Journey through the Clone Wars

Hello all,

I've read the vast majority of my Star Wars books, and so it's time to start re-reading a few things. But where to start? What to re-read?

I've decided, therefore, to re-read a number of my books and comics in a Journey through the EU, doing all materials pertaining to the Clone Wars (both lower- and upper-case T).

Would anyone care to join me? If you have the book, or have access to it, please read along. The first post below will be the timeline, and subsequent ones will be about each entry I've read.

NOTE: I'm using a timeline of my own concoction, which combines factors from The Star Wars Timeline Gold (by Nathan Butler), the Expanded Universe Chronology (by Rob Mullin), Star Wars Timeline: The Complete Chronology (by Joe Bongiorno), and a thread on the literature forum of TheForce.Net. It is most likely wrong in several ways (in fact, one point has pretty much already been debunked by The Essential Atlas, but I've kept it intact, pending the release of a formal timeline by LFL or Leland Chee).

Starting with: the novelization of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Last edited by Taral-DLOS on Mon Mar 19, 2012 12:03 pm; edited 20 times in total

This is the timeline I plan to follow:

Note, if the issues of a comic miniseries or arc do not run exactly sequentially (e.g. issues of the Episode II miniseries are interspersed with some stories from Tales, Manga, and the Toys R Us comics), I may choose to read the whole series/arc at once (especially if I own it in as a graphic novel instead of the issues.)

Also: If I don't own the product, I will indicate it here. It will be shortly summarized from Wookieepedia (or if someone else has it, please feel free to discuss it).

Cartoon episodes and video games will also be shortly summarized as with products I don't own.

EDIT: I'll be continuously editing this, as time goes on.

DONE

I choose to end it here.

Note there are two things that people might think I've forgotten, but Clone Wars Adventures: Skywalkers technically takes place in 1 BBY, with flashbacks to 22 BBY, and the Toys R Us comic Full of Surprises takes place days or even weeks before Episode II.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Welcome to the most convoluted era ever created. Enjoy. Smile

_________________

Where sky and water meet,
Where the waves grow sweet,
Doubt not, Reepicheep,
To find all you seek,
There is the utter east.

I'd be interested in joining you for the materials that I own (a small handful of that list). Is there a schedule for when we should read/watch things, or do we just go through the list on our own time?

I was going to give myself a week for novels, 3 days for junior novels, and maybe 2 days for comic arcs (allowing, of course, extra time for real-life).

I want to post the first discussion topic on the AOTC novel on Saturday or Sunday. I'm a fair way through the book now, and will get a lot done today on the bus ride home, but I'm also painting my home office, so not much gets done post-work.

Another thing I'll try to do as I read is further refine the timeline. I'm thinking that I'm wrong in several places, and hope to notice those incorrect parts as time goes on. It goes without saying that Leland Chee's timeline that he will one day show us will be very different from what we have here.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Last edited by Taral-DLOS on Sun May 15, 2011 5:47 pm; edited 1 time in total

1. Attack of the Clones Novel

Before I begin, I'm thinking that these analyses will, after a few of them get done, be compiled and posted as part of The Star Wars Dissection. Perhaps as an intersessional "The Star Wars Dissection: Book Club Edition". The timeline I presented included no less than 316 items, so I will doubtless group several together for each column post.

On to the analysis:

The novelization of Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones was written by R. A. Salvatore. I used the hardcover version of the novel, which had 353 pages. It cost $26.00 USD, $40.00 CAD. It was released on April 23, 2002. The paperback version, which cost $7.99 USD or $10.99 CAD, was released April 3, 2003, and included photo-quality paper showing storyboards and concept art (the first Star Wars novel to do so, the second being Knight Errant, which included an excerpt from the first issue of the Knight Errant comic).

For these analyses, I will briefly summarize the events of the story, and follow with a look at the pros and the cons, and some fun facts, in bullet-point form. The summaries will not contain many details, especially for the novels and films.

