Comics Star Wars (Marvel) #1: Skywalker Strikes, part 1 (of 6)

We certainly do!

 

Note that I said the early EU works, and I put "Sith" in inverted commas, because I've heard this before about Starkiller, who-- like the Inquisitor-- they made such a big deal to point out was not a "Sith", but he still used a red lightsaber, still sold video games on the appeal to kids of seeing a big bad Force-user with a red lightsaber, and just like TCW, when viewing figures drop in a few years-- as happens with all television series after a point-- it's an inevitability that the execs will fall back to their bread and button of lightsaber action to get bums on seats.

Star Wars isn't about one man's ever-changing vision anymore, it's about making money, and the execs clearly believe that lightsabers do that.

And this time, they don't have to even beat around the bush like Bantam did, as even Lucas himself signed off on the idea of big brawls between Dooku and Maul and Savage it's torpedoed any "But this isn't true to Star Wars!" complaints like Bantam had to contend with back in the very early days, which is why I fully, fully expect that we'll see a whole lot more red lightsabers this time around than we did in the 1990s. That the very first NEU product starts with using the Inquisitor as a primary advertising device confirms that beyond any shadow of a doubt. They could have had a Grand Moff, some high ranking Imperial Admiral, a stormtrooper general, there are countless ideas they could have used: but no, they went for the red lightsaber.

I have no problems with this, because I enjoy Sith, I enjoy darksiders, and I enjoy the Inquisition, but please, let's not fool ourselves into believing for one second the NEU is going to be light on the number of darksiders it's going to include.

 

Yeah the signs are remarkably similar already -- so long as there are no definitive "rules" for the Sith club house, everyone and their Nightbrother can claim they're one if they want. The old EU even tried to make rules at first (or at least that's the impression I got back in the 90s/early 2000s), but by ROTS suddenly everyone was Sith-this, Sith-that. Jerec and Lumiya were trying to be Sith, no longer content to be just some "Dark Jedi." Rhett was giving the "true" Sith a run for their money. The Solo kids were dating Sith (good heavens!), we've got Sith up the whazoo in all the OR books, and suddenly Lucas is like, "Hey, let's put a Sith in charge of the Mandalores and Black Sun... and let's make him Darth Maul for the helluvit!"

If there isn't anything established early on to put the Sith in check, we're undoubtedly going to be overrun again. And even if the Story Group or whoever's in charge denies the new slue of Dark Siders are "Sith," we'll end up with over-empowered Dark Siders regardless -- Sith by any other name.

 

Honestly what do you guys want to see? Stuff like we have in Agents of Shield where normal people are sitting around a room having a business meeting in a world/universe full of individuals with unique abilities and special powers to watch. If there is an ability for people to hone in on the dark side it sounds a little unrealistic for there only to be two people in the universe using the dark side.

I can imagine if people had force like abilities on Earth here in real life there would be plenty of people using those abilities for bad.

 

I don't really mind the sith as I like the idea of good versus evil, but I wish we would get more force wielders that aren't sith or Jedi but out for their own ends. The Maul/Savage plot line was really good but everything they did could have been made even more better if they never uttered the word sith and were just two guys out for revenge. Ventress became far more interesting to follow when she said screw the sith and was only out for her own end goals.

But than I guess the fear is having multiple force/light saber users and not about sith vs Jedi.

 

Have to agree.

 

That was directed at HEDGESMFG, hence the quote, because he seems tolerant of everything TCW did and I was surprised that he actually used language I would use when addressing TCW.

 

Pasted from other Marvel thread:

Based on Marvels track record I fully expect that at some point Luke will become a woman, Leia will be possessed by a demon, Han will be stuck in the distant past and Chewie will become a Frankenstien's monster (FrankenChewie) for about 6-12 issues before returning to normal.

 

I couldn't get interested in Star Wood.

I'm even less interested in this.

Yawn.

 

I can't help it, riffing on the exchange in Iron Man:

Editor: Come on, you can do better than that - Archie Goodwin was doing better stories in the 80s with no mobiles, no internet, no NOTHING!
Writer: ..... I'm not Archie Goodwin.

 

Well, Anakin came a lot later, but setting aside the radio drama, what we see onscreen is much more flirting between Han and Leia and Leia looking much more like an older sister to Luke...possibly because Luke comes off seeming so much younger.

