Subject: (Star Wars) Something I have to say
Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2001 07:16:36 GMT
From: Nathan Yates <Fifty_Caliber@webtv.net>
Newsgroups: alt.startrek.vs.starwars




I have decided from now on, I refuse to buy anymore of the Expanded 
Universe books. I have decided they are crap. With access to all the 
excellent fanfic out there, I have no further use for it, anyway. Like 
everyone else, I got into it by picking up Heir to the Empire. I was 
grateful for _any_ continuation of George Lucas' universe at the time. 
And after that I bought book after book.

I was hooked. But then I got access to the internet. I started to read 
stories written by amatuers. But you know what? THese amatuers were 
leaps and bounds better than a lot of the pro authors. The fanfics 
/felt/ more like SW than the novels.

That goes for the fics here too. Most of them are fun. Sometimes it's 
fun to be the 'badguy'. IP, Honor Bound, FotE, WWE and a lot of others 
are good because they have a lot of cool stuff going on in them, and 
some well-written battles, and that reminds me of the films more than 
these novels.

Chuck characterized the Canon characters far better than any of those 
hacks Bantam and Del Ray EVER did. He had them act in the way most fans 
who never read that stuff would expect them too; particularly Han & 
Leia. They didn't wait 4 years to get married, and Leia trained as a 
Jedi, and actually put her family before her job.

In the EU she is portrayed as a bitch, and treats Han like shit, carts 
her kids off to some rock for the first two years of their lives, and 
is always putting her job first.

Luke is portrayed as a wuss, when he is supposed to be son of the most 
powerful force-user ever and by the time of ROTJ, he was a badass. In 
the books, it seems like every half-trained force user he comes across 
is able to pussy-whip him, from Mara Jade to Kyppie Durron. WTF?

I also don't believe Luke would turn to the Dark side. He faced that 
trail in ROTJ, when he held his saber at his fathers thraot, and 
resisted the temptation to kill him.

(BTW, Chuck the way you had Luke turn to the Dark was more believable 
than in DE, though I think I need to re-read WWE to see if Luke had had 
to face the Darkside. Seems like the situation made it so Luke didn't 
have to at that time.

Also, I'm glad you offed Mara. Luke deserves better, anyway. In fact, 
were there any EU characters left when you finished?)

Then, they came out with the NJO. They kill Chewbacca for shock value. 
They come up with villains so vile, they make the Sith look like Mr. 
Rogers.

Then they make the whole situation feel hopeless. The Vong seem 
instoppable. They overwhelm the GFFA's military forces. They have all 
sorts of superweapons, lightsaber-proof armor and they slaughter 
civilians by the millions.

The NR's government is concerned about covering its collective ass, and 
making sure the military fights a "just and Humane" war. WTF?

They need to get Imperial on their ass, but I guess it ain't gonna 
happen.

(Sheppard, the third part of the IP storyarc should have us showing up 
in the GFFA, and after noting the situation, we clean up the galaxy of 
Vong and whatever's left of the Republic. NAd have the Empire hailed as 
conquering heroes. OF course, that involves taking out the Imperial 
Remnant. }:-))

 Anyway, as dark as ESB was, it still had its fun moments. Luke and 
VAder taunting each other during their duel, for instance. And the 
droids always lightened things up. And Yoda acting like some weirdo for 
a while.

And even though things were bad at the end you still had a sense that 
it would be alright.

There is none of that in the NJO. In fact, it is actually depressing.

 And another thing. A lot of people forget SW is supposed to be a 
fairytale of sorts, and it was GL's intention that ROTJ was the end of 
the story, and it would be a happy ending for the heroes. That's why, 
in the SE, I think he showed celebrations on Coruscant, Bespin, and 
Tatooine.

So as far as I'm concerned with the exception of the realities in which 
fanfic takes place in (including IP:R &L, which takes place in the EU, 
but ain't gonna follow every little detail of it), the EU licensed by 
LFL did not happen.

I guess I look at it as ONE possibility of what could have happened, 
but a really crappy one at that.

Like I said, a lot of fanfic is better (and cheaper!) than that tripe.

I guess that's all I have to say about that.

-- 
"Beatings are our business, and business is good" 
--Commander Yates to the Cleaners