Tosche Station Radio Discussing Scoundrels and J.J. Abrams Tonight, Send us your Questions!

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What are you up to tonight at 5PM Pacific? Nothing? Great! You should join us in the Livestream chat for an all-new episode of Tosche Station Radio.

Joining the usual hosting duo today are staff writers Bria and Emily as part of a Scoundrels roundtable discussion. We’ll also be discussing the Prequel Trilogy 3D postponement as wel as the J.J. Abrams news and what it could mean for Episode VII and Star Wars as a whole.

As always, we would love to take your questions! If you have questions specific to the topics we’ll be discussing, send them our way and we’ll work them into our roundtable. Any other questions relating to Star Wars or geek culture you can also submit and we’ll answer them at the end of the show.

New Quote Tees from Her Universe

As someone who was looking for a neat Valentine’s Day gift, I’m glad to see that Her Universe has a new set of Valentine’s Day themed quote shirts for the Star Wars, Star Trek, and Doctor Who fandoms.

The Star Wars shirt’s quote can be seen on the left and features a bevy of lovely in-universe references.

The new shirts are available in the store right now so head on over to Her Universe to pick one up for the geek in your life.

THR Profiles Kathleen Kennedy

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The new guard and old guard.

When Lucasfilm was sold to Disney, long-time film industry veteran Kathleen Kennedy was given the reigns of the company and one of the most valuable intellectual properties in Hollywood. Today, The Hollywood Reporter sat down with Kennedy to talk about how she got J.J. Abrams to sign on, how she met her husband, and her relationship with some of the biggest names in the film business.

On getting J.J. Abrams to work on a different Star franchise:

Abrams agreed to meet with Kennedy on Dec. 14 at his Bad Robot offices in Santa Monica. Famously plain-spoken, she summarizes her pitch like this: “Please do Star Wars.” And she had cards to play. Not only was Oscar winnerMichael Arndt (Little Miss SunshineToy Story 3) writing the script, but Lawrence Kasdan, who wrote 1980’s The Empire Strikes Back and 1983’s Return of the Jedi, was on board to consult. Abrams “was flipping out when he found out that Michael and Larry were on the movie already,” says Kennedy.

Abrams tells THR, “I learned firsthand how incredible and persuasive she is.” Some — but not all — of his reservations were dispelled. “The thing about any pre-existing franchise — I’d sort of done that,” he says. “But when I met with Kathy, it was suddenly very tantalizing.”

For more, read THR’s full profile of Kathleen Kennedy.

Tosche Station Radio #42: Genre Savvy

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Brian and Nanci are coming to you from Seattle this week and are flying by the seat of their pants!

Kicking off the show, Nanci highlights what’s new on the blog. Bria’s Waru Express visited Return of the Jedi and is perhaps mercifully taking a week-long hiatus so she can read some non Star Wars tales. Meanwhile, Shane discussed the end of the Wheel of Time series.

In Fixer’s Flash, Nanci finished Scoundrels (while Brian is still reading at his glacially slow pace). She’s also working on her new original novel. Both the hosts went and saw Les Mis and X-Men First Class. Brian also attempted to get Nanci to read a comic by giving her copies of the first three volumes of Astonishing X-Men.

Deak’s Dirt starts with news of a Shakespearean Star Wars novel. Meanwhile, the live Action Series is not dead yet. In the Episode VII rumor mill, Zack Snyder is NOT working on a Star Wars movie! In Expanded Universe news,updates on Rebels and Kenobi hit the interwebs. Ashley Eckstein hinted that a Rogue Squadron product from Her Universe might be on the way. Finally, Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void had its cover revealed!

On this week’s Camie’s Concerns, the hosts took issue with TOR’s article on what books new readers to the Expanded Universe should pick up. Brian and Nanci offer up their suggestions on what novels to pick up based on genre.

Wrapping up the show, the hosts answer questions from the livestream chat in our Ask Us Anything segment.

Tosche Station Radio is the official podcast of Tosche-Station.net and a part of the Solo Sound network. If you like what you hear, please leave a review on the iTunes Music Store or the Xbox Music Store. We can also be found on FacebookGoogle+, and Twitter.

Nanci and Brian are the co-founders and writers of Tosche-Station.net. You can find Nanci on Twitter with the handle @Nancipants and you can find Brian with @LaneWinree.