Summary:
After multiple assassination attempts on Senator Padmé Amidala, the Jedi agree to protect her and investigate the attacks. Padawan Anakin Skywalker takes her to Naboo for protection, and his Master, Knight Obi-Wan Kenobi investigates. Obi-Wan visits Kamino, and learns of a massive Clone Army being developed for the Republic in secret. He also finds Jango Fett, the clones' template and the man responsible for the assassination attempts. Obi-Wan follows Fett to Geonosis, where he discovers the Separatists are allying with the various commercial groups to build a massive Droid Army. Meanwhile, Anakin and Padmé travel to Tatooine to locate Anakin's mother, whose suffering he feels. Anakin finds her just before she dies, and slaughters the Tusken Raiders who abducted and tortured her. Obi-Wan is captured by the Separatists, and Anakin and Padmé attempt to rescue him. The three end up in a Geonosian execution arena when they are rescued by a Jedi strike team, and subsequently by the Republic's new Clone Army. The Separatists are routed at Geonosis, and Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Yoda duel Count Dooku, Separatist leader, and learn he has fallen to the Dark Side.

Pros:
-I find the beginning to be very interesting. The first few chapters deal with events not seen in the movie, such as normal life at the Lars homestead, the abduction of Shmi Skywalker Lars, and the rescue party that tried to retrieve her. It was an interesting bit of insight.
-The beginning also features new insights into Padmé, including her current lifestyle on Naboo and on Coruscant, and her insights into the Military Creation Act.
-The novel included numerous deleted scenes from the film, including Obi-Wan visiting the Temple's analysis droids, Anakin and Padmé having dinner with the Naberrie family, Padmé trying to negotiate with Dooku on Geonosis, and Anakin and Padmé's trial on Geonosis.
-The novel had additional insight into Jango and Boba Fett. We meet the two of them earlier, watching Obi-Wan's starfighter land on Kamino. Through narration and introspection, we also learn that Jango has been hired by the Trade Federation to kill Padmé much earlier than in the film (just before Obi-Wan meets Jango in his apartment).
-Interestingly, the space battle between Jango and Obi-Wan was told entirely from the perspective of Jango and Boba on the Slave I. That made it a bit different and, in my opinion, more interesting.

Cons:
-The novel started slow. Because this is a novelization, I expected it to begin much in the same way as the movie did, but instead there were numerous new scenes at the beginning, which, while interesting, did slow the book's pace. Obi-Wan doesn't begin his investigation into Jango's toxic dart until page 133 of 353 (over a third of the way into the novel).
-Jar Jar Binks only is only featured briefly in this novel, like in the film. However, in those brief scenes, he is incredibly annoying. In the first part, where he meets Obi-Wan and Anakin for the first time since Episode I, the scene goes on longer than it did in the movie, and he was so much more irritating. Subsequent scenes were mostly identical to the film, but the first one was bad.
-Anakin spent a lot of time thinking about how beautiful Padmé is. There is a significant amount of text, both by the narrator and his own mind (in italics), where it goes on and on about how lovely she's become, how he's only thought of her for ten years, how badly he wants her, etc. I have not read Twilight, but my wife has, and her one major qualm about it is that there are parts where Bella goes on about how dreamy Edward is, which go on for many pages. This reminded me of that. I am not happy that I had to compare Star Wars to Twilight.

Fun Facts:
-One continuity issue that came up recently was that the Trade Federation and Banking Clan were shown to be members of the CIS in Attack of the Clones, but were also freely cooperating with the Republic as well in The Clone Wars. This was retconned by stating that the "official policy" of these groups was Republic support, or at least neutrality, decrying their CIS-supporting leaders as terrorists (and that in secret the group as a whole was working with the CIS). The novelization makes one important clarification: all Dooku wanted was the support of these groups in secret. Shu Mai (Commerce Guild) pledged her support in secret, and San Hill (Banking Clan) pledged his support, but without exclusivity. These groups can all operate in public however they want, but their money and armies are pledged to Dooku.
-Anakin didn't steal C-3PO! In the film, when Anakin and Padmé flew away with both droids, I thought Anakin was stealing C-3PO. But there's a scene in the book where Owen gives the droid back to Anakin.

