History ComicBook / MarvelStarWars

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/StarWars_Marvel_rear_350_8120.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"If it's a comic book, ''someone'' has to wear a cape, right?"]]
A long time ago, in a comic book market far, far away, Creator/MarvelComics released an official comic-book adaptation of the movie ''Franchise/StarWars Episode IV: Film/ANewHope'' (then simply called ''Star Wars'') in 1977. Like the movie, this adaptation was a success, and so Marvel continued publishing the comic beyond the end of the original story.

Marvel ''Star Wars'' eventually ran [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Star_Wars_%28Marvel%29 for a total of 107 issues and three annual specials]]. It ended in 1986. The series covered the events of the movies as well as stuff happening between them and eventually after them, making it an ExpandedUniverse before the [[Franchise/StarWarsLegends Star Wars Expanded Universe]] as we know it today.[[note]]Or [[HereWeGoAgain as we know it]] ''[[HereWeGoAgain today]]''; Disney's buyout of Lucasfilm triggered a CosmicRetcon which saw the old expanded universe ExiledFromContinuity and rebranded as ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends''.[[/note]]

Creator/DarkHorseComics, the publisher of ''Star Wars'' comics until 2015, had published reprints of these stories as the ''Classic Star Wars'' series, and in trade paperback form as ''Star Wars: A Long Time Ago'', a seven-volume series, later reprinted in 5 omnibus volumes. In addition, Dark Horse also reprinted a series of Manga versions of the Original Trilogy and ''Film/ThePhantomMenace'' which retold the stories in the typical stylistic elements of the medium.

Some stories were [[NoExportForYou only published in the UK version of the comic]] (which was a weekly rather than a monthly publication) but had since been reprinted, again by Dark Horse in a separate omnibus volume (titled ''Wild Space'') along with other rare ''Star Wars'' comics.

With Creator/{{Disney}} now owning the rights to both Marvel Comics and ''Star Wars'', [[http://marvel.com/news/comics/2014/1/3/21703/lucasfilm_and_marvel_join_forces_to_publish_star_wars_comics the company has since re-obtained the rights from Dark Horse to make new comics set in the universe]]. For tropes relating to the 2015 reboot bearing the same name, go [[ComicBook/MarvelStarWars2015 here]]. Marvel has likewise gained the rights to reprint this series under the ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' banner, which they have under the "Original Marvel Years" series of Epic Collections, as well as two hardcover omnibi.

The series returned for a one-off issue 108 in May of 2019.
----
!!''Marvel Star Wars'' exhibited the following tropes beyond those in the movies:

* EightiesHair: In the infamously bizarrely-drawn last issue, Luke ended up with a mullet.
* AbortedArc: Issue 39 is the beginning of ''The Empire Strikes Back''. Small nods aside, we never find out what happened to many of the characters that appeared between ''A New Hope'' and ''Empire Strikes Back''.
* ActionGirl: Leia obviously, but also [[GoodBadGirl Dani]], [[TheMole Shira]], Amaiza, Jolli... actually almost every female character who appears in more than three issues is either this, a DarkActionGirl or Mon Mothma.
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Han Solo had a tendency to go on adventure-filled treasure hunts in lost ruins in this series -- [[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk even before a certain Harrison Ford film was released in 1981]].
* AdventuresInComaland: Luke's had one of these.
* ArtShift: Starting with the adaptation of ''The Empire Strikes Back'', the art changes from Carmine Infantino's loose, angular style to a more detailed look with much closer likenesses to the film characters (usually veteran inker Tom Palmer over Al Williamson or Walt Simonson.)
** The last issue also has a ''strikingly'' different style than its predecessors. For example, for some reason Luke's gone from a slim short-haired figure wearing mostly black and wielding a lightsaber into a perpetually shirtless mulleted wall of beef toting a BFG he never once fires.
* AscendedExtra: Lando Calrissian is very prominent in the stories set between ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' and ''Film/ReturnOfTheJedi'', more so than in either movie. This, of course, is justified by him having to play the part of TheLancer in Han Solo's absence.
* AudioAdaptation: "Droid World" and "Planet of the Hoojibs" were both adapted as book-and-tape sets.
