Thought balloons on covers. That's brilliant. Some one needs to draw these up. And use the old Star Wars logo -- the one with the pointy W.

ph

#1 - The Republic is DOOMED!

Anakin: "The Separatists have attacked Coruscant, Master! What do we do?"
Obi-Wan: "You'll have to rescue the Chancellor alone, Anakin! These Buzz Droids have me beaten!"

#2 - The Chosen one holds a terrible secret!
Yoda: "Let go of those you love, Young Skywalker!"
Anakin's thought bubble: 'I'll never be able to tell the Jedi Council that I'm secretly *married!*'

#3 - A General meets his fate!
Grievous: "I have four lightsabers, Kenobi! You don't stand a chance!"
Obi-Wan's thought bubble: 'How will I ever be able to defeat him and this army of Battle Droids!"

Why stop with just one movie?

Stan Lee presents a Marvel Comics Groups adaptation of:

ATTACK OF THE CLONES!

#1 - Death in the Infinite City!
"Master Obi-Wan, I'm coming!"
"It's too late, Anakin! I can't hold on any longer! The bounty hunters have won!"

#2 - This is it! Enter the CLONES!
(Obi-Wan stands before Jango while the clone army looms behind
"If just one of them wants to kill me, what will an army of them do?"

#3 - A Jedi's FORBIDDEN love!
Padme: "You really don't like politicians, do you?"
Anakin: "I don't think the system works."
Anakin's thought balloon: "Choke! Why can't I tell Padme how I really feel about here?"
...

+ By the end of 70's they begin fazing them out, usually opting for just the title of the issue, and often no extra captions at all.+

Sometimes, when no one's looking, I like to imagine the prequel trilogy being adapted as 6-issue stories, with full 1970s Marvel sensibilities on the cover.

#1 - BEHOLD! HOW THE SAGA BEGAN!

• What is the secret of the paradise planet that men will kill for?
• INSIDE: The FIRST ADVENTURE of the JEDI!

#2 - ESCAPE FROM THE NABOO DEATH TRAP!
Qui-Gon: Keep RUNNING your Highness! These droids won't give up!
Amidala: I will not ABANDON my people... even if I must DIE!

#3 - STRANDED on a PLANET the LAW Forgot!
Sebulba: We DON'T like Outsiders on this planet, boy!
Watto: SEBULBA never LOSES!
Jar Jar: OH NO!

#4 - RACE to FREEDOM
Padme: OH NO! Sebulba is going to ROAST our little champion!
Qui-Gon: Not even I can save the boy from CERTAIN DEATH!

INSIDE: ANAKIN FLIES ALONE!

#5 - IN THE HALLOWED HALLS of JUSTICE
One QUEEN stands alone against an entire REPUBLIC

Palpatine: Your Highness, please sit down!
Padme: No RED TAPE will stop me from getting REVENGE against our world's INVADERS!

#6 - Not a HOAX! Not a DREAM! Inside: JEDI vs. SITH to the DEATH

Obi: Stop, FIEND! This RAY SHIELD will not hold back the JUSTICE of a JEDI!
Maul: Surrender, FOOL. Only ONE of US is leaving this contest ALIVE!
Qui-Gon: * CHOKE * Flee, Obi-Wan! He is UNSTOPPABLE!

ph

I gotta admit, I love thisone.

#22: "Like it or not Chewie, you gotta KILL ME!"

Gee, I wonder if they survived...

Not surprisingly Threepio was always good for some hyperbole:

#13: "Master Luke, this time we don't dare let the Wookiee win!"
#20: "Captain Solo is doomed, Artoo -- and there's no way we can help him!"

and the best IMO:

#47: "Artoo -- I don't care if the odds against our escaping are 25,215 to 1! Just keep running!"

It's interesting to see the fashion in cover blurbs change as the series goes on. By the end of 70's they begin fazing them out, usually opting for just the title of the issue, and often no extra captions at all.

Mark H

As for my favorites, it's no secret that "Riders in the Void" is the one I like best. It's an neat, exciting story with everything you'd expect from a Star Wars adventure (except maybe Han and Chewie).

My favorite breathless cover blurb has already been referenced: "Luke Skywalker Strikes Back! 'Swing that lightsaber, Ben -- Or we're finished!'" I'm sure all those cantina patrons shot first.

My favorite cover is Walt Simonson's from issue 52. Vader looms above as his TIE fighter pursues the Millennium Falcon. It's a simple and dramatic image.

If I can be permitted a moment of hype, feel free to visit my website, the Home of the Lost Star Warriors. It's my paean to those Marvel stories and the old role-playing game. To celebrate the page's ninth birthday, I've just added an entry for Mandalorain Protector Tobbi Dala. Here's the link:

http://members.aol.com/heywood254

Cheers,

Mark Hudson

I'm not a continuity hawk; I just like good stories. And Marvel had plenty. Archie Goodwin wrote more and better Star Wars stories than anyone else, and his whole run is aces. Like others, I didn't warm up to Carmine Infantino's art until a few years ago, but he is a rock solid storyteller and is deservedly considered a great Silver Age artist. To pick out just a couple highlights: the story of Valance the Hunter is a standout and I love Han's confrontation with Crimson Jack in "Star Duel." What's more, Goodwin wrote a Darth Vader who truly was the scariest dude in the galaxy.

I'd characterize Dave Michelinie's run as "faster, more intense." The Tarkin Battlestation story typifies this best: a quick two-issue adventure with great action and characterization of the heroes, Vader and the hapless Imperials officers caught in between. Michelinie and Walt Simonson also gave us Shira Brie, one of the best EU characters ever.

To be continued...

Darth Minious:

I guess we all didn't realize at the time that this story was our last glimpse of the Episode 4 - only universe, before we knew the dark secret of Luke's parentage or Leia's relationship to him.

That's a nice way of putting it, Minious. Only makes me like the issues more.

Darth NTM:

*It's worse than that on the next cover, Abel.

The Death Star is attacking Yavin Base (as in ITS ACTUALLY FIRING ITS BIG LASER), and Han says, "Face it kid, we're done for!"*

Good ol' Han, always the realist.

Take care,
Abel

I may be wrong, but I think the covers of the first six issues adaptating A New Hope might have been the worst examples of this. Aren't Luke and Obi-Wan getting jumped by the entire Mos Eisley Cantina on the cover of one issue? I think Luke says something like, "Keep swinging that lightsaber Ben, or we're done for!"

+AT LAST! The Soul-Shattering CLIMAX of the year's best movie!

Vader: Today you DIE, Luke Skywalker! Thisis your FINAL BATTLE!

See LUKE SKYWALKER battle DARTH VADER!+

Even though the covers seem so outrageous, there does seem to be some kind of constant governing principles. For instance, in this issue Luke and Vader do technically battle in the comic.... not with lightsabers, but in starfighters.

There always seems to be that element of deniability.

Take care,
Abel