I guess Finn is going to wear this jacket throughout the entire trilogy, just like Han and the vest...


http://static1.squarespace.com/stati...5/?format=750w

Except for the Wookie battle in Episode 3.

Hearing word of politics scares me. The original trilogy was good because it was action-adventure space fantasy. The prequel trilogy was not good because it tried to be everything but that.

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/03/29...filming-update

Adam Driver on filming next Star Wars: 'I can't wait to get on set'

Peace will not wash over a galaxy far, far away by the time the next Star Wars film arrives in theaters.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly correspondent Joe McGovern during a special screening of Midnight Special on Monday night, star Adam Driver – who played villainous Kylo Ren in The Force Awakens – teased that the First Order and Resistance are still at odds in the Star Wars universe.

“They’re still at war. It’s still Star Wars,” Driver joked of Episode VIII, which is filming now. “They’re not at peace.”

Set for release on Dec. 15, 2017, the next Star Wars film will see its main cast return, albeit with a new director steering the ship: Rian Johnson, who stepped in for J.J. Abrams after The Force Awakens.

“Their temperaments are different,” Driver said when asked to compare the two filmmakers. “I feel like there was so many moving pieces in the first one – just trying to solve it and set the vocabulary for what it was. There’s a lot of that anxiety is gone, because people have developed a language. I think it’s more of a testament to Rian coming into something very established and making it [his own]. I can’t wait to get on set, just because he’s so unassuming and intelligent and approachable. The script they’ve come up with is really great.”

Driver currently plays an NSA agent in Jeff Nichols’ science-fiction chase movie Midnight Special and is still appearing weekly on Girls. But did starring one of the biggest movies ever made change his life?

“I didn’t turn into a new person,” he said of life post-Force Awakens, which grossed more than $2 billion around the world. “Nothing happened to me. But a lot of people saw it, and that was good. I guess my Christmas is kind of easier now – the toys and things for family. Kids is a big thing: I feel like before parents kept me away from their kids; now it’s like, go get a picture.”

The complications for filming at Skellig Michael are pretty well known to Star Wars fans that followed The Force Awakens’ production and more recently that of Star Wars: Episode VIII.

Much of the filming for the Luke Skywalker refuge planet of Ahch-To will take place over several locations, which appears to be taking place at Pinewood Studios where a full replica of many parts of the Skellig Michael location has been recreated.





http://i2.wp.com/makingstarwars.net/...ive.png?w=1858

I hope episode 8 is a guy lead.
too much pc crap with a girl and the force or what ever LOL.

and the guy who played the heavy in 7 wasnt working. more wussy pc crap

There is literally no thread big or small that you don't try to troll. You're a bad mult.

Lol **** you,I meant what I said. This is a guy action flick.
And the actor who played the villain was a joke.
I saw him in that film with ....Jason Bateman....? Where Jane fonda as a mother is a lesbian at the end. He looks like your Jewish neighbor down the street. Not a galaxy villain lol

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net...bf&oe=577256CC

<div id="fb-root"></div><script>(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));</script><div class="fb-post" data-href="https://www.facebook.com/HamillHimself/posts/1568489333480194:0" data-width="500"><div class="fb-xfbml-parse-ignore"><blockquote cite="https://www.facebook.com/HamillHimself/posts/1568489333480194:0"><p>A long time ago (last week I think) In a galaxy far, far way(@PinewoodStudios ) THIS happened! Happy Birthday Daisy! Star Wars Daisy Ridley</p>Posted by <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HamillHimself/">Mark Hamill</a> on&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/HamillHimself/posts/1568489333480194:0">Sunday, April 10, 2016</a></blockquote></div></div>

If you don't quote him, I could live a full Tapatalk life without even knowing he posted something...

Thats why ignore doesn't really work

I've stopped responding to his epic dumbassery.

He's a troll and nothing more.

Please don't allow him to ruin threads for you or anyone else.

I have him on ignore. As long as people don't quote his dumb ass, I can't even see that he's posted on Tapatalk.

