All throughout July we’re crowdsourcing an Extra Eisners Reading List from comics journalists and critics. Each weekday throughout the month, we’ll post a new pick we would have liked to have seen nominated for an Eisner. There are so many great comics, it’s impossible for the Eisners to recognize them all. This list is to honor and diversify the pool of work praised by the industry.

Today’s pick comes from Bryant Dillon, Fanbase Press President…enjoy!

The manga adaptation of Claudia Gray's novel, Yusaku Komiyama's Star Wars: Lost Stars, is a heart-wrenching romance set among the rise of the Empire and the Rebellion against it. The book explores how citizens of the galaxy could be seduced by the unity and opportunity offered by the authoritarianism the Empire provides. Eventually, the true nature of the Empire can no longer be denied or overlooked, and tough choices, obviously, must be made. The characters are fascinating and the story is layered and poignant, touching on classism, cultural prejudice, the effects of war, and more. 

Star Wars: Lost Stars is a fantastic addition to the Star Wars mythology, and Komiyama's talent and skill, demonstrated in this faithful adaptation, deliver a finale filled with pathos and complexity as it explores the true weight of “winning” a galactic civil war. -Bryant Dillon

Bryant Dillon is the president of Fanbase Press and the writer of Identity Theft, Something Animal, and more.

Star Wars: Lost Stars - Volume 3
Original Story: Claudia Gray
Art and Adaptation by Yusaku Komiyama
Will the end of the conflict mean the end of their story...?Thane and Ciena have survived to see the destruction of one Death Star and the construction of another, but as they watch from opposite sides as the Empire crumbles, can anything but tragedy await them at the end of their journey?
Buy It Digitally: Star Wars - Lost Stars Vol. 3

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Check out the official Eisner Nominations for 2020.