The Thrawn trilogy getting new cover art in the fall

heir-to-the-empire-legendsJedi Bibliothek noted a listing saying that Timothy Zahn’s original Thrawn trilogy – Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, and The Last Command – will be getting new cover art in the fall. (The listing may only be visible to logged-in users – here’s a screenshot.) The new art hasn’t been revealed, but it certainly makes sense to give them a refresh, particularly given that this information appears in a listing for Zahn’s upcoming Thrawn novel. The new book will be canon and tied to the character’s Rebels appearance, but his Legends origins aren’t exactly a secret.

In short: Whatever the covers are, expect Grand Admiral Thrawn to be much more prominent. (And will we finally see ‘The Thrawn Trilogy’ as an official designation?) Which has apparently already happened, my bad.

The current cover art has been the same – with occasional design and typography tweaks like the Legends banner – since the books were released in the early 90’s. A 2011 anniversary edition of Heir introduced a more graphical look, but proved to be a one-off.

The editions with the new art are due out on September 27, but will maintain their current ISBNs and may be slow to find as stores restock.

Personally, I’m happy to see the Thrawn books get a cover update – the old ones are extremely dated and among the worst covers of the old Expanded Universe – a real pity considering the novels themselves are among the best of Legends. Bring on the new look! (Perhaps something in the vein of the Brazilian covers?)

Video: Star Wars publishing panel at SDCC


With most of the book news (for our purposes) dropping at Celebration – the authors of Catalyst and the Rogue One novelization and Thrawn – the SDCC panel was fairly light on news, but there was plenty of discussion.

There were two cover reveals, though: The Art of Rogue One and the back cover of Aftermath: Empire’s End, which you can see below.

The Art of cover was shared by StarWars.com today. You can also get a closer look at the Thrawn art at Two Dots’ Behance page.

Rumor: Alden Ehrenreich signed for 3 films

alden-ehrenreich-swce16The New York Daily News today reports that future Han Solo Alden Ehrenreich is signed for “at least” three films. With the Han movie supposed to be a standalone, this raises a few questions. But we should also note that multi-picture deals are fairly common among large franchises like Star Wars.

I doubt, for instance, that there are any solid plans for an actual Han-focused trilogy. But what if the third (or fourth, or fifth…) standalone turns out to be about, say, a young Lando Calrissian? It makes sense to sign your young Han actor now – just in case.

New Rogue One character revealed at SDCC

sdcc-two-tubes

Among the displays at the Star Wars pavilion at San Diego Comic-Con was the costume of a previously unseen Rogue One character, Edrio Two Tubes. Here are his details:

Edrio Two Tubes is a mercenary pilot who flies alongside his eggmate, Benthic. The two share the nickname derived from the breathing apparatus that allows their Tognath physiology to process oxygen atmospheres. Edrio’s home world Yar Togna was conquered and occupied by the Empire, forcing him to flee as a refugee. Desiring to strike back at the Empire, Edrio and Benthic have allied with Saw Gerrera.

Check out the rest of the Rogue One costumes at James’ Flickr.

Episode VIII wraps principal photography

viiiJust as the ancient scrolls predicted Mark Hamill told us a couple weeks ago, Episode VIII wrapped principal photography today. “Final slate of the final shot,” Director Rian Johnson said today of a video shared from the official Twitter and Facebook accounts. “VIII is officially wrapped. Thanks to the best cast and crew in the galaxy, and thanks to the fans for all the love and support through the whole process. Cannot wait to put it together and share it with you all! ”

Yes, this probably means there still isn’t a title.

SDCC: Jaina Solo wins fan figure vote; new Hera, Thrawn figures coming

Jaina

Despite early leads by Darth Talon and Starkiller, Jaina Solo won Hasbro’s 2016 fan choice figure poll. (Here’s the percentages just before the poll closed.)

Jaina, the oldest child and only daughter of Leia Organa and Han Solo in decanonized Legends timeline, has had at least one figure from Hasbro in the past, plus a Bishoujo-style statue from Kotobukiya. The new figure will take some time: The fruits of last year’s poll – Darth Revan and Sabine Wren – aren’t expected to hit the shelves until late this year.

Hasbro announced several new figures at SDCC, including a 6′ Hera Syndulla and an Imperial Royal Guard inspired in part by the (also Legends) comic Crimson Empire.

And getting a 3.75 figure, the newly canonized Grand Admiral Thrawn, who will appear in the upcoming third season of Rebels. (His rank will be correct on the final figure.)

Your Snoke Theory Sucks and other Celebration Europe catchup

Before you freak out on Pablo, here's what he said later: "Theorize all you want! It's cool! Just keep it out of my timeline."
Before you freak out on Pablo for having a sense of humor, here’s what he said later: “Theorize all you want! It’s cool! Just keep it out of my timeline.”
The ‘Your Snoke Theory Sucks’ sticker by the Steele Wars podcast seems to be quite the hit out of London last weekend, spotted in the hands of both Pablo Hidalgo and Rian Johnson. Steele Saunders even talked to Inverse about them, and why they proved to be so popular. Not at the con? You can still get your own in both sticker and t-shirt form.

→ IGN’s Daniel Krupa takes a look at the 6 classic movies that Episode VIII director Rian Johnson encouraged his cast and crew to watch, and how they might influence the upcoming film.

→ Dave Filoni chats Rebels S3, Thrawn and dealing with a “mass continuity” with io9’s Germain Lussier.

→ Felicity Jones talked about her big line in the Rogue One sizzle reel with Entertainment Tonight, and here’s what we learned from the Rogue One exhibit.

→ Spotted on the floor: Kelly Marie Tran, who still had filming to do!

→ As always, check out the CJ Tumblr for more photos, videos, GIFs and links from the con!