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Point 1: Boba Fett- Originally was a man banished from the planet Concord Dawn. Now, he's a clone copy of the same man used as the template for the stormtroopers??
To be fair, his identity was never truly confirmed. Under my understanding, Jaster Mereel(sp) turns out to be a mentor of Jango in the Mandorlorian way. Boba claims his armor. As for the clones, it would explain why their's a man running around guised as Fett.
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Point 2: Clones- This is slightly more dependant on EP3, but where are the Spaarti Cloning Cylinders?? For that matter, who/what are Spaarti??
True. Possibly something that isn't created until after the Clone Wars(I was a bit surprised the clones are fighting for the Republic)
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Point 3: Ships- Again, this is more dependant on EP3, but where are the Dreadnaughts, Alderaanian War Frigates, Republic TIEs, Z-95 Headhunters?
Very true, again, we shall see. Naturally, you can't throw every reference in. I doubt we'll hear of the Dathormirian Witches. I'd still like to see Corellia and especially Alderaan myself. Also, the construction of the Imperial Palace might be nice.
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Point 4: Events- I'm hoping we get some mention of Thrawn and/or the Outbound Galaxy Project. So many have said that Lucas likes the Zahn Trilogy best, that it holds truest to the spirit of Star Wars, yet Lucas has yet to do anything that shows that the Zahn books fit into his own story.
I too would love even a throw-a-way reference to the Outbound Galaxy Project. Maybe a brief shot of Thrawn that only fans can pick out, we won't know though.
Galahad_Skywalker, here's my suggestion. Finish the Thrawn trilogy, it's what got me started. After that, either finish the Corellia trilogy, or put it on hold and read the excellent X-wing saga. It details the warlord age, the fall of Coruscant, and follows Wedge and Rouge Squadron instead of Luke and Leia. It's written by two authors, my favorite of which is Michael Stackpole(his short story in Tales from the New Republic with Zahn [my other fav SW author] is a must read). The series also introduces my third favorite EU character, after Mara and Thrawn, Corran Horn. Other great character's developed from the series are Tycho Celchu(sp), an Alderaaning, Ysanni Isard, the main vilian of the piece, and the Terrick family(Booster, the man with his own Star Destroyer).
What I'm really trying to say is this; hold off on the New Jedi Order for as long as you can. I've only read five of the series, but its impact will be largely dependant on your knowledge of the characters involved. Most of the books are excellent reads, though don't worry much about getting to the Barbara Hambly books, or the Black Fleet Crisis. I didn't enjoy them that much.