All in all, the novelization offered more perspective, often through the narrator, than the film, making it a deeper and more enjoyable experience. Oddly, I didn't seem to remember liking this book as much as I do now. I always thought before that it offered almost nothing new, that it essentially re-told the same events from the film. It certainly isn't as good as the Episode III novelization (which we'll eventually get to), but this was a fun read.

I'm not going to rate these numerically, since over the long haul I'll probably slowly change my perspectives. I may give this a 7/10, and many months down the line giving something I like just as much (or a bit less) a 7.5/10. So instead I'll just say I really enjoyed this book, and recommend it to anyone/everyone.

Anyone else's thoughts?

Next on the line: Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones (film).
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Great review of the book Taral-DLOS.

I also loved the the new scenes seen in the novel. I didn't mind the way they slowed the beginning of the novel down at all, but I agree totally with you on this:

I'm posting the next item today, since I re-watched Attack of the Clones this morning. Anyone who is reading this with me, but at a different pace, please feel free to post, simply starting with "Re: <book>".

2. Attack of the Clones (film).

The film version of Episode II: Attack of the Clones was directed by George Lucas and written by he and Jonathan Hales. It was released in theatres on 16 May 2002. I saw it originally in theatres, but for this analysis I watched the DVD version, which came out in November 2002 with a few subtle changes (those changes can be found on the Wookieepedia page; they're too minute to recound here).

Summary:
Same as for the novelization, above.

Pros:
-In Palpatine's office, we see some important Jedi. We see once more Yoda, Mace Windu, and Ki-Adi-Mundi, but also several who would be important later in the Clone Wars, like Kit Fisto, Luminara Unduli, and her apprentice Barriss Offee. Several more are seen at the Geonosis arena or Jedi Council chambers, like Shaak-Ti, Plo Koon, Saesee Tiin, Adi Gallia, and Eeth Koth. We also saw Aayla Secura, who was first introduced in the comics, but brought into the film because George Lucas "liked the look of her". Same here, George. Same here.
-The film misses some of the exposition of the novel, but the pace is much better. We get to good action and investigation scenes early, and the love story develops quicker.
-I love the digital animation of some of the most prominent digital characters. Digital Yoda looks a lot better than Episode I puppet Yoda (though I still prefer Episode V puppet Yoda). Dex looks awesome, and so do the Separatist Leaders (especially Poggle the Lesser), the Kaminoans, and Watto.
-I like the look of the Delta-7 starfighter, with the external hyperdrive sled. Sleek, maneuverable, and with the major component that could hamper speed detachable.
-Gotta love Obi-Wan's sense of humor. I'm glad they kept that character trait from Episode I.
-I love how Obi-Wan evades Jango in the Geonosis asteroid field. Using the spare parts container closely resembles how actual fighters and ships evade missiles (using chaff, or aluminum dust-type stuff). Hiding on the back of the asteroid is cool, though Boba wouldn't fall for it again (it closely resembles how Han Solo evaded the Imperials in Episode V).
-Gotta love the John Williams Score. As good as any other Star Wars score. And I really liked the new theme for this film, the Anakin-Padmé romance scene (which I believe is titled "Across the Stars".
-Yoda fighting with his lightsaber! Epic!

