Celebrating day seven of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
It would be hard for me to pick a favorite cover out of all the covers that were published by Marvel for Star Wars #1. But, one cover clearly stands out to me as my least favorite.
Star Wars #1af - Marvel Comics, U.S. (January 2015) Mile High Comics exclusive
The Mile High Comics exclusive cover for Star Wars #1 is the first in a series of 6 interlocking covers drawn by Humberto Ramos. Humberto Ramos is best known for his work on DC Comic's Impulse title and Marvel Comic's Spider-Man character. His work is stylized and easily recognizable. His art is influenced by Manga and therefore is cartoonish with exaggerated features. He does not just borrow from Manga however, his characters are dynamic, not unlike a Jack Kirby drawing. He is able to use the Manga style to express emotions in characters that otherwise would be difficult. For example, Peter Parker's expressions are apparent, even through his Spider-Man mask. Ramos' art is polarizing for many comic readers; it seems people either hate his style or love it. I tend to be mixed; I like some of his work and do not like others.
Unfortunately, Ramos' art on the Star Wars #1 Mile High Comics exclusive cover is one of his pieces that I do not like. Boba Fett is flying, presumably by using his jet pack, although it looks like the jets are attached to his belt. Worse than the jets are the proportions used on Boba Fett. Fett's body is too long and slender, looking more like Peter Parker's torso than our favorite bounty hunter's. Additionally, Fett's head is too small. The character is wearing armor and a helmet, so the exaggeration should have been to bulk Fett up more, not make him skinnier. It is unfortunate that I do not like this cover, as his other covers for issue #2 - 6 are more appealing with his cover on the Mile High Comics exclusive for Star Wars #4 being my favorite.
Star Wars #4f - Marvel Comics, U.S. (April 2015) Mile High Comics exclusive
On this cover, Ramos' unique style is apparent and both Han Solo and Chewbacca are drawn in a dynamic, cartoonish way, but none of the proportions are distracting.
Celebrating day six of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
The popularity of Boba Fett with Star Wars fans meant this relatively minor character from the movies would received considerable attention from Dark Horse Comics and Del Rey. In the Expanded Universe, Boba Fett was even given a wife and a daughter, as well as a brother of sorts. These relationships were explored in the second Star Wars: Blood Ties mini-series titled Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead.
The standard cover for Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead #1 by Chris Scalf shows Boba Fett lying on dry and cracked ground with his blaster by his side, dead. This cover, along with the title of the comic, immediately grabs the reader's attention.
Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead #1a - Dark Horse Comics, U.S. (April 2012)
The alternative cover by David Palumbo is striking because of the use of red in the background. Boba Fett is in cross hairs and one can believe this is the situation right before the scene on the main cover takes place.
Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead #1b - Dark Horse Comics, U.S. (April 2012)
A copy of this comic given to attendees of the 2012 Diamond Retailer Summit in Chicago, Illinois from April 11 - 13 has another cover. This variant cover is a clever take on the standard cover, with Boba Fett's body and blaster removed and replaced with a chalk outline.
Star Wars: Blood Ties - Boba Fett is Dead #1c - Dark Horse Comics, U.S. (April 2012) Diamond Retailer Summit Chicago 2012
Celebrating day five of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
The Star Wars Comics Collector title was published by the French publisher Editions Delcourt under the imprint Editions Atlas. Issue #17 contains Star Wars: The Early Adventures #8 and part of #9. Star Wars: The Early Adventures #9 reprints the story The Frozen World of Ota. This newspaper strip was originally published from June 17, 1980 through August 10, 1980.
Boba Fett's first appearance in the story was in the daily strip published on June 19, 1980, almost a month after The Empire Strikes Back was released to movie theaters. At one time, it was believe his appearance in the newspaper strip was his first comic appearance, but we now know several Marvel publications containing the movie adaptation proceed this story. His appearance in the strip does proceed his appearance in Marvel's Star Wars #42, which is probably the reason for the confusion. Regardless, this is Boba Fett's first original comic story.
The cover to Star Wars Comics Collector #17 is the same cover used for Star Wars: The Early Adventures #9.
Star Wars Comics Collector #17a - Editions Delcourt, France (September 2010)
With the comic is a 1 sheet ad for issue #18 in this series.
Star Wars Comics Collector 1 sheet ad for #18
Boba Fett's appearance in this story is strikingly similar to his appearance in the Star Wars Holiday Special. Both stories take place before The Empire Strikes Back and initially Fett seems like a friend and helps Luke Skywalker. Also, his treatment of aliens is harsh and he is on a mission for Darth Vader in both tales. Unlike the Holiday Special, our heroes do know Fett is a bounty hunter, even though Luke does not recognize him initially. Like the Holiday Special, in the end, Boba Fett is thwarted and he threatens our heroes. In this story, Fett uses his flame throwers quite a bit. My favorite lines uttered by Boba Fett are:
You Rebels! You are interfering with orders from Lord Vader himself!
Seriously? They are members of the Rebellion against the Galactic Empire! Luke and Han's response to the Boba Fett is hilarious:
Luke Skywalker:Impressed, Han-? Han Solo:Scared to death, kid!
Clearly Boba Fett is not the notorious bounty hunter that he will become.
