Lucasfilm Makes It Official: Star Wars: Expanded Universe Is Dead

[Sewer Rat]

Back in my day, kids weren't so stupid to believe that stories in comics & movies happened in a "universe". Settings were identity and the notion of a shared setting hardly of any importance. I guess fanboys nowadays need to hold the idea that somewhere, really, those events really have happened.

Internal consistency is important in any story; if things can just happen for no reason than the entire point of hypothesizing is lost.

^Bingo.
Internal Consistency is important for any story; fantastical or otherwise and not just some silly thing that only nerds harp on to be pedantic.

Trouble is, Star Wars had no consistency as it was. From technology inexplicably getting worse between the prequels and the original trilogy, Jabba the Hutt being presented as a seemingly completely different character in Episode 4 when compared to episode 6, conflicting novels that vary in tone and quality written by scores of different authors, the Star Wars continuity was nothing but a clusterfuck of retcons and contradictions. The best thing that could have been done to make the world consistent would be to throw it all out and start from scratch.
If a painting is a mess you don't clean it up by throwing more paint at it and hoping for the best, you start a new one.

 

[sumanoskae]

Honestly...good!
The extended universe was really nothing more than glorified fan fiction and wasn't really all that great anyway. Ever since I heard that episode VII was going to happen I was hoping the EU would get re-written, even if that means another 3 movies on the same level as the prequels.

I have to ask, have you read and/or played any of the EU material?

I'm not sure what games count towards the EU material other than Jedi Academy so I'm going to say no in terms of games.
Books, I have read quite a few of some years back. I remember really liking them at first but I started to dislike them the more I read. To me the books read like fanfiction, which ended up putting me off them.

To Disney and Lucas Films, "EU" is "Everything besides the movies and the Clone Wars animated series"; so no KOTOR, no Jedi Knight, no nothing.

I will have to respectfully disagree with you; the EU has done more for the Star Wars universe than the films ever did. I would remind you that almost everything we know about Star Wars has been affected by the EU; the code of the Sith; the forms of lightsaber combat; the origin of the Jedi order; even Palpatine's plan to dominate the galaxy originates in the EU.

The films show a comparatively small portion of the galaxy, and what I've read of the EU is better than the movies. A "Fanfic" just means "A work of fiction set within an established universe not sanctioned by the original creator"; it's not synonymous with bad writing; it's not an insult.

If you're interested in seeing an example, I can personally attest to the quality of the Darth Bane trilogy, which has more to say about the dark side than the entire film series put together; it treats the Sith like human beings instead of super villains. Even if that doesn't do it for you, there are countless EU books, not all of them good, obviously, but I don't see why that's a reason to dismiss them entirely.

I think Disney is underestimating just how much of the Star Wars universe they are effectively trying to blink out of existence; even the Clone Wars series has adopted aspects of the expanded universe. They're not making the cannon simpler by relying solely on the films, they're just making it nonsensical. A lot of the EU has been dedicated to cleaning up the mess that the prequels made of the continuity. I would understand their need to retcon certain details of the EU, but dismissing the whole thing is overkill, especially when lots of it would make for good movies.

Further more, there is nothing in the EU that makes it impossible to just ignore specific works that take place after the movies, lots of it has almost nothing to do with them; you don't need to deprive the setting of so much of it's context to change it up for the new trilogy.

 

[Kyrinn]

Honestly...good!
The extended universe was really nothing more than glorified fan fiction and wasn't really all that great anyway. Ever since I heard that episode VII was going to happen I was hoping the EU would get re-written, even if that means another 3 movies on the same level as the prequels.

I have to ask, have you read and/or played any of the EU material?

I'm not sure what games count towards the EU material other than Jedi Academy so I'm going to say no in terms of games.
Books, I have read quite a few of some years back. I remember really liking them at first but I started to dislike them the more I read. To me the books read like fanfiction, which ended up putting me off them.

To Disney and Lucas Films, "EU" is "Everything besides the movies and the Clone Wars animated series"; so no KOTOR, no Jedi Knight, no nothing.

