The Yoda Arc

Literally amazing.

SPOILERS AT YOUR OWN RISK

The Lucasfilm Story Group

One thing that recently hit waves within fandom was a series of tweets that Leland Chee sent talking about how canon would be handled as things move forward. He basically said that what is determined as canon will now be decided by a group known as the Lucasfilm Story Group of which Leland and Pablo Hidalgo are members of. Now that George is retired it will seek to eliminate the hierarchy that currently exists and give everything the same level of canonicity. 

Of course, many interpretations could be given to this, and many people have already given ridiculous reactions to this set of news. But their are a couple of things we can know from the new Lucasfilm Story Group: 

1. Their creating some sort of master story plan: At the end of the day, what this all bogs down to is that most of the future content that comes out of Star Wars will be created by them. This will obviously eliminate the possibility of EU writers going into whatever direction they want, and giving us sometimes disastrous decisions in return. It will create a more cohesive version of the universe and one that doesn't fall apart the way the previous one did with its contradictions and over saturation. 

2. Various Unknowns will now determine the future of Star Wars canon: Let's face it, the problem with this is that many are uncomfortable with the idea of someone new dealing with Star Wars canon, but it's somewhat safe to assume that guys like Dave Filoni and Simon Kinberg could be a part of the Story Group.  In that case, we can be sure that much of the integrity of Star Wars will be repsected far into the future. 

It's too early to tell how exactly this is going to impact everything but it's still safe to assume that a big chunk of the EU is going by the wayside (and some still are in denial about it). 

A Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

Hello everyone.

It's been a while since I have had time to return to the Star Wars Defender Blog. Anyway, here are some important announcements I wish to make:

1. We are Now on Facebook: The Facebook page sadly doesn't have a lot of likes, so I would be more than happy if any of you with a Facebook account would like to give us a "like". Here is the link: 

https://www.facebook.com/thestarwarsdefender

2. My good friend Adam from Nilbog's Storybook Land has a great new post on the Expanded Universe. His sentiments mirror my own for the most part, and gives us an outlook for what may or may not come in the future. As I have said before, I really hope George set things straight with Arndt (and now Kasdan and Abrams) into what road the new films need to go into and told them NOT to adapt "Dark Empire" or something of that nature. But since we know that it will be an original story and with the various tweets Pablo Hidalgo has been giving us, it's dead certain at this point that the entirety of the post ROTJ EU is an AU at this point (and sadly a similar fate appears to be in the future for The Force Unleashed). However, it isn't my universe, so I have no say into what happens whatsoever. We can also say that with the interviews we've been reading on Dave Filoni so far, that Rebels will be closely tied to various concepts and ideas George had of that time period, and that the show will include prequel era influences whenever possible. It's clear at this point that Dave Filoni is at the ''helm'' of Star Wars and has managed to graduate to the rank of Master. I have no doubt that he will make a great show that will add up to The Clone Wars and the films. 

For Adam's article, click on this link: 

http://nilbogsstorybookland.blogspot.com/2013/12/expanding-and-expanding.html

3. In the coming week(s) or so, I'll seek to get ahead of all the topics Star Wars and related things, including my thoughts on Disney's purchase of the Indy rights, On the comments of the EU regarding Pablo Hidalgo and finally on an update to the casting call and the characters of Episode VII. 

So for now, all I can say is, enjoy the Holidays, stay close to your families, and May The Force Be With You. 

New Info on Star Wars Rebels

Most of you probably know already the info that was released about Star Wars Rebels in the New York Comic Con. However, I still would like to analyze and say my own opinion on the matter. 

For starters, we got to see the first look on one of the main villains of Rebels, and that will be the Inquisitor, a dark Jedi tasked by Darth Vader to hunt down the remaining Jedi Knights. 

He striked to me at first as looking too much like the Son from the Mortis Trilogy, but I later got over it to realize that the two would be very different characters. 