It wouldn't have been bad if the execution was better.

Instead of showing us with a good movie they spent minutes walking and talking, spelling everything out, boring the $3it out of most audience members...

Again, this all depends on the execution. If it's part of the story that plays out then fine.

If they need 4 minutes of dialogue a pop to explain the movie, well...

The real shitty thing is there are people out there who are genuinely upset by a female lead. I really don't give a shit, but if you are that type of a person, look at it this way; More females mean a better chance of another slave girl outfit.

Lol sure,why not?

Lol at you so called adults crying over someone having a different opinion and calling it trolling.
I'll watch all these Star wars flicks but the fact is it was really stupid how she's just uusing the force out of the blue and it working.
F u if you don't like my opinion about a male lead and it being pc on purpose crap.
And you seriously are knocking me for making fun of the villain lead? He was a joke in the role. He was like a serious version of DarkHelmets son from Space balls lol.
Sorry but actual grown ups don't need to play your kiss up game to have an opinion.
You talk about free thinking and freedom of speech and being entitled to an opinion but none of you are capable of doing it.

Shut up, limp dick

...and you're a tranny.

better yet, let a tranny have the force!

I'm sure you pc worshipers wont mind

How are the special features on TFA blu ray?

IMO, meh.

More info is beginning to trickle in, this time, about the political issues in VIII

As the production on Star Wars: Episode VIII (Space Bear) finishes off its (fifth?) week, the photo leaks from Dubrovnik are still most of what we know about the plot. Well, that and it looks like the movie will pick up with Daisy Ridley and Mark Hamill on Ach-To, pretty much where we left off.

This week, I have something to contribute to what we might know about Space Bear. Unfortunately it’s kind of vague, but it is from the stuff being shot at Pinewood Studios, not the location things that we’re all getting peeks at. This information comes from a source that isn’t as nitpicky about specific details as I am, but it is new info nonetheless.

There’s a stage setup like the interior of a starship. I don’t know what kind of starship, but it is large enough to have a crew and lots of droids manning it. The set has a bunch of practical effect robots and “hairy” alien creatures on it, and given that The First Order seems to be keeping up with the “humans only” hiring policy of The Empire, that suggests it is not a First Order ship to me.

In one of the scenes shot in this stage, a rag-tag group of Resistance fighters have seen some battle. Cut and bruised, they and Poe Dameron are on this ship when Laura Dern, playing some sort of captain or officer. She tells the fighters that they are the last of the rebellion/resistance and that Princess Leia has been gravely injured and is receiving medical attention.

Oscar Isaac and Laura Dern have an antagonistic exchange of words and Dern’s character is blunt with Poe, like she has some sort of authority over him. Things must be tense between these two characters because another scene we’ve gotten wind of has Poe leading a group of Resistance fighters as they take over what is presumably Dern’s ship. The scene included fighters under Poe removing technicians from their computer stations and Poe pointing a blaster at Dern’s character. That’s all we’ve got.

But with Episode VIII so locked down with the production in London, that’s a lot. Before I speculate a bit, this seems like the perfect time to bring up the recently leaked synopsis of Claudia Grey’s Star Wars book Bloodline, which will tell a Princess Leia Organa Solo story set six years before The Force Awakens:

The entire generation has prospered during an era of peace. The New Republic, governed by the Galactic Senate on Hosnian Prime, has held power for more than two decades. The wars that divided the galaxy are fading into legend. Yet conflict has begun to take shape within the Senate. Two unofficial but powerful factions have formed – the Populists, who believe individual planets should retain almost all authority, and the Centrists, who favor a stronger galactic government and a more powerful military. As the political gridlock threatens to cripple the fledgling democracy, Centrists leaders have called for the election of a “First Senator”. It is their hope that this powerful position will bring order to the divided Senate.

But Populists like Senator Leia Organa Solo know all too well the price of such order. Even as the election nears, the divisions between the worlds of the galaxy are growing wider… At first glance, this is Star Wars politics, which is a very prequel thing to focus on. From what we’ve seen of Space Bear, it looks like this movie isn’t afraid to start treading on the ground of the prequels in terms of echoing theme and larger plot arcs.

