Category Archives: SWEU

EU Retrospective: The Empire Strikes Back

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Remember everything I said about dropping Shadow Games from the list?  Yeah, scratch that.  It arrived the day after New Year’s so I felt obliged to read it anyways.  Sorry, New Rebellion.  This retrospective is like fashion: one day you’re in and the next day you’re out.  But it’s okay because I’ve had A Very Zahn New Year which is making this go much faster.  Except for the part where I drank my way through a certain book.  That’s right, folks, you get another spam of my face via reaction pictures.

Shadow Games
When I first picked up this book, I was relieved to find out that it wasn’t about Jax.  No offense, buddy, but I just didn’t want to read about you again this soon.  Unfortunately, I don’t think I really care about Dash Rendar either.  Seriously though: it’s been awhile since I’ve read the books in this era.  Am I supposed to care about him beyond this rivalry with Han Solo?  I’m sure I’m forgetting something about him besides a tragic history.

Allow me to sum up the plot of this book for you: Lies, lies, lies, “I ain’t in this for your revolution, sister”, “I expect to be well paid”, and “Well, you’re pretty.”  Okay, it’s not a bad book and once I finally got myself to sit down and read it, it was fairly entertaining.  Unfortunately, it felt a little too much like I was reading an AU version of Han and Leia.  (Seriously though: I bet there’s a fanfic out there where Leia’s a popstar and Han is her bodyguard.)  Dash is going to be so offended when I call him a poor man’s Han Solo but oh well.  Like I said, the story was interesting enough but wow did all the levels of “Okay, so what I told you before was a lie” get to be a bit much at times.  Javul’s lucky she managed to stay alive with basically the entire galaxy after her.

I did like the droid though.  He was snarky and entertaining.  Leebo, you and your pet Mouse Droid can stay.

(In all fairness, my general exasperation with the book and with how much I’m looking forward to taking a break could be unfairly coloring my opinion here so take it with a grain of salt.)

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Zahn talks Scoundrels on the Official Blog

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Scoundrels-coverAuthor Timothy Zahn stopped by the Official Blog to talk about his love for (and trouble solving) jigsaw puzzles and his latest Expanded Universe release, heist caper Scoundrels.

I’ve never been very good at jigsaw puzzles.

It’s a skill I’ve just been unable to master. I can’t see where a given piece fits into the picture on the box; sky and cloud pieces completely baffle me; and the red blob that has to be on the piece I’m looking for (because it extends from the red blob on this piece) is always smaller and more inconspicuous than I expect it to be. Generally, once any pieces with words had been connected (I’m pretty good with the word pieces), my job at family jigsaw parties was cheerleading for the others and making sure there were plenty of snacks.

But I do like jigsaw puzzles. So if I can’t put them together, maybe I could try creating one.

For more, head over to the Official Blog and have a read.

New Expanded Universe Book Incoming? UPDATE: Something NEW New!

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Well this is interesting.

There’s no telling as to whether or not this is an adult fiction novel or an official title for a book we already know is coming (hello, Paul S. Kemp duology that has been in the void for as long as I can remember). If I were to wager a guess, I’d go with an official title for something like the aforementioned duology or the Kevin Hearne book.

If I were wagering with my heart, it would be a new X-Wing novel by either Stackpole or Allston. Alas, it hurts to dream.

Edit: If you’re thinking about asking Kemp if it’s his book, please don’t.

Edit 4:34PM: You can, however, ask Jen Heddle. 

Now this is a little more meaty and suggests that this is something beyond the Hearne and Kemp books. We know that it’s a novel and that it’s something that hasn’t (presumably) been discussed at San Diego Comic Con, Celebration VI, or any other outlet. Maybe my hopes of a new X-Wing novel have a little more life? Probably not! I just don’t envision Del Rey and Lucasfilm Licensing authorizing a post-RotJ era novel at this point in time. Again, if I’m placing a wager, I’d guess an Old Republic novel with Drew Karpyshyn being the odds-on favorite to write it. We’ll find out soon, hopefully.

Thoughts on what it might be? Leave a comment!

On Long Books, Short Books, and Impatience: Why I Refuse to Read Doorstoppers

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When I was younger, I used to love getting my hands on long books. A long book was always better than a short book, because there was more story to tell. And as a practical matter, long books were always worth the money, especially if it was a hardcover. Short books just couldn’t be as interesting; not only that, they were a waste of money. Why should I spend my hard-earned cash on a 200-page book when I could spend the same amount of money on a 500- or 1000- page tome?

(Ignore the fact that storing and carrying around doorstoppers could get old pretty quickly. Thankfully, with the advent of e-readers, I can carry around the entire Harry Potter series without breaking my back.)

