why do people hate the books and comics

[SithKoriandr]

While I don't hate them myself, part of it could be because they all like to contradict each other.

[Kahotep]

How many people really, actually hate the books and comics? I suspect there are far more people like me, who just have absolutely zero interest in them.

 

I just don't read comics. I might actually like them if I did, but I just don't read comics. It's just one thing on the long list of things I don't do and probably never will. As for the books, I do read quite a bit. I read most days in fact, but it would never occur to me to read a Star Wars book. I tend to read a mixture of modern literature (I've just finished working my way through all of Jo Nesbo's Harry Hole novels. Hopefully they'll release an English translation of book 2 soon) and 20th century classics. I have no interest whatsoever in reading a Star Wars book.

 

One of my passions however is film. I like all kinds of films of all genres. The Star Wars movies are just one franchise among many that I like .... a lot.

 

So basically, I'm excited about the prospect of new movies. I have watched and enjoyed the whole of the Clone Wars series and I am looking forward to Rebellion, but I doubt I will ever read a comic or a Star Wars book as long as I live.

[AlexDougherty]

I don't want to use the word hate because I don't love or hate many things and I think the polarization is ridiculous. Please, grow your vocabulary a bit. Here's some reasons *I* dislike most of the books.

 

A) The writing makes you cringe and certain plot elements are just horrendous. Sun Crusher? Really? The need to pull better weapons out of your behind is ridiculous in the EU.

Actually the Idea that a missile could disrupt the balance of a star and cause it to explode is not that far fetched, and it's so simple that Star Trek nicked it (Star Trek Generations I think). World Devastators were a good idea too, advanced strip mining craft that produce fighters, bombers, tanks, etc, this would be a horrible but effective tool in a war.

B) Writers not even bothering to read a wookieepedia article about the characters they are writing and just changing established characters to whatever they feel like and calling it canon. Or just killing central, other writers creations, out of spite.

Yeah, that is really annoying, any writers reading this stick to killing your own creations, if you don't like a character just don't use it, and of course bother to find out their story, quirks, abilities, weaknesses, etc.

 

C) Every single book revolves almost exclusively around saving the galaxy. Seriously. How boring can you be? With the amount of galaxy threatening things out there, you would think that just ONCE the good guys didn't even know something was going on. I mean... It's a GALAXY, not a small town where everyone knows everyone. Do people understand how big a GALAXY is? How EASY would it be to vanish into a... GALAXY?

Yeah, that can be ridiculous, even with the explanation of the force guided them, the Star Wars galaxy is huge, and filled with occupied planets, some schemes will just never be discovered, and how can you find someone if they just leave that area of space? Okay, if they go to the biggest major trade port in the area maybe, otherwise it just won't happen.

 

These are the things that piss ME off. Now, not all the books are like this BUT the overwhelming majority is and it makes the EU as a whole a complete cluster**** of egos and bad writing.

 

I rather like some of the writing, there is enough for people to find something they like, but overall you make a legitimate arguement.

[Jandi]

Actually the Idea that a missile could disrupt the balance of a star and cause it to explode is not that far fetched, .

 

First, how do you get the missile in deep enough to cause a reaction? It would be disintegrated LONG before it reached the point where it could actually do anything. You would need enough power to power a star destroyer to put up any sort of energy based shielding on the missile that could withstand the forces present.

 

Second, not all stars are the same so you can't just have 1 type of missile and have it work on every star.

 

Third, what's this magical armoring that makes everything indestructible? Oh, RIGHT, lets insert the word quantum into it and it's OK! Hey, IDIOTS, stop using the word quantum when you have NO idea at all what the word even means. A perfect case study of facepalm worthy writing. Hey! I know, the next book should have a QUANTUM lightsaber that, when ignited, causes the planet to stop rotating! THAT MAKES PEEEERFUCT SENSE!

 

E: Actually, here is a question for all you peeps out there. How do you assemble and shape a material that cannot be physically affected by ANYTHING?

 

It's absurd nonsense like this that annoys me to no end in addition to fans just ignoring the glaring and rampant stupidity of the EU.

 

Books like the Bane trilogy are great but there's so much of the post-ROTJ EU that should have never been made.

Edited June 12, 2013 by Jandi

[AlexDougherty]

First, how do you get the missile in deep enough to cause a reaction? It would be disintegrated LONG before it reached the point where it could actually do anything. You would need enough power to power a star destroyer to put up any sort of energy based shielding on the missile that could withstand the forces present.

 

Second, not all stars are the same so you can't just have 1 type of missile and have it work on every star.

 

Okay, getting deep enough to do some damage is hard, the book countered this applying armour where each layer is a single molecule, which wouldn't work in a sun because a sun alters atoms, which would destroy any molecular bonding. The only substance I know of that would work is Neutronium, which is too heavy to be affected by nuclear fussion, and if the missile was coated in this it would be too heavy to move.

 

As far as I'm aware the basics of stellar physics is very similar for most suns, all the missile has to do is either disrupt the surface of the star or neutralise some of it's gravity (not going into how since either route is complete fiction at the moment), once that happens the forces inside all but two star types will cause a mini Nova, and since the two remaining types won't support life, who cares.

