To The Comic Book Store #126

Today's sad looking haul :(

-GJ

Recap: Star Wars: Rebels NYCC Panel

Here's a quick run down of the Star Wars: Rebels panel from NYCC 2013; but first we'd like to thank the following people for live tweeting the event and providing us with this valuable information!

• Amy Ratcliffe
• Aaron Goins
• Rebels Report
• Stitch Kingdom

Highlights

• Rebels premiere is still about a year out; will premiere with an hour-long episode on Disney Channel and then move to half hour segments over on Disney XD.
• Simon Kinberg is writing the hour long premiere episode.
• Dave Filoni was not in attendance due to the fact that he is in Asia working with the animation team.
• Rebels will take place 14 years after Revenge of the Sith.
• The planet Lothal will be one of the principal locations for the show.

[Planet Lothal of the Outer Rim]

[An alley on planet Lothal]

• Animation style is distinct enough that they were unable to reuse anything from The Clone Wars. (Which is okay since we weren't really a fan of the animation style.)
• Episodes will be shown in chronological order and follow the same group of characters. (Looks like the SW franchise is finally trying something new here.)
• Stormtroopers will not be Clones! They instead will be regular citizens who "volunteer" to join the Imperial forces.
• Some Clones will go on to train the new Stormtroopers while others will be disgruntled; per Lucas' notes.

[Stormtrooper Concept Art]

[Imperial Propaganda Poster]

• No confirmation on who, but some TCW characters will make appearances; were questioned specifically about Ahsoka, but received no answer.
• Series will focus mainly on the Empire and struggling Rebel forces, there will also be a prominent Bounty Hunter presence and limited Jedi (who are still being hunted by the Empire).
• New Villain! The Inquisitor! Hired to help hunt down Jedi in the name of the Empire.

[Inquisitor with Stormtroopers and double-bladed lightsaber]

[Inquisitor pointing]

• No soundtrack has been announced, however Dave Filoni does listen to specific John Williams tracks while animating.
• Rebels is being developed much quicker than TCW because of the team's past experience on TCW.
• A great deal of Rebels is being based off the work of Ralph McQuarrie.

[AT-DP Trooper Concept Art]

[AT-DP Concenpt Art]

[AT-DP Interior Concept Art]

[Tie Fighter Interior Concept Art]

[Speeder Bike Concept Art]

[Imperial Freighter Concept Art]

[Imperial Trooper Transport Concept Art]

Does this get you excited for Star Wars: Rebels or what! Look for more news and hopefully a new trailer in the near future.

-GJ

Star Wars Medley by Lindsey Stirling and Peter Hollens

-GJ

The Future of Star Wars: The Clone Wars

Dave Filoni talks about the future of Star Wars: The Clone Wars and even shows a clip of what's still to come.

-GJ

Thoughts On Disney's Purchase Of Lucasfilm

First we must start off by saying that we never thought Disney would go out and buy Lucasfilm, nor did we expect them to do it for only $4 billion either. And with any major company buying another there are always pros and cons (or in this case more like concerns).

The biggest concern for many was that Disney, a company that mainly focuses on producing content for children, now owns Lucasfilm, the company that brought us Star Wars. For many of us, after a very long deep breath, we came to realize that every things going to be okay and that this isn't the first time Disney has bought a company that made people cringe. Remember back in 2009 when Disney bought Marvel (also dropping $4 billion then too)? There was panic then; but since then we've seen many great Marvel films, which included a fantastic Avengers movie, and the comics and toys have remained at the same standard that they were prior to Disney's purchase. So now relax Star Wars fans, remember these guys have produced many successful live-action films which not only include multiple Marvel films, but also several Pirates of the Caribbean and National Treasure films.

The other concern is that Disney immediately dropped the bombshell that there will be an Episode 7, 8, 9, and more to follow every 2-3 years. Of course you can't help but be a little excited by this news, but then that feeling of dread starts to sink in; where in the timeline do these films take place? Are the original characters going to return? Will 7 through 9 be based off of Timothy Zahn's Thrawn trilogy or some other set of books from the Expanded Universe?!?!

