Star Wars Saga: Comics Primer by Jess Harrold

"Star Wars Saga: Comics Primer" written by Jess Harrold, illustrated by Adam Del Re

     Oh...my...goodness!! What a ride! Despite this being fully in narrative form and mostly using previous cover art as the illustrations, it still deeply punched me in the gut as I relived some of my absolute favorite moments in the new Star Wars canon. I thought this was going to be a recap of just the "Star Wars" mainline, but it turned out to be a recap of that AND the original "Darth Vader" series as well as the original "Doctor Aphra" series!! EVERYTHING between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back, leading us right up to the "Empire Ascendant" one-shot. I legit started tearing up as the timeline of canon was seamlessly stitched together in such a beautiful way. No longer are they three separate stories with some overlap, but instead they are now one big story with a continuous connection. Ahhh! I am over the moon with what this comic did for much of what has come before. I really hope they consider doing the same thing for between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi era because there are going to be four series this time around that fit in that timeline ("Star Wars" mainline, our third "Darth Vader" series, our second "Doctor Aphra" series, and "Bounty Hunters"). Not only does this present a beautifully coherent view of canon comic material, but it's also a great way to refresh yourself in preparation for trivia ;-). I highly recommend checking this one out, especially if you haven't read any of the previous material or have read it sparingly. "Star Wars Saga" will absolutely get you up to speed!! And you'll be able to start off with the new series (there's only 2 issues of "Star Wars," 1 issue of "Darth Vader," and "Doctor Aphra" and "Bounty Hunters" haven't even started yet) knowing pretty much everything that's come before in this particular time period.
     I do have one burning question...I'm not sure what illustrations were done by Adam Del Re since most of the art was from covers of the covered issues. There were some in-story panels, but they looked awfully familiar and I didn't see much of anything that caught my eye as being new. Really strange...
     Regardless, so freaking good! I now want to leave you with some of my favorite images from some of my favorite moments in the comics between A New Hope and Empire Strikes Back:

The moment Vader discovers that the pilot who destroyed the Death Star's last name is Skywalker!!!! One of the most emotional moments in all of Star Wars canon. I'm getting choked up now just thinking about it.

Enter Doctor Aphra, BT-1, and 0-0-0!!! Three of my all time favorite new characters.

Leia, Han, and Chewie about to battle it out on Nar Shaddaa (with lightsabers!!!) in a bid to rescue Luke from Grakkus the Hutt.

The most heartbreaking, heartfelt, crazy, and star-crossed love story of them all--Doctor Aphra and Magna Tolvan a.k.a. Tolphra. They have my heart in their clutches *tear*. 

The return of Benthic, Jedha, and the Partisans!!! As my absolute favorite Star Wars movie is Rogue One, this one got me crying buckets. And not only did it hold some awesome canon connections, but it was a wonderfully written story as well. 

The rock people of K43!! C-3PO developed such a sweet and adorable bond with them as they called him Cousin Ore. And we got to see a deep friendship develop between Chewie and him that made my heart smile.

     Again, you should definitely check this one-shot out as it connects canon in a lovely and seamless way!! What were your favorite moments in the three covered series?? Hit me up on Twitter @AliaMorgaine and let me know!