* BadassBoast: Done in order to clue in a droid that an infamous Rebel is there so it'll try to capture him, but still.
--> "Yoda said it, Artoo: There '''is''' no try! Only '''do'''.. or do '''not'''! And '''I''' mean to do! This can't stop me! '''Nothing's''' going to stop me! I'm '''Luke Skywalker'''... destroyer of the '''Death Star'''! I'm the one who dueled '''Darth Vader''' and lived to tell about it!"
* BaldOfEvil: Strom.
* BeastMan: The "Lepus carnivorus", better known as [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Lepi Lepi]], such as Jaxxon himself, are man-sized, green-furred sentient rabbits.
* BeautyIsNeverTarnished: They often forget Luke's right hand, though there is the absurd line "I love you, mechanical right hand!"
* BigBad: Main villains varied from arc to arc, though [[DarkActionGirl Lady Lumiya]] and [[AristocratsAreEvil Baron Orman Tagge]] were the most important.
* BizarreAlienReproduction: Zeltrons are attracted to Force-sensitives. Which explains why they [[http://images.plurk.com/959ed025cc50e8c9971fd072fb0c540b.jpg all want Luke]].
* BreakoutCharacter:
** Lumiya is the most famous character in the series and the only one to feature in an important role in later ExpandedUniverse stories but she had a mere six appearances (plus seven more as Shira Brie). Her lightwhip appeared in just three issues but is similarly iconic.
** On the heroic side Dani became this, she had a major character arc, effectively became a SixthRanger to the heroes and appeared in more issues than any other Marvel created character (17 plus various mentions elsewhere). Unlike Lumiya she hasn't been seen or referenced much since the comics run ended but as the prototypical Zeltron she's had a lot of influence (Delilah Blue from the ''Legacy'' comics is clearly her {{Expy}}.)
** Recurring character Jaxxon, a member of a humanoid-rabbit like species called the Lepi, proved popular enough to [[CanonImmigrant get inducted into the current canon Star Wars universe.]]
* BreakTheCutie: Dani.
* BroadStrokes: How most of the elements from this series brought into the main ExpandedUniverse are handled.
* CanonDiscontinuity: A lot of the stories are considered non-canon at best, simply due to being supplanted by later material. One example is a flashback story where Luke's father, Darth Vader, and Obi-Wan Kenobi (three separate people) save a planet together - although ''that'' story was written before ''The Empire Strikes Back'', and therefore a ''professional'' example of being {{Jossed}}. Mind you, one of Lucasfilm's resident kings of Continuity found a way to make it work...
** As can be seen [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Canon#Canon_in_the_Holocron_continuity_database here]], Marvel Star Wars is considered to be on a lower level of canon than most of ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'', although its material can be used or discarded as other authors wish, as long as it does not contradict the higher levels of canon.
** An issue of the Marvel series deals with Wes Janson's death. Wes is alive and well in the Literature/XWingSeries, set a few years later. [[AllThereInTheManual Supplemental material]], specifically [[http://wizards.com/default.asp?x=starwars/article/sw20040401adumarmain Adumar: Pilots Wanted]], {{Retcon}}s this rather than ignoring it completely. It's a story Wedge would tell new recruits before calling in Wes. Even Luke fell for it.
** And of course, with the ''Legends'' decision in 2014, the comic series in its entirety is non-canon, with only a few elements surviving in the new continuity.
* CanonImmigrant: Shira/Lumiya, into the mainstream ExpandedUniverse.
** Baron Tagge was probably the first; he was referenced (and his role much expanded) in the mid-90s.
** And more recently, Fenn Shysa makes an appearance in ''Literature/LukeSkywalkerAndTheShadowsOfMindor''.
** But the original example has to be the TIE Bomber. It managed to make an appearance in ''[[Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack The Empire Strikes Back]]'', meaning it even survived the ''[[Franchise/StarWarsLegends Legends]]'' retcon!
** Zeltrons, too, the species of hedonistic red near-humans. The Zeltron attraction to Force-Sensitives is actually a plot point in ''Coruscant Nights''.
