Jason Aaron

Darth Vader — the most dangerous man in the galaxy — crashes on an alien planet and the entirety of the Rebel forces will stop at nothing to take him out. That's the pitch for "Vader Down," the new story coming this fall to both the Darth Vader and Star Wars comic series from Marvel. Announced during Saturday's Cup O' Joe panel from Marvel chief creative officer Joe Quesada, the six-part crossover kicks off in its own giant-sized #1 issue and then continues across the two titles, with art from Mike Deodato and Salvador Larroca and covers by Mark Brooks. ComicsAlliance chatted with 'Vader Down' writers Kieron Gillen and Jason Aaron about what makes Vader tick; the promise of sweet, sweet droid fights; and the mechanics of lining up the crossover the galaxy has been waiting for.

Image Comics held its now traditional pre-San Diego one-day show on Thursday at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, and unveiled an impressive roster of new titles for the coming year that includes new work by familiar names such as Warren Ellis, Jason Aaron and Gail Simone; plus an encouraging number of relative newcomers and unknowns. Check out our rundown of all the news and announcements.

It's been almost twenty years since Marvel last attempted an ongoing Doctor Strange comic, despite the character having a reputation as one of the most pitched characters among writers. During his tenure as editor-in-chief, Joe Quesada always said he was waiting for the right pitch to come along. That right pitch must have finally arrived — just in time for the next Marvel line-wide relaunch, and in good time for next year's Doctor Strange movie — because Entertainment Weekly today unveiled a new Doctor Strange #1 from Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo.

Welcome back to All For the Wookiee, where we take a look at the recent Star Wars universe offerings from Marvel and pick the most Star Wars-ish moments. From deranged protocol droids to mad alien queens to rogue troopers, we have it all in this last month’s comics. This installment is jam-packed, with two issues (5 and 6) of the main Star Wars series from writer Jason Aaron and artist John Cassaday, the penultimate issue of Mark Waid and Terry Dodson's Princess Leia miniseries, and issues 5 and 6 of Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca’s Darth Vader. And yes, we will discuss "The Moment" in the newest Star Wars issue and what that means for the new canon.

For lapsed Star Wars fans who have finally begun to forgive this series for its many transgressions, the new canon has been a blessing. Sure, some longtime fans were angry that years worth of novels and comics and video games were wiped away so Disney and Lucasfilm could rebuild this saga from the ground up, but this decision has resulted in a creative renaissance. Marvel’s new Star Wars comics, for example, are nothing short of exceptional and thanks to the new clean slate, the writers and artists involved are pretty much allowed to do whatever the hell they want...

Since her debut in September, Marvel has been making a lot of hay out of the new Thor being somebody readers will recognize, and playing up her secret identity as a big reveal. As often happens, that big reveal was leaked online before the release of Wednesday's Thor #8. In response, Marvel confirmed the news to The New York Times, and the holder of the hammer is definitely someone longtime fans will be familiar with. Spoilers ahead.

Welcome back to All For the Wookiee, where we take a look at the recent Star Wars universe offerings from Marvel and pick the most Star Wars-ish moments. From deranged protocol droids to mad alien queens to rogue troopers, we have it all in this last month's comics. In this installment, we're looking at Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca’s Darth Vader #4, Mark Waid and the Dodson’s Princess Leia #3, the Star Wars: Rebels spin-off comic, Kanan: the Last Padawan, from Greg Weisman and Pepe Larraz, and round it all off with Jason Aaron and John Cassaday’s Star Wars #4. As usual, spoilers follow. You have been warned.

Today the 2015 Eisner nominations were announced for the awards ceremony that will take place on July 10th during San Diego Comic-Con International. There aren't a ton of surprises in this year's list --- books like Ms. Marvel, Saga, Multiversity, and Bandette led in terms of total nominations --- but as always it's good to see quality books get their due, and it was a year of positive movement in terms of gender diversity, with multiple women nominated in most major categories. We still have a ways to go, but seeing progress is a good sign.

Welcome back to All For the Wookiee, where we take a look at the recent Star Wars universe offerings from Marvel and pick the most Star Wars-ish moments to share with you, dear reader. Today we’re taking a look back at last month's books and seeing just how Star Wars-y they are. We'll look at Jason Aaron and John Cassaday's Star Wars #3, Mark Waid and the Dodson's Princess Leia #2, Kieron Gillen and Salvador Larroca's Darth Vader #3, as well as the first issue of the Star Wars: Rebels spin-off comic, Kanan: the Last Padawan, written by series producer Greg Weisman with art by Marvel pinch hitter Pepe Larraz.

You don't have to look too hard to see the prevalence of difficult father-son relationships in the work of Jason Aaron. In Scalped with R.M. Guera, Dashiell Bad Horse was adrift in a sea of father figures, unable to choose his own path and incapable of avoiding the same fates that befell the father who left him. In 2014, Aaron launched Southern Bastards with Jason Latour, about a conflicted man who returns to the home of his dead father, a legendary lawman; and Men of Wrath with Ron Garney, is about a father-to-be on the run from his own dad, a hired killer. Despite the prevalence of the topic in comics, Aaron has carved out his own niche when it comes to father-son relationships, with an unflinching perspective that rings truer than most.