While Disney now has its own in-house comic book publisher through its acquisition of Marvel they have decided to keep that brand focused on material geared for teen / adult audiences and have licensed out material suited for younger audiences to companies like IDW Publishing. For the last few years IDW has been publishing all-ages comic books featuring
classic Walt Disney characters such as Mickey Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge. Now they'll be adding Star Wars to that list when IDW launches a new monthly comic book series in September.
Marvel will still be producing Star Wars comic books rated for teenage and older readers, but IDW is going to have a focus on stories for children. All-ages comic books are meant to be enjoyable by anyone no matter what their age is but are particularly suited to have appropriate material for children under the age of ten years old. Whether it is a mom or dad who wants to share their enjoyment of the Star Wars universe by reading stories to a preschooler or a young reader in elementary school who has become interested in adventures a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away these comic books are meant for kids to enjoy and give parents peace of mind that their content is age appropriate.
"Star Wars Adventures" will feature characters from the prequel, original, and current movies in either one-shot or double issue story arcs. This is great because parents will be able to pick-up one or two issues for their children and not feel like they have to buy months and months worth of consecutive issues to be able to enjoy a story. You'll be able to get value for these comic books in knowing that a kid can enjoy a single issue in itself. Though not announced, there is a good likelihood that just as IDW started off with
Walt Disney's Comics & Stories, that are tales featuring multiple characters, then expanded with other series focused on particular characters (
Mickey Mouse,
Donald Duck,
Uncle Scrooge) they'll also branch out with additional Star Wars titles focused on specific characters such as a child aged Anakin beginning his Jedi training,
A New Hope era Princess Leia, Ezra Bridger from the
Rebels animated cartoon, or Rey from the newest movies.
With IDW noting that "Star Wars Adventures" will be particularly written to appeal to 7 - 10 year old boys and girls, which is right where my twins fall right now, our family is looking forward to checking out this new comic book. Especially because my kids and I are are all enthusiastically anticipating the upcoming movie
The Last Jedi and IDW is promising a connection to it
in the pages of this comic book during the months leading up to the theatrical release. This will be part of an overall promotion called
Journey to Star Wars: The Last Jedi taking place among Disney's publishing licensees to cross-market the film. So make sure to keep an eye out at your local comic book shop this fall for "Star Wars Adventures."
"Star Wars Adventures" is actually a continuation of a partnership between Disney and IDW. In 2015, IDW added Star Wars to its popular Micro Collectors Fun Pack line; a
format pioneered by the comic book publisher that has fast become a fan-favorite. Micro
Collector Fun Packs consist of a full-length, pocket-sized comic-book
story, along with exclusive inserts including posters, standees, trading cards or
stickers. Some varieties have come with 3D comics, posters, and viewing glasses. You can find these at local comic shops as well as
retailers like Target and Toys “R” Us. I've picked up a few of these packs to amuse my kids on long road trips and they worked very nicely to help keep my twins occupied during the car ride.
For more information, visit
www.idwpublishing.com or follow them on Twitter via
@IDWPublishing.
