Darknikos

Hello there!

in the last months I was away for job, without connection... but with the notebook to continue the work on the Fixed Universe.

Now I'm back and - hoping there is still someone interested - finally I plan to release in some day "Heir to the Empire", and in the following weeks the last two chapter of the trilogy and Dark Empire.

This is just for advise... and for resuming the topic! :) 

@TheoOdo: i don't think i will do any edit of the comic versions of the movie: I think in this board we can find the better versions of them (like SW:Revisited, or the ADigitalMan edits).

@ben_danger: i'm downloading it!!!

however, i've recontrolled all my HTTE files and are all translated! maybe you have some old version of them.

if you tell me the pages, i resend them to you.

(and now, with DE, I'm working directly in english... :P )

@ TheoOdo: the marvel series is in my to do list! :) I've the scans of the comic books but the colors are horrible! so, I'm buying the reprinted version by dark horse that are completely recoloured.

the goal is to fit them with empire/rebellion series and shadows of the empire. and, yes, removing some "kitsch" elements, specially in the firsts issues, in the part between ANH and TESB.

For the episodes names I simply think that it's unnecessary to have a number for any of them. otherwise we have to give a number to any comic or book of the EU... and it's impossible.

Like a friend of mine, professor of classical letters and huge star wars fan, says the six-episodes saga represent only a portion of a larger universe story, that we can call "Anakineid". A name that recall the ancient greek and latin poems, like already do the star wars story itself (Anakin like a tragic hero, and others...)

ok... this is a bit off topic!

@ professa adyfan: awesome! my first idea was something similar, but i'm not an animator and if i want, one day, to finish this project i cannot animate avery comics that i want to edit! O_o

but, yes, if there is someone interested in doing this, could be great!

(which reminds me... there is a fan that is providing some musics for the EU, especially the Legacy comic series: http://space.geocities.jp/akihikomonnai/eumusic.html

it could be intersting to have at least one original theme for every "movie" or trilogy. in this case, for example, a theme for Mara and for Thrawn)

ben_danger said:

looks and sounds great. i think it suits the comic well. the crawls for the other star wars films were alot shorter i think, so i was being restrcitive intially to keep with them. but i think the new one is better and we should run with it.

well... i've already uploaded the photoshop file, as you can see. the good thing is that this new crawl is about the same length of the crawls of dark force rising and the last command, so fit better with the other chapters in the trilogy!

ok, i've redone the crawl, based on te last TheoOdo's version.

I've only shortened it a bit because otherwise the text doesn't enter in the field.

here the preview: 

and here the PSD file: http://ultimatestarwars.altervista.org/3107.psd

@ ben_danger: i'm sorry... yesterday morning i thought i've posted but i was in late for the work... and i discovered now that my post there isn't.

however... what pages are still to translate? so i send you!

(and i hope, from this weekend, to return to work on this project, but this is a hard week for me)

@TheoOdo: Good, i like it. But maybe a small mention of Leia's pregnancy have to be done. the story treat it as a matter of fact, and the twins will be very important in the future... don't you think so?

@ Baronlando: I totally agree. i'm already planning the work to do with them! (and i'm buying the new versions published some years ago from dark horse, totally recoloured, to use as material source!)

@ ben_danger: great! a bit longer and complete.. and with the capitol words like in the moves! :P

(which reminds me... do you have the fonts for it?)

isnt lumiyas first appearance in a marvel edition?

yes, Lumiya was created for the marvel comics.

she appear, first, as the rebel lieutenant Shira Brie and work with luke in some mission. after her apparently death, luke discover that she is an imperial agent (and in the same issue that she is still alive, in a bacta tank, supervised by vader himself)

she was a sith apprentice of darth vader, and later an emperor's hand.

after the death of her masters in the death star 2, she return as lumiya, dark lady lady of the sith and she has even a first apprentice.

we see her again only 35 year after, in legacy of the force, when she became the sith mistress of jacen solo. but we know, now, that she was the sith mistress of carnor jax.

and then the idea to expand the brief career of Jax and let see him with his teacher (the official EU never show them together).

and also to see an inedited big 3 vs jax story.