It's also important to note a couple of things: Pablo Hidalgo is known to have said at some point that there would be Inquisitor(s) not just an Inquisitor. Perhaps this guy will be the main focus of the show, but then it brings into question the grand-scheme of things-when will these guys be killed off? And by whom, if so few Jedi are left? It's certainly interesting to see what approach they will take, to see, if the Inquisitors are killed before A New Hope or after. 

Dave Filoni goes on to talk more about it on the video, about how it's going to be Empire-centric with it's villains. It's important to note that many Clone Wars veterans, including Joel Aron and Killian Plunkett, will be involved in the making of the show. New, as well as old vehicles and ships will make appearances in the show. Rebels will take place 14 years after Revenge of the Sith and 5 years before A New Hope.

Another interesting bit we got to know was that George Lucas's ideas for the time period would be incorporated into the show, but he would no longer be directly involved. Dave Filoni has taken the helm as the storyteller, which is a great thing, because he has now been assigned the rank of ''Master'' after 8 years of working with George in Clone Wars, and George can now go happily into retirement with Mellody and their daughter, Everest. 

One of George's ideas for the time period, would be that the Stormtroopers would be made up of ''brainwashed'' civilians, mainly because the clones were too individualistic for the Empire. Due to accelerated aging, the Jango Fett clones are no longer serving as soldiers, and are instead training the Stormtroopers, or are retired and abandoned by a galaxy that never really cared for them. All of these implications put into question the execution of Order 66, which will be further explained in the upcoming bonus content, to be released in 2014. 

Another interesting concept is the fact that much of the show will take place in Lothal, a planet that wasn't involved in the Clone Wars and is instead now being occupied by the Empire. With the promise of economic prosperity, the Empire soon becomes a military and crushing force on the planet, recruiting Stormtroopers and building TIE fighters. It's fairly possible that this show could go on to be a critique of Imperialism and Industrialization, and may touch on environmentalism, something that wasn't really explored in the Clone Wars. 

The Jedi did come to be mentioned by Hidalgo, saying that with the Inquisitors goals, ''The fact that there is one in the series...the Empire has reason to believe there are Jedi somewhere.'' Hidalgo recognized that ''There is a presence for the Jedi in the show but we are being very cognizant of the fact  that Order 66 signifies something.'' They also want to keep in mind the importance of Luke Skywalker being the only Jedi a few years after this show is set. 

That does bring to question one thing...Ahsoka. Will Ahsoka still be a Jedi, or not in this show, or will she appear? That remains to be answered, along as to which famous film characters will make an appearance. 

So far this is probably the best thing to have come out of the Disney acquisition. 

Possible Villains in Star Wars Rebels

I have to say that ever since the announcement of the new animated series Star Wars: Rebels, my mind has gone wild. Literally. Their is so much potential for this series set between Episodes III and IV. Heck, I am WAY more excited about this series than I am for Episode VII. 

So, lets take a look at possible villains that may appear in Star Wars: Rebels.

BREAKING NEWS: Star Wars Rebels, new animated show announced for 2014

I was literally jumping up and down when I heard this announcement. Dave Filoni will now be executive producer on the new series, STAR WARS REBELS!!! SET BETWEEN EPISODE III AND IV!!! DARK TIMES!!!! DARTH VADER HUNTS DOWN JEDI!!!! DARTH MAUL GOES OFF AND FIGHTS OBI-WAN ON TATOOINE!!!

Ok, that last thing was pure conjecture, but if Maul's fate isn't sealed by the time the bonus content is released, at least their is the possibility of settling major Clone Wars characters into this era. Aah...the dream of several folks has come true. 

On another note, I do have a few questions: will George Lucas be involved like he was in the Clone Wars, or is he only interested in Episode VII? Will this show manage to attract the attention of the hateboys? All of these and more, I hope are answered soon enough, and others, we will know by fan reaction. 

Watch Pablo and my boy Dave speak here: 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bdfFos3PYQ

Star Wars, the Road to Hell and Heaven

Friends, this past couple of weeks have been largely insane in terms of the amount of things I have to do in order to graduate (the reason why I haven't written since God-knows when), and the shockwaves that have hit the Star Wars community. They have been in a mix: some have been good others have been bad, and others ugly. Let's take a look folks at what has happened, now that I have the first day off since...well spring break.

