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Marvel Star Wars (1977-1986) #21-38
Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... Vol. 2: Dark Encounters
A long time ago, in a decade that was far, far out there, moviedom's most beloved characters made the transition from silver screen to printed page in a comic-book series that was truly out of this world. Each new issue of Marvel's Star Wars comic-book series that launched in 1977 was stranger and crazier than the next. Where else could you find the friendship between Luke Skywalker and C-3PO turning the heart of Valance, a ruthless, cyborg bounty hunter? Or a team of vengeful imperial brothers, led by Baron Orman Tagge, who seek to bring the frozen fury of their Omega Frost to Tatooine and the Rebel Alliance fleet? Or an early version of Jabba the Hutt as a humanoid seal instead of a drooling space slug? Now, for the first time ever, the entire Marvel Star Wars comic-book series is collected in book format, bringing these hard-to-find gems from dusty collectors' boxes to your home library. Whether you're a tried-and-true Star Wars fan, a lover of pop culture, or a collector of kitsch, each stand-alone book in this seven-volume collection will amaze, amuse, and delight.
368 pages, Comic
First published July 10, 2002
3 people are currently reading
127 people want to read
About the author
Archie Goodwin
970 books69 followersArchie Goodwin was an American comic book writer, editor, and artist. He worked on a number of comic strips in addition to comic books, and is best known for his Warren and Marvel Comics work. For Warren he was chief writer and editor of landmark horror anthology titles Creepy and Eerie, and for Marvel he set up the creator-owned Epic Comics as well as adapting Star Wars into both comics and newspaper strips. He is regularly cited as the "best-loved comic book editor, ever."
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
May 1, 2018
I'm not sure if I've gotten jaded by the mired continuity of the existing Star Wars universe or what, but I'm really enjoying these simpler Star Wars stories from the Marvel Comics series of the 70s and 80s. This series introduces some really interesting characters who never became part of the "official" Star Wars canon. We also get to see the evolution of Luke Skywalker play out in a way we never really got to see in the films since so much happened off screen between Empire and Jedi. Chewbacca is portrayed a little out of character from what we know of Wookies now but at the time not much was known about him or how he would react in certain situations. I'm assuming not even Lucas knew exactly where he was going with the characters at this time, so it's forgivable. The art is slightly primitive at times as far as presenting accurate likenesses, but it fits the stories well enough it's not an issue.
This is a fun and underrated series and I look forward to further volumes.
This is a fun and underrated series and I look forward to further volumes.
January 5, 2021
Star Wars Legends Project #245
Background: Dark Encounters, released in June of 2002, collects the issues #21-38 and Annual #1 of the original Marvel run of Star Wars comics (originally published from December 1978 to May 1980). Most of the issues were written by Archie Goodwin and drawn by Carmine Infantino. Issue #24 was written by Mary Jo Duffy and issue #38 was co-written and drawn by Michael Golden. Annual #1 was written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Mike Vosburg. Goodwin wrote a few dozen issues of the series beyond these, mostly with Infantino, and a handful of other things. Duffy also wrote some dozens of Marvel issues. Claremont did a few other things, but this is pretty much the only Star Wars credit for Golden and Vosburg.
Dark Encounters picks up right where Doomworld left off (my review), about a year after the Battle of Yavin. The main characters are Luke, Han, Leia, Chewie, Threepio, and Artoo, with occasional appearances by Darth Vader and a host of recurring characters, probably most notably Baron Tagge and his scheming siblings.
Summary: Luke, Han, Leia, and the rest find themselves in various tight spots on The Wheel, a notorious gambling haven that the Empire hopes to take over without scaring off its wealthy clientele, and escape seems unlikely . . . so when they pull it off, they have cause to celebrate. Unfortunately, there's no time, as the Empire is also closing in on the Rebel's Yavin base thanks to the elaborate and wily plotting of Darth Vader's sometimes-rival Baron Tagge. Staying one step ahead of the Empire won't be easy, particularly with Vader more anxious than ever to learn the name of the pilot who blew up the Death Star.
