Wednesday, August 11, 2021

Star Wars Epic Collection The Newspaper Strips Vol. 2


Star Wars Epic Collection The Newspaper strips Vol. 2 collects newspaper strips from the early 80's- the time between the first two Star Wars movies. The rebel base is still on Yavin 4, Luke is still untrained as a Jedi, and Darth Vader is trying to track him down. These are a lot of fun, a little simplistic in terms of storytelling, but they're clearly geared for newspaper storytelling- short, punchy and lots of action. In fact, the pace rarely flags, which is both a blessing and a curse. The strips read fast, but there's not a lot of characterization and not a whole lot of depth either. What there is, however, is beautiful artwork. 

The planetary vistas are gorgeous, and that's honestly why I bought this. Al Williamson is well known for his beautiful art and that is really the highlight here. There are some neat story devices though- the love triangle between Luke, Leia and Han is in full bloom, although it's more in the nature of a friendly rivalry, which is nice. There are some nice touches, as when Leia uses Han to further her goals. The imagination is fun too- we have Serpent Masters, a graveyard of lost ships, an underwater base with amazing visuals. I love the scene where Han and Luke are looking out over the deep from windows underwater. 

A lot of the characters introduced here are compelling or have a lot of potential, I'd like to see more of 'em. Tanith Shire is one in particular- a a rogue who has a thing for Luke. Between her and an android later in the story- Luke has a fair amount of girlfriend material here, in case things don't work out with a certain princess! 

The locations are fabulous too. The Yavin temples, the underwater base, aqua skimmers- Imperial hover trains, the Iron Tower on a desolate world- visually this is an amazing collection. The stories are a bit far fetched, but this is a showcase for the art, frankly. Luke having to deal with his inexperience in the Force is also a highlight- I think that was done really well. 



12 comments:

  1. That's pretty cool that they continued the story during the time between movies!

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  2. I didn't even know this existed, but what a fun way to experience a familiar story.

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  3. Fun! My nephews would totally love this. (I would, too.)

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  4. Se ve genial adoro las guerras de las galaxias te mando un beso

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  5. This looks amazing, now I want to collect these too!

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  6. Oooh, so cool. I'll have to show this to my son since he's as big of a Star Wars fan as I am.

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  7. Oh fun! There seem to be endless ways to explore this series.


    Karen @For What It's Worth

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  8. I wish I'd gotten into this fandom. Lol.

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  9. I'd love to take a real walk in Seoul!

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