Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book publisher which released Indiana Jones comics from 1991 to 2010, with a break between 1995 and 2008. The privately-held company is headquartered in Milwaukie, Oregon and was founded in 1986.
Dave Land became the editor in charge of the post-2008 Indiana Jones titles after he replaced Jeremy Barlow who had stepped down to pursue his writing career.
History[]
In 1990, Dark Horse Comics acquired the license to produce comics for the Indiana Jones and Star Wars franchises, both of which had previously been with Marvel Comics. Rather than maintaining an ongoing series as Marvel had done with The Further Adventures of Indiana Jones, Dark Horse predominantly opted for a series of miniseries, testing the market with 1991's comic book adaptation of the then-upcoming LucasArts video game Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis, with its last pages announcing a comic book series of adaptations from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles episodes written and pencilled by Dan Barry.[1]
The company produced several more story arcs through 1995 as well as publishing twelve issues which adapted episodes of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles TV series which were previewed in Dark Horse Insider. The first iteration of the publisher's Indiana Jones books ended with Indiana Jones and the Sargasso Pirates in 1995 due to poor sales, cancelling a storyline in the works by Pete Ford and Hugh Fleming.[2] Around this time, John Jackson Miller had been thinking about a comic book pitch he had that originally started as an Indiana Jones-like independent novel in his 1980s college days, but never sent it to Dark Horse.[3]
Writer Lee Marrs, author of both Indiana Jones and the Arms of Gold and Indiana Jones and the Iron Phoenix, has stated that Dark Horse was looking to extend the line as Lucasfilm Ltd. was considering a continuation of the film series starring the late River Phoenix, with Marrs set to write stories featuring Phoenix's younger Indy.[4] However, this may be confusion with the actor having been approached earlier for the Young Indy show (which was declined due to a lack of interest in a return to television):[5] Arms of Gold and Iron Phoenix were released across 1994-'95,[6][7] by which point the actor had already passed away.[5] Regardless, Mars explicitly referred to an apparent movie starring Phoenix being scrapped by Lucasfilm as a result of his death, preventing Dark Horse from launching another round of Indiana Jones comics,[8] which seems to go in line with Richard Young's 2018 account that discussions of a movie starring Phoenix's Young Indy and Young's Garth indeed happened.[9]
After a publishing hiatus of more than a decade, during which Indiana Jones appeared in the 2004 non-canon Star Wars Legends comic story "Into the Great Unknown" published in the nineteenth issue of Star Wars Tales,[10] Dark Horse named John Jackson Miller editor of their new Indiana Jones line in Spring 2007 and began producing more Indiana Jones titles in 2008, coinciding with the development and release of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, starting with a comic book adaptation of the film penned by Miller. Miller and Jeremy Barlow hoped the adaptation would lead to more miniseries to follow, but ultimately, only Indiana Jones and the Tomb of the Gods by Rob Williams saw a release in 2008 and 2009.[3] Dark Horse also branched out into multiple formats for storytelling during this period, with the digest-sized Indiana Jones Adventures series, and reprinting older material (both their own and Marvel's) in the Omnibus line.
Indiana Jones work[]
- 1991: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (4 issues)
- 1992: Mid-Atlantic, April 1916
- 1992-93: The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (12 issues)
- 1992-93: Indiana Jones and the Shrine of the Sea Devil (initially serialized in four parts, collected into 1 issue in 1994)
- 1993-94: Indiana Jones: Thunder in the Orient (6 issues)
- 1994: Indiana Jones and the Arms of Gold (4 issues)
- 1994: Indiana Jones and the Golden Fleece (2 issues)
- 1994-1995: Indiana Jones and the Iron Phoenix (4 issues)
- 1995: Indiana Jones and the Spear of Destiny (4 issues)
- 1995: Indiana Jones and the Sargasso Pirates (4 issues)
- 2003: Star Wars Tales 19: "Into the Great Unknown"
- 2008: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2 issues)
- 2008: Indiana Jones Adventures: Volume 1 (1 issue, digest format)
- 2008-2009: Indiana Jones and the Tomb of the Gods (4 issues)
- 2009: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Yearning
- 2009: Indiana Jones Adventures: Volume 2: Curse of the Invincible Ruby (1 issue, digest format)
Reprints[]
Unrealized Indiana Jones projects[]
Tom Veitch series[]
Upon the apparent commercial success of Dark Horse's Star Wars comic book series Dark Empire authored by Tom Veitch; following the release of its first two issues in late 1991 and early 1992 respectively, Lucasfilm Ltd. approached the writer over his potentially revitalizing the Indiana Jones franchise as a comic as well. However, Veitch instead opted for pitching a Star Wars prequel series entitled The Jedi Chronicles centered around the Jedi Knights, which George Lucas liked and approved. Ironically, Lucas nixed Veitch's use of the word "chronicles" in the title due to The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles television series in development, leading to the eventual realization of the project as Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi in 1993.[11]
Indiana Jones and the Jungle Queen[]
Concept art for Indiana Jones and the Jungle Queen drawn by Adam Hughes.
