General Discussion: Canon Novels/Comics/Short Stories

Excited about the new book announcements at Celebration! (Presuming this will be the situation. )

Hoping for wonderful announcements related to IX and Galaxy's Edge!

We're starting to hear of upcoming publishing news at Celebration!
Source: (Baver, 2019) https://www.starwars.com/news/swcc-2019-lucasfilm-publishing-panel
this was interesting!

Baver (2019) wrote: Some of the new books include familiar characters. Timothy Zahn revealed that Eli Vanto will return for Star Wars: Thrawn Treason. And Phasma‘s Cardinal shows up in Dawson’s forthcoming Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge tie-in novel Black Spire.

Squeeeee!!! Confirmation - Cardinal is in the Black Spire book!!!!!! This is the first time I've seen this!!!
whoooo!!!

Oh and I don't know the Eli character really but I bet fans are happy to see he is back to! lol.


edited to add:
This book looks flippin hilarious!


and... cute!

Non spoiler review for Claudia Gray's Master & Apprentice

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2019/04/non-spoiler-review-author-claudia-gray-is-at-the-top-of-her-game-with-star-wars-master-apprentice.html

spacebaby45678 wrote:Non spoiler review for Claudia Gray's Master & Apprentice

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2019/04/non-spoiler-review-author-claudia-gray-is-at-the-top-of-her-game-with-star-wars-master-apprentice.html

@spacebaby45678

I also saw good reviews of the books from reviewers who are really picky with Canon books. They also said there were several prophecies, some we already know the events, and other more mysterious.

LadyGaufrette wrote:

spacebaby45678 wrote:Non spoiler review for Claudia Gray's Master & Apprentice

https://www.starwarsnewsnet.com/2019/04/non-spoiler-review-author-claudia-gray-is-at-the-top-of-her-game-with-star-wars-master-apprentice.html

@spacebaby45678

I also saw good reviews of the books from reviewers who are really picky with Canon books. They also said there were several prophecies, some we already know the events, and other more mysterious.

@LadyGaufrette

"A Chosen One shall come, born of no father, and through him will ultimate balance in the Force be restored."

More interestingly the following...


"A later passage in the book confirms that "ultimate balance in the Force" means the light and dark would forever be equals, with neither side "winning." Where it's vague is how that would come about through this Chosen One. Anakin was the first in a line of powerful Force users, with Luke Skywalker and Ben Solo the next generations in this bloodline. It'll be interesting to see if there are any prophecy payoffs in The Rise of Skywalker, particularly given what transpired in The Last Jedi. Luke seemed to lay the groundwork for a "grey Jedi" philosophy that incorporated aspects of both the light and dark sides to achieve balance. Perhaps the prophecy wasn't referring to Anakin exclusively, but his family in general."


https://screenrant.com/star-wars-prophecy-chosen-one-text-revealed/?utm_content=buffer61ef6&utm_medium=Social-Distribution&utm_source=SR-TW&utm_campaign=SR-TW


Duck... REYWALKER... Incoming...

In the novel... the character Pax sounds a lot like Ken Palpatine from the EU... Is this Rey Palpatine's father...

Hiya trying to post on phone so might not work. Was just looking up release dates & the conclusion of the flight of the falcon series is released 1 may- in a one shot. Looks like we see Hondo piloting the MF - a Porg is there too...
most interesting (to me)  is who is co-piloting? Is that Vi Moradi?.

What do you think?

We saw she had that hair in the black spire cover art-see above.
I’m looking forward to finding out how it is Hondo ends up with the MF!
Bye!

Darth Dementor wrote:

@Darth Dementor

I know this isn’t meant to be funny but I actually laughed out loud when he stabs her He’s like “Nope!”

@Teo oswald
Lol! Ah well all that worry and panic we had for nothing ha ha ! Still haven’t got my copy yet as I’m subscribed to the series but yeah the moral of the story is don’t stalk vader or fangirl after him or else this could happen to you lol! Poor lady though - it’s typical Vader though . Anyway at least that wasn’t what we thought it was .

