There's a stirring within the Force emanating from the potent pen of superstar writer Charles Soule ("The High Republic: Light of the Jedi") that fans will flock to as Marvel Comics kicks off a major line-wide expansion of their flagship "Star Wars" comics.
"Star Wars: Hidden Empire" is written by Soule, the main wordsmith and architect behind "Star Wars: War of the Bounty Hunters" and "Star Wars: Crimson Reign."
Joining him in this creative endeavor that rounds out his epic trilogy is series artist Steven Cummings ("Star Wars: Crimson Reign"), who also crafted a striking set of connecting variant covers for the debut issue that combines Lady Qi'ra, Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, The Knights of Ren, and other main characters in the story arc.
This "most impressive" five-issue limited series will keep its narrative focus on Lady Qi'ra, the resourceful character spawned from the 2018 feature film, "Solo: A Star Wars Story." As the Crimson Dawn's cunning commander, her ambitions and desires have reverberated throughout Marvel’s vast roster of "Star Wars" comics. "Star Wars: Hidden Empire" goes full throttle to unveil Qi'ra's master plan to exterminate evil Sith entities from the entire galaxy.
Here's the official series synopsis:
The mysterious syndicate Crimson Dawn and its leader Lady Qi'ra have become the galaxy's most wanted criminals, as Emperor Palpatine realizes the scope of Qi'ra's plans against him and moves to destroy her. But Qi'ra still has tricks up her sleeve, and with the help of the Knights Of Ren and her many other allies, she will not go down without a fight!
"'Hidden Empire' is set between Episodes V and VI," Soule said in a Marvel statement. "So, there are things this story can do and things it can't. That said, I think it will deliver a deeply satisfying conclusion to Qi'ra's arc here, and readers will understand how her choices in this story impacted events all across the 'Star Wars' galaxy at this time. As with many of the comics and novels and ancillary stories beyond the films, the idea is to deepen the experience and understanding of the characters. There are direct connections here to both 'The Empire Strikes Back' and 'Return of the Jedi' — and beyond — and I think the fans will be very happy."
Marvel Comics' "Star Wars: Hidden Empire #1" landed in comic shops on Nov. 16 with a heroic main cover from Paolo Siqueira and special variant covers by Steven Cummings, David Lopez, Declan Shalvey and Arthur Adams.
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