Well here's what we know so far...

• These movies will not be based off the Thrawn trilogy - we are sad about this, but on the other hand glad that Hollywood doesn't have a chance to destroy a fantastic piece of literature.
• Films will still revolve around Luke Skywalker - would have preferred a new hero; and location for that matter, say something maybe in the Corporate Sector outside of Republic and Imperial space.
• George Lucas met with Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher back in August prior to the sale and both seem ready to jump on board with Episode VII - problem is Harrison Ford isn't on board yet and there isn't anyone else that can fill his shoes as Han Solo (and Disney better not even try).

The only real major con with the entire Disney acquiring Lucasfilm and the Star Wars name, is what will these future films do to the currently established Expanded Universe? Seriously folks, the prequel films tampered with the Expanded Universe and The Clone Wars animated series almost completely destroyed all novelizations put into place between Episode II and Episode III; can you image what the destruction could end up looking like for the Expanded Universe? We shudder just thinking about it.

But alas there are some positives to the madness (other than of course the major fact that we get more Star Wars films).

• Disney's acquisition of Lucasfilm also comes with Lucasarts - there are no worries for anything already in development like Star Wars 1313, but hopes rise that with new eyes looking at things, maybe somebody over at Disney will once again green light the Battlefront III project.
• Star Wars comics will remain under contract with Dark Horse for the time being - as an avid comic reader and one who enjoys multiple titles produced via Dark Horse this is great news; but obviously once their contract expires, Marvel (remember owned by Disney) will take over. Not a bad thing of course and for many comic book readers you may remember that Marvel once had the rights to do Star Wars comics.
• The Clone Wars animated series has probably been saved for at least another season - with Cartoon Network moving the show from Friday night to Saturday morning, and after witnessing the abrupt, no warning, no apology removal treatment of DC's action block, many were starting to wonder if an end was near (including show producer Dave Filoni as well). But since Disney has their XD channel, it makes good sense that after season 5 finishes up (or is pulled) on Cartoon Network, Disney XD will gladly air at least another full season (and anything pulled) to drive their ratings higher.

Though we fear for the Expanded Universe, and probably always will, we are still very excited for what will come out of Disney and Lucasfilm in the future and look forward to trying to acquire the thousands of action figures that are sure to follow. People say change is good, well folks we have change, so let us prepare for the good.

Feel free of course to drop a comment below and tell us how you feel about this new endeavor of Disney's; what you look forward too, what you fear will take place, or anything else that comes to mind.

-GJ

Back-Story Rewrite: Kitster is Dengar

Yes, the famous Kitster from Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace has an official back-story according to Wookieepedia, but that doesn't stop people from bugging The Clone Wars Animated Series producer Dave Filoni about where Kitster is, and it doesn't stop us from providing another alternative to his whereabouts.

Also we are aware that bounty hunter Dengar already appears in The Clone Wars in season 4, but our idea still works.

First let's go with Kitster being freed from slavery and leaving Tatooine to become a smuggler. While out on a run there is a terrible accident that leaves him broken and a little deranged; in his mind this is the day that Kitster dies, and his alter ego Dengar is born. He cheated death as a smuggler, so of course now he feels invincible as a Bounty Hunter.

See, and now Dave Filoni has a where Kitster story.

What, they changed Boba Fett's back-story so why not give this a try?!?

-GJ

Star Wars: The Clone Wars Expected Character Appearances

The following are characters that we, and many others, hope to see before Star Wars: The Clone Wars comes to an end.

Han Solo

One of the biggest characters of the franchise must have an appearance, and it doesn't have to be big or even be very significant to the episode. In fact with the addition of the following character there is a simple scene that would make many Star Wars fans happy.

Lando Calrissian

Pair Han and Lando together, place them in a cantina, add a sabaac game and the bet of the Millennium Falcon, and you have the perfect scene to appear in a Clone Wars episode. See that's all it takes to make us happy.

