GURI-MontageWEBHere’s a #Protip: when you are asked to draw a Star Wars miniseries, say yes first and ask questions later. At least, that’s my advice based on the experience I had working on “Shadows of the Empire: Evolution”. Granted, I had pretty ideal conditions to work under, so that should be taken into account.

Back when I was away from Trekker for those long years, and when Dark Horse had the Star Wars license, I got to hook up with a key Star Wars writer, Steve Perry. (No, not THAT Steve Perry, THIS Steve Perry.) He was crafting a miniseries featuring a deadly, beautiful human replica droid assassin who might or might not become capable of achieving a soul. I could hardly believe my luck– it was virtually an invitation to join in creating a Mercy St. Clair-like character in the Star Wars universe.

Steve was great to work with, soliciting my input on plot, character and setting ideas and together we created a miniseries that has, for me the flavor I love in Star Wars– high energy, galaxy-spanning context, and characters with heart at the center of it all. GURI-Montage-2WEBIn “Evolution”, I was able to play with all the great, classic Star Wars elements– the Luke-Han-Leia triad, Darth, the Falcon, Imperial forces, blasters, light sabres, the works. And it was all a joy. But the best part was working with Steve and my then-studio mate Tom Simmons who inked much of the series to contribute the design of Guri to the mythos of the  Star Wars Universe. It wasn’t Trekker– but it helped to hold me over till I could get back to my own Sci-fi world.