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Star Wars: TIE Fighter Comic Announced by Marvel

Marvel will release a Star Wars comic series about TIE Fighter pilots in April, two months before a book about the Rebel Alphabet squad.

By Alec Bojalad | January 20, 2019 | | 0

Prepare yourselves, Rebel scum. The elite squadron of TIE Fighters known as “Shadow Wing” is coming for you.

Marvel has announced that it will be launching a five-issue comic miniseries called Star Wars: TIE Fighter. As the name suggests, TIE Fighter will tell the story of the end of Galactic Rebellion from the Empire’s point of view. Because after all, from some people’s point of view, the Jedi are evil. TIE Fighter will follow an elite squadron of TIE Fighter pilots known as “Shadow Wing” who rush to protect the collapsing Empire’s interests following the end of the Galactic Civil War in Return of the Jedi.

Star Wars: TIE Fighter will be written Jody Houser, who is no stranger to the Star Wars comic canon, having written Star Wars: Thrawn and several issues of Star Wars: Age of Republic. The first issue in the series will be released in April of this year. Here is a look at the cover.

Star Wars: TIE Fighter will actually be part of what Marvel is referring to as a crossover event. On June 11, roughly two months after the release of TIE Fighter, Del Ray Books will be releasing Alphabet Squadron, the first book in a planned trilogy about a famed Rebel squadron set in the same time period as TIE Fighter. Alphabet Squadron will be written by Alexander Freed.

Fans will be able to experience the fall of the Empire from the Empire’s point of view and then do so again from the Rebellion’s point of view. Choose your side wisely.

This Star Wars crossover event is just the next component in what has already been a busy past few months for the Star Wars and Marvel partnership. Following the dubious cancellation of Chuck Wendig’s Star Wars: Shadow of Vader, Marvel went ahead and greenlit a similar series called Star Wars: Vader – Dark Visions. That is set to launch in March.

Looks like the Empire is going to get a considerable head start in the war for readers’ hearts and minds.

Alec Bojalad is TV Editor at Den of Geek and TCA member. Read more of his stuff here. Follow him at his creatively-named Twitter handle @alecbojalad