Natasi Daala

Fans of the Expanded Universe have read a lot about Natasi Daala, and one thing we've come to learn from all that reading is that she was the former lover of one Grand Moff Tarkin. Since Tarkin already appears in The Clone Wars, it only makes since that Daala should make an appearance too.

Gilad Pellaeon

Pellaeon is another Expanded Universe favorite; well if you have a love for the Empire he is anyways. A nice little arc involving Pellaeon, Daala, and Tarkin could be done. Not only would this give fans of later novels in the Expanded Universe timeline a chance to see younger versions of these characters and their first interactions, but opens them up to a younger generation who may not yet know of them.

Zuckuss

The Clone Wars does already feature a good number of Bounty Hunters, many of whom were created just for the show, but Zuckuss is one from the movies that would be cool to see messing with Fett's and Bossk's plans.

Mitth'raw'nuruodo (Thrawn)

If you've ever read any Star Wars book by Timothy Zahn that involved Thrawn, then this no doubt makes sense. Thrawn is not only the best Imperial officer of all-time, but he is around during the Clone Wars era; as seen in Zahn's novel Outbound Flight.

These are just some of the Star Wars characters we'd love to see make an appearance in The Clone Wars animated series. Who would you like to see?

-GJ

How Lucas Could Save Ahsoka Tano

Fans of the hit Star Wars cartoon series, The Clone Wars, often find themselves wondering these days when and how Star Wars creator George Lucas will wrap up the life of Ahsoka Tano; does he simply kill her or is there a way to save her?

A Way To Save Ahsoka

With Episode I: The Phantom Menace returning to theaters this year in 3D, many have speculated that the rest of the saga will follow suit; and chances are that when we'd finally get a chance to see Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, Lucas will have probably decided that just modifying the films into 3D isn't working as planned and that additional scenes will help drive more people to the theaters.

Here could be a possible additional scene added.

After escorting Palpatine back to the Republic Executive Building on Coruscant, Obi-Wan argues about how many times Anakin has saved him; right after the line "Ninth time. Cato Neimoidia doesn't count; it was your fault in the first place" the conversation would now include the following dialog...

Anakin - "if Ahsoka was here she'd agree with me."

Kenobi - "well how unfortunate for you that she's out on assignment in the Outer Rim"

And there you have it folks. These two lines of additional dialog could save Ahsoka Tano from what many feel is a certain death in The Clone Wars cartoon series.

How Ahsoka's Life Should End

First, since such a relationship between Anakin and Ahsoka has been established in The Clone Wars cartoon, then that's where her death should take place. Also a nice way to push Anakin a little bit closer towards the Dark Side too.

There are several other characters created for The Clone Wars that also need to be wrapped up; Cad Bane and Captain Rex being two of the most prominent. If left up to us we'd have Bane kill Rex, Ahsoka seek Bane for vengeance, but be unsuccessful and lose her life. Now to close out the Bane story arc, you have a teenage Boba Fett step up to the plate and take out Bane, which establishes a relationship between Anakin and Fett, which obviously becomes useful when we get to Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back.

What do you guys think? How / When do you feel Ahsoka's story should end?

-GJ

Secret Star Wars Rift?

Following a post over on the theForcebook.com by Kaidin_Moonwood talking about the similarities between the new Star Wars: The Old Republic video game and the original six films (Read the post here), made me realize that it appears there is a rift amongst those working on Star Wars video games and The Clone Wars cartoon.

Back in 2008, LucasArts released The Force Unleashed (TFU); about two weeks prior to it's release was The Clone Wars (TCW) movie.

I was unable to locate the video online, but during an interview with Morgan Webb of G4, one of TFU's developers explained how he and many of the developers were a little miffed about how TCW team stole their unique fighting style for Starkiller and gave it to a newly created character whom was no more than a padawan (Ahsoka Tano).

You could sense the anger as he explained this back handed lightsaber style had taken them months to develop, how it was going to be unique to their title, and that it was just taken away from them, no permission asked, no phone call made, just stolen.