As I’ve gotten older, however, I’ve stopped caring how long books are. Actually, that’s not true. Continue reading →

‘Scoundrels’ Audiobook Clip

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Scoundrels-coverCurious about the Scoundrels audiobook? Random House has released a preview for your listening pleasure.

Jabba the Hutt has placed a bounty on Han Solo’s head. Not a great situation for the gruff captain of the Millenium Falcon to be in, especially just after he was integral in the blowing up the Death Star, and he needs help. Sure, his heroics earned him some credits but those are long gone and now he needs help. Luckily, a mysterious stranger approaches Han with a less-than-legal way to pay off his debt. Chewbacca, Lando Calrissian and seven other rogues join together to attempt to infiltrate the ultra-fortified stronghold of a Black Sun crime syndicate underboss and crack the galaxy’s most notoriously impregnable safe. Written by Timothy Zahn, a fan-favorite writer of Star Wars novels, and read by Marc Thompson, this Ocean’s Eleven-type tale is sure to adventure worth taking.

To listen, click the media button below! Head to the Random House page if you’d like to purchase a copy.

 

Tosche Station Radio #40: Problematic Behavior

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The hosts are back and in this week’s all-new Tosche Station Radio they investigate the problems with True Fans, fandom gatekeepers, and the Fake Geek Girl meme.

Kicking off the show, the hosts highlight what’s new on the blogside. Bria has continued on with the Waru Express, and is now through A New Hope. She reviewed Winner Lose All and Scoundrels. Stay tuned for additional reviews when your slow-reading hosts finish, as well as a roundtable. In addition, Bria also pondered if Star Wars comic publishing rights would be transitioning from Dark Horse to Marvel. Since she’s one of our resident Tolkien freaks, Bria also found time to write a review (good grief she’s been busy). Shane gave a further examination into independent comics. Maggie examined fanworks done right, focusing on the Lizzie Bennet Diaries. Brian trolled the internet. More on that later. Finally, check out our 2012 Gratuitous Linkdump!

In Fixer’s Flash, the hosts appeared to have spent the holidays being incredibly geeky. Nanci finished the Mageworlds series and read Read Winner Lose All before starting Scoundrels. She also reworked her current novel and is getting into the writing swing again. In holiday movies, she went off and saw The Hobbit and Les Mis. Meanwhile, Brian finished the Mageworlds trilogy and took some time to read new issues of Captain Marvel, Hawkeye, and Avengers Assemble. Now he’s finally started Scoundrels. He also got into a new TV series, Once Upon a Time.

Deak’s Dirt is a bit quiet this time around, understandable with the holidays having past by. Star Wars Weekends dates were announced. Brian and Nanci will be in attendance for some of them. EW had a look at 100 episodes of The Clone Wars. The new Legacy writers discussed Ania Solo. In books, Timothy Zahn’s Scoundrels finally released. According to Kathleen Kennedy, there will be an Episode VII announcement coming in January. Brian Wood discussed Pilot!Leia and the new Star Wars comic.

This week’s Camie’s Concerns dives into a pair of articles Brian wrote this week (here and here) and investigates the destructive nature of True Fans and fandom gatekeepers. Just what are true fans and gatekeepers and why is that behavior counter-productive and damaging to fandom? How does the gatekeeper tie into the fallacious Fake Geek Girl meme? Most importantly, what counts as “real” Star Wars?

Wrapping up the show, the hosts field a question in their 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 Facebook, Google+, 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.

‘Scoundrels’ Reviews from Around the Blogosphere

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Scoundrels-coverAround the web the reviews for Scoundrels are coming in. Some of the highlights:

The early reviews definitely have trended towards positive and indicate that Scoundrels is a novel well worth your time. Another bit of consensus seems to be that this is a great entry point for those unfamiliar with the Expanded Universe, so if you’ve got a friend that needs a place to start, this may be a great novel to consider.

The rest of the staff here will be chiming in with late reviews as we read through the book. In addition, we’re planning a roundtable discussion on the podcast, so stay tuned!

On True Fans, Gatekeepers, and What is Real Star Wars

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be-authenticNow that we’ve had some time for that to settle in, let’s do a rambling, winding follow-up*.

*But everything you write is a rambling, winding follow-up, you say! I’m not going to dispute that.

Just what is real Star Wars?  That is, what counts? What’s okay to invest time, money, and emotional attachment? If you want to stop reading at the end of this paragraph, the short answer is whatever resonates with you counts. It doesn’t matter if your preference lies in the films, television, books, comics, toys, games, Disney rides, or even fan works. There’s no singular right answer or a universally accepted truth as to what is worthy of your own personal fandom. In other words, if you enjoy it, it counts.

Still with me? Let’s have a chat about gatekeepers under the jump.

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