretty accurate and entertaining. This volume continues to follow the movie pretty well in most areas. My rating for this issue is 4.4 out of 5.0.

The final chapter?

I really enjoyed this story and how the writer did and great job at staying as close to episode one as you could get. Beside some of the obvious issues with canon. This was a great piece of star wars fiction and I would gladly read it again. My rating for this issue is 4.7 out of 5.0.

New Plant, New Perils!

Good story with one of our biggest moral dilemmas that we face today as a society. the art is consistent and pur good buddy Han Solo finally got what he had coming to him. My rating for this issue is 4.1 out of 5.0.

Eight for Aduba-3

Some don't consider this a star wars like story, I on the the other hand feel like it's pretty creative. You have a giant meat eating rabbit, what appears to be a fake Jedi, some type of porcupine, young boy and a robot, an female ex-pirite. What a dysfunctional group but what fun! can't wait to read more. My rating for this issue is a 4.7 out of 5.0.

Showdown on a wasteland World!

The story just keeps rolling along with solo's band of misfits rolling into battle. I would have to say that the battle scene was pretty entertaining. The art is nice and the transition to the next issueseems smooth. My rating for this issue is 4.2 out of 5.0.

Behemoth from the world below:

Two words starkiller kid, George Lucas original idea. Reminds me a little bit of Luke skywalker. I enjoyed this story as it was a continuation of last issue. The fight was pretty intense and solo was his annoying,brash self. My rating for this story is a 4.5 out 5.0.

Star Search!

Luke is on the hunt, for a new home for the rebels. I thought this was a nice beginning to something that can be potentially great. The whole crew seems to be in a lot of trouble. I like the fact that they brought good old jolly and captain jack. My rating for this story is 4.1 out of 5.0.

Doom world:

The planet Drexel a water world. Luke has found him self in another conundrum. This time we have crazy captains and dragon lords. Yes, captain jack is still a part of the story. Not a whole lot of action but a young lady does start to allow her emotion to explore which leads to some fireworks. I rate this issue a 3.8 out of 5.0.

Day of the dragon Lords:

As R2-D2 buys luke and c-3po some time. The crew from the millennium falcon is on their way having escaped the grasp of captain jack. This issue is a continuation and has promise to bring more excitement. My rating for this issue is 4.2 out of 5.0.

The sou d of Armageddon:

Its all out war and the put come all but foreseeable. In all actuality the good guy seem to foal the plan of the bad guys but there is more to be continued in the next issue. Solid story overall, I would rate this issue a 4.3 out of 5.0.

Star Duel!

The mention of special modification being made to the falcon sounds nostalgic. A women scorn seem to be the point the author is trying to make. There was also a very good space battle between jack and solo. I give this issue a 4.7 out of 5.0.

The Hunter!

I really like this story with the main character fighting against who he really is. I like see some of the other characters reappear and put up a great fight. My rating for this issue is 4.5 out of 5.0.

Crucible!

I have to say this was a really good story. It had a lot of what star wars is made of in it. We saw Womp Rats, Sand People and Skyhoppers. Put this all together and you havevone heck of a story. This may not be considered canon but Luke is put in a situation were his force ability allows him to come through. My rating for this issue is 4.8 out of 5.0.

The empire strikes!

The empire has set in motion some type of conspiracy against the rebel? Not very surprising if I do say so myself. What is surprising is that it does not appear to be an easy way out. My rating for this issue is 3.8 out of 5.0.

The Ultimate Gamble!

The conspiracy against the rebels continues with Luke still out of action. The rebels now have their backs against the wall and help does not appear to on the way. We they be able to fight their way through this one. My rating for this issue is 4.3 out of 5.0.

Death Game!

Han Solo is in trouble even on the brink of death involved in a gladiator event. Luke seems to have broken loose but were is he. The princess seem to be on her way some where and the droids seem to gained an Allie. This issue really ramps things up, so I rate this issue a 4.8.

Shadow of a Dark Lord!

The show begins now with Luke facing his fears and a powerful appearance of Darth Vader. It seem that the good princess and Luke have a good plan but Vader and another seems to be right on their tail. I give this issue a 4.1 out of 5.0.