Now here we are in 2011, and this time it appears that TCW is being ripped off. However, it's not LucasArts, but Bio-Ware and their upcoming MMO Star Wars: The Old Republic (TOR).

This unnamed TOR character seems to look, fight, and hold the same occupation as TCW favorite, Cad Bane.

Could be that I'm just reading too much into this, and this is no more than mere coincidence. On the other hand, may be those that worked on TFU finally decided to exact some revenge and steal the concepts of TCW; an eye for an eye as the saying goes.

What do you guys think, is there trouble in paradise, or is this just me looking too deep into this?

-GJ

theFORCEbook.com

OH MY GOSH!!! Die hard Star Wars fans you have a new community and it calls its self theforcebook.com.

If you have a Facebook and are a Star Wars fan, then this is the place to be.

Seriously, check it out, check it out now.

theFORCEbook.com

-GJ

R2-Dew2...?

I want one!!! Don't you?

-GJ

Star Wars 3-D...Really?!?

Does the Star Wars Saga really need to be converted to 3-D?

Well after several days and several heated arguments later we have come up with a list of cons and well, only one pro.

For the Pro, we see an opportunity to expose a new generation to Star Wars on a bigger scale; and we feel that everyone should see the entire saga at least once on the big screen.

As far as Cons go...

1. 3-D glasses are uncomfortable to those that already wear glasses.

2. Not every theater is equipped for 3-D, nor do people own 3-D televisions when they get ready to do the DVD and Blue-Ray releases.

3. With every new release something changes, and the statement "Change Is Good" is usually far from the truth when concerning the Star Wars Saga.

There may be only one pro and several cons, but let's face it, when it comes to Star Wars, we will find a reason to go and watch, even if the entire saga was redone with Japanese actors and we had to read subtitles. - GJ

R2-D2 WTF??

This pic came up on Sci-Fi Wire over the weekend of 9/12/09 and I came to agree with them that this is a must see pic. Sci-Fi Wire found the pic over on Geekologie

No one is exactly sure where it originated from, but many assume somewhere out of Japan.

Oh and please feel free to insert your jokes in the comment section on this one. -GJ

Interesting Movie Fact #005

If you call yourself a Star Wars fan, and we know there are thousands of you, then you have seen every film about a hundred times. You watch these films so many times because you've seen what's going on in the foreground, but now it's time to check out what's happening in the background.

For Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, many people have noticed something interesting about the Rebel Troopers involved in the battle aboard the Blockade runner during the opening sequence.


We all know that most of those brave troopers in the image above will not survive the upcoming onslaught from the Imperial Stormtroopers.


However, even though they have met their fates, these same Rebel Troopers can be seen walking amongst the living on Yavin IV in the Rebel Alliance's base.

Of course we all figured that George Lucas reused Stormtroopers, and maybe even used actors to portray both Rebel and Imperial troops.

Secondary movie fact; Jeremy Bulloch (Boba Fett), also appeared in The Empire Strikes Back as an Imperial officer on Bespin. -GJ

Sci-Fi Wire's Star Wars Spoof List - Reviewed

As much as the folks here at Imperial Post love Star Wars, we have to say we were quite disappointed with Sci-Fi Wire's Nine Best Star Wars Spoofs. (Their article can be read HERE). Let's break it down.

First and foremost, why in the world do you place Clerks at number 1? Yes, it was a good movie, but are you really going to place this over Spaceballs? We don't think so.


Spaceballs belongs at number 1 on everyone's list of best Star Wars Spoofs, there just can be no arguing this fact. Oh and Mr. Brook's, G4, we're still waiting for the release of Spaceballs The Animated Series.

Since we enjoy Family Guy and love Star Wars we feel that Family Guy Blue Harvest should so be near the top of this list. The only real complaint we had was one of our favorite scenes from the celebration trailer was left on the cutting room floor. We do however look forward to the parody of The Empire Strikes Back.

Robot Chicken was also placed on the Sci-Fi Wire list and given the number 9 position. If you haven't read their article yet, then you don't understand what an injustice this is. Robot Chicken was not great, especially since it spans through the entire saga and was hyped up so, but it in no way deserves to be number 9.

