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Marvel Star Wars (1977-1986) #1-20
Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... Vol. 1: Doomworld
Dark Horse Comics is proud to present Classic Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... featuring classic Star Wars stories not seen in over twenty years. Originally printed by Marvel Comics, these stories have been recolored and are sure to please Star Wars fans both new and old.
376 pages, Comic
First published July 3, 2002
1 person is currently reading
84 people want to read
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,479 books271 followersRoy 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 28, 2016
If you grew up in the late 70s and early 80s and were a Star Wars fan, it was almost impossible to not be obsessed with Marvel's long-running comic. I, for one, remember seething with anticipation for my next issue of this to come in the mail, securely encased in an unassuming brown paper sleeve. I'd slide it out ever so carefully and be presented with that month's garish cover summary of whatever adventure laid in wait for the Star Warriors this time! (Yes, they actually were called that and, true to form of the time, the cover often had little to do with what actually happened in the issue, or was highly sensationalized). For kids during this time, a time without Internets and exhaustive, colon-wrenching continuity and fanboyeurism, without expanded universes and all that stupid crap, this comic was pretty much all one had to fill in the excruciating three year gaps between the movies.
And goddamn if they weren't sublime, fun, insane, and exhilarating. I'll even go out on a limb and say these stories are way more fun than anything since and there's not much to compare them to.
It's easy to see why. After a multi-issue adaptation of 'A New Hope', the adventures begin anew. The focus of the first few issues is on Han and Chewie, awesomely. They ditch the Rebel Alliance to go pay off Jabba the Hutt and get robbed by a space pirate called Crimson Jack. That's right. Space pirates robbed by space pirates. They seek their fortunes on some shit-hole backwater and get mixed up in local affairs when a praying mantis that is actually a priest tries to bury a cyborg in the local cemetery.
No, I'm not making this up. Where else would you get to see Han Solo called a "borg-licker"?
Anyway, in a clear homage to "Seven Samurai", a bunch of local peasants think Han is a hero or whatever and ask his help defending their village from a sky-cycle riding bandit named, no shit, Serji-X Arrogantus. Han auditions freelancers to build a gang against Arrogantus. He does this, for reasons unclear, with no shirt on. His new gang includes a fat, loincloth clad porcupine-alien who may qualify as the first alternative lifestyled character in Star Wars, a fake Jedi Knight named Do-Wan Kihotay, and a giant green rabbit named Jaxxon who kills people with his feet.
I don't want to ruin too much, but you get the general picture. This will be the best stuff you will ever read in connection with the Star Wars universe. Forget fan theories and stupid new movies. This is really all you need. There's heart, here. Weird heart, sure, but it has a life all its own.
The other main characters show up. Luke's running around looking for a Rebel base. He gets trapped on a water-world and gets involved in a local war between dragon-riders and sonic-jammer wielding pirates. Normal stuff. Everybody ends up together and, when Luke goes into a mysterious coma after trying to meditate on the Force, the gang ends up on a giant casino Wheel in space being chased by Imperials trying to frame the rebellion for terrorism and a shady, tight-crotched ex-senator named Greyshade who wants to penetrate Leia's thermal exhaust port with his proton torpedo.
I just can't recommend this enough.
And goddamn if they weren't sublime, fun, insane, and exhilarating. I'll even go out on a limb and say these stories are way more fun than anything since and there's not much to compare them to.
It's easy to see why. After a multi-issue adaptation of 'A New Hope', the adventures begin anew. The focus of the first few issues is on Han and Chewie, awesomely. They ditch the Rebel Alliance to go pay off Jabba the Hutt and get robbed by a space pirate called Crimson Jack. That's right. Space pirates robbed by space pirates. They seek their fortunes on some shit-hole backwater and get mixed up in local affairs when a praying mantis that is actually a priest tries to bury a cyborg in the local cemetery.
No, I'm not making this up. Where else would you get to see Han Solo called a "borg-licker"?
Anyway, in a clear homage to "Seven Samurai", a bunch of local peasants think Han is a hero or whatever and ask his help defending their village from a sky-cycle riding bandit named, no shit, Serji-X Arrogantus. Han auditions freelancers to build a gang against Arrogantus. He does this, for reasons unclear, with no shirt on. His new gang includes a fat, loincloth clad porcupine-alien who may qualify as the first alternative lifestyled character in Star Wars, a fake Jedi Knight named Do-Wan Kihotay, and a giant green rabbit named Jaxxon who kills people with his feet.
