Pretty deep stuff, especially for the back of a trading card, but not really surprising when one considers the Topps Company's history of pushing the envelope, particularly with regard to the universally praised, wildly popular trio of Star Wars Galaxy sets.
Galaxy IV, set to arrive in comics and hobby stores on February 11th, will be every bit as exciting as its predecessors, and will present fans and collectors with a fantastic array of innovative features and subsets, including the above text and art, part of a subset entitled The Campbell Connection Revisited: Anakin's Journey. Written and illustrated by Russell Walks as a companion to the acclaimed Campbell Connection series he created for Star Wars Galaxy III, Anakin's Journey is a six card series exploring the rise, fall, and redemption of not only the galaxy's greatest hero, but its greatest villain, as well.
In The Campbell Connection, Walks tied Star Wars together with the work of a philospher named Joseph Campbell, and in doing so explained why, for so many of us, the Star Wars movies were more than just a two-hour diversion on a rainy summer afternoon.
"In 1985, I saw The Power of Myth, a series of interviews with Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell, whose work Lucas says influenced him as he wrote Star Wars," Walks says. "After seeing the interviews and reading Campbell's masterwork, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, I realized what it was about Star Wars that had touched so many of us; to put it simply, the ideals and themes in Star Wars are universal, and I think that the reason the movies resonate with us so strongly is because we recognize the importance of what Star Wars is telling us. We care about Luke and Leia and Padme and Anakin, because in them we can see the best (and worst) parts of ourselves."
Those universal themes of friendship, compassion and sacrifice are revisited in the Star Wars prequels, this time through the eyes of Anakin Skywalker, the young hero whose ambition sets him on a tragic journey.
"Lucas has said many times that Star Wars is, ultimately, the story of Anakin Skywalker," says Topps Vice President of Publishing, Ira Friedman. "And so when we were putting together Galaxy IV, it immediately occurred to us that it would be fun and appropriate to revisit the Campbell/Star Wars connection, this time from Anakin's point of view. Russ was also excited about the idea, and put together a six card series, that we think, frankly, will leave fans breathless."
The cards are broken down by movie, and each image represents a different point in Anakin's life, from the sunlit glory of his podrace win on Tatooine in The Phantom Menace to the shadowy Imperial throne room where meets his destiny in Return of the Jedi.
"I knew that I wanted to depict the turning points in Anakin's life," Walks says. "But I wasn't sure exactly where each of those moments would be. As I worked through the films though, it became clear that each of the defining moments in his journey hinge on the loss of someone important to him, from his mother to his son. Once I realized that, it was easy to decide what to paint."
Walks, who also designed and painted the box art for Galaxy IV, hopes that fans will not only enjoy the art and text, but will also be intrigued enough by the Campbell connection to do a little exploration on their own. "Joseph Campbell's work has been not only a big influence on my own work, but also an important part of my life for a long time," Walks says. "I remember how exciting it was for me, discovering the connection between Campbell and Star Wars, and realizing for the first time how much depth of meaning there was in the movies I loved so much. I'd love it if these cards not only stood on their own as cool little pieces of art, but also appealed to people enough so that at least a few folks, at the very least, Googled the name Joseph Campbell."
Star Wars Galaxy IV will be available primarily in hobby and comic shops in February.
Read about more news on the Topps Star Wars Blog. Stay tuned to Starwars.com and Topps.com for further details.