Two fan films also made the list; Troops, which will always be a classic, and The Original Gangsta Rap. These actually deserve to be on the list even thou there are now probably over some several thousand fan films, some even better than these; however if not for these two setting the standards for quality, we would have to endure a lot more junk films.


Chappelle's Show, The Colbert Report, and SNL were funny, however they don't really belong on this list. If you feel that they do then we'd like to argue that shows like the Simpons, South Park, and most certainly Futurama belong here as well.

So now go back and reread Sci-Fi Wire's post HERE. Then tell us what you think, because here at Imperial Post we love to hear your Science Fiction Opinions, especially when it involves Star Wars.

Interesting Movie Fact #0003

In Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi when Boba Fett plunges into the Sarlacc pit, George Lucas had no intentions of having the bounty hunter reemerge.

However when learning of the character's popularity and receiving multiple requests from authors to allow them to continue Boba Fett's story, George Lucas went ahead and gave the green light to do so.

What Emperor Palpatine Should've Done

Thousands have witnessed the incredible world of the original Star Wars trilogy and more than seventy-five percent of those people each have their own ideas and opinions of what Emperor Palpatine should have done to accomplish victory over the Rebel Alliance. Here are just some of my thoughts about what should've happened.

Emperor Palpatine was to be someone of great knowledge and power, but yet most look at him as nothing but an arrogant fool. I would surely agree with the latter. Palpatine's arrogance doesn't really come to the forefront until Return of the Jedi when he makes many costly mistakes.


The first and most crucial mistake Palpatine made was with the use, or in this case lack thereof, of the Star Destroyers in system near the second Death Star. It would have been an extremely quick space battle if the destroyers were involved, but they were given orders to hold position but make sure no one attempts to escape. The Rebel fleet was easily able to maintain the upper-hand while dealing with the imperial fighter craft, so much that they were able to break off several fighters of their own to make attack runs on the second Death Star. The fire power packed on one Star Destroyer would have been enough trouble for the desolate Rebel fleet but the hundreds in system would have blown the Rebel fleet to bits quickly.

The next mistake made was on the moon of Endor. We all saw that Luke Skywalker was taken to Darth Vader by an AT-AT walker, so the question became why not use that AT-AT while battling the ewoks and Rebel landing party. I understand that an AT-AT is a large transport vehicle that would not be the most mobile thing to be taken into the forest, but it would have several advantages.


One advantage of using the AT-AT would be that the ewoks battle techniques would not have the same effect as they had on the AT-ST walkers. First the AT-AT armor is thicker; second the AT-AT is four legged not two like the AT-ST. These two things alone eliminate all the log warfare.

Second even though it would be too big to walk straight into the forest, an AT-AT has the fire power to blow away the forest. It's also easier to step on groups of ewoks with feet like an AT-ATs.

The last and most costly to Emperor Palpatine was the fact that he put to much trust in Darth Vader. Palpatine should have been able to feel Vader reaching out for Skywalker in the force, especially when they were reaching to one another near the second Death Star. Palpatine should have known that Vader was up to no good. But yet he still trusted Vader and even turning his back to him when trying to kill young skywalker. Palpatine knew Vader was not a complete machine and still had human parts, one being his heart.

Too many mistakes allowed the Rebels to destroy the second Death Star, scatter the remaining Imperial forces, and end the Emperor's life.

So now that you've had a chance to hear some of my thoughts, feel free to express yours.

Galactic Empire, a Space-age Third Reich

by: Francesca Black

Born in May of 1944, in Modesto, California, George Lucas lived a world away from the horrors of Fascist Germany. Yet its imprint is more than evident in Lucas' life's work and creative brainchild, the Star Wars Saga. Admitting that the Galactic Empire was based on Germany's Third Reich, Lucas drew from history the characters and imagery needed to paint his evil regime. While some parallels are obvious-such as the robotic white soldiers Lucas named "storm troopers," the same name Hitler gave his personal bodyguards during World War II, other comparisons require a little digging. These comparisons make for a fascinating study.

