Good afternoon,
This afternoon's focus will be on the forty-first issue of Marvel's first Star Wars title. This issue is the third installment of their six-issue adaptation of The Empire Strikes Back. The cover showed the Millennium Falcon entering an asteroid field with an Imperial Destroyer and several TIE fighters close behind. The tale was titled "Imperial Pursuit!" The issue had a cover date of November 1980.
After the opening splash page, the story started right where the previous issue had left off. Luke Skywalker was emerging from his crashed snowspeeder as a pair of Imperial All Terrain Armored Transports (AT-ATs) were headed his way. Luke ducked inside the cockpit to grab a couple of items before his vehicle was crushed underneath one of the walker's legs. He used a harpoon gun to fire a slender cable that he ascended quickly. Skywalker then used his lightsaber to cut a hole in the vehicle's underbelly and tossed a proton grenade inside the newly created opening. Luke jumped to safety moments before the Imperial transport began buckling from internal explosions and eventually crashed to the snowy ground on Hoth.
Inside the Rebel command center, Leia Organa was giving evacuation instructions. Han Solo arrived to ensure that she and C-3PO got out before the Empire arrived. A cave-in prevented the trio from reaching the Rebel ships, so they headed toward the Falcon and a waiting Chewbacca. The trio entered the Correllian vessel just as Darth Vader and his snowtroopers were infiltrating the headquarters.
Han had a few tricks up his sleeve, which defended his ship as they prepared to launch, and soon left Hoth's atmosphere. Their departure was noticed by Luke and several of his fellow pilots. A pair of Star Destroyers was right in the Falcon's path, and the TIE fighters they dispatched meant that Han and Chewie had to think of something fast.
After departing the planet, Luke informed his X-Wing copilot, R2-D2, that they weren't going to rendezvous with the fleet like originally planned. He set a course for the Dagobah system. Meanwhile, the Falcon's crew was occupied with more repair work until they ran into another obstacle. This time, they noticed that they were approaching an asteroid belt. Despite Threepio's announcement of the odds against it, Han decided to enter the belt, thinking that it would pose a bigger problem for their pursuers.
Inside his Super Star Destroyer, Vader's meditation was interrupted by the announcement that the Falcon had entered the asteroid field. The Dark Lord of the Sith wasn't concerned by that. He wanted the ship, not excuses. After a bit of careful navigation, Solo found a hiding spot that might work for a while. At the same time, Luke and Artoo were entering Dagobah's atmosphere, where they wanted to find the Jedi master who'd instructed Ben Kenobi. It was someone whom they'd encounter before they even realized it.
The rest of the content in this issue was a five-page bonus print and pictorial section about Marvel's development of the adaptation for this film. It was a nice insight into the creative process and their interactions with Lucasfilm. It also showed how the concepts evolved, and was something that wasn't included in the Marvel Super Special adaptation of the movie.
By now, you probably know how much I admire this adaptation. It was wonderfully done. It was one of my first introductions to the Star Wars universe, and it was very faithful to the film in most aspects. A few details here and there were added or omitted, but I know it's not easy to include everything in an adaptation, especially if there are differences between the script and the final film. It can also be difficult to interpret things that aren't fully described or fleshed out before a movie is released. This adaptation was a significant upgrade in storytelling from the regular monthly stories, and I felt that the quality continued to improve for the most part afterward. Al Williamson and Carlos Garzon would also illustrate the Return of the Jedi adaptation, and Williamson, the regular artist for the Star Wars newspaper strip at the time, would pencil an additional issue of this title post-ROTJ.
That's all I have for today. Tomorrow, I'll cover the forty-second issue of this series. It's part four of The Empire Strikes Back adaptation, where we'll see Yoda for the first time. This highly-sought after issue also features a brief appearance of six bounty hunters, and the debut of the mysterious Emperor, as well as some more bonus material. Until then, have a great week and don't forget to be kind to one another.
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