Cons:
-Alien diversity. While we see a large number of cool-looking aliens in certain situations (Jedi Council Chamber, Jedi at Geonosis Arena), there are very few aliens around Coruscant, especially in the bar that Zam runs into. One of the great things about the Mos Eisley Cantina in Episode IV was the alien diversity, to show how vast the Galaxy is. Here, we saw mostly humans, and a handful of others (Ithorian, Rodian, Twi'lek, and our first look at a Balosar), but not much else.
-Number of clones in the army. At best, the number "200,000 units" is too vague. I'm of the opinion though that 200,000 represented the first batch (which was smaller than the others, due to testing and some defects), and that subsequent batches of 1 million came out every 3 months or so (the instant a clone is decanted, his vial is refilled with a new embryo). It was also possible that a Unit is not one clone, but perhaps a platoon, but later books clarify that the term Unit meant Clone. But 1.2 million (the remaining million delivered within a week or so after Geonosis), supplemented by another million every 3 months, still doesn't give enough for an army to wage galactic war.
-One thing that bothers me: why did the Tuskens capture and torture Shmi? I understand killing her, or even capturing her for slavery. But neither the novel nor the movie give insight as to why they held her for a month.
-When C-3PO is digital (in some scenes in the droid foundry), he moves in a way that's inconsistent with what we've seen. His arms go too high, he moves too fast, etc.
-Why couldn't the Gunship shoot down Dooku? The pilot claimed they were out of rockets, but we know they had blasters and particle-beams.

Fun Facts:
-Notice how, in the Geonosis arena, there are four columns, but only three to be executed? In some of the draft scripts, the fourth column was for R4-P17, who wasn't fully integrated into Obi-Wan's ship at the time. R4 would be destroyed fairly quickly, presumably by a fourth animal. This was removed from later drafts.
-The Geonosian designs for the Death Star are ironic, given that, 20 years or so later, Geonosians would be enslaved to help build it, per a mission in the game Empire at War.
-I'm going to use this section to track the number of times characters duel each other: Anakin-Dooku: 1; Obi-Wan-Dooku: 1, Yoda-Dooku: 1.
-Near the end, it's the first time we see the Ziggurat of the Jedi Temple. In Episode I, all we see are the towers. This led to the mistaken belief that the temple was just made up of those towers (most notably in the game Galactic Battlegrounds, where the Jedi Temple structure is just the towers on a low concrete platform.)
-Droid Rights: apparently Droids count enough as living beings that they can legally witness a marriage.

Attack of the Clones was favourite prequel film. The story was intriguing, and the love story was interesting. The action scenes were really cool, especially the Geonosis arena and clone attack. And the digital effects and ship/city/alien designs were really cool. I recommend this to anyone who loves Star Wars (though, I expect that everyone who loves Star Wars has already seen it.)

Next on the list: the young reader adaptation of Attack of the Clones!
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Yet another great review Taral.

Yeah, I think they mentioned it in the commentary track.

If anyone hasn't watched the Star Wars DVDs with commentary, do so. It's interesting, and you get some cool insights.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Very interesting concept you've got here, Taral. If I can find my copy of the AOTC comic in time, I'll join in!
_________________
I am a Star Wars fan. That doesn't mean that I hate or love Jar Jar. That doesn't mean I hate or love Lucas, or agree or disagree 100% with him. That doesn't mean I prefer the PT over the OT, or vice versa. That doesn't mean I hate the EU, or even love all of it. These are not prerequisites. Being a man is not a prerequisite. Being a geek is not a prerequisite. The only prerequisite is that I love something about Star Wars. I am a Star Wars fan.

3. Attack of the Clones (young reader).

The young reader adaptation of Episode II: Attack of the Clones was written by Patricia C. Wrede and published by Scholastic on 23 April 2002 (the same day as the adult novelization). It had 167 pages. It only came in one edition, as a young reader (age 9-12)-sized paperback. In the middle, the book contains 16 pages (8 sheets) of glossy photo paper which show scenes from the film. You could buy it by itself, or in a box set containing all six junior novelizations (Episodes I, II, and III by Patricia C. Wrede, and Episodes IV, V, and VI by Ryder Windham). The book by itself (which I bought), originally cost $5.99 USD or $8.99 CAD, but the price on Amazon differs from this. I suspect that the Amazon price reflects inflation and exchange rates, so I will try and avoid using them for this exercise unless I have no other recourse.

