SDCC: Marvel Launches "Star Wars" Comics With Aaron, Cassaday, Waid and More

[fumetti]

Well, ICv2 had THE STAR WARS #1 at about 78,000 last September, and I believe Randy Stradley said that was the highest selling Star Wars comic ever at Dark Horse. Brian Wood's STAR WARS did well, too. All of the other Star Wars titles sold in the 20k and lower range throughout the history at Dark Horse.

So THE STAR WARS is the high-water mark at Dark Horse. I'm going to assume Jason Aaron and John Cassaday's STAR WARS will do better than 78,000. I'm guessing it'll do at least 100,000 (and I'll come back to this post when the January 2015 numbers come out). And then it'll of course drop, like all comics do. In all though I don't think any of the new Marvel Star Wars comics will sell as low as Dark Horse's Star Wars comics did, and that's simply because Marvel will cancel it before it gets that low.

And as for what Marvel did last time with Star Wars...

It was good for the industry, wasn't it?: How Star Wars Saved Marvel and the Comic Book Industry

Marvel won't necessarily cancel a series doing 20k. But they might end that run of numbers to start up another #1.

I've never been convinced that the Star Wars adaptation "saved" Marvel. It certainly helped them. Despite what Thomas and Shooter says, Marvel was still making more money than DC (which just went through its embarrassing "DC Implosion"). The legacy of its success was, for me, years of loved comics. And by that I mean all the other adaptations and licenses that Marvel was doing. It led to Shooter agreeing to Rom and the Micronauts. (Even today, half my pull-list of comics is licensed properties.)

I hated Marvel's SW adaptation and subsequent stories and art. They're pure junk. Chaykin took a big dump on those pages, lack of reference or not. (Note Marvel's later apology on the letters page saying Chaykin was "trying something new." Baloney.) And Infantino didn't care if he drew anything right or not.

I'd be lying to say I didn't relish each issue, tho, but that was only because I was totally Star Wars starved. By 1985, I was glad the series died. It began bad and ended bad (kinda good in the middle, around ESB).

Nostalgia might make the original Marvel series seem fun or whatever, but other than issues done by Al Williamson, I don't think any of them are as good as what Dark Horse has done.

If you want to enjoy a great Star Wars comic from this time period, check out Dark Horse's reprint of the Star Wars newspaper strip (by Al Williamson). Leaps and bounds better than anything Marvel came up with.

[resipsaloquitur]

Thank you. I tried getting into Marvel's classic SW stories when Dark Horse reprinted them and I just couldn't. The art wasn't great and there were just awful elements like Jaxxon, a Jabba that wasn't, and Leia singing in a nightclub. I know it was the only game in town and the EU as we know it today wasn't around, but it's very difficult for someone who didn't read them growing up to look back on them as great.

What's really weird is that much of the modern EU did at least nod to the old comics. John Ostrander used things like the Wheel and the Zeltrons, and the novels turned Lumiya into a major threat. I hope fans of the old Marvel stuff can acknowldge that Dark Horse and Del Rey kept at least some of the old stuff going where they could.

[ManaByte]

Marvel won't necessarily cancel a series doing 20k. But they might end that run of numbers to start up another #1.

Oh I think there's a chance of them doing that even if the books are selling well. Marvel loves those investment collectors who only ever go to a comic shop to buy eight copies of every #1 on the shelf.

[DebkoX]

**** you Marvel, three great sounding comics? FS.

[Iggy Langridge]

Well, ICv2 had THE STAR WARS #1 at about 78,000 last September, and I believe Randy Stradley said that was the highest selling Star Wars comic ever at Dark Horse. Brian Wood's STAR WARS did well, too. All of the other Star Wars titles sold in the 20k and lower range throughout the history at Dark Horse.

So THE STAR WARS is the high-water mark at Dark Horse. I'm going to assume Jason Aaron and John Cassaday's STAR WARS will do better than 78,000. I'm guessing it'll do at least 100,000 (and I'll come back to this post when the January 2015 numbers come out). And then it'll of course drop, like all comics do. In all though I don't think any of the new Marvel Star Wars comics will sell as low as Dark Horse's Star Wars comics did, and that's simply because Marvel will cancel it before it gets that low.