Review: Hopefully no one is picking up this volume who hasn't already made it through Doomworld, so you should already know what you're in for. I found this to be a definite improvement over the first volume for a few reasons (like not spending the first several issues rehashing a familiar story). There's no getting around that Goodwin is just a good writer, despite some of the quirks and corniness that come with the medium and the era. As I've mentioned elsewhere, he was also writing the newspaper strip at the same time, and frankly it's impressive that he had this many stories to tell and they don't feel low-quality or repetitive.
The saga of the Tagge family is definitely the strongest through-line in this volume, and I found Baron Tagge to be one of the more compelling comic villains, certainly the best EU villain of this era (though that's a low bar). I like that his sense of himself is more aggrandized than his actual abilities (e.g. his training with a lightsaber), but not so much that he's comical. He's one of a long tradition of Vader rivals within the Empire, but his plans are much better than most, and he's got a brother who's a high-ranking Imperial officer and another brother who's a scientific genius, and then a younger sister who he's committed to keeping out of the darker side of the family (and the pay-off to that whole thing was great).
Whenever he showed up, I felt assured that the story would at least be decent. There's still some oddness here and there, but nothing as weird as a green space rabbit. The Valance bounty hunter storyline had moments of greatness and lots of potential, but overall he just wasn't a well-written character. If he had been, his arc could have been a real highlight. Still, there's plenty here to enjoy, and I continue to appreciate this run of stories a lot more than I expected to.
B-
Background: Dark Encounters, released in June of 2002, collects the issues #21-38 and Annual #1 of the original Marvel run of Star Wars comics (originally published from December 1978 to May 1980). Most of the issues were written by Archie Goodwin and drawn by Carmine Infantino. Issue #24 was written by Mary Jo Duffy and issue #38 was co-written and drawn by Michael Golden. Annual #1 was written by Chris Claremont and drawn by Mike Vosburg. Goodwin wrote a few dozen issues of the series beyond these, mostly with Infantino, and a handful of other things. Duffy also wrote some dozens of Marvel issues. Claremont did a few other things, but this is pretty much the only Star Wars credit for Golden and Vosburg.
Dark Encounters picks up right where Doomworld left off (my review), about a year after the Battle of Yavin. The main characters are Luke, Han, Leia, Chewie, Threepio, and Artoo, with occasional appearances by Darth Vader and a host of recurring characters, probably most notably Baron Tagge and his scheming siblings.
Summary: Luke, Han, Leia, and the rest find themselves in various tight spots on The Wheel, a notorious gambling haven that the Empire hopes to take over without scaring off its wealthy clientele, and escape seems unlikely . . . so when they pull it off, they have cause to celebrate. Unfortunately, there's no time, as the Empire is also closing in on the Rebel's Yavin base thanks to the elaborate and wily plotting of Darth Vader's sometimes-rival Baron Tagge. Staying one step ahead of the Empire won't be easy, particularly with Vader more anxious than ever to learn the name of the pilot who blew up the Death Star.
Review: Hopefully no one is picking up this volume who hasn't already made it through Doomworld, so you should already know what you're in for. I found this to be a definite improvement over the first volume for a few reasons (like not spending the first several issues rehashing a familiar story). There's no getting around that Goodwin is just a good writer, despite some of the quirks and corniness that come with the medium and the era. As I've mentioned elsewhere, he was also writing the newspaper strip at the same time, and frankly it's impressive that he had this many stories to tell and they don't feel low-quality or repetitive.
The saga of the Tagge family is definitely the strongest through-line in this volume, and I found Baron Tagge to be one of the more compelling comic villains, certainly the best EU villain of this era (though that's a low bar). I like that his sense of himself is more aggrandized than his actual abilities (e.g. his training with a lightsaber), but not so much that he's comical. He's one of a long tradition of Vader rivals within the Empire, but his plans are much better than most, and he's got a brother who's a high-ranking Imperial officer and another brother who's a scientific genius, and then a younger sister who he's committed to keeping out of the darker side of the family (and the pay-off to that whole thing was great).
Whenever he showed up, I felt assured that the story would at least be decent. There's still some oddness here and there, but nothing as weird as a green space rabbit. The Valance bounty hunter storyline had moments of greatness and lots of potential, but overall he just wasn't a well-written character. If he had been, his arc could have been a real highlight. Still, there's plenty here to enjoy, and I continue to appreciate this run of stories a lot more than I expected to.
