The world of Star Wars comics is about to head back in time, to the days before The Phantom Menace kicked off the prequel trilogy. Beginning in March 2025, the Jedi made famous in battle beside Qui-Gon Jinn, Mace Windu, and Yaddle get a story all their own in Star Wars: Jedi Knights , a new ongoing Marvel series from from Emmy Award-winning screenwriter Marc Guggenheim (Han Solo & Chewbacca) and artist Madibek Musabekov (Star Wars).
The news comes straight from Marvel Comics and Lucasfilm Publishing, revealing the new series as just one incoming story following Marvel's previous Star Wars series ending earlier this year. With the last ongoing comics taking place between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, the new Star Wars: Jedi Knights will be putting the Republic's peacekeepers front and center in a brand new era of the Star Wars saga. Of course, a threat is looming, even if the characters don't yet know of their coming defeat. Read on for the first cover art and plot synopsis below.
Taking place before The Phantom Menace, STAR WARS: JEDI KNIGHTS stars the Jedi Order as fans came to know it during the Prequel Trilogy including legendary characters like Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, Count Dooku, Mace Windu, and many more. In addition to featuring iconic and fan-favorite Jedi, the series will introduce all new Jedi characters that served the Republic during this pivotal era. Each issue will spotlight a different Jedi duo on a different mission throughout the galaxy, but an overarching threat binds them together. Who is the mysterious new villain targeting Qui-Gon Jinn for death and how will it force the Jedi Order to evolve for a new age?
What Star Wars: Jedi Knights Means For Fans of The Saga
New and Legendary Jedi Duos Will Face a Mysterious Pre-Prequel Threat
The appeal of a series focused squarely on the Jedi operating as peacekeepers and samurai on the frontiers of Republic space (an era and role still very much discussed, but not nearly as often seen in canon storytelling). With the first cover art by Rahzzah featuring heroes like Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, Count Dooku, Mace Windu, and many more Jedi Knights leaping into battle, lightsabers drawn, it's clear Marvel isn't selling this series on politics or diplomacy. And Editor Mark Paniccia suggests that message is intentional:
“Marc and Madibek deliver a blockbuster first issue with a cliffhanger that kicks off one action-packed issue after another featuring your favorite Jedi. You’ve literally never seen so much lightsaber action in a comic book!”
The foil variant covers for Jedi Knights #1 by Taurin Clarke (above) also feature Yoda and Adi Gallia, perhaps hinting that first blockbuster issue will feature those two as the first spotlighted Jedi of the series. Gallia's master is currently unknown in established canon, so if this is true, it could mean Yoda is her master, if not merely her partner on specific action-packed mission.
Disney's New Star Wars Expanded Universe Is Fantastic, But I Desperately Miss 1 Part of the Original
As much as I enjoy Marvel's current era of Star Wars comics, I can't help but find myself nostalgic for the old era, when the comics felt important.
While most fans will assume the "mysterious new villain targeting Qui-Gon Jinn for death" is either Darth Maul or Darth Sidious beginning their plot ahead of The Phantom Menace, the presence of Count Dooku holding a blue Jedi lightsaber suggests a story set significantly earlier in the prequel timeline. With little Star Wars media set after The High Republic and before The Phantom Menace, this is a prime opportunity to tell new stories to enrich the prequels fans already know. Guesses are also open as to the "evolution" of the Jedi being alluded to, as well.
Our Take on A Star Wars: Jedi Knights Series
The Jedi of the Prequel Trilogy Finally Get the Spotlight They Deserve
The first official cover art features a host of Jedi, including Depa Billaba, Ki-Adi Mundi, Plo Koon, Aayla Secura, Yaddle, Luminara Unduli, Shaak Ti, and Kit Fisto. Aside from the recent The Living Force novel by John Jackson Miller, which focused on the of the Jedi High Council, there is surprisingly little canon storytelling to develop these of the Jedi Order. Which means Star Wars: Jedi Knights is an incredible opportunity to really learn about each individual Jedi in depth, and even meet new Jedi that we've never seen before.
When this series comes to an end once its events align with those of The Phantom Menace, could Marvel have plans to next explore the decade between The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, about which even less is known? A parallel Sith Lords-focused series? Only time will tell.
For now, Star Wars: Jedi Knights #1 will arrives in March 2025 from Marvel Comics.
