Generally speaking, I am not a huge Star Wars collector.
That is to say, I don't feel compelled to pick random items simply because they are Star Wars related. Of course, since I've been a fan since 1977, I've accumulated my fair share of Star Wars themed goods - some received and some bought, some great, some...why do I own this? But there aren't many areas where I feel the need to pursue a purchase with a collector’s intensity.
There are a few categories that should surprise no one who knows me, such as novels, comics, essentials guides and anything story related. Role-playing and miniatures games are a given. Music is another one, although I try not to repeat material too much.
This week, however, I’m reminded of another category: Star Wars posters.
I already have more than I can realistically expect to display in the house. Not to say I have some extensive or comprehensive collection, but I’ve got all of the movies covered, at least once, plus the classic Hildebrandt, some Art of Star Wars exhibition posters, Matt Busch’s poster from the You Can Draw Star Wars series and others. My first poster was actually hand drawn, a TIE chasing Xwing scene created by my artist uncle in 1977 or ’78. I still have it.
The recent release of the new Mondo print posters caught my attention, like so many others. The graphic styling is a lot of fun, but my favorites are definitely the three classic movie posters, combining character silhouettes with iconic landscape scenes from each film. The overall composition is fantastic.
It was enough to make me haul out The Star Wars Poster Book, published in 2005. As its title suggests, the book contains an impressive collection of Star Wars posters from the movies, TV shows and other sources. The foreign language release posters are some of the most unusual versions. There are also product related posters (books, novels, comics, etc.), anniversary releases, video games, special events ads and more. The image from the d20 Star Wars Gamemaster’s Screen has a full, two page spread, and images from both the Wizards and Decipher versions of the card game also make appearances. It is a great book that showcases the myriad styles and ever-evolving art of the series.
One poster I had to have, however, was the one pictured above, advertising my Attack on Endor Scenario Pack product from Wizards of the Coast.
Will there be others? Sure. Will I have wall space to display them? Hmmm…