All 8 long-running ‘Star Wars’ Legends comics series, ranked (Comic book commentary)
With the new ongoing Marvel comic series, not to mention the trailers for “Episode VII” and “Rebels” Season 2, drawing interest from new and casual “Star Wars” fans, I thought it’d be a good time to look back at the ongoing “Star Wars” comic titles from the now-defunct Expanded Universe (a.k.a. Legends) era of 1977-2014.
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing Rogue Squadron’ special issues (1995-2005) (Comic book reviews)
If you’ve devoured Michael Stackpole’s 35-issue “X-Wing Rogue Squadron” comics series but are a completest who wants to gather up all the ancillary stories, you’ll want to check out “X-Wing Rogue Squadron” No. 1/2 (1997), “X-Wing Rogue Squadron Special” (1995) and the three-issue “X-Wing Rogue Leader” (2005).
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing Rogue Squadron’ Issues 25-35 (1997-98) (Comic book reviews)
The “X-Wing Rogue Squadron” comic series closes out its run by delving into one of the most popular EU characters, Baron Soontir Fel, who was introduced in the previous arc, “In the Empire’s Service.” The Imperial-turned-Rebel fighter ace serves as a springboard for discussions about defecting from the Empire to the Rebellion. Because he is Wedge’s brother-in-law, he also
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing Rogue Squadron’ Issues 13-24 (1996-97) (Comic book reviews)
And now we’re off and flying. The middle batch of the 35-issue “X-Wing Rogue Squadron” comics series — “The Warrior Princess” (1996-97), “Requiem for a Rogue” (1997) and “In the Empire’s Service” (1997) — really starts to lock in its S-foils. Michael Stackpole’s staples of character growth, post-battle banter and Imperial political plotting take center stage. In the outstanding “The Warrior Princess” (issues
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing Rogue Squadron’ Issues 1-12 (1995-96) (Comic book reviews)
Around the same time that Michael Stackpole was writing his “X-Wing” novels in the late 1990s, he was also providing the stories for the 35-issue “X-Wing Rogue Squadron” comic series from Dark Horse. It was quite a juggling act, because all of the comics take place before all of the novels, but many characters appear in both
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing: Starfighters of Adumar’ (1999) (Book review)
“X-Wing: Starfighters of Adumar” (1999) is a standalone story with none of the continuity concerns of the previous eight books, and it was the last novel of the Bantam Books contract (although one collection, “Tales from the New Republic,” would follow). Perhaps for these reasons, Aaron Allston writes what I think is the best of the
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing: Isard’s Revenge’ (1999) (Book review)
“Isard’s Revenge,” the eighth book in the “X-Wing” series (and Michael Stackpole’s last), came out in April 1999, one month before “The Phantom Menace.” Overshadowed by that film then and now, “Isard’s Revenge” didn’t have anything so epic as the backstory of Anakin Skywalker. Still, it did fill in a crucial gap in “Star Wars” lore
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing: Solo Command’ (1999) (Book review)
Between the premature end of the “The Clone Wars,” rumors of a new animated series and a mysterious Facebook post of a TIE fighter from Dave Filoni, there’s been scuttlebutt from fans that the “X-Wing” saga might become a TV series. Although that’s unlikely to happen, it’s certainly fun to dream about when reading classics like “X-Wing: Solo Command” (1999), the final chapter
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing: Iron Fist’ (1998) (Book review)
I didn’t remember a lot of details from the “X-Wing” series from my first readings back in the 1990s, but I did distinctly recall Ton Phanan’s death scene in the sixth book, “Iron Fist” (1998). This was the book — and that chapter in particular — that propelled Aaron Allston to the top of the list of
‘Star Wars’ flashback: ‘X-Wing: Wraith Squadron’ (1998) (Book review)
“X-Wing: Wraith Squadron” (1998), the fifth book in the “X-Wing” series, introduces us to the misfits of a newly formed squadron whose pilots boast a mix of piloting and commando skills, along with author Aaron Allston, who takes the series’ reins from Michael A. Stackpole. Allston was the first author of the Bantam era to have such