I don't want to ruin too much, but you get the general picture. This will be the best stuff you will ever read in connection with the Star Wars universe. Forget fan theories and stupid new movies. This is really all you need. There's heart, here. Weird heart, sure, but it has a life all its own.
The other main characters show up. Luke's running around looking for a Rebel base. He gets trapped on a water-world and gets involved in a local war between dragon-riders and sonic-jammer wielding pirates. Normal stuff. Everybody ends up together and, when Luke goes into a mysterious coma after trying to meditate on the Force, the gang ends up on a giant casino Wheel in space being chased by Imperials trying to frame the rebellion for terrorism and a shady, tight-crotched ex-senator named Greyshade who wants to penetrate Leia's thermal exhaust port with his proton torpedo.
I just can't recommend this enough.
October 21, 2014
The art is good but a good chunk of the dialogue and characters are below average. Perhaps it was written just for kids who need to have the obvious stated?
Nice references, including the Starkiller kid.
Nice references, including the Starkiller kid.
April 25, 2018
This series includes the first 20 issues of the original STAR WARS comic series from Marvel, published right as the first movie was released. The first six issues adapt the movie, and they obviously went by the original script rather than the final cut because some of the "deleted scenes" were included such as the Jabba the Hutt appearance (here a yellow walrus looking bipedal alien). When the stories stretch beyond the movies we get a Magnificent Seven type story starring Han Solo and some misfit aliens, stories of Luke's past, adventures on a Waterworld which really resembled the movie "waterworld" which wasn't released until much later, and then a story about a space wheel gambling resort.
It was pretty obvious the writers were trying not to write anything that would totally go against movie continuity as I'm sure they new the sequel was coming, but they did want to expand the universe. I'm guessing back then they were given much more freedom than what came later. There is something really cool about these stories that aren't bogged down by continuity. There weren't hundreds of Star Wars comics and novels out at the time these comics were done, and these were pretty much the only new Star Wars stories being created. (I know there were some Han Solo novels and probably a few other things, but still, there wasn't much.) While these stories aren't nearly as in depth and complex as the Dark Horse era comics, they are probably much more fun. There's just a feeling of creativity in each story that foreshadows the many great tales that will eventually spring from the Star Wars Universe.
The art is mostly from Howard Chaykin and Carmine Infantino, and it fits very well. If you are a continuity buff and want everything to fit into the true Star Wars canon, you may not find this to your liking, but to me it reminded me of just how cool Star Wars was back in the day. I'm looking forward to the next volumes.
It was pretty obvious the writers were trying not to write anything that would totally go against movie continuity as I'm sure they new the sequel was coming, but they did want to expand the universe. I'm guessing back then they were given much more freedom than what came later. There is something really cool about these stories that aren't bogged down by continuity. There weren't hundreds of Star Wars comics and novels out at the time these comics were done, and these were pretty much the only new Star Wars stories being created. (I know there were some Han Solo novels and probably a few other things, but still, there wasn't much.) While these stories aren't nearly as in depth and complex as the Dark Horse era comics, they are probably much more fun. There's just a feeling of creativity in each story that foreshadows the many great tales that will eventually spring from the Star Wars Universe.
The art is mostly from Howard Chaykin and Carmine Infantino, and it fits very well. If you are a continuity buff and want everything to fit into the true Star Wars canon, you may not find this to your liking, but to me it reminded me of just how cool Star Wars was back in the day. I'm looking forward to the next volumes.
October 30, 2020
Star Wars Legends Project #238
Background: Doomworld, released in June 2002, collects the first 20 issues of the original Marvel run of Star Wars comics (originally published from April of 1977 to November of 1978). Issues #1-10 were written by Roy Thomas and issues #11-20 were written by Archie Goodwin. Donald F Glut co-wrote issue #10 and Chris Claremont co-wrote issue #17. Howard Chaykin drew issues #1-10 and also co-wrote issues #7, 8, and 10. Carmine Infantino drew issues #11-20 except for issues #16 & 17 which were drawn by Walt simonson and Herb Trimpe, respectively. Tom Palmer and Alan Kupperberg also contributed to the art for issue #10. Thomas and Chaykin were both prolific in comics at the time, but did very little Star Wars work aside from those first 10 issues. Goodwin wrote a few dozen more issues of the series, collaborating mostly with Infantino, plus a smattering of other work. The rest may bear mentioning in connection to other works at some point in the future. In particular, Glut is best known for writing the novelization of The Empire Strikes Back.
