Last Tuesday brought us the fifth Fate of the Jedi novel, Christie Golden’s Allies, which no doubt means this is a bit late for the early adopters. But one thing is for sure: There’s a lot going on in this book, and the reaction is sure to be… Interesting. Head under the cut to vote, and watch for (possible) spoilers in the comments. Continue reading “Poll: What did you think of Fate of the Jedi: Allies?”
Roundup: Get ‘married’ at Celebration V, if you dare
The embarrassment squick strikes back. The second WTF moment of the runup to Celebration V has arrived… The Celebration Chapel. Yes, because going to a Star Wars convention just isn’t geeky enough, you can get a (not legally binding) “light side” or “dark side” wedding. Amusing in theory, but… Really? Seriously? That said, apparently I accidentally proposed to Mandy on Twitter earlier and was invited to photograph her other fake internet wedding, so… What? I’m not even sure anymore. Embrace the pain!
Panels. Shocker! There will be a collecting track! Okay, so it’s not shocking at all, since this has been pretty much the only track at the last couple of Celebrations. Sigh.
Guests. In addition to George Lucas, Carrie Fisher and the usual suspects, Ray Park (Darth Maul) and stunt coordinator Nick Gillard have been confirmed.
Don’t tell us the odds. The feds are predicting an “extremely active” hurricane season. Thought you should know.
Own The Clone Wars S2 in October
The second season of The Clone Wars is coming to DVD and Blu-Ray on October 26. Both versions will come with a 64-page production journal, and the Blu-Ray will feature another round of The Jedi Temple Archives.
Video: The Bechdel Test for women in movies
The Bechdel Test or Mo Movie Measure (misnamed as it may be) is a simple formula that tests three simple things in a movie: a) if there are (named) female characters and b) that they talk to each other about c) something other than a man.
Most movies fail this by a mile, including the lions share of the Star Wars saga.
I believe The Phantom Menace (Shmi and Padme) and Attack of the Clones (Padme and Queen Jamillia, Padme and Beru) may be the only Star Wars movies that pass the Bechdel test… Though perhaps barely, Anakin being a topic (but not a romantic one) in all three conversations I’m thinking of. Thoughts?
Out this week: Fate of the Jedi, Invasion, and Legacy
Head out to the bookstore today to pick up the fifth volume of Fate of the Jedi, Christie Golden’s Allies. Also on the shelves is Golden’s Star Wars debut and the second Fate of the Jedi novel, Omen in paperback.
It’s a good week for post-ROTJ comics as well, with Invasion – Rescues #1 and Legacy #48 headed for comic shops on Wednesday.
George Lucas coming to Celebration V
The Maker himself will make an appearance in Orlando – only his second ever at a Celebration event. Time and date are still to be determined, but you can expect one thing: Very long lines.
The Empire Strikes Back turns 30, officially
We’ve already covered a bunch of Empire Strikes Back anniversary stuff, but today is the actual day. Here’s more stuff to check out:
The sequel begins. Leigh Brackett’s first draft of the film surfaced on the internet last week, giving us an intriguing glimpse into the could-have-beens, including a “tender love scene” between Luke and Leia, Lando being a clone, and Darth Vader’s pet gargoyles. (If you just want the highlights, Geeks of Doom has a nice rundown.)
Visuals. Lucasfilm gave Maxim magazine some rare photos, and to save us classy broads from buying Maxim (err, sorry guys) they’re also on StarWars.com.
Disturbance. They also have a look back at the Emperor’s first appearance – including some seriously whacked-out concept art. Baron Harkonnen is totally jealous.
In other news…
- Sci Fi Wire’s Periodic Table of The Empire Strikes Back.
- The Beat calls Empire “the movie that made being a nerd cool.”
- Ars Technica’s Ben Kuchera: ESB is “one of the best science fiction films ever made.”
- LA Weekly was also on hand at Wednesday’s Empire screening, chatting up stars on the red carpet; KABC-TV nabbed video of Harrison Ford and Ewan McGregor, while the Los Angeles Times has Ford.
- It’s “Empire Strikes Back Night” at tonight’s Dodgers game.
- io9’s Marc Bernardin pegs ESB as the film that “introduced an entire generation of moviegoers to the notion of tragedy.”
- Empire is (shocker!) Underwire’s choice as the finest in the trilogy. They’re also giving away one of those new Hasbro At-ATs and counting down 30 reasons Empire still rules.
- There’s another iPhone app coming for me to suck at. ‘The Battle for Hoth’ should show up in the App Store soon – it isn’t there as I type this, but I did find a Christian heavy metal song. (If you’re dying for details, TFN published the press release.)
- Hoth is coming to The Old Republic.
See any more unique tributes to ESB today? Post them in the comments or tell me on Twitter (@clubjade) and I’ll get them in.
Harrison Ford speaks at the Empire 30th screening
Pablo reports from last night’s The Empire Strikes Back screening and Harrison Ford Q&A in Los Angeles.
Video: 1950’s The Empire Strikes Back
Light speeding towards you in 3-D! (via)
Star Wars to rule TV this weekend
Spike is taking the original trilogy for a go-round beginning Saturday, while Fox will air Family Guy’s ‘Something, Something, Something Dark Side’ as the show’s finale Sunday night. (I doubt it’s worth missing the Lost finale, but I suppose people will watch it anyway.)