When ESB starts even from the beginning it's clear that Leia has something for Han and the kiss to Luke makes him smug but he's not really chasing her down...it remains all on Han and Leia...and of course by that time it was already decided that Han and Leia would end up together. If there was originally an intention to have a love triangle it really didn't have a lot of onscreen backing.

 

I would rather read that than hearing, yet again, how our heroes have to face harsh realities after the jubilation of the Battle of Yavin.

 

Not if you need someone to teach you how to use the force*. And if the only people who know how to access that power have their roots in ancient monastic societies** except for two people who are putting themselves in the line of fire by training you. I think in Star Wars it gets really played down how the Jedi training from birth prepares you to deal with the dark side. Instead, they act how normal people would. I know we need to see the human element to be able to relate, but they should have to take it up to 11 to really push a Jedi into wavering from their path. Of course Anakin and especially Luke are different cases, based on their unique training regiments. Although for all the talk of Yoda training Luke to be a weapon there sure seem to be a lot of his teachings focused on helping Luke avoid the dark side (compare to the only scene of Jedi training we get in the prequels which shows the students training with a lightsaber). I think Yoda was training Luke to be not a weapon but an incorruptible beacon of light that could never be made to serve the Emperor - and that is ultimately the way he wins!

*I know in a lot of the stories we get frequent untrained usages of the force, but I don't think that has its backing in the movie where the three most naturally gifted force sensitives have no idea that they aren't like anyone else.

**This is one place where I feel Dawn of the Jedi kind of dropped the ball. The way you don't get chaotic use of the darkside is for the force to be discovered through spiritual types who discover it during deep meditations and slowly develop an understanding and an ability to connect with and teach other "enlightened" individuals. They should have been monks first and warriors much later. It should have taken a long time for someone to discover that the force could lead to abilities that could be weaponized. All in my opinion, of course.

Now back to your regularly scheduled Marvel Comics thread.

 

I'm one of those people that believes Yoda and Obi-Wan wanted Luke to kill Vader and the Emperor, but I do think you're right that their highest priority was keeping Luke on the light side of the Force—They certainly wouldn't want Vader and the Emperor dead at the cost of Luke's turning to the dark side.

 

I still have my reasons for feeling differently about that era, but yes. I can't say I don't share a similar sense of frustration over this.

 

Am I just being kindof negative, or is it scientifically impossible to get excited about this? I've felt almost completely "eh" about every piece of literature announced since the CataclsEUm. Even the recent announcement of the Ventress/Vos book, something that I normally would've been SUPER excited about, makes me think, "Well it's not really going to be the Vos from the comics, so it's not really going to be Vos, and I also preferred comic Ventress to TCW Ventress so...."


Throw in some of the weird EpVII rumors that have been floating around the last two weeks and well.........I just have a bad feeling about this.

 

I brought issue 1 of Brian Wood's Star Wars when it was selling for a dollar, and that was enough for me. I'm not going to buy any of this series. The art at least looks similar to Brain Wood's Star Wars, and I thought the art was good at least.

 

It's very possible it's scientifically impossible for you to get excited about any announcements or buzz but your personal experience does not necessarily correlate to the rest of Star Wars fandom.

 

The only thing that could get me excited about this is if it took place within the Marvel universe. e.g. Jedi vs X-Men.

That I would buy.

 

I've never really understood the fascination with crossovers.

I mean, Luke vs Doctor Doom has always struck me as the same as Palpatine vs Revan, and lacking in any narrative context to make it rewarding. I did try the Soul Calibur crossover, but... it just felt a bit silly playing as Yoda in a story where he didn't really fit in.

I get the Avengers more as they're more in the same world, and it works more fluidly.

 

A dark part of my soul always wanted a Star Wars vs Aliens. Both were Dark Horse and they ended up crossing Aliens with pretty much every popular character. (Batman andSuperman just to name two)

 

I'm mourn the loss of the previous lit, but I'm excited about the new stories, nonetheless.

I am willing to give Disney/Lucasfilm/the Story Group/Marvel, et al., a good faith opportunity and see where they take us, so I look forward to Issue #1 (and the same goes for the other two books announced with this).

I hope it's top-notch. *fingers crossed*

 

Vader meeting Magneto could be interesting.

 

Star Wars / Aliens would work provided that no supposed-to-be-alive movie characters are in the direct line of fire. But if there was a scene where Admiral Ackbar's third-nephew-twice-removed had a chestburster rip out of them in the middle of a mission briefing, I'd buy 4 copies.