Doomworld depicts the events leading up to the Battle of Yavin and continues into the weeks after. The main characters are Luke, Han, Leia, Chewie, Threepio, and Artoo, with occasional appearances by Darth Vader and a rotating cast of colorful characters. The most notorious of these is Jaxxon the carnivorous green space rabbit. So, yeah . . . that's what we're working with here.
Summary: After the events of Star Wars: A New Hope, the Rebellion sends Luke on an urgent mission to find them a new secret base before Darth Vader can get back and expose their location to the Empire. But when Luke mysteriously vanishes, Princess Leia takes action. Meanwhile, Han is on his way back to pay off his debt to Jabba, but complications arise and his plans change. The adventures never stop as our heroes struggle to survive in a galaxy they have just helped turn upside-down.
Review: This is the true beginning of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, and as such I've picked up bits and pieces of what to expect over the years. To be honest, what I was expecting, given the style and the time it was created and some of the elements I'd heard about, was something barely readable and certainly not enjoyable. This comfortably cleared that extremely low bar and I found myself really getting into it for the most part. It's not the '90s Star Wars EU that I'm most fond of, but it has a certain charm. The first 6 issues are just an adaptation of the original movie, but even there I found some of the writing to be quite good.
It's also more fun than annoying to spot the rough bits where this comic runs afoul of a canon that still isn't quite set in stone . . . like the assumption that Luke's father was Owen's brother, or the consistent references to "Jabba the Hut" (and at least one declaration that he is on "Dantooine.")
The title of this collection is drawn from the major arc that covers about 10 issues following the destruction of the Death Star, and I have to take this opportunity to once again point out that even this series understands that the very first job the Rebels would have would be looking for a new base. Can't resist another swipe at that nonsense from the Rebel Force series. Anyway, Han immediately loses his Rebel payout to a pirate named Crimson Jack and is forced to scrounge up work elsewhere to try and generate some money (this leads to the first of many Star Wars versions of the plot of Seven Samurai). But eventually all of our heroes end up on the titular "Doomworld," a water planet where a group of galactic castaways have split over philosophical differences and now wage war against each other. I particularly appreciated how this arc started out with a few different things going on, and over the course of the series they all come together in a pretty epic conclusion. Marvel clearly put people on this property that know their stuff when it comes to telling a serialized story.
The 2 issues following the climax of this arc are one-offs (though one will almost certainly tie-in to later events) and the collection ends on a cliffhanger in the midst of the next arc. This one finds Luke, Han, and Leia trapped aboard a giant space station casino where patrons bet on things like deadly gladiator fights. The casino has enjoyed freedom from Imperial interference in exchange for a healthy cash flow, but the Rebels have stumbled across a plot by the Empire to blame the Rebellion for attacks on the casino's ships so they can move in and take over. I'm not enjoying this arc as much as the one before it, but we'll see how it resolves in future issues.
In any case, this is definitely worth at least checking out, not only as a priceless bit of Star Wars history, but on its own merits. I look forward, at least a little bit, to reading more.
C+
Background: Doomworld, released in June 2002, collects the first 20 issues of the original Marvel run of Star Wars comics (originally published from April of 1977 to November of 1978). Issues #1-10 were written by Roy Thomas and issues #11-20 were written by Archie Goodwin. Donald F Glut co-wrote issue #10 and Chris Claremont co-wrote issue #17. Howard Chaykin drew issues #1-10 and also co-wrote issues #7, 8, and 10. Carmine Infantino drew issues #11-20 except for issues #16 & 17 which were drawn by Walt simonson and Herb Trimpe, respectively. Tom Palmer and Alan Kupperberg also contributed to the art for issue #10. Thomas and Chaykin were both prolific in comics at the time, but did very little Star Wars work aside from those first 10 issues. Goodwin wrote a few dozen more issues of the series, collaborating mostly with Infantino, plus a smattering of other work. The rest may bear mentioning in connection to other works at some point in the future. In particular, Glut is best known for writing the novelization of The Empire Strikes Back.
