The Force has conspired to have Free Comic Book Day on the same day as the big celebration of Star Wars on May the 4th. So hop on down to your local comic book shop and May the 4th be with you as you get your hands on this year’s free Star Wars comic by Brian Wood, featuring Darth Vader and Boba Fett. Also, Dark Horse Digital has two great super bundles for sale this weekend, with a preview of J. W. Rinzler’s The Star Wars.
At your shops for Free Comic Book Day, Dark Horse has two free comic books, each containing several stories, and the all-ages book has the 2013 Star Wars tale written by Brian Wood with art by Ryan Odagawa. Entitled ‘The Assassination of Darth Vader’, Darth Vader finds himself in the sights of someone who wants him out of the way, and collateral damage is no issue. But what is Boba Fett’s role in this plot? Put both of Dunc’s favorite characters into one story, and she’ll explode with delight! Note that this book has a flip cover: one side has the Star Wars artwork by Doug Wheatley, while the other side has the cover for the Avatar: The Last Airbender story (and in the middle is a preview story for the upcoming Captain Midnight series).
The other Dark Horse issue for Free Comic Book Day also has three stories: a Mass Effect tale about Joker, an R.I.P.D. adventure, which I’m excited to see, and a preview of their upcoming Gerard Way title: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys.
Also, Dark Horse Digital is having a special for May the 4th: two mega-bundles of digital comics, and both have a two-page sneak preview of The Star Wars, the upcoming comic series based on the draft screenplay by George Lucas, written by J. W. Rinzler. The kids megabundle has over 1,000 pages of comics, bringing in 16 of the digest format Star Wars Adventures and Clone Wars stories, and is $30, while the regular megabundle has over 3,100 pages of comics for only $100, with over 120 issues of comics, ranging from classics like Dark Empire and the beginnings of the Legacy, Knights of the Old Republic and Empire series, to more recent tales such as Brian Wood’s ongoing Star Wars series, Dark Times, Knight Errant, Agent of the Empire, Dawn of the Jedi and Darth Vader. Both bundles are a 60% savings over their regular prices and are only available May 4th and 5th.
Free Comic Book Day is usually celebrated on an early Saturday in May, usually to coincide with the release of a major comic book movie, in this case, Iron Man 3. The official Free Comic Book Day site has a great way to find participating stores. There are a ton of free comics to check out, from the major publishers with Superman, Hulk, and more, to small comic makers with comics for kids, comics for adults, and even reprints of classic comics. The stores are the ones that pay for the free comics, so get out there and support them – and maybe buy some not-free comics that pique your interest. DK Publishing has announced that they have sent out free LEGO Star Wars: The Yoda Chronicles bookmarks to participating stores.
If you end up not being able to get the Free Comic Book Day Star Wars issue, I believe that the story will be eventually collected into the first trade paperback of the ongoing Brian Wood Star Wars series… but you’ll have to wait for that to come out later this year, and you won’t get the Avatar or Captain Midnight tales to check out.