Ever since the movie Star Wars: A New Hope premiered in 1977, the Star Wars universe has captured the imaginations of fans of sci-fi, fantasy and adventure. Now with the new Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated film and related series on Cartoon Network, Star Wars is finding a new generation of fans. Alongside the movies, animated shows, video games and novels, the Star Wars universe has also been extensively mapped out through comics and graphic novels. We talked to Star Wars editor Randy Stradley of Dark Horse Comics about new and current projects, and got tips about how to approach Star Wars graphic novels in terms of both collection development and fandom.

BookShelf: What can you tell me about the new Star Wars: The Clone Wars series? How did this series come about?

Randy Stradley: Well, knowing that Lucas Animation was doing a TV series, creating a comics series to go along side it was a no-brainer. What did catch us off-guard a bit was that the television series debuted with the theatrical movie, and the sudden need for Clone Wars material for the overseas markets. That's why we have both the regular comic book series and the digests running at the same time.

BookShelf: How does Star Wars: The Clone Wars relate to the other Star Wars series? What is the relationship between the Star Wars comics and the films, TV shows and other media? How might the various series be accessible to readers with different levels of familiarity to the Star Wars universe?

Randy Stradley: Well, as with all Star Wars material, The Clone Wars takes place within the context of all of the comics, novels, games, and films. It's a truly gigantic continuity, but we try to approach it so that if a reader has never seen anything but the films or, for our youngest readers, if they've never seen anything but the TV show, each story is accessible and can be appreciated as a stand alone tale. 

For those fans who are deep into the continuity, there are obvious links between our stories and other events within the Star Wars galaxy, but we design the stories we tell so that not knowing what happened in the novels, for instance, is not an impediment to enjoying the comic. There are "rewards" for readers who invest in the continuity, but casual fans are never "punished" for their lack of experience.

BookShelf: As editor, how do you keep all the different books, series and storylines straight? What advice would you give to someone who is approaching these books as a librarian or retailer?

Randy Stradley: Ha! We keep extensive notes, and Lucasfilm has editors and continuity people to help keep everything straight. Again, if you're approaching the comics or graphic novels as a casual fan, the only real continuity you'll ever have to worry about is what happens within the series you've chosen to read.

However, because it is a big galaxy, we provide a timetable in the back of most of our books which guides readers to the books within each series and within each era, and to which order they should be read. Lucasfilm also designed an easy to identify icon for each historical time period, and every book features the appropriate icon on its back cover. In addition to all that, we endeavor to provide the readers with the information they need to know before reading every story in each books' introduction -- similar to the way the opening text scrolls in the films set the stage for the action to come.

While entering the Star Wars galaxy for the first time may seem daunting, we make it as easy as possible.

BookShelf: What would you recommend as a starting point for someone interested in Star Wars comics?

BookShelf: What do you need to take into consideration when working on a kid-friendly series?

Randy Stradely: Really, keeping the comics and graphic novels kid-accessible -- even while telling some fairly complex and adult stories -- isn't difficult as long as we use the films as a guide. The films are proof that you can tell exciting, emotionally deep and compelling stories without resorting to excessive violence or profanity.

BookShelf: What would you say is the lasting appeal of Star Wars? How could you connect it to traditional mythology or literature?

Randy Stradley: I think it's the feeling of hope expressed within virtually every story. Sure, there's the blending of adventure, action, and romance, and that great backdrop of spaceships, exotic worlds, and alien species, but personally I think it's all about the hope -- the hope that whatever the challenge, however great the evil confronting you, that there's a way to overcome it. Like all great mythology, Star Wars takes the challenges that every one of us faces in our own lives and writes them large. Fortunately, George Lucas created a galaxy big enough to write them really large.