I will have to respectfully disagree with you; the EU has done more for the Star Wars universe than the films ever did. I would remind you that almost everything we know about Star Wars has been affected by the EU; the code of the Sith; the forms of lightsaber combat; the origin of the Jedi order; even Palpatine's plan to dominate the galaxy originates in the EU.

The films show a comparatively small portion of the galaxy, and what I've read of the EU is better than the movies. A "Fanfic" just means "A work of fiction set within an established universe not sanctioned by the original creator"; it's not synonymous with bad writing; it's not an insult.

If you're interested in seeing an example, I can personally attest to the quality of the Darth Bane trilogy, which has more to say about the dark side than the entire film series put together; it treats the Sith like human beings instead of super villains. Even if that doesn't do it for you, there are countless EU books, not all of them good, obviously, but I don't see why that's a reason to dismiss them entirely.

I think Disney is underestimating just how much of the Star Wars universe they are effectively trying to blink out of existence; even the Clone Wars series has adopted aspects of the expanded universe. They're not making the cannon simpler by relying solely on the films, they're just making it nonsensical. A lot of the EU has been dedicated to cleaning up the mess that the prequels made of the continuity. I would understand their need to retcon certain details of the EU, but dismissing the whole thing is overkill, especially when lots of it would make for good movies.

Further more, there is nothing in the EU that makes it impossible to just ignore specific works that take place after the movies, lots of it has almost nothing to do with them; you don't need to deprive the setting of so much of it's context to change it up for the new trilogy.

Ah I see. In that case I'm familiar with quite a lot of the EU and indeed enjoyed it and what it added to the Star Wars lore. I guess my disdain for the EU comes from the books that were written as sequels to Episode 6. That's what I thought was being called non-canon here. If everything else is being remove from canon then I'm against it because that is basically saying the majority of the known Star Wars universe no longer means anything.

 

[Atmos Duality]

Trouble is, Star Wars had no consistency as it was. From technology inexplicably getting worse between the prequels and the original trilogy, Jabba the Hutt being presented as a seemingly completely different character in Episode 4 when compared to episode 6, conflicting novels that vary in tone and quality written by scores of different authors, the Star Wars continuity was nothing but a clusterfuck of retcons and contradictions.

There was a fair bit of mess, but not all of it was a clusterfuck.

...Well, at least until the New Jedi Order and Yuuzan Vong crap.
That's the point where it got too ridiculous for me to take, and where I stopped picking up the novels.

Some of the comics for stuff like Rogue Squadron, Crimson Empire and the like still hit the right notes though, and it just -felt- right and even had some subtle, but effective continuity between them. It felt like the original movies; a space adventure serial.

The best thing that could have been done to make the world consistent would be to throw it all out and start from scratch.

That was actually the way I felt after the prequels ended.
Right now; I'd be happy if they just shit canned Episode 7 and let the whole thing be.
With Abrams at the helm, well, I saw what he did to Star Trek, and love or hate it, that was Star Trek in name only.

 

[Something Amyss]

...Because no new Star Wars stories were imagined to be coming out and people wanted to see the story continue. You take what you can get.

But invested?

Seriously, I've been reading Star Wars novels since before most of the Escapist users were born. I cut my teeth on Star Wars on Vinyl[footnote]Hipster though that may sound[/footnote], because home video services were still largely a novelty when I was a kid. I started playing the Star Wars RPG from WEG way back, too. Hell, I've created my own stories within the Star Wars universe for use playing said games.

I'm still not getting the "invested" part. Episodes 1-3 screwed up half of my campaigns. Episodes 7 and beyond may do more. They will also mess up my source material. Oh well.

In some ways no, but it's still on a larger scale and it's still an action Lucas was nice enough to never take.

It's the same step, he just wasn't as overt. Ir's probably a kindness to just out and out do it, so people don't say "b-b-b-but in the books..."

Which is really weird in the first place.

To be honest, I think Bob could have done a better job representing what Lucasfilm had to say.

Fair enough, though a rule of thumb is to take what Bob says with a grain of salt and scale it back about four notches. I mean, I always feel hesitant to say these things, because I don't want to come off like I hate Bob, but part of enjoying his work is understanding that he can get more hyperbolic than Good Ole Jim Ross.