STAR WARS was originally a trilogy, so all references within the trilogy and themes were nicely tied up within the context of the 3 films

then (ignoring EU) the SAGA of SIX films recreated this context into the six films, references and themes then intermixing across the six films (not particularly well, but thats the idea)

what if we make all the comic material some contextualised super saga panning 1000s of years? by rescripting and reorienteering ideas it could be some greater story. Lucas tried tieing the phantom menace with ROTJ for example with the chosen one mumbo jumbo. if we were to pretend that the PT and OT arnt films, and choose to use the comics, we can create a series of omnibuses, where the skywalkers, leia, han etc are almost minor characters.

OK, it's exactly my idea. star wars is not a familiar saga that span into 30-40 years. it's the story of an entire galaxy, during the millennia!

and, yes, the "big 3" from this point of view, are "minor characters", like any other!

heres an interesting site

http://www.darkhorse.com/Zones/StarWars/Timeline

nicely puts a potential comic SAGA in some sort of linear form.

IMHO, the best timeline is the one on theforce.net

http://theforce.net/timeline/

SW is a "multimedia" saga, we cannot wipe out all the other material, like books, and i have some ideas for them... but it's very soon for this! :D

Photoshop crack had a trojan in it.:'(

www.apple.com :P

TheoOdo said:

I have a little idea, with regards to Dark Empire, take it or leave it.

Perhaps instead of the clone Emperor being the source of conflict in DE it could instead be Janus Greejatus and/or Sim Aloo, the two robed figures who appear temporarily in RotJ aboard the Death Star II. Having been trained in the ways of the Sith by the Emperor, they are attempting to reconstruct the Sith Empire just as their deceased master had instructed them to do. They do this with the assistance of a young Force-sensitive apprentice (actually one of the younger looking Emperor clones).

Or have you already decided what you're going to do with DE?

yes, i've already decided. if you watch to the cronology, just after DE, the empire it's controlled by Carnor Jax. only recently, with the release of legacy of the force, LFL has retconned that he is Lumiya's apprentice, but we have never see them together... than in DE we will see both Carnor Jax and Lumiya as villains... and some others...

Johnny Ringo said:

That sounds like a great idea, As long as you don't mind letting other cooks into your kitchen ;)

 

 

well...help-cooks ;) but if there is someone with better ideas then mine, i'll be pleased to use them!

TheoOdo said:

Darknikos said:

 

@ TheoOdo: the work on thrawn trilogy it's almost finished and i'm now working on dark empire. I was planning to release together Thrawn, dark empire and crimson empire, beacuse in this editing are now (finally) one cohesive story!

but i'm now thinking to release soon only the Thrawn trilogy, and then share here my plans for dark/crimson empire, so anyone intersted can discuss about the new storyline (and, i'm sure, improved it).

 

 

Well, I would love to read the Thrawn Trilogy soon, to see what you've done with it.

But I'm interested most in what you plan on doing with Dark Empire, because the Palpatine clone plot is so silly. Can I ask, what are you planning to do about that?

well... what have alwais bugged me is that the 2 trilogies are 2 totally different story, badly united with a poor mention of Thrawn in the crawl of DE. now the story is one. the tedryn holocron is in the thrawn trilogy, the noghri and a mention of mara are in DE. there is no more clone emperor (a poor idea that, after the release of the prequels has no more sense) and there is a certain link with legacy of the force! I've already written an abstract of DE and i'll post it as soon as the thrawn trilogy will be released (i hope in some days).

Stay tuned!

@ ben_danger: i'm reuploading them all!

about TotJ: great recolouring work, obviously, but I think the episodes are better divided like they are now... mostly, the title "Knights of the old Republic" really bug me because it is overused (the ulic-nomi-exar TPB comic, then the video game series, then the new ongoing comic series) and because it reveal clearly that the point of view of the entire saga is the rebellion era; no one used the term "old republic" during the republic years, only after its fall... if we want the EU like real episodes and not only spin off of the movies we have to see every episode for itself, not related to the movies.

but, yes, i totally agree with you that the EU must be one with the movie!!!

