Landry Q. Walker Star Wars Adventures Interview

A few months ago I had the honor of sitting down with Landry Q. Walker, author of Tales From a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens and numerous Adventures comics. When it comes to Star Wars he is most known for delving into the background aliens of The Force Awakens and fathering the recent resurgence of Kix appearances in the Sequel Trilogy era, my personal favorite clone and background Star Wars character (mostly for the contributions Walker made in his stories). Read on to learn more about this amazing author's past, present, and future in the Star Wars universe.

JL: First off, what got you to start writing for Lucasfilm?

LQW: There’s kind of a long and short answer to that. The short answer is they asked me. I was working at Sideshow Collectibles at the time – doing freelance on their “Court of the Dead” stuff. And 2015 was happening and Star Wars fever was building in everyone… so I was surrounded all the time by Sideshow’s Star Wars 6th scale stuff and really feeling psyched. Then one day I was in the office and I got an email asking me to write my Tales of a Galaxy Far Far Away short stories.

JL: What dream Star Wars character would you want to write that you haven’t had the chance to explore yet?

LQW: Given time I might think of somebody... I really like that I've gotten to work with characters from the ground up. I've created a bunch too that I'd like to revisit - like the thief/killer Ryn Biggleston who undergoes a facial swap/body modification surgery to avoid arrest. It's more fun to make something new in Star Wars than it is to work on a character that a dozen people have defined before hand. There's more freedom.

JL: How much of your stories are usually predetermined by the story team or any higher-ups at Lucasfilm?

LQW: None really. They've asked me to focus on a couple characters, but everything i did with the characters was my choice. But... bear in mind that they also reject pitches if they don't work. The process weeds out stories that don't work with their overall direction. I've pitched at least 50 different stories to date.

JL: That probably best leads into another question I wanted to ask: Have you had more pitches been rejected than you’ve had pitches that were greenlit? Can you say some of the pitches that never went through?

LQW: Oh... definitely. That's the way it often works. Though I was lucky with my original 6 stories. Each of those was a one pitch situation. But... the new continuity is more complicated than it was 6 years ago. there's a lot more moving parts for Lucasfilm and everyone else to consider.

I'm on the fence about exploring the rejected pitch stuff. I might talk more about it in the future, but most of it is honestly in a black hole in my mind somewhere. Once something is off the table you don't think about it much. I did have a very different take on Jaxxon - that much I remember.

JL: What draws you to the Crimson Corsair as a character?

LQW: I was given a choice on which characters to work on. Maybe 25 different random aliens. There was already a sentence or two of basic concept laid out for each – I think Pablo Hidalgo did that – anyway. I think the Corsair’s basically just said he was a pirate who let his first mate do all the talking. So that alone sounded like a fun pair. But the Corsair drew me instantly based on his visual appearance and the fact that he’s a pirate. Mike Siglain and I were talking about approaching each story I wrote as evoking a different classic genre, complete with all it’s tropes. The opportunity to do a pirate story was irresistible.

JL: Why did you choose to use Kix in The Crimson Corsair and the Lost Treasure of Count Dooku?

LQW: The Clone Wars is some of my favorite Star Wars stuff out there, and I wanted to do a story that tied back into it. The Corsair story really is my love letter to the prequel era. Of all the clones, Kix was simply in the right place at the right time. He was the clone that Fives ran into in the bar, and he was the medic that had witnessed Tup’s breakdown and had just enough medical knowledge that he might keep digging. So… he made sense.

JL: How long have you been trying to do another Crimson Corsair/Kix story?

LQW: Pretty much before I had even finished the first one. I've thrown bits out there anywhere I could - like the 0 issue of Star Wars Adventures.

JL: Months ago, you talked about pitching an ongoing Crimson Corsair comic series. Do you know if that’s already dead in the water or if there’s still hope that something like that could be made?

LQW: I mean... there's always hope. The fact that we're getting a short story out there is a big deal. If there's a vocal response, if people let both IDW and Lucasfilm know they want more, then it could happen.

JL: Are you currently working on more Star Wars projects than just Adventures #7?

LQW: I recently did some work on a magazine special about the Clone Wars - that's in the non-fiction kind of space where we talk about the overall production and general behind the scenes stuff. Otherwise, there's pitches out there. Hard to say in this immediate moment whether any of them will germinate.

JL: Are you able to say anything about what happens in Adventures #7?

LQW: I can say that's it's less drama and more absurd. And I'm pulling one or two aliens out of some deep non-canon lore. That's always fun.

JL: Would you say that Sidon Ithano and his crew are in a similar position to where we saw them at the ends of The Crimson Corsair and the Lost Treasure of Count Dooku? Have they gone through any major change off-page?

LQW: Hm... the most I think I will say is - not much time has passed.

JL: How much longer do you think you can write Star Wars stories? Do you know if you’ll get tired of writing Star Wars stories anytime soon?

LQW: I will likely be pitching Star Wars stories on my deathbed - or until people stop returning my emails? I mean, it's an amazing sandbox to play in - particularly because the people running the publishing division really support the creative exploration of said sandbox. It's a very experimental place, and certainly not everything I've tried has worked. But that's part of a system that I believe helps get better stories - by giving us as creators the room to fail.

Thanks to Landry for sitting down to talk with me about his contributions to the Star Wars universe; it was amazing getting a chance to talk to someone so influential in forging one of my favorite characters. Check out Star Wars Adventures (2020) #7, which will be available for purchase on July 28.