@Teo oswald - yeah what a cringeworthy issue!!
She just spirals deeper into psychosis pretty much- I found it chilling and sad - she became very unwell!
And once you sneak into Lord Vader's private quarters like that and see him without the mask, it could only end with him killing her.
Just as we expected he didn't notice her, wasn't interested and he was brutal!

AhsokaTano wrote:@Teo oswald
Lol! Ah well all that worry and panic we had for nothing ha ha ! Still haven’t got my copy yet as I’m subscribed to the series but yeah the moral of the story is don’t stalk vader or fangirl after him or else this could happen to you lol! Poor lady though - it’s typical Vader though . Anyway at least that wasn’t what we thought it was .

@AhsokaTano
- having read the previous two issues, this was pretty much what I thought it was going to be.. lol. I was thinking there would be no basis for a relationship in Vader's reality.
Lol or maybe it's okay to fangirl but just from a distance. rofl. you'll see when you read the full issue.

It's been something watching Reylos and others tear this issue apart, since the whole thing is frankly a sexist parody of many women's stories. To my understanding, this is a single issue of a mini-series that doesn't at all connect to the other Vader comics/canon.

Remember when Chuck Wendig was going to do a wacky-sounding miniseries about Vader, but then he got sacked because the editor thought he was too angry and political on Twitter? This is the last-minute replacement hack job we got instead. Same editor, with a long list of male creators except one variant cover artist. If Marvel can suck it in to rehire James Gunn, they can bring in (or bring back) people who don't bully already-marginalized groups. Because seriously.

This has really no relation to Kylo, the ST, or even SW on a bigger scale. And the creators of the ST love and respect Rey way too much to put her through something like this, or Daisy would be far unhappier and KK wouldn’t be talking about hopeful endings and stuff. Some are discouraged by this, but it's really just kind of its own thing that hopefully doesn't get repeated.

Is it possible that Reylo becoming so mainstream is controversial even within LF? This is definitely a "response" to Reylos-- let's be real, no one is thirsting after Vader so much as Kylo is who they really wanted to put in this comic. But since Kylo is canonically written as the trope they're mocking and it would step on major toes to input him in here like this, the angry males revert to this format. It's honestly pathetic and I hope there's an apology soon.

Chuck weighs in. Sounds like he was taking the opposite approach of this comic (it was about a toxic fanboy instead).

I don't read comics but honestly, that's so disappointing. That's not about reylo, Kylo or Vader or even fangirls. That's nerd world misogyny, thriving and well in the year of 2019. It doesn't matter if LF aims their ST to women because its cool now to look woke when they let their comics side (and probably many others, let's be real here) be run by misogynists. It's a good reminder that we are not welcome and after so many years a woman in fandom, it still hurts.

This is just my 2 cents and I don't expect others to see things the way I do about all this....

@californiagirl -you know my initial reaction reading this issue was to think to myself - ugh. all the anti reylos are going to use this as fuel for the fire and somehow try and equate this sad psychotic woman in an imagined relationship with Rey and Kylo/Ben.
Then I thought - Whatever.. they can do what they like, I don't have to listen to them and nor do I care what they might think- I trust what I've seen in the canon and the story I think that is being told. that's enough for me.

I"m finding that the more I think about this issue the more I like it!   Vader visions 3 is a risky move, but a part of me wonders if it would have been even risker to go with a delusional vader fanboy. Too meta!!! and may have hit too close to home maybe!
I think Reylos are open to complicated stories and themes -and can cope better with this type of story. Some fanboys tend to prefer to see things black and white. I prefer LF take risks with it's story telling, even if some antis might use the story as fodder to criticise Reylo - whatever they are going to criticise reylo whatever.. I don't pay them any attention anyway - there's too much canon goodness and not enough time!

I hope fans who are reylo take heart and don't panic over this. I'm sanguine about what's ahead - all these dramas are going to be stoked from now till movie release.. I'm just letting it wash over me because we are getting Reylo and I trust the story tellers to give me a great story.

Given the history I think it's provocative of LF to have chosen to go there with the anti-reylo criticisms in fandom. It's certainly interesting and going to spark lots of interest! It certainly has for me..