* CaptainErsatz: Early bit player Don-Wan Kihotay is an extremely transparent space-fantasy take on ''Literature/DonQuixote'', right down to literally wearing medieval knight armor in-universe. Key difference is that while Quixote was a crazy obsessive fan of (fictional, idealized) chivalry who took it way too far, Don-Wan is a very obsessive fan of the (very much real, but outlawed) Jedi Order who also just happens to be force-sensitive, and openly desired to be a Jedi Knight, even if it was the equivalent of painting a target on his head in the Imperial-ruled Galaxy.
* ChekhovsBoomerang: Drebble. Lando owes him money because Drebble claims Lando cheats at cards. So Lando uses him as a fake identity. Lando's work is so good that the Rebels want to give Drebble a medal!
* TheChessmaster: Darth Vader. The Marvel series really ran with the idea of Vader being an evil genius to a much larger extent than anywhere else in the Expanded Universe. Largely by necessity, as Lucasfilm generally forbade direct confrontations between Vader and the main characters, as they might have upstaged what they were planning for the movies.
** Shown literally in the cover for issue 35, "Dark Lord's Gambit".
* ChickMagnet: Luke, bordering on TheCasanova. ''Especially'' around Zeltrons.
* CoversAlwaysLie:
** On the cover of issue 1, Darth Vader's helmet is green and shaped more like a gas mask.
** The cover of issue 5. As the Death Star, visible in the sky, fires two lasers on the planet's surface, Luke tells Chewbacca, "Hurry, Chewbacca! We're being attacked by the Death Star!" Han replies, "It's too late kid! We're finished!" This is part five of an adaptation of ''Film/ANewHope'', and includes no such scene.
** The main cast is referred to as The Star Warriors on the covers, but not in the stories. Probably better that way.
* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: [[ShoutOut Don-Wan Khiotay]], seemingly a loony old guy who believes he's the last of the Jedi, is skilled enough to hold his own alongside hardened mercenaries.
* LesCollaborateurs: Sk'ar and Delois in the story where Leia crashes on an alien planet. [[RedRightHand Delois looks like a pink Lando!]]
** Fixer, but [[TheCommiesMadeMeDoIt the Empire made him do it]].
* ConvenientlyUnverifiableCoverStory: Deliberately staged by the Empire to set up Shira's cover
* CurseCutShort: On Mandalore, we get "sonova--"
* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything: The entire Mary storyline. Luke goes on a mission to help guerrillas fight the Empire. While there, he falls in love with a guerrilla named Mary. They succeed, but then [[WeAreStrugglingTogether they turn on each other]], and in the process, Mary is killed. Yes, this was around the same time as Iran-Contra. Why do you ask?
* TheDreaded: Wookies seem to be this in this setting. Torture-hardened imperials immediately beg to be asked questions when Chewie confronts them, and pirates, thugs, and all manner of galactic tough guys not only want nothing to do with him, they are openly ''terrified'' of him.
* DreamTropes: Luke's Force-tinged dreams come up three times in the series. The first, "The Empire Strikes", has him go into a coma after sensing Vader's mind for the first time, and having to fight a Vader-shaped manifestation of his fear. The second time is when he's infected with the Crimson Forever plague, and fights a Vader-shaped manifestation of the sickness until he gets a burst of insight from Obi-Wan and Yoda and lets it strike him down. The third time, he... sees a Vader-shaped manifestation [[RecurringDreams several nights in a row]], talks to it with the spirits of his teachers and father, and discovers that it's a new Sith Lord. Only then can he see it as something not-so-Vader-shaped.
* EarlyBirdCameo: Out of universe, two issues (one apiece) were co-created by Creator/RandyStradley and Creator/JanDuursema, both of which would later go on to create such works as Crimson Empire, Dark Times, Dawn of the Jedi, Republic, and Legacy for Dark Horse's time with the license.
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Many characters appear in a very different form than they do in the movie. This is usually because [[EarlyDraftTieIn many of the the comics were written before the films were released]] so the artists relied on concept art that didn't make the final cut or just guesswork. Most notably, Jabba appears as a yellow, bipedal walrus like guy.
* ElvesInSpace: The Nagai have many typical Elf traits - they are tall, slender yet strong, agile, androgynously good looking, are arrogant towards most other species, have angular features and even pointed ears.
