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EUbits: Canon, continuity and where to start in the Expanded Universe

Where to start? Probably not here. 9.9 times out of 10 I will tell you Heir to the Empire and the Thrawn trilogy, but you probably knew that.

The blogside. Over at Suvudu, Eric Geller recommends Shatterpoint as a Star Wars gateway, which lead to a response by Pete over at Lightsaber Rattling on continuity and accessibly.

Accessibility and the EU is something I’ve been meaning to write on. Of course, I don’t really agree with Pete. Despite the vast amounts of clunky exposition stuffed into every book, I would never recommend a brand new reader to jump on with anything in the New Jedi Order, Legacy of the Force, or Fate of the Jedi. The recent series are all too big and bloated, and I think are just as likely – if not more – to turn people off.

On that note, a self-contained book like Shatterpoint, which doesn’t need much more background than the movies themselves… Well, why not? Granted, Shatterpoint wouldn’t be my first recommendation, as I haven’t read it, but it is Stover, one of the finer writers in the stable. You could do a lot worse. (Eric’s post is part of a whole series – the only one I wouldn’t shrug and say ‘sure’ at are the Imperial Commando books, because that way lies abject disappointment, and we have the comments to prove it.)

Of course, I’m also the person who once started a comic series by picking up the issue where the title character dies. (You don’t even want to know how I’m catching up on Doctor Who.) I suppose it all depends.

On that note… Three rules for good continuity from Pablo Hidalgo.

Chats. Star Wars Books on Facebook has two chats coming up. First, this Wednesday, John Jackson Miller talks Lost Tribe of the Sith. Next Wednesday, on August 14th, Leland Chee will chat about – you guessed it – continuity. Tom Taylor and Dark Horse had a Twitter chat last week – Roqoo Depot has the recap.

Comics. Jedi News has the cover for the next arc of Dawn of the Jedi, ‘Prisoner of Bogan.’

Reviews. James gets back into the saddle over at Big Shiny Robot by checking out Darth Vader and the Ghost Prison #3, Blood Ties: Boba Fett is Dead #4 and Darth Maul: Death Sentence #1.

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Portman, Millepied tie the knot

Natalie Portman and Benjamin Millepied have gotten married, Us Weekly reports. They exchanged vows “in a Jewish ceremony at a private home near Big Sur, Calif.”

The two met on the set of Black Swan. Millepied, a professional dancer, was the movie’s choreographer and also played Portman’s dance partner. They have a year-old son, Aleph.

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Is this our first look at Her Universe’s Mara Jade shirt?

…I’m guessing yes. Ashley Eckstein writes on this Celebration sneak peek: “This strong female character with Red hair, may have her own awesome shirt.” And who else goes sleeveless with a beige cape?

This is an Instagram photo with a filter, so don’t be too quick to judge on coloring… Though I’m afraid the jumpsuit was inevitable.

Ashley said in February that Her Universe was working with artist Cat Staggs on a Mara shirt for Celebration.

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50 pages of X-Wing: Mercy Kill, plus early reviews

Del Rey’s Suvudu blog posted the first fifty pages of X-Wing: Mercy Kill today, letting you get a jump-start on the book.

Meanwhile, there are several early non-spoiler reviews already up. Knights Archive’s Bry Dean says “Aaron Allston built a great new adventure like only he can do, utilizing known characters in a way that was familiar, yet fresh.”

Peter Morrison at Lightsaber Rattling “particularly enjoyed” the book. He goes into a lot more detail on both new and returning members the X-Wing cast (though he doesn’t spoil the plot!) saying that “the characters are allowed to shine.”

Star Wars Report’s Aaron Goins is completely new to the X-Wing books. He does caution that you may want to read the old stuff, but praises Allston’s characters… Though he did find the humor a bit much at times. Still, he says “I was not expecting to like this book nearly as much as I did. It was the characters and storytelling that won me over. ”

Mercy Kill will be out on Tuesday.

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Anything is better than Hutt Space in today’s Mercy Kill mini-excerpt

With the release date less than a week away, the sixth mini-excerpt from Aaron Allston’s Mercy Kill is mini indeed:

“Besides . . .” Myri suddenly sounded cheerful. “Did you hear what Trey said? You’re going to Si’klaata Cluster. That’s Hutt space. I can stay here, wallow in the mud, and eat worms all day, and I’ll still be in a cleaner, nicer place than you two will.”

Mercy Kill, a hardcover, will be out next Tuesday.

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Celebration tip: Expand your horizons

Today’s tip is from Nancy: “Go to panels and events that are outside your usual Star Wars interests.”

“One thing about being a volunteer is that I’ve staffed panels that didn’t excite me in advance. I’m nearly always surprised, because the panel is waaaay more interesting than I’d expected. The little people actors who played Ewoks? Were hilarious. Dave and Lou Elsey? Were engaging and smart and enthusiastic and just generally adorable. I could go on and on, but the main point is to be open to new experiences. Celebration is a really terrific chance to try out new-to-you parts of the fandom.”

This is totally true. I ended up at a couple of Clone Wars panels at CV, and they were incredibly fun, despite the fact that I could count on one hand the number of episodes I’d actually watched at that point. And after seeing this video, I really wish I’d gone to the voice actors one!

And yes, while a lot of the high-profile events will have lines and fill up fast, there are often plenty of seats left at others.

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“Why We Love the Prequels” panel returns to CVI

Bryan Young’s signature panel returns to Celebration, and in a bigger venue. “Why We Love the Prequels” will take over the Behind the Scenes Stage on Sunday at 10:30, enlisting the help of Pablo Hidalgo. The rest of the panel lineup is mostly the same as the original, with Young, Kyle Newman, Tom Hodges and Eric Geller. Joining them will be Jesse Hildreth, Senior Lighter on The Clone Wars.