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What do you LIKE about the EU? — Page 8

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CP3S said:

Sounds like you've really been on a kick to branch out lately.

Hey, man - you started it!    Five years ago I was fine with my one-film Star Wars world.  But no, you kept on me with all your - "it's been 30 years, you have to listen to the NPR version again - you need to give Splinter Of The Mind's Eye a look - you should check out Daley's Han Solo novels too".

And for that - I'm very grateful, sir.  ;-)

All kidding aside, it was you, Gaffer, and Zombie (plus a few others) who leaned on me the most and it really put the hook in me.  Once I opened the Pandora's Box of EU, there was no putting it back in.  Next thing you know, NPR replaced the film and those first four novels are yearly reads. Splinter every summer, Han Solo Adventures every winter. 

My Star Wars world is entirely different than it was pre-Board.  It's much deeper now. 
The vast universe is back - and getting vaster. <--- yeah, I know  ;-)

On topic;  I guess this new burst of branching out is really just because I finished Splinter, didn't want to wait until winter for my next Star Wars read, tested the post-1979 waters with Tales (at Zombie's behest), and am digging it so much that I want to go deeper.  I'll just start the Zahn novels in order, when I'm done with my current read.

 

I'd say give Heir to the Empire a chance, if you don't mind reading a story where you have to take the events of Empire and Jedi into account, it can't hurt.

I'm fine with those being referenced.  I just don't have any interest in reading novels about them.   To an extent, I'm fine with the prequels being name-checked on occasion, but I have zero interest in anything that takes place during that time frame.

 

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kilik64 said:

Little like ole Brucie but still a dashing fellow. 

Looks like a young Most Interesting Man In The World. "I don't always drink beer, but when I do - it's Dos Sol. Stay thirsty my friends"

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Noob here.

The reason that, at least for me, the Zahn novels are so superior to the novels that followed is that Zahn actually wrote them as novels. Other authors seemed to think they were writing movies. Even Zahn has not been able to escape the taint of the prequels, and his recent stuff is medicore at best. Plus, as others mentioned, he fell in love with his own characters (Jade, Thrawn, Karrde)

I actually thought the Black Fleet Crisis was good, although it lacked the feel of Star Wars almost completely. Weird.

I loved KOTOR 2. Maybe my second favourite Star Wars experience after the original film! It built upon the more serious tone of the films that started in Empire and explored the Jedi and Sith philosophies in a mature manner. Great characters as well. Buggy as hell though, and essentially unfinished (the last 10% of the game is a complete mess).

 

“It is only through interaction, through decision and choice, through confrontation, physical or mental, that the Force can grow within you.”
-Kreia, Jedi Master and Sith Lord

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CP3S said:

Anchorhead said:

 

Heir to the Empire
Dark Force Rising
The Last Command

Specter of the Past
Vision of the Future

Sounds like you've really been on a kick to branch out lately. I generally don't like EU novels with few exceptions, but I love the first three Zahn books. Those are good reads, all about Luke, Han, Leia, and the gang several years after Return of the Jedi. Specter and Vision continue the story a few years later, I heard they are good, but have never read them.

From all I have heard, pretend the others don't exist.

I also always liked Shadows of the Empire, which most people hate. But I think falling in love with the video game and the story has a lot to do with that. I actually haven't read the book since it came out, so I don't remember how bad it was in writing. Every so often I listen to the abridged audio book, my preferred way to experience the story. It leaves a lot out and cuts the story down to the very basics, but I think it does an excellent job of doing so.

The Tales of books have been others that have always stood out to me. Personally, I think they get silly at times, but that is to be expected from any anthology of short sci-fi stories. Surprisingly, my favorite of these was Tales of the Bounty Hunters.

I was a teenager when I read any of these last, Revenge of the Sith (love the way it is written, story still sucks though) being the only SW novel I have attempted to read as an adult (if you exclude listening to the full unabridged audiobook of Attack of the Clones). So, I might feel differently about them if I were to encounter any of them today.

 

I'd say give Heir to the Empire a chance, if you don't mind reading a story where you have to take the events of Empire and Jedi into account, it can't hurt.

I'm a lot like you C3PX (we should splitscreen again sometime!) though I can't follow you to Shadows of the Empire.  I really enjoy the soundtrack, but that's about it.  I recently listened to some SW audio books, SotE amonth them, and found I couldn't believe how crap it was.  I also re-read the comics and found they didn't fare much better.

EDIT: I also really dig the "Luke in Red Trooper Armour" POFT2 that was produced as part of the SotE figure line.

