Cover: Bill Sienkiewicz

Marvel Super Special #27

May 1983 · Marvel · 2.50 USD; 3.00 CAD; 1.00 GBP

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“Return of the Jedi”

About this Issue

Marvel Super Special #27 is the first collected edition of Marvel's complete official comic adaptation of Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi, packaging all four chapters of the story in a single oversized magazine format. It marks the first comic-book appearance of Jabba the Hutt in his definitive film design, a crucial distinction from the visually different stand-in used in Marvel's Star Wars #2 (1977). The issue also delivers the comic debuts of a wide cast of new characters introduced in the film — among them Admiral Ackbar, Mon Mothma, Nien Nunb, and the Ewoks Chief Chirpa and Logray — making it the foundational comic-format record of the entire Endor era ensemble. As the closing chapter of Archie Goodwin and Al Williamson's celebrated run adapting the original trilogy, it completed one of the most sustained creative collaborations in licensed comics history.

writer Archie Goodwin · artist, inker Al Williamson · artist Carlos Garzón · inker Tom Palmer · inker Ron Frenz · colorist Christie Scheele · colorist Bob Sharen · colorist Louise Simonson · letterer Ed King · cover Bill Sienkiewicz

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History

Writer Archie Goodwin and artist Al Williamson — close friends and longtime collaborators — were the natural choices for this adaptation: Goodwin had been writing the main Marvel Star Wars series and had already scripted The Empire Strikes Back adaptation, while Williamson had been specifically requested by Lucasfilm for the Empire assignment owing to George Lucas's appreciation of his EC Comics and Flash Gordon work. Working under Lucasfilm oversight, Goodwin was apparently asked to omit or soften several key scenes — Yoda's death, the unmasking of Anakin Skywalker, and the Force ghost reunion — in order to protect cinematic surprises, which accounts for the adaptation's notably compressed length of roughly 66 pages. The material debuted in the Marvel Super Special magazine format in 1983 before being reformatted across a four-issue limited series running from October 1983 through January 1984; a typographical error in Marvel Age #2 misspelled the issue number as 'Super Special 26' in its Coming Attractions preview.

Trivia · 8 facts

Official Marvel Comics adaptation of Star Wars: Episode VI — Return of the Jedi, published 1983, written by Archie Goodwin with interior art by Al Williamson and Carlos Garzon.
Collects all four chapters of the Star Wars: Return of the Jedi limited series in a single oversized magazine format — the story's debut publication vehicle.
First comic-book appearance of Jabba the Hutt rendered in his definitive film design; the character's earlier Marvel appearance (Star Wars #2, 1977) depicted a visually distinct stand-in that was later retroactively explained as a different character.
Comic debuts of numerous Return of the Jedi film characters, including Admiral Ackbar, Mon Mothma, Nien Nunb, General Madine, Salacious B. Crumb, Bib Fortuna (in film-accurate form), Chief Chirpa, and Logray.
Wicket the Ewok does not actually appear in the adaptation despite being indexed; Goodwin reportedly misidentified the Ewok Paploo as Wicket, and Leia's meeting with Wicket was omitted entirely.
Cover art credited to Al Williamson and Ron Frenz; individual chapter covers in the companion four-issue series were by Bill Sienkiewicz.
Lucasfilm reportedly required omission of Yoda's on-page death, Anakin Skywalker's unmasked face, and the Force ghost ending to protect those moments as theatrical surprises.
Reprinted extensively, including as Classic Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (Dark Horse, 1994), Star Wars Omnibus: A Long Time Ago.... Vol. 4, Star Wars: The Original Marvel Years Omnibus Vol. 3, and Star Wars Legends Epic Collection: The Original Marvel Years Vol. 5.