For starters, Rumors went on and off about layoffs in Lucasfilm Animaton, Lucas Arts, and about how much ''bonus content'' of the Clone Wars might get released. The pessimistic Star Wars fans basically painted Disney like an evil corporation alla Koch Brothers, Exxon Mobil type of guys, whom we're going to destroy Star Wars and everything left in Lucasfilm. While they have been partially right about it for a couple of things, the ''I Told You So'' type of attitude doesn't really help, and it only fervents the anger of some folks. 

Disney did fire some folks at Lucasfilm Animation, how many we do not know, and well Lucas Arts is now for licensing only. Still that DOES NOT mean that Detours, the remaining Bonus Content of The Clone Wars and the videogame 1313 won't see the light of day. On the contrary, the possibility still remains for all of them to be released in some way, shape or form. 

On another note, Dave Filoni is going to helm the upcoming animated series coming from Lucasfilm Animation, so that should leave fans hopeful. Let's not forget that way back in Celebration VI, Dave Filoni said that he was being prepared in order to continue the creative part of Star Wars once George passes further into retirement. We will have to wait and see if the fate of Darth Maul, and that of other characters is sealed with the remaining bonus content. 

Let's also remember the good things that have come out of Star Wars recently... The original Star Wars story treatment from 1973 will be turned into a comic book, Return of the Jedi will celebrate 30 years on May 25, ''Kenobi'' the novel about Obi-Wan during the dark times recently got a blurb, and JJ Abrams plans on having John Williams score Episode 7!! Exciting friends. 

So, dear readers, please even if you are going through hell, do not loose hope on Star Wars. Because great things are coming right next door. 

And, another thing...a late May the 4th Be With You, and also Happy Revenge of the 5th. ;)

The future of Star Wars: Are we headed for doom?

Is Star Wars heading for a nasty place???

Folks, as Mace Windu once said, our worst fears have been realized. The Clone Wars as a television show, has been cancelled.

It was a ride I never thought I would see, way back in 2008 when this all started. And after 5 great years in which the show kept getting better and better, it's sad this all bogged down to this. After the emotional ending of Season 5, I had been so moved that for some  reason, I wasn't shocked when I saw the news that The Clone Wars was ending. For some reason, I kind off saw that coming.

Ultimately, the only logical explanation as to why this happened, bogs down to the fact that Papa George is no longer running the company he once made. The Disney executives figured out that they didn't want a distraction to be in place when Episode VII gets released, so they decided to cancel the show. Not only that, but also Detours is getting moved into a future release, proving that the whole ''Disney hates the prequels'' is pure nonesense.

At the same time, all of this gives reason for pessimism, despite how optimistic the crew of the CW might sound, on the future of the franchise. Even though we are going to get a couple of more arcs (like the Anakin, Clovis, and Padme one) released in some way, shape or form, it does bring to question: Will the arcs be able to conclude the fates of Ahsoka, Rex, Darth Maul, Ventress and Bo-Katan? Even though the show managed to break through the 100 episode goal, I feel as if it could have accomplished so much more. All of things brings down to the fact, that as I mentioned earlier, the future of Star Wars is uncertain and not looking very good under the wing of a corporate animal.

I really hope that at the same time I am writing this piece, that George Lucas is simultaneously in Skywalker Ranch sitting with Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt, Simon Kilberg and JJ Abrams, telling them that they can't go ahead and screw up the next trilogy of Star Wars. I hope he is telling them that they need to keep the prophecy of the Chosen One and NOT include a Sith as a villain, that in his view, peace has existed in the galaxy since the Battle of Endor, and so on. Or else folks, if this next installment does not adhere to the vision of the man himself, and is instead thumb nosed by Disney executives just like how the Clone Wars was, I might as well file my divorce of the Star Wars fandom. At least, the things that Disney ends up releasing.

It breaks my heart that what has become an integral part of the greatest film franchise of all time, is now not ending the way it should have. At an end note, I do wish to clarify that I am looking forward to the next arcs that will be in some form released, which will hopefully wrap up The Clone Wars somewhat nicely.

