STAR WARS #56 (1982) — KEY ISSUE — 1ST APPEARANCE OF SHIRA BRIE
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Up for sale is a highly collectible copy of Star Wars #56, published by Marvel Comics in 1982. This important issue features the first appearance of Shira Brie, a character whose significance would grow considerably beyond her introduction in Marvel's original Star Wars series.
Shira Brie would eventually be revealed as far more than the Rebel pilot she initially appeared to be.
Her story would transform her from one of Luke Skywalker's fellow Rebel pilots into the dangerous cyborg warrior known as Lumiya, Dark Lady of the Sith.
That evolution makes Star Wars #56 an important character key from the original Marvel run and the beginning of one of its most memorable long-term storylines.
Star Wars #56 features:
• 1st appearance of Shira Brie
• Shira Brie later becomes Lumiya
• Lumiya becomes known as the Dark Lady of the Sith
• Beginning of an important long-running Shira Brie storyline
• Luke Skywalker appearance
• Princess Leia appearance
• Lando Calrissian featured prominently
• Lobot appearance
• Return to Cloud City following The Empire Strikes Back
• Walt Simonson story and artwork
• Tom Palmer inks
• 1982 Marvel Comics
• Important original Marvel Star Wars character key
Shira's importance isn't immediately obvious from her introduction.
That is part of what makes this issue interesting.
Readers meeting her here have no idea where Marvel will eventually take the character.
The primary collector significance of Star Wars #56 is straightforward:
This is the first appearance of Shira Brie.
Shira enters the series as a Rebel pilot and quickly becomes connected to Luke Skywalker.
At first glance, she appears to be another new ally joining the expanding cast of Marvel's Star Wars universe.
But Shira has secrets.
Big ones.
And those secrets eventually turn what appears to be a straightforward new-character introduction into the beginning of a much larger storyline.
Shira Brie initially presents herself as someone Luke should be able to trust.
She is attractive, capable, confident, and shares Luke's life as a Rebel pilot.
That naturally brings the two characters together.
Their relationship develops over subsequent issues, giving Luke a personal connection to Shira beyond simply fighting alongside another member of the Rebellion.
But the Shira Brie readers initially meet is not the whole story.
Behind the Rebel identity lies a much more dangerous connection.
Shira's storyline eventually reveals that she has been working for the Empire.
Her position among the Rebels gives her access to Luke Skywalker and his allies.
That changes the meaning of her earlier appearances.
What initially looks like a new friendship—and eventually a romantic connection—becomes part of a much larger deception.
This is one of the things the original Marvel series could do particularly well.
Characters could develop across numerous monthly issues, allowing revelations to change the way readers interpreted earlier stories.
Shira's story ultimately becomes directly connected to Darth Vader.
That elevates her beyond an ordinary Imperial operative.
Vader recognizes Shira's usefulness and her potential.
Her mission places her close to Luke, creating another weapon the Empire can use against the young Jedi and Rebel hero.
But Shira's story does not end when her original mission unravels.
Instead, it becomes considerably darker.
The relationship between Luke Skywalker and Shira Brie becomes one of the central reasons her storyline works.
Luke doesn't simply encounter Shira as an obvious enemy.
He comes to know her as an ally.
They fly together.
They share danger.
Trust develops.
And Shira becomes personally important to Luke.
That makes what happens later far more consequential than if she had simply entered the series as another villain.
Marvel first gives Luke a reason to care about Shira.
Then it turns that relationship against him.
Shira's storyline eventually reaches a dramatic turning point during a Rebel mission in which pilots are flying captured TIE fighters.
Luke uses the Force to distinguish friendly pilots from enemy fighters.
The Force identifies one particular craft as hostile.
Luke fires.
The pilot he shoots down is:
Shira Brie.
The consequences are devastating.
Luke believes the Force guided him.
But the apparent evidence makes it look as though he has killed a fellow Rebel pilot.
The incident places Luke in an extraordinarily difficult position.
He trusted the Force.
The Force told him the fighter was an enemy.
Yet Shira appeared to be a Rebel ally.
Luke's actions are questioned, and his faith in his own abilities is tested.
The storyline becomes more than a simple battle between heroes and villains.
It raises questions about trust.
Evidence.
The Force.
And whether Luke can believe what his own instincts are telling him when everyone around him sees something different.
Eventually the truth begins emerging.
Shira was not simply the loyal Rebel pilot she appeared to be.
Her connection to the Empire changes the entire situation.
Luke had not simply attacked an innocent ally.
The Force had detected something everyone else couldn't see.
