Star Wars Expanded Universe Thread (1 Viewer)

[Rob M.]

Kevin:

 

[Kevin Grey]

Yeah, I meant to put in something about Survivor's Quest but it didn't really fit in the run down and lord knows it was too long anyway.

Survivor's Quest takes place between the end of the Bantam Era and the beginning of the NJO. Something like approx 23 years after Star Wars.

The basic plot is Luke and Mara run across the remains of the Outbound Flight Project (which is heavily referened in the previous Zahn books)so it does have a connection albeit not part of a formal series. It does form a rough duology with the upcoming Outbound Flight novel though.

Honestly, I didn't care for it very much. Definitely Zahn's weakest IMO. He goes for something a little bit different. Its sort of a mystery kind of like an Agatha Christie novel but I didn't think he really pulled it off. I was very bored by the end of it.

I think part of it is that I'm burned out on Zahn writing Luke and Mara. There's just no spark there anymore. I'm looking forward to his Outbound Flight novel this fall though since it will be interesting to see Zahn play in the prequel era as well as write Obi-Wan and Anakin.

 

[Jonathan Dagmar]

well if this thread has done one thing for me, it this. proven that I was right. The expanded universe is silly, and best ignored, at least as far it fitting with the films in any way.

If lucas ever makes ep7-9, i do hope he completely ignores any of this so called continuity established in the EU.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Rob,

No, the original plan was actually

for Jacen to be the one to die. Anakin was supposed to end up being the hero of the NJO and indeed was built up that way in the first few books. But Lucas actually interdicted and said that Anakin had to be the one to die. It was rather bizarre and I don't think he gave any explanation. I think the authors speculated that perhaps with the prequels going full bore that Lucas only wanted one Anakin running around.

 

[Joe D]

I'll add more to this thread when I get time, but I recommend the Thrawn Trilogy and the Duology by Timothy Zahn, and the Han Solo Trilogy by AC Crispan.

The "Tales of the ..." books also contain some good short stories.

 

[Kevin Reckelhoff]

I haven't read any of the PT timeline books, not sure if I ever will. My hope is that they will add more books that fill in, rather than focusing on yet another galaxy wide plot. This was one of the main complaints about the Bantam books--always another super weapon/super villain, with our heroes to save the galaxy. NJO is more of the same, except it takes 20 freaking books to end it. It's an entire galaxy, for crying out loud. Perhaps there might be some interesting stories and characters out there who *aren't* dealing with issues of galactic domination? This is why I enjoyed the Tales and Han Solo stories so much.

If they do insist on sticking with domination plots, then go back to the Old Republic. The KOTOR timelines indicate several interesting book possibilities.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Kevin, it is my understanding that the choice of the character to be killed was entirely up to Lucas. I read that they actually wanted to kill off Luke
but were vetoed.

I agree with a lot of your criticisms, though to a less harsh extent. I did like the emotional baggage though, because it made characters who had long grown stale interesting again.

Have you read Tatooine Ghost? That kind of fits the "fill in" approach you are looking for.

 

[Clinton McClure]

While I agree the Tales books offer up some great stories, one of them (I think it was Tales of the Bounty Hunters) tells of Boba Fett's name originally being something completely different and he was a protector (some sort of police or guard I presume) then possibly a stormtrooper later on before becoming Boba Fett the bounty hunter. I can't remember what his name was supposed to be, but it was cool to have a back story on Fett back in '97-98. Now that the prequils are out, the story doesn't fit at all and we know it to be a bunch of hooey.

I'll have to dig the book out of the closet and see what his name was.

 

[nolesrule]

I read every Bantam book that came out from the Thrawn Trilogy to the Duology except for the X-Wing books books (or SW chronologically Truce at Bakura to Thrawn Duology). Other than the Zahn stuff, most of it was unremarkable. I wouldn't call any of it terrible, not even the KJA stuff. It's just wasn't memorable at all. I doubt I'll ever go back and re-read them, other than the Zahn novels.

