Star Wars: Visionaries: Some Sith are harder to kill than others, it would seem. Art by Aaron McBrideAmong the first steps in creating new installments of the Star Wars saga is the exploration undertaken by the Art Department, a tight-knit group of concept artists whose task is to define George Lucas' descriptions of another galaxy into film reality. Their efforts have created several galleries-worth of breathtaking artwork, only a fraction of which ever sees publication.

Dark Horse Comics and the concept artists behind Episode III are teaming to produce a Star Wars graphic novel like no other. Star Wars: Visionaries is a collection of 12 exciting tales told by the artists that helped envision the worlds, creatures, technologies and characters of Revenge of the Sith. This new book features the art of Robert Barnes, Ryan Church, Warren Fu, Alex Jaeger, Sang Jung Lee, Stephan Martiniere, Aaron McBride, Iain McCaig, Michael Murnane, Erik Tiemens, Derek Thompson, and Feng Zhu, and is edited by Jeremy Barlow.

These new stories -- some within continuity, some most definitely not -- will showcase new designs from the artists most responsible for the dazzling imagery in Revenge of the Sith. It is slated for publication April 2005, and weighs in at about 120 pages. More details are on the way.

Dont't forget to also check out: Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope, Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, Star Wars: Episode VI - Return Of The Jedi

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope was released May 25th, 1977 and stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Alec Guinness, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker, Peter Mayhew. The film is directed by George Lucas.

Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back was released May 21st, 1980 and stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, David Prowse, Peter Mayhew, Kenny Baker. The film is directed by Irvin Kershner.

Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi was released May 25th, 1983 and stars Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, Sebastian Shaw, Ian McDiarmid. The film is directed by Richard Marquand.