Star Wars Galaxy

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Title: Star Wars Galaxy
Creator:
Date(s): 1994-1999
Medium: print
Fandom: Star Wars
Language: English
External Links:

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Star Wars Galaxy (or "Star Wars Galaxy Magazine") is an official, for-profit Star Wars fan magazine. It ran for 13 issues, from Oct. 1994 to Nov. 1997, when it was replaced with Star Wars Galaxy Collector. This latter title published 8 issues (from #1 to #8) between Feb. 1998 and Dec. 1999.[1]

Reactions and Reviews

A fan reviews both Star Wars Insider and "Star Wars Galaxy":

This post autumn, two professionally-produced SW magazines hit the stands; Star Wars Insider and Star Wars Galaxy. In fact, the past two or three issues have come out the SAME WEEK. Talk about synchronicity. Admittedly, the two publications are very similar. Both are very slick, with lots of pictures, artwork, and info-packed articles (kinda like that Blue Harvest thing, only not as good! - JA [interjection by the editor of Blue Harvest]). Both have regular features by Dark Horse Comics and Steve Sansweet. Both even contain the same info from Lucasfilm (verbatim press releases, etc. - JA). Yet there are still variations and differences that only a media connoisseur can distinguish.

Star Wars Insider is published by the same people who have been publishing the old Lucasfilm Fan Club magalog since 1988, and who run the Official Star Trek Fan Club. The new magazine boasts more pages of actual text than before, with greater emphasis on SW than on other LFL projects like Indiana Jones. The old catalog section is still there, now called the "Jawa Trader," and it now contains mostly SW merchandise. Ex-Star Wars Generation editor Jon Bradley Snyder is a regular contributor, with some really good pieces on The Cult of Wedge" and the Art of SW exhibit under his belt. There are also many more interviews than in the past, with folks like Carrie Fisher, Denis Lawson, Kenny Baker, Ralph "Godlike" McQuarrie, and new SW producer Rick McCollum. While lacking the old "Bantha Tracks" dinky charm, I still think it's the best incarnation of the official fan club' s catalog-newsletter-magazine, and it continues to improve each issue.

Now, I really love Star Wars Galaxy. Why?? Okay, so they haven't had as many star-studded interviews, and there's no catalog, but the magazine covers the role playing game in addition to the comics, novels, and other products, and there's a lot of cool, ORIGINAL artwork done for the magazine, such as Dave Dorman's gorgeous cover for #2. There are also regular features on AOL's SW activities (and they've quoted many people I know, not to mention contributors to this here 'zine), trivia contests, book excerpts, and best of all...GOODIES!!! Trading cards, milk caps, comics ashcans, and posters come bagged with every issue (if you special order it or get a subscription). Hey, I can be bought. Not to be outdone on the bribery front, the SW Fan Club recently gave to all of its members a special-boxed Micro Machine Millennium Fa/con with a bitty little Han Solo figure.

My conclusion? We're winners either way: SW gels a higher profile, we have two quality mainline publications to enjoy, and we get free stuff in the bargain (those Trekkies don't get squat from their myriad of publications—ha ha!). So, buy both of them.... after you pick up the latest Blue Harvest. [2]

References

  1. ^ From Wookieepedia, at Star Wars Galaxy Magazine.
  2. ^ from Blue Harvest #6 (fall 1995)