Star Wars Expanded Universe not being wiped.

[LadyKulvax]

The Star Wars Expanded Universe will not be wiped and over-written in it's entirety as many believed, instead it will become far more centralised and the whole tier system will be done with.

 

What will and will not be canon will be revealed in the future.

 

http://uk.ign.com/articles/2014/01/07/lucasfilm-story-group-to-ensure-star-wars-continuity-across-all-platforms?+main+twitter

Edited January 8, 2014 by LadyKulvax

[Aurbere]

This is good news. Now we just have to wait to see what LC does.

[Wolfninjajedi]

As long as nothing big is changed, I guess i'll be fine with it. Also I can still post, yay! Edited January 8, 2014 by Wolfninjajedi

[StarSquirrel]

Hmm, sounds like only contradictory details and extraneous/useless elements will get edited out of the lore... This approach looks to be far better than a total retcon. Still I hold my breathe for Episode VII.

[Jandi]

Hmm, sounds like only contradictory details and extraneous/useless elements will get edited out of the lore... This approach looks to be far better than a total retcon. Still I hold my breathe for Episode VII.

 

That's just it. No matter what anyone says, that movie will set the tone and storylines for everything Star Wars in the future.

[Beniboybling]

EDIT: Ignore this, I am a confused person. Edited January 8, 2014 by Beniboybling

[Beniboybling]

OK this makes sense, I actually like this idea. No more stupid debates with people coming in and saying that the EU is irrelevant and X beats Y etc. etc. to prove their point. Now with everything on the same level we can look to logic and reason to resolve contradictions rather than a hierarchy. And no more of that "only the movies matter" crap.

 

And nice to see Leland Chee is still in a job.

 

That said I don't think this means the EU is safe, they could still wipe the post-ROTJ if they feel it necessary.

[DarthDymond]

This might end up meaning the exact opposite of what the thread title says: if they're looking to make sure there's only a single canon, it'll clearly be the canon established by the new movies.

 

It'll be nice that everything will be consistent, (and I'm really happy that they're keeping LC on in this role because he's been nothing short of awesome,) but if the new movies say there's no Jacen and Jaina, for example, then seeing things get "a whole lot more uniform" will mean them seeing them retconned out completely.

[Atim]

Some may find my lack of faith disturbing.... So if I read this right, they removed the hierarchy saying anything written by Lucas (specifically the movies) trumped everything else, only to say the new material, including the new movies, could overwrite existing canon.

[DarthDymond]

Some may find my lack of faith disturbing.... So if I read this right, they removed the hierarchy saying anything written by Lucas (specifically the movies) trumped everything else, only to say the new material, including the new movies, could overwrite existing canon.

The big change is going to be that once canon gets squared going forward, it'll all be internally consistent. So you won't have situations like:

The Clone Wars show saying: "oh Asajj Ventress is a half-human/half-Zabrak, and a Nightsister, and she broke away from the Confederacy part way through the Clone Wars to rejoin the Nightsisters"

 

The comics saying: "oh Asajj Ventress is a Ratataki, and she was trained by a Jedi Knight who found her but then got killed, and she was a part of the Confederacy until she struck out on her own near the end of the War."

 

Which led Leland Chee to have to say: "Ok, Ventress was a Half-Human/Half-Zabrak who was born a Nightsister, but then she was taken to the Ratataki homeworld where she grew up (she just so happened to look exactly like Ratataki... and shaves her head), and then she was found and trained by a Jedi Knight who died. She definitely went back to the Nightsisters, and honestly we're not really sure if anything from Obsession about her fate at the end of the Clone Wars is still canon."

 

So Ep. VII very well might override everything we've previously gotten post-ROTJ, but after that all the new books will be consistent with all the new comics, etc. And Ep. VIII will be set up to remain consistent with all the novels, comics, TV shows etc. that get produced after Ep VII, rather than being "higher canon" than them, whereas before the movies were absolutely going to ignore whatever they wanted from the EU (it's a minor miracle that the name "Coruscant" made it into the movies).

Edited January 8, 2014 by DarthDymond

[LadyKulvax]

This might end up meaning the exact opposite of what the thread title says: if they're looking to make sure there's only a single canon, it'll clearly be the canon established by the new movies.

