2023 is going to be a huge year for the Star Wars franchise, between the return of The Mandalorian, the debut of Star Wars: Ahsoka and the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi. Marvel Comics is cooking up some big plans for next year, and readers will get their first taste of what’s to come in Star Wars: Revelations #1.
Revelations is a new standalone special written by Arrow’s Marc Guggenheim and illustrated by Salvador Larroca, Pere Pérez, Emma Kubert, Justin Mason and Paul Fry. This issue aims to reveal future storylines for every ongoing Star Wars comic set in the post-Empire Strikes Back era, including Star Wars, Star Wars: Darth Vader, Star Wars: Bounty Hunters and Star Wars: Doctor Aphra. This issue will also help set the stage for the Hidden Empire crossover, which serves as the final part of the trilogy that began with 2021’s War of the Bounty Hunters and the reveal that Han Solo’s ex-girlfriend Qi’ra is now the leader of the Crimson Dawn crime syndicate. That story continued in the follow-up series Star Wars: Crimson Reign.
Star Wars: Revelations is dealing with a fairly controversial plot device in Star Wars circles – time travel. This story is framed from Darth Vader’s point of view, as the Dark Lord of the Sith communes with the Eye of Webbish Bog on Mustafar and is given a shocking glimpse of the future. We wouldn’t be surprised if Revelations draws parallels to Anakin Skywalker’s earlier prophetic vision in Star Wars: The Clone Wars’ Mortis Trilogy, or if that vision winds up playing a part in his turn back to the light during Return of the Jedi.
“Now, we all know that the Force can be used to glimpse the present, the past, and possible futures,” Guggenheim told StarWars.com. “Well, The Eye is going to show Vader all of the above, including moments that will be coming into play in 2023 all across the Star Wars line. It’s our clever way of giving readers a preview of what everyone has up their sleeves for next year, but this isn’t a 40-page movie trailer. It’s a real Star Wars story with Vader at the center.”
One of the big developments in this issue involves the introduction of a new villain named Ajax Sigma, a droid so deadly even Vader and Emperor Palpatine may have reason to be wary. Revelations will also shed more light on Qi’ra’s ultimate plan of overthrowing Palpatine and destroying the Sith. Her old boss would be proud…
Star Wars: Revelations #1 will be released on November 23, 2022.
In other Star Wars in 2023 news, Hasbro is marking the 40th anniversary of Return of the Jedi by rereleasing six classic Kenner figures as part of the Star Wars Retro Collection.
Jesse is a mild-mannered senior staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
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