Doomworld depicts the events leading up to the Battle of Yavin and continues into the weeks after. The main characters are Luke, Han, Leia, Chewie, Threepio, and Artoo, with occasional appearances by Darth Vader and a rotating cast of colorful characters. The most notorious of these is Jaxxon the carnivorous green space rabbit. So, yeah . . . that's what we're working with here.
Summary: After the events of Star Wars: A New Hope, the Rebellion sends Luke on an urgent mission to find them a new secret base before Darth Vader can get back and expose their location to the Empire. But when Luke mysteriously vanishes, Princess Leia takes action. Meanwhile, Han is on his way back to pay off his debt to Jabba, but complications arise and his plans change. The adventures never stop as our heroes struggle to survive in a galaxy they have just helped turn upside-down.
Review: This is the true beginning of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, and as such I've picked up bits and pieces of what to expect over the years. To be honest, what I was expecting, given the style and the time it was created and some of the elements I'd heard about, was something barely readable and certainly not enjoyable. This comfortably cleared that extremely low bar and I found myself really getting into it for the most part. It's not the '90s Star Wars EU that I'm most fond of, but it has a certain charm. The first 6 issues are just an adaptation of the original movie, but even there I found some of the writing to be quite good.
It's also more fun than annoying to spot the rough bits where this comic runs afoul of a canon that still isn't quite set in stone . . . like the assumption that Luke's father was Owen's brother, or the consistent references to "Jabba the Hut" (and at least one declaration that he is on "Dantooine.")
The title of this collection is drawn from the major arc that covers about 10 issues following the destruction of the Death Star, and I have to take this opportunity to once again point out that even this series understands that the very first job the Rebels would have would be looking for a new base. Can't resist another swipe at that nonsense from the Rebel Force series. Anyway, Han immediately loses his Rebel payout to a pirate named Crimson Jack and is forced to scrounge up work elsewhere to try and generate some money (this leads to the first of many Star Wars versions of the plot of Seven Samurai). But eventually all of our heroes end up on the titular "Doomworld," a water planet where a group of galactic castaways have split over philosophical differences and now wage war against each other. I particularly appreciated how this arc started out with a few different things going on, and over the course of the series they all come together in a pretty epic conclusion. Marvel clearly put people on this property that know their stuff when it comes to telling a serialized story.
The 2 issues following the climax of this arc are one-offs (though one will almost certainly tie-in to later events) and the collection ends on a cliffhanger in the midst of the next arc. This one finds Luke, Han, and Leia trapped aboard a giant space station casino where patrons bet on things like deadly gladiator fights. The casino has enjoyed freedom from Imperial interference in exchange for a healthy cash flow, but the Rebels have stumbled across a plot by the Empire to blame the Rebellion for attacks on the casino's ships so they can move in and take over. I'm not enjoying this arc as much as the one before it, but we'll see how it resolves in future issues.
In any case, this is definitely worth at least checking out, not only as a priceless bit of Star Wars history, but on its own merits. I look forward, at least a little bit, to reading more.
C+
June 10, 2025
Reading history:
Normally I keep this in my private notes section, but I'm moving it. Yay!
Reading history was not added on Goodreads, but was instead kept on a post-it note with the book.
Started May 6th, 2025.
Finished June 10th, 2025.
May 6th, 2025: read issue #1 in physical book.
May 8th, 2025: read issue #2 in physical book.
May 9th, 2025: read issue #3 in physical book.
May 10th, 2025: read issue #4 in physical book.
May 11th, 2025: read issues #5 & #6 in physical book.
May 13th, 2025: read issues #7 & #8 in physical book.
May 14th, 2025: read issue #9 in physical book.
May 17th, 2025: read issue #10 in physical book.
May 18th, 2025: read issue #11 in physical book.
May 19th, 2025: read issue #12 in physical book.
May 26th, 2025: read issue #13 in physical book.
May 28th, 2025 (after midnight): read issues #14 & #15 in physical book.
