Are George Lucas' views of the Star Wars universe Absolute?

George says jump, and the EU says 'Oh bugger' and scrambles to fix the numerous errors that have now made glaringly obvious appearneces throughout the timeline.

I know. It's entertaining to watch.

That's just the way it is. Maybe some of us would like for Georgey boy to pay closer attention to the universe he created,

He does. He pays very close attention to the universe he created. He didn't create the EU, and he himself says it's parallel to his universe. The EU authors knew going into this whole shebang that Lucas was in no way obligated to follow what they laid down. If they defied edicts and talked about stuff they weren't supposed to (i.e., the Clone Wars, Luke and Leia's mother), well, I have even less sympathy for them if Lucas tramples all over it.

but the man has his own tale to tell, and, being the man in charge, he doesn't have to pay much attention to LFL's guidelines for the other authors.

That's because he's not just another author. He's the creator of SW.

If, in a story George pens somewhere down the line, Luke suddnely becomes a gay housekeeper, suffering from extreme obsessive compulsive disorders wherein he cannot open doors without saying "Cup of brine", and suddnely owns a cute little earth boy named Chip, then the EU powers that be is going to have to rectify that with the greater continuity. (And I would find the debacle bloody amusing to watch).

Considering how much marriage to the shrill emasculating harpy Mara Jade has damaged Luke, it might not be that unbelievable.

So there. My 3.5 cents (two cents in US currency). Mr Lucas, he gots the power. Alas, his power has created a fanatical (and highly annoying) purist fanbase. (Not that I mind people hating the books and whatnot. You people's opinion matter's aproximately squat to me. I just wish you'd jam a sock in it once in a while. There's probably not a person from here to Siberia who hasn't heard your opinions by now).

Could this not apply to the completists as well?

Oh but how can I stay mad at you guys? Lovable geeks... c'mere, give 'ole Slackjaw a hug! Awwwwww...



By the time Ben is 6, he will be a harping, controlling, bratling mirror of his mother. The above is Luke's sad end. They'll be like the Ned's girlfriend, but two of them, from the School of Rock.

Tell me about it. Mara is so possessive of Ben that I wonder if he'll even have a relationship to speak of with his father. Already it's apparent he inherited his mother's red-gold hair that the authors won't shut up about (no book would be complete without about twenty-five mentions of Mara's red-gold hair -- per chapter). I predict he'll cling to his mother like a barnacle, and be as worshipful of her as everyone else is. He'll never go through an "I hate my mother" stage. On top of everything else she went through in the NJO, Leia had to deal with an ungrateful brat of a daughter badmouthing her, and a son who forgot she existed (Anakin couldn't have cared less when his mother was tortured but was bent over, crying, when precious Mara was in labor). Jacen was the only one of Leia's kids who treated her with respect, but then he went missing, and everyone sneered at "Force weakling" Leia for believing he was still alive. They didn't reassess their opinions, either, when she was proven correct.

 

He'll never go through an "I hate my mother" stage.

Guys actually go through that? I never did nor did any of my friends.

 

T_F: Actually, it's inevitable because of Mara and Ben.

By the time Ben is 6, he will be a harping, controlling, bratling mirror of his mother. The above is Luke's sad end.

Shelley: Considering how much marriage to the shrill emasculating harpy Mara Jade has damaged Luke, it might not be that unbelievable.... Mara is so possessive of Ben that I wonder if he'll even have a relationship to speak of with his father. Already it's apparent he inherited his mother's red-gold hair that the authors won't shut up about (no book would be complete without about twenty-five mentions of Mara's red-gold hair -- per chapter). I predict he'll cling to his mother like a barnacle, and be as worshipful of her as everyone else is. He'll never go through an "I hate my mother" stage.

Do you two take turns trying to find ways to irritate me, R_W, Suzuki and the other Mara fans?

IT IS NOT TRUE!!! Mara is not a Shrill emasculating harpy! Mara may do many things to Luke, but I am sure emasculation is not one of them. She may occasionally be disagreeable, but I would not describe her as a Shrill Harpy. And yes, I know, your answer to that is "I would".