Shira was an enemy hidden inside the Rebellion.
That revelation vindicates Luke—but it doesn't end Shira Brie's story.
Far from it.
Shira survives.
But she is horribly injured.
Her damaged body requires extensive reconstruction.
That transformation eventually leads to the identity for which many Star Wars Expanded Universe readers know her best:
Lumiya.
The woman introduced as Shira Brie becomes a cybernetic warrior.
And over time, Lumiya develops into one of the most dangerous Dark Side antagonists associated with Luke Skywalker's post-film adventures.
Lumiya eventually takes on the title:
Dark Lady of the Sith.
That is an enormous evolution from the Rebel pilot introduced in #56.
Shira begins as someone readers might reasonably expect to become another supporting member of Luke's circle.
Instead, her story moves in almost the opposite direction.
Rebel pilot.
Imperial operative.
Enemy of Luke Skywalker.
Cybernetic reconstruction.
Dark Side warrior.
Lumiya.
Knowing where the character eventually goes gives her seemingly modest introduction in #56 much greater significance.
Shira Brie is a great example of why some first appearances matter more when you understand the character's complete history.
Nothing on the surface of #56 needs to announce:
“This character will eventually become a major Dark Side antagonist.”
The significance develops afterward.
Collectors looking backward can see #56 as the starting point.
Every later Shira Brie and Lumiya story traces back to this issue.
Marvel's original Star Wars series introduced numerous characters that never appeared in the movies.
Some were remembered primarily by dedicated collectors of the vintage run.
Others developed substantial lives of their own.
Shira Brie belongs to the second category.
Her eventual transformation into Lumiya allowed the character to survive beyond the immediate storyline surrounding her introduction.
She became part of the larger Star Wars Expanded Universe and ultimately participated in stories set much later in Luke Skywalker's life.
Lumiya's importance did not end with Marvel's original 1977–1986 Star Wars series.
The character later returned in the broader Star Wars Expanded Universe.
That is where her significance becomes even more apparent.
Instead of remaining an interesting villain from a vintage Marvel run, Lumiya became involved in major later events surrounding the Jedi and the legacy of the Sith.
Her history ultimately stretches far beyond the period in which Shira Brie first meets Luke.
Today, the original Shira Brie/Lumiya storyline belongs to what is generally classified as Star Wars Legends continuity.
That distinction is important.
Lumiya should not be presented as though her complete original Marvel and later Expanded Universe history is part of current Disney-era canon.
But Legends itself has an enormous collector and fan following.
For many longtime Star Wars readers, these characters and stories formed the continuation of the saga for decades.
And Lumiya became an important part of that universe.
The relationship between Luke and Lumiya becomes particularly interesting because of where it begins.
Luke doesn't first know her as Lumiya.
He knows:
Shira Brie.
Someone who fought beside him.
Someone he trusted.
Someone with whom he developed a personal connection.
That gives their later conflict a history many villains don't have.
Lumiya isn't simply another Dark Side warrior Luke encounters.
There is a past between them.
And that past begins with the woman introduced in Star Wars #56.
Lumiya's adoption of the Dark Lady of the Sith identity places her within one of the most recognizable villain traditions in Star Wars.
The Sith are inseparable from the larger saga.
Darth Vader.
Darth Sidious.
And generations of Dark Side users eventually became central to Star Wars mythology.
Lumiya's place within Legends gave the original Marvel character a much larger legacy than readers purchasing #56 in 1982 could possibly have anticipated.
Shira's development also gives her an interesting place among the women created for early Star Wars comics.
She is not simply another version of Princess Leia.
She is not defined exclusively as a victim or supporting character.
Shira is capable.
Dangerous.
Manipulative.
A pilot.
An operative.
And eventually a formidable Dark Side opponent.
Her evolution into Lumiya gave the Expanded Universe one of its notable female antagonists.
The story in Star Wars #56 is titled:
“Coffin in the Clouds.”
Interestingly, despite the long-term importance of Shira Brie's introduction, much of the immediate story focuses on:
Lando Calrissian and Cloud City.
Lando returns to Bespin following the Imperial occupation seen in The Empire Strikes Back.
What he discovers is not the thriving Cloud City he once controlled.
The situation has become dangerous and unstable.
Lando's return gives Marvel an opportunity to revisit one of the most memorable locations introduced in The Empire Strikes Back.
Cloud City was more than simply the location of Luke's confrontation with Darth Vader.
It was Lando's home.
His responsibility.
And the place he lost when the Empire arrived.
Returning there therefore has personal significance.
Lando isn't simply visiting another planet.