* EnemyMine: Leia and Luke are forced to combine forces with a squad of Imperial commandos to survive a hostile planet in a 1980 storyline, ''World Of Fire''. While one of the commandos is a complete scumbag their overall leader is portrayed as a sympathetic WorthyOpponent who just happens to be on the wrong side and Leia even tries to persuade him to defect. [[spoiler: He refuses, using a MyCountryRightOrWrong arguement.]]
* EqualOpportunityEvil: The Marvel series probably has more female antagonists than the rest of ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' combined. Lumiya is by far the most famous but there are many others ranging from serious villainesses like Kharys to one issue annoyances like Captain Traal. There are even a couple of nameless female {{Mooks}}!
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Luke again. One of his Zeltron entourage is male.
* EyeScream: Comes up in Orman Tagge's backstory. Vader blinded him, forcing him to resort to a cybernetic visor. When Luke fights him, he [[http://images.plurk.com/bd590295c809cbc10abc4b7c1d415a62.jpg cuts off Tagge's visor]] without hurting him, leaving him (temporarily) blind again and BSOD-ing.
* FaithHeelTurn: After he shoots down Shira, Luke has a crisis of faith in the Force
* FantasticRacism: Of all people, ''Leia''! Leia doesn't like Zeltrons. Mon Mothma asks what's wrong with her. Given [[EthicalSlut what we know about Zeltrons]], this says more about Mon Mothma.
** On a more general level anti-droid prejudice is depicted as ''very'' common, which retroactively fits in very well with what we later see of the Clone Wars.
*** The issues featuring bounty hunter Valance prominently feature anti-droid prejudice, but take it to a new level. Valance, who obsessively hates droids, is a cyborg, and it turns out they're subject to prejudice, as well.
* FishPeople: Kiro's race.
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: Zeltrons. Given that Marvel (and Lucasfilm) had a very strict "No gays" policy, the Zeltrons could be this trope personified.
** In one issue, Luke is surrounded by Zeltrons, and he's keeping someone from poisoning an Imperial governor because [[EvenEvilHasStandards even chaotic has standards]]. Somehow, Leia ends up posing as a singer. See the case of the Lahsbees to understand why one immature Lahsbee became a huhk while listening to Leia. Then Luke is surrounded by Zeltron fangirls...and one fanboy, all too fascinated by the song to make moves on him like they have for the whole of the issue. A worried Luke hopes she knows a lot of verses.
* GoSeduceMyArchNemesis: Vader orders Shira to do this to [[{{squick}} his son]].
* GreaterScopeVillain: The Emperor, naturally, before ''Return of the Jedi''. Also doubled as TheGhost since he was often referenced, but never seen during that time.
* GreenSkinnedSpaceBabe: The Zeltrons have pink skin. Dani is the most prominent Zeltron character. We also get male examples with Leia's Zeltron fanboys Bahb, Jahn, Marruc and Rahuhl.
* TheHedonist: The Zeltrons are a non-villainous example. While they mainly just want to have fun they also are (usually) compassionate as they are all TheEmpath so care a lot about the feelings of others.
* HeroicBuild: This was very much a Marvel Comic, and DependingOnTheArtist, the art often followed (but not always) this aspect of Marvel's house style. Particularly obvious in the "corner art" depiction of Luke on the cover of every issue. With a bit of art touch-up, the "swordsman" would be indistinguishable from Marvel's ComicBook/ConanTheBarbarian.
* HoneyTrap: Shira/Lumiya
* HurtComfortFic: Wedge is stuck on Hoth. Luke rescues him, only to learn that in the meantime, Wedge has witnessed Janson die and barely escaped himself. {{Retcon}}ned as [[AllJustADream a story that Wedge tells the recruits so they know how horrible war is]]. And because he thinks their expressions are hilarious when Wes walks in afterwards.
* IdiotBall: Luke and Dani think Kiro's dead because he fell in the water fighting an enemy, the water got bloody, and he never came up, ''and he's a fish man''!
** They aren't really sure it's him, but when they get back to their ship and see that Shira/Lumiya has been released, and the flower Den gave to Dani there, it pretty much seals the deal that Kiro lost (although it turns out later that he survived and made it back to his home planet).