On the other hand, I also wish to take this time to thank George, Dave Filoni, Joel Aron, Killian Plunkett, Ashley Eckstein, Matt Lanter, James Arnold Taylor, Catherine Taber, Sam Witwer, the late Ian Abercrombie, Stephen Stanton, Jon Fravreau, Jaime King, and everyone else involved in all of these seasons, bringing us great episodes of Star Wars goodness. 

May the Force be With You.

The Wrong Jedi Review

After a depressing week in which I dedicated myself into completing my social service hours in order to graduate from High School, I come to see the conclusion of Season 5. I woke up this morning from a series of weird dreams and nightmares all relating to the episode I just watched, acting as a sort of a premonition to what was about to happen. In all honesty, this was an outcome I did not expect. I mean, has the world gone crazy? First we get that Episode VII is coming out in 2015, now that Ahsoka LEAVES THE JEDI ORDER??????????

This was an unexpected and rather depressing turn of events.While I knew that Ahsoka's fate was inevitably going to be determined at some point, this was the option I least thought possible, and yet it happened. I was in a very tense state the entire episode, and this all became even worse when I realized that Tarkin and most likely Palpatine, where behind the events that led to Ahsoka deciding not to come back to the Order after the trial. At least Obi-Wan was smart in not being in favor with Ahsoka being expelled so that she would face trial.

I can understand Anakin's anger in more than one way, and I guess we all saw in a deeper way why he ended up turning to the dark side. The gargantuous question that we all are thinking right now is, what the hell happens to her now? Does she turn to the dark side and become Count Dooku's apprentice? Does she become a bounty hunter with a conscience, similar to how Sugi is? Does she end up facing Darth Vader at one point after the Clone Wars? Does she help Bo-Katan reconstruct Mandalore? Does she have a romance with Lux Bonteri? Does she end up joining Luke Skywalker's New Jedi Order in Episode VII? Does she live as a hermit with the Ewoks? Which one is it, Dave Filoni?

All of this bogs down eventually to this: This character has been building up in the subconscious of everyone for the past 5 years, becoming more and more of a Jedi as time passed. And now that this bomb was dropped in front of our backyards, what was all that character development for at the end of the day? All of these things remind me of an EU book I read a while back titled Legacy of the Jedi, which was basically focused on the character Lorian Nod, whom was also expelled from the Order at about Ahsoka's age and was a friend of Dooku's. Nod eventually looses his own abilities to use the force, which brings to question, will Ahsoka loose those abilities?

I'm not sure about anything anymore my friends. The matter of the fact is that until I don't see the other part of the story, I can't say if Ahsoka's departure from the Order was a good move at the end of the day. For now, I'm basically like when I first saw Empire, bitterly disappointed. Until I don't see what is at hand next I won't know if I truly liked this ending or not. For now you're all welcome to join me, at the Home of the Blues. link

Missing in Action Review

The hatedom from hateboy nation and some casual Star Wars fans managed to lower down once we got to see the episode of the Clone Commando, Gregor.

The episode was great in its dynamic effort to bring a clone who had suffered from amnesia and was working as a dishwasher, into eventually, with the help of R2 and Colonel Gascon, bring back his memory and make him a fantastic soldier. I mean, the guy did the work of like 14 soldiers and managed to help the D-Squad escape from Abafar.

Dave Filoni hinted in the commentary of the episode that Gregor might have survived, so we will have to wait and see for tomorrow's episode to find out what exactly happened. Still, even if he didn't survive, Gregor will come down as one of my favorite clone troopers from this season, and this episode will come down as one of the best in the season.

Adressing the Hateboy Nation

One of the main reasons I founded this site was due to an inspiration I saw within a series of fellow Star Wars fans, particularly owners of certain Star Wars fan blogs, into defending Star Wars from the hateboy nation, who have done nothing but ruin the fun of Star Wars for the rest of the fans who like it. Their hatred for anything George Lucas has done ever since 1997 is something unparalleled in movie history, which is rather sad considering the fact that the Star Wars Saga is arguably the greatest film saga ever made. It's sad considering the fact that Star Wars was the pursuit of one man's dream into creating a film without the influence of movie corporations thumbing over every decision he made.

