This morning the Walt Disney Company announced that the Star Wars literature and comic-books know as the Expanded Universe is not canon. Fans have been dreading the announcement ever since the first rumors started about Episode 7 some 10 years ago. Now it would seem that all those novels and comics are ready for the trashcan as Disney announces it will release 4 new ‘Canon’ novels as a tie-in for next years new Star Wars movie. I myself won’t mourn the Expanded Universe much, ever since the Yuuzhan Vong invasion it has been little more than junk. The amount of derivative work was just mindboggling. That said, I do dread the thought of some screenwriter just idly ruining over 20 years of work by writing their own opinion of the Star Wars future. After all, the Expanded Universe is part of the collective memory of all those fans that have read the books. It is something George Lucas can’t sell and Disney can’t own.
Anyway, Disney announced they will be preparing four novels for release. The first novel will be a prequel to Star Wars Rebels, the new animated series and be entitled Star Wars: A New Dawn (so far nothing original). It has been written by John Jackson Miller. Here is the synopsis…
Our very first official canon novel set solidly in the legendary “Dark Times” between Episodes III and IV, A NEW DAWN will introduce readers to two main characters from the upcoming Star Wars: Rebels animated series—Kanan Jarrus and Hera Syndulla—and will feature jacket art by Doug Wheatley, as well as a foreword by Dave Filoni, one of the executive producers of The Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels. It goes on sale September 2, 2014.
The second book is entitled Tarkin and will feature Grand Moff Tarkin as the principal character which I at least find intriguing. It is written by James Luceno and is due for release on November 4th. The third novel continues the use of derivative names with the title Heir to the Jedi. It is written by Kevin Hearne and will be released in January. Heir to the Jedi is set between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back and will feature Luke Skywalker as the principal character.
The fourth novel, Lords of the Sith (OMG!!!) by Paul S. Kemp, will be out in March 2015, and will likely be of particular interest to readers who want to know more details about the relationship between Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader after the events of Revenge of the Sith. Here’s the synopsis…
When the Emperor and his notorious apprentice, Darth Vader, find themselves stranded in the middle of insurgent action on an inhospitable planet, they must rely solely on each other, the Force, and their awesome martial skills to prevail.
As for the Expanded Universe, all of those stories will be branded as Star Wars Legends so maybe its is not entire loss. If you have some thoughts on The Expanded Universe then watch the interesting video below…
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