* JediMindTrick: Played for BlackComedy in one issue with Darth Vader using a Mind Trick to persuade an incompetent officer to go for "some fresh air", by stepping out an airlock. Another issue gives us a rare glimpse of the ''aftermath'' of a Mind Trick when Luke uses a long distance one to make an Imperial station commander to drop her shields. The commander mindlessly orders the shields dropped then comes out of her trance and is surprised and angry to notice the lack of shields, blaming it on her underlings' incompetence.
* KillTheLights: Issue #33 has [[TheVillain Baron Tagge]] try to thwart Luke Skywalker's escape from his ship's hangar bay. Tagge takes a lightsaber to a junction box, killing the lights in the hangar, aiming to keep Luke unable to see his adversary, while Tagge's cybernetic visor can see Luke perfectly. It goes much differently than Tagge had planned.
* LovableCoward: The Hiromi; they also tend to collectively be SmallNameBigEgo, but [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold they mean well enough in the end]].
* MagicalComputer: The cyborg Lobot can manipulate energy to alter technology because EverythingIsOnline, even bombs!
* MagikarpPower: Lahsbees. At puberty, they go from being cute little things to being hulking monstrosities called huhks.
* TheMagnificentSevenSamurai: "Eight for Aduba-3", the first original storyline. The one that brought us the aforementioned Jaxxon as well as "[[Literature/DonQuixote Don-Wan Kihotay]]", a blustery Jedi wannabe.
* MistakenIdentity: In "Chanteuse of the Stars", said chanteuse is something of a diva and quits before a show. Leia, trying to evade recognition, puts on the woman's wig and is mistaken for her by the chanteuse's own manager.
* MyNaymeIs: Cody Sunn-Childe.
* NeverSayDie: Generally averted, but just like in the films, there are some odd examples where "destroyed" is used instead. And in the Crimson Forever arc, Luke is killed by the eponymous disease (he gets better) and Leia and Lando have to continue on without him - but they never say die. Just that he succumbed to it. And since everyone else who'd contracted it had died...
** Also in the last issue of this arc Leia is contacted with an offer for a way to stop the plague and undo the worst of it - including the death of Luke Skywalker.
* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: Luke gets these on occasion. The comic directly after ESB has him slowing his heart rate and breathing to the point where a droid monitoring his life signs thinks he's comatose, though he's up and moving. In another comic, he uses the Force to find six bombs and make their primers explode, but ''not the bombs themselves''. And of course, there's the long-range Mind Trick mentioned above.
* OffModel: The initial miniseries was rushed out quickly with two artists working in tandem. The results were some ''very'' inconsistent looks for the characters. In the first issue Luke looks more like [[Franchise/MastersOfTheUniverse He-Man]] than Mark Hamill.
* OutOfFocus: The Empire itself in the first year or so of the series run. Between issue #6 (the last installment of the adaptation of ''Film/ANewHope'') and issue #18 the Empire did not appear 'onscreen' ''at all'' except in the form of flashbacks with the villains in the interim being space pirates, mercenaries and raiders; likely due to the Empire regrouping after what must have been a devastating loss. After this, though, the Empire was almost never OutOfFocus again until the post-[=RotJ=] stories.
* {{Pun}}: Nagais and Dolls, My Hiromi.
* PluckyComicRelief: Dani, prior to going through BreakTheCutie and becoming a BrokenBird; Leia's Zeltron fanboys Bahb, Jahn, Marruc and Rahuhl and Hirog and the rest of the Hiromi after their HeelFaceTurn (prior to that they had been LaughablyEvil {{Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain}}s.)
* PunctuatedForEmphasis: Luke has one of these once, when told 'We'll never make it!' in a dire situation.
--> "''I-am-not-going-to-stand-here-and-watch-another-of-my-friends-'''DIE!'''''"
* RapeAsDrama: Dani. Also hinted at with Tai.
* RedemptionEqualsDeath: [[spoiler:Captain Valance]].
* RememberTheNewGuy: Sort of. Wedge Antilles was in ''Film/ANewHope'', but never featured in the non-movie-adaptation comics until "Hoth Stuff", when he was suddenly Luke's oldest friend and had Biggs Darklighter's backstory.