Struzan Approached for Episode VII

It’s already going to be weird enough seeing Episode VII without the Fox Fanfare. I’m not sure if I could handle a new Star Wars film if it were missing something else iconic. Something like Drew Struzan poster artwork.

For those that don’t know, Struzan has been retired for a number of years, which makes getting new art from him for the sequel trilogy potentially problematic. Thankfully, there might be a bit of hope. From a joint interview with Sam Witwer, Drew said…

I got a couple calls already this week on Star Wars from Disney. Oh my god, I’m trying to be retired! You know, I spent 35 years painting Star Wars. [laughs] I painted Star Wars before most of you were born! But I guess there is always a chance. There’s no intention. But I would love to have a day off every now and again, and I have to work a weekend and all through the night. If the opportunity arises, it will be a real temptation.

Here’s to hoping Struzan returns for at least one more Star Wars film.

(Via)

New Book: William Shakespeare’s Star Wars

Well this is certainly… something. Spotted over the weekend was a new Star Wars book on Random House’s Page. What is it, you might ask? Star Wars in the style of Bill Shakespeare.

May the verse be with you! Inspired by one of the greatest creative minds in the English language—and William Shakespeare—here is an officially licensed retelling of George Lucas’s epic Star Wars in the style of the immortal Bard of Avon. The saga of a wise (Jedi) knight and an evil (Sith) lord, of a beautiful princess held captive and a young hero coming of age, Star Wars abounds with all the valor and villainy of Shakespeare’s greatest plays. Reimagined in glorious iambic pentameter, William Shakespeare’s Star Wars will astound and edify learners and masters alike. Zounds! This is the book you’re looking for.

So if you’ve ever wanted Shakespearean Alternate Universe Star Wars fan fiction published by a major publishing house, boy howdy you’re in luck!

No word as to whether or not this is the surprise book announcement we heard about two weeks ago.

Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void Cover Revealed

Hollywood.com revealed the cover of Tim Lebbon’s upcoming Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void cover today. The official summary of the book:

On the planet Tython, the ancient Je’daii order was founded. And at the feet of its wise Masters, Lanoree Brock learned the mysteries and methods of the Force—and found her calling as one of its most powerful disciples. But as strongly as the Force flowed within Lanoree and her parents, it remained absent in her brother, who grew to despise and shun the Je’daii, and whose training in its ancient ways ended in tragedy.

Now, from her solitary life as a Ranger keeping order across the galaxy, Lanoree has been summoned by the Je’daii Council on a matter of utmost urgency. The leader of a fanatical cult, obsessed with traveling beyond the reaches of known space, is bent on opening a cosmic gateway using dreaded dark matter as the key—risking a cataclysmic reaction that will consume the entire star system. But more shocking to Lanoree than even the prospect of total galactic annihilation, is the decision of her Je’daii Masters to task her with the mission of preventing it. Until a staggering revelation makes clear why she was chosen: The brilliant, dangerous madman she must track down and stop at any cost is the brother whose death she has long grieved—and whose life she must now fear.

And the cover …

Rogue Squadron Product from Her Universe Incoming?

Working with a staff that’s predominantly female has taught me a few things. One, Her Universe products are amazing. Two, Her Universe should totally get a Rogue Squadron shirt in their lineup. Weeelllll about point two …

If you click on that Instagram link in the embedded tweet above, you’ll see that it appears to be ‘Rogue Squadron’ stenciled over what appears to be a Rebel flak vest.

Update: 

Want to see this product become reality? Let Ashley know!

The Fake Geek Girl’s Real Motivation: Murder

“Maybe [the Fake Geek Girl] is just a manifestation of the insecurities about the opposite sex. I mean, why else in God’s green Earth would anyone pretend to read Aquaman comics?”

Much has been said about the Fake Geek Girl meme and why it’s utterly bogus. But sometimes it takes a video to point out the silliness of it all. Cue Patrick Willems’ humorous video response to the mythical Fake Geek Girl. What possible motivation could a female have for faking an interest in geek culture? Clearly, the only explanation is murder.

If you think the Fake Geek Girl actually exists, be sure to post a comment on the video’s YouTube page so that the creator can make fun of you.

(Via io9)