Watch a new trailer to celebrate the final wave of Phase I and learn everything we know so far about Phase II of the storytelling initiative.
The third and final wave of books and comics in Phase I of Star Wars: The High Republic start arriving today, marking the one-year anniversary of our first steps into the new era.
To celebrate, Krystina Arielle gathered the five architects of the initiative -- Claudia Gray, Justina Ireland, Daniel José Older, Cavan Scott, and Charles Soule -- and some other very special guests for a dazzling anniversary edition of the Star Wars: The High Republic Show.
Here are 10 things we learned from the event, which you can watch for yourself below.
1. Phase II: Quest of the Jedi begins October 2022. With the final wave of books and comics in Phase I: Light of the Jedi, we're looking forward to the next leg of the adventure starting this fall.
2. Phase II won't be picking up wherever we leave off. Phase II will follow a very familiar Star Wars storytelling order and step into the past -- 150 years in the past to be exact -- for new tales that serve as prequels to what we've experienced so far.
3. The Star Wars family of authors is growing. Authors Zoraida Córdova, George Mann, Tessa Gratton, and Lydia Kang will be joining the crew, contributing books and comics to Phase II. (Does this mean the original five are going to open up their group chat?)
Córdova previously penned the YA novel Star Wars: A Crash of Fate as well as other Star Wars short stories. Mann, who wrote the in-universe books Myths & Fables and Dark Legends among others, previously collaborated with Scott for the Life Day Treasury and has already contributed to The High Republic as the author of the picture books Showdown at the Fair and the soon-to-be-released The Battle for Starlight.
Kang contributed to From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back last year with a story that focused on medical droid 2-1B. Gratton is also a relative newcomer to Star Wars, although she'll contribute a short story to the forthcoming anthology Star Wars: Stories of Jedi and Sith.
4. Cavan Scott will once again be writing a Marvel comic series. With the first issue slated for October, Scott will helm the flagship Marvel comics series for the era. The first year has been a wild ride, Scott said, in part because of the outpouring of love from the fans. In fact, Scott bumped into cosplayers of Avar Kriss and Vernestra Rwoh at the first convention he attended in many months.
5. Charles Soule will be exploring a hero's origin story. Fresh off the two-part Marvel series Eye of the Storm, the forthcoming look at Marchion Ro's backstory, Soule will be writing about Porter Engle's past for another Marvel comics that will reveal how the Jedi-turned-cook became known as the Blade of Bardotta. "[It] ties into storytelling I've been doing for Star Wars for years," Soule hinted. The special also revealed this intriguing concept art of the younger Porter by artist Jeff Thomas.
6. Daniel José Older is moving on to Dark Horse Comics. The first-announced title from the return of Dark Horse Comics, Older will write an all-ages original graphic novel for Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures, which will be out this fall.
7. You can get some hints to Phase II in Star Wars: The High Republic: Mission to Disaster. Ireland's third-wave middle-grade novel has been delayed to March 1, 2022, but when it hits store shelves it will include some key connections to upcoming Phase II storytelling.
8. And Justina Ireland will be teaming up with Tessa Gratton in Phase II. The duo will co-write the first YA novel in the first wave of Phase II.
9. Claudia Gray is staying as silent as Geode about what's next for her. Gray confirmed she's contributing, but can't reveal anything about her part of the project just yet. "Phase II is an era of exploration and invention. One, I think it's fascinating and two I'm not going anywhere."
10. According to Gray, not everybody survives Star Wars: The High Republic: The Fallen Star. Grab the tissues, prepare for heartbreak, and pick up a copy for yourself today.
Watch the entire Star Wars: The High Republic Anniversary Special and new Phase I trailer below!
Visit Lucasfilm’s official hub for all things Star Wars: The High Republic at StarWars.com/TheHighRepublic.
