Are comics really a neccessity for following the EU?

If it wasn't for the comics I would not even be reading Star Wars.

 

For many of us waiting for monthlies is a real chore. As people have said, there are the TPB's (or graphic novels). The thing was I ran out of books. When I ran out I randomly picked up a Legacy issue. It changed how I perceived the EU and comics as a medium because I too never liked comics. The thing is there are some TPB's that are better than many novels and that's a fact. Clone Wars, Legacy, KotOR. There are more. Amazing stuff that beats a great deal of the novels IMO and I love the novels too.

 

Like many people have said it depends on what you want to read about. In regards to the post-ROTJ material Dark Empire and X-Wing Rogue Squadron were probably only musts until Legacy came out. The Prequel era comics and novels do not really require each other to understand. Legacy can be used as a jumping point into the post-ROTJ world without reading the main novel sequences though a lot of the little ironies, references, and in-jokes are clearly designed for people like myself who has gone through most of the EU (novels, comics, and games).

Since Star Wars is a visual experience moreso than an oral one the comic medium favors Star Wars more than the novels. The written word is a completely different beast than a film frame. A comic panel can replicate SW a lot easier than a novel can. Also good artwork is a much better sight than terrible metaphors. I am by no means saying that all the novels are bad and all the comics are brilliant. Dark Horse has produced its fair share of stupid moments. However since 1999 the comics are generally overall have a much more consistent quality and continuity.

 

Do yourself a favor. Pick up one of the collected trades of KOTOR or Legacy. I can't see how you could possibly regret it. Absolutely amazing EU.

 

But comics fail at providing the movie-like experience in terms of length. Stories need to be 3-4 times longer before they can do that.

 

I never see the trade paperbacks...where do I get them. I will never be a comic book person...I keep looking at the next page and ruin things.

 

I agree. Movies are relatively short in terms of plot and story, that's why they're always cutting down novels when they adapt them to film. It might take an hour or so to read through a graphic novel, but that'd easily double if it were filmed as the panels would take longer to act out than to read.

I think most graphic novels are pretty accurate in terms of the amount of story a film can cover. And even if not, series like Republic and KOTOR and soon Legacy have numerous trade paperbacks available. So the scope of the films is very doable in comic form.

 

The comics are only a necessity if you consider it important to read things that are awesome.

 

I'm 25, been reading Star wars novels for 14 years or so. I didn't discover the comic until 1 year ago. Boy was I missing out! I have now read all of them, and eagery await the new comic issues on Wednesdays. It's a great upper on hump day. Check out Legacy!

 

The Original Trilogy films have a very simple, almost threadbare plot. For example, most everyone's favorite The Empire Strikes Back: there are basically three locations: Hoth, Bespin, Dagobah. The story opens with a battle. The heroes escape. Luke goes to Dagobah and trains. The driving plot point in the entire movie is the busted hyperdrive on the Falcon which forces Han and Leia to Bespin. Vader captures the heroes. Luke arrives. A sword fight. The End.

The reason Zahn's trilogy strikes a chord with so many fans and has an intangible Star Wars feel is the plot is similarly barebones.

I've never read them but I'd hope the comics have lengthier and more complicated stories than the movies.

 

You are forgetting that the production of one 2+ Hours Star Wars movie is around three years. The comic book people are providing up to the equivalent of 10-15 minutes of a movie on an almost monthly basis.

Not to mention of course that length issue can be simply resolved by reading them in tpb format.

 

I'm an on/off fan of comics in general. Some comics are absolutly amazing(I'm a big fan of Batman and Luke Cage in particlar), but I hate how there is no "solid" continuity.I wish, for example, that there was one canonical story of Batman and his life, and have everything else being relagated to "infinities", like what they do for alternate history SW. I haven't read many SW comics, but what I have read I liked

 

The comics ARE the general storyline. The novels mostly fill in a few unimportant gaps.

 

Hm, post-ROTJ and certainly NJO I'd agree, but if by "classic" you mean Rebellion era, it's pretty mixed. Only a handful of adult novels, quite a few kids' novels, and a lot of comics.

 

I know what you mean, and couldn't agree more. It's the same reason I've never gotten into Batman, Spiderman, etc.

Star Wars, however, is unique in that the stories do take place within one continuity...with the exception of a FEW infinities issues that are clearly marked as such.

 

I love the comics I've read! Unfortunately, its a lot easier to get a $8 book than a $20 tpb, so I only have Clone Wars volumes 4-6.

 

After years of collecting the novels, and finally completing said collection, I've recently turned my energies towards finishing my comic collection. I'm re-reading the EU from ROTS on, and filling in the gaps as I go. This is a rather interesting perspective, because the newer, splashier series like Dark Times and Empire are interspersed with older material like Marvel and Droids and what have you. This also means that I have yet to read most of the most popular comics: KOTOR, Republic, Legacy, etc. But I have come to the same conclusion that comics are not only neccessary; they are often more enjoyable than the novels.

One reason for this is that, like the films, comics are inherently a collaporative medium. At the very least you have to have a writer and an artist working together. I think this allows for a wider perspective than the mostly one author novels do.

TC