To the last Gladiator!

This issue has Hungry Games written all over it. From the looks of it our good friend Han Solo may not survive this one. This Greyshade fellow want a women who does not want him. What kind of life would that be. Seriously she could be the most beautiful woman in the world, this would only be OK with a man with low self worth.

Flight into Fury!

Very nice ending to the wheel ark. I enjoyed the development of Grayshade's and Mastercoms relationship, as well as the revelation he received at the end of the story. The way luke used the force in this was also pretty cool. My rating for this issue is a 4.9 out of 5.0.

Silent Drifting:

I thought this story went right along with the personality of Obi-wan we know so well. The art depiction on the other hand is quite interesting and not one I feel looks anything like the man we know so well. The story itself was about average with decent characters. My rating for this issue is a 3.5 out of 5.0.

Seige At Yavin!

Some what slow the first at the start and not very interesting. There is a lot of dialogue and not enough action if you ask me. There are possibilities it can pick up next issue. My rating for this issue is 3.0 out of 5.0.

Doom mission:

It amazing what luke accomplishes in this mission which should have lead to his certain doom. I also find this House of Tagge interesting and would like more information on who they are. My overall rating for this issue is 4.0 out of 5.0.

Return of the Hunter!

Here we go again with our good friend valance who is the droid hater. This time he will be faced with a decision. He seem to hate him self because he does not see the humanity in his situation. My rating for this issue is 4.1 out of 5.0.

[Kelly Sedinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a time it was, back in the late 70s when all you had for fresh STAR WARS content during the three year wait between movies was a new issue each month of Marvel's STAR WARS comic! I actually didn't read a lot of these until after RETURN OF THE JEDI came out, and I read them the old-fashioned way at the time: by tracking down the single issues, one by one, in comics stores. Still, what a grand time it was to read a lot of this stuff. This book contains roughly the first thirty or so issues of Marvel's old STAR WARS comic, which take the reader through first the movie itself via an adaptation that took up the first six issues, and then into original stories that followed the post-Yavin adventures of our Rebel heroes.

Some of this stuff sounds strange when described--a Han-and-Chewie adventure ripped from THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, or our heroes getting caught up in a local war on an ocean planet, or intrigue on a galactic casino--but these stories are told with some pretty wild abandon in a time when the STAR WARS universe was a barely-developed thing at all. The writers and creators of these comics had more freedom than any STAR WARS storyteller not named "Lucas", and it shows in the sheer exuberance of their stories. But they are still pretty solid stories in themselves, and I had a great time revisiting them in this book. (I'm slowly working my way through the entire Marvel STAR WARS run.)

The art is often fantastic, although I'll admit that Carmine Infantino's human figures do take a bit of getting used to, and in a lot of cases if you're looking for similarity to the actors, you're not going to find it, which is why in a lot of cases the characters are still rocking the exact same costumes they wore in the original film, right down to Leia's white gown and famous cinnamon-roll hairdo.

For a trip into what STAR WARS used to feel like, the old Marvel run is an absolute blast that I can't recommend highly enough, and I'd be lying if I didn't note how many times I've 'borrowed' story ideas from these very comics in my own fiction attempts!

[Alex Sarll]

Containing a handful of issues which, due to the vagaries of licensing deals and Comixology sales and so forth, were not in the overlapping Epic Collection I recently read. New writer Mary Jo Duffy joins the team for one issue – and a bold move, back then, to give a comic based on what was very much seen as a boys' film, and which was pretty much keeping Marvel afloat, to a female writer. True, it is only that one issue, for now, but she'll be back. This is a flashback to Obi-Wan's pomp, where rather than a certain handsome Scot we'd all now picture, the General is presented as pure silver fox. Remarkably similar to the way Carmine Infantino draws General Dodonna, in fact – maybe he thinks all generals look the same? Though that still doesn't explain the panel a couple of issues later where Leia, while pining for both Luke (remember, they didn't know yet) and Han, also gives Dodonna a very coquettish kiss, something not suggested at all in the dialogue. Star Wars comics back then were weird, is what I'm saying. Anyway, the rest of it is back to Archie Goodwin for scripts, who pulls off a couple of pretty solid issues which emphasise the Wars in Star Wars, the Yavin base under siege (even if the cover and the credits can't agree on how you spell that) and a solid new secondary antagonist introduced in the form of Tagge. The collection concludes with a return appearance by Valance, the self-loathing cyborg bounty hunter, who remains far more interesting here than in the recent attempt to reintroduce him, and all the more so when you consider how little had yet been seen on screen of the bounty hunters.