Summary:
Same as novelization and film, so I will not resummarize here.

Pros:
-Whereas the adult novelization depicted the Geonosis asteroid belt fight from Jango's perspective, the young reader adaptation told it from Obi-Wan's perspective. Cool to get both sides.
-In the movie and novel, I took issue with the fact that the reason the Tuskens took Shmi was not explained. Here, there was a throwaway line that Tuskens torture people for fun. Not much detail, but at least its an explanation.

Cons:
-In the prologue, they once again confuse "1,000 years" with "1,000 generations." This issue arose when Obi-Wan says the Jedi protected the Galaxy for 1,000 generations in Episode IV, but Palpatine says the Republic stood for 1,000 years, and Sio Bibble says there hadn't been a war since "the formation of the Republic" in Episode II. This was retconned that roughly a millennium ago, the Ruusan Reformations effectively changed the Republic into something new, and that there had been no major wars since then. This book mistakenly uses "1,000 generations" to refer to events that happened 1,000 years earlier.
-The first scene (assassination attempt on Padmé's ship) was told from Padmé's perspective. While it was interesting and gave some cool insight, there was no surprise when Padmé wasn't on the ship, and it was her decoy killed. We always knew she'd be okay. I didn't like that. There should be a bit of suspense.
-Many scenes are glossed over, to fit the contents of the book from 353 pages (adult) to 167 pages (young reader). While this is important, and the need to simplify is clear, a lot of information is lost.

Fun Facts:
-Jango's armour is accidentally called "Mandoralian."
-The slaughter of the Tusken camp is not depicted. After Shmi dies, Anakin has a moment of internal struggle, and then the next chapter starts, where Anakin tells Padmé about the massacre. I guess they didn't want to show the slaughter in too much detail for kids.
-The Geonosis arena scene is a bit different. Acklay are described as having pincers (the term "pincer" implies an articulated joint, like a lobster claw, but the claw of the Acklay is solid). Also, whereas in the film and novel Anakin used the Reek to kill the Nexu, in this version he lured the Nexu into attacking the Acklay, distracting both animals long enough for Mace to make his appearance.
-In the film, Anakin simultaneously broadcasts Obi-Wan's report from Geonosis to the Jedi Council and to the Chancellor's office (Obi-Wan's instructions were simply "relay this to Coruscant".) But in this version, Anakin relayed the message only to the Jedi Council. Yoda and Mace then reported its contents to Chancellor Palpatine and the Loyalist Committee.

All in all, I like the junior novelization of Attack of the Clones. The story was the same, and with some different points of view that added a bit of insight. The only problem is that some information is lost during the simplification process. I would definitely recommend this to young Star Wars fans, as well as to adults who want to see the story again in a different light.

Next time: I do not own the next two entries, so I will look at them simultaneously using whatever resources I have available to me. These are the video game and PhotoComic adaptations of Attack of the Clones.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Hello all,

Apologies for posting so soon after the last one, but I got these two done quick. Again, if you want to mention something from a previous post, just start with something like "Re: <title>".

I do not own the next two entries, and so my summaries come from the internet (several sources, including Wookieepedia, Wikipedia, and online review sites). Because the reviews are shorter, I will include them both in one post.

4. Attack of the Clones (video game).
The video game adaptation of Episode II: Attack of the Clones was released for only one system, the Nintendo Game Boy Advance (also playable on the Nintendo DS (original or Lite, not i or iXL). The game was developed by THQ and published by LucasArts. It was released on 30 May 2002, roughly two weeks after the release date of the film. I find this odd, since normally game developers work hard to get their tie-in games to release the same week as the film, often to the game's detriment. This was released after the film, but was no better for it.

Summary:
Same as novelization, film, and young reader, so I will not repeat it here.

