It doesn’t seem like we ever get a new installment in the Indiana Jones franchise without a period of long development and creative indecision. Following the mixed response to 2008’s Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the possibility of a fifth installment was left up in the air. Would fans be willing to accept another performance from Harrison Ford, who was already pushing his physical limits? While the last film seemingly suggested that Indy’s son, Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf), would take over the franchise, that possibility seemed less and less likely due to Labeouf’s comments about the series and the generally negative response to his performance. It worked out for the best with the recent allegations of abuse made against the actor.

Against all odds, Indy is back for another adventure next summer with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which trades out series director Steven Spielberg for James Mangold, an impressive filmmaker in his own right. The terrific trailer that just debuted certainly got fans excited, as the precedent for Ford returning to a popular character had already been set. Star Wars: The Force Awakens gave him the chance to play a reflective role in a franchise he helped build; although Ford was one of the key reasons why the Star Wars franchise was successful in the first place, the universe has continued to open itself up and allow new storytellers to add their interpretations to the galaxy far, far away.

Star Wars has one of the most extensive fictional universes of any modern popular culture franchise. Following the 1978 release of Splinter of the Mind’s Eye by Alan Dean Foster, Star Wars authors have been allowed to add new adventures featuring the iconic characters, and the early collaboration between Lucasfilm and Marvel Comics led to the dominance of Star Wars in the comic book industry. While Star Wars has an inherently expansive universe, that doesn’t mean that the larger world of Indiana Jones should be ignored. Similar to its science fiction counterpart, the Indiana Jones franchise killed time in between installments by sending Indy on new adventures in several book series, comic book arcs, and games. It’s a fascinating expanded universe that Indiana Jones fans need to check out during the long wait for Dial of Destiny.

RELATED: One of the Best ‘Indiana Jones’ Sequels Wasn’t a Movie

The 'Indiana Jones' Books Gave Context to Indy's Story

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Image by Jefferson Chacon

The Star Wars “Legends” universe as it is known today launched in 1991 with Timothy Zahn’s Heir to the Empire, which serves as a continuation of the storyline of Return of the Jedi. The Indiana Jones series also returned that year with Indy’s first original paperback adventure, Indiana Jones and the Peril at Delphi. Considering the possibility of another sequel within the next few years wasn’t off the table, The Peril at Delphi is actually a prequel that takes place in the 1920s. Indy is now only a graduate student, but during his studies in Greece, he’s caught up in an archeological exploit that takes a supernatural turn.

This was a great way to start off a prequel series of novels; seeing a younger version of Indy gave authors a chance to play around with a character who was less confident and had more time to question his morals. Why does Indy have so much respect for history, and why is he willing to risk his life so that ancient relics will be remembered in museums? How is he able to balance his career as a professor with his adventures across the globe? This gave the authors a lot of interesting room to explore across twelve novels.

Another thing that the novels simply did right was grounding Indy’s adventures within the context of history. One of the issues with both Temple of Doom and Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is that they sacrificed real historical artifacts for more fantastical or science-fiction storylines. One of the reasons everyone loves Indy is that he is a bit of a geek; in the novels, we get to see Indy’s knowledge of world culture put to use when he’s whisked across the globe in search of prized items by different communities.

The ‘Indiana Jones’ Comics Established Indiana as an Endearing Hero

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Like Star Wars, the Indiana Jones franchise was inspired by George Lucas’ love of classic adventure serials. The influence of Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers on the Star Wars original trilogy is obvious, as is the influence of classic “tomb hunting” adventure serials on Indiana Jones. Both of these genres are based around fast-paced adventures where the audience has to be kept engaged in order to follow the mystery. Unsurprisingly, these qualities work perfectly for the pages of a Marvel comic book, particularly during the company’s period of critical highs.

Both Star Wars and Indiana Jones had a Marvel series that ran in between installments in their respective trilogies; these fun micro-adventures showed Indy’s exploits in between the films and tied up some of the loose ends that fans were wondering about. He even recovers the Golden Idol that had eluded him in the opening moments of Raiders of the Lost Ark, only to have it once again snatched away from him. These adventures don’t exactly have a lot of depth, but they’re a great showcase for Indy’s unique personality and quippy sense of humor.

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones in 'Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'
Image via Lucasfilm

When Lucasfilm made a deal with Dark Horse Comics in the 1990s, the Star Wars and Indiana Jones comic books started getting more ambitious; the Star Wars series, Dark Empire, introduced the concept of a resurrected Emperor Palpatine nearly three decades before The Rise of Skywalker. The Indiana Jones series also trekked into darker territory, as Indy had to engage with the effects of World War II. While The Last Crusade had wrapped up before the United States’ involvement in the war effort, we now saw Indy trying to have an affinity for history and education in a time of bloodshed and destruction.

Indy’s spirit amidst these darker scenarios proved why he’s such an endearing hero. Despite the cynicism that he seems to permeate, Indy has a deep faith in human achievement, as he’s seen the wondrous things that great minds can build. The Dark Horse comics also teased the possibility of Indy settling down, as he was beginning to reach the age where it would soon no longer be possible to be cracking the whip like when he was a younger man. It’s a mature subject that, frankly, the Dark Horse Comics do a much better job of addressing than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

'The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles' Gave New Life to the Franchise

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Image via Lucasfilm

Arguably, the most exciting installment in the Indiana Jones extended universe was the highly underrated ABC adventure series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. Produced by George Lucas and future Star Wars prequels producer Rick McCallum, the series showed both a young (Corey Carrier) and adolescent Indy (Sean Patrick Flannery) as they travel the world and witness some of the major historical events of the early 20th century. In a way, it was an homage to the Indiana Jones franchise’s affinity for education; the series aired on the History Channel and helped introduce younger viewers to important events and icons from the era that it covered.

The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles may have only lasted three seasons, but it inserted new life into the growing expanded universe of the franchise. Random House released a Young Indiana Jones series for younger readers that filled in the gaps in Indy’s childhood during the period between Carrier’s depiction and Flannery’s version. Having a young, spirited Indy was another way to get younger fans excited about the character; for a certain generation, this was the version of the character they were introduced to before seeing the Harrison Ford films of their parents’ generation.

What Does the Future Hold for the 'Indiana Jones' Universe?

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Image via Lucasfilm

Unquestionably, the release of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny will inspire a greater level of interest in the franchise, and will likely inspire Disney to produce several offshoot projects. There’s already reportedly a Disney series in the works. Considering the success that Star Wars had with the multimedia project The High Republic, the possibility that we’ll be seeing new Indiana Jones games, comics, and books coming soon seems very high.

The American Film Institute named Indiana Jones the second greatest cinematic hero of all time. Contrary to popular belief, he does not belong exclusively to Spielberg, Ford, Lucas, and Lawrence Kasdan. Actors like River Phoenix, Carrier, and Flannery have equally interesting interpretations, and the various television, novel, and comic writers who explored Indy’s adventures are also important. As you count down the months before getting to hear John Williams’ fanfare on the big screen, consider checking out other Indiana Jones adventures you may have missed.