 

It'll be nice that everything will be consistent, (and I'm really happy that they're keeping LC on in this role because he's been nothing short of awesome,) but if the new movies say there's no Jacen and Jaina, for example, then seeing things get "a whole lot more uniform" will mean them seeing them retconned out completely.

 

I am referring to the entire collective works of the Expanded Universe, the post-Jedi EU was doomed the moment they announced Episode VII-IX.

[Wolfninjajedi]

(it's a minor miracle that the name "Coruscant" made it into the movies).

 

Also, also, YT-2400s made it into the movies too.

[Brutanic]

To be honest, I don't think there was ever any doubt that the majority of the Expanded Universe would remain intact. The only concern was Post-ROTJ. In my opinion though I don't believe this stops the possibility of their being a separate timeline, all it does is regulate and synchronize all Star Wars material so you don't get all this contradictionary ******** that we've seen in the Clone Wars. That in my opinion is the greatest news I've heard related to Star Wars in a very long time.

 

Regarding what this means for Post-ROTJ material, well that's a matter of great debate. I think we've all resigned ourselves to the idea that the primary continuity will comprise of the new films and hence forth any novels, comics, etc. related to it. This will be apart of the "single timeline" that they've referred to.

 

But that doesn't mean that the Post-ROTJ will not be introduced as an alternate timeline. It would not be considered canon, but as far as I'm concerned if they still produce novels related to this "non-canon timeline" I couldn't care a less.

 

If they stop production on these books, then sadly, the Post-ROTJ material that some of us have come to love, will become obsolete. It's uncertain at this point what the ultimate fate of Post-ROTJ material will be, but I think it'll hinge greatly on how Disney treats Del-Ray, and what new novels it releases in the near future. If Disney retains it's licence with Del-Ray, then I think my theory will come into affect. Vice versa if it doesn't. We'll know for sure in the next couple of months I think, especially if the upcoming "Sword of the Jedi" trilogy is actually released. I do believe that the first book of the series has not been given a date, but is confirmed to come out sometime in 2014, but regarding the next two books, I can't be sure. Hopefully they will, and all is well, but if they don't as I said previously, it all becomes obsolete.

Edited January 8, 2014 by Brutanic

[Beniboybling]

One things for sure, Leland Chee is going to have his work cut out resolving all these disputes...

 

And I don't have Twitter, so Aurbere's going to have to tell me all of it.

[sell-dog]

Isn't there a Jaina Solo book trilogy (that begins?) coming out this year?

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sword_of_the_Jedi_%28trilogy%29

I don't really know how these things work but to me it seems really financially impracticable and stupid to put out works that will later be disregarded.

 

I don't think we should be so quick to assume the post-ROTJ stuff will be wiped completely clean. It seems that I have more faith in JJ Abrams than most but let's not forget that this is a guy who took two preexisting franchises (Mission Impossible and Star Trek) and made them more successful and, in my opinion, maintained (Mission Impossible) or bettered (Star Trek) the level of quality. To be honest given that he has continued and improved the success of two such franchisees, one of which also being "Sci-Fi" genre, there is no one else I would want working on the new trilogy than JJ Abrams. Let's also not forget that Abrams has been successful when starting with his own clean slate/ideas too.

 

At the end of the day we have no say in what will happen so may as well be optimistic. I personally don't see Abrams discrediting much if hardly any at all of post-ROTJ and I also don't see Disney to be excited about that idea either.

[Beniboybling]

Isn't there a Jaina Solo book trilogy (that begins?) coming out this year?

http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sword_of_the_Jedi_%28trilogy%29

I don't really know how these things work but to me it seems really financially impracticable and stupid to put out works that will later be disregarded.

 

I don't think we should be so quick to assume the post-ROTJ stuff will be wiped completely clean. It seems that I have more faith in JJ Abrams than most but let's not forget that this is a guy who took two preexisting franchises (Mission Impossible and Star Trek) and made them more successful and, in my opinion, maintained (Mission Impossible) or bettered (Star Trek) the level of quality. To be honest given that he has continued and improved the success of two such franchisees, one of which also being "Sci-Fi" genre, there is no one else I would want working on the new trilogy than JJ Abrams. Let's also not forget that Abrams has been successful when starting with his own clean slate/ideas too.

