Star Wars: The Force Awakens (Pre-release)

[Wolfsburg]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

I still don't get why people are extolling the virtues of this new EU. There was a lot of crap in the original EU, with a few gems in there. Now all the crap is canon as well. At least before the good authors (Zahn, Stackpole, Allston, Traviss, etc.) could write around the stuff the fans thought was stupid. Now they can't avoid the stupid.

I have similar concerns. A sizable chunk of the old EU was terrible so I'm hoping there is much tighter quality control, as Edwardowan suggests.

 

[Bryancd]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

I still don't get why people are extolling the virtues of this new EU. There was a lot of crap in the original EU, with a few gems in there. Now all the crap is canon as well. At least before the good authors (Zahn, Stackpole, Allston, Traviss, etc.) could write around the stuff the fans thought was stupid. Now they can't avoid the stupid.

This is a completely different creative process then how Lucas licensing handled the previous EU material, I don;t think you can really compare them. They have a story group dedicated to the task of creating one contiguous story. And they have already brought back some of the best EU authors like John Jackson Miller (Knight Errant, Kenobi). I wouldn't be surprised to see Zahn, Stackpole, Allston, Traviss all at some point be brought back in to write for STAR WARS.

 

[Bryancd]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

I doubt it...

http://www.latino-review.com/news/exclusive-guess-who-else-is-back-in-star-wars-episode-vii-and-viii

 

[jcoffman99]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

This is a completely different creative process then how Lucas licensing handled the previous EU material, I don;t think you can really compare them. They have a story group dedicated to the task of creating one contiguous story. And they have already brought back some of the best EU authors like John Jackson Miller (Knight Errant, Kenobi). I wouldn't be surprised to see Zahn, Stackpole, Allston, Traviss all at some point be brought back in to write for STAR WARS.

Well Allston is dead, so that might be a tough one.

 

[Bryancd]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Well Allston is dead, so that might be a tough one.

Shows you how up to date I am in the Rogue Squadron X-wIng series of books...

 

[hansicle]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

That was a major gripe I had with the prequils, that they weren't written all at one time.

 

[Jeyl]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

That was a major gripe I had with the prequils, that they weren't written all at one time.

What's even worse is that George Lucas pretended that he had the entire prequel trilogy planned out. In his Episode One commentary, he talks about why he left the "Prophecy" vague in this movie and how he was going to expand on it in Episode Two. By the time we get the next film, this is all we get.

Mace Windu: Remember, Obi-Wan. If the prophecy is true, your apprentice is the only one who can bring the Force back into balance.​

Ok... Nothing new here. So listening to the Episode Two commentary, Lucas says that the person responsible for deleting Kamino from the archives would be revealed in the next movie. And? Not a gawddang thing. No mention of Kamino, the missing records, or even Sifo-Dyas. But at least he remembered to put more rocks in front of R2-D2 for the BluRay edition of Episode Four.

 

[cboath]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

We were also supposed to get an explanation for saber colors, too.

As it is now, we're stuck with, green came into existence because Luke's saber looked bad blue against the arizona sky during the skiff fight and mace is purple because he asked for a different color so he could spot himself on screen.

 

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

This is a completely different creative process then how Lucas licensing handled the previous EU material, I don;t think you can really compare them. They have a story group dedicated to the task of creating one contiguous story. And they have already brought back some of the best EU authors like John Jackson Miller (Knight Errant, Kenobi). I wouldn't be surprised to see Zahn, Stackpole, Allston, Traviss all at some point be brought back in to write for STAR WARS.

They did some of that with several series, the whole (awful IMO) New Jedi Order (19 novels and several ebooks and short stories), Legacy of the Force, and Fate of the Jedi (both of the latter had 9 books). Yes, what they're talking about now would be one entire narrative, but I doubt it will keep crappy stories out. I really do hope they get Karen Traviss to come back because she was a really good writer. Maybe if they let her retcon the whole Mandalorian thing she'll change her mind.

Well Allston is dead, so that might be a tough one.

He'll be a ghost writer. *rimshot* Don't awwwww me, he'd think that was funny.

 

[RougeAvenger81]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Lucas left a lot of things unexplained and explained a lot of things that needed to be left alone. Like the Force itself. No reason to explain what it is. It's a mystical power that only few can possess and control. Some more then others. Instead we have Lucas explaining how little microscopic Metaclorians are what flows through everything and allow the force to be and that they decided to flow a little bit stronger through Anakin's mom so that Anakin could be a ***** baby. Bit ridiculous and unnecessary. Would have been better to leave it as a mystery and Anakin's dad was some Sith Lord from years ago and it was never known until he turned.

20 years after ROTS no one seems to know or believe in the Jedi or Sith or their "sorcerers ways" as stated in ANH. I can understand the Emporer trying to rid the galaxy of Jedi and their ways, but their "hokey religion" as Han put it would still be known to some extent and it's a large part of why Vadar and the Emporer were so feared. Can't just ignore it.

Sorry for the spelling. Spell check doesn't work on this computer and I was never that great at typing.

 

[rodneyfaile]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Lucas left a lot of things unexplained and explained a lot of things that needed to be left alone. Like the Force itself. No reason to explain what it is. It's a mystical power that only few can possess and control. Some more then others. Instead we have Lucas explaining how little microscopic Metaclorians are what flows through everything and allow the force to be and that they decided to flow a little bit stronger through Anakin's mom so that Anakin could be a ***** baby. Bit ridiculous and unnecessary. Would have been better to leave it as a mystery and Anakin's dad was some Sith Lord from years ago and it was never known until he turned.

