ST Starkiller Base Discussion Thread

I've mentioned this elsewhere, but I think there's a pretty good chance of SKB foreshadowing Snoke's plan for Kylo (and/or Rey). Just as SKB drains the sun of its energy to gain power, Snoke might be planning to use an ancient dark side technique to drain his apprentice of energy to gain power and prolong his own life.

Not only would this give SKB another dimension of excellence, but it would also tie in well with ROTS's talk of immortality and the dark side of the Force being "a pathway to many abilities that some consider to be unnatural".

 

Bad. They could have made this the equivalent of a Star Wars treasure hunting movie (searching for map pieces) but instead made it ANH 2.0.

Oh well, at least the new characters were enjoyable.

 

I would hate seeing a Star Wars "Indiana Jones" relic hunting story.

 

We just have different tastes then, nothing wrong there

 

I guess that it could be done and be cool in a spin-off movie focused on finding an ancient Sith Holocron.

 

I was thinking along the lines of the map components that formed the main quest chain in KOTOR.

 

I would love seeing an Old Republic trilogy.

 

Ancient Force artifacts being looked for?

Love the idea of that.

Have a fan-fic idea for post NJO series where Luke disappeared because Anakin needed his help to prepare the galaxy for a new major threat and Jedi and Sith keep finding Force artifacts/holocrons to help the galaxy prepare for the new threat.

 

I didn't hate it, but I thought it was incredibly dumb to make yet another death star device, even if they got one good line out of it. Han: "So, it's big." Totally redundant. Totally unnecessary.

 

I always have a chuckle at how easy it is to destroy these massive constructions. Both Death Stars, the Executor, the Starkiller, etc. They all have these weak points which when attacked, a domino effect happens and everything goes boom. But I guess if this stuff didn't happen, the Rebels would never win.

 

I would read the crap out of that. That's the kinda fic I love to write! Balancing the personal with the epic is one of the reasons Star Wars is so dang good.

 

Hmm. I understand that you're speaking about that. I just believe that their ability to pull off a construction of that magnitude heavily ties into the New Republic's shortcomings (which are ignored in the film as well as the entire society itself). However, I do see what you mean.


Also, the Nazis who escaped were either hunted down or hid in the shadows until they were far too old to stand trial. Of course, this is because the Allies had thought of that happening which is why I wanted the NR to be something other than a total footnote in a setting in which they hold major sway. To show how the First Order regrouping (without interference) was even possible.

 

might work.

 

I have a sneaking suspicion that the public at large in the GFFA are mostly emotionally and intellectually stunted adults who are that way as a result of being dependent on droids for knowledge and skill.

Too many moments of lack of street smarts and black and white thinking for it to not be a specific theme.

 

not really.

 

This is true in real life too. Single points of failure are common and sometimes, unavoidable in big engineering constructions or ships.

 

as i've said before power hungry regimes often resort to trying the same thing over and over, saying this time will be better. it will be bigger, stronger and more destructive.

north korea still launching missiles, ahem.

 

We also have a warped perception about how easy they are to destroy because our only reference point is seeing a successful attempt. Han made flying through that asteroid field look easy too, but we know the odds on that one.

 

Rogue One might show us a failed attempt to destroy the DS, thereby legitimizing your point in canon.

 

I believe Jakku, the kid who doesnt know their potential, imperials, first order chasing them...the cantina scene, the old wise guy who later gets killed and the planet destroying (non moon). For me...was clearly a reboot of Starwars a new hope...but with some clear twists.. The parallels are too similar to not be on purpose. Once i digest that it is a reboot sequel.....i can then begin to enjoy it for what it is. I am not enjoying it because it is so original from ANH. Its just these dudes interpretation of what the death star coulda shoulda woulda been..

I enjoy it cause it is a great movie that has pioneered a way to reboot itself...while remaining a sequel.

Perhaps we need a thread to go over which is more bad-a: starkiller base or the death star

 

My ultimate issue with Starkiller Base was that it was merely a device to move the plot forward. The Death Star was a central element in the story of ANH, as the introduction was the smuggling of the plans, and the climax was the Rebellion's successful attempt at destroying it.

I felt like that with something with the scale of SKB, the best approach would have been to go "all in", or to not do it at all. The conceptual idea of that kind of weapon, one that could eat stars and snipe planets from half a galaxy away, was fascinating. Looking at the concept art and reading what kind of ideas were being kicked around showed that the artists were willing to be as crazy, wacky, and far-out as they needed to be. I think JJ Abrams punted on the final product, though. It wasn't an outright terrible execution, and all things considered, it got the job done and the movie was great. However, the sub-plot just felt empty and not nearly as awesome as it could have been. I think that had it not been destroyed so relatively easy and that it went on to be a threat for this trilogy, I would have warmed up to it more.

 

I wonder what the empire/first orders budget is...

 

I thought money was no longer a concept in the 24th century?


Oh wait...

 

I absolutely hate everything about Starkiller Base.

First, to get the positives out of the way: I did think that making it built into a planet was a bit creative, and at least its method of destroying planets (sucking up stars and destroying them from a distance) was a bit different.

The Way It Was Destroyed: Was exactly the same as the first 2. The first was destroyed when a team of fighter pilots attacked the surface and a hot shot pilot (who was the son of a powerful space wizard) hit its weak point. The second was destroyed when a team lead by Han Solo planted some explosives, and two hot shot pilots flew into the unfinished station and blew up the reactor. (Sure it didn't require a space wizard this time, but it was unfinished). Starkiller Base was destroyed when a team lead by Han Solo planted some explosives, and THEN a hot shot pilot (who was NOT a space wizard) blew it up. 30 years and the First Order have learned nothing.

Also, what ever they do in Rogue One to get the DS plans, we can assume it will be a difficult task. This time they didn't even NEED plans, just some input from the janitor.

The Destruction of Planets Should Mean Something: In ANH the destruction of Alderaan MEANT something. Sure we didn't get much info besides "It's peaceful", but we definitely got a sense of why it was important, why it was being destroyed, and what it meant to Leia. In TFA the destruction of FIVE planets is treated as an afterthought. They didn't even give us a name "Hosnian Prime" until about 10 minutes after it was gone. Many casual movie goers who don't open up Wookieepedia to research stuff afterwards still think it was Coruscant. I'm not asking for a biographical summary, just a brief sentence explaining the system's name and why it's important.

Goofy Science: Someone need to tell Hollywood that space is BIG. I know Star Wars is not exactly hard Sci Fi, but it's ridiculous that we can see Hosnian Prime's destruction instantaneously from a planet millions of miles away. The novelization had to come up with a Star Trek style technobabble explanation involving "space time distortions"

How'd They Build It?: How did the remnants of the Empire, on the run and low on resources, manage to build super weapon bigger and more powerful than the ones it built at it's height? (And again, even though it was better in every way it had the same weaknesses). And going back to that "space time distortions" thing, they also INVENTED NEW PHYSICS. JJ Abrams compared the First Order to Nazis living in South America who some how managed to get reorganized. This is like those hypothetical Neo Nazis not only building a nuke, but building a nuke that can TELEPORT.

 

Sorry if this has been posted already but I thought this was a good take on the Death Star production line: http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/sta...why-does-the-empire-keep-building-death-stars

Personally, I thought Starkiller was a weak idea: another planet destroyer with a another weak point. For once, as Jedi Joe says, I'd like to see them really run with one of these bad boys. Blow up half the galaxy and build some real jeopardy before the good buys swoop in.