...God, how many wrestling references am I going to make today?

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

...Because no new Star Wars stories were imagined to be coming out and people wanted to see the story continue. You take what you can get.

But invested?

Seriously, I've been reading Star Wars novels since before most of the Escapist users were born. I cut my teeth on Star Wars on Vinyl[footnote]Hipster though that may sound[/footnote], because home video services were still largely a novelty when I was a kid. I started playing the Star Wars RPG from WEG way back, too. Hell, I've created my own stories within the Star Wars universe for use playing said games.

I'm still not getting the "invested" part. Episodes 1-3 screwed up half of my campaigns. Episodes 7 and beyond may do more. They will also mess up my source material. Oh well.

Your lack of investment doesn't mean others weren't and aren't invested regardless of how involved in Star Wars you were.

[quote/]

In some ways no, but it's still on a larger scale and it's still an action Lucas was nice enough to never take.

It's the same step, he just wasn't as overt. Ir's probably a kindness to just out and out do it, so people don't say "b-b-b-but in the books..."

Which is really weird in the first place.
[/quote]
There's really not much to say here beyond the fact that I disagree. The small bit of entirely enjoyable debating that went on as a result of Lucas' actions was far and away better than just throwing it out. Lucas was willing to let it exist anywhere it could. He would override it, sure, but this is different.

[quote/]

To be honest, I think Bob could have done a better job representing what Lucasfilm had to say.

Fair enough, though a rule of thumb is to take what Bob says with a grain of salt and scale it back about four notches. I mean, I always feel hesitant to say these things, because I don't want to come off like I hate Bob, but part of enjoying his work is understanding that he can get more hyperbolic than Good Ole Jim Ross.[/quote]
This I can agree with wholeheartedly.

 

[WhiteFangofWhoa]

Don't care, the EU is still Star Wars to me. Won't pay the new trilogy any mind until it produces one story half as good as the NJO or the Thrawn Trilogy.

 

[punipunipyo]

wait... wha? does this mean no Kyle Katarn? He'd be the ONLY reason I'd go watch SW7! I don't need to see Luke or Han... I don't need to see random new heroes... I want to see the Renaissance of the Jedi, Jedi Academy, and all seven+ forms of sabers... hell... I think they should make a Jedi Academy TV show... that is like Harry Potter... but Jedi!~ that would TOTALLY rock!~

 

[Unspoken_Request]

Since the prequels, my emotional attachment to the SW universe has diminished considerably. Still, it would be very sad if Dysney did not at least keep the major plot points/character developments events from Zahn's novels. Yet, that entails disentangling the good stuff from the mess left by others...


Thank god I am more of a Tolkien fan! His Universe remains pristine due to the limit imposed by the Estate on its commercialization.

 

[AkatsukiLeader13]

Yeah it's frustrating to see them giving the boot to everything post-Jedi, especially after both that video they released and considering the time period Abrams wants to set the new movies isn't that far off where the latest books ended.

Sure not everything post-Jedi has been good but then given all the material in post-Jedi EU that can be expected. But I doubt anyone here would argue that some like the Thrawn Trilogy is anything less that great. Hell while I'm not a fan of much beyond the Yuuzhan Vong war, where that last big series, Fate of the Jedi, ended is an interesting time and could have provided a whole lot of fodder for the movies.

Then again these movies are from the same guy who created the mess known as Star Trek Into Darkness so maybe its for the better that he doesn't get his hands on the EU. If he did Thrawn like he did Khan from Star Trek I think it probably would kill Star Wars for me.

 

[KazeAizen]

Well, it's not like we didn't all see this coming, but still. Childhood RUINED.

It's not like the core Star Wars fanbase matters when your movie is so large that its name alone guarantees you a massive profit, but I still feel like this is gauche.

Are people still screaming Childhood Ruined? I mean really? Please tell me you are being sarcastic.

 

[Nurb]

So does that mean Starkiller can be left as a stupid over-powered product of fanfiction?