* TheReveal: The new Sith is... Luke's crazy ex-girlfriend!
* ReversePolarity: In ''#52: To Take The Tarkin'', Leia switches a couple of wires to reverse the polarity modes of The Tarkin's fire controls. When the station tries to fire its superlaser on the Millennium Falcon, the superweapon explodes.
* RobotWar: The civil war on Droid World.
* RuleOfCool: Lightwhips.
* RuleOfFunny: Disco planet? Funny. Green carnivorous rabbits? Funny. Goth elves? Hilarious. Hoojibs? Possibly their own MemeticMutation.
* RunningGag: The number of times either Luke or Leia attempt a RelationshipUpgrade but are interrupted by ''something'' - usually the main plot kicking off - approaches this. Which becomes even funnier after ''Return Of The Jedi'' revealed that they're siblings.
* ShirtlessScene: Luke has a surprising number of opportunities to show off his Marvel-style HeroicBuild:
** Luke actually looks like Rambo in the last issue, with his hair growing literally five inches for one issue, and he's very buff, constantly shirtless, and [[{{BFG}} holding a giant laser cannon]]. Yes, that is as bizarre as it sounds.
** When he's infected with the Crimson Forever, a rather dramatically named plague, he has fever dreams in which he fights Vader while shirtless. Despite wearing a shirt while lying in the quarantine wing.
*** Then again, he was dying. It's amazing we got something as lucid as fighting Vader while shirtless instead of an hour or two of Luke following unicorns through an acid trip.
** Han is shirtless in a cantina for some reason.
* ShoutOut: Lando basically [[http://images.plurk.com/e5e87607672fd825692cf20d98b85158.jpg cosplays]] as a palette-swapped Anime/CaptainHarlock as a disguise in one issue.
** Also, the [[OurElvesAreDifferent Nagai]] are named after Creator/GoNagai and the [[InsectoidAliens Hiromi]] after musician Go Hiromi. [[PromotedFanboy Mary Jo Duffy]] was responsible for all three shout outs, and loved her some anime.
* SingleBiomePlanet: One very early story ('The Kingdom of Ice' from the UK version of the comic) featured an iceworld home to an important Rebel base over a year before the appearance of [[Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack Hoth]].
* SixthRangerTraitor: Shira.
* {{Sleepwalking}}: Luke's not bad at sleep-fighting, apparently.
* SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: Usually, the Rebels are the champions of democracy, right? Not so when [[IdiotBall they order Luke's execution over friendly fire in a situation when if he hadn't fired blindly, the entire squadron would've died, compromising their mission]]. This leads to Luke [[FaithHeelTurn doubting the Force]] until he learns Shira was an Imperial spy after all and clears his name. Then the Alliance are so democratic that they don't let the Heroes of Yavin take part in the government because they missed a meeting they didn't even know about. On the other hand, and at one point, our heroes are so popular, they could basically [[ShootTheShaggyDog start their own Empire]], but they're too clueless to realize it.
* SlidingScaleOfSillinessVersusSeriousness: All over the place DependingOnTheWriter. Stories and characters ranged from the very silly to serious fare that wouldn't be out of place alongside Timothy Zahn or Michael Stackpole. Largely the silly issues were made earlier on, with later ones being more plotty, but this isn't universal.
** Played straight when it comes to the issues adapting the movies.
* SpaceElves: Or rather Space ''Dark'' Elves in the form of the Nagai.
* SpacePirates: These were alluded to in the film, but they made their first appearance in this series.
* StuffedIntoTheFridge: Mary.
* TakeMeToYourLeader: Used in a friendly way [[http://images.plurk.com/87286a795d18e3df063394ab3c9948a0.jpg here]].
* TheTeam: The main group (of Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, C-3PO and R2) were often referred to as the "Star Warriors" in earlier issues.
* TitleDrop: The 89th comic is called "I'll See You In The Throne Room!", which on the first page is shouted by one of the characters.