I listened to the Duology as well as Survivor's Quest and didn't really care for them.  But then I listened to the Thrawn Trilogy, which I remember loving, on tape (3 hours per 300 page book) and found them to be quite bad.  I have experience with how a poor audio abridgement can really ruin the quality of an otherwise very enjoyable book.  So I made the Mrs. read them out loud with me in the car.  I found them to be every bit as good as I remembered and perhaps a little better due to my own increased maturity and especially in the light of where Star Wars has gone since

IT'S MY TRILOGY, AND I WANT IT NOW!

"[George Lucas] rebooted the franchise in 1997 without telling anyone." -skyjedi2005

"Yeah, well, George says a lot of things..." a young 1997 xhonzi on RASSM

"They're my movies." -George Lucas. 19 people won oscars for their work on Star Wars (1977) and George Lucas wasn't one of them.

Rewrite the Prequels!

 

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captainsolo said:

So where did it all go wrong? Is there an easy spot to pigeonhole as the downturn that led to where the EU is now?

2 Points:

1. To the degree that Kevin J. Anderson took over.

2. To the degree that George Lucas took it back.

 

Ah... it's so nostalgic to remember when Kevin J Anderson was my most hated SW writer and George Lucas was my favourite!

IT'S MY TRILOGY, AND I WANT IT NOW!

"[George Lucas] rebooted the franchise in 1997 without telling anyone." -skyjedi2005

"Yeah, well, George says a lot of things..." a young 1997 xhonzi on RASSM

"They're my movies." -George Lucas. 19 people won oscars for their work on Star Wars (1977) and George Lucas wasn't one of them.

Rewrite the Prequels!

 

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Sue Perkins said :

What I really like about the EU is that the same Mickey Mouse money I spend in Ireland is just as worthless when I spend it in Greece (a bit like a Bank Of Clydesdale five pound note in London only more likely to be accepted by taxi drivers).

....@......@

Is this an audience or an oil painting?

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Review 3

Hammertong: The Tale Of The Tonnika Sisters, by Timothy Zahn

This was fantastic.  Really dug the story, the imagery, and the characters.  Particularly the sisters.  This was a longer story than the other two so far and truthfully, it left me wanting more.  As with the others, they're just passing through the cantina when Star Wars intersects it for a few minutes. This story goes a little beyond the events in the cantina, which I though made it even more interesting.

Again, interesting to see Star Wars through the eyes of uninvolved bar patrons.  Zahn really fleshed out a great story for these two women.  They're worthy of a novel themselves.  His style felt almost as though he were channeling Brian Daley.  Great dialogue, great feel.  Like you're there. The last few pages felt like a movie. 

I might have to read this one a second time before moving on. Great stuff.

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I can't help grinning when I read your reviews, Anchor. Because you managed to ignore the EU up to this point, reading you going through these stories is like reliving my childhood. I'm so glad you're getting enjoyment out of these.

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timdiggerm said:

Do believe this may help push you towards his Thrawn Trilogy, huh?

Yes. 

I know there are some things in them that I'm not a fan of, but I'll just have to make peace with them and see if I can enjoy the larger picture.  If it turns out that they're too much of a stretch to make, I'll move on.

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doubleofive said:

I can't help grinning when I read your reviews, Anchor. Because you managed to ignore the EU up to this point, reading you going through these stories is like reliving my childhood. I'm so glad you're getting enjoyment out of these.

Yeah man, I'm late to the party alright.  Digging it so far though.  Prequel stories will never be my deal, but even with those removed from the picture I still have a lot of catching up to do.  Spoiler-free summaries have been a big help.

A general question for the board, for reference. Excuse my ignorance of uber-geekdom, but from what I've been perusing it looks like the novels I'd be interested in all fall under the category of New Republic.  Am I reading this correctly?

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/New_Republic_era

 

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I don't know the answer to that, but you would definitely dig the New New Republic Role Playing Pro Board!

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I understand it as:

Old Republic
Clone Wars/Prequels
The Dark Times (forbidden by GL)
The OT
New Republic Era (dates are given by ABY, after the Battle of Yavin)
Legacy Era (I think this is a comic series)

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 (Edited)

New Republic and contemporaneous to the OT are the two I think you'd like, although obviously not everything within those.

I have no idea how you'd feel about New Jedi Order (a loooong storyline during New Republic times). It sure isn't World Shrinkage.

ROTJ Storyboard Reconstruction Project

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doubleofive said:


The Dark Times (forbidden by GL)

Forbidden??

The Dark Times by doubleKO

It was many months since Vader had paid the power bill...

 

BLAM! Take that George.

 

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timdiggerm said:

New Republic and contemporaneous to the OT are the two I think you'd like, although obviously not everything within those.

I have no idea how you'd feel about New Jedi Order (a loooong storyline during New Republic times). It sure isn't World Shrinkage.

Anchorhead liking NJO? Inconceivable!