I never even bothered with the NJO books because I got tired of the quality of the books that I got disenfranchised.

I might give some of the NJO stuff a try. I enjoyed Greg Keyes work on the Babylon 5 Psi Corps Trilogy.

 

[Brendon]

Kevin,

Once again I'm much obliged for your thoughts and understanding of the EU.

I'm torn between rereading TTT and selected post TTT books - the notion of reading through so many books based on "Super weapon/villain" or those trying to accomadate the KJA books seems to be an exercise in masochism almost. Likewise the NJA stuff sounds good, but 20 odd books with some stinkers is putting me off a little too.

Is the Rogue Squadron X Wing stuff relatively standalone ? These do sound appealing and worthwhile.

The alternate is to dive in with the better PT era books; Cloak of Deception, the Clone trooper stories and Labyrinth of Evil sound especially interesting.

For the sake of a pleasing read, would X Wing or PT books be a better bet ?

Brendon

 

[Kevin Grey]

Both are great places to start.

X-Wing novels are very standalone. There is some slight crossover with the Zahn novels but that's because Zahn and Stackpole are good friends and like to give nods to the other's work. Its really more of an acknowledgment than an actual crosover. You won't miss anything at all.

Actually, I do have a caveat on the X-Wing novels. They should be read as a series. While they are standalone from the rest of the EU, they should be read in order- ie X-Wing #1 Rogue Squadron first.

The best strategy for that era, IMO, is to read anything with Zahn and Stackpole's name on it.

The prequel books are very easy to dive into. Cloak of Deception is probably the best place to start but you can pretty much pick up any prequel era novel off of the rack and have no trouble understanding it. I like CoD in particular because I thought it actually enhanced my enjoyment of the prequel movies themselves.

Labyrinth of Evil might be best to hold off on. It works fine strictly as a lead in to ROTS but there are also numerous nods to the rest of the prequel EU. Again, nothing required to undersand the story but it does add a little bit of texture IMO.

Basically, go with whatever you're in the mood for. Especially intersted in the prequel era right now? Grab CoD or any prequel book. Want some post ROTJ action- grab the X-Wing book.

 

[Chris_Morris]

Totally agreed. The story will make no sense if read out of order. It is more like one long book divided into chapters rather than individual stories. Allston's X-wing books were good, but they couldn't match up to Stackpole's at all.

I have all the EU books (chronologically) from Truce At Bakura through the final Thrawn duo, but they lost me with the NJO. I hated the fact that they were scrapping everything, and even indicated that they might "rewrite history". The only NJO books I have are Vector Prime and Dark Tide I & II, as I'll buy anything Stackpole writes about Rogue Squad.

 

[Joel...Lane]

I haven't read that book in a long time but his name was Jaster MeReel(sp?). He was part of the warrior race of the Mandalores, which is where he got the Mandalorian armor. That's about all I remember.

After II came out, the inevitable question came up about the continuity error with his history. It was explained away that since he was a bounty hunter and liked to keep his real identity as vague as possible, Fett would never confirm or deny rumors about his past so as to keep people guessing about what his story was.

 

[Kevin Grey]

I don't think they ever rewrote history in NJO. There were some continuity errors (not surprising) but they didn't change anything. In fact one of the problems I had with NJO was that as it went on, too much of the old stuff crept back in.

 

[Matt Stone]

I have a question that I hope hasn't already been addressed. I just read the comic adaptation of ROTS, and I picked up a couple of Clone Wars adventures comics during the last two free-comic-book days...and I really like the style; especially with the Clone Wars books.

My question is this: is there any central location that lists what I need to buy in order to get all of these stories. I'm a comic reader, but I stick mostly to common Marvel-verse stuff, so I'm not entirely sure what Star Wars lines there are out there. Any suggestions on TPBs to pick up?

I'd really appreciate any guidance.

 

[Greg_S_H]

Well, there are some Clone Wars graphic novels that collected issues of the ongoing series, I think. I've seen them in Borders a lot. There are at least three volumes, with the first being about the Battle of Kamino.

