Club Jade

When asked for his take on the Expanded Universe’s use of the themes he introduced in Traitor, this is what he had to say.

…due to my privileged position as a Star Wars novelist, my opinion would be given more weight by the fans than it actually deserves — it would tend to tip the perceptions of, at least, my particular fans, and even others would be tempted to end arguments with “Well, Matt Stover says . . .” I’ve decided I just have to keep it to myself.

Yes, some fans will angst at not having that clarification/ammunition, but hats off to you, Mr. Stover.

For the third (final?) look at Japanese book covers, StarWars.com features the Clone Wars, Dark Nest, Jedi Quest and Last of the Jedi series.

The Japanese cover of The Joiner King makes me think dirty things about one of Solo brats. I don’t think I can forgive that, Japan. (And can we please drop Luke’s Gordon Gecko hair already?)

Latest audiocast (Hyperspace members only) is a look at Star Wars publishing and an interview with Troy Denning.

Mostly it’s a short interview by Jacob Bronstein, executive producer of SW audiobooks, with a few clips from the Dark Nest audiobooks.

Troy talks at length about the Killiks – from inspiration to whether he’s really a bug-lover; putting characters in mortal danger (surprise suprise, he enjoys it;) and who he considers the coolest characters. (The answer may surprise you.)

Overall, the interview was interesting enough. I could really have done without the audiobook clips, though. I can’t stand the things: they get way too melodramatic, and the heavy descriptive passages read outloud are… vexing. I don’t know if this series will be worth getting Hyperspace for, but if you have it already, it can’t hurt to try. Especially if you have a much higher audiobook tolerance than me.

Imadra_blue ponders fan fiction and fandom thinking and the two great loves of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s life. She also considers Anakin/Obi-Wan, canon, and believability, an issue Shoiryu has some thoughts on as well.

Pablo mocks the masses with 1977 Blog Titles. If you actually read blogs.starwars.com, this is hilarious. On a more serious note, annotations to week 3 of the Rookies webstrip. Paul joins in on the webstrip action with a update on Evasive Action #3.

Another interesting VIP blog: Dan Wallace on the never-published Clone Wars Sourcebook.

Rabidfangurl rants on fanfic and fandom. To which I say, hell yeah. Fangirl beatdown posse meets on Tuesday.

The Dark Moose considers Star Wars… with lawyers. Been there, done that.

Rive Caedo on returning to the roots of Star Wars. On a similar note, 101 Reasons Firefly is better than Star Wars! Funny because it’s true. Or not. Your choice.

Lazypadawan has a ‘fair and balanced’ review of Outbound Flight. It looks like she subscribes to the theory that every second Zahn character is a Mary Sue, but I found most of her points pretty on target. (I myself have harbored Suerific thoughts re: Thrawn and VOTF Mara, so to each their own.) EU fans may also be interested in Suzanne’s overview of the Dark Nest trilogy.

A thread on Jacen Solo’s behavior in the Dark Nest trilogy makes Fandom Wank. Bless Narcissam and the anonymice for making it through all this, because I’m getting a headache just reading the digest version.

Inner Bitch watches the entire saga (in release order) and is more than a little surprised.

Halagard takes a look at what the Expanded Universe might look like if it started after the release of the prequels.

Meanwhile, Jeff Dillon of The Disembodied Brain picks up The Joiner King and The Unseen Queen. He’s not impressed.

Shoiryu slashes out for a bit, but calms down for a nice discussion of the Master and Padawan attachment.

A short thread on Padme as Anakin’s anima breeds an entire community devoted to the subject. Neat!

In the realm of blogs.starwars.com, there’s a new multiblog for Official Star Wars artists.

The official site reveals The Swarm War cover and blurb for those without Hyperspace.

Likewise of interest to EU fans is the current featured blog: Abel G. Peña’s Only Sith Deal in Absolutes.

ETA: Random House has posted an excerpt from Dark Nest I: The Joiner King.

Next issue of Star Wars Insider will feature their Top 20 EU Moments. I expect there will be quite a bit of debate once this is released, but it’s always nice to see the books get some Insider page space.

Comic-Con 2005 is currently in progress in California, and there have been some hints that Jonathan Rinzler has an unfinished copy of The Swarm War cover. No guarantees, but attendees might get a peak. In the meantime, there’s plenty of other SW goodness going on in San Deigo.

Lucasfilm’s Sue Rostoni has started a starwars.com blog, where she has posted that Elizabeth Hand’s 2007 Old Republic novel has been canceled. No word on what will replace it, but fear not, there’s still one OR book in the queue – Drew Karpyshyn’s Darth Bane novel. Which I suspect is the one we’re all more interested in anyway. ;)

(More EU VIP blogs can be found in starwars.com’s listing of all the latest VIP posts.)

Another interesting post found in the starwars.com blogs is Ithorian Guy on The Mystery of the Whills. He obviously knows his stuff, and the entry came to my attention via a message board post by LFL’s Leland Chee, so you know he’s gotta be onto something.

And finally, starwars.com posted the October 2005 comics yesterday – previews of Empire #38, X-wing — Rogue Leader #2, Republic #83, and Clone Wars Volume 7, which collects the Obsession arc.

The cover of the second Dark Nest book, The Unseen Queen, has finally been released for real. And naturally, jacket copy:

Despite being given new worlds to populate, the insectoid Killiks have not found peace. An unknown enemy has been attacking the new nests — and the Killiks hold the Jedi responsible. Traveling back to the Unknown Regions to unravel the mystery, the Skywalkers and Solos discover an evil far more familiar than they ever expected… and even more terrifying. Why does the Dark Nest want to kill Mara? Will Jacen’s apocalyptic vision trigger another galactic war or prevent one? And perhaps most ominous of all, what deadly secret are the Killik’s hiding?

To find out, Luke, Mara, Han and Leia must embark on a perilous journey into the uncharted void between right and wrong. The ferocious Unknown Terrors are only the beginning of the awesome challenges that lie ahead in their quest to fathom the unfathomable. For an obscure dispute is about to explode into chaos, pitting Jedi against Jedi — and threatening the very galaxy itself.

As an added bonus, you can see the final cover of Dark Lord as well.