 

[KazeAizen]

It's a mixed bag. For one, the web of the EU is incredible long and complex.Some of the stories weren't even worth reading. So we'll just have to wait and see...and pray that this new film doesn't suck

Yeah. I mean having 6 good films and 2 good cartoon series is a tough thing to do. It'd suck if Star Wars started suck now.

 

[dystopiaINC]

Well, it's not like we didn't all see this coming, but still. Childhood RUINED.

It's not like the core Star Wars fanbase matters when your movie is so large that its name alone guarantees you a massive profit, but I still feel like this is gauche.

Pretty much this... Now Kotor, Republic Commando and Jedi Outcast are axed as cannon I realized I like the EU better than the movies. even if most of the books were crap, the games were amazing.

Also this...

Spoiler

 

[lynnfire]

What a sad day for fiction! I believe the better choice would be to build off of the fan fiction, ie. the EU, and play with the space that was left for them. As a creative choice, this is fantastic - it challenges the creators and the watchers to invest in a rich world made richer by a gallery of pre-existing villains and heroes and "legends". Literally, the sky is the limit with what you are able to do. Hell even George named a character Skywalker. Imagine of the stories that could be made with the existing lore...

PS - This also allows midi-chlorians

 

[Braedan]

A single tear was shed.

Not for the fans, or any of the shit literature of course. For the trees wasted by all the shitty literature.

 

[flying_whimsy]

While they're at it, do you think disney could kill the prequel trilogy as being part of the canon, too? (I suspect that sentiment has been mentioned somewhere in the previous six pages.)

I loved the expanded universe until a combination of two things happened: the prequels came out and the new jedi order hit the stands. They all but killed my interest in the franchise; if it weren't for hasbro's excellent toys aimed at collectors I might have soured on the whole thing. I'm surprised at all the hate for the books, but honestly aside from a few favorites (timothy zahn's stuff, the han solo trilogy, and the x-wing series, particularly the Wraith Squadron arc) I could take or leave a lot of it (I don't actually count the NJO as canon it was so bad).

I just generally liked how big they made the whole universe feel, but I totally understand where Disney is coming from on this. I remember noticing how the expanded universe was a slave to all of the sudden changes to the canon from the prequels and I can't imagine trying to make a movie that had to live within that EU labyrinth.

 

[stabnex]

With this announcement I dropped all pretense of being a Star Wars fan once and for all. Star Wars is dead to me now. I will not be wasting the money on seeing this new film; not drop a single cent on another expanded universe novel; nor blow another hard earned dollar on a Star Wars video game ever agian, I would, in fact-if I could-erase those platinum trophies off my gamerscore altogether if I now could. As soon as I have it organized, I will in fact post on craigslist my entire collection of Star Wars Expanded Universe novels, my collectibles, my rare finds, and all the rest of the random-extensive Star Wars memorabelia for cheap, quick sale.

Let me make it clear in case that was a little tl;dr for you ADHD ritilin-poppers out there.

Star. Wars. Is. Dead.

 

[Olas]

With this announcement I dropped all pretense of being a Star Wars fan once and for all. Star Wars is dead to me now. I will not be wasting the money on seeing this new film; not drop a single cent on another expanded universe novel; nor blow another hard earned dollar on a Star Wars video game ever agian, I would, in fact-if I could-erase those platinum trophies off my gamerscore altogether if I now could. As soon as I have it organized, I will in fact post on craigslist my entire collection of Star Wars Expanded Universe novels, my collectibles, my rare finds, and all the rest of the random-extensive Star Wars memorabelia for cheap, quick sale.

Let me make it clear in case that was a little tl;dr for you ADHD ritilin-poppers out there.

Star. Wars. Is. Dead.

A little dramatic aren't we? If you don't want all your Star Wars collectables and rare finds I'll happily take them off your hands, but I think you'll probably want to reconsider what you're doing there.

The idea that so many people are getting their panties in a bunch over what a couple of studio execs are telling them is "official" seems awfully silly to me. The entire idea of "canon" seems silly in fact. Both the original Star wars and the Extended universe stories are completely made up. What gives anyone the right to declare one as more "legit" than the other escapes me, especially since neither is being created by the original creator of Star Wars. If you want to believe that the EU is "canon" and episodes 7+ aren't then who's stopping you?