Original generated cover art — not a reproduction of any published cover
The second October miniseries, with Vader’s servant Vaneé as the storyteller and titles — "Night of the Lava Zombies", "Vault of the Living Brains" — borrowed wholesale from a 1950s horror rack.
Five weekly issues in October 2019 by Cavan Scott, with Francesco Francavilla drawing the framing sequence as well as every cover and a different guest artist inside each issue.
This run is in the catalogue but has not been written up. Everything above is verified publication data; there is no opinion here yet, and a placeholder review would be worse than none.
The arc breakdown and issue list below are the useful part for now.
Structure
How the run divides, and where a reader can get on and off.
#1–5
Return to Vader's Castle
Vaneé narrates from the castle itself; each issue is one tale with its own guest artist.
Every issue
Number, title, cover date and credits. A dash means the field is not verified — not that it is empty.
| # | Title | Cover date | Writer | Artist | Cover artist | Arc | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Horned Devil! | October 2, 2019 | Cavan Scott | Francesco Francavilla, Megan Levens | Francesco Francavilla | Return to Vader's Castle | One 32-page tale, with Francesco Francavilla on the Vaneé frame story and a guest artist inside it. |
| 2 | The Curse of Tarkin | October 9, 2019 | Cavan Scott | Francesco Francavilla, Kelley Jones | Francesco Francavilla | Return to Vader's Castle | One 32-page tale, with Francesco Francavilla on the Vaneé frame story and a guest artist inside it. |
| 3 | Bop Sh-Bop, Little Sarlacc Horror | October 16, 2019 | Cavan Scott | Francesco Francavilla, Nick Brokenshire | Francesco Francavilla | Return to Vader's Castle | One 32-page tale, with Francesco Francavilla on the Vaneé frame story and a guest artist inside it. |
| 4 | Vault of the Living Brains | October 23, 2019 | Cavan Scott | Francesco Francavilla, Nicoletta Baldari | Francesco Francavilla | Return to Vader's Castle | One 32-page tale, with Francesco Francavilla on the Vaneé frame story and a guest artist inside it. |
| 5 | Night of the Lava Zombies | October 30, 2019 | Cavan Scott | Francesco Francavilla, Charles Paul Wilson III | Francesco Francavilla | Return to Vader's Castle | One 32-page tale, with Francesco Francavilla on the Vaneé frame story and a guest artist inside it. |
In print
Trades, omnibuses and Epic Collections. ISBNs appear only where verified.
| Edition | Format | Publisher | Year | Collects | ISBN |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader's Castle | TPB | IDW Publishing | 2020 | Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader's Castle #1-5 | 9781684056675 |
| Star Wars Adventures: Beware Vader's Castle | hardcover | IDW Publishing | 2021 | Star Wars Adventures: Tales from Vader's Castle #1-5, Star Wars Adventures: Return to Vader's Castle #1-5 and Star Wars Adventures Free Comic Book Day 2019 | 9781684057573 |
| Star Wars: Vader's Castle – The Deluxe Library Collection | hardcover | Dark Horse Comics | 2024 | All four Vader's Castle miniseries — Tales from, Return to, Shadow of and Ghosts of Vader's Castle — together with the Free Comic Book Day 2019 story “Droid Hunters” | 9781506747187 |
Dossiers
Encyclopedia entries for the figures this run develops.
Two characters in one suit, and the publishing programme has spent fifty years arguing about the seam.
