7 Things to Know About Marvel's Brand New 'Star Wars' Comic Book

The force won’t be waking up on the big screen until December, but Star Wars fans who need to satiate their Jedi jones sooner are in luck. Marvel’s first Star Wars comic book in nearly three decades arrives this week, and Yahoo Movies got a sneak peek. After poring over the 48-page Star Wars No. 1, available Wednesday, here are our top takeaways.

1. The comic picks up where the original Star Wars movie left off. The new book is set in the immediate aftermath of the destruction of the Death Star and will be set between the events of A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. The inaugural issue, titled “Skywalker Strikes,” opens with a movie-like crawl setting the scene: “With the Imperial Forces in disarray, the Rebels look to press their advantage by unleashing a daring offensive throughout the far reaches of space, hoping to defeat the Empire once and for all, and at last restore freedom to the galaxy…”

2. The gang’s all here.

While it takes a few pages to re-introduce the principals, the core heroes are present and accounted for. In order of appearance, we meet Han Solo, R2-D2, Chewbacca, Princess Leia, C-3PO, and Luke Skywalker. There are also plenty of stormtroopers, Imperial mucky-mucks, familiar-looking alien species, a possible 4-LOM sighting, and — of course — the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy.

3. You know the formula. Jason Aaron’s plot sticks to the fundamentals. Our intrepid band of rebels seeks to infiltrate and destroy the Empire’s main weapons factory. The plan suddenly goes off the rails with a surprise arrival, forcing Luke, Han, and Leia to ad lib their way out. Ultimately, the story serves the visuals; the real joy is rediscovering the characters, spaceships, and trappings of the original trilogy, beautifully rendered by John Cassaday.

4. These stories really, truly happened. Much has been made of Lucasfilm’s decision to its shore up its internal mythology, weeding out some of the weirder bits of the so-called Expanded Universe (hello, zombie stormtroopers and Bea Arthur). Marvel says that all the stories in the new comics will be treated as official canon and part of a cohesive Star Wars Universe going forward.

5. Jaxxon’s back in action. Jaxxon, the much-lampooned green humanoid rabbit who fought alongside Han and Chewie in the decidedly non-canon disco Marvel Comics of the late-’70s, has been resurrected for the release of Star Wars. The character, said to be an homage to Bugs Bunny, doesn’t appear in the series, but — in a nod to fans/foes — is featured on one of the in-store variant covers.

6. Marvel’s going all out. Even though the publisher has presold more than 1 million copies (you can order online at comicstore.marvel.com or via Comixology), Marvel is eventizing the launch and encouraging fans to visit their local comic shop for opening-day festivities on Wednesday. Stores will have exclusive variant covers, buttons, postcards, and even cake toppers… because nothing says launch party like Jabba on a cupcake.

7. This is just the beginning. Marvel has already announced two other new comic series to roll out this year. Darth Vader, bowing in February, flips the script and follows the archvillian formerly known as Anakin Skywalker in the period between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. The series delves into Vader’s testy relationship with the Emperor (who is none-too-pleased about that whole Death Star mishap) and how he learns that his son, Luke, is alive and leading the rebellion.

A month later, the five-part Princess Leia arrives. The limited series reveals how Leia comes to terms with the obliteration of her homeworld, Alderaan, and her development into a mastermind of the Rebel Alliance.

The publisher also plans on reissuing compendiums of its classic Star Wars titles, and, with the Disney-Marvel-Lucasfilm marketing machine rarely missing a sales opportunity, we’re certain The Force Awakens will get the comic treatment at some point in the near future, guaranteeing plenty of books for years to come.

So far, so good. As Threepio notes early on in Star Wars No. 1, “I’ve got a good feeling about this.”

Additional Star Wars No. 1 variants:

All art courtesy of Marvel Entertainment