The writers behind the High Republic storyline at Lucasfilm are joining together in the one-shot comic from IDW Publishing called Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures Annual 2021. This will be a 48-page collection of adventures aimed at middle-grade readers bringing back fan-favorite characters from this period of Star Wars stories. These characters include the crew of the Vessel, Vernestra, Stellan, Tempest Runner Lourna Dee, as well as new characters that will be expanded upon in future works.
The High Republic is an initiative exploring the mythos of Star Wars in a multimedia approach with stories taking place about 200 years before the prequels. Novels and comics explore massive events like the Great Disaster during this missing part of the Star Wars galaxy's history as well as introduce interesting (and sometimes morbid) tidbits, like what happens to the lightsabers of dead Jedi. This is the prime period for the Galactic Republic, which faces the threat of the Nihil marauders from the Outer Rim Territories.
IDW Publishing announced Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures Annual 2021 as well as the extensive creative team responsible for the stories in this anthology. Writers include people who helmed stories from the comic or novels of The High Republic: Claudia Gray (Star Wars Lost Stars), Justina Ireland (Star Wars: The High Republic: The Edge of Balance), Daniel José Older (Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures), Cavan Scott (Star Wars Adventures), and Charles Soule (Star Wars: Poe Dameron). The art team consists of Sam Beck (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Jesse Lonergan (All Star), Jason Loo (The Pitiful Human-Lizard), Yael Nathan (Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures), and Stefano Simeone (Mega Man: Fully Charged). The writers contributing to the five tales in this anthology are the architects of the High Republic initiative, being responsible for most of the novels and comics that cover this era. The two covers below are by interiors artists Stefano Simeone (Cover A) and Jason Loo (Cover B).
Both the IDW and Marvel High Republic comic series have primarily followed the Jedi as they deal with threats like the Nihil, the Drengir and the Hutts. The editor for Adventures Annual 2021 is former Marvel Comics editor Heather Antos, who stressed the importance of the one-shot: “The High Republic is such a unique landscape in Star Wars history – both canonically and in media storytelling — and being able to collaborate with all the story architects for their first collaboration in a single book has been amazing. This is a comic any Star Wars fan simply can’t miss."
Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures Annual 2021 will be available in comic book stores on December 15, 2021. The same month this anthology starts, IDW's Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures will be continuing its own story revolving around a group of young Jedi Padawans journeying with their masters to protect planets from the Nihil.
Source: IDW Publishing