STAR WARS Rebels new animated series!

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

My recollection is that the EU had varying "levels" of canon. So, the films were obviously canon, as were their adaptations (e.g. novel, radio drama, comic book renditions, etc.), with the films being the "primary" version. The licensed novels were considered to be cabable of being overridden by Lucas at any time, if he decided to chuck 'em. And then there were things like video games and the Star Wars RPG, which were NOT treated as canon, except for The Force Unleashed 1 and 2, which were treated as canon for marketing purposes, and then subsequently ditched by Disney (and a good thing, too).

Well as far as I'm concerned the Republic Commando novels are canon. I don't care what Lucasfilm says. The RCs are canon by default since they, Delta Squad in particular, appeared in TCW.

I'm not concerned that I haven't seen female storm troopers yet. I'm concerned that someone took too much liberties and that we won't see them in the future.

Well if Stormtroopers are still a tier above regular army, say like US Army Rangers or something, then there would probably be few women in there. That is unless you had women from a high gravity world that were stronger and faster than regular men.

 

[Bryancd]

There's a female trooper in the Force Awakens folks!

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

Ummm, Captain Phasma?

There's a female trooper in the Force Awakens folks!

If you go back to my original statement:

I am okay with a female stormtrooper but I dislike the fact that we have not seen or hear of another canon Stormtrooper in the original trilogy.

I'm talking about the OT. But I do admit that when I said that, I also meant to include Rebels era as well. Now you could say something changed by the time OT came around and the Empire no longer had female service members. All I want is to see at least one in the rebels show so that it has some sort of continuity to what authors are putting in their books.

 

[Bryancd]

Oh I see you are talking in Universe.

 

[Victor3]

We haven't seen female troopers? So certain, are you? They all look the same in the white armor.

Now I'll grant you, we haven't heard female troopers yet - but not all troopers had lines.

 

[Solo4114]

That's how I remember it too. But when you think about it, something is canon or it is not. It's like saying someone is just a little bit pregnant. You can't say this is canon... until it overwritten.

One item that that was suppose to be considered high on the canon list was Shadows of the Empire. SOTE was a created by LFL in order to reinvigorate interest back to the Star Wars franchise. It was marketed as a non-movie movie. Had everything, books, video game, soundtrack, comics, toys... Everything a movie does except for the movie. When I first read it back in the mid nineties, I liked it. But I re-read it back in 2012 and found it as annoying as most of the novels. I will say that he had a very good action flow. I think I still have the soundtrack somewhere.

I know that Disney is going to have a tighter reigns on the new EU to ensure canon material does not conflict. I hope this is true but they also ensure quality. So far with the novels, I have found them quite boring. I listened to A New Dawn on CD. As I listened to it, I couldn't image actually reading it. I tried to read Tarkin but it seemed painful. I looked at the synopsis on line to get the main details incase it was canon info I needed and was greatful I did not invest a lot of time reading the book. I am now considering if I want to attempt Lords of the Sith.

An example of being concerned of creating a new EU is as follows. In New Dawn, they have a female stormtrooper in one of the chapters. I am okay with a female stormtrooper but I dislike the fact that we have not seen or hear of another canon Stormtrooper in the original trilogy. I worry about writers taking to many liberties that might slide by Disney. Maybe they missed something or maybe they didn't but it is a concern of mine.

Right, I'm not saying that the previous "canon-until-not-canon" approach made much sense, but that's my recollection of it. Then there was all the stuff Leland Chee delineated like "G-Canon" and "S-Canon" and all that stuff. Frankly, I think the Disney Story Group (DSG) made the right call in saying "If we make it, it's all equal level canon from here on out." Of course, as you point out, that requires them to maintain continuity and consistency of quality. At least with Rebels, I think they've been doing a terrific job so far.

The stuff in the novels I'm less worried about. Realistically, I tend to think that the "G/S/C/T/whatever-canon" levels were more a reflection of the fact that most folks don't consume all different kinds of Star Wars content. They know the movies, they may know the TV shows, and beyond that, you're talking about more of a niche market. A big niche, to be sure, but not what the general public knows. So, if some continuity flubs slip in, I'm less concerned. They can also eventually explain them away (e.g. the female stormtrooper in the pre-OT/OT era was extremely unusual, and may have reflected local recruitment concerns or somesuch). Likewise, the stories themselves may be kinda "meh" or may be good, but as long as the "main" stuff (films and TV shows) are good, I'll be satisfied.

Well as far as I'm concerned the Republic Commando novels are canon. I don't care what Lucasfilm says. The RCs are canon by default since they, Delta Squad in particular, appeared in TCW.

