Star Wars Books Thread

[Reverend]

What did you think of them? They're still my favorite SW books, overall, but I first read them as a young teenager, so I'm curious to know if they hold up for an adult.

I thought they held up reasonably well, though if I'm honest I really only enjoyed the first three or four books that featured Rogue Squadron & Corrin Horn. I liked how told a cohesive Top Gun/Band of Brothers style military story against the backdrop of the last days of the war against the Empire and the retaking of Coruscant for the Republic. It's somewhat undermined and trivialised by what happened else where in the EU ('Dark Empire' especially) but taken on it's own merits it's a good story, well told and with a strong cast that doesn't depend on the original cast to hold one's attention.

Not such a big fan of the later Wraith Squadron books sadly, which for some reason just didn't grab me. The new cast struck me as rather bland and less memorable overall, with the the super-intelligent talking Gamorrean being something of a low point. I mean "Piggy"? Come on!

That aside, I suppose on some level I felt like there were dangling plot threads and character arcs from the earlier books I would rather the new author had not dropped which made starting over from scratch seem something of a chore.

 

[Tuskin38]

Sorry if this was already posted, but the Thrawn novel has a blurb now

After Thrawn is rescued from exile by Imperial soldiers, his deadly ingenuity and keen tactical abilities swiftly capture the attention of Emperor Palpatine. And just as quickly, Thrawn proves to be as indispensable to the Empire as he is ambitious; as devoted as its most loyal servant, Darth Vader; and a brilliant warrior never to be underestimated. On missions to rout smugglers, snare spies, and defeat pirates, he triumphs time and again—even as his renegade methods infuriate superiors while inspiring ever greater admiration from the Empire. As one promotion follows another in his rapid ascension to greater power, he schools his trusted aide, Ensign Eli Vanto, in the arts of combat and leadership, and the secrets of claiming victory. But even though Thrawn dominates the battlefield, he has much to learn in the arena of politics where ruthless administrator Arihnda Pryce holds the power to be a potent ally or a brutal enemy.

All these lessons will be put to the ultimate test when Thrawn rises to admiral—and must pit all the knowledge, instincts, and battle forces at his command against an insurgent uprising that threatens not only innocent lives but also the Empire's grip on the galaxy—and his own carefully laid plans for future ascendancy

 

[WebLurker]

Sorry if this was already posted, but the Thrawn novel has a blurb now

Not sure if I like the idea of him still being exiled from another culture. I kind of think that making the Chiss a member world or something would fit the setting a little bit better, but whatever.

 

[Ithekro]

I watched the introducing Agent Kallus video again the other day. When showing the costume ideas, there was one where he was a Chiss, so they did think about bringing that species back unto thing right from the early days of Star Wars: Rebels.

 

[Set Harth]

They always do that kind of thing. Chiss around before anyone knew about Chiss. Vaapad before Vaapad was invented. Et cetera. People not doing their homework.

 

[kirk55555]

Interesting Thrawn blurb. I'm glad they kept him as an exile, and (presumably) the Chiss as a species outside the empire/Old Repulbic. No need to mess with good stuff that still easily worked in the new canon. Him fighting with an Administrator sounds like TPM level of boring political story, so hopefully its not that big a part of the book. I also don' know why he needs to be training an aide. Still, the book could have potential. Its really the only SW book I'm excited for this year, so hopefully its good.

 

[Reverend]

I watched the introducing Agent Kallus video again the other day. When showing the costume ideas, there was one where he was a Chiss, so they did think about bringing that species back unto thing right from the early days of Star Wars: Rebels.

As I understand it, that single concept was the extent of their thoughts on the subject of bringing the Chiss into canon.

Of course as they've frequently demonstrated, they're more than willing to incorporate such inconsequential (and I mean that in the literal sense) elements from old novels, comics, video games, RPGs, even the Ewok movies where they make sense and would add something interesting to the story. It's a big galaxy and when all's said and done this kind of thing is mostly just harmless window dressing.

The only stuff they're learly about is that which touches on the core narrative of the saga and/or affects some of the fundamental lore of the galaxy. Like say the nature of the force, the history of the Jedi, Sith, Republic etc.

 

[JD]

Sounds like they're keeping his basic backstory the same, which I like. If they're going to use a character like him they might as well keep as many elements of the Legends version as they possibly can.

 

[publiusr]

The question is, with the Jedi gone. the last of the Jedi turned to serve the Dark Side...what would Palpatine do? He had to have had a plan for all this.

I have this theory that he was the chosen one. The Force sought to protect itself from the Vong--and he put the whole of the galaxy on a wartime footing.

If I were loyal to the Empire, I might try to get rid of Sith and Jedi alike. No more toying with Jedi and trying to get them to convert--no letting Thrawn play the long game. Slag everything.

"Rove your assigned airspace and kill the enemy. Everything else is rubbish."
Manfred von Richthofen

That's Hux. (Thomas Huxley)--Force Atheist?

Yeah, I'm sorry to all the people that thought the Vong were a good idea (they weren't!) but the suggestion that the "real" reason Palpatine did everything he did was to save the galaxy from H.R. Higer S&M space-vampires just betrays a fundamental lack of understanding of what's at the core of the whole saga, not to mention what defines Palpatine as a character.

