Lit Dark Empire Trilogy will be re-released on March 23.

The Dark Empire Trilogy will be re-released on March 23.

It includes:
STAR WARS: DARK EMPIRE (1991) 1-6
STAR WARS: DARK EMPIRE II (1994) 1-6
STAR WARS: EMPIRE'S END (1995) 1-2
STAR WARS HANDBOOK (1998) 1, 3
MATERIAL FROM STAR WARS TALES (1999) 8, 11, 16-17

Does anyone know what the bolded items above are? I'm in the dark.

 

Star Wars Handbook #3 was all DE material, but #1 was about Rogue Squadron, so not sure what material in that one would be in the DE Epic Collection.

These would be my guesses for Tales:
From 8: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/The_Secret_Tales_of_Luke's_Hand!
From 16: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/The_Other_(comic)
And less sure, but from 17: https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Phantom_Menaces

 

Handbook #1 was missed out of the Rogue Squadron Epic so is here as a catch up.

 

This may be a duh! question but are they released as originally in comic/graphic format or is it what I might call an omnibus or bundle where they're novelized and/or rleased in a single volume? That is to say, the contents of all 3 are included but instead of having to buy/borrow 3, you just need 1?

 

We're discussing New Republic Epic Collection v5.
https://www.cheapgraphicnovels.com/product.php?productid=72392&cat=4168&page=1
It has all the contents listed in the first post

 

Oh that is awesome!

 

I like DE1 less so about 2 and EE

 

I know the art style is a point of contention for some people but I like the gritty feel that it has. While I always thought bringing back the Emperor undermined Vader/Anakin's sacrifice at the end of RotJ, I found myself quite engaged with how the story unfolded. Dark Empire II and Empire's End are total schlock, but I think it's beautiful, glorious schlock, and would gladly reread the trilogy in its entirety.

 

The art style has always been in contention. Anything written by Tom Veitch has drawn love and adoration and ire at the same time. Tom has written challenging material.

 

I love the art of Dark Empire and Dark Empire II (but not of Empire's End). It is my favorite Star Wars comic book art. I particularly like the watercolor planets and, secondarily, the technology. Cam Kennedy is awesome.

 

I enjoy Dark Empire (and I've already pre-ordered this collection), but man, I'm hoping this release means Crimson Empire is coming up soon/next in the NR Epic Collection line. It's one of four Star Wars ECs I'm breathlessly waiting for.

 

I am very keen for this. Love the story, not a massive fan of the art.

 

I re-read Dark Empire not to long back and I actually thought it held up well (DE1 anyway) . It had a great scope that say say Zahns Trilogy didn't. I can see why Lucas liked it.
In this story Lando is a successful General unlike in Heir where he's given the reset button back to being a gambler running a Gas Mine again. He even has a ship called the Lady Luck DE also gave a good reason why Palpatine wasn't to bothered if Luke was to strike him down in RTJ. I always thought watching RTJ, ok so Luke turns to the Darkside killing you, but you'll be dead so it won't matter This actually answered that problem.

It would've worked so much better if they had kept with the original of a year later rather than 7 years simply because they were accommodating Zahn. Though I get why as both stories had baby plot lines.
Side note Zahns trashing/dismissal of DE in Vision of the Future was uncalled for imo.

 

Yeah I really like DE 1. I find it a great comparison to TRoS, since Palpatine's return affects the galaxy and the heroes.

Yeah Zahn's childishness with regards to Dark Empire makes me REALLY not like him.

I wish lucasarts had shown him the door when he refused to do a DE adaptation (which is what he was hired to do).

DE is the start of the EU.

 

Whats the Lucas Arts story I've not heard that one ?
Its known Veitch and Zahn had disagreements, which both have admitted too, but I always thought it was due to both having baby plots for there stories and in the end they went with Zahns

TroS urghh that was JJ ripping off his own show ALIAS for that one. I like to pretend the whole sequel Trilogy doesn't exist.

 

I just meant the lucas group and didn't know the name.

So Zahn was hired to write the novelisation for Dark Empire. But he thought it was dumb and refused. He then got them to go with his idea (thrawn).

 

Wow I didn't know this. So Zahn said no to DE as he thought it was dumb but he is also the same Zahn would latter do a Terminator Salvation novel, so I guess he didn't think that was dumb
And like you said he's lucky he wasn't shown the door. If you're hired to do a job and don't do it then normally you're fired.

 

I've not read them, although I know the basic outline.

Thank god they went with the Thrawn Trilogy as it least that was mostly universally loved.

Dark Empire sounds like it would have been as divisive as TROS if it had been the direct follow up to ROTJ.

The Thrawn Trilogy saved Star Wars as it was a hopeful introduction to our heroes. Also with great new characters.

I loved TROS though so I think it worked out well that we got them in the order we did.

 

Any evidence to back up this baseless speculation?

Maybe read it before you make a judgment?

 

According to Veitch, it was Bantam rather than Zahn that shot down the possibility of novelizing Dark Empire, before they hired Zahn:

https://www.starwarsunderworld.com/2016/08/interview-with-dark-empire-writer-tom.html
https://starwarsinterviews.com/revi...empire-author-tom-veitchs-new-star-wars-book/

 

It depends. Back in 1991-92 things really didn't become "divisive" like they do today. The attitude and mentality of fandom was substantially different - it wasn't as factionalized, wasn't quite the perpetual pile of dry twigs waiting for the next spark to set it off. Not that DE wasn't controversial in its way, but as a general rule the fandom as a whole just tended to handle that sort of thing a little better.

Today, though? I've argued before that the ST "backlash" provides some evidence that fandom looks at DE through heavily nostalgia-tinted glasses. Not that I necessarily want to open a door to more ST bashing in this thread, but as a thought experiment imagine we can look into an alternate universe where the ST didn't happen and DE is released in 2019. What would the fan reaction to DE look like?

On a different note, I love DE and DEII for unabashedly nostalgic reasons and I can't wait to own them in print again. It's been far too long.

 

A straight film adaptation of Dark Empire, with the cinematography somehow maintaining the feel of Cam Kennedy's art, would be the greatest thing ever. This fan would react to that extremely positively. Not sure how it would have been possible in 2019 with the ages of the actors, but it certainly would've been possible in 1992.

 

If we're talking pure fantasy film making then Dark Empire by Denis Villeneuve with Roger Deakins on cinematography.

 

Depends if we're talking in a context where the prequels exist or not.

The biggest criticism levied at Dark Empire tends to be "they brought back the Emperor, which invalidated Vader's sacrifice", which is only remotely relevant as a complaint in the aftermath of the PT recontextualision of Star Wars.

Before the PT there was no wider significance to Vader casting down Palpatine beyond a man turning his back on evil and saving his son. I suppose you could also argue that insodoing he saved the Jedi, as Luke was the last scion of their ways and destined to restore them, but that isn't negatively impacted by Dark Empire either. It's ultimately just another trial Luke overcomes.

I'm certain you'd always find some people adamantly opposed to bringing back a deceased villain, because there are those that hate every instance of it on principle (as "lazy storytelling" and so on), but I don't think it'd have been a hugely divisive issue in a universe where Star Wars was still understood to be the continuing "adventures of Luke Skywalker", first and foremost.

 

Honestly I feel like (Much like a hypothetical good Comic book adaption) something animated would really capture the feel of Dark Empire than live action.

The art is part of the story....and the art of the First Dark Empire is bizarre and weird that it makes the piece work that I think just a live action adaption.