 

[Kevin Grey]

Matt, as Greg mentioned the Clone Wars TPB's are what you are looking for. They have five volumes out now.

They collect the main comic, Republic, along with different one shots that fit in the overall story. The TPBs have almost all of the Clone Wars material that Dark Horse has put out.

They are very well done and come highly recommended.

In general each release goes in chronological order but I would recommend reading Volume 5 before Volume 4 for best continuity.

If you find you want some more background on Aayla Secura or Quinlan Vos, both featured prominently in the TPBs, I would also recommend the TPBs Twilight and Darkness both of which take place pre-AOTC.

 

[Scott Weinberg]

Using a variety of online resources (most notably here and here) I tried to put together a list of the Star Wars novels in order of publication date. If you notice any errors or omissions, please let me know.

I'm just now starting to build myself a nice little collection of SW paperbacks. I'm a newcomer to the Extended Universe, but I plan on reading a whole bunch of these titles in the near future.

Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope (Lucas, 1976)

Splinter of the Mind's Eye (Foster, 1978) [0-3 yrs. after ANH]

The Han Solo Adventures [2 - 5 yrs. before ANH]
Han Solo at Stars' End (Daley, 1979)
Han Solo's Revenge (Daley, 1979)
Han Solo and the Lost Legacy (Daley, 1980)

Star Wars Episode 5: The Empire Strikes Back (Glut, 1980) [3 yrs. after ANH]

The Lando Calrissian Adventures [2 - 5 yrs. before ANH]
Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu (Smith, 1983)
Lando Calrissian and the Flamewind of Oseon (Smith, 1983)
Lando Calrissian and the Starcave of Thonboka (Smith, 1983)

Star Wars Episode 6: Return of the Jedi (Kahn, 1983) [4 yrs. after ANH]

The Thrawn Trilogy [9 yrs. after ANH]

Heir to the Empire (Zahn, 1992)

Dark Force Rising (Zahn, 1993)

The Last Command (Zahn, 1994)

The Jedi Academy Trilogy [11 yrs. after ANH]
Jedi Search (Anderson, 1994)
Dark Apprentice (Anderson, 1994)
Champions of the Force (Anderson, 1994)

The Truce at Bakura (Tyers, 1993) [4 yrs. after ANH}

The Crystal Star (McIntyre, 1994) [14 yrs. after ANH]

The Courtship of Princess Leia (Wolverton, 1994) [8 yrs. after ANH]

The Corellian Trilogy [18 yrs. after ANH]
Ambush at Corellia (Allen, 1995)
Assault at Selonia (Allen, 1995)
Showdown at Centerpoint (Allen, 1995)

Children of the Jedi (Hambly, 1995) [12-13 yrs. after ANH]

Darksaber (Anderson, 1995) [12-13 yrs. after ANH]

The New Rebellion (Rusch, 1996) [17 yrs. after ANH]

Shadows of the Empire (Perry, 1996) [3-5 yrs. after ANH]

The Black Fleet Crisis Trilogy [16-17 yrs. after ANH]
Before the Storm (Kube-McDowell, 1996)
Shield of Lies (Kube-McDowell, 1996)
Tyrant's Test (Kube-McDowell, 1996)

Planet of Twilight (Hambly, 1997) [12-13 yrs. after ANH]

The Hand of Thrawn Duology [19 yrs. after ANH]
Specter of the Past (Zahn, 1997)
Vision of the Future (Zahn, 1998)

Anthologies
Tales from Jabba's Palace (Anderson, 1995) [4 yrs. after ANH]
Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina (Anderson, 1995) [0-3 yrs. after ANH]
Tales of the Bounty Hunters (Anderson, 1996) [3 yrs. after ANH]
Tales from the Empire (Schweighofer, 1997) [??]
Tales from the New Republic (Schweighofer, 1997) [??]