May 31st, 2025: read issues issues #16 & #17 in physical book.
June 10th, 2025: read issues #18, #19, & #20 in physical book.
Normally I keep this in my private notes section, but I'm moving it. Yay!
Reading history was not added on Goodreads, but was instead kept on a post-it note with the book.
Started May 6th, 2025.
Finished June 10th, 2025.
May 6th, 2025: read issue #1 in physical book.
May 8th, 2025: read issue #2 in physical book.
May 9th, 2025: read issue #3 in physical book.
May 10th, 2025: read issue #4 in physical book.
May 11th, 2025: read issues #5 & #6 in physical book.
May 13th, 2025: read issues #7 & #8 in physical book.
May 14th, 2025: read issue #9 in physical book.
May 17th, 2025: read issue #10 in physical book.
May 18th, 2025: read issue #11 in physical book.
May 19th, 2025: read issue #12 in physical book.
May 26th, 2025: read issue #13 in physical book.
May 28th, 2025 (after midnight): read issues #14 & #15 in physical book.
May 31st, 2025: read issues issues #16 & #17 in physical book.
June 10th, 2025: read issues #18, #19, & #20 in physical book.
April 13, 2020
Very few readers who approach this series and this first tome will dislike Star Wars. This makes it both harder to judge and much more rewarding when you get into it. I collected this run as single issues but much later on, around issue 80 onwards. It was good to read these early stories in one go.
The artwork varies from passable to awful but the stories play out out well, even when they are rip offs from famous Japanese films turned into westerns. Given that Star Wars owed so much to Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress, this is both an acknowledgement and trial that has to be borne.
The final two story arcs come into their own and start to blend away from the film well. There is good character depth taken, especially over characters like Joli, whilst more gaps are filled in of Luke's childhood. After a while, I was humming the theme tune and can't wait to dive into the second volume.....
The artwork varies from passable to awful but the stories play out out well, even when they are rip offs from famous Japanese films turned into westerns. Given that Star Wars owed so much to Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress, this is both an acknowledgement and trial that has to be borne.
The final two story arcs come into their own and start to blend away from the film well. There is good character depth taken, especially over characters like Joli, whilst more gaps are filled in of Luke's childhood. After a while, I was humming the theme tune and can't wait to dive into the second volume.....
January 2, 2021
Back in 1977 when the first Star Wars film hit the cinemas, Marvel got the licence to do a serialized comic of it. And then they got the go-ahead to make up their own stories using the characters.
This collects the first issues. The "New Hope" follows the film as expected - it looks like they may have had an early draft of the script and possibly some shots of filming, as Jabba the Hut (no extra "t") is shown as a large humanoid, rather than the space slug he later became.
The artwork is a bit hit and miss in the adaptation, but is considerably better in their own stories.
Once Marvel got free rein to do their own thing, they didn't hesitate to jump the shark and make some weird and wonderful characters and situations.
Will appeal to Star Wars completists (even if most of this is non-canon now), and people like myself who had the original comics when the film first came out.
This collects the first issues. The "New Hope" follows the film as expected - it looks like they may have had an early draft of the script and possibly some shots of filming, as Jabba the Hut (no extra "t") is shown as a large humanoid, rather than the space slug he later became.
The artwork is a bit hit and miss in the adaptation, but is considerably better in their own stories.
Once Marvel got free rein to do their own thing, they didn't hesitate to jump the shark and make some weird and wonderful characters and situations.
Will appeal to Star Wars completists (even if most of this is non-canon now), and people like myself who had the original comics when the film first came out.
October 2, 2018
What a palate cleanser! Hero's winning every time is good for the soul when you read the intense variety I'm into!
TO CLARIFY MY RATING: A shameless extra point is added because of my childhood obsession with the first 3 movies and the bridging of my old collection of these single issues that has many holes in it! *AND Archie Goodwin steering the wheel*
TO CLARIFY MY RATING: A shameless extra point is added because of my childhood obsession with the first 3 movies and the bridging of my old collection of these single issues that has many holes in it! *AND Archie Goodwin steering the wheel*
March 3, 2025
2 for the Roy Thomas and Chaykin ones, 5 for the rest. I had read a few of these years ago. I love Carmine Infantino's art and it was fun to read all of them in order.
