'Star Wars' Comics Now Available Through Marvel Unlimied

The online subscription adds a galaxy far, far away.

Story by Matt Cummings

For years, the only way to determine if you liked a comic book was to actually go to your local story, peruse the selection, and perhaps read a few pages. Some shops, wary of people reading for free, found it difficult to help potential readers with selections without encouraging them to visit on the shops' dime. The same goes with classic comics: those editions were long-since retired and are only available in Trade Paperback or Hardcover editions. Therefore, choosing a line was a roll of the dice.

In 2007, Marvel Comics tried to solve that problem by creating an online subscription service called Marvel Unlimited. Their mission was to solve the conundrum that both subscribers and dealers were experiencing by placing a large amount of their classic issues online. The deal was simple: choose any comic(s) in their digital library, read it on your computer, and keep it and any others they offered for as long as your subscription lasted. Today, it boasts more than 15,000 new and classic editions, including Captain America: The Winter Soldier as well as newer lines from their Marvel Now! series.

On Thursday, Marvel upped the ante.

According to their website, editions of Star Wars are now available under the same terms. You might remember that Marvel was the original publisher of the comics when Star Wars premiered in 1977. They created editions based on the movies, combined them in a large-scale trades, and then went on to tell new stories until the series wrapped up with episode 107. Afterwards, Dark Horse Comics picked up the contract and produced hundreds of editions. Now that Marvel is owned by Disney, it was only a matter of time before those paper publications returned home. But the news of its availability through Marvel Unlimited is something new. There, you can now see curated selections based on person (Darth Vader, Boba Fett), groups (Rogue Squadron), or events (Rise of the Rebels).

Marvel Unlimited offers several levels of its subscriptions, including Unlimited Plus which includes a unique action figure, exclusive paper editions, and discounts on purchases It's available on your smartphone, digital device, and computer.

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