An inspired new ad campaign which debuted in Star Wars Insider (#100) is what gives, and we can only hope it keeps on giving.
But wait, let's go back (in time, that is). If you're an old-school fan -- someone who remembers UHF and VHF, rotary telephone dials and vinyl records -- then you might remember an ad campaign that became a fixture of 1970s comic books. Hostess -- you know, the Twinkies and Ding Dong folks -- had a long-running series of comic ads that ran in issues of the era, using the likes of The Hulk, Superman, Batman, Iron Man and others to promote their line of lunchtime snacks.
Wizards of the Coast, in a nod to those classic old Hostess ads, recently printed a five-panel mash-up comic at the end of Insider #100 touting their new Legacy of the Force miniature gaming figures.
We asked Kurt Isensee and Melissa Rapier of WOTC a few questions about the whimsical new ad campaign:
The latest Legacy of the Force miniatures ad campaign seems strangely familiar to those of us who read comics back in the '70s and '80s. Can you tell us what inspired your campaign?
KI & MR: Actually, the inspiration for the ad came from the fact that the Star Wars Legacy of the Force Miniatures set is based upon the Dark Horse comic of the same name -- it seemed like a natural fit to run a comic ad. The fact that it's reminiscent of those beloved ads from our youth is entirely coincidental. Importantly, our ad doesn't have the characters shilling for the product, but instead, their dialog and actions show that the Star Wars minis game is like a giant sandbox -- allowing you to do pretty much anything you want with characters from across all eras.
Who's doing the illustrating?
We commissioned the Star Wars Legacy comic artist, Jan Duursema, to illustrate the ad, And it was colored by Dan Parsons -- his work really made the ad come alive. The neat thing is that the ad will be running in the Legacy of the Force comics -- and while we don't necessarily think we're going to be tricking readers into thinking it's part of the story they're reading, it ought to at least elicit a "wtf?" reaction and hopefully entice them to read it through.
Is the Cade/Boba/Solo ad the first you've created in this format? Will there be more?
Yes, it's the first one. We plan to do more -- stay tuned.