B-
August 22, 2018
WARNING!
Here be Spoilers!
This wasn't just a good read or a great read, it was an AWESOME read! Really, the Long Time Ago series deserves an extensive TV treatment like The Clone Wars or Rebels. But enough about that, let's talk about the various issues in-depth.
List of issues include:
Shadow of a Dark Lord
To the Last Gladiator
Flight into Fury
Silent Drifting
Siege at Yavin
Doom Mission
Return of the Hunter
Whatever happened to Jabba the Hut?
Dark Encounter
A Princess Alone
The Long Hunt/A Duel of Eagles
Return to Tatooine
The Jawa Express
Saber Clash
Thunder in the Stars
Dark Lord's Gambit
Red Queen Rising
In Mortal Combat
Riders in the Void
Okay, now for some in-depth reviews on the story-arcs.
First is the culmination of the Ringworld storyline introduced at the end of Volume One. Han is continuing to pay back his debts in the Gladiator Arena but is eventually forced to fight Chewbacca in a zero-g battle. Meanwhile, Leia attempts to expose the Empire's involvement on the neutral space-station with Luke, who has recovered from a mental attack by Darth Vader.
Second is a flashback to the Clone Wars with Obi-Wan Kenobi investigating espionage on a routine hyperspace flight to Alderaan. Obviously, since the Prequels weren't being filmed by George Lucas at the time, the story is basically non-canon compared to the Clone Wars series and the Prequels.
Third storyline introduces the characters of the Tagge Family, led by Baron Orman Tagge. Basically, it is a little bit of Dune being thrown into the Star Wars universe, since Orman's motivation is similar to the motivation of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen's motivation: eliminating multiple foes in order to curry favor with the Padishah Emperor or Galactic Emperor. It also shows us Luke's compassion for the droids when he gets into a fight with a couple of Alliance technicians who want to, instead of repairing a severely damaged Artoo, take Artoo apart for spare parts. The Hunter, Valance, comes back as well and is taught a violent lesson from Luke about his opinion on mechanic beings.
The fourth storyline involves Jabba the Hut, who is still being drawn as a Seal-like creature.
The fifth storyline sadly involves a fight between Darth Vader and Valance and, while Valance is able to handle fighting the Dark Lord of the Sith in a fight to the death, he isn't triumphant.
The sixth storyline is an interesting one as it shows what life is like for the Imperial citizens in the factory world of Metalorn. Leia's mission there, though, is a bit different than just routine sabotage and it invokes feelings of Rogue One (The only film in the Disney Star Wars films I truly enjoy).
The seventh storyline introduces some cool characters who tie into the Clone Wars and Anakin Skywalker's adventures with Obi-Wan in the wars.
The 8th storyline shows Luke returning to Tatooine and encountering more trouble in the form of the Tagge Baron seeking more revenge in form of testing out a Death Star-like weapon to be used against the Rebellion.
The ninth storyline involves Luke fighting Darth Vader face-to-face while both are being manipulated by a mysterious unknown factor.
The tenth storyline is more of a filler story and almost has a feel of Original Series Star Trek instead of classic Star Wars.
The artwork is pretty consistently seventies and a little cheesy, but it works very nicely. The dialogue flows very well and the stories are handled excellently. Also, there is some subtle build-up to the Empire Strikes Back. As previously mentioned, there are some massive discrepancies between the Prequels and The Clone Wars show with the issues like The Long Hunt and The Obi-Wan Kenobi flashback issue, but if you keep an open mind, it shouldn't be a big problem for anyone to read.
In short, I give this a solid nine out of ten. (Loses a Star for the discrepancies involving the Prequels and The Clone Wars.)
May the Force be with You!
Here be Spoilers!
This wasn't just a good read or a great read, it was an AWESOME read! Really, the Long Time Ago series deserves an extensive TV treatment like The Clone Wars or Rebels. But enough about that, let's talk about the various issues in-depth.