The Jedi council was wrong about so many things, whose to say they weren't wrong about midichlorians too?

As others have said in multiple threads, I make these movies my own. I make my own canon. I'll take Darth Maul and Duel of the Fates, I'll leave behind midichlorians and jarjar.

 

[batguy]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

I have never understood the public's bad reaction to midichlorians. GL didn't explain the Force, he explained an indirect way of measuring a person's sensitivity to it. Big deal.

Is intelligence less special because we use I.Q. testing to measure it?

Is strength less special because we can measure it very well with weights?


If anything, I found the midichlorian thing made the Force more plausible within the super-hi-tech world of SW. It wasn't one of GL's best ideas in the PT but it wasn't anywhere near his worst either. It fails to ruin the Force for me.

 

[glunark]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Except it made it seem like all you would need is a blood transfusion from Anakin to become a jedi yourself.

 

[clancampbell]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Except it made it seem like all you would need is a blood transfusion from Anakin to become a jedi yourself.

Very true, (even though some of the novels will have you believe this is impossible...).....

Basically GL took something mystical, magical and semi religious and turned it into a banal biological nonsense....

Rich

 

[Bryancd]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Very true, (even though some of the novels will have you believe this is impossible...).....

Basically GL took something mystical, magical and semi religious and turned it into a banal biological nonsense....

Rich

Which he partially fixed in the Clone Wars.

 

[RougeAvenger81]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

I have never understood the public's bad reaction to midichlorians. GL didn't explain the Force, he explained an indirect way of measuring a person's sensitivity to it. Big deal.

Is intelligence less special because we use I.Q. testing to measure it?

Is strength less special because we can measure it very well with weights?


If anything, I found the midichlorian thing made the Force more plausible within the super-hi-tech world of SW. It wasn't one of GL's best ideas in the PT but it wasn't anywhere near his worst either. It fails to ruin the Force for me.

I guess my bad reaction to it isn't so much the idea of knowing where the force comes from, but how they went about it in a HUGELY religious way. The Virgin Mary and ***** references. The prophecy itself seemed out of no where. The fact that these organisims can just create a person in such a way. It didn't make sense and was not needed and done way over the top.

But speaking of transfering the force etc since it supposedly is measurable, it was done in Jedi Knights. (Yes, I know some don't like the video games as canon) But the main character was no longer force sensetive, went back to the temple eminating of the force, thrust himself in and was again a powerful Jedi. If it existed why wouldn't everyone try to find this? Or Jedi and Sith alike use it to grow even stronger in the force by using this Force Lazaris pit of sorts to get more Metachlorians?

 

[JD]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

So... accepting the Force is okay, but a virgin prophecy isn't?

Lucas has always cited Joseph Campbell... and as Campbell says: (a virgin birth happens in) "practically every mythology I know." To me, while it caught me off guard... it makes perfect sense with GL being a Campbell student and seeing Star Wars as modern myth.

It's also a bit why the new SW rumors are worrisome to me... SW should be about Vader, and these seem less about that cycle and more about what could be superfluous EU-type stuff that doesn't add to the overall saga. But, I'll wait and see...

 

[Edwardowan]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

wanted to transfer this fantastic genius verification of the stsormtrooper bucket being legit from the Star Wars Costumes and Props thread in case you don't bother to read up on the Star Wars Episode VII Stormtrooper Pics thread.

QUOTE=R5SB;3406224 :

A few days ago I posted this on another forum. Thought I'd share it here for those who are interested.

"Last night I tried to find the largest version of "the" helmet pic and after doing this I opened it in iPhoto. I wondered if the photo could possibly have any further secrets to reveal and I was quite surprised to find that it did!

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg610/R5SB/f659979097af7efee87e7f78630e06eb_zps8dff7ff9.jpg

http://i1246.photobucket.com/albums/gg610/R5SB/e41f15b27cb0b2d3cc3251a67133b4a0_zps1dff66a1.jpg

At first I wasn't sure where it had pointed me to but after zooming out I realised that it was Pinewood. The skylights in the roof seem to match the reflections in the helmet as well.

The date in May could suggest that whoever took the pic has left the production and now doesn't fear the reprisals quite as much. The reduced size of the file might suggest that the pic was emailed or texted off the phone (an Apple iPhone 5s).

If only I could just make out a little more detail in the picture itself....

 

[rodneyfaile]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Didn't Palpatine insinuate that he had something to do with Anakin's conception?

For me, a large part of Star Wars takes place in my own head. I always imagined Palpatine may have had a few offspring scattered around the galaxy, but Anakin was the one with the most potential.

 

[Edwardowan]

Re: Star Wars Episode VII

Didn't Palpatine insinuate that he had something to do with Anakin's conception?

For me, a large part of Star Wars takes place in my own head. I always imagined Palpatine may have had a few offspring scattered around the galaxy, but Anakin was the one with the most potential.

no, he told the story of Darth Plagueis the Wise who could manipulate the midichlorians to create life.. he subtly suggested that to plant the seed of confusion, doubt and intrigue into anakin (and the audience) for me I took it as truth because I don't like the idea of an immaculate conception for Anakin) I would have preferred that his mother had encountered Plagueis or Palpatine in the past. (but he did also say Plagueis taught his apprentice everything he knew... then he killed him in his sleep) this could be debatable because Plagueis could cheat death... but Palpatine states later to Vader that "To cheat death is the power only one has achieved, but if we work together, I know we can discover the secret."

so he was a habitual liar and manipulator so the story of Plagueis the Wise creating life via the force is a bit ambiguous