@ Johnny Ringo: Thanks! i'm pleased to read that! :)

@ TheoOdo: the work on thrawn trilogy it's almost finished and i'm now working on dark empire. I was planning to release together Thrawn, dark empire and crimson empire, beacuse in this editing are now (finally) one cohesive story!

but i'm now thinking to release soon only the Thrawn trilogy, and then share here my plans for dark/crimson empire, so anyone intersted can discuss about the new storyline (and, i'm sure, improved it).

@ ben_danger: i don't know about the darth... canonically the first to use the darth title were revan and malak, and only with the rule of two become regular.

@ astromech: i'm considering to do something similar... but for some novel. I have still to decide if it's possible...

i've prepared this as a suggestion for the future ROTJ:R, but the conversation is now on this... so:

can something like this be the way?

ben_danger said:

just a quick thought, are you going to make jorus c'boath a clone or a survivor? i hate the whole clones thing, the emperor, thrawn luuke and joruus. it seems like a cop out storyline.

I've left him a clone. and luuke still exist. There will be no cloned emperor in DE, however.

Have you any idea to let the story works without the clones?

Absolutely great! you're now the official color corrector! :D

ben_danger said:

wow, love the crawl! certainly looks like star wars now! are you going to keep the actual text the same though? it seems  a bit brief (as did the original!) but the changes you have made are great.

 

the page directly before it could have the star wars logo, so you see the logo, then turn the page and its the crawl, kind of like the film?

 

the colouring wound literally be the icing on the cake.

Yes, it's brief because I have deleted all the recap to the previous episodes... at this time we already know, for example, that there is a new republic! we know it from X-wing series, Rogue squadron, etc...

and it's brief also because it have to enter in the small space of the page... ^_^

and...yes! the previous pages are "a long time ago in GFFA" and the logo!! :D

@ bkev: Yes, sorry, Halla! I've mixed the name with Saba (from NJO-LOTF)

@ ChainsawAsh: in the OT there are two sentences from Ben and Yoda that define perfectly the Force.

1. "The Force is what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together."

2. "For my ally in the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. It's energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we... not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you. Here, between you...me...the tree...the rock...everywhere!"

So... how can coexist things like yasalamiri (or midichlorian, or Sith Magic...) with the definition of Force given by Yoda and Ben?

One of the few addiction that I find right are the concept of Will of the Force and Living Force.

@ ben_danger: Opening crawl: yes, for that comics (like Thrawn trilogy) that have an opening crawl I've done a version more similar to the movie, instead of the horrible originals, using the same font and color of the movie version:

Black borders: yes, great! i totally agree with you! It's a lot better!!

re-colouring: I'm thinking on it...

@ bkev: wow.... I'm crazy, but not so crazy! :P

however I'm alredy thinking how to do with the novels... for when i will finish with the comics.

@ GhostAlpha26: wow, thanks!!

@ ben_danger:

would you consider like a saga compllation, maybe a 500 page epic that has some greater overall emphasis and reoccurance?

I think i'll edit almost all the comic books. The main projects are:

1. Thrawn Trilogy - Dark Empire - Crimson Empire: regarding Thrawn trilogy I've already explained what I'm doing in the previous post. For DE I will rewrite a complete new story using the illustrations form the existing comic books. The new story will be connected for real to the thrawn trilogy; also because one important element from DE (the tedryn holocron) will be alredy in the thrawn trilogy. And, yes: no reborn emperor and no Luke that fall to the dark side! Crimson Empire will have some improvements for better connect to the new storyline.

2. Tales of the Jedi: I plan to remove any reference to absurd things like "sith magic" or "sith alchemy"; doing something for... this... http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Simus ; remove the contraddiction with the prequels like the body of master Arka that disappear after him death.