The X-Wing Series [6.5-13 yrs. after ANH]
1. Rogue Squadron (Stackpole, 1996)
2. Wedge's Gamble (Stackpole, 1996)
3. The Krytos Trap (Stackpole, 1996)
4. The Bacta War (Stackpole, 1997)
5. Wraith Squadron (Allston, 1998)
6. Iron Fist (Allston, 1998)
7. Solo Command (Allston, 1999)
8. Isard's Revenge (Stackpole, 1999)
9. Starfighters of Adumar (Allston, 1999)

The Han Solo Trilogy [10 yrs. before ANH]
The Paradise Snare (Crispin, 1997)
The Hutt Gambit (Crispin, 1997)
Rebel Dawn (Crispin, 1998)

I, Jedi (Stackpole, 1998) [11 yrs. after ANH]

The Bounty Hunter Wars [4 yrs. after ANH]
The Mandalorian Armor (Jeter, 1998)
Slave Ship (Jeter, 1998)
Hard Merchandise (Jeter, 1999)

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace (Brooks, 1999) [32 yrs. before ANH]

New Jedi Order Series (1999-2003) [25-27 yrs. after ANH]
1. Vector Prime (Salvatore)
2. Dark Tide I: Onslaught (Stackpole)
3. Dark Tide II: Ruin (Stackpole)
4. Agents of Chaos I: Hero's Trial (Luceno)
5. Agents of Chaos II: Jedi Eclipse (Luceno)
6. Balance Point (Tyers)
7. Edge of Victory I: Conquest (Keyes)
8. Edge of Victory II: Rebirth (Keyes)
9. Star by Star (Denning)
10. Dark Journey (Cunningham)
11. Enemy Lines I: Rebel Dream (Allston)
12. Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand (Allston)
13. Traitor (Stover)
14. Destiny's Way (Williams)
15. Force Heretic I: Remnant (Dix)
16. Force Heretic II: Refugee (Dix)
17. Force Heretic III: Reunion (Dix)
18. The Final Prophecy (Keyes)
19. The Unifying Force (Luceno)

Rogue Planet (Bear, 2000) [29 yrs. before ANH]

Darth Maul - Shadow Hunter (Reaves, 2001) [32.5 years before ANH]

Cloak of Deception (Luceno, 2001) [32.5 yrs. before ANH]

The Approaching Storm (Foster, 2002) [22.5 yrs. before ANH]

Star Wars Episode 2: Attack of the Clones (Salvatore, 2002) [22 yrs. before ANH]

Tatooine Ghost (Denning, 2003) [6 yrs. after ANH]

The Ruins of Dantooine (Blackman, 2003) [1 yr. after ANH]

Clone Wars Series [21 yrs. before ANH]
Shatterpoint (Stover, June 2003)
The Cestus Deception (Barnes, 2004)
Medstar 1: Battle Surgeons (Reaves, 2004)
Medstar 2: Jedi Healer (Reaves, 2004)
Jedi Trial (Sherman, 2004)
Yoda: Dark Rendezvous (Stewart, 2004)

Survivor's Quest (Zahn, 2004) [19 yrs. after ANH]

Republic Commando: Hard Contact (Traviss, 2004) [21 yrs. before ANH]

Labyrinth of Evil (Luceno, 2005) [20 yrs. before ANH]

Star Wars Episode 3: Revenge of the Sith (Stover, 2005) [20 yrs. before ANH]

Dark Nest Trilogy [28 yrs. after ANH]
The Joiner King (Denning, May 2005)
The Unseen Queen (Denning, Sept. 2005)
The Swarm War (Denning, Dec. 2005)

Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader (Luceno, Oct. 2005) [19 yrs. before ANH]

Outbound Flight (Zahn, Jan. 2006) [19 yrs. after ANH]

 

[Kevin Grey]

Holy crap, Scott, I think you got 'em all!

 

[Matt Stone]

Thanks for the tips on the Clone Wars TPBs, Greg and Kevin. I'll be sure to pick them up. Also, thanks for the suggestions of Twilight and Darkness. I'm totally open to other comic suggestions. I'd really like to start reading all or most of the prequel-age comics.