Category: Feature Articles

Take No Prisoners

Posted on February 14, 2014by Feature Articles

There’s a theory that Star Wars is a simple story of good guys and bad guys, in which the heroic, idealistic Rebels, overthrow the evil, oppressive Empire.

But come on. We all know that a lot more complicated than that.

No?

Does the phrase “Death Star Daycare” mean anything to you?

No, it’s not one of those quirky little comic strips in Star Wars Tales. It’s the observation that Grand Moff Tarkin’s technological terror is so darn big that it probably contains an awful lot of ordinary people in its massive crew. Military families. Imperial Army brats. Ordinary enlistees from the Mid Rim who just joined up to see the galaxy.

And Luke Skywalker blew them all up.
Read More

Star Travel and You – Why It Probably Shouldn’t Look Like That

Posted on February 10, 2014by Feature Articles, Guest Editorials

Star Wars is perhaps the most iconic mythology of the last century. Even if someone has never watched one of the movies, they know what a stormtrooper looks like. They can recognize a lightsaber. And moon-sized superweapons and the Force pervade every-day references. And yet, despite the impact of this great science-fiction epic, Star Wars has made a lot of mistakes in the “science” part of “science fiction”.

In fact, many of the trappings that we know and love are more for visual effect rather than practicality. And this is not limited to the generic details of the world, but the entire way that we perceive the culture of Star Wars functioning.

Some parts are far more obvious than others. Any Star Wars fan is used to great armies traversing the galaxy on a whim, fighting battles on planets halfway across the galaxy from each other in the same week, or even the same day. And yet, real space travel is prohibitively expensive. Like any technology, the price will eventually become more affordable the more advanced a society becomes, but that barrier will never be totally removed.
Read More

Goodbye to More Than Just Dark Horse

Posted on February 4, 2014by Cry Havac, Feature Articles
Dark Horse was about the talent. From left, Randy Stradley, John Ostrander, Sean Cooke, and Jan Duursema.

As my colleague Becca pointed out yesterday, the loss of Dark Horse as Star Wars’ comics licensee strikes deep. Dark Horse treated the Star Wars license with deep love, intense attention, and consummate professionalism.

As I look at what Dark Horse’s departure means for Star Wars going forward, I am struck by the ways this move potentially signals the new way of doing business under Disney, and by the way the larger move to Disney may resound going forward. In particular, I fear the move from an artistically-driven model headed by filmmaking auteur George Lucas to a profit-maximization-driven model headed by a boardroom of corporate suits.

Read More

Goodbye, Dark Horse

Posted on February 3, 2014by Feature Articles

At the end of the year, Dark Horse will cease publishing Star Wars comics and end over two decades of stewardship. Most of their catalogue will fall out of print, not forever, I’m sure, but for a time. After all, we’re looking to the future now – new movies, new television shows, new funny books.

It might be fair to ask why this matters. No, that’s a poor sentence, it suggests I think anyone without at least some love for this long-ago, far-away galaxy will be reading this. It might be fair to ask why this matters so much. Why it matters when Star Wars comics have never experienced the popularity or commercial success of their counterparts on consoles and in print. It might be fair to ask why it matters when Marvel were the original licensees. It might be fair to ask what particular mark Dark Horse left on the Expanded Universe that we should mourn its loss.

In a very real way, Dark Horse built the Expanded Universe.
Read More

The Smaller Star Warriors – Why Average Soldiers Fight for the Cause

Posted on January 17, 2014by Feature Articles, Guest Editorials

starwarsidentities

We all know Luke, Leia and Han. They were destined to save the galaxy and lead the Rebellion. Palpatine was determined to take over the galaxy and ensure permanent domination. This is the fundamental basis of Star Wars as we know it. But one large factor is often overlooked, or rather an innumerable number of smaller details that add up to make the difference. The average soldiers who serve both sides of the conflict. Risking their own lives and taking the lives of their enemies.

By why? What does TK-421 gain by guarding the Millennium Falcon in the Death Star’s hanger bay? Why did so many Bothans die to ensure that the Rebellion could learn of the Second Death Star? The motivation behind these numerous, yet faceless, characters is often ignored in both the movies, and the Expanded Universe. In fact, the only armies that can be accepted without considering their personal feelings are those of the Separatist Alliance or Xim the Despot – droids who are programed for war.

As soon as an army utilizes living, thinking beings, emotion and reason enter the equation. And so the question must inevitably follow, what possible reason could they have to put their lives on the line for something that they may not even benefit from, even should they survive.

It’s the same question that real-life political leaders must grapple with, and historians forever analyze to understand the rise and fall of empires. And in the fictional world of Star Wars, there is no less a role for this. In fact, many of the militaries we see are nothing more than a reflection of our own history.
Read More