Pros:
-The game follows the story of the movie fairly well, and fairly linearly.
-You play as either Anakin or Obi-Wan for the bulk of the game, and as Mace Windu for a short time as well (presumably at the Geonosis Arena level).
-Two of the eleven levels are cool 3D starfighter-type battles (Obi-Wan vs. Jango Fett in asteroid field, and Obi-Wan/Anakin vs. Dooku in the Geonosis canyons). These levels are touted as being well designed and really cool.
-Visit three planets: Coruscant, Tatooine, Geonosis.
-Looked good for a 2D side-scroller on a GBA in 2002.

Cons:
-Controls were awful. Most review sites agree that the controls were incredibly difficult, especially in the side-scrolling levels. There was often a delay between pushing a button and the response. You could only lightsaber-slash while running, and only block while standing still.
-Not much to the game. The side-scrolling levels may look good, but all you do is work from the left side of the screen to the right. Only 2 levels required any degree of backtracking.
-It only came out for the Game Boy Advance. Admittedly, at that time, Nintendo held the vast majority of the market share for handheld games (Sega Game Gear was long gone, Sony PlayStation Portable wasn't due for another 3 years in North America, and the only real competitor was the Nokia N-Gage, a portable gamer/cell phone/MP3 player/PDA that looked good on paper but didn't quite make it). But the GBA still couldn't compete with the XBox, Playstation 2, or GameCube. It would've been better to make a 3D version of the game for these other systems, with a GBA port for the handheld community.

Fun Facts:
-This game did poorly. GameCritics gave it 1/10. GameSpot gave it 2/5. IGN gave it a decent 6.5/10, with most of their concerns based on creativity and replayability. I could not find any sales information.

In the end, I would like to have tried to play this game (and I will, if I ever spot a cheap copy for sale; I own a DS Lite). But I don't think anyone is missing much if they hadn't played. To my knowledge there's nothing new or unique about the game that offers new insight into the story. If you've never played this, I don't think you need to hunt it down.

5. Attack of the Clones (PhotoComic).

The PhotoComic adaptation of Episode II: Attack of the Clones was published 24 October 2007. It cost $9.95 USD. They were originally produced by TokyoPop in Japan, and was imported into the US by Dark Horse Comics. These books took still images from the films and added comic book-style text bubbles over them for dialogue. Neither the art nor the text are different from the films. The creativity comes in which stills are chosen, and which quotes are used to convey the story.

For additional information on this series, I would recommend listening to the SoloSound.net podcast The EU Review, specifically The Obscure Side #5, which discussed all forms of Star Wars Manga (PhotoComics, Manga film adaptations, original Mangas), published on 19 October 2010.

Summary:
Same as novelization, film, and young reader, so I will not repeat it here.

Pros:
-It's an interesting medium for telling stories. The art consists of only the best stills from the movie.
-Dialogue also taken directly from the film.
-This book included images and brief descriptions of vehicles of the Republic and vehicles of the "Federation" (referring to Confederacy of Independent Systems).

Cons:
-Reviewers claimed that the colour was off on some of the images.
-Some odd screenshots are chosen to try and show motion. Alternatively, sometimes you lose the sense of motion because the still image cannot convey motion as well as drawn comic art.

Fun Facts:
-This style is common in Japan, called CineManga (cinema + manga).
-This was the second of seven books in the PhotoComic series. This series produced adaptations of all six films, as well as the first season of the Genndy Tartakovsky cartoon series (Chapter 11 or so).

Again, I have not read this book (the only PhotoComic I own is the seventh one, the adaptation of Clone Wars season 1). But this depiction offers no additional information than the movie or the novel or young reader book. The art-style is cool, and I'll admit that I'll probably buy it in the next few months, but I don't think it's required.

So, in conclusion, it's cool, but not required to understand Episode II.