He is confronting what happened to the world he once governed.
The issue also prominently features Lobot, Lando's cybernetically enhanced aide from The Empire Strikes Back.
Lobot's role in the movie was relatively small, leaving Marvel room to expand upon the character in its comics.
The relationship between Lando and Lobot gives the Cloud City storyline a direct connection to the film while allowing Marvel to explore material the movie never had time to develop.
Cloud City is far from secure.
Explosives and Imperial forces create a dangerous situation in which Lando has to navigate both immediate physical threats and the consequences of the Empire's occupation.
That gives #56 a substantial story independent of Shira's introduction.
This isn't simply a comic whose only interesting feature is a new character appearing for several panels.
It continues the consequences of The Empire Strikes Back while simultaneously planting the seed for an important future storyline.
This period of Marvel Star Wars is particularly interesting because the series was operating between films.
The Empire Strikes Back had changed everything.
Han Solo was frozen in carbonite.
Luke knew Darth Vader was his father.
Lando had joined the heroes.
The Rebel Alliance remained under pressure.
But Return of the Jedi was still in the future.
Marvel had room to tell stories within that gap.
That freedom allowed Marvel to create characters such as Shira Brie.
Rather than simply adapting another movie, the creators could introduce new threats and relationships for Luke and the Rebels.
Shira's storyline demonstrates what serialized comics could contribute to Star Wars.
A new character could be introduced quietly.
Relationships could develop over multiple issues.
Secrets could gradually emerge.
And eventually the character could become something completely different from what readers initially expected.
Walt Simonson is one of the major creative names associated with this issue.
Simonson contributed to the story and artwork and provides the cover.
His career would become legendary through work across numerous major comic properties, particularly his celebrated run on Marvel's Thor.
His involvement gives #56 another collector angle beyond the Shira Brie first appearance.
Tom Palmer provides the inks.
Palmer was one of Marvel's most respected inkers, with an enormous body of work spanning some of the publisher's most important titles and characters.
His finishes complement Simonson's artwork and give the issue the polished appearance associated with Marvel's early-1980s Star Wars run.
Story: David Michelinie, Louise Jones and Walt Simonson
Pencils: Walt Simonson
Inks: Tom Palmer
Colors: Glynis Wein
Letters: Joe Rosen
Cover: Walt Simonson
That gives #56 a strong creative pedigree in addition to its character-key significance.
Star Wars #56 carries a February 1982 cover date.
At this point, Star Wars was still an Original Trilogy franchise.
Return of the Jedi was more than a year away.
The prequels did not exist.
There were no modern Star Wars television series.
The enormous multimedia universe familiar today was still decades in the future.
Marvel's monthly comic was one of the places fans could experience new Star Wars adventures between the movies.
The strongest argument for #56 isn't simply:
“A new character appears.”
It's what that character eventually becomes.
Shira Brie develops into:
Lumiya.
And Lumiya becomes:
Dark Lady of the Sith.
That creates a direct line from this relatively unassuming 1982 character introduction to one of the more important Dark Side antagonists of the Star Wars Legends era.
Collectors interested in first appearances are essentially buying the beginning of that entire history.
Star Wars #56 offers several strong reasons for collectors to take notice:
• 1st appearance of Shira Brie
• Shira later becomes Lumiya
• Lumiya becomes the Dark Lady of the Sith
• Important original Marvel Star Wars character
• Beginning of a major Luke Skywalker / Shira Brie storyline
• Luke Skywalker appearance
• Princess Leia appearance
• Lando Calrissian featured prominently
• Lobot appearance
• Return to Cloud City
• Post-Empire Strikes Back storyline
• Walt Simonson story and pencils
• Walt Simonson cover
• Tom Palmer inks
• February 1982 cover date
• Marvel Comics
• Important Star Wars Legends character key
For collectors who know the character primarily as Lumiya, #56 is particularly significant because this is where her story actually starts:
As Shira Brie.
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Star Wars #56 is an important character key from Marvel's original Star Wars series featuring the first appearance of Shira Brie, the woman who would eventually become the formidable Lumiya, Dark Lady of the Sith.
What initially appears to be the introduction of another Rebel pilot ultimately becomes the beginning of a much larger story involving Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Imperial deception, betrayal, cybernetic reconstruction, and the Dark Side.
With its legitimate first-appearance significance, connection to one of the more enduring original characters from Marvel's vintage Star Wars run, and Walt Simonson artwork and cover, #56 is an excellent addition to a serious Shira Brie, Lumiya, Luke Skywalker, Star Wars Legends, or vintage Marvel Star Wars collection.