Club Jade

Del Rey brought plenty to the table for Celebration, but the biggest EU news is without a doubt the reveal that Aaron Allston will be writing a brand-new Wraith Squadron novel. It’s too early for details, but expect a spring/summer 2012 release date.

We also learned that Thrawn will appear in Zahn’s Hand of Judgment, Drew Karpyshyn will be writing a third Old Republic novel, Jeff Grubb’s 2012 paperback will feature Hutts, and Han Solo will appear in the Dash Rendar/Holostar novel. And TFN reports that something is in the works for the 20th anniversary of Heir to the Empire, to which I say: Damn straight.

As for Fate of the Jedi, we learned that the final book will be titled Apocalypse. Cheery! Also addressed was the heightening of drama, Vestara’s role, and (sigh) the whole Jacen/Tahiri thing. Except, not really. (I do love the Mando quote, of course.)

Meanwhile, the comic fans got a surprise of their own: Crimson Empire III is a go, for real this time. The 6-issue series will begin in March with Mike Richardson and Randy Stradley scripting and Dave Dorman on covers.

Knight Errant got a big push, complete with a costumed representation, but if the EUC report is anything to go by it’s too soon for much of a reveal.

As for Legacy, there are currently no plans for anything after the War mini – Ostrander and Duursema will “will be working on something entirely different.”

The rest of the news rehashes much we’ve already heard, but a hardcover edition of Dark Empire will commemorate the comic’s twentieth anniversary. And the return of Dark Horse Presents may yield some Tales-like stories.

Also getting some love at the con (but not enough for their own entry) was The Force Unleashed (Yoda? Really? That Muppet needs a better agent.) and The Old Republic.

StarWars.com has posted their panel guide for book and comic fans. (Looks like we’re going to be cutting it pretty close between Del Rey and FOTJ on Saturday.) And don’t forget the author signings!

The last issue of the Legacy ongoing series will be coming out later this month, but MTV has broken the news that John Ostrander and Jan Duursema will continue the popular storyline in Legacy: War. The six-issue miniseries is due to begin in December.

But is it the end? Looks like that’s up to us:

“Legacy—War” stands alone. I’m making no guarantees that anyone will survive the end of it. That’s usually hype, but readers should take that very very seriously. Could there be a successor? Depends on sales, response, and Dark Horse’s plans. However, Jan and I are taking all the stops out in this story. There are no plans for anything “Legacy” after this. That’s how we’re creating it.

StarWars.com has the full cover for issue #1. Looks like we’ve got our hot EU topic for Celebration!

Boy, was I shocked when I looked at the shipping list: Three comics and a trade! It’s like Christmas! Assuming you read the comics, anyway. Headlining on Wednesday will be Legacy #49, the penultimate issue. Bringing up the rear are Invasion: Rescues #2 and Dark Times #17 and the ninth Legacy collection, ‘Monster’.

Legacy. Comic Book Resources interviews John Ostrander and Jan Duursema about the series as it winds down to the final issue.

Fate of the Jedi. Allies has made #8 on the New York Times and Publisher’s Weekly bestseller lists.

Kemp is a busy dude. Crosscurrent author Paul S. Kemp is interviewed at EU Cantina and reveals the dramatis personae for his Old Republic novel, Deceived.

Sorry, no photoshop today. Pablo Hidalgo has another book coming: a Scholastic guide to Lightsabers.

Gaming annex. The box art for The Force Unleashed II. Starkiller is pissed that Vader is invading his senior portrait!

…What? The Insider has an advertising campaign. Try not to giggle.

From web to print. The Clone Wars webcomics from Pablo Hidalgo and a revolving crew of artists (Jeff Carlisle, Katie Cook, Grant Gould and Tom Hodges) will be available in a trade paperback collection in time for August’s Celebration V. StarWars.com has a first look at the book, which also contains concept art, development sketches and a forward by Dave Filoni.

Nonfiction: Sue Rostoni says that Generation Star Wars, the fandom-centric book by Bonnie Burton, Mary Franklin, and Pete Vilmur has been put on hold “to develop the concept and content.”

Comics. The cupboard is bare for Dark Horse’s August 2010 comic solicitations. (Any chance they’ll launch something I’d actually want to read in the next year?) More hopeful, at least theoretically, are the previews for Invasion: Rescues #1 and Legacy #48.

Finish him. The last of StarWars.com’s Head to Head previews is up… And the book should be out.

Per usual, it’s feast or famine for our new releases, and this week there are plenty of choices – even if only two of them are new. First up on Tuesday is the paperback release of Aaron Allston’s Fate of the Jedi: Outcast, the first book of the latest series. (I hear we might get the new Lost Tribe of the Sith – aka an Allies excerpt – today as well.)

Comic fans aren’t left hungry, either, with Legacy #47 and Invasion: Refugees, the first trade collection of the New Jedi Order comic series.

And last but… Okay, just last, there’s the latest Star Wars Insider.

Seems to me that the knee-jerking over the Legacy cancellation was transfered over to the weekend’s cartoon news, but for those still panicking, Dark Horse’s Randy Stradley has come through with a statement. Yes, the book is ending, but…

No door closes without another opening, and to those longtime readers who pointed out that it was not likely that I would end Legacy without having some replacement planned, I thank you for your confidence. Trust me, it will be rewarded.

Well, I’m intrigued.

So sayth the July 2010 comics solicitations. Here’s the summary for the finale:

The galaxy is teetering on the edge of a new future, with everyone fighting for a foothold — not to mention their lives! The galaxy that emerges from this chaotic battle could even end up without a Skywalker to carry the legacy that so many have come to depend on… The final issue! Sith versus Sith! Jedi versus Sith! Imperials versus Sith! Cade Skywalker versus Sith! It’s all-out war!

I’m neither surprised nor particularly heartbroken. Legacy started out strong, and it’s still likely to be the only Dark Horse ongoing series that I actually have enough interest in to read completely, but it feels like it (or rather, one Cade Skywalker) has been stuck in a rut for a good long while. Maybe a big, booming wrap up is just what the comic needs to live up to its early promise.

It does seem odd that the first we hear of this is via the solicitations, though… Particularly considering that writer John Ostrander said in October that Legacy would not be ending with #50.

UPDATE: Ostrander says on the Dark Horse boards: “It was true when I said it. And might still be. . .from a certain point of view.” So hold to this, Legacy fans: The series ending doesn’t necessarily mean that the story will.

Randy Stradley and company are in San Francisco for Wondercon, and naturally Star Wars came up. Randy talked extensively about the next Invasion arc, and had this to say about Legacy:

Stradley noted that the recent issues of “Star Wars: Legacy” have brought readers to the “tipping point” where Cade Skywalker puts aside his life as a bounty hunter to fight the Sith. “In the next few months, you’re going to see how that comes together, and really how his involvement spurs so much that happens in the galaxy. I don’t even want to get into all the stuff that’s going on. But we’ve got a big surprise coming, and if you thought the end of the current issue was a big surprise, then you really haven’t seen anything yet.”

Hrm. I have yet to pick up the new issue, but the series is in dire need of a serious game-changer for Cade. Bring it on!