Now that where getting a new set of Star Wars films over the next decade, speculation has been gone wild ever since October 30th. One of the most famous hateboys, or hategirls in this case of the Internet,  Alyssa Rosenberg, apparently was pretty dismissive of Steven Spielberg directing the next Star Wars film (which he isn't going to by the way):

 "After George Lucas, Spielberg is probably the most 'Star Wars'-knowledgeable filmmaker out there. I imagine that few others have as much insight into what Lucas originally conceived for 'Star Wars' than Spielberg. That's not good. The most exciting thing about Disney purchasing Lucasfilm is the prospect of evolving the 'Star Wars' franchise with some new creative energy, and Spielberg doesn't bring that."

So, Miss Rosenberg, please tell us what would you consider as ''new creative energy''? Perhaps a peak at her own website will allow us to see what she means:

While this opens up a new chapter in the cinematic development of the Star Wars universe, that doesn’t mean Disney will be flying off into uncharted territory. The Star Wars Expanded Universe includes a huge number of licensed books (not to mention video games, comic books, graphic novels, and animated television series) that lay out the story of the franchise’s main characters, and in some cases, their distant descendants. Given that Disney will need to woo legions of long-term fans who love the larger Star Wars universe and were burned to greater or lesser extents by the awfulness of the prequels, and will certainly want to keep monetizing the expanded universe, I expect they’ll preserve that continuity. The question is just which stories they decide to use as source material.

Oooh, how surprising. So, according to Miss Rosenberg, the ''new creative energy'' should be adapting an EU novel into a film? Tell ya what: IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.Here's the reason(s) why: 

It has been confirmed by Disney and Lucasfilm that Episode VII will be an ''Original Story''.

 ''And now there have been novels about the events after Episode VI, which isn't at all what I would have done with it. The Star Wars story is really the tragedy of Darth Vader. That is the story. Once Vader dies, he doesn't come back to life, the Emperor doesn't get cloned and Luke doesn't get married..."-George Lucas

The good news, is that contrary to what hateboy nation wants, the next set of Star Wars films, will be made according to the vision of George Lucas and his story treatments, and they might not fit into the picture of what everyone thinks it should be. As hategirl Alyssa pointed out, Spielberg knows very well what vision George has for the next film, and sadly he won't be involved. It is only just for the man who created the whole thing to pass on the next set of films to a person(s) who will stay true to his vision, just like how Dave Filoni has stayed true to George's vision of the Clone Wars . Even Timothy Zahn, the writer of much of the bulk of the EU post-ROTJ, has said that if George gets the EU out of the way in order to make the next set of films, he is fine with it. I accept the next treatment of Star Wars films for what they will be, even if I don't agree 100% with everything. 

Oh, and another thing, why do you generalize about how the fans were supposedly ''burned'' by the ''awfullness of the prequels''? If so many people hated those films, then why did Episode I as it got released in 3D, make 103 million dollars? 

The Clone Wars: 100 Episodes

I honestly don't think that anybody even imagined- let alone dreamed off.-the kinds of things we have seen in the 100 Episodes of the Clone Wars,way back in August of 2008, when the Clone Wars film was released. The movie received mostly negative reviews from movie critics, for mostly unfair reasons, and few people thought the show would be much of anything or that it would ever take off. Ahsoka's character was hated by a lot people, (something the actress who portrayed her, Ashley Eckstein was aware off) and the hateboy nation criticized George Lucas for supposedly, exploiting the franchise. It was a dark time for Star Wars, indeed. But I kept my faith in George. I was one of the few who thought the movie had been great, and was looking forward to when the series would air.

After seeing the past four seasons, and the first half of the second season, I can honestly say that I have seen one of the best shows on TV that I have seen in my life.Every season has gotten better and better in visuals, in storytelling, in the inclusion of new characters that are now fan favorites, etc. Dave Filoni has done a tremendous job at portraying Star Wars for a whole new generation of kids, while at the same time staying true to the vision of the man himself, George Lucas. I look forward to seeing the rest of the show, and to see how this will eventually fit in to the events of Revenge of the Sith.