Next time: The comic book adaptation of Attack of the Clones! Please note that, while the timeline shows the chronological placement of other stories (video games and short comics) relative to the issues of Attack of the Clones, I will look at all four issues at once, and then handle the other concurrent stories. This is mostly because I only own the Trade Paperback and cannot differentiate exactly when one issue ends and another begins.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Last edited by Taral-DLOS on Thu Jun 02, 2011 9:50 pm; edited 1 time in total

6, 8, 10 and 13: Attack of the Clones (comic adaptation) 1-4

The comic adaptation of Attack of the Clones was written by Henry Gilroy (using George Lucas's script) and drawn by Jan Duursema. It released in four issues, with issues 1 and 2 released on 24 April 2002, and issues 3 and 4 on 1 May 2002. All four issues had two covers, one artistic and one photographic. Each issue initially cost $3.99 USD, which is higher than normal (though the issues were slightly thicker than normal, at 48 pages each). The Trade Paperback collecting issues 1 to 4 was also released on 24 April along with the first two issues (note: the same thing happened with the comic releases of both The Phantom Menace and Revenge of the Sith). It cost $17.95 USD, which is slightly more than the cost of all four issues individually. The comic adaptation of Attack of the Clones will also be collected in the upcoming Omnibus: The Complete Saga, due out 12 October 2011. For this analysis, I read the Trade Paperback edition, which does not clearly identify where one issue ends and another begins, so all four are reviewed simultaneously.

Summary:
This comic tells the same story as the film, novel, etc., and so will not be repeated here.

Pros:
-To fit the entire story in the smaller space, the pace of action is significantly faster.
-We got a more detailed look at Obi-Wan exploring Geonosis. He had to fend off a wild lizard, and bore witness to hundreds of Trade Federation Core Ships being loaded up with battle droids (in the other adaptations, he merely saw the ships on the ground).

Cons:
-Some information is lost in this adaptation, especially compared to the novel.
-Sometimes the characters don't look quite right. There's one specific panel where Padmé did not look like Padmé at all. She also suffers in a few panels from what I call "Variable Boob Syndrome", where the bust size of female characters in a comic book is not consistent with descriptions in a novel or live action appearances.

Fun Facts:
-Jango Fett's total appearance was revealed to the reader very early (when he gave the Kouhouns to Zam Wesell). In the film, we only saw his profile, so we didn't know for certain who he was until Kamino.
-Something I had not noticed earlier, but the different adaptations include different characters in the Separatist Leaders Council scene. In the film, we clearly saw and heard Nute Gunray, Wat Tambor, Shu Mai, and San Hill. The novel excluded Wat Tambor but gave a bigger role to Poggle the Lesser and Passel Argente. The comic removes Shu Mai and replaces her with Toonbuck Toora, who in the movie is still on the Republic side, standing next to Palpatine on Coruscant.
-Once again, the manner in which the CIS formation is reported to Coruscant is different. Here, Obi-Wan's transmission is sent directly to Palpatine's office, where several Jedi and the Chancellor's inner circle are present.

I did enjoy this adaptation of Episode II, but it does go by very fast. Certain information is lost, so I wouldn't rely on this alone for the story of Attack of the Clones. Also, if you do not yet own this, hold off on buying it until October 2011, as it will be included in Omnibus: The Complete Saga, along with the comic adaptations of Episodes I and III, the Special Edition of Episode IV, and the Marvel adaptations of Episodes V and VI.

Next up: a pair of short comics: Dear Anakin (from Manga) and Nobody's Perfect (from Tales).
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

Last edited by Taral-DLOS on Thu Jun 02, 2011 9:50 pm; edited 1 time in total

9: Dear Anakin

The story Dear Anakin was featured in the comic Star Wars Manga: Black, which was published in October 2006. At only four pages long, it was written and drawn by the Furi Furi Company. Manga: Black and its sequel, Manga: Silver, were published by Tokyopop in Japan, and the only English versions available are exclusively sold in the United Kingdom. As a result, I do not have a copy to fully analyze. Dear Anakin may fall under the Infinities label and be classified as non-canon, as, to my knowledge, the story has never been referenced anywhere else.