[Chris W · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Stars

After basically redoing episode 4 (those issues are insanely fun and easy to enjoy just like the movie), consider it an alternative take on star wars. With Vader being basically a separate guy from Luke's dad. Luke and Leia kissing often, random Jar Jar Binks like bunny character. There's cyborg who reappears in the new bounty hunter series by Marvel. Additionally there's even a random story about what obi wan was like prior to New Hope (which is completely different from what ended up being cannon).

In many ways this serves as a history lesson of the various characters and concepts that were tested before Lucas decided to make his official cannon. Even the lightsabers don't have the same color as the movies (all are portrayed as red or in some spots golden colored)

For an average person this may not be what you're looking for. However if are a hardcore star wars fan, it is an interesting look into what Star Wars was like before it became the massive 3 trilogy franchise that we all know today.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is what it is...

Imagine that you're tasked with writing a comic series to continue the story of Star Wars, but all you've got to go on is some photos and a summary of the movie, which you haven't actually seen. What do you do? Write a mostly generic space opera comic using those characters.

I can't say for certain that that's what happened here, but for the first 15 issues that's what the evidence tells me. After that things get... closer, although it's all still filtered through 70s Marvel narration and dialogue.

Reading Timothy Zahn's first Star Wars trilogy you can hear the characters speaking and see things happening in your mind like watching the movies. That's basically the opposite of what we have here. That's not to say it's not interesting or enjoyable -- I did read the whole thing, after all -- but aside from the direct adaptation of A New Hope (the original, not the special edition), it's probably not going to appeal to people who are primarily looking for more Star Wars.

[Jaime K · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 stars for illustrations
4.5 stars for inking
3.5 stars for storyline

This is a Dark Horse compilation of the first 27 Marvel Comics Star Wars series. The covers were used before each issue, which is awesome.

I did not enjoy the fact that there was so much writing. Comics are supposed to be a nice weave of words and images, allowing both to tell the story. With these, I paid little attention to the images, which is sad...though the colouring is SO 1970s comics hahaha. Despite some massive issues I have with some of the visual representations, the details are abundant. It's very obvious that a lot of time and work went into each panel.
On top of that, the scripter/ editors, CONSTANTLY added notes that referenced past issues. It was awkward and was unnecessary. If I pick up the third issue of a comics series without reading the others, I will plan on sometimes being confused. I don't enjoy the flow being ruined when there are 5-10 addenda (if not more) per issue. And it really did ruin the flow.

There are some discrepancies as the comics were developed as the movies and initial stories were released. Some of them are understandable, like Leia and Luke kissing more often, or Vader and Luke's father being different people. Others just make me cringe, mainly in the details. I love Jaxxon, but I don't like how he is called a rabbit.
It's unfortunate that while the writer is the same throughout each episode/sub-story, the artists and inkers changed. Chewbacca looks horrible in almost the entire TPB and Leia has a square/sharp face in some of the stories.

"Mr. Solo" always made me laugh.
The fact that Wookiee wasn't one of 3POs main languages boggles the mind, especially since he understands Chewie fine in ANH.


1. Star Wars

-I love how the novel is incorporated in this. This is SO much better than the SE that came out in the 1990s.
-I did see a typo on page 7: "While not far distant…" I'm sorry but that made me twitch
-I found Luke saying "a 3D hologram" to be hilarious


2. Six Against the Galaxy

- heh, Luke called Owen "Uncle Ben" on page 28
- Seriously, Chewbacca looks ridiculous
- HAN SHOT FIRST! HAH!
- OK Jabba is NOT described as anything close to skinny in the book. He's not slug-like in the novel, so I understand the legs, but yeesh, he's supposed to be fat with a skeletal-type face and huge jowls. The artist for this was not good.


