No Gays in Space: Diversity and the Changing Faces of Star Wars Canon

Posted on May 13, 2014by Scotch Tape and Popsicle Sticks

briefing

If you’re an eagle-eyed follower of this site, you may have noticed that Michael Lind, author of our Go Figure series, explained in a comment in the wake of the reboot announcement that since so much of what we previously understood to be “real” in the Star Wars galaxy can no longer be considered canon, doing any kind of authoritative statistical analysis of the Galaxy Far, Far Away and its population is no longer possible—and thus, the Go Figure series has come to its end.

And, well, he’s mostly right, but not completely. Out of respect for Michael’s phenomenal work thus far, I will indeed be discontinuing Go Figure as a discrete series of pieces. Likewise, the sample size of what can be definitively regarded as canon SW characters is now a fraction of what it was a month ago, and thus, there’s no way now to talk about the GFFA at large without resorting to a bunch of guesses and assumptions.

What we can talk about, however, is the franchise. Read More

Everything Disney Needs to Know, It Can Learn from The New Jedi Order

Posted on May 12, 2014by Cry Havac
The Unifying Force, the ultimate novel of The New Jedi Order

With the casting announcement, we now know that the heroes of the original trilogy will be sharing the screen with characters played by younger actors John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Oscar Isaac, Adam Driver, and Domnhall Gleeson, some combination of which will presumably be their successors as primary heroes. If there is one Expanded Universe project that embodies the lessons Disney should take into account when creating a multigenerational sequel trilogy, it’s The New Jedi Order. In our Everything Disney Needs to Know series, Mike and Lisa have suggested lessons to be drawn from standalone Expanded Universe works, but nothing in the Expanded Universe so perfectly parallels the task of the sequel trilogy, nor offers such directly applicable lessons, as The New Jedi Order.

The Thrawn trilogy is often touted as the Expanded Universe’s “sequel trilogy,” and that’s true to the extent that it’s the best of the immediate saga-level followups to Return of the Jedi. If the sequel trilogy were being made in 1990, the Thrawn trilogy might be the best model. The nineteen-book super-series The New Jedi Order, set twenty-five years after the movies, however, not only much better accords with the challenges of the sequels being made now, but it functions better in general as a continuation of the Star Wars saga. By focusing on passing the torch from the heroes of the original trilogy to their children and spiritual heirs, the NJO mirrors the task the sequels must undertake. By constructing meaningful character arcs and creating a bold new narrative, the NJO accomplished something outstanding in the Expanded Universe and set the standard for genuinely continuing the saga.

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One Sith Two Sith: Evil and Sustainability

Posted on May 9, 2014by Feature Articles, The Holocron

onesith

The Sith are the iconic antagonist of the Star Wars galaxy- black robes, red lightsabers, some cackling laughter and lightning- the very image of evil. We first meet them with the condition of one Master and one Apprentice, and later find out that they have a much richer history. This Rule of Two is perhaps the riskiest idea for long-term Sith survival, as their very nature would make it far too easy for just one overly ambitious and underpowered apprentice and one overconfident master to both end up dead, almost ensuring the extinction of the Sith. However, a large group of constantly infighting Sith could cause the death of many valuable Lords. Throughout Sith history, they tried several power structures, and their newest was perhaps the most sustainable and threatening. Who wouldn’t want a good villain that could sneak up on us at any time?

As we all know, the Sith began as Jedi who explored the Dark Side more deeply and were banished from Republic space for doing so. They found the Sith species in the Unknown Regions, and through a blend of alchemy and interbreeding plus years of isolation, became a powerful empire. We start to see the Sith again in the Great Hyperspace Wars, when the Sith accidentally find the Republic again and general chaos ensued. Every time we see the Sith of the Old Republic, the constant infighting and plotting amongst themselves is a common theme- sometimes to the point that we have to wonder how they get anything else done. We meet several versions of the Sith- the Hyperspace War, Revan and Malak creating a new Sith Empire, the triumvirate of Traya, Nihilus, and Sion descending into a civil war that nearly consumes the Sith as well as the Jedi, and the treaty of Coruscant that ends with a cold war between Jedi and Sith. Throughout this, the pattern is of a large group of Sith Lords, often plotting against each other to the detriment of their fellow Sith. However, the Sith still manage to survive and often win, constantly bouncing back and doing damage to the Republic and the Jedi. Read More

“What’s a Duck?” – The Current State of Star Wars Canon

Posted on May 8, 2014by Imperial Court Circular

There’s been a lot of talk since last week’s news about the Expanded Universe – talk that ran the gamut from ecstasy to outrage. Some folks have been excited to see the end of the EU that they feel has gone downhill over the past several years, or even become too bloated to sustain. Others are so upset by the loss of their cherished stories that they cannot see themselves continuing onward in the fandom. We’ve even seem some who say “finally! Now that the EU’s starting over, I can start reading books without feeling lost.”

Personally, we’re more inclined to feel a profound sense of loss at this decision. For us, the EU has always been the essence of Star Wars. While we had enjoyed the original films before reading any of the books, it was the Expanded Universe that made us a fan and that kept our interest long after. The stories of Rogue Squadron, Thrawn’s shenanigans, the foundation of the Jedi Academy, and the bright promise of the Solo kids: these were our earliest and fondest Star Wars memories. Even after the prequels, the ups and downs of the NJO, and our decided disenchantment with what came after, we still looked at those original stories with fondness. If anything, the announcement has made our affection for the old EU even stronger.

Today, though, we’re here to talk about the future. It’s been long enough now that most people have come to terms with what’s happened: either feeling a sense of loss or optimism, but the strongest harshest feelings have had time to mellow out. What we want to present is a sober-minded assessment of where we are, and what this really means. Our basic feeling is this: the post-ROTJ EU is on seriously shaky ground depending on the specifics of the films and its status won’t be clear for some time, but it is highly likely that the pre-film EU (particularly KOTOR) will get recanonized without a hitch and that much background continuity (e.g., the name of the Bothan homeworld) will be recanonized by reference too. That said, there’s still cause for concern: until we get there, we have tremendous uncertainty what’s still canon and there’s no guarantee that all the little bits and pieces that comprised the grand tapestry of the EU can possibly be brought back. That’s something worth being concerned about.

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Checking in with Jason Fry, Part Two: Rules of the Road

Posted on May 6, 2014by Interviews

Last week, I spoke with Jason Fry, longtime Star Wonk and co-author of the brand-new Expanded LEGO Star Wars Visual Dictionary. If you missed it, head here for Jason’s thoughts on that book, his own Jupiter Pirates series, and his initial musings on the new landscape of Star Wars canon.

In Part Two below, we get a little more into the nitty-gritty—in particular, how the current Story Group-coordinated status quo has—and hasn’t—changed the process of writing new Star Wars books. Jason also shared some thoughts on the recent April Fools fiasco over on Wookieepedia, and his own experiences at the site.

Getting back to the 500-pound gorilla, you and Ryder Windham were actually known to be writing Star Wars Rebels tie-in books well before the recent announcements; as one of the first people to write for the “new” canon, how has the process changed and how has it stayed the same? You’re known, of course, for working well with the EU, but is there more scrutiny on those little details now that they’d constitute a sort of “recanonization”? Read More