Summary:
Kitster Banai writes a letter to his childhood friend Anakin Skywalker. In it, he describes how great it was to be Anakin's friend, how he remembers how good Anakin was with machines, etc. He remembers working at Watto's shop, and remembers the Boonta Eve Classic podrace. He's heard stories about Anakin's journeys across the Galaxy, but encourages Anakin to come back to Tatooine to visit. He ends with a simple "May the Force be with you."

Pros:
-This is the only appearance of Kitster between Episode I (and its tie-ins) and the game Star Wars Galaxies.

Cons:
-It is interesting that the letter is written in Aurebesh, translated into English. The problem is that the English does not match the Aurebesh exactly. This is most likely due to imperfect translations from Japanese to English. The meanings are retained, but the translation is still imperfect.

Fun Facts:
-This story can take place almost anywhere in the timeline, from Anakin's youth after Episode I to his death. But I've seen timelines (specifically Joe Bongiorno's Complete Chronology) place this entry here, within the events of Episode II. It is extremely likely that it takes place before the Clone Wars officially begin, since the comic makes no reference to them (and if he knew his friend was a Commander or General in the War, surely he'd bring it up). Essentially, this letter is being sent off to Coruscant almost immediately before Anakin arrives back on Coruscant to search for his mother. Other timelines, like Nathan Butler's Star Wars Timeline Gold, place it in the year 29 BBY, shortly after the events of the novel Rogue Planet. In the end, there are very few timeline clues, so I prefer to leave it here.

While this four-page mini-story would be a cool addition to any collection, there is no need whatsoever to hunt down Manga: Black to get the entire picture of the Clone Wars, especially if you're in North America, where the book has never been published.

11: Nobody's Perfect

Nobody's Perfect is a one-page comic first featured in Star Wars Tales #20, released on 30 June 2004. It was reprinted (along with the rest of Tales 17-20) in the Trade Paperback Tales Volume 5, released on 23 February 2005. It was written and drawn by Peter Bagge, who also did another story in Tales 20 (Failing Up with Jar Jar Binks). Nobody's Perfect, along with most of the stories in Tales #20, is considered Infinities and therefore not part of the canon. I read this story in the TPB Tales Volume 5.

Summary:
In advance of their wedding, Anakin interrupts Padmé in her room as she's preparing for The Big Day. He confesses to her many of the other dark deeds he's done in addition to the slaughter of the Tuskens who killed his mother. These deeds include killing a colony if Desert Gnomes after they gave him bad directions, beating a homeless Wookiee for bumping into him, talking back to Obi-Wan, letting Obi-Wan take the blame for Anakin's wrongdoings, and setting the Jedi Temple on fire, killing many of his brothers. Padmé seems unperturbed by this, ignoring his obvious psychopathy and instead asking his advice on wedding gowns.

Pros:
-It's a funny little story that has no consequence on the timeline (since its Infinities).
-Pastelly, cartoony artwork that looks cute.

Cons:
-If it were true, then Anakin's darker side is even worse than we suspected.
-Art style is not to everyone's taste.
-Too short.

Fun Facts:
-Padmé is apparently superstitious. She doesn't want Anakin to see her before the wedding.

It's short, cute, and a bit funny, but don't go out of your way to find it. It's non-canon, but if it were in continuity, it would add very little to the experience. Plus, these Tales books (17-20, as featured in Volume 5) were my least favourite stories. They're mostly non-canon and humorous, with no bearing on the continuity, and the art work is not for everyone. Read it if you can, but don't seek it out unless you're a completionist.

Next time: Star Wars: The Clone Wars, the last-generation video game released near the time of Episode II.
_________________
It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours.
It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy.
It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed.
The year is 2261.
The place: Babylon 5.

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