As the Fate of Atlantis adaptation was released, Amazing Heroes published a preview on Dark Horse's upcoming Indiana Jones line announcing that it would be followed by a second storyline written by Adam Hughes,[12] but this didn't come to fruition, with Hughes later selling his pencil artwork for a series named Indiana Jones an the Jungle Queen.[13][14]
Indiana Jones: The Dance of Death[]
Dark Horse's decision to end the line Indiana Jones and the Sargasso Pirates cancelled a storyline advertised in the checklist of upcoming issues in the ninth book of Dark Horse International's UK Star Wars comic, which reprinted Indiana Jones stories as a backup feature. The list promoted the then upcoming issue 10 with the archaeologist taking on "the mystery of 'The Dance Of Death'". However, the final issue, released in June 1993, printed the first part of Indiana Jones: Thunder in the Orient instead.[15] The story was presumably far enough along in development that The World of Indiana Jones had included a brief synopsis for Indiana Jones: The Dance of the Death in its Indiana Jones timeline.[16]
Indiana Jones and the Lost Horizon[]
Dark Horse's decision to end the line with Indiana Jones and the Sargasso Pirates cancelled a storyline in the works by Pete Ford and Hugh Fleming,[2] which was far enough along in development that The World of Indiana Jones had included a brief synopsis for Indiana Jones and the Lost Horizon in its Indiana Jones timeline.[16]
Rob Williams series[]
As part of the promotion for Indiana Jones and the Tomb of the Gods, Rob Williams indicated in a May 2008 interview with The Pulse that the storyline was the beginning of an ongoing Indiana Jones series with his idea for a second arc planned out, which he was excited to show to the readers, expecting Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull to be a success.[17] However, progress didn't develop beyond the fourth and final issue of Tomb of the Gods.
Batman crossover[]
Around the late 2000s, Howard Chaykin was tapped for a potential Indiana Jones crossover with Batman between Dark Horse and DC Comics but the project went unrealized. The comic writer has said it was during a period when Lucasfilm was interested in teaming up with other brands which included a possible pairing between Star Wars and Superman that didn't come to pass.[18] For comparison, Star Wars had formed a crossover with the video game franchise Soulcalibur, including the Visions of the Blade comic arc in 2008,[19] and had a lengthy line of licensed Star Wars Transformers toys between 2005-2011.[20][21]
Notes and references[]
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis comic
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Interview with Dark Horse artist Hugh Fleming at TheRaider.net
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 IndyCast: Episode 265 at IndyCast
- ↑ IndyCast: Episode 330 at IndyCast
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles — Casting at TheRaider.net
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Arms of Gold 1 at Dark Horse
- ↑ Indiana Jones and the Iron Phoenix 1 at Dark Horse
- ↑ "Wimmen's Comix" Co-Founder Lee Marrs Reflects On a Storied Career at CBR.com
- ↑ Indymag, March 2018
- ↑ "Into the Great Unknown" — Star Wars Tales 19
- ↑ "Authors of the Expanded Universe: Twenty Years of Tales of the Jedi" – Star Wars Insider 150
- ↑ Indiana Jones: The Return of the Great Adventure – Amazing Heroes #189 pg.29
- ↑ Indy, Emily and Jungle Queen at Comic Art Community
- ↑ Indiana Jones & the Jungle Queen at Comic Art Community
- ↑ Star Wars 9
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 The World of Indiana Jones
- ↑ "Rob Williams' Indiana Jones Adventure" in The Pulse
- ↑ IndyCast: You lost today Episode 146, but that doesn't mean you have to like it at IndyCast
- ↑ Star Wars: Visions of the Blade
- ↑ Star Wars Transformers at TFWiki.net
- ↑ Transformers: Crossovers at TFWiki.net
External links[]
- Dark Horse Comics web site
Dark Horse Comics on Wikipedia- Indiana Jones comics thread on the Dark Horse message boards
- Search Results for Indiana Jones on the Dark Hose website