April 19, 2020
Clunky dialog, terribly changed scenes and storyline (compared to the movie) and just an overall failure to capture what was seen on the silver screen, this Marvel comics "adaptation" of the George Lucas' famous "Episode IV: A New Hope" was nothing like I had hoped. Not only do we have the 6 part movie treatment but what had come afterward that includes giant green rabbits, a crazy man named "Don-Wan Kihotay" who believes he is a Jedi because he has a lightsaber (no Sancho Panza though), and the BBEG of the storyline in Serji-X Arrogantus, who just sucks.
April 20, 2018
If you love the Original Trilogy of Star Wars and fun Marvel Comics, this is a book series to check out since it was being written around the time the original movies were coming out.
Volume One hits the ground running fast with a great collection of cool stories, introducing a slew of great and memorable characters and expanding various characters from the original trilogy. The stories are a little cheesy, but I love cheese and odd stories, so I found no problems with that. The Artwork is pretty good save for the first issue, which is a little more cartoony and strange. Also, a really cool thing with the first part of the collection, which is an adaptation of A New Hope (The original Star Wars film or Episode IV), there are additional scenes which weren't in the movie's theatrical cut that expand the original story, mainly on Tatooine and Yavin IV regarding Luke and Biggs' friendship, which greatly expands the one-dimensional character of Biggs Darklighter. Also, Han shoots first in the meeting with Greedo and you have to see what the look of Jabba the Hutt would have been.
But wait! There's more!
After the adaptation of A New Hope, there's a slew of pretty wild original multi-issue stories that cover the events between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.
First there is the Aduba-3 story-arc, where Han and Chewie, following a fateful hijacking from a space-pirate known as Crimson Jack, are forced to hide out on a backwater world in the Outer Rim. While on Aduba-3, Han is hired by a group of poor farmers to protect their village from bandits riding hover-bikes. It's a loose adaptation of Seven Samurai, story-wise, with a motley group of heroes working together to protect the village. It also shows Han's heroic side and the scene with him wielding a lightsaber against a mini-Godzilla-like creature is pretty awesome.
After Aduba-3, there is what I call the Water Dragon Wars story-arc, which is a little more complex in terms of story. Luke, doing a routine recon mission, crashes on an aquatic planet with Threepio and Artoo which is run by descendants of fugitives from the Old Republic who are in the midst of civil war. Meanwhile, Crimson Jack returns and continues causing trouble for Han, Leia, and Chewie.
Finally, the last major story-arc in the book ends on a cliffhanger with the Star Warriors going to a massive space-station casino to seek medical treatment for a comatose Luke Skywalker that winds up getting Leia captured and Han forced to work as a gladiator. However, before the story really gets good, the book ends and you have to go get a copy of Volume Two: Dark Encounters.
This is a really great book that is incredibly enjoyable. May the Force be with you!
Volume One hits the ground running fast with a great collection of cool stories, introducing a slew of great and memorable characters and expanding various characters from the original trilogy. The stories are a little cheesy, but I love cheese and odd stories, so I found no problems with that. The Artwork is pretty good save for the first issue, which is a little more cartoony and strange. Also, a really cool thing with the first part of the collection, which is an adaptation of A New Hope (The original Star Wars film or Episode IV), there are additional scenes which weren't in the movie's theatrical cut that expand the original story, mainly on Tatooine and Yavin IV regarding Luke and Biggs' friendship, which greatly expands the one-dimensional character of Biggs Darklighter. Also, Han shoots first in the meeting with Greedo and you have to see what the look of Jabba the Hutt would have been.
But wait! There's more!
After the adaptation of A New Hope, there's a slew of pretty wild original multi-issue stories that cover the events between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back.
First there is the Aduba-3 story-arc, where Han and Chewie, following a fateful hijacking from a space-pirate known as Crimson Jack, are forced to hide out on a backwater world in the Outer Rim. While on Aduba-3, Han is hired by a group of poor farmers to protect their village from bandits riding hover-bikes. It's a loose adaptation of Seven Samurai, story-wise, with a motley group of heroes working together to protect the village. It also shows Han's heroic side and the scene with him wielding a lightsaber against a mini-Godzilla-like creature is pretty awesome.
