Holonet Blast #10

It was another mostly quiet week in the world of Star Wars news, but there were a few things that caught our attention.

Who’s excited about a queer female POC getting a Star Wars action figure? We’re excited about Doctor Aphra getting an action figure.

Meanwhile, are you a fan of Star Wars video content ala Rebels Recon and the Star Wars show? Well rejoice, because there’s more on the way. Star Wars in conjunction with Disney’s Maker talent will be rolling out a show dedicated to Star Wars and science hosted by Anthony Carboni.

It turns out that we are Adam Scott and Adam Scott is us. Watch him fanboy freak out over finally getting to meet his hero Mark Hamill.

From the “Huh, interesting” file, Rian Johnson made one request of J.J. Abrams. Alter the ending of TFA so Artoo made the journey to conclude the film with Rey instead of BB-8 as originally planned.

And we conclude on an adorable note. Mark Hamill surprising the ever loving daylights out of Star Wars fans.

Holonet Blast #3

Welcome back to Holonet Blast! Less news this week than last but it is news indeed! Let’s get right to it!

First off, the principle photography on the as-yet untitled Han Solo began February 20! The film, set to be released May 25, 2018, follows the pre-A New Hope adventures of Han and Chewie. Presumably, wacky space hi-jinks ensue. A cast picture was released with the announcement, and I’m sure it’s not the last. Thandie Newton and Phoebe Waller-Bridge were also both confirmed as cast members. And aaaahhhhhh, in every photo Donald Glover looks more and more like a young Lando!

via StarWars.com

Speaking of Star Wars stand alone films, we now have information on the Rogue One home releases! The film is coming to Digital HD on March 21, with Blu-Ray, DVD, and On-Demand following on April 4. That’s right, in just a few weeks you’ll be able to cry over [SPOILER], [SPOILER], and [SPOILERING SPOILER] in the comfort of your own home! You can also check out the box art for the physical releases now through the link. You can also see a list of some of the special features for the film, including one discussing Chirrut and Baze’s relationship and one exploring the various Easter Eggs of the film. But wait, there’s more! The Force Awakens had retailer exclusive content in its home releases and it was apparently not an anomaly. The Target, Best Buy, and Walmart versions of Rogue One, all of which are now available for pre-order, are detailed in the announcement post as well. Head over there now to pick which version(s) you’re going to pick up.

Finally, Star Wars Celebration Orlando will start off with a special 40th anniversary panel. The panel will be hosted by the esteemed Warwick Davis and “will feature Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy and discussions with some of the saga’s brightest stars, highlighting the impact of the galaxy far, far, away and the fandom that has propelled it for the last four decades.” I am very excited for this. Very, very excited.

Holonet Blast #1

Welcome to the first edition of something new we’re trying here at Tosche Station: the Holonet Blast. Over the last year or so, we’ve gotten away from being primarily a news blog but we don’t want to completely ignore it so we’ve found a solution with this once weekly round up of all the Star Wars news that hits the internet! As a note, we’ll be dealing with confirmed news only and not rumors because if we did rumors, we’d be here all year. But hey! We did learn things this week so strap yourselves in and let’s blast off!

Celebration is less than two months away and we’re finally getting some news about guests! If you’re an autograph collector, start saving now because Felicity Jones, Ian McDiarmid, and Jeremy Bulloch will all be at Celebration Orlando! Hopefully more guest announcements will be made soon so people can try and budget accordingly.

The Marvel comics will be kicking off their next crossover in May! Titled ‘The Screaming Citadel,’ the story start with a one-shot by Kieron Gillen and then go back and forth between the main Star Wars book by Jason Aaron and the new Doctor Aphra book by Gillen. Per the official site, “Luke reluctantly team[s] with the shady-but-cool archaeologist to investigate the Screaming Citadel, an infamous castle located on the edge of space.” Given how well Vader Down went, Screaming Citadel is definitely something that fans are going to want to pick up. You should also give the interview with Aaron and Gillen a read because holy crap am I excited for this story!

In news much further in the future, Disney Chairman and CEO Bob Iger announced on a call that the Star Wars Lands in Disneyworld and Disneyland will open in 2019. From what everyone’s saying, that’s a fairly aggressive build schedule. As a note, Iger didn’t say when in 2019 they’ll open. Some folks are speculating that it’ll be in time for Celebration (so hypothetically April 2019) but it could also easily be later in the year. And let’s be honest… they’re going to get our money either way. Personally, I’m guessing it’ll be later in the year because why not (hypothetically) get our money from park visits around Celebration and them again when the new attractions open? Again, that’s just speculation and we don’t know anything for sure except that we’re getting it in 2019. (For now.)

The New York Times ran a nice profile piece on some of the women help create the Star Wars universe, specifically those at Industrial Light & Magic. It’s definitely an interesting read if you have a few minutes especially since most of these mainstream “Women of Star Wars” pieces tend to focus on either the characters or Kathleen Kennedy.

And as always, the Star Wars Show is a delight! This week, they chatted with Laura Jane Grace, Pablo took us to the Rogue One creature shop, and Andi went skateboarding?

But most importantly… February 6th marked the first birthday of Millicent Hux. For those of you who somehow aren’t aware, Millicent is Hux’s ginger cat imagined by Pablo Hidalgo and she uses Kylo’s vat of ashes for her litter box. Needless to say, fandom (including myself) took the concept and ran with it and basically she’s canon now. All hail Millicent!