John Cassaday Announces He's Leaving STAR WARS

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inferiorego

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Edited By inferiorego  Staff

Today on his Facebook page, John Cassaday, artist for the current STAR WARS book at Marvel, announced he was leaving the book but gave readers a look at how his cover art comes together. Originally reported by CBR, Cassaday posted this:

Here's a couple of the images:

With this being the first issue, I needed to show the cast but didn’t want to go the movie poster montage route (of course, there’d be time for that later). There was a lot to fit in, so I went with what reminds me a lot of the publicity shots the cast did, especially for the first two films. Action poses from all, sort of backed into a corner and essentially contained to the space of an 8X10 glossy… Maximum impact in a small space...
With this being the first issue, I needed to show the cast but didn’t want to go the movie poster montage route (of course, there’d be time for that later). There was a lot to fit in, so I went with what reminds me a lot of the publicity shots the cast did, especially for the first two films. Action poses from all, sort of backed into a corner and essentially contained to the space of an 8X10 glossy… Maximum impact in a small space...
And what’s a Star Wars first issue cover without star fighters? So X-Wings and TIE fighters made their way in. Notice I initially had a set of Vader style TIE fighters in the center, but our friends at Lucasfilm balked at having more than one (there was a fleet constructed, in my mind), so I scrapped them in favor of more standard issue ships...
And what’s a Star Wars first issue cover without star fighters? So X-Wings and TIE fighters made their way in. Notice I initially had a set of Vader style TIE fighters in the center, but our friends at Lucasfilm balked at having more than one (there was a fleet constructed, in my mind), so I scrapped them in favor of more standard issue ships...

Make sure to check out Cassaday's page to see how the rest of the cover came together. Issue #6 is Cassaday's last issue on STAR WARS. Issues #1-3 are currently on sale.

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CaptainMarvel4Ever

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That's cool, I thought his art was wrong for that book anyways

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Battle_Forum_Junkie

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Whoever they get to replace Cassaday, I hope they keep the colorist. Laura Martin has been doing a great job.

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CaptainHoopla

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I kind of figured this was already assumed by everyone. Cassaday has never been one to draw fast enough to keep up a monthly schedule. I'm currently not reading any of the Star Wars books, but from what I've seen, he's done an excellent job.

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kidchipotle

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:(

He was a huge factor of me buying this series...hopefully the new artist is sufficient or I may drop the title!

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noj

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I knew it was coming but thats a real shame. His art was great on the book. I really hope they get a similar artist. IMO these books based on movies should have a more realistic look to them. The Princess Leia look pretty bad for that reason, at least from what Ive seen in the previews.

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longbowhunter

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Yeah, no one expected Cassaday to stick around.

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Ducey13

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I knew this was coming. Cassaday is a great artist but I have to say, I'm really sick of artists (and Writers for that matter) who can't keep up a monthly schedule. IMO Marvel/DC should stop using these guys except for mini series/Events. Bottomline: I'd rather my comics have consistency with a somewhat less known or talented artist, than these 3 month stints by Joe Mad or Cassaday.

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jas0

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Cassaday may be slow, but his art is rewarding, for me that's all that matters. Planetary is awesome because of his art and Ellis' great story, I can't imagine Planetary without him.

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ParaChomp

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#9  Edited By ParaChomp

I don't mind him leaving. His art might not have been bad but I never liked the renditions of the characters in any of Marvel's current Star Wars series as they always slum into the Uncanny Valley. Regardless, I'm glad he gave a reason for his leave.

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StMichalofWilson

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That's a shame. Hope the next artist has the same enthusiasm he did when he was given a chance to draw for Star Wars

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DrellAssassin

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Bummer, I hope he's replaced by another artist who is good at capturing the look of the characters.

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dotwilson

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#12  Edited By dotwilson

not a surprise here... i pretty much enjoy his art as much whenever hes on a book. I'll always love his Astonishing X-Men. I also didnt realize that was Vaders head on the cover of Star Wars until just now.

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SynCig

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His art has been top notch but I think knowing that Cassaday tends to leave projects early on makes this an easier pill to swallow. I hope Marvel gets someone great to replace him because he'll be a tough act to follow.

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Billy_Cobb

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That was fast! I don't know what his reasoning is, but if I got a chance to draw a high-profile book like this, I'd try my darnedest to stick around. Since he drew 24 Astonishing X-Men issues and a big special after that (fantastic series, I might add), I kind of thought he'd be drawing Star Wars for a bit longer. Oh, well.

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deactivated-5a04a566e9ae3

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woah, what a suprise....

;)

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staypuffed

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Good. Cassaday isn't a great artist in my mind and he never sticks to projects.

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webheadcomics

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I actually really liked his art. Hope they find someone just as good.

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comicvine_is_jericho529

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i want someone with stylized art not photogenic art.

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Ren_

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I love Cassaday art, but he's really better suited to mini's or something as far as his schedule goes.

Whoever they get to replace Cassaday, I hope they keep the colorist. Laura Martin has been doing a great job.

Laura Martin is a FANTASTIC colorist. I've loved her work for a long time, and it would keep at least a general sense of continuity in style from one artist to the next if they retain the same colorist.

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mickeymayhew

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:(

He was a huge factor of me buying this series...hopefully the new artist is sufficient or I may drop the title!

couldn't have put it better myself

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Hardhat

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Hey can anybody please tell me whether or not these comics are canon? Thanks! Im thinking whether or not id like to read them

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Wardog2alpha

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@hamburjer: They are cannon, all star wars content from this point on will be considered cannon. That includes: The Original Trilogy, The New Trilogy, The Clone Wars TV show, Rebels TV show and all future TV shows, Video Games, Comics, Novels, short stories and Movies created after march, 31 2015.

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sasquatch888

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marvel always puts a top artist on a big project for the launch then after the first story arc they pull a switch-a-roo ...this is a normal marvel stunt .....it probably took cassady 9 months to draw 6 issues but if the first 2 issues are any indication they were worth it...anyway 6 issues ..perfect for a trade paperback ...and im sure the trade will be a top seller ...im sure another top artist will come on for six issues and the next trade

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dernman

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That's too bad. I hope the next person they get will be good.

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TDK_1997

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I am really glad he's leaving. His artwork is terrible and it hurts my eyes when I look at it.

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StarBrand1

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noone should be suprised. This is the Marvel model anyways, get a top notch artist to start a book, then pull a switch a few issues in.

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May The Force Be With You, John.

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Battle_Forum_Junkie

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@ren_ said:

I love Cassaday art, but he's really better suited to mini's or something as far as his schedule goes.

@battle_forum_junkie said:

Whoever they get to replace Cassaday, I hope they keep the colorist. Laura Martin has been doing a great job.

Laura Martin is a FANTASTIC colorist. I've loved her work for a long time, and it would keep at least a general sense of continuity in style from one artist to the next if they retain the same colorist.

Hopefully that will be the case. It's a shame that colorists don't get more recognition.