Could they still be adapted into canon? In another form, sure! The design and concept of interstellar nomads from beyond known space is a sound one, but all that crap about existing outside the force and being this neigh unstoppable force can just go bye-bye.

But there is no need to do all he did--which literally gave us a return of the Jedi, and a strong galaxy.

You want something shocking. The idea of Palpatine as the Chosen One would be very shocking to many--a secret that must be covered up. Everything being a lie. That can be powerful stuff.

He has to be more than some cackling figure.

Think of the DS9 episode "Duet" it was easily one of the most powerful episodes of trek.

Just a suggestion. Read Borges' Three Versions of Judas.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Versions_of_Judas

 

[Tuskin38]

As I understand it, that single concept was the extent of their thoughts on the subject of bringing the Chiss into canon.

They'd been thinking of Thrawn since season 1 actually, but they decided against brining in a big name that early.

The Chiss were canon before Thrawn showed up, one showed up in the Star Wars: Commander mobile game.

 

[Reverend]

They'd been thinking of Thrawn since season 1 actually, but they decided against brining in a big name that early.

The Chiss were canon before Thrawn showed up, one showed up in the Star Wars: Commander mobile game.

The character yeah, but what I was responding to was the notion of the Chiss species in general being canonised.

Also, I don't care what Wookiepedia editors say, I'm not taking my cues as to what's going on in canon from a damn mobile game. Indeed, I think I read somewhere one of those things recently brought in Darth Nihilus and there's no way *that's* been made canon, especially not via a micro-transaction delivery system.

 

[Tuskin38]

The character yeah, but what I was responding to was the notion of the Chiss species in general being canonised.

Also, I don't care what Wookiepedia editors say, I'm not taking my cues as to what's going on in canon from a damn mobile game. Indeed, I think I read somewhere one of those things recently brought in Darth Nihilus and there's no way *that's* been made canon, especially not via a micro-transaction delivery system.

The Databank on the official website makes references characters from the Commander mobile game.

http://www.starwars.com/databank/kekit

I'd say that makes it canon.

The other mobile game you reference, the one with Nihilus, isn't canon.

 

[Reverend]

The Databank on the official website makes references characters from the Commander mobile game.

http://www.starwars.com/databank/kekit

I'd say that makes it canon.

You can say what you like mate, that's your prerogative. Personally, I'd rather exercise a little common sense.
To be clear though, I'm not saying these things are or are not canon, I'm just not going to hold them to something that crops up first in an ancillary product like a mobile game anymore than I would for a trading card, a board game, a t-shirt or a colouring book. Again: commons sense.

 

[WebLurker]

You can say what you like mate, that's your prerogative. Personally, I'd rather exercise a little common sense.
To be clear though, I'm not saying these things are or are not canon, I'm just not going to hold them to something that crops up first in an ancillary product like a mobile game anymore than I would for a trading card, a board game, a t-shirt or a colouring book. Again: commons sense.

Common sense is that the people creating the franchise make the rules, and if that means that a little app game influences the greater franchise, that's how it goes. (Incidentally, as I understand it, most of the games run on the assumption that the elements and information are canon, even if the campaigns are not. Case in point, the Undead Troopers happened, but we don't really know how their outbreak took place.)

 

[Reverend]

Common sense is that the people creating the franchise make the rules, and if that means that a little app game influences the greater franchise, that's how it goes. (Incidentally, as I understand it, most of the games run on the assumption that the elements and information are canon, even if the campaigns are not. Case in point, the Undead Troopers happened, but we don't really know how their outbreak took place.)

Yet again: I very specifically didn't say that it wasn't intended to be canon material. Just that I'm not going hold them to it if it ends up getting contradicted or presume that if some EU tidbit shows up there, it has any serious bearing on what direction the rest of the franchise may be heading.

 

[WebLurker]

Yet again: I very specifically didn't say that it wasn't intended to be canon material. Just that I'm not going hold them to it if it ends up getting contradicted or presume that if some EU tidbit shows up there, it has any serious bearing on what direction the rest of the franchise may be heading.

What if they hold themselves to it?

 

[Reverend]

What if they hold themselves to it?

Well that's their prerogative, no?

 

[Set Harth]

Also, I don't care what Wookiepedia editors say, I'm not taking my cues as to what's going on in canon from a damn mobile game.

But I thought "everything is equally canon now". That didn't last long.

Just that I'm not going hold them to it if it ends up getting contradicted

Canon until contradicted... now that rings a bell. I know I've heard of that sort of thing before, but I think it was suggested that anyone supporting it didn't know what they were talking about.

 

[WebLurker]

But I thought "everything is equally canon now". That didn't last long.

Actually, it hasn't stopped. Excusing a few parody stuff (Lego projects and what not) and other things that aren't designed to tell a canonical story (like the Battlefront video game), LucasFilm has been sticking to policy.

Canon until contradicted... now that rings a bell. I know I've heard of that sort of thing before, but I think it was suggested that anyone supporting it didn't know what they were talking about.

That was Legends, not reboot continuity. Keep your canons straight, man!

 

[Tuskin38]

The Ships/weapons/gear in Battlefront are canon. It's how the battles are portrayed and other mechanics that are not canon.