Star Wars with occasional sarcasm
Back in February we heard that Ryder Windham was writing another character ‘bio’ for Scholastic, and today brings details from StarWars.com – the title is A New Hope: The Life of Luke Skywalker. Above, the slipcase and cover art.
Windham has previously written The Life and Legend of Obi-Wan Kenobi and The Rise and Fall of Darth Vader.
Everything comics at StarWars.com today. Firstly, the Invasion preview is up and running. Secondly, the August 2009 comic solicitations, including Invasion #2 (of 5?!?) The Clone Wars #8, Dark Times #16, Knights of the Old Republic #44, and Legacy #39.
First look: StarWars.com gives us a peek at The Art of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. I continue to wince at the appropriation of McQuarrie art in the name of designs based on those awful puppets. (Not that people were exactly Ralph’s greatest either, but if one must choose…) Your mileage may vary, but this is probably one Art of I’ll be sitting out for.
The first part of Invasion will be appearing on StarWars.com May 8. Are you ready for a return to the NJO?
No, cheesy franchise books are not generally up for awards. You know why? Because they’re cheesy franchise books, and let’s not even pretend that their burger-flipping reputation is entirely undeserved. Face it, guys: For every Traitor, there are a half-dozen Darksabers. (I’ve paid for most of them. In hardcover.) And half the time, particularly in this franchise, the subtleties of Great Book Z might not work for a reader who lacks extensive knowledge of Crappy Trilogies X and Y.
I’m not even saying that genre award winners are necessarily great literature (I’ve been bored to tears by at least as many as I’ve enjoyed; Pretty much the same as Star Wars, come to think of it) but it’s an entirely different kind of playing field.
And lest we forget, hardcore fans of the sort that inhabit TFN’s Lit forum are not exactly the most unbiased of creatures.
By the by, the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers have their own awards, and Karen Miller is currently up for one for Wild Space.
There’s a Star Wars comic this year (okay, okay, so it’s a Clone Wars) and everything, plus some folks doing signings. You know the drill.
I would recommend trying out some Vertigo trades as well: Sandman, Fables and Y: The Last Man are good bets, though not exactly for kids.
I just got back from the comic store and just realized that I forgot to pick up Star Wars Adventures. Curses! I guess that’s half the excuse I need to go back for Free Comic Book Day.
But my real point here is that Dark Horse has come through with three – count ’em – three previews: Legacy #36, Knights of the Old Republic #41, and The Clone Wars #6.
And for the Brits, here’s a peek at The Clone Wars UK Comic #5.7.
Mara on the back cover of Abyss? Okay! Let’s not forget she is mentioned in the (spoilery!) blurb.
Dash Rendar. Dash Rendar? The forgettable Han Solo stand-in from Shadows of the Empire? Umm… Well, at least it’s unexpected?
UPDATE: Bioware has lifted the topic ban and Dahlberg has apologized. And Penny Arcade weighs in.
So, the latest kerfuffle in the saga of gays in Star Wars comes out of Bioware’s forums, where community manager Sean Dahlberg shut down a discussion of possible gay and lesbian relationships in The Old Republic with the phrase:
As I have stated before, these are terms that do not exist in Star Wars.
Thread closed.
Well, as any crazy obsessed EU fan will tell you… He’s half right. In recent years, Star Wars has played host to a single gay couple – Goran Beviin and Medrit Vasur in Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice – but they’re fairly easy to overlook if your eyes glaze over at the very mention of Mandalorians. And the terminology ‘gay’ or ‘homosexual’ is never used: One point for Dahlberg. They’re just there, without comment, just like any other couple. (Which is as it should be, IMO.) Though as subtle as it was, the inclusion still proved controversial in the fandom.
Of course, the real issue here: Will this message board mishap continue to get play in the blogs? Will that prompt Lucasfilm to finally up and address the issue of homosexuality in the GFFA? It’s not going to be a fun time for the message board moderators either way.