And as for what Marvel did last time with Star Wars...

It was good for the industry, wasn't it?: How Star Wars Saved Marvel and the Comic Book Industry

Marvel won't necessarily cancel a series doing 20k. But they might end that run of numbers to start up another #1.

I've never been convinced that the Star Wars adaptation "saved" Marvel. It certainly helped them. Despite what Thomas and Shooter says, Marvel was still making more money than DC (which just went through its embarrassing "DC Implosion"). The legacy of its success was, for me, years of loved comics. And by that I mean all the other adaptations and licenses that Marvel was doing. It led to Shooter agreeing to Rom and the Micronauts. (Even today, half my pull-list of comics is licensed properties.)

I hated Marvel's SW adaptation and subsequent stories and art. They're pure junk. Chaykin took a big dump on those pages, lack of reference or not. (Note Marvel's later apology on the letters page saying Chaykin was "trying something new." Baloney.) And Infantino didn't care if he drew anything right or not.

I'd be lying to say I didn't relish each issue, tho, but that was only because I was totally Star Wars starved. By 1985, I was glad the series died. It began bad and ended bad (kinda good in the middle, around ESB).

Nostalgia might make the original Marvel series seem fun or whatever, but other than issues done by Al Williamson, I don't think any of them are as good as what Dark Horse has done.

If you want to enjoy a great Star Wars comic from this time period, check out Dark Horse's reprint of the Star Wars newspaper strip (by Al Williamson). Leaps and bounds better than anything Marvel came up with.

Yeah, I agree and have said that the Marvel Star Wars comics weren't that great, and the only reason I care about them is due to nostalgia because they were my first comics period and I grew up with them.

I don't have the same relationship with the Dark Horse Star Wars comics (in fact it's zero) because I stopped reading comics altogether shortly after the Marvel run ended; I was basically reading comics because of Star Wars not because I liked superheroes.

And yes, I have read and enjoyed the Al Williamson STAR WARS CLASSICS. That and THE STAR WARS are the only things that I liked from Dark Horse. And Dark Horse had it's run and has it's fans, and that's all great and everything, I'm just not one of them.

Anyway, everything is as it should be as far as I'm concerned now that Marvel has Star Wars back. The circle is now complete and all of that good stuff.

[MyriVerse]

Canon.

Disney wiped everything that was not the 6 movies, Clone Wars or Rebels. Any book or comic being released from this point on will now be considered part of the one, true canon. All overseen by the Story Group.

So it will be interesting to see what the "new official" adventures between the original 3 movies will be.

This, alone, is reason for me to check it.

[Iggy Langridge]

Marvel.com has their interviews up for the three series...

SDCC 2014: Star Wars
Jason Aaron and John Cassaday talk about how they ended up bringing sci-fi's most epic saga back to Marvel!

SDCC 2014: Darth Vader
Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca get set to tackle one of the greatest villains of all-time!

SDCC 2014: Princess Leia
Mark Waid and Terry Dodson craft an untold tale of one of Star Wars' richest characters!

...I am so glad this is finally happening (I've been waiting for almost 30 years).

New Star Wars movies and new Marvel Star Wars comics.

It's a great time to be alive.

[ish kabbible]

am i the only one not really interested in this announcement? good for star wars hardcore fans but it doesn't really make up for the lack of a doctor strange book or supernatural avengers title to me

The world doesn't revolve around you. Neither does Marvel

[Wally West]

This, alone, is reason for me to check it.

The problem is though that because it is now official canon don't expect anything major or too exciting to happen in the comics. Disney is going to demand maximum creative freedom for future movies, cartoons, games, etc. which is why all the new books and comics take place around the original Star Wars movie to play it safe. Unfortunately we won't be seeing anything like shadows of the empire, thrawn trilogy or Knights of the old republic anymore.

[doctormistermaster]

I really don't want to start reading these titles but I don't know how I can avoid it. I think therapy might be a good start.

Although I am sad that Dark Horse lost the rights as I heard they were doing some pretty good work lately.

[Cel]

I like Star Wars enough, but it seems like these series will be hampered by continuity. We know how things are by the time the Empire Strikes Back happens, so what major stories or character developments can you really expect?