On an ending note, besides the fact that I want to congratulate everyone who has made the show possible: From George, Dave, the amazing crew of actors, the designers, and everyone else in Lucasfilm involved in the story, I also want to share a quote said by Dave Filoni a couple of days ago:

"These characters are meant to go along with these movies … who knows if it will show up in future movies" 

A couple of things we can infer from this statement: 1. The next set of Star Wars films probably won't be directed by Dave Filoni, which, saddens me. 2. He isn't aware of the story, so almost no one knows it. 3.Ahsoka might show up in the next Star Wars film, or some other Star Wars character introduced in TCW. Keep your fingers crossed people!!!!!

The Fate of Ahsoka Tano

One of the biggest mysteries surrounding The Clone Wars, and has been the #1 question since day one is, what happens to Anakin Skywalker's apprentice, Ahsoka Tano? Dave Filoni hinted to us sometime back in July of 2011 that their were ''8 possible fates for Ahsoka, but nothing had been decided.'' But in a recent post from November, Filoni said that Ahsoka's fate had already been decided. Here are some possible options these guys could have taken:

1. Ahsoka dies. 

This one is the most obvious answer, due to the fact that she doesn't appear in Episode III and also due to the fact that we already know that most Jedi get killed in Order 66. However, despite how obvious it might look, I honestly doubt the show will end up killing her. For one, the show started with Ahsoka's story and it is more than likely that it will end with hers, and since the series will likely go to demonstrate some of the events that lead up to Revenge of the Sith, such as the ones depicted in James Luceno's novel Labyrinth of Evil, her death should be something present in the minds of the main characters. Even if it wasn't Anakin's fault that she died, it would still reflect poorly on him, and it would make the decision of the Jedi Council to promote him on being in the Council all the more complicated. You are also left wondering why she isn't even mentioned in Episode III. 

2.Ahsoka leaves the Order to be with Lux

This one is a tricky one for starters, due to the fact that so far Ahsoka's relationship with Lux as left off in the Onderon arc is more ambiguous than ever. She might leave the Jedi in order to be with him, but it is even more unlikely than the previous possibility, mainly due to the fact that Ahsoka leaving the Order would severely undermine her character. Lux might have something to do with saving Ahsoka from death though. 

3.Ahsoka survives Order 66

To be honest with you, unless the show ends up demonstrating another possibility, the only reasonable way Ahsoka can survive the Jedi Purge is the following way: Ahsoka is sent on a mission while the events of Episode III take place. Anakin doesn't mention her because well, she's just out in a mission temporarily. When Order 66 takes place, she might either get lucky and survive like Obi-Wan, or end up dead like almost everyone else. How she survives is anyone's guess, whether Lux saves her or whether Rex ends up not shooting her, or something else. It would leave future media open to address what happened to her, and it leaves open the possibility of her appearance in Episode 7. How she gets all the way to the events of Episode 7, would leave several stories to depict what happened to her.

What it means to defend Star Wars

Star Wars to me, is a movie, or a series of movies, that changed my life ever since I was a 5 year old and I went to see The Phantom Menace in theaters, with my mother. I am now 18, and I can say with all sincerity that it's one of the greatest movies ever released in history. Many might say that it's only true for the Original Trilogy and that the Prequels were horrendous, but I respectfully and fundamentally disagree with them. If anything, I think that the Prequels told the other part of George's story, and gave the same things that we loved from the Originals: the Lightsaber fights, the Spaceships, the epic struggle between good and evil, the search for the divine, a gigantic universe filled with thousands of planets, civilizations, and species. It's one of those stories that more than one generation has enjoyed, and from the look of the new Disney deal, more generations will enjoy the story. As Dave Filoni, the supervisor and director of Star Wars: The Clone Wars said, ''Star Wars Will Be Forever''. How can blame Filoni, or by that matter George Lucas, that potentially 100 years from now, people will still enjoy this movies the way we do?