Star Wars Comics: Where to Start With Vader and the Clone Wars

Star Wars comics began at Marvel in March 1977, when Star Wars #1 appeared and sold more than one million copies. That date places the first comic in the franchise's earliest film period, giving readers a starting point for the publishing history. It also gives an older issue a clear identifying detail when a catalog lists several comics under the Star Wars name. The publication date is useful even if your first reading choice is a much later series.

Dark Horse Comics took over the Star Wars comics license in 1991, marking another point in that publishing history. A publisher name can help you place an edition in the catalog, although it does not answer every question about the story's continuity. Lucasfilm later announced a Legends banner for past Expanded Universe stories, so the publisher and the continuity label are separate details worth checking. Both can matter when identifying an older book.

Marvel published Star Wars (2015) #1 on January 14, 2015, with Jason Aaron and John Cassaday on its opening issue. The 1977 and 2015 first issues therefore identify different points in the publishing history, even though they share a title. When searching for a particular run, include its year and a creator's name alongside the title. That gives a library or comic shop enough detail to distinguish the issue you intend to read.

Star Wars comics include stories in current continuity and stories labeled Star Wars Legends, so check the individual title you want to read. On April 25, 2014, Lucasfilm announced that past Expanded Universe stories would continue in print under the Legends banner. The announcement retained the six existing films and Star Wars: The Clone Wars as foundational canon. That distinction helps readers understand why an older comic and a newer story may carry different continuity labels.

The Legends announcement also makes availability a separate question from continuity. Lucasfilm said past Expanded Universe stories would continue in print under the banner, so the label itself should not be read as a claim that those stories disappeared. If continuity matters to your choice, check the classification of the story as well as the details of the edition. A familiar publisher or a shared character name cannot by itself settle where a particular story belongs.

Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir #3 provides a specific example of the kind of evidence to seek. In July 2014, StarWars.com described that issue as a canonical story based on unaired Clone Wars episodes. That description applies to the named issue and gives readers a more precise reference than a shortcut based only on publication year. Record the complete title and look for an explicit continuity description before adding a comic to a reading plan.

Clone Wars comics include Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir and Star Wars Adventures: The Clone Wars - Battle Tales, which offer different starting interests. Son of Dathomir draws on unaired Clone Wars episodes, while Battle Tales features stories told by clone troopers. The complete titles are useful when searching, since a broad Clone Wars search can also return screen material rather than the comic you want to read.

StarWars.com described Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir #3 as canonical in July 2014 and connected it to unaired Clone Wars episodes. That description gives readers a specific continuity reference for the named issue as well as a reason to explore its relationship with screen storytelling. It is still useful to check the classification of the actual comic and edition you select, particularly if you are building a reading list around continuity. Record the title and issue number with the source of any classification you use.

Michael Moreci wrote the five issue Star Wars Adventures: The Clone Wars - Battle Tales series, whose stories are told by clone troopers. The series length gives readers a defined scope to look for when comparing issues or collected editions. Choose Son of Dathomir for its connection to unaired episodes, or look for Battle Tales if the clone troopers' storytelling is the attraction. In either case, check the contents of the edition before deciding where to begin.

You do not need to read every Star Wars comic in publication order: choose a series, follow its issues and check the contents of its collections and crossovers. A series year and an issue number identify a more precise starting point than a title alone. Collected editions can make several issues available together, but their volume numbers do not tell you the issue range without a contents check.

The first Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca Darth Vader collection gathers issues #1 through #6 of the 2015 series. Star Wars: Darth Vader - Dark Lord of the Sith Vol. 1 gathers issues #1 through #12 of the 2017 series. Those two collections cover different runs and different issue ranges, despite both offering a first volume for a Darth Vader series. The 2017 run ended with issue #25, so its named first volume does not include the full series.

Crossovers also reward a contents check because their issues can carry different series titles. Vader Down comprises Vader Down #1, Star Wars #13 and #14, and Darth Vader #13 through #15. A reader checking that event can use those six issue numbers to see whether an edition contains the complete listed sequence. Start with Star Wars (2015) #1 or a Darth Vader opening that matches your preferred film era, then check the issue list before choosing the next collection.