The hand of thrawn

does anyone know if Zahn is going to join in on the NJO series (maybe he already has I'm pretty far behind in there) but if he had permission it would be great to see his threat come in and dwarf even the vong (who I find kind of stupid but kind of cool at the same time) the vong would either have to help the NR and IR (which I find highly unlikely) or just get wiped out. I see this threat wiping out the IR and NR and the Vong. the chiss are all thats left (and barely) so they all join together (NR IR and Chiss) to find some way to beat this thing (back to the theme of a tiny rebellion against a huge empire) I would love to see it who else would enjoy a story like that

 

Nope, never going to happen.

For whatever reason it is known TZ has sworn never to work again for DR. This presumably includes SW projects.

Jedi Ben

 

what is DR? and I sure hope Zan hasnt given up SW hes my favorite author. I was already mad enough that thranw3 died and then the chance to bring him back failed too so now hes (presumably) gone for good. if Zahn quits writing I'll really get mad (lol like he or anyone else cares)

 

DR is Del Rey the editor associated with Lucas Books for novel

 

DR stands for Del Ray, the company behind NJO in partnership with LFL.

Zahn hasn't quit writing, he just refuses point blank to work for Del Ray which means no Zahn-style NJO.

Jedi Ben

 

Zahn refuses to work for DR ?

Wow, didn't know that. I thought he was not asked to work on the NJO, not that he refused.

That surprises me given what I heard about him.

 

I haven't heard of any oaths taken up by Zahn against Del Rey. For some reason or another, they haven't hired him yet. Theories about deep hatred between them are interesting, but have yet to be proven.

 

Okay, I realize this may be getting off topic from the first post, but it's still about the Hand of Thrawn books.

I just finished Vision of the Future last night and it's absolutly brilliant! Tim is the best writer of the SW books! I loved TTT but this is even better, the characters have grown so much since then. I think I'll have to read them again.

 

Darth_Thrawn...
"but if he had permission it would be great to see his threat come in and dwarf even the vong (who I find kind of stupid but kind of cool at the same time) the vong would either have to help the NR and IR (which I find highly unlikely) or just get wiped out. I see this threat wiping out the IR and NR and the Vong. the chiss are all thats left..."

No offense, Darth_Thrawn, but that would be a very clear signal that Star Wars is dead. There is both advantages and disadvantages to Del Rey not following up on the HoT-threat plot point for the Vong.

The advantage is that Del Rey has not used it. In fact, no one has concluded that plot point - the hundreds of threats which scared the Chiss are presumably still out there. So, all of the flaming Zahn fans can take heart in knowing that plot is still around. But...

The big disadvantage to it is that it should never, ever be explored outside of a one-line sentance in some reference book to the effect of "The threats are no longer there." To reuse some bigger, badder threat would effectively kill the creative aspects of the EU. Talk about copy-cat to the extreme. No thanks.

Look at it like this, someone comes up with an idea to clone Darth Vader, LFL balks, but allows them to use a clone Emperor, instead. Okay, cloning an OT character is a pretty novel idea. What would be stupid is if a year later, someone else proposes to use a clone of say, Obi-Wan Kenobi. First time = good, second time = unoriginal. Same thing as say if someone followed up Troy Denning's "let's kidnap Leia" plot from his novel with "Let's kidnap Leia" a year later. First time = good, second time = unoriginal. Or say the idea of a red-haired... Well, you get the point. Just because something is a good idea, doesn't mean we have to have it over, and over, and over... and over again.

To revisit the plot point of some mysterious invaders who thrash the GFFA would be rather troublesome for anyone who does so. I don't care if it's the best darn "mysterious invaders who trash the GFFA" ever written (and there's already been a number of them), it still doesn't mean they should try to do it yet again.

 

the hundreds of threats which scared the Chiss are presumably still out there

My time for a correction. Genghis, the chiss were never scared of anything, Thrawn was concerned at threats or a threat in the UR. The chiss just minded there own buissiness.

 

Ghengis you hit the nail on the head.
Jedi Ben, I have to disagree with you that the ultimate demise of the Vong will be the end of the EU. Lucas isn't going to make any more movies and as long as there is demand there will be product and hence books and books and books will be written. By DR NOT using the UR threat plot line they leave open plot for books after the Vong invasion. And my theory that a "new sith order" would not necessarilly be a "re-cycled" idea persay, if written and thought out right. The NJO is supposed to end within a year and a half correct? And it's supposed to be congruent with our years meaning a year in the GFFA = to one of our years as far as book releases. So hence Ben Skywalker will be around 2 years old at the end of the NJO. Now you mean to tell me they'd introduce all these new characters in the NJO just to stop writing about them afterwards? Come on. The EU will go on. First couple books after the NJO will be recovery and refitting the galaxy into a republic or some other government. Then we'll see some minor action. Then the new threat. I hope atleast...

 

On a purely cynical level I agree DI, there will be more books post-NJO, probably over a number of eras.

The problem though is how to keep it fresh. Genghis puts the case well: Use an idea once and everyone is wowed, use it twice and people are less than impressed second time around.

That's the problem: We have had and will have by the time NJO ends: Internal, galactic civil war (Empire v Rebels/NR); galactic war against the Sith (TOTJ); galactic war as the Republic rips itself apart (Clone Wars); Jedi attending to brushfires and minor wars (TAS, HOT); intergalactic war (NJO). Economic warfare/terrorism (COD).

What's left? What type of war has not been covered by that list? The only one is brushfires but it could be said HOT did that, so that has been done too.

There is talk of continuing B5, I don't like that either because B5, in 5 series, covered just about every kind of war and had about 8-9! Same goes for DSN and by the time it is done, Farscape.

All of these stories can and probably will be continued. But that does not mean they should. SW never really focuses on rebuilding, the Sith War rebuilding was brushed under the rug, NJO will probably be the same. We will probably get the adventures of Ben plus a Solo kid of Jacen/Jaina. How a new threat will feature to which no one will respond: "How old! That's been done in..." is beyond me. Thus I conclude NJO ought to be the final act. The NJO ought to end with a restored NR, the Nr as it ought to be. The Jedi Council is restored and under Luke's leadership, which guarantees peace. Things have come full circle from TPM, a good end point I'd say.

Jedi Ben

 

There's another option, and just as grounded in pure cynicism.

They can take a break for several years.

And then when enough of the older fans have gone on, they release a new series of adventures dealing with all-new original ideas that these people haven't seen before in an entirely different media. They can have a mysterious alien species enslaved through subterfuge by Vader. Add in a red-haired Imperial secret agent with a mysterious past. For good measure, they can add an extragalactic element. And hey, just to make their threat more serious, they can ret-con the fact that the Vong really weren't extragalactic at all.

So, who wants to read about...

A mysterious red-haired alien menace from beyond the galaxy has plans to kidnap Leia Solo, only to find out that it was her father, Darth Vader who tricked them into being enslaved.

And how many of you will accept the fact that all of these new fans will be like "Mara Jade who?" Oh, those were in those old "paper novels." That stuff's for kids. "Noghri what? That stuff's not canon."

 

You seem bitter, Genghis... ?

 

Just providing commentary on how much a tragedy - how destructive - it would be for both the fans and the quality of the Saga itself if such an event were ever to occur in SW fandom.

 

Genghis' posts:

Now THAT'S cycnicism!

Jedi Ben