Star Wars EU
- Thread starter Yevetha
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I read Zahn's first SW books, and more or less kept up with the EU until the end of NJO. But since then have stayed away from the EU. It all started to seem regurgitated and the same at some point. New superweapon, new bad guy, same old same old.
So my question, has the EU done anything particularly creative or original in the past five or ten years? Something to bring a lapsed EU fan back into the fold?
So my question, has the EU done anything particularly creative or original in the past five or ten years? Something to bring a lapsed EU fan back into the fold?
Well...
Jacen Solo was seduced by the dark side, becoming Sith Lord Darth Cadus. He killed Luke's wife Mara before being put down by his sister Jaina.
Only because one of the writers really hated Zahn's guts and wanted to undo all his stuff.
Since the Bantam Era (1991 to 1999), the books have really moved the story forward and made it one huge epic rather than a series of standalone stories. I love following this story. I just finished "Fate of the Jedi" and it had a much better finale than "Legacy of the Force".
I really hated that storyline. I didn't hate the idea of Jacen going dark side, just the execution of it, especially in Troy Denning's three books. There was zero subtlety to Jacen in any of Denning's entries, he quickly turned into a (metaphorical) mustache-twirling caricature. He even wore a cape, Vader-style!
I also think that killing Jacen off was a gigantic waste. If it were up to me, I would have had Jaina cut Jacen off from the Force, just as Nomi Sunrider did to Ulic Qel-Droma in the Tales of the Jedi comics. Not only would that have saved the character for future use, it also would have created the potential for some pretty interesting character development in future books.
I also think that killing Jacen off was a gigantic waste. If it were up to me, I would have had Jaina cut Jacen off from the Force, just as Nomi Sunrider did to Ulic Qel-Droma in the Tales of the Jedi comics. Not only would that have saved the character for future use, it also would have created the potential for some pretty interesting character development in future books.
I'm currently reading Darth Plegueis by James Luceno. I wish the entire EU was this well written and interesting.
Loved the Legacy comic and I miss it. Even though the same creative team is doing the new Dawn of the Jedi series, none of the characters so far have clicked with me yet. I might still be in Legacy withdrawal, though.
Agreed.
SPOILERS FOLLOW. I found my enjoyment of it decreased somewhat as it went on. In other words, if you look at it as though it conforms to the stereotypical "three act" format, I felt the third act was the weakest, depending mostly on setting up TPM ad nauseam, while I felt the first portion was the strongest. It also disappointed me in its treatment of certain plot points - namely lightning and Anakin's conception - though in each case the end result allowed for a certain amount of ambiguity if analyzed closely enough. However, as is normally the case with Luceno, the external dark side is alive and well in the book, continuing to undermine the popular revisionism of the Traitor era; in fact, the dark side is said to have a will. Also, those who have believed since 2005 that Palpatine's account of Plagueis' abilities in ROTS was complete B.S. have been firmly proven wrong, at least as far as C-canon is concerned.
( Because of Luceno's arguably unnecessary retcons, it's now partially B.S., but I'm mainly referring to the claim that Plagueis could save others from death, which the book has confirmed as truth. )
Do we know what Del Ray is planning for the novels yet? They had the big meeting along with Dark Horse at Skywalker Ranch last winter to discuss the future but haven't read any kind of announcements yet. I haven't been excited about the post NJO era in a long while.
I hope they go back to doing smaller stories. After the lenghty Legacy and Fate series they really need to start doing single books, dulogies and the ocassional trilogy. I'm tired of these 9 book series. I'm still reading Fate of the Jedi and am thinking of stopping and waiting for the final novel to come out in paperback because it's going real slowly so sloooooooooowly...makes me sleepy...
I stopped reading Fate of the Jedi after book two.
Yevetha
Commodore
Kotor Comics( about a bumbling padawan's journey to bring down a secretive cabal within the jedi order) and Knight Errant(set during the New Sith Wars in Sith Space where a lone jedi tries to make people's lif easier. The people in sith space were enslaved for generations so it won't be easy) comics along a book by John Jackson Miller, Legacy comics featuring a late Skywalker descendant, Matt Stover Luke Skywalker and The Shadows of Mindor( a book about the bettle in which Luke renonced his title as general),Dart Plaguies book, Swtor(Fantastic MMO with top notch voice acting set after Kotor 2 by a couple of hundred years), Revan(Finally a book about his fate), Star Wars invasion comics by Tom Taylor (The series covers the story of the Yuuzhan Vong War by focusing on the Galfridian family, the royal family from the peaceful world of Artorias, one of the first to fall under the Yuuzhan Vong invasion, which resulted in its entire population being evacuated, enslaved, or killed. A young man named Finn Galfridian is set on the Jedi path by Luke Skywalker, while things for his sister Kaye Galfridian and the rest of the family "don’t go so well." Many characters from The New Jedi Order series, such as Luke Skywalker, Jaina Solo and Jacen Solo are also featured in the series.[1]), Blood Ties a great Boba fett story by the same author. We also the Esential Atlas and the Essential Guide to Warfare which are two wonderfull guides.
I see where you're coming from. Legacy was excellent, but so far, I've followed Dawn of the Jedi with some excitement. It hasn't started out as spectacular as Legacy to be sure, but they seem to be building the conflict slowly this time. But it's only been three issues. I have faith that it'll also turn out to be a highlight.
Meanwhile, I've gotten all the NJO audiobooks. Am now up to Destiny's Way, which is book 14, but so far none have matched the power of the first one, Vector Prime.
And then of course, SWTOR is also a rather significant entry into the EU, I'd say. It's killing a lot of my time right now, and I love it.
As interesting as some of those titles referenced are, I don't think that is what C.E. Evans meant. I don't know if anything in the last ten or fifteen years would be considered "original or creative". "Star Wars: Legacy" might fit that criteria the most IMO.
Aside from the odd novel and the reference stuff (Jedi Path, Book of the Sith, and the Essential Guides) and Legacy I've not been excited about the direction the EU has been going in for a long time. Really since the NJO concluded.
Aside from the odd novel and the reference stuff (Jedi Path, Book of the Sith, and the Essential Guides) and Legacy I've not been excited about the direction the EU has been going in for a long time. Really since the NJO concluded.
"Fate of the Jedi" definitely started weak, but I felt it ended really strong. The later books were actually quite good and I really enjoyed the villains of the piece. They definitely spun their wheels too much in the beginning, though. Book 2 barely had a reason for existing and should have been consolidated into 1 and 3. I did love that the series finally dealt with the one great unanswered question about the Star Wars universe.
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