5. Lo, the Moons of Yavin

- I kind of like the formality of Luke still calling Han "Solo." It shows that they're still strangers to each other.
- I REALLY like the note that Han may be trying to make Luke jealous when talking about Leia…or he may be telling the truth. That made me grin.


7. New Planets, New Perils! to 10. Behemoth From the World Below

This was Han's subplot, with Captain Jack, Jaxxon and others. But those two are characters who I had known. There is some Luke and Leia, but more of a background as Han thought of them.

- Um…Sunday school? (p. 123, iss. 7) In a galaxy far, far away? I winced but again, this was 1978, not even a full year after the first release.
- The character Don-Wan made me roll my eyes, especially with the surname Kihotay. Like...seriously?!


11. Star Search! to 15. Star Duel

Archie Goodwin took over as writer for Luke's subplot against dragons and pirates. Han's story was brought in more in these than Luke was in the previous ones, but that's because the two stories clashed.

- The representations of Chewie and Leia were horrible. But the coloring was done well.
- Han Solo is definitely one to change the heart of a hard woman. :D


16. The Hunter

- It's odd that a cyborg is so anti-droid


17. Crucible

- This was a more visual comic, which was great. I enjoyed learning of Luke's past.
- The end confused me. It said that the next issue would be The Hand of the Empire but I looked it up on the Wook - the comic doesn't exist.


18. The Empire Strikes to 23. Flight into Fury

This substory is still written by Archy Goodwin and has the same artists with different inkers. The artists have horrid representations of Chewie (too big and a fat face), Leia (too angular of a face) and Han (TOO muscular). The inkers though were great with the colours.
The story was also enjoyable. Luke goes into a near-coma after a Force meditation, and Han & Leia navigate to The Wheel. The Wheel! I didn't realize that The Wheel was such an old concept. It made me smile.

- (18) - on page 321, the dead ship made me think of Firefly and the Reapers.
- (19) - I like that Goodwin understood how much of a gambler Han was. This was done in 1978. The only novel written at this time was Splinter of the Mind's Eye; nothing of Han's backstory was really developed. Again, it's so great to see an understanding before canon was hashed out.
-(22 & 23) - Ummm…..even in '78/'79, wouldn't the artists have known that you can't be in zero-g without a suit?
- I really loved the absolute end, with Luke saying that against Vader, he has to master the Force. Otherwise, his powers may not be enough.


24. Silent Drifting

- I liked that this was more visual.
- This was a story of Obi-Wan Kenobi when he was a general. Their rendition of a younger Ben made me chuckle; but it was great based on just the movies!


25. Siege at Yavin to 27. Return of the Hunter

- I can't remember if the Massassi were mentioned in Splinter or even in the ANH novel, but seeing them mentioned here (misspelled but that doesn't bother me. It was 1979) made me squee a bit.
- Han isn't around and Leia kisses Luke a bit too often. In ANH, it's clear Luke's infatuated but Leia doesn't make her desire known. But then here Luke thinks she may like Han? Confusing.

[Nicholas Sedillos · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a six-issue adaptation of A New Hope that hews closely to Alan Dean Foster’s prose novel, the very first Star Wars comic book takes a little while to find its bearings in the Galaxy Far, Far Away, first sending Han Solo and Chewbacca off on some pretty generic quasi-Western adventures. (One of the first new characters introduced is Jaxxon, a giant green cartoon rabbit that looks like something off a cereal box.) Eventually, though, we start to get a surprisingly coherent picture of the Rebellion’s tribulations following the destruction of the Death Star, and the beginnings of Vader’s hunt for the young heroes who humiliated him. There are also a couple interesting one-offs, like “Crucible!,” in which we flash back to Luke’s former life on Tatooine learn more about his friendship with Biggs and prodigious talent for shooting womp rats.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't expect this to be so fun. Sure it shows its age - any fan of further Star Wars installments would be embarassed at stuff like how often Luke and Leia make out - but it's fun! You get space pirates, dragons, a gladiator coliseum in outer space, cyborgs, bounty hunters, and plenty of cool spaceships. Carmine Infantino does a lot of the artwork and he's exceptional, especially given how much freedom he has with the overall designs of the setting. Some of the story elements, like Luke's fear of Vader and hallucinations, play out almost exactly as future movies would. It's a strange mix of silly goofiness and fun sci-fi adventure.