Probably stuff dealing with the Rebellion, previously unknown campaigns that were won or loss in the timeframe between Episodes IV and V. Character developments could be in the rise of Luke and Han as Alliance officers as well as relationships with characters that didn't appear in Episode V.

I understand what you're talking about in regards to stories being hampered by continuity, but I think that's a problem inherent with any licensed property based off a movie or TV series. There are things you can't do with the established characters (like kill them off), but I think writers have to find things to surround them with (new situations and new characters) that can be subject to change.

The alternative is to do what Dark Horse did with Dawn of the Jedi, Knights of the Old Republic, Legacy, etc.--books concentrating on non-movie characters whose fates aren't written in stone. But I'm inclined to think that's not the route that Marvel will take.

[Iggy Langridge]

Right, I'm assuming Marvel is only going to do comics that star characters from the movies.

Of course that's exactly what I want from them.

And for people who want something other than that, hey, do what I'm doing and check out some of the creator-owned titles at Image. Again, there's seven or eight science-fiction comics from them (LOW, PARADIGMS, CERULEAN, TOKYO GHOST, DESCENDER, INJECTION, DRIFTER and INVISIBLE REPUBLIC) that I'm almost as excited about as the Marvel Star Wars stuff.

So you have to diversify. I am and so I get to have my cake and eat it too.

[RobinFan4880]

Right, I'm assuming Marvel is only going to do comics that star characters from the movies.

Disney is going to make a non-trilogy movie every other year. This will easily give us far more characters to play with outside of the big original 7 (Luke, Han, Leia, 3PO, R2, Chewy and Vader). This is in addition to all the characters we will be getting in the new era starting once VII releases.

Beyond that, there is an entire galaxy to populate and explore, with potential tie-ins for the Rebels TV show and the new novels.

The only limiter on Marvel will be how many Star Wars books they want to produce.

The problem is though that because it is now official canon don't expect anything major or too exciting to happen in the comics. Disney is going to demand maximum creative freedom for future movies, cartoons, games, etc. which is why all the new books and comics take place around the original Star Wars movie to play it safe. Unfortunately we won't be seeing anything like shadows of the empire, thrawn trilogy or Knights of the old republic anymore.

Once the foundation of the new canon has been firmly established, I fully expect there to be very large multi-platform events like Shadows of the Empire or the Force Unleashed. In fact events like those could easily see characters and concepts spun out into comics, books, games, etc. of their own, thus expanding and enriching the narrative of the new canon outside of the big name characters.

[Iggy Langridge]

Right, I'm assuming Marvel is only going to do comics that star characters from the movies.

Disney is going to make a non-trilogy movie every other year. This will easily give us far more characters to play with outside of the big original 7 (Luke, Han, Leia, 3PO, R2, Chewy and Vader). This is in addition to all the characters we will be getting in the new era starting once VII releases.

Beyond that, there is an entire galaxy to populate and explore, with potential tie-ins for the Rebels TV show and the new novels.

The only limiter on Marvel will be how many Star Wars books they want

Yeah, sorry, that's what I meant by saying "movies." I was including the sequel trilogy and the spin-offs, and beyond. So I fully expect to only get books starring the main characters from any and all of the upcoming movies and I'd be shocked if Marvel only did a Vader book and a Han, Luke and Leia book.

And yeah, I imagine these first books are just placeholders, and once Episode VII drops Marvel will shift focus and it'll be all about that then...

That's why some of the people who are down on these first books a little are kind of a surprise to me. I mean, what did you think they were going to do? Certainly not some damn great, great grandchildren books. (And I kid, for those who enjoyed the LEGACY books.) No, mum is the word on everything until Christmas 2015. Then Star Wars starts again. That's when they'll reveal themselves (no "Phantom Menace" pun). That's when we'll get the new. In the meantime we're getting what officially happened two weeks or so after the Yavin IV ceremony.

[steeplejack2112]

[QUOTE=Derek Metaltron;348371]Good point, but once the film is close to release it'll be in their interest to cover that period seeing as it's all new and shiny.

Also whilst I respect the originals will always be the most loved it would be nice to do a series in the Prequel era, plenty of characters to work with.

The big question of course is... Star Wars and Marvel crossover?[/QUOTE]


UGH! Which is exactly why I'm not doing any of these books.