Hey man, you keep whatever you want in your "Head-canon." I've been doing the same thing for quite some time now, because it enhances my enjoyment of this and other franchises. I haven't read those novels, though, so I can't really comment on them. I've had "Republic Commando" sitting in my Steam game list for ages and still haven't gotten round to playing it yet. One of these days...

Well if Stormtroopers are still a tier above regular army, say like US Army Rangers or something, then there would probably be few women in there. That is unless you had women from a high gravity world that were stronger and faster than regular men.

Right, or you could say it was a one-off experiment, or very unusual but not unheard of, or that this candidate showed particular promise, etc.

 

[Riceball]

Hey man, you keep whatever you want in your "Head-canon." I've been doing the same thing for quite some time now, because it enhances my enjoyment of this and other franchises. I haven't read those novels, though, so I can't really comment on them. I've had "Republic Commando" sitting in my Steam game list for ages and still haven't gotten round to playing it yet. One of these days...

You really should download and play it, I'm playing it right now and it's a lot fun. It can get a bit tricky at times and ammo is a bit more limited than in other shooters but the whole squad thing adds a lot to it. I only have 2 nitpicks; one is that your 3 squad members all have different voices, odd considering that they're supposed to be clones and we've been shown that they all sound the same. My other nitpick is more of a grammatical one, one of the commands you can give your squad is to form up on you but instead of saying, "Delta squad, form up." your character says, "Delta squad, forming up." and your squad responds by saying, "Forming up" which sounds really odd to me. Otherwise it's been really enjoyable, if a bit tough at times.

 

[cboath]

I don't recall the novels ever being any sort of 'canon'. As the first was being released, the press release sad Lucas is allowing others 'to play in his backyard', all novels post ROTJ, ahd to be approved by LFL, etc, yadda, yadda, yadda. It said that while there are no plans of any sort to make any more movies (this 'was/ circa 1990 I think) that he was not 'beholden' to anything that was written.

Doesn't sound as if 'canon' applies at all. The closest thing to it was that the publisher was going to help the authors exchange info so their works would relate to one another and could build off each other. It wasn't until the second contract when a new publisher took over and started the NJO stuff (first book killed Chewy) that the publishers were going to control the story themselves and direct where they wanted authors to go, etc.

 

[Bryancd]

Cool new tease!

https://www.facebook.com/starwarsrebels/videos/465372780286017/

 

[Solo4114]

Right, but that still led to varying "levels" of "canon." Like, George could always override things, but absent that happening, the novels tried to stay true to each other, as did the comics and such. Video games were usually treated differently.

Anyway, it's a moot point now. Everything created post-Disney purchase = canon. No varying levels.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

Well as far as I'm concerned the Republic Commando novels are canon. I don't care what Lucasfilm says. The RCs are canon by default since they, Delta Squad in particular, appeared in TCW.

FYI: Here is what is canon in regards to clone/republic commandos: http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Clone_commando/Canon

 

[Kylash]

Cool new tease!

https://www.facebook.com/starwarsrebels/videos/465372780286017/

Man... This is the stuff with Vader hunting down the Jedi that I've wanted to see since the prequels were announced in the 90's. Had hoped we would have seen some of it in Episode 3 and didnt, so I'm glad we're FINALLY going to.

 

[seelsa73]

Anyway, it's a moot point now. Everything created post-Disney purchase = canon. No varying levels.

What about expansions to games released pre-acquisition, such as Knights of the Fallen Empire? Has Lucasfilm addressed these?

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

What about expansions to games released pre-acquisition, such as Knights of the Fallen Empire? Has Lucasfilm addressed these?

here is some info:

http://www.geeksnack.com/2015/04/22/old-republic-no-longer-star-wars-cannon-according-qa-event/

A Q&A Event at the Star Wars Celebration Reveals The Old Republic is No Longer Part of the Star Wars Canon

This year’s Star Wars Celebration could be considered the biggest in the event’s history bringing with it huge reveals and news. Fans were able to get: their first look at the new Battlefront game from DICE, an unbelievable trailer for The Force Awakens, plus the announcement of a new tie-in novel from a writer at BioWare. Mixed in with all of that fantastic news however was another cut to the Star Wars Canon.