“It is only through interaction, through decision and choice, through confrontation, physical or mental, that the Force can grow within you.”
-Kreia, Jedi Master and Sith Lord

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doubleofive said:

I understand it as:

Old Republic
Clone Wars/Prequels
The Dark Times (forbidden by GL)
The OT
New Republic Era (dates are given by ABY, after the Battle of Yavin)
Legacy Era (I think this is a comic series)

I think that's pretty much it.  There are Legacy books and then there are Legacy Comics, which aren't related.  I think the "Legacy Era" refers to the comics.

IT'S MY TRILOGY, AND I WANT IT NOW!

"[George Lucas] rebooted the franchise in 1997 without telling anyone." -skyjedi2005

"Yeah, well, George says a lot of things..." a young 1997 xhonzi on RASSM

"They're my movies." -George Lucas. 19 people won oscars for their work on Star Wars (1977) and George Lucas wasn't one of them.

Rewrite the Prequels!

 

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Anchorhead said:

Looking just at Zahn's Star Wars novel list, there seems to be several that might be good reads. Looking at a few non-spoiler write-ups, some of these sound interesting.

Heir to the Empire
Dark Force Rising
The Last Command
Specter of the Past
Vision of the Future
Survivor's Quest
Outbound Flight
Allegiance

Are these Prequel\Annikin\Padme heavy?  The write-ups make it sound like they're more about the OT characters later in life, which could be very interesting.

Apologies ahead of time, I'm an EU newb.

None really have anything to do with the PT except Outbound Flight which I think you can safely skip. Otherwise really good reads.

Also try the Han Solo trilogy (The Paradise Snare, The Hutt Gambit, Rebel Dawn) for more classic style Star Wars.

Damn. Now I want to read good EU again. Wish it was 1995.

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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captainsolo said:

Also try the Han Solo trilogy (The Paradise Snare, The Hutt Gambit, Rebel Dawn) for more classic style Star Wars.

I've never read these, but I have heard they were good. This seems more the type of thing Anchorhead would get into.

They take place prior to the first Star Wars film, right?

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Vision of the Future would have been the perfect send-off for Star Wars. I kind of wish no further products (be they movie, comic, TV, book, or game) were made after it - with the exception of KOTOR 1 & 2.

“It is only through interaction, through decision and choice, through confrontation, physical or mental, that the Force can grow within you.”
-Kreia, Jedi Master and Sith Lord

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CP3S said:

captainsolo said:

Also try the Han Solo trilogy (The Paradise Snare, The Hutt Gambit, Rebel Dawn) for more classic style Star Wars.

I've never read these, but I have heard they were good. This seems more the type of thing Anchorhead would get into.

They take place prior to the first Star Wars film, right?

They certainly do. The first one begins with young Han escaping his childhood captor, the second gets him involved with Jabba and Chewie, and the third takes place after the Daley trilogy and Han wins the Falcon. These are really good for establishing the character and aren't too farfetched.

VADER!? WHERE THE HELL IS MY MOCHA LATTE? -Palpy on a very bad day.
“George didn’t think there was any future in dead Han toys.”-Harrison Ford
YT channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/DamnFoolIdealisticCrusader

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captainsolo said:



CP3S said:


captainsolo said:

Also try the Han Solo trilogy (The Paradise Snare, The Hutt Gambit, Rebel Dawn) for more classic style Star Wars.


I've never read these, but I have heard they were good. This seems more the type of thing Anchorhead would get into.

They take place prior to the first Star Wars film, right?


They certainly do. The first one begins with young Han escaping his childhood captor, the second gets him involved with Jabba and Chewie, and the third takes place after the Daley trilogy and Han wins the Falcon. These are really good for establishing the character and aren't too farfetched.
Does it mention the events of the Daley Trilogy?!

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doubleofive said:

 

Does it mention the events of the Daley Trilogy?!

 

IIRC (its been a few years) there's a bit where they say, "Han went off to the Corporate Sector for a while, but he's back now."

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TheBoost said:


doubleofive said:
Does it mention the events of the Daley Trilogy?!

IIRC (its been a few years) there's a bit where they say, "Han went off to the Corporate Sector for a while, but he's back now."
That's neat. I guess.

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I actually remember there being a big chunk of one of the books where Han is gone so the story follows Lando for a little while, whilst Han is off in Corporate Sector. Though it might be shorter than I remember. =P

As for the Dark Times, it's not strictly off-limits, there is actually a comic set in that time period with that very title. It's actually my favorite Star Wars comic series. I'd highly recommend it.

As for anything else Star Wars related Anchorhead might like to check out, I'd recommend the daily newspaper strips that started back in '79. You can find them by clicking on my sig. It starts off pretty good, then the main writer and illustrated had to leave due to illness and it gets a little iffy for a couple stories and then BAM it becomes fantastic.

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