After Aduba-3, there is what I call the Water Dragon Wars story-arc, which is a little more complex in terms of story. Luke, doing a routine recon mission, crashes on an aquatic planet with Threepio and Artoo which is run by descendants of fugitives from the Old Republic who are in the midst of civil war. Meanwhile, Crimson Jack returns and continues causing trouble for Han, Leia, and Chewie.
Finally, the last major story-arc in the book ends on a cliffhanger with the Star Warriors going to a massive space-station casino to seek medical treatment for a comatose Luke Skywalker that winds up getting Leia captured and Han forced to work as a gladiator. However, before the story really gets good, the book ends and you have to go get a copy of Volume Two: Dark Encounters.
This is a really great book that is incredibly enjoyable. May the Force be with you!
November 3, 2011
Interesting for its history, being the very first comic book that extended the adventures of the original Star Wars movie cast. This collection gathers Issues #1 - #20, and also is an improvement to the ink and color quality over the original comic books.
The stories vary from fairly mundane to decently exciting. The most memorable for me was the multi-issue storyline that brought Han, Luke, Leia, Chewy and the droids through a complex plot involving the taking over of gambling central "The Wheel." Cool stuff.
The artwork is a mixed bag, with my main gripe being Han & Luke sometimes looking like The Incredible Hulk... all beefy, muscles rippling. Doesn't really fit their character. Chewbacca is also a hulking monster, a bit different than his final screen persona.
Leia has also been "enhanced" (especially on top) and she's wearing that silly white dress (now more skin tight) throughout the entire series. Other buxom female antagonists also enter the storylines... sometimes distractingly so.
But I did enjoy it. Fun to see what the initial ideas were for how the Star Wars gang proceeded after the events of "A New Hope." There were still many details that George Lucas had yet to fill in, and therefore these issues do not fit snugly into an overall chronology. But there's also nothing blatantly askew.
Enjoyable for Star Wars fans, if you like the comic book format.
The stories vary from fairly mundane to decently exciting. The most memorable for me was the multi-issue storyline that brought Han, Luke, Leia, Chewy and the droids through a complex plot involving the taking over of gambling central "The Wheel." Cool stuff.
The artwork is a mixed bag, with my main gripe being Han & Luke sometimes looking like The Incredible Hulk... all beefy, muscles rippling. Doesn't really fit their character. Chewbacca is also a hulking monster, a bit different than his final screen persona.
Leia has also been "enhanced" (especially on top) and she's wearing that silly white dress (now more skin tight) throughout the entire series. Other buxom female antagonists also enter the storylines... sometimes distractingly so.
But I did enjoy it. Fun to see what the initial ideas were for how the Star Wars gang proceeded after the events of "A New Hope." There were still many details that George Lucas had yet to fill in, and therefore these issues do not fit snugly into an overall chronology. But there's also nothing blatantly askew.
Enjoyable for Star Wars fans, if you like the comic book format.
May 14, 2015
A collection of very early comics. This volume starts with an adaptation of the first Star Wars film. It then moves on to original stories. Han Solo tries to get money to pay off his debt to the Hutt, and ends up helping people along the way. There's even a Magnificent Seven type story. Meanwhile, Luke is looking for a new base for the rebels with not much luck at all. They are very much of their time, and had only the first film to base their characters on. So Leia is still thinking about Luke romantically. The artwork can be odd, particularly Chewie. A good read.
January 1, 2015
This book is a surprisingly fun read. The stories are reasonably interesting and generally fit pretty well into the Star Wars universe. In fact despite not being canon even before the new star wars line. Many of the old canon (now legend) sources drew material from this comic series.
Definitely a good read. Unfortunately the book cuts off in the middle of an arc.
Definitely a good read. Unfortunately the book cuts off in the middle of an arc.
May 16, 2015
This is certainly a mixed bag, when it comes to the storylines. On the one hand, the first Annual, with the Flyers, is very well done, as is the whole storyline with The Wheel. On the other hand, the clear "Seven Samurai"/"Magnificent Seven" storyline that kicks off the the comic's first original story after the events of A New Hope is a bit much.
February 8, 2010
groovy man!
August 30, 2012
Worth reading for Star Wars fans.
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