List of issues include:
Shadow of a Dark Lord
To the Last Gladiator
Flight into Fury
Silent Drifting
Siege at Yavin
Doom Mission
Return of the Hunter
Whatever happened to Jabba the Hut?
Dark Encounter
A Princess Alone
The Long Hunt/A Duel of Eagles
Return to Tatooine
The Jawa Express
Saber Clash
Thunder in the Stars
Dark Lord's Gambit
Red Queen Rising
In Mortal Combat
Riders in the Void
Okay, now for some in-depth reviews on the story-arcs.
First is the culmination of the Ringworld storyline introduced at the end of Volume One. Han is continuing to pay back his debts in the Gladiator Arena but is eventually forced to fight Chewbacca in a zero-g battle. Meanwhile, Leia attempts to expose the Empire's involvement on the neutral space-station with Luke, who has recovered from a mental attack by Darth Vader.
Second is a flashback to the Clone Wars with Obi-Wan Kenobi investigating espionage on a routine hyperspace flight to Alderaan. Obviously, since the Prequels weren't being filmed by George Lucas at the time, the story is basically non-canon compared to the Clone Wars series and the Prequels.
Third storyline introduces the characters of the Tagge Family, led by Baron Orman Tagge. Basically, it is a little bit of Dune being thrown into the Star Wars universe, since Orman's motivation is similar to the motivation of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen's motivation: eliminating multiple foes in order to curry favor with the Padishah Emperor or Galactic Emperor. It also shows us Luke's compassion for the droids when he gets into a fight with a couple of Alliance technicians who want to, instead of repairing a severely damaged Artoo, take Artoo apart for spare parts. The Hunter, Valance, comes back as well and is taught a violent lesson from Luke about his opinion on mechanic beings.
The fourth storyline involves Jabba the Hut, who is still being drawn as a Seal-like creature.
The fifth storyline sadly involves a fight between Darth Vader and Valance and, while Valance is able to handle fighting the Dark Lord of the Sith in a fight to the death, he isn't triumphant.
The sixth storyline is an interesting one as it shows what life is like for the Imperial citizens in the factory world of Metalorn. Leia's mission there, though, is a bit different than just routine sabotage and it invokes feelings of Rogue One (The only film in the Disney Star Wars films I truly enjoy).
The seventh storyline introduces some cool characters who tie into the Clone Wars and Anakin Skywalker's adventures with Obi-Wan in the wars.
The 8th storyline shows Luke returning to Tatooine and encountering more trouble in the form of the Tagge Baron seeking more revenge in form of testing out a Death Star-like weapon to be used against the Rebellion.
The ninth storyline involves Luke fighting Darth Vader face-to-face while both are being manipulated by a mysterious unknown factor.
The tenth storyline is more of a filler story and almost has a feel of Original Series Star Trek instead of classic Star Wars.
The artwork is pretty consistently seventies and a little cheesy, but it works very nicely. The dialogue flows very well and the stories are handled excellently. Also, there is some subtle build-up to the Empire Strikes Back. As previously mentioned, there are some massive discrepancies between the Prequels and The Clone Wars show with the issues like The Long Hunt and The Obi-Wan Kenobi flashback issue, but if you keep an open mind, it shouldn't be a big problem for anyone to read.
In short, I give this a solid nine out of ten. (Loses a Star for the discrepancies involving the Prequels and The Clone Wars.)
May the Force be with You!
July 1, 2017
I remember reading these as comics when I was younger. Marvel had first done a serialisation of A New Hope, then carried on adding their own adventures for the series. This collection ends at the point where Empire Strikes Back was coming out and they were due to start the comics for that.
This book introduces some new baddies in the form of the Tagge family/business as well as Darth Vader and Jabba the Hut (one "t").
This was at a stage where Jabba hadn't been defined as a character by George Lucas, so the Marvel team made him a yellow furry humanoid.
Luke still has the hots for Leia at this point, and him and Han are always trying to impress her.
Most of the artwork is really crisp and bright (drawn by Carmine Infantino & Bob Wiacek) - one story illustrated by Mike Vosburg seems to detract from the rest of this collection.
Overall, a good dose of nostalgia for people who read these originally, and an interesting look at Marvel's take on expanding the universe.
