Violence in Star Wars comics: artist restrictions

In the big battles, there should be enough bloody, organ-spewing violence to fill up Saving Private Ryan eight hundred million times over, excepting the fact that lightsabers cauterize wounds. In simple random killings, violence should be limited to people taking a gunshot or a quick jab with a knife and then running the hell away. The level of violence should be appropriate for the situation.

More gruesome killings on the part of Dark Jedi should definitely be there in the final days of the Clone Wars -- living sacrifices to some dark god, acts of pure vengeance, and the like. The NJO's violence level was perfect for Star Wars. However, sex is a different animal. If sex is inserted into SW for no reason, it feels like a cheesy action movie or one of those pornos that tries to have a story for some odd reason. When people watch porn, they don't care about a story -- they're there to get off. It goes the other way, too -- Star Wars is a profound tale on so many levels, and pointless sex detracts from that. In action movies, for example, the female lead always desires the male lead for some reason. However, unless the relationship is clearly indicated as purely carnal actions between characters, they should develop the characters and show this development into love occurring artfully. Then, it's OK to show sex IF AND ONLY IF the plot is somehow furthered by doing so.

 

In the Graphic novel the Hunt for Aurra Sing, there is a scene where we see the afteraffects of a lightsaber on some big alien jedi. His stomach is cut wide open and we see internal organs and stuff, there is also alot of blood dripping from his mouth. So there is :some pretty graphic images in star wars literature.

 

In Republic Comic #60 Asajj Ventress chops off an alien's head with her saber. There is no blood though.

 

The Aurra hunt comic's opening spar was good, adequately long. Nice and long.

 

I just remembered another example of how the "Tales of the Jedi" comic series didn't sugar-coat violence. Bogga the Hutt's pet Hssiss messily killed and devoured a pirate in one of the issues. It used to, and still does, make me nauseated to look at that part of the series.

 

It was done "off camera"---you saw that panel in shadow, though.

 

No doubt there is violence in the SW films. I think the scene that struck me the hardest the first time I saw it was the afternmath of the death of Owen and Beru. That was pretty violent. At the time, it seemed like the kind of violence you might see in one of the better old westerns--some of which were pretty hard hitting even through they did not get as incredibly graphic as films now. I guess when it comes down to it, I've drawn some pretty violent stuff in SW as well.

Wookies tearing the limbs off of Trandoshans, Volfe Karkko, Sheyff Tinte and Kadrian Sey being cut in half(all by the same Jedi...hmmm) ; the arms and necks of various beings have been severed, Clones and Jedi mauled by Noghri--and the latest, Anakin wasting Ventress by strangling her with power cables. But, hey, it was all tastefully done...

But in a galaxy where knights wield the equivalent of 3 ft long lasers, what would you expect?

From time to time we are asked to be careful though. I don't mind really--and I'm not one of those people who think violent video games create violent people. I like video games and arcade games and play both. All Star Wars games and House of the Dead are favorites. There's nothing like shooting zombies...

 

Wesley Snipes's forte.