3. Marvel series: Like a friend of mine says "in all the one hundred marvel comics, there are one or two good stories... maybe!" :D Well... it can be done something, also because due the bounds with LOTF (Lumiya), the marvels are now more important.

4. Republic / Dark Times: some minor issues (Ki-adi is married (!!!), midichlorians...)

5. Splinter of Mind's eye: it will be partially rewrited to eliminate the contraddictions and the character of Salla will be totally "restyled"

...and many others!

you could recolour them overall to make up for the miscontinuity of style and artists, plus standardise plasters and lightsabers, liek a comic book revisited?

I'm able to correct some elements (for example lightsabers) if someone tell me what color I've to use... but I can't do much more, because i'm partially color blind. So... I'm sorry for this!

anyway, i'll redo various effects (like lightsabers) everywhere it's needed.

ben_danger said:

i was contemplating an edit to kind of follow these lines once, just didnt really know how to pull it off.

 

have you ever seen tank girl? because the film production went so badly wrong, some scenes and shots were replaced with comic drawn images. this accident really actually helped the film considering it was actually based on a comic. now what if we did the same thing with the star wars films? one could even incorpeate the clone wars cartoons, and maybe do clever filter things too? maybe hints of EU storylines could be presented in this way, and an alternative Danny Elfman style score to accompany the films?

 

i think some may believe i have committed heresy now.....

So,

by now I've only done a "comic book fan-edit".

Yes, it could be great to do something like a movie... but you suggest to mix the EU with the Lucas' movies? How can we tell a new story with the shot from the movie?

But your post has suggested to me an idea... can be interesting trying to do a movie from the comic book illustrations, adding a soundtrack and voices.

There is no radio drama for the thrawn trilogy, but there is for Tales of the Jedi... I don't know, I can try to do something with it. 

Another idea is to release a series of movies, something like "From the Holocron of Luke Skywalker" that remember "From the adventures of Luke Skywalker" from the early script of ANH, in which we can see the holo image of an old Luke (actor? 3d?) that tell the stories, and the same holocron can visualize the illustrations from the comic books... Yes, yes, it is a crazy idea!!!

Really, this second idea went to me after finishing the 2002 videogame "clone wars" that has a good story and good CG scenes. I've saved them all on my computer and I was wondering how to make a decent movie of them... and the same idea could be great with similar videogames, like the old "DF2:JK".

well... by now i've simply begun to modify the comic books in the way I think they could be improved.

that is:

Thrawn trilogy:

1. The ysalamiri are totally removed

2. The Tedryn Holocron is introduced from HTTE

3. Removed the worst moment in which Luke seems to be an idiot

4. Recoloured the lightsabers (in the original comics they change from green to blue without sense. Now, Luke has it green, Leia blue)

5. changed all the writings in latin alphabet with the aurekbesh.

...and some others minor improvements.

some screenshot of what I'm doing:

Tedryn Holocron in Thrawn trilogy

have you ever seen something like this? :D (I think if Zahn knew of this he shouldn't be very happy! :P )

Lightsabers corrected

Aurekbesh

Ysalamiri removed

the Thrawn trilogy is done for the 90%, then i will begin with the Dark Empire trilogy (that I've planned to rewrite completely, using the comics illustrations from the 3 episodes to make an all new story).

Last edited October 16 2009:
<span style=“font-weight: normal;”>added working links for the Thrawn Trilogy </span>

The fixed edition of the Thrawn Trilogy is available:

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this is the changes’ list:

**_

Heir to the Empire <span style=“font-style: normal;”>changes:</span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>New opening crawl (Thanks to ben_danger, TheoOdo and ChainsawAsh)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>The ysalamiri are completely removed</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Luke is a bit less “farmboy-ish” than in the original Thrawn trilogy.</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>The Roman alphabet is removed - all the text now appears in Aurebesh</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>In the original, both Luke and Leia have blue lightsabers; Luke’s is now green</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Removed Luke’s dream about Ben’s farewell</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>The Tedryn Holocron is introduced here, instead of Dark Empire (this is an element that helps to tie the two stories together)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Thrawn goes to Myrkr to find the Tedryn Holocron, not the ysalamiri</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Restored Ben’s line, remembered by Luke, to match his actual ROTJ line (Thanks to ChainsawAsh)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Corrected the reference to the Clone Wars from “35 years ago” to “about 30 years ago”</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>As with any Jedi, Leia builds her lightsaber by herself; it isn’t Luke who does it for her</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Added a reference to the Kamino cloners</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Removed Thrawn’s line about the possibility that one Jedi can be influenced by another</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Removed the unnecessary thought bubbles when Luke descends into Dagobah’s cave (Thanks to ChainsawAsh)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Ralrra introduces himself with his complete name and gives Leia information about him and his past, like in the book</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Corrected the name of Karrde’s vornskr Sturm, previously misspelled in “Strum” (Thanks to guitarfan01)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Luke now frees himself from Karrde’s prison using the Force, as there aren’t any ysalamiri to stop him</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Changed Luke’s line when stealing Karrde’s ship “with a little luck” to “If the Force is with us.”</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Luke and Mara have a brief saber duel before the deal to reach Hillard City together</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Removed the question about the possibility of going into the forest for R2 (he can fly!)</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>When Mara hits the vornskr, Luke doesn’t thank her like a defenceless boy - he congratulates her</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>When Khabarakh meets Leia, he mentions his species’ name (Noghri), so Leia’s next thought bubble, in which she mentions the Noghri, makes much more sense.</span></span>

<span style=“font-style: normal;”><span style=“font-weight: normal;”>Other general dialogue and other minor improvements (thanks to Xammer and ChainsawAsh)</span></span>

_**

_Dark Force Rising_changes:

Correct the dating of the Empire’s conquest of Honogr, matching it with the new timeline information given by the prequels.

Leia’s lightsaber is now blue (instead of green) like in any other source.

Luke doesn’t fall under C’baoth’s influence but, being aware that he is insane, tries to save him and then fights him.

The Last Command changes:

There are not specifice changes to the last chapter of the trilogy, but the general changes (ysalamiri and corrected lightsabers).

Note: The choice to maintain the appearance of Anakin Skywalker’s spirit in the form of an aged man was totally intended, in order to match with the original 1983 version of Return of the Jedi and the majority of the fan edits of this film.

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ORIGINAL MESSAGE:

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Hello to all!

I’ve posted here only two times, but i follow this board since years.

I love the way the fans had modified and recreated our myth (the better example, IMHO, is SW:Revisited by Adywan) but the Saga it’s not only the movies: the Expanded Universe is - at least potentially - a very important part of the story, that can give it a lot of depth and facet.

Since I knew the Expanded Universe (a lot of time ago, of course) I’ve always thought that the entire Saga could be better if the EU was not full of silly moments and bad choiches.

Probably, here, the EU is not considered like a real part of SW, and surely, my little editing it’s a little game, compared to the incredible work of the real fan editors.

But, maybe, someone can find it intersting, so I try to present the project I’m working on.

The goal it’s to rewrite almost all the EU, making it more near to movies’ spirit, removing contraddiction, and eliminating all those elements that not fit with the movies or that are simply stupid or not appropriate.

For example: I’m now working on the story arc that include the Thrawn trilogy, Dark Empire trilogy, and the two Crimson Empire. As everyone who read the EU knows, in this comics we have to read about ysalamiri, reborn emperor, dark side Luke… these three things are enough to destroy the concept of the Force, the meanings of the Prophecy and the character of Luke! And - last but not least - it’s clear that the thrawn’s and DE’s trilogy are form totally different concepts and ideas and it’s not believable to put them in the same continuity.

So, if no one is interested in this project I’ll disappear… otherwise, if someone it’s intersted, I’ll be happy to discuss - and improve - here these edits! 😃