This book introduces some new baddies in the form of the Tagge family/business as well as Darth Vader and Jabba the Hut (one "t").
This was at a stage where Jabba hadn't been defined as a character by George Lucas, so the Marvel team made him a yellow furry humanoid.
Luke still has the hots for Leia at this point, and him and Han are always trying to impress her.
Most of the artwork is really crisp and bright (drawn by Carmine Infantino & Bob Wiacek) - one story illustrated by Mike Vosburg seems to detract from the rest of this collection.
Overall, a good dose of nostalgia for people who read these originally, and an interesting look at Marvel's take on expanding the universe.
April 19, 2020
This goes from 1979 to the start of the Empire Strikes back. Hindsight is a great thing so it's very uncomfortable not he two occasions Luke kisses Leia. But hey, we only find out about them towards the end of Empire Strikes back anyway.
Jabba the hut, in amphibian form, makes a good appearance. Glad he was picked up so early. Interestingly, some of the edits George Lucas made were straight from the comic like the stormtroopers on Banthas or having red shoulder guards.
The storylines are much more advanced than the first volume whilst the last story - into the void - was really sophisticated and pushed the boundaries of imagination. It was not a Star Wars story, more a filler before the Empire storyline is dramatised, which allowed for a lot of creative license and borrowing elements from European BDs than anything else.
By now, it's impossible to not be sucked into the saga. What a delight.
Highly recommended!!
Jabba the hut, in amphibian form, makes a good appearance. Glad he was picked up so early. Interestingly, some of the edits George Lucas made were straight from the comic like the stormtroopers on Banthas or having red shoulder guards.
The storylines are much more advanced than the first volume whilst the last story - into the void - was really sophisticated and pushed the boundaries of imagination. It was not a Star Wars story, more a filler before the Empire storyline is dramatised, which allowed for a lot of creative license and borrowing elements from European BDs than anything else.
By now, it's impossible to not be sucked into the saga. What a delight.
Highly recommended!!
January 3, 2019
After a bit of meaningless wanderings and set-up, the story really gets going once the children find themselves in Salamander Street. The expedition on the road find themselves up against werewolves, witches and immortals, while the Thomas and Kate struggle with ghosts and opium. This is a good vs. evil story where the good is sometimes more of a lighter shade of grey, and the evil attacks the heroes in directions they were not expecting. If faith-based fiction raises your hackles, I would say that this is at the same level as The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: most of the terms and names have been changed and the heroes have to do more than just pray and hope for the best. If you welcome a more theologically-based story, there’s not much here that’s groundbreaking but sometimes it’s enough that it’s just ‘there’. The ending was satisfying, though not necessarily as expected.
March 12, 2025
I've had this collection for almost twenty years but hadn't read it straight through, just a few stories from when I owned some of the single issues. This has the majority of the carmine infantino issues which is some of my favorite comic art. I think Terry Austin in the first volume was the best infantino inker, but the gene day ones are really cool with all the little details on the ships and stuff. Neither of them tone down his weirdness. Looking forward to the Al Williamson empire strikes back adaptation in the next volume.
November 18, 2018
I could never link all of my single issues together so I could never read them BUT NOW I CAN!!!
May 31, 2021
Classic fun. Love this stuff
April 8, 2016
When you were a kid in the late 70s and early 80s, waiting for the next Star Wars movie was far, far different than kids have it these days. A chilling silence. An occasional mention of filming in "Starlog". There were no spoilers, no clues. Nothing. There was a trailer and then the movie appeared and everyone in your grade shit in their pants.
Except we had the Marvel comics series which, in retrospect (because kids didn't think about tie-ins and shit back then), filled in all those gaps and let us know what sort of crazy shenanigans Luke, Han, and Leia were up to between films.
Quite a lot, actually. Leia and Luke go off on weird space spy missions, Leia stirring up rebellion in an Imperial mining colony, and Luke wandering around looking for blockade runners since the Empire's put the kabosh on the Yavin base, surrounding it with ships and a weird tornado machine. Oh yes, and the "Omega Frost" which will freeze rebel ships trying to break the blockade.
