The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the entertainment landscape in plenty of unpredictable ways and what the new normal will be once it’s all over is too far away and too fluid to ever truly guess. The comics industry at large took a big hit when Diamond Comics, the biggest shipper for the industry, announced it would be shutting down operations in the beginning of April. While the pandemic is nowhere near its end, the end of May still sees many states lifting Stay-At-Home orders to try bringing some sense of normalcy back to people’s lives, and Diamond Comics will be shipping product once again by May 20. With this return also means Star Wars comics, which have been on hold since the beginning April, will begin hitting comic store shelves (those that will be open at least) and digital storefronts later this May as well! Both IDW and Marvel will be rolling out product, though the releases will be staggered for a while before production is ramped back up. We’ll see Doctor Aphra‘s relaunch (!!) and IDW’s The Clone Wars – Battle Tales before May ends, but the schedule remains slim for now. Head below the cut for more details on what’s coming! UPDATE 5/3/20: Doctor Aphra #1 will launch early on digital as a May the 4th present for fans! UPDATE 5/4/20: Read our review here! UPDATE 5/20/20: And here’s our review of the first Battle Tales!
After Diamond’s announcement of the resumption of shipping, Marvel updated their plans to bring comics back to consumers. They included an updated schedule and here are the new Star Wars comics mentioned (there are some TPB and collections as well): On May 27th, the long awaited relaunch of Doctor Aphra, by Alyssa Wong and Marika Cresta, will finally reach eager readers’ hands (like mine)! This is even more exciting thanks to the recent announcement of the upcoming audiobook and we celebrated both bits of archaeologist related news at the Manor’s Instagram for Fan Art Friday; On June 24, Bounty Hunters #3 will arrive, continuing the tale of seedy underworld of the galaxy post-The Empire Strikes Back. It’s obviously not a lot of content, and a far cry from what was on the docket as seen in April, May, and June’s solicitations (which I’ll be updating with this news as well), but it’s a start and I’m damn glad to see them return regardless. It sounds like Marvel will return to “normal” beginning July 15, so we’ll see what that all entails for Star Wars comics then!
As for IDW, their first issue back will be on May 20(the link contains outdated info on Marvel’s plans), beginning with the start of The Clone Wars – Battle Tales miniseries! We have a great little interview with its writer Michael Moreci and I’m very eager for this to finally start, especially since the animated show will be finished by May 4 and we will all still likely be eager for more content. There’s no news on IDWs plans after May 20, but hopefully Battle Tales won’t be spread apart too much and we’ll update once we learn more.
It’s going to be a slow return to any sense of normal for the comic book industry, so let’s celebrate these offerings! I’ll be very curious to see how many local comic shops will even be open when these issues arrive, but make sure to go out and show your support, while calling ahead to your shop of choice to see what social distancing options they offer. Then check back here for reviews once these issues go live!
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.