 

At the end of the day we have no say in what will happen so may as well be optimistic. I personally don't see Abrams discrediting much if hardly any at all of post-ROTJ and I also don't see Disney to be excited about that idea either.

I suppose we should consider this from a business perspective, its probably likely that the post-ROTJ actually makes up the majority of the EU and therefore the majority of the revenue they receive from it.

 

If I'm corrected retconned material is pulled of the shelves, so that means no more money. I guess it seems that only the forces of capitalism can save the post-ROTJ now...

[Aurbere]

I am referring to the entire collective works of the Expanded Universe, the post-Jedi EU was doomed the moment they announced Episode VII-IX.

 

I personally don't think so. I see them wrapping around some post-ROTJ elements to fit the timeline of the new movies.

[divinecynic]

Well obviously not everything is going to make it. Conceivably large portions of the EU may indeed go away. Overall I am hopeful, their goal is positive one. The various levels of canon isn't really helpful.

 

Disney is good at making lots of money. I think it is just as obvious that not all the EU is going away because some of it is valuable. The post-RoTJ stuff is most at risk due to the new flicks but who knows what will stay. Even Lucas has used stuff from the old WEG D6 rpg and make it canon.

[Kaisernick]

if Disney were smart they would...

 

Wipe all post ROTJ EU material

Re-realise altered material of popular EU characters like thrawn, Mara jade Kyle Katarn ect that may fit into their plans for the new films.

 

People would then buy thise new material disney makes money and Fans dont burn both disney land's to the ground.

[sell-dog]

if Disney were smart they would...

 

Wipe all post ROTJ EU material

Re-realise altered material of popular EU characters like thrawn, Mara jade Kyle Katarn ect that may fit into their plans for the new films.

 

People would then buy thise new material disney makes money and Fans dont burn both disney land's to the ground.

 

I respectfully somewhat disagree.

 

In my opinion if Disney was smart, they would keep as much as the post ROTJ EU as possible, keep characters in the movie that are from the EU, and reference events in the movie that take place prior to the movie's place in the timeline but after ROTJ (ie in A New Hope Luke does say to Obi-Wan "You fought in the Clone Wars?" before the idea of the "Clone Wars" was established. Not a stretch to replace the "Vong War" in that sentence).

 

I approach the situation like this: no matter what characters are in the movie, there will be novels, comics, etc leading up to the release of the movie and for some time after the release. Now let's say in the movie they keep Han and Leia being married and having twins Jacen and Jaina, all these new works that I mentioned will come out but fans will also be inclined to buy other books (ie the ones out now) that deal with these characters. Now let's say Han and Leia are married but they instead have two sons named Mathew and Mark. Fans will buy the new material on Mathew and Mark but what new fan will buy old material on people named Jacen and Jaina? Not many if any.

 

Thus if they keep as much post ROTJ EU they can sell both "old" and new material instead of just new material.

[Nydus]

The Star Wars Expanded Universe will not be wiped and over-written in it's entirety as many believed, instead it will become far more centralised and the whole tier system will be done with.

 

What will and will not be canon will be revealed in the future.

 

Guys, as a Star Trek fan, and a fan of THAT extended universe, prepare yourself to get very disappointed by J.J. He simply does not care about anything that has happened off screen. He won't go out of his way to contradict it, but he'll want a compelling story and won't be limited by "but in this book it is established that this happened".

 

There is no planet, no character, no aspect of the universe he won't mess with for the good of telling an "exciting" story. Planets will blow up, personalities changes, and established rules of the universe will be re-written. It isn't because he wants to piss you off, it is just because he doesn't care.

 

Maybe that is the way it has to be to continue to tell stories in these universes, but prepare yourself for this!

 

- Arcada

Edited January 10, 2014 by Nydus

[Beniboybling]

I respectfully somewhat disagree.

