This looks like a cool project; hope you make it all the way to my favorite period, the Jo Duffy years.

I absolutely love the art in that last panel with the Falcon making the jump into hyper space.

It's probably about the best you can do if you hadn't seen the movie.

It is my favorite single shot in cinematic history.

Is this the Chaykin interview you meant, badwolf?

www.bleedingcool.com/2014/07/31/clothes-cars-guns-and-wantonness-are-my-bread-and-butter-howard-chaykin-talks-the-shadow/

It's actually from bleedingcool.com, rather than CBR. Here's what Howard has to say about his work on Star Wars...

"I’d like to flatter myself into thinking that had I had any inkling that STAR WARS was going to be such a big deal, I’d have done a better job. The work is sub-par, and will haunt me to my grave. I remain ashamed."

Frankly, sub-par is exactly how I'd describe it too, Mr. Chaykin.

Star Wars #3
Cover dated: September 1977
Issue title: Death Star!
Script: Roy Thomas
Artwork: Howard Chaykin (layouts)/Steve Leialoha (inks)
Colours: Carl Gafford (credited to Steve Leialoha)
Letters: Tom Orzechowski
Cover art: Gil Kane (pencils)/Tom Palmer (inks)
Overall rating: 7 out of 10




Plot summary: The Death Star is poised to destroy the planet Alderaan, unless Princess Leia – who is a captive aboard the space station – tells Grand Moff Tarkin and Darth Vader the whereabouts of the Rebel Alliance's secret base. Faced with the destruction of her homeworld, Leia seemingly betrays the Alliance and reveals that the Rebels are on the planet Dantooine (although we later learn that she has lied in order to buy time for the people of Alderaan). Tarkin then orders the destruction of Alderaan anyway, while the princess looks on in despair.

Meanwhile, Luke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi, R2-D2 and C-3PO race towards Alderaan in Han Solo and Chewbacca's freighter, the Millennium Falcon. Reaching their destination, they discover the remnants of the destroyed world and the Falcon is caught in the Death Star's tractor beam and brought on board the huge battle station.

Han and Luke don stolen Imperial stormtrooper armour and escape from the captured ship, with Chewbacca, Obi-Wan and the droids. Kenobi then elects to venture into the bowels of the space station alone, to deactivate the tractor beam that is preventing the Falcon from leaving. Meanwhile, Luke discovers that Leia is a prisoner on the Death Star and sets out to rescue her, with Han and Chewbacca's help. After reaching the detention centre and freeing the princess from her cell, the heroes come under fire from advancing stormtroopers and are cornered.


Comments: The Chaykin/Leialoha artwork in this issue continues to be a vast improvement on issue #1, although it maybe isn't quite as smooth as it was in issue #2 (there is the odd panel where the art looks a little crude or where there are perspective issues). Nevertheless, there's much to enjoy here art-wise. The firefight in the detention centre is really well handled and it comes across as being a very exciting sequence. I also love how the laser fire is drawn: it's so messy, as if the blasters are spitting molten, flaming bolts. The sequence with Luke beginning his Jedi training on board the Millennium Falcon is also really well depicted, with some nice individual panels. Interestingly, Luke actually hits the training "remote" itself with his lightsaber blade, rather than just deflecting its energy bolts, as he did in the film.

We also get to see how young Skywalker parts his hair...



Roy Thomas's ability to adapt the film script for the comic book page is really solid again here and the dialogue is, for the most part, very close to that heard in the film. Issue #3 is more action packed than the two previous issues, with the rescue attempt in the Death Star's detention block being a real highlight.

The Gil Kane pencilled front cover is a definte improvement on last issue's frankly quite corny cover, although Kane's take on Chewbacca looks a bit more Planet of the Apes or King Kong than it does Star Wars. Overall, this issue is another satisfying instalment of the movie adaptation, but the presence of a handful of sub-par panels and some odd colouring choices from Leialoha means that I would give it a slightly lower rating than the previous issue.

Continuity issues:

• The blade of Luke's lightsaber is pink instead of blue/white.
• Like last issue, the interior layout of the Millennium Falcon is wrong, with the cockpit appearing to be part of the lounge area.
• The stormtrooper whose armour Luke steals is designated as TX-421, instead of TK-421, as it is in the movie.
• Luke's excuse for being in the Death Star detention centre is a "prisoner transfer from Block TX-138", rather than Block 1138.

Favourite panel:




Favourite quote: "Who is more foolish -- the fool, or the man who follows him?" – Obi-Wan Kenobi waxes philosophical and sarcastic to Han Solo.

Blimey! That's amazing...and extremely flattering. I'm so happy to have, in some small way, provided the inspiration for you to both share such a nice thing together. That's lovely.

That's awesome, you guys are going to love it.