Celebrating day four of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
Dark Horse Comics published a unique Star Wars comic in July 1996, a pop-up comic book! This hardcover comic is only 12 pages and has a very simple story. Boba Fett is taking the carbonite encased Han Solo to Jabba the Hutt. Flying Slave I, he is attacked by IG-88 in the IG-2000 and Fett destroys the IG-2000. Then on the surface of Tatooine, he encounters a Stormtrooper patrol and blasts them. Just outside of Jabba's Palace, he is attacked by a Krayt Dragon and kills it. Finally, he delivers Han Solo to Jabba and asks for a bonus for his efforts.
Star Wars: Battle of the Bounty Hunters - Dark Horse Comics, U.S. (July 1996)
Despite never mentioning it, Star Wars: Battle of the Bounty Hunters is a tie-in to the multimedia event, Shadows of the Empire. The Kenner Shadows of the Empire Special comic that came in the Boba Fett versus IG-88 action figure 2-pack also features Boba Fett, but in that comic, Fett is forced to land on Gall by IG-88 where he runs into Bossk and Zuckuss. The events in this pop-up comic take place after the story in that comic.
Star Wars: Battle of the Bounty Hunters - Dark Horse Comics, U.S. (July 1996) back
This hardcover book was clearly over-published by Dark Horse back in 1996. In fact, when the license reverted to Marvel in January 2015, more of these books were released to discount book stores almost 10 years after it was originally published. The copy I am showing here was purchased at a Half Price Books store as a Christmas gift. The store had ample copies for sale.
Celebrating day three of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
An Alex Ross painting of Darth Vader flanked by Stormtroopers is used for the 1 of 50 incentive cover for Stars Wars: Darth Vader #1. A black & white version of that cover is used for the 1 of 200 incentive cover. It is his cover for the Alex Ross Store exclusive that features our favorite bounty hunter.
Star Wars: Darth Vader #1p - Marvel Comics, U.S. (February 2015) Alex Ross Store exclusive
For many Star Wars fans, their first exposure to Boba Fett was in the Star Wars Holiday Special which aired on CBS on November 17, 1978. Much of the special plays like a variety show that was a staple of television programming in the 1970s. One of the variety show segments is a 9 minute cartoon that tells the story of Luke Skywalker rescuing Han Solo and Chewbacca and is the inspiration for the Alex Ross Store exclusive cover. Han and Chewbacca are sent on a mission to get a talisman for the Rebellion, but a video signal from the Millennium Falcon shows there is a problem. Luke, C-3PO, and R2-D2 use a Y-Wing Fighter to follow the Falcon which crashes onto a liquid covered planet. The Y-Wing Fighter also crashes into the thick goo and the fighter is attacked by a dinosaur-like creature. Boba Fett arrives riding another of these dinosaur-like creature and saves Luke. Boba Fett tells Luke he knows where the Falcon is and leads him to the ship. During the trip there, C-3PO tells Luke his misgivings about trusting Fett. When they find the Falcon, Luke, Fett, C-3PO, and R2-D2 board only for Luke to succumb to a sleeping virus caused by the talisman. Han is also infected. Fett and Chewbacca, astride Fett's mount, travel to the nearest Imperial controlled city to retrieve an antidote. At the city, we learn that Boba Fett is working for Darth Vader, who refers to Fett "as the best bounty hunter in the galaxy." Their plan is for Fett to gain our heroes trust so they will take him to the hidden Rebel base. C-3PO and R2-D2 intercept the transmission between Fett and Vader and after Fett uses the serum to revive Luke and Han, C-3PO informs the others of Fett's plans. Fett, using his jet pack, takes off but not before he threatens to meet our heroes again.
The cover by Alex Ross shows Boba Fett astride the dinosaur-like creature. He is holding a staff that he uses to control the beast. The painted cover is how Fett would have looked to Luke when he is rescued.
Celebrating day two of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers!
The Heroes & Fantasies comic shop exclusive Star Wars #1 has a cover drawn by Daniel Acuna.
Star Wars #1ad - Marvel Comics, U.S. (January 2015) Heroes & Fantasies color exclusive
Heroes & Fantasies also has a black & white version of their exclusive cover.
Star Wars #1ae - Marvel Comics, U.S. (January 2015) Heroes & Fantasies black & white exclusive
This cover is another homage, this time to Amazing Spider-Man #129, the first appearance of the Punisher.
This is the first day of the 12 days of Boba Fett covers! For the next 12 days, I will be showing the covers for 12 comics that feature the most notorious bounty hunter in the galaxy.
Alex Maleev provided the cover for the Warp 9 comic shop exclusive.
Star Wars #1ab - Marvel Comics, U.S. (January 2015) Warp 9 color exclusive
Like many shops, Warp 9 also offered a black & white version of their exclusive cover.
Star Wars #1ac - Marvel Comics, U.S. (January 2015) Warp 9 black & white exclusive
This cover is one of the more notable variant covers for Star Wars #1 due to it being a homage to Tales of Suspense #39, the first appearance of Iron Man. In addition to the layout and actions of the character on the cover, the logo and color choices closely match those found on the cover to Tales of Suspense #39.
