In a surprise announcement to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Marvel Entertainment — and continue the successful relationship between the company and its Disney sibling, Lucasfilm — Marvel has announced the 108th issue of its original 1970s Star Wars comic book series, just 33 years after the 107th.


Star Wars No. 108 will be a one-shot special issue set in the continuity of the original comic book series, which was removed from official canon years ago. Indeed, the issue — announced by ComicBook.com — will actually be a sequel to an issue from that series featuring characters who haven’t been seen since Marvel originally lost the comic book license to the property in the mid-1980s after 107 issues, a separate Return of the Jedi miniseries that lasted three issues, and three annuals.


"Being faithful to the amazing storytelling in the original run, but still making a comic for a modern audience, was the biggest challenge on this project, " writer Matthew Rosenberg told the site. "So many true comic legends worked on those books — Archie Goodwin, Roy Thomas, Walt Simonson, Howard Chaykin, Al Williamson, David Michelinie, Klaus Janson, Jo Duffy, and so many more. It's pretty overwhelming to think about, actually. What they made was the product of a very different time in comics, and it's something modern audiences aren't really accustomed to. So while it would be fun, if a little humbling, to try and just impersonate them, we wanted to do something a bit different, something that would appeal to classic and modern fans alike."


The issue will be illustrated by a number of artists, including Giuseppe Camuncoli, Luke Ross and Kerry Gammill, and feature a cover from Walt Simonson, who had a long run as artist on the original series. Star Wars No. 108 will be released May 29.