 

Third, what's this magical armoring that makes everything indestructible? Oh, RIGHT, lets insert the word quantum into it and it's OK! Hey, IDIOTS, stop using the word quantum when you have NO idea at all what the word even means. A perfect case study of facepalm worthy writing. Hey! I know, the next book should have a QUANTUM lightsaber that, when ignited, causes the planet to stop rotating! THAT MAKES PEEEERFUCT SENSE!

Yes, writers use scientific terms they don't understand all the time, Anne McCathery's description on how telepathy and telekinesis would work is especially cringe worthy. But to be fair most scientists don't actually understand Quantum Mechanics sufficiently either, particulary Schrodinger's desciption of uncertainty, apparently he was mocking the point of view everybody associates with him.

E: Actually, here is a question for all you peeps out there. How do you assemble and shape a material that cannot be physically affected by ANYTHING?

Well Neutronium is immune to nuclear reactions, is dense enough that it's impossible to alter, and would resist most things, but it's still vulnerable to antimatter, and extremely heavy, a thimbleful weighs more than Everest (the mountain not the Viceroy of India the mountains named after).

 

It's absurd nonsense like this that annoys me to no end in addition to fans just ignoring the glaring and rampant stupidity of the EU.

 

Books like the Bane trilogy are great but there's so much of the post-ROTJ EU that should have never been made

.

While I disagree with some points, on the whole I kind of agree, but Sci-Fi has never had the best track record when it comes to keeping up to date with science, and since the rate of scientific discovery is accelerating by the time a book comes out any science in it can be completely disproven. But sometimes it does seem that writers don't even try, especially Star Wars writers, who seem to feel that any differences can be explained by the established gadgets in the EU and even by the force.

Edited June 13, 2013 by AlexDougherty

[Jandi]

And thus we come into the overall point, terrible writing. You can have things in science FICTION that aren't exactly scientifically correct, or use science as a basis to project what could be accomplished with science, however, Sun Crusher goes so far into the woods that it stops being believable.

 

That's my problem with the science aspect of the EU in many cases. It's not believable if you have even the basic understanding of physics or posses a logically critical mind. Fiction must make more sense than reality or it becomes garbage. It doesn't have to be scientifically accurate, just coherent and believable.

Edited June 13, 2013 by Jandi

[Wolfninjajedi]

Fiction must make more sense than reality or it becomes garbage.\

 

What....? Its fiction, it doesn't need to be anywhere near reality because...its fiction. Also how are you gonna make fiction make more sense then reality? If it made more sense then reality, it wouldn't be fiction then would it? Reality went out the window in the 1st movie.

 

Another thing, what exactly is wrong with the Sun Crusher? I didn't realize that the Empire had to stop at the Death Star, and wasn't aloud to come up with better super weapons.

Edited June 13, 2013 by Wolfninjajedi

[psandak]

And thus we come into the overall point, terrible writing. You can have things in science FICTION that aren't exactly scientifically correct, or use science as a basis to project what could be accomplished with science, however, Sun Crusher goes so far into the woods that it stops being believable.

 

That's my problem with the science aspect of the EU in many cases. It's not believable if you have even the basic understanding of physics or posses a logically critical mind. Fiction must make more sense than reality or it becomes garbage. It doesn't have to be scientifically accurate, just coherent and believable.

 

The flaw in this argument is that Star Wars is not truly science fiction, it is more science fantasy, and there is a difference...

 

Science Fiction is more than loosely based on science fact. Most of what you see and hear and read in the Star Trek, Stargate, Dune, Aliens, etc universes is based in real biology, chemistry, and physics. Yes, the reality is stretched and even broken at times, but it all can be explained through some scientific means.

 

Science Fantasy while incorporating some real science is not intended to be scientifically valid. In the case of Star Wars, the simple existence of The Force pushes that universe into the realm of science fantasy because a LOT of what happens in that universe can be and even is explained as an aspect of The Force.

 

All that being said, bad writing is still bad writing. And not following your predecessors makes that bad writing even worse.

[VigDiath]

I'm the fan I am because of the EU. I was bigger Star Trek fan before this and I had read plenty of the Star Trek books. But to me the EU of Star Wars is way more detailed and extensive (at least IMO). I've read countless books but I'm probably more a fan of the comics than anything else.

[TalonVII]

Books like the Bane trilogy are great but there's so much of the post-ROTJ EU that should have never been made.

 

Yet there are so many books that are awesome post ROTJ.

 

X-wing Series, Courtship of princess Leia. Thrawn Trilogy. Truce at Bakura. The Corellia sal-solo trilogy.

 

hell even some of the vong war was good. The duo of books about the stand at Borelais. Millenium Falcon was AMAZING.

 

Plenty of great books out there, though I am in agreement that many of the books past the Vong series of books is basically "what uber mega monster have we not thrown at Luke skywalker yet?" That really needs to stop, it's like they have this one upping game going on. getting out of hand.

[Jandi]

What....? Its fiction, it doesn't need to be anywhere near reality because...its fiction. Also how are you gonna make fiction make more sense then reality? If it made more sense then reality, it wouldn't be fiction then would it? Reality went out the window in the 1st movie.

 

Another thing, what exactly is wrong with the Sun Crusher? I didn't realize that the Empire had to stop at the Death Star, and wasn't aloud to come up with better super weapons.

 

“The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense.”

 

This is the actual quote by Tom Clancy. Please think what "making sense" means.

 

As to what's wrong with it, please read the page before this one. I'm not going to quote myself just because you're lazy.

Edited June 13, 2013 by Jandi