With a full year to wait until Star Wars: The Force Awakens, fans have more than enough time to catch up with the original trilogy that leads into the upcoming film, and Marvel Comics is providing yet another way to get reacquainted with the first three films.
The publisher has announced plans to reprint its comic-book adaptations of Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi throughout 2015 in advance of the December 18 premiere of The Force Awakens, which unfolds after Return of the Jedi in the franchise’s continuity. The new, reissued versions of the movie adaptations will be recolored and released in hardcover collections, beginning with Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope in May 2015.
“With new Star Wars comics being published by Marvel in 2015, we’re proud to look back on this exciting remastered adaptation of the original film, with remastered adaptations of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi coming later in 2015,” said David Gabriel, Marvel’s Senior VP of Sales and Marketing, in a statement accompanying the announcement.
Marvel Comics recently made headlines with the announcement that the first issue of its upcoming, in-continuity Star Wars comic book series had already generated more than one million preorders — a massive tally for any comic in today’s market — ahead of its arrival on shelves in January.
You can check out artist Adi Granov‘s cover for the Star Wars: A New Hope hardcover edition below: