Dave Land has been the line editor for Dark Horse's Star Wars comics for just over a year, and in that time he's taken some great -- and sometimes controversial -- strides toward enriching and expanding the world of Star Wars comics. You can see Dave in action for yourself in his occasional one-page editorial cartoons in the pages of Star Wars Tales, where he's been shown moderating lightsaber battles between Star Wars artists and Star Wars characters and helping Lucas Licensing editor Allan Kausch blow up Ewoks from the driver's seat of an AT-AT. Given that description, you may be able to tell that one of Dave's goals in his role as Star Wars editor is to remind readers that one important function of comic books is to be fun and entertaining. That's why Dave has helped craft Star Wars Tales into a unique, non-continuity anthology that allows a diverse spectrum of creative talent to burn brightly on its pages.

With other Star Wars series, however, Land prefers to keep the stories more focused on the Star Wars universe that dedicated fans revere and immerse themselves in. Stories like this are not easy to create, nor are they taken lightly by their collaborative creators. A good case in point is the upcoming miniseries Star Wars: Jedi Vs. Sith. It's a serious, if not somewhat tragic tale of three children who are recruited to join the Army of Light in its battle against the forces of evil -- an opposition that will be replayed again and again in the enduring legacy of Star Wars stories. Dark Horse reporter Ivana Fanboy sat down with Land in his office on Tatooine recently to discuss this incredible new series.

Ivana Fanboy: We're here to talk about the next series in the Star Wars line of comics, Jedi Vs. Sith. What's the story about?

Dave Land: In many ways this could be seen as the truest "origin" story we've ever done in the Star Wars comics. Jedi Vs. Sith chronicles one of the original conflict between the Jedi and Sith factions, which, as all Star Wars fans -- and most members of western civilization -- know is the primary basis for the entire Star Wars film series.

IF: So many people think of the Star Wars conflict as the war between the Rebellion and the Empire. At this early stage, who was fighting whom?

DL: Keep in mind that this is ages and ages before even Episode I, so we're dealing now with the original Army of Light, which is made up of Jedi and their retainers (or trainees). They're fighting the Brotherhood of Darkness, which is the Sith.

IF: Where did the idea for this come from, and who is the creative team?

DL: Originally we got the idea just from looking at a logo in the Episode I style guide. It said "Jedi Vs. Sith" and someone said "That would be a great idea for a series!" and we took it from there. We looked back in Star Wars history to find out where our Jedi would be facing the Sith. Star Wars: The Essential Chronology book was helpful for that.

The creative team consists of Darko Macan writing, Ramon Bachs pencilling, Raul Fernandez providing inks, and Chris Blythe will be coloring this one. It's a fantastic team, and we're fortunate to have them working together on such a seminal series.

IF: Darko has written a lot of material for Dark Horse at this point, including a Grendel Tales series, and he wrote each of the vignettes in last year's Chewbacca miniseries. What do you think Darko does best when he writes?

DL: Personally, I think his characterizations are the best. He's able to make you feel like you know a character within a very short (and limited) space of time. That's not easy to do. It helps draw the reader into the story and keep them there. He's great at practically every element of storytelling, but if I had to pick, it'd be characterization...

IF: Ramon Bachs is another person you've worked with quite a bit. Where did he come from?

DL: Spain.

His agent David Macho had been approaching us for a while and Ramon was one of the artists he was pushing. When I saw Ramon's art I knew I had to work with him. He's great!

IF: Two questions: Why Ramon, and how has his art changed since you first saw his work?

DL: His style hasn't changed a whole lot, but I think it's a lot more broad in range and appeal than you might guess at first glance. Jedi Vs. Sith is a lot different than Joker/Mask, which was the first project I worked with Ramon on. So the approach is somewhat different on this one. A lot of people have been surprised that I picked an artist like Ramon for this series. His style does edge toward "cartoony," but he's an excellent storyteller and I think he's going to lend something to this series that you couldn't get with any other artist. On this series I didn't want to go the obvious route. With a war story a lot of people would probably say it should be drawn by someone with more of a gritty, action oriented style (like Guy Davis or Jan Duursema). But, I find that when you go the non-obvious route you usually get surprising -- and often surprisingly good -- results. It doesn't always work that way, but I think in this case it has.

IF: Let's get back to the concept of the Jedi Vs. Sith series. Specifically, when in the Star Wars timeline does this story take place?

DL: It takes place during the battle of Ruusan which took place about 1000 years before Episode IV, and it covers the events that lead up to the destruction of the Sith (except for one of `em).

IF: I know the story centers on a group of kids -- two teenage boys and their younger female cousin. How do these children figure into the war between the Jedi and the Sith?

DL: The involvement of the children is a pretty good indicator of the intensity of this story. When the story opens, the war has been waging between the Jedi and the Sith for some time already, and both sides have suffered great losses. The three main characters live together on a muddy, backwater planet called Somov Rit, which is where a Jedi scout ends up looking for young, force-sensitive recruits to replenish the dwindling numbers of the Army of Light. It's such a well-written and important story, I don't want to give away much more than that right now.

IF: That's fair. It seems like a decidedly dark story idea: do you think that has more to do with Darko's writing or the nature of the battle being fought?

DL: I'd say a little of both. We're dealing with a war story here. Living in Croatia, Darko isn't unfamiliar with war and what it does to people. So we've got a mixing of events -- taking something make believe and infusing it with some real world experience. I think there are themes and a mood that Darko is lending to this story that would be lost with any another writer.

IF: I can see that. Finally, how much of the Sith will we see in this series?

DL: You'll see a whole lot of `em, and their collective character will be made very clear. We're going to follow Darth Bane in particular but there are Sith Lords and minions all over this story. It's nice for a change... We always see bunches of Jedi running around. It's nice to give the bad guys a chance to shine for once.

Don't miss the exciting first chapter of Star Wars: Jedi Vs. Sith, available starting April 18 at your local comic-book retailer.