My favourite issue was #16, introducing the bounty hunter Valance. But as the series went on and was able to establish itselves as a unique entity outside of retelling the first movie it got really fun.

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before there was Episode 4, before there was A New Hope, there was just Star Wars. This collects the first 27 issues of the original Marvel Star Wars series, starting with an adaptation of the movie. Some of the details between the comics and the movies are different, and that makes it interesting, you can tell that they were in production before the movie was released. Following up the adaptation, they peel off to show more of the adventures that occur before a second movie was released.

It's interesting to look back on this time where we don't know any more about Luke's father than what Obi-Wan told him, and where the love-triangle is still a thing (though it is laughable how many times Luke and Leia kiss knowing what we know now).

The artwork is beautiful and the stories fit into the universe perfectly.

[Helena Perez · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️: 4 / 5

“ ‘Begone, defilers of the sacred way!’ “

💭 A comic book edition of A New Hope along with adventures beyond the film with some of our favorite people.

What I liked:
- A New Hope storyline
- Random male characters in booty shorts
- Don Quixote reference
- Dragon lords storyline
- Bounty hunter
- First in the series available on KU
- Colorful artwork

What I wasn’t a fan of:
- Leia’s name changes
- Amaiza’s outfit 🙃
- Some of the female character storylines/motivations could’ve been more nuanced

I liked this. The series follows the most famous characters from Star Wars through the story of a New Hope and some adventures that go beyond the film which I found to be fun to read about! It’s cool to see what the comics used look like art wise and for themes and storylines.

[Dakota Shyft · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel like three stars is generous.

Is it BAD? Meh. The story is kind of wonky. Reading it new would have probably been fucking awesome, but with decades of canon and that being thrown aside by Disney, this is definitely not the strongest writing star wars has had.

The art is also a little strange. In one panel Luke has long, flowing hair that looks like it would reach halfway down his back and the next it's the length we expect for him. The color of things, for example lightsabers is not consistent.

Again, is it bad? Meh. Not exactly.

Also, the constant reminders of what issue something happened in annoy me. Was that common practice? Did people like it? It just feels unnecessary and like an attempt to sell more comics at the expense of ripping us out of the story.

[Gav451 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nostalgia

What's not to love, i read these as a kid and show the movie you're in are my least favourite the rest are huge fun. This was a time where then around was right so there was stored to consider.

Re reading it has been a blast. I loved some of the awful costumes. The space pirate in his pants is a particular delight. The remake of the magnificent 7 in space is bonkers with the talking rabbit and the boy called Starkiller but there are still interesting aspects of this.

I loved baddies giving exposition saying they were bad, the redemption arcs that hit again and again are also great.

It may be cheese but it's solid and interesting and gets more so as you read.

[L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm using the Force not to comment on the artwork. This came from the 1970's after all. I won't go on about those odd errors from Marvel. (Luke flying with Blue Squadron, Leia's father being Bail Antilles, the spine mines of Kessel, etc.) The first part is a retelling of the movie but after that Marvel has to make up new adventures for our "space warriors." I wonder how much of this was influenced by George Lucas, or perhaps influenced him. For instance there's an issue titled "The Empire Strikes" and a scene where Luke has a mystical confrontation with Darth Vader. I wouldn't consider this collection a must have except for the most die hardest of SW fans.

[Alyce Caswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these issues are very 1970s and are unfortunately typical of the time. It doesn't help that the stories following the movie adaptation lack the same slick action and cracking dialogue - the difference in quality is stark. The Empire doesn't reappear for a very long time, but at least when they finally do it feels like things pick up a bit.

I can't judge these comics too harshly. Too many decades have passed. And besides... this is the series that saved Marvel from dire financial straits, so without it our galaxy would be very different!