After being bought out by Disney the Star Wars Universe has been going through big changes. That’s been confusing to a lot of fans, especially the choice to cut away the majority of the Extended Universe. To help clear up the confusion Peter Hidalgo, a man who has been adding to the Extended Universe for years, was chosen to do a Q&A session.
Hidalgo has been part of the team deciding the limits of the Star Wars Cannon since the Disney buy out. At the Star Wars Celebration he was eager to help clear up fans lingering questions about all the changes that were made. One question in particular has stood out:​

Q: Are The Old Republic expansions canon?
A: No — BioWare “has created their own universe that is so fantastic,” we’re not going to change it, says Hidalgo.
​

The Old Republic has been met with mixed reactions from fans since its release; so this change doesn’t come as a complete surprise. That doesn’t mean fans won’t be disappointed; fans of the Old Republic are sure to be sad its characters won’t be playing a bigger role. Unfortunately it doesn’t have much choice but to try cutting back on the Star Wars Cannon by taking out lore like the Old Republic. The franchise has had decades of uncontrolled lore build up that has to be cleaned up to keep it on track.
Hidalgo did leave fans hope that the Old Republic’s character may make a return. Suggesting that non-cannon events may appear in new official lore. Disney may be planning to tap into the Old Republic later on as they continue to expand the Star Wars Universe. They have already announced plans for spin-off movies, TV shows, and a long list of new novels. All of which could explore the potent time period that the Old Republic is set in.
The move will still cause rumbling among fans but in the end they can be happy that BioWare still has the option to be part of the Star Wars Universe. Disney has big plans for the franchise which is sure to include all new games. BioWare is sure to be one of the first studios they turn to when the time comes for a new story driven Star Wars game.
Source: Star Wars.com​

 

[James Kenobi 1138]

I've always thought Vader was as nimble in the suit as he is out of it, much like a deadly Samurai in full armor.

The suits limits- but training, skill, ability and desire can make the Samurai or Vader as swift and deadly as a swordsman with no armor.

I wear that costume and you can't really do anything except stand and walk, unless you want to destroy it and have pieces fly off everywhere.

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

I've always thought Vader was as nimble in the suit as he is out of it, much like a deadly Samurai in full armor.

The suits limits- but training, skill, ability and desire can make the Samurai or Vader as swift and deadly as a swordsman with no armor.

I wear that costume and you can't really do anything except stand and walk, unless you want to destroy it and have pieces fly off everywhere.

I never assume that costumes in a fantasy universe like Star Wars represent the materials actually used. One of the cool things about the CGI clone troopers was how nimble they could move around. I think it's plausible to believe stormtrooper said could do the same thing in their universe and the same with Vader.

 

[Solo4114]

What about expansions to games released pre-acquisition, such as Knights of the Fallen Empire? Has Lucasfilm addressed these?

As MJF noted, not so much. I'm not really surprised, to be honest. That comes from a pre-existing license that hasn't run out yet (and isn't likely to). Likewise, I wouldn't expect the precise "events" depicted in the new Battlefront game to be considered canonical, either.

That said, it'll be interesting to see how they handle future video games.


My solution for that is the "Macross Solution." Basically, you treat all material that you don't want to be considered canonical as some product that was released in-universe. So, TOR (or some future game) could be a game that people play in the Star Wars universe, but which doesn't depict events as they actually happened. This allows material which doesn't fit within the continuity to exist alongside the stuff that does work with continuity, while treating it all as "canon" in the sense of "yeah, it's real" if not necessarily "Yeah, this means going forward, we have to take this into account."

 

[Mara Jade's Father]

As MJF noted, not so much. I'm not really surprised, to be honest. That comes from a pre-existing license that hasn't run out yet (and isn't likely to). Likewise, I wouldn't expect the precise "events" depicted in the new Battlefront game to be considered canonical, either.

That said, it'll be interesting to see how they handle future video games.


My solution for that is the "Macross Solution." Basically, you treat all material that you don't want to be considered canonical as some product that was released in-universe. So, TOR (or some future game) could be a game that people play in the Star Wars universe, but which doesn't depict events as they actually happened. This allows material which doesn't fit within the continuity to exist alongside the stuff that does work with continuity, while treating it all as "canon" in the sense of "yeah, it's real" if not necessarily "Yeah, this means going forward, we have to take this into account."

Battlefront has a novel coming out entitled Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company. I would expect the events in that book to be considered canon.

I've never understood the idea that an actual video game is canon.

 

[Solo4114]

Battlefront has a novel coming out entitled Star Wars Battlefront: Twilight Company. I would expect the events in that book to be considered canon.

I've never understood the idea that an actual video game is canon.

That makes sense. I agree on video games not being canon. Like, the old X-wing game has you blow up the Death Star, but you aren't Luke. So, people think that's somehow canon, or would ever be considered such? Hardly.

 

[seelsa73]

Not to mention that one Battlefront gameplay video has ROTJ Luke facing off against Vader during the battle of Hoth lol.