"May the Fourth be with you". Today I am celebrating Star Wars by sharing an illustration I made years ago when I was still at work on the Raising Dragons Graphic Novel. The idea was to make a parody of the classic Star Wars A New Hope movie poster and insert characters from the Dragons in Our Midst fantasy novel series. It was surprisingly easy to find characters to fit the tropes.

The Sketch

First of all, Billy Bannister was definitely going to the Luke Skywalker, the protagonist in the series. The fact that his sword, Excalibur even lights up in the books makes it works so well since I gave it the iconic green lightsaber glow. Bonnie Silver is Princess Leia, a character who has strong faith in the supernatural but can take care of herself when push comes to shove.

The Line Art

Billy's go-to bud, Walter Foley, is the hotshot Han Solo. Seeing as Walter is a geek-culture enthusiast, I think he would chose to dress as Han if given the choice. Looming in the background is the dragon slayer, Devin. I cast him with a heavy shadow to conceal his face and give him that Darth Vader sinister vibe. Devin is holding the candlestone instead of his red lightsaber. A moon with dragons flying takes the place of the Death Star and Tie Fighters.

The Flat Colors

Since Professor Hamilton wears a long brown coat, I decided to give him an ammunition strap over his shoulder and he completes the Cewbacca look, especially with his naturally unkempt hair. Arlo Hatfield is tall and lean, so I colored his clothes gold to make him a C3-PO stand in with his dog, Hambone, the blue tick hound, serving as R2-D2.

The Finished Illustration

The wizard Merlin was a great choice to use for the old Jedi Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi. Although King Arthur was not a villain, I used him in place of General Tarkin. Looking back, it would have made more sense to use Devin's squire, Palin, as the substitute for evil second-in-command.

I really believe fans of the Dragons in Our Midst series will really appreciate this parody. Raising Dragons may be a contemporary fantasy while Star Wars is really a fantasy series that takes place among the stars. Jedi are just space wizards, am I right? Happy May 4th everyone and stay safe!