 

In my opinion if Disney was smart, they would keep as much as the post ROTJ EU as possible, keep characters in the movie that are from the EU, and reference events in the movie that take place prior to the movie's place in the timeline but after ROTJ (ie in A New Hope Luke does say to Obi-Wan "You fought in the Clone Wars?" before the idea of the "Clone Wars" was established. Not a stretch to replace the "Vong War" in that sentence).

 

I approach the situation like this: no matter what characters are in the movie, there will be novels, comics, etc leading up to the release of the movie and for some time after the release. Now let's say in the movie they keep Han and Leia being married and having twins Jacen and Jaina, all these new works that I mentioned will come out but fans will also be inclined to buy other books (ie the ones out now) that deal with these characters. Now let's say Han and Leia are married but they instead have two sons named Mathew and Mark. Fans will buy the new material on Mathew and Mark but what new fan will buy old material on people named Jacen and Jaina? Not many if any.

 

Thus if they keep as much post ROTJ EU they can sell both "old" and new material instead of just new material.

I don't think we should forget however that:

 

 

1. Its been confirmed to be an original story, that means original setting and likely original characters.
    
    
   
2. Too much focus on pre-established EU could totally alienate viewers.
   

 

Given that I expect radical changes to be made to the post-ROTJ EU.

[DarthDymond]

Guys, as a Star Trek fan, and a fan of THAT extended universe, prepare yourself to get very disappointed by J.J. He simply does not care about anything that has happened off screen. He won't go out of his way to contradict it, but he'll want a compelling story and won't be limited by "but in this book it is established that this happened".

 

There is no planet, no character, no aspect of the universe he won't mess with for the good of telling an "exciting" story. Planets will blow up, personalities changes, and established rules of the universe will be re-written. It isn't because he wants to piss you off, it is just because he doesn't care.

 

Maybe that is the way it has to be to continue to tell stories in these universes, but prepare yourself for this!

 

- Arcada

^This.

Though that's hardly a JJ Abrahms-specific trait, any writer or director worth bringing in for a project this large is going to want a more-or-less free hand going forward. Personally, I don't consider that a criticism of such writers/directors, they're being brought in because they know how to tell a good story, and the more free their hands are to do that, the better the final product is likely to be.

 

They aren't going to want to have their story limited by trying to 'fit' in with the hundred or so books, comics, videogames and rpg supplements that have filled in this timeframe, either by having to incorporate what's been written ("Ok, JJ, you're set 23 years after the first movie, so your scene with Lando should have him running GemDiver Station to mine Corsuca Gems over Yavin 4, and remember that his wife's name is Tendra.") or by telling a story that's small/contained enough that it's not going to contradict anything out there ("Well, there's a couple years between 19 ABY and 22 ABY that aren't completely mapped out - just be sure you don't give Luke a love interest in there because he's married to Mara Jade by then, and if you're doing anything with Han and Leia's married life just keep the references to their kids vaguely about them being off training to be Jedi.").

 

Disney knows that the new movies are going to be the biggest driver of revenue for their new acquisition here, so priority #1 is going to be to make these movies as exciting, epic, and accessible as possible. All other concerns, including how it impacts sales of books that have been in print for 10-20 years, are going to be a distant second.

Edited January 10, 2014 by DarthDymond

[Kaisernick]

Guys, as a Star Trek fan, and a fan of THAT extended universe, prepare yourself to get very disappointed by J.J. He simply does not care about anything that has happened off screen. He won't go out of his way to contradict it, but he'll want a compelling story and won't be limited by "but in this book it is established that this happened".

 

There is no planet, no character, no aspect of the universe he won't mess with for the good of telling an "exciting" story. Planets will blow up, personalities changes, and established rules of the universe will be re-written. It isn't because he wants to piss you off, it is just because he doesn't care.

 

Maybe that is the way it has to be to continue to tell stories in these universes, but prepare yourself for this!

 

- Arcada

jj has said in the past he isnt a star trek fan but has said he is a fan of star wars, granted this may help or hinder the future.

[Beniboybling]

We also have to remember that J.J has nowhere near as much control over the movie's content as with Star Trek. He has an innumerable legion of various entities bearing down on him telling what he can and cannot do.

 

So really J.J's opinions/attitude are somewhat irrelevant. J.J will do what Disney/Lucasfilm want him to do.