Dark Horse Comics & Star Wars

I suppose it was inevitable.  Last year, Disney bought Star Wars.  Disney also owns Marvel Comics.  Currently, Star Wars comics are published by Dark Horse.  You see where I'm going here- on 3 January, Disney announced that Marvel would take over Star Wars comics starting in 2015 (the official Dark Horse announcement is here).

What does this mean?  Frankly, I'm not sure.  At worst, it means that all current Star Wars comic series will discontinued, and brand new story arcs (along with brand new writers) will take over.  At best, the series will be transferred, and perhaps (at least some of) the writers/artists retained.  The reality will probably be somewhere in between (one guy's thoughts are here).  Regardless, a big change is coming, and that makes me sad.  Not because I dislike Marvel, but because I've developed a familiarity with, and fondness for, the current Dark Horse comic crew.  I'm not a huge collector, but Dark Horse was always that pleasing "third option" after giants Marvel and DC.  In losing the license, I fear Dark Horse will fade into obscurity.  I'm probably overstating it, but that's the concern.

Enough dreary talk.  As Dark Horse Comics heads into its last year of publishing Star Wars stories, I'd like to reflect on some of my favorite characters from their time at the helm.  There's certainly a wealth of material from which to choose- they've held the license since 1991, and published dozens of story arcs in the last 23 years (I thought about presenting my favorite stories, too, but they're tied to the characters, so it's a bit redundant).  I think, but don't know for certain, that each of the below made their Star Wars debut in comic form.

Quinlan Vos

Vos is a Jedi that walks the line between light and dark.  He shows up in several Republic-era comics, often with sidekick and Padawan Aayla Secura.  I enjoyed his character because he broke the standard Star Wars mold, and operated in the shadows- in multiple senses of the word.








Vodo Siosk-Baas

Master Siosk-Baas is a Jedi Master in the Old Republic era (thousands of years before the movies).  He shows up in a few issues of Tales of the Jedi.  So strong in the Force that he needs no lightsaber- his wooden staff is an effective substitute- I thought his character was pretty cool.  He also looks like some sort of fish, which I found oddly interesting.



Kir Kanos

Kir Kanos is one of the Emperor's elite royal guards.  His tale is told in the Crimson Empire saga, which I review here.  Loyal to the core, he represents those honorable characters on the wrong side.









A'Sharad Hett

Both a Tusken Raider and a Jedi?  Could it get any cooler?  A'sharad shows up in the Republic series of comics, often with his master, Ki-Adi-Mundi, and against the Jedi hunter Aurra Sing.  Good stuff!






Durge

I love me those bounty hunters.  Durge features heavily in the Clone Wars comic series, often with Asajj Ventress.  A walking bundle of nerve clusters, or something, he apparently is very hard to kill.  If memory serves, they eventually fling him into a star- that oughta do it.









Aurra Sing

Next up, we have Aurra Sing.  A bounty hunter with a deep hatred for Jedi, she hounds them early and often throughout the Republic story arc.  She has some weird antenna on her head that makes her "feel" pain of her enemies as she tortures them.  This is one ginger you don't want to see snap.











The Dark Woman

Finally, the Dark Woman.  Another Jedi in the shadows, in a sense, she seeks self-imposed exile after her padawan, Aurra Sing, goes nuts and starts killing people.  The Dark Woman can do a number of cool things, to include walking through walls.