Part of the awesomeness is you really get to see Luke getting a grasp on the Force, which was minimal in the movies. He meditates, he practices, he fucks up sometimes and we forgive him because he's just learning. He fights some dudes, is kind of terrible with his lightsaber. Vader tries to trap him, etc
Vader is the other cool thing. Largely absent from the first arcs collected in Volume I, here he's everywhere, killing Rebel spies trying to get Luke's name, Rebel spies committing suicide to hide the secret, and so on. Good stuff.
A new element is introduced: the Tagge family, a baronial family whose eldest brother was blinded by Darth Vader and who finds an old lightsaber and is learning how to use it to fight. There's other brothers (including Imperial officers) and a sister, Domina, who Luke kinda falls for by accident. This offered another level of political intrigue.
Jabba is here, yellow and bipedal, with a cuttlefish for a head. Han and Chewie fuck about, too. Luke and Leia sleep together (it is strongly hinted). Han and Leia sleep together, which is way less creepy.
Just splendid stuff.
Except we had the Marvel comics series which, in retrospect (because kids didn't think about tie-ins and shit back then), filled in all those gaps and let us know what sort of crazy shenanigans Luke, Han, and Leia were up to between films.
Quite a lot, actually. Leia and Luke go off on weird space spy missions, Leia stirring up rebellion in an Imperial mining colony, and Luke wandering around looking for blockade runners since the Empire's put the kabosh on the Yavin base, surrounding it with ships and a weird tornado machine. Oh yes, and the "Omega Frost" which will freeze rebel ships trying to break the blockade.
Part of the awesomeness is you really get to see Luke getting a grasp on the Force, which was minimal in the movies. He meditates, he practices, he fucks up sometimes and we forgive him because he's just learning. He fights some dudes, is kind of terrible with his lightsaber. Vader tries to trap him, etc
Vader is the other cool thing. Largely absent from the first arcs collected in Volume I, here he's everywhere, killing Rebel spies trying to get Luke's name, Rebel spies committing suicide to hide the secret, and so on. Good stuff.
A new element is introduced: the Tagge family, a baronial family whose eldest brother was blinded by Darth Vader and who finds an old lightsaber and is learning how to use it to fight. There's other brothers (including Imperial officers) and a sister, Domina, who Luke kinda falls for by accident. This offered another level of political intrigue.
Jabba is here, yellow and bipedal, with a cuttlefish for a head. Han and Chewie fuck about, too. Luke and Leia sleep together (it is strongly hinted). Han and Leia sleep together, which is way less creepy.
Just splendid stuff.
August 3, 2012
It has been ages since I read this and sadly, have since gotten rid of it. I went through a clean out time of my graphics novels and have regretted it ever since.
What I do remember is at first being mildly appalled at the...less than stellar story lines and then finally realizing the humor and nostalgia factor these comics carry. Are they beyond absurd? Oh my, yes! But they are also awfully fun to read and if you are a Star Wars fan, I would strongly urge you to give them a try. I regret giving them up far more than I regret reading them in the first place.
What I do remember is at first being mildly appalled at the...less than stellar story lines and then finally realizing the humor and nostalgia factor these comics carry. Are they beyond absurd? Oh my, yes! But they are also awfully fun to read and if you are a Star Wars fan, I would strongly urge you to give them a try. I regret giving them up far more than I regret reading them in the first place.
September 2, 2012
i used to own around 50 of the original issues but i sold them. then i found this collection and regretted selling them. i really like carmine infantino's art on these. it's so weird. also the michael golden one at the end is great.
May 8, 2015
These comics are great fun and really don't conflict too badly with established canon, either of them. this book brings you right up to just before the empire strikes back.
the art style isn't anything fantastic, but I'd adequate for helping to tell the story.
the art style isn't anything fantastic, but I'd adequate for helping to tell the story.
January 13, 2011
I enjoyed this immensely, not having read any of it before; like a fragment of childhood, saved for me to experience as an adult.
Read
July 5, 2010SW alta v.2
August 26, 2015
Also excellent... http://gnomeship.blogspot.com/2015/08...
August 30, 2012
Worth reading for Star Wars fans.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews