A combination of this and some of the latest Ewok alterations going on in the Wishlist thread would be my dream fan edit of ROTJ.
Good to hear from you again. I was beginning to worry that you'd been ambushed by sand people.
Is my story still up to NeverarGreat Standard, or has it fallen utterly off the deep end?
It is a time of galactic tyranny. The evil EMPEROR OF THE GALAXY, using a twisted clone decoy, lured a fledgling rebellion into attacking and destroying an Imperial superweapon at the moon of Endor.
This rebel victory was short lived, however, as Imperial forces regrouped, and the moon of Endor was soon pulverized under the firepower of the entire Imperial starfleet.
The rebel heroes Luke and Leia Skywalker, narrowly escaping the devastation, evaded the Imperial starfleet and escaped into exile, gathering new strength in the fight for justice and freedom among the darkening stars....
That opening crawl is close to excellent. Smooth, comprehensible. If it were me, OCD would kick in and I would say: "The rebel heroes, Luke and Leia Skywalker, narrowly escape into exile", etc.
As it is, a form of "escape" appears twice in the same paragraph, and "Imperial starfleet, which was in the last.
The Facebook page comes across as existing for educational purposes ("Hey, the footage exists, here are some samples with trivia-type information").
But, like I said, it just does not matter.
darth_ender said:
That's my thought. Capture the whole thing,, spread it around as widely and discreetly as possible, and then there's no way to shut it down. Releasing it piecemeal on as high profile a site as FB invites legal troubles. If they can get deleted scenes removed from YouTube, why wouldn't they be able to do the same with this project? I could be wrong and don't necessarily understand the legal loopholes like the Freedom of Information Act, but it just seems to be inviting trouble, and this is such a precious and rare resource, I'd hate for the control freaks to put an end to this amazing find.
I agree.
Whether the sharing of these clips is technically legal or not hardly matters. Corporations file false copyright claims on the layman quite frequently, and with success.
Disney has functionally infinite money for lawyers in court. None of us do.
One of adywan's friends in America bought it from ebay. There was serious repair work needed, even though the seller said it was in mint condition. It's going well.
The footage is a great contribution to future fan edits.
A whole new story? But aren't they contractually bound to follow Lucas' treatments?
Bingowings said:
Jason's PT edits are high up in my best list (I can't remember the last time I saw the theatrical PT).
I'm on the border of total prequel dismissal, skeptical they can be salvaged. But these edits might be worth giving a chance.
What is your present attitude toward the thread I posted earlier? You seemed open-minded about it back then, but that was years ago. And as a fellow ROTJ critic, I value your posts.
[Chapter Six]
The halves of the casing clicked together, and the top module rotated until tight. Luke took his weapon and ignited the blade, a green glow warming the cave interior and illuminating the grin upon his weary face. Vader's onslaught had ceased a while ago.
Luke walked from the cave and began a meandering journey to Yoda's hut. He stepped over a fallen branch, swung across a mud pond. The blade nicked limbs and sticks as he went.
He felt such elation that he had to engage in a stunt or two. He used the Force to fire the lightsaber away at top speeds. He waited until it had zoomed to the upper levels of the canopy, and then yanked it back. It spun in his direction as a lethal, glowing wheel. He released his telekinetic grip, jumped meters in the air over the blade, and grabbed the hilt. A normal human his position would be dead and dismembered.
He soon entered the hut to find a pot of coffee roasting. Yoda stood in a corner. The Jedi master leaned heavily on his cane, eyes half-lidded. Luke poured himself a cup and sipped, wanting to make casual of his accomplishment; to divert attention away from his former difficulties.
"It's done, Master Yoda."
"Grown stronger, you have. More capable. Fortified from Vader, you are, for the time being. But go, you must. The final stage of your training happens far from here."
Finished this earlier today.
I personally would say the atmosphere in this book feels different from ANH; but that's OK. Think if you combined Star Wars with Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.
Mimban is an eerie world, an archaeologist's fantasy. Halla's personality was fun to read. We're given what are essentially two Chewbaccas in the form of another, similar species. . . cool. Grammel was an effective villain we can learn to hate; his end is both satisfying and disturbing. Thank you, Vader.
There are several times in the book where Luke and Leia needed to throw themselves into a passionate kiss. You can feel the writer pulling back, robbing them of consummate romance.
It was a good book. The flaws are in the writing style, which is at times clunky. Forgivable, though. It adds a certain "obscure drug store novel" feel.
Sadly, we'll never learn what happens next to the characters in this continuity. Because afterward in the SWU, the retcons abound.
^ Right leg, hands down. (That's almost a pun)
Here we are. :)
Awe-inspiring posts, my friends!
As is my hobby as of late, I was surfing through ancient threads. There were some familiar faces, but many who disappeared some time ago.
Does anyone remember a user by the name of JasonN? He has been gone for nearly a year. He had a vision for ROTJ. A humble, yet profound and achievable vision that could do to be resurrected, I think.
It was radical enough that I cannot operate under the delusion either adywan or Possessed would ever even consider it, but surely there are other members who are willing.
The ever bothersome lightsaber colors... what can one say? Good luck, and sounds good.
This project has a new supporter.
The weaknesses of ROTJ have bugged me for years. Right now I'm writing a reimagining of the story as fanfiction, but would like to have a version of the current film more in line with my own preferences.
You said in the original post you were going to focus on the warrior aspect of the Ewoks. Any latest ideas or developments for that?
"How rude!"
[Chapter Five]
Vader had failed at Yavin, and cost the Empire its most prized creation. He had failed to keep Princess Organa in his clutches twice; the Rebel Alliance lived on as a result. Could the Emperor be blamed for phasing out his once championed minion?
"Lord Vader," A voice came on the shuttle intercom. "I've overridden the access codes. You should now have pseudo-clearance into Blood Shard, but the secondary security systems will activate in roughly five minutes."
"More than enough time to dock. Good work, Captain."
The Eclipse-class Dreadnaught floated in the most nothing of nowhere, a sector of space long forgotten by civilization at large. Somewhere in its bowels rested the Emperor's latest project. A weapon? The answers were restricted to select governors and highest tier officers. Vader intended to steal the answers for himself.
The shuttle swooped past patrols, on alert for hostile activity. Blood Shard was one of only three of its kind, equipped with an axial superlaser, hundreds of turbo and heavy lasers, and a capacity for six hundred TIE fighters.
"Admiral Piett."
"My lord?" He came to attention.
"Are you prepared to take command of this dreadnaught, when and if the time comes?"
"Aye, my lord." His voice had softened, the color draining from his face.
[co-conceived by: DuracellEnergizer]
Wonder if this will have any influence on the next edition of The Secret History of Star Wars. That's my go-to book for inside information.
^ Yep.
There's a lot of "taking his word for it" in ROTJ. We take Yoda's word for it that Luke's training is complete, even though he was a novice when he left Dagobah in the last film, and learned little of value skill-wise after fighting Vader. We take Obi-Wan's word for it that he was telling the truth to Luke in ANH from a certain point of view, and that Leia is Luke's lost sister.
We have to take the film's word for it that Ewoks could make child's play of storm-troopers with little consequence, that the Empire would leave the Death Star II's most vulnerable point so accessible during construction after what happened last time, etc.
Suspension of disbelief is challenged repeatedly. In the previous two films, I personally could get lost in the universe while watching. While watching ROTJ, however, it's easier for me to get lost in the script's laziness.
Make sure you're sitting down, but: I actually agree with Lucas on that name change.
Vengeance goes against everything the Jedi stand for. It's an immature emotional reaction.
Justice, however, is another thing entirely.
Luke would hold his own in the fight for a while, but then randomly throw down his lightsaber and say "You've failed, your highness!" After which the Emperor would fry him to death with Force lightning.
This reframes ROTJ in a sinister light across the board. The Emperor here would put Dumbledore or Jigsaw to shame. Some of the details of his master plan may be difficult to convey without exposition dumps in the story, but that might be compensated by the fact it's so fascinating.
Much of what you have here seems to be in hindsight, though. It's revelations of past events. How will Luke, if he's the one to do it, arrange another assault on the Empire in the future? The Rebellion here sounds all but destroyed. We end up in much the same place as in the beginning of ANH, but with a cast of different faces perhaps, and the potential for another Force-sensitive.
I hope you can get around to writing this, even in prose. That'd be a huge task. I can understand if not. But it'd be nice to see you at least continue to develop the plot.
[Chapter Four]
Leia raised her hands in surrender. They were far outmatched in a fight, but she did have social skills.
"You can take us," She said.
Han clicked his tongue. "All that effort for nothing. Well, I got to see my favorite stalker before dying."
Boba snapped binders onto Leia, and gave her a shove off her feet. He next went for Chewbacca, but the wookiee had set down his burdens and made fists.
Chewie lunged at Boba and swung in a fury of blurred hair.
The bounty hunter ducked, leaned to the side, parried a fist with his elbow. He then let himself fall to the ground, where he sent two feet into Chewie's knee. The resultant howl made Leia cringe.
Their fight drew on and on, a cloud of sand and dust swirling around them. Chewie landed a few hits, but Boba's movements made him too slippery to grasp.
Han snuck over to attack while the enemy's back was turned.
"Wait. Han." It was hopeless.
Boba, somehow hearing Han's steps, whirled and backhanded the man across the face. Blood and teeth shot out a gaping mouth. Chewie used this chance to make a grab. The Mandalorian leapt sideways out of range, rolled, and sprang to his feet. Chewie rushed again and mounted another series of swings.
Eventually, Chewie left an opening at his face. Boba sprayed some sort of gas from a compartment on his forearm. The wookiee crumpled.
"I studied the Mandalorians." Leia said. She knew diplomacy was their only chance of release. Boba seemed an astute individual. "Let me guess. It's never about money for you. You have riches to last you lifetimes."
"Right." Boba crouched down to tie Chewie's hands with cords.
"The code dictates that you accept any hunt, on the condition the credits match the societal value of a target. And you're devoted to the hunt until you apprehend your prey, or the prey dies. Or. . ."
Boba rose to his feet and faced her.
"Or the employer dies." Leia took a deep breath and waited.
Boba tilted his head. "Jabba is alive."
"You must have seen how many cut-throats were running around in there before you went after us," She stepped closer, letting her tone become urgent. "Check in. Confirm his survival."
He silently regarded her, thoughts ambiguous as his face. He responded by reaching for the side of his helmet.
"Boba here. Status report."
Leia chewed her lip in anticipation, knowing the reply decided her fate.
Boba lowered his hand and walked toward her. She stood her ground, but dreaded the pain.
Instead of a punch or kick, she found herself free. She massaged her wrists.
"Boba Fett. I want you to work for the Rebel Alliance."
[co-conceived by: Bingowings]
Would it be too bold of me to request that a moderator relocate this entire thread to that section? Its nature does make it a slippery slope to veering off topic.
Or maybe combine it with this one, as you said earlier. I would never have created this thread if I knew the other one existed, so apologies.
Tack
If anyone has any other suggestions for possible changes, please, let's combine a list of what we'd want to see.
Let's. Unlikely that a straight democracy would work here, though, depending on who's permitted to contribute. If it's two people, that's fine. Any more, and we could sit here for the next decade arguing the list. You should be the deciding factor.
BTW, you're not a heretic if you're just wanting to explore some other possibilities.
Good to know! :)
I want there to be a new subplot with Luke having a recurring nightmare (the result of Vader attempting to get into his head), and I want his face to be scarred to hell from his last encounter. He'll, like I said, be an outcast from the group until the very end. Also, he has, again, used this time to train with Yoda, as you mention in the story. Luke's first scene should be him carrying out a successful version of the cave scene, to show growth.
There does need to be further training and heavy consequences.
ROTJ rips the viewer away from the Luke Skywalker we know by showing him as wise and confident as Obi-Wan right from the start. The discrepancy is hardly explained by the amount of time between the two stories (it's scant); the only explanation is that Luke was essentially rewritten as a character. His development should have been gradual.
The slaves I added because I realized that there was a humanity aspect missing if it were simply to be rebels vs empire. I figured they could be a mix of various humanoid races from various worlds, and could supply information to the alliance about interiors of various settlements. Also, the film needed some sort of pulse-pounder before the 3rd act.
It's not the plotline that would've come to my mind immediately, but I'd be interested in seeing it play out in some form.
I figured Lando would be feeling really bad about the events of the last movie, and constantly trying to regain trust from Han, who would be unreceptive to his attempts. Maybe just as simple as a role-reversal for the sail-barge battle, making it so that Lando saves Han. In any event, trust would be restored by the time the battle was underway, and Lando would get control of the Falcon for the air-strike. On 2 conditions. 1. Not even the tiniest of scratches. 2. Chewie must come with. Of course, he ends up breaking the first one.
Wish there had been a conversation between the two about the betrayal. I guess Han saw Lando's assistance in his rescue as being enough confirmation of good will, but realistically (character personalities need to remain consistent and realistic, even in outlandish settings), there probably would be hard feelings there.
Who the heck was the Millenium Falcon's new co-pilot in the DSII mission? The fish alien. He had zero personality to speak of, really.
I want the Death Star II not to be destroyed. 1. it's a change of pace. We've had the bunker scene before and it's too run of the mill for Star Wars. 2. It's a more effective and Jedi-like solution to end the fighting. Maybe it could be destroyed as soon as its passengers have been taken off, as more of a symbol of the Empire's dissolution than anything else.
This is where we contrast, I think. I would've left the Death Star II out of the equation altogether, for the same reason of it being run of the mill. Recycled plots in the EU, or way down the line in the films, can be forgivable. But this is in the same trilogy as the first Death Star. Even as a kid, without analytic abilities I have now, I found that to be an odd choice, if not a bit lazy.