Senator Palpatine and Adolf Hitler: The story of Senator Palpatine as fleshed out in Episodes I, II, and III bears remarkable resemblance to Adolf Hitler's rise to power. Both men rose from obscurity to power, outwardly embracing democracy and the republic, while behind the scenes they worked for its ruin. In Episode II Senator Palpatine faces the dissolution of the senate with, "I love democracy…I love the republic," while reluctantly accepting supreme power. It is unknown that he is also the Sith Lord, orchestrating the downfall of democracy. This echoes the history of Hitler, who also outwardly supported democracy, promising to play by its rules, all along forming a shadow government and an army among the ranks of his Nazi party. The similarity is most striking in the burning of the Jedi temple and the 1933 burning of the Reichstag which effectively dissolved the German senate. These spectacles were both masterminded to bring Palpatine and Hitler into power. Afterwards, Palpatine installs himself as Emperor, while Hitler declared himself "Fuhrer," or supreme leader.

The leadership style of Palpatine continues to be modeled after Hitler, who then withdrew from the public eye and surrounded himself with only those whom he knew to be his loyal followers. While Hitler formed the SS-a black-coated protection squad which protected him day and night and publicly carried out his orders, Palpatine as emperor created Darth Vader-his black robed crony whose obedience to the Emperor extended to destroying whole planets. Hitler is remembered as evil embodied, and as such, Lucas could not have chosen a better figure to model Palpatine after.

Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker Parallels: In German, vater means "father." Thus, Vader is a most interesting and deliberate choice for a character who is the father of the spiritual Star Wars hero. This father-son relationship finds its parallel in the relationship between the German poet and political rebel Albrecht Haushofer and his father, Karl. Karl's frequent travels to Japan greatly influenced his life and thinking. He was particularly entranced by the samurai--the Japanese military aristocracy which Lucas drew on heavily for inspiration for the Jedi. In the 1920s Karl became involved with Hitler through his close student, Rudolf Hess (who later was considered Hitler's #3 man after Goring). Karl became instrumental in forming the alliance between Germany and Japan. An additional interesting side note is that a geopolitical contemporary named Maull existed at this time. Maul was a contemporary sith of Anakin Skywalker.

Young Albrecht, in a poem entitled Der Vater, alludes to an evil that shows itself once every thousand years. When Star Wars begins the sith had not been seen for that long. The poem continues by saying that Albrecht's father had power to stop this evil but instead he unleashed it, a power and choice that Anakin Skywalker made before becoming Darth Vader. While Albrecht worked alongside his father at first, attempting to bring peace to Europe through a treaty with England and France, he later saw the futility of his actions and joined the Bomb plot to assassinate Hitler and restore balance and peace in Germany. Here George Lucas departs from history; for while Luke succeeds in overcoming the evil that his father embraced, Albrecht was not as fortunate. He was arrested for his treasonous involvement and shot by an SS commando as Russian troops entered Berlin. Karl was also imprisoned after the war. Perhaps the remembrance of his son prompted his death in 1946. Before his death, Darth Vader redeemed himself by throwing off the Emperor's influence and restoring balance to the universe. He is last seen taking his place among Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, thus becoming the Jedi he once was. Karl's last act in life also resembled the Jedi when he committed suicide by seppuku, the traditional Samurai method.

Nazi Echoes The discerning eye recognizes the overt Nazi overtones apparent in the Galactic Empire. This is no accident. George Lucas reportedly told costume designer and military historian John Mollo that he wanted the "baddies" to look Fascist. The atmosphere of rigid control and dehumanization was the ideal of Hitler, whose armies marched in stiff procession, going beyond the description of disciplined to robotic. The uniforms and caps worn by imperial officers in Star Wars were modernized versions of 1915 Bavarian Chevaulgers. The throne room scene in Episode IV is reminiscent of a Nazi propaganda film, further painting the image that history repeats itself. In this way watchers of Star Wars gain a lesson in history.