Mara is not a bad person. I agree, Mara has some problems with tactfulness, but she is never intentionally mean to Luke!

I have made this argument before, but you never seem to hear it. I bet when you read the above paragraph all you see is:

Mara is.....a bad person....Mara has.....problems.....she is...mean to Luke!

I feel like I am in a Gary Larson cartoon!





AG88

 

I liked the "Cup of brine" thing.

I do find it stupid that all the kids look like their parents and not a mix. Why does Ben have to be a Mara clone? Looking at his background, it's more realistic for him to have black hair, like ALL of his paternal grandparents.
And why can none of the kids be blonde? Because only Luke gets to be a blonde? What gives? Genetics don't work like that. Han's got green eyes, but none of the kids? But Leia's grandparents and greataunt all had geen eyes, none of them got that, when it's the most common trait. Oh oh, I guess only Mara can have green eyes.

Those common, everyday Solo's can't have any of their genetic heritage....... *sighs*

 

Han's got green eyes

Brown.

And Ben is a comprimise between Luke and Mara. Grey eyes, and he will probably have strawberry blonde hair.

 

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By the time Ben is 6, he will be a harping, controlling, bratling mirror of his mother. The above is Luke's sad end. They'll be like the Ned's girlfriend, but two of them, from the School of Rock.[/b][hr][/blockquote]
[i]"I?m not a Satanic sex god anymore, Mara..."[/i]

 

Wow, you leave a thread for a day or two and the talk turns to sex... excellent

In response to Tiershon_Fett from a few pages back : i was sucked up by Real Life for quite a while (almost a year), but these days i can crawl out every once in a while Good to see you too.

" In front of you friend, his best friend and two droids (witnesses)? Not my idea of intimate."

As if anyone would believe if there weren't witnesses ? It's like, the other day i was chilling out on Hoth when a woman comes up and we start making out... It's true ! the dodgy security guard has the tape

To get slightly more serious (and on-topic) the Luke-Leia thing is a perfect example of GL's artistic tendencies : in '77 (and probably ESB as well) he had no intention of them been long-lost siblings. There's no way he'd be able to go through shooting the Hoth scene mentioned above without thinking "ewww.. i am one sick genius" if he had planned for them to be.

Let's face it, GL is not an author. Why else would he have got Alan Dean Foster to ghost-write the ANH novelisation for him ? An author(of fiction) is aiming to get it right the first time, to produce the best manuscript by deadline. GL is an artist, he seeks to make something and has no qualms about improving it. The Special Editions are the most blatant example i can think of.

In reality, things like canon and continuity are not concepts that GL sees in the way that it is on the boards. He does not create "canon" in his mind, his creation is eternally mutatable (if that is a word, it sounded cool in my head ) and his thoughts about it keep changing. For this reason alone, one should be wary of listening to him make a statement and then accept it as absolute permanent gospel, because it isn't to him, and his views are likely to changing.

Sure, GL's views on SW carry more weight, given his position, but that doesn't mean that they are Absolute, Write Down these Eternal Words of the Creator's Wisdom.

One last thing : how exactly is the word "Mary Sue" (or "Gary Stu" for that matter) a scathing insult ? I know a woman called Mary Susan who lives down in Werribee and she's a great person

 

DaJames, I believe Mary and Gary Stu is a term for characters that are written to be perfect and loved by everyone.

wolf

 

Sure, GL's views on SW carry more weight, given his position, but that doesn't mean that they are Absolute, Write Down these Eternal Words of the Creator's Wisdom.

They are more so than the words of the EU authors, and I'll point out that many of them, including the holy Zahn, have also changed over the years.

 

Sure, GL's views on SW carry more weight, given his position, but that doesn't mean that they are Absolute, Write Down these Eternal Words of the Creator's Wisdom.

Actually, that's exactly what they mean.

We have that straight from a) LFL, b) the "Holocron" keeper and c) the EU writers/collaborators...