* TooDumbToLive: After being blinded by Darth Vader, [[http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Orman_Tagge Orman Tagge]] became obsessed with defeating him, procuring a lightsaber and training endlessly with it. He also had a dirty trick in mind that he planned to use if it came to that, which he was [[http://images.plurk.com/f86a25c446b7468d6de5a8495d8aa553.jpg forced]] to use [[http://images.plurk.com/95a2c33a71edb1d1bc682b6fe26bc713.jpg on Luke]] - namely, he planned to ''turn the lights off'' during the fight. With his cybernetic replacement eyes, he could see in the dark. The poor man never understood the power of TheForce...
* {{Tykebomb}}: Shira.
* UndergroundCity: In "World of Fire."
* UnwantedHarem: Luke around Zeltrons, at least until he apparently gets used to them. "Chanteuse of the Stars" has him actively fleeing from hot red women who think he's the most beautiful man they've ever seen. Eventually one of them (Dani) becomes a close, platonic friend partly because she fell for someone else - she has a thing for blond Force-sensitive men - and so stopped chasing him and partly because she went through a lot of CharacterDevelopment.
* VillainEpisode: "The Hunter" is a combination of this and ADayInTheLimelight as the focus is on both the evil cyborg Captain Valance and the surviving heroes of the group Han and Chewie assembled in "Eight for Aduba-3" from earlier in the series run. Uniquely ''none'' of the core heroes (Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie and the droids) appear outside of flashbacks.
** "Dark Encounters" is another one that features Valance and Vader [[EvilVersusEvil fighting over a Rebel deserter]] [[spoiler:and ends with the cyborg's and the deserter's deaths.]] Luke and the droids only briefly appear as part of an interlude that isn't involved with the main story.
* VillainsNeverLie: After Luke apparently kills Shira, who was popular with Alliance personnel, he goes on sabbatical to grapple with his faith in the Force, soon finding that Shira had been lying about her homeworld and tragic backstory. Vader communicates with him and tells him that not only had she been lying, she'd been working for ''him'' the entire time. Now the Alliance is against Luke, and the only way he can keep from being a pariah is to join Vader. Luke is shaken by this, but actually goes to try to find Imperial records on Shira before he outright believes his father.
** He also needed the records in order to prove his innocence.
** A rare unintended example occurs in one of the annuals. Vader takes in a boy who had found his mother's dead body, openly saying that he was once in the same position. We're meant to think he was lying just to get the boy on his side...but ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'' not only reveals that he really ''was'' once in the same position, but that it was his StartOfDarkness.
* VillainousValor: Baron Tagge in his lightsaber-duel with Luke. As an expert swordsman, he believed he could defeat a Jedi. He doesn't, but for a while he makes a credible showing, though this is against a pre-''Empire Strikes Back'' Luke, who has only had a few quick lessons from Ben.
* WalkingShirtlessScene: The Zeltron, a whole race of pink-skinned humanoids. The women wear Frazetta-style {{fanservice}}y clothes, and the men wear loincloths and harnesses.
* WingedHumanoid: The Stenaxes are quite demonic.
* TheWorfEffect: Almost completely averted with Chewbacca, who only gets truly (physically) outfought once or twice in the entire series. If anything, Chewie is the one ''inflicting'' this trope left and right to the local tough guys.
* YouHaveFailedMe: Subverted in one issue where Vader chooses to spare an admiral who failed an important mission, settling instead to just demote him to lieutenant while lightly mocking him.
----

** Also, the [[OurElvesAreBetter Nagai]] are named after Creator/GoNagai and the [[InsectoidAliens Hiromi]] after musician Go Hiromi. [[PromotedFanboy Mary Jo Duffy]] was responsible for all three shout outs, and loved her some anime.

* WalkingShirtlessScene: A whole race of pink-skinned humanoids. The women wear Frazetta-style {{fanservice}}y clothes, and the men wear loincloths and harnesses.

* GreaterScopeVillain: The Emperor, naturally, before Return of the Jedi. Also doubled as TheGhost since he was often referenced, but never seen during that time.

Creator/DarkHorseComics, the publisher of ''Star Wars'' comics until 2015, had published reprints of these stories as the ''Classic Star Wars'' series, and in trade paperback form as ''Star Wars: A Long Time Ago'', a seven-volume series, later reprinted in 5 omnibus volumes.