For me, there is no equivalence between this comic story and reylo - the girl in the comic was unhappy, isolated and honestly delusional. She loved the idea of Vader the all powerful. Her fantasies were partly about being able to express her own hate and rage. example:

Rey doesn't dream of this!
If anything this issue for me highlights that Rey and Kylo/Ben are nothing like this toxic 'relationship' and it makes the Reylo relationship look even better by comparison! Rey said no to joining Kylo/Ben as SL. This sad woman would have jumped at the offer with glee.
This moment here was the issue's highlight for me:  

The idea of not being alone ties to Rey and Kylo/Ben in TLJ. You're not alone/ Neither are you.
the contrast is telling! Rey and Kylo/Ben reciprocate, here - Vader runs her though instead!
Vader visions 3 is everything that the Rey and Kylo/Ben story isn't. And for me, that explains the great sadness I see in Anakin/Vader's eyes here - I'd be interested to hear what others see.. but for me, I see great sadness, misery, hopelessness, grief, resignation - he is alone. The reality of Anakin/Vader doesn't match at all the nurse's visions of Vader.

I also thought the little macabre collection the nurse had was an allusion to the Vader fans in canon - The Acolytes of the Beyond - collecting whatever remnants of Vader they can...

It's portrayed as ridiculous (getting close to parody!) - which highlights for me the folly of Vader worship. I think the issue could be seen as a commentary on fanboy worship - a parody. But it's indirect and maybe only those open to seeing that will see it. Less obvious to replace fanboys with lovesick nurse.

The scene where she is daydreaming about being 'swept off her feet' is pretty funny.. along comes Vader and she and all the supplies are sent flying through the corridor. He sent swept her off her feet alright! rofl!

Vader is revered by some fans - infatuated with how bad*** he was.. He was a killing machine who pretty much killed anyone or anything that got in his path, so this admiration of some fans toward Vader can be uncomfortable. As is the thought that women can sometimes find evil powerful men attractive. I think LF is playing with this discomfort in this issue - and with the comic series as a whole (I don't see this issue as being an outlier, for me it fits with the other issues already published). This is why the series title is 'Dark Visions'.

Maybe in IX the story could benefit from seeing some regret from Anakin about what he did as Vader.. I'd actually really like to see that. Maybe in counselling Kylo/Ben we'll get to see that..

On a positive (hopefully) uplifting note - the recent age of rebellion special has a wonderful Yoda story  I think it ties in a lot with the overall story of the force which will be concluding in IX. I'll try and share it here but if you can get hold of it I recommend this story. just got to figure out where best to share it!

@loversinthestorm I'm so mad because of this "comic" that I don't have words. I'm just done.

I'm not going to take this as any serious sign of what LF thinks of Reylo at all but...yeah, this seems like a not-so-subtle dig at us by somebody.

RANT INCOMING:

Not gonna lie, both ideas - whether it be about a guy or a girl who's obsessed with Vader - sound like exercises in undiluted stupidity. The whole idea should have been thrown out with Wendig. Instead, they re-purposed it 'because it's meta, dude, that's what the kids are into these days.' I cannot believe this is actually being treated as canonical... this exists in the same continuity as Empire Strikes Back! Think about that for a second and despair.

I mean, it's a comic about DARTH VADER, one of the most iconic characters in the SW universe and that's the best they could come up with? Some dumb 'meta' comic? Do they really have nothing else to say? I hate it when things like SW go meta, because it lays bare to the whole world that the creators quite frequently have no idea what they're talking about.

ZioRen wrote:I'm not going to take this as any serious sign of what LF thinks of Reylo at all but...yeah, this seems like a not-so-subtle dig at us by somebody.

@ZioRen

Honestly, all my ships are not canon, I have 0 problems with a ship not happening. It's just that they have no problem hiring this kind of person and publishing misogynist stuff at the same time that they sell the girl power, women empowerment message.

+ it makes no sense for a company to hate shippers. We buy stuff, we make free promo, we keep the fandom alive and they are under no obligation to make the ship canon.

It's just... disappointing. I intend to see IX because I am curious about the ending but I am not buying merch or anything. I am taking my money where it's more respected.

Sorry to read some of you are finding the comic disappointing.
I think I didn't have high expectations because of my experience of the Tales from Vader's castle comic series - that was for me total uninteresting filler!
I don't expect to be fulfilled until TROS is released - they are going to build that tension and suspense now and I think we'll be rewarded come December. Hang in there all!

I just downloaded the Galaxy's edge comic - I think this is a one shot- released same day as the Dark Visions 3 issue. Will be good to switch gears..


edited to add: I have a bonus day off today   - it's a public holiday in my neck of the woods so I have the luxury of Star Wars time today!
This might be relevant to TROS so I might go ahead and share some of the content in Galaxy's edge (issue 1 of 5).
I won't spoiler the current issue.. but I'll spoiler content about future issues (ok?)
The introduces us to Batuu.

We see the first order are hunting resistance people hiding on Batuu only briefly so far. No idea if this will be important.. but the only named first order character identified is: Lieutenant Agnon

The issue also introduces 'the red fury' stormtroopers'  [I believe this is their first inclusion in canon] I'm a bit confused at this - it looks like they are not actually red?

We meet a crew of three who I think are on the hunt for an unknown object. [Remex-who seems to change appearance sometimes looking like a human male, Kendoh-who seems to be the boss, and Wooro]

The visit a local antiquities dealer (Named Dok Ondar). I had to laugh at the caption for his HQ:

A play on 'den on iniquity'! [Plus the helmet in the distance looks to be Emperor's Royal Guard maybe?]

Anyway, Dok Ondar tells a story about Han and Chewie capturing a baby Sarlacc for him. This story takes up most of the issue (now there is some Star Wars filler!). But.. I had to laugh at this frame:

good to see Star Wars not taking itself too seriously  

The crew ask for something.. we don't know what. Dok Ondar is appalled and kicks them out, and the crew plants something (a bug?) in Dok Ondar's Den and they leave.. saying that Dok Ondar had taken the bait..
We see Dok Ondar is interested in finding for himself what they asked for, a powerful weapon of some kind. But we still aren't told what it is. I find this type of storytelling in comics kind of confusing sometimes.. but maybe it's just me. lol.
Anyway, the blurb for the next issue seems to give away what the weapon is that everyone is after.. now this is super interesting..
In next issue:

It could be a red herring and they are looking for the mystery weapon and the lightsaber. lol... I guess we'll see!
What Jedi Lightsaber could it be????

Spoilers re future issues of Galaxy's edge 5 issue comic...:

Is it just me or do you wonder how much of this Batuu stuff is going to be relevant to TROS?
I at least find it interesting because I know Vi Moradi and Cardinal are going to be on Batuu..

Wow, turned out that "Vader Comic" is just as bad as we thought it would be...it's very disappointing to put it mildly.

What the hell LF???

Well, at least I heard the new Qui-Gon/Obi-Wan book is good, and by a female author no less. Just saw it's #5 on the NY Times bestseller list. Hope prevails! The book end of LF has better representation of female creators than their Marvel comics division.

Apparently there's some major ST vibes regarding the force and Jedi from Qui-Gon's end. I don't generally keep up with the SW books, but might get a look at this one.

@DeeBee
When I get my copies of these comics will share ideas still haven’t had mine . Sometimes there are delays in the Uk and they are shipped out a bit later .
Ok so I’ve been off and had a dip into the Vader comics ( the story arc of Momin and the portal again ) and found this :

Which I think leads credence to the theory that the galaxy they are living in is some kind of illusion or reality has been changed because of Palpatine ( his 10,000 year plan of peace with the empire ruling that he and plagueis fashioned ) .Interesting . Will share anything else I find in Tarkin novel too as just started that ( that part about Plagueis and Palpatine ‘s plan is in there - makes me think of Nazi 1000 reich plan where they wanted to use the occult to make this happen and why they were so obsessed with it . A bit like Palpatine).
@Californiagirl
Am not surprised it’s done well it’s written by Claudia Gray and she wrote Lost stars and both the leia novels which were all great so good news that it has . Hoping to read this soon as have heard there’s a lot of prophecy in this book that will be interesting to work out .