Also, there's this from another source:

• Laura Dern is a leader of the Resistance.
• Leia’s ship is ambushed and she is blasted through space.
• Leia ends up in a coma.
• Laura Dern’s character then takes over Resistance command, but makes things far worse.
• With this in mind, Poe takes control of the situation and becomes the interim leader of the Resistance.
• In regards to the way Dern is portrayed, we are meant to not be sure if she is good or bad.

With all of that drama going on, it’s a good thing Poe looks like a badass in his new duds. I’m curious how big of a role General Leia will play in the next film as well. I kind of doubt she’s out of it for the entire movie. I speculate it is a good opportunity for Leia to come back at the end of the film but with Poe having proven himself as the future of the Resistance. Maybe Leia and Finn can bond over their recent comas?

It sounds to me as if they're reducing Carrie Fisher's role because Luke will be a central character and Disney doesn't want to reduce the screen time of Finn, Rey, Poe and Kylo Ren, as they're the next generation of Star Wars characters.

Good. Fisher was a waste in TFA beyond pure nostalgia. She should have died instead of/with Ford.

The Jedi Starfighter from the prequels makes its return in Episode VIII!

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CgaIaXpWEAA325n.jpg


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CgaV0evWEAAYIMM.jpg

More from the Ach-To Sets at Pinewood

http://i2.wp.com/makingstarwars.net/...it=1600%2C1066


http://i0.wp.com/makingstarwars.net/...fit=1600%2C918

Looks like an A-Wing to me.

Now that I looked a bit closer, you're right. It's an A-Wing

I'm not crying, I'm laughing that this is even a take. Really, if its a good movie, what's the problem with a female, or (gasp) a black lead? Seriously, if that's how you feel, then good for you. I'm going to laugh at how dumb you are, and how ignorant you must be for this to be an issue. Now get back under your bridge troll. I'm done feeding you.

Star Wars Episode VIII is going to be completely unlike The Force Awakens according to its stars

After the bulletproof success of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, you might think Disney would do everything to keep things just as they are. But the sequel, "Episode VIII," is already shaping up to be a much different beast. At least that's what the stars are saying. The next film in the main Star Wars timeline, now in production, is being written and directed by Rian Johnson, best known for Looper.

John Boyega (who plays Finn) already revealed Johnson's Star Wars is "much darker." Adam Driver (Kylo Ren) says he's a "different" temperature from The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams. Now Oscar Isaac has opened up a bit more about what's different in The Force Awakens follow-up.

"Rian is definitely going to places and investigating things that haven’t really been done in the 'Star Wars' universe," Isaac told the Los Angeles Times. "For me, it’s so fun getting to explore different things that I wouldn’t have expected in this universe. In some ways it feels like we’re making an independent film," he added. Isaac is known for his work in the indie world like Ex Machina and Inside Llewyn Davis. "Certain things we get to play with — this kind of intimacy that we get to find — it's special. It’s been really fun," Isaac said.

The best hint about what to expect in The Force Awakens sequel from Rian Johnson, however, comes from writer Lawrence Kasdan, who worked on The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.

"Rian Johnson is a friend of mine — he's going to make some weird thing," Kasdan told the LA Times. "If you've seen Rian's work, you know it's not going be like anything that's ever been in Star Wars."

Hopefully Disney is ready for another kind of Force in the universe.

this is exactly what i wanted in episode 7. I liked 7th just for it not being a prequel tragedy and just setting a solid foundation, even though rehashed in a lot of ways. I have a strong feeling Rogue and ep VIII is gonna blow everything else out of the water.

My man

Trolling is a ban able offense. Why is this ass clown still here?

I'm long done responding to him.

He's not going to ruin this thread as he's done to so many others.

Me too. But I genuinely don't understand why a mod doesn't take out the trash.

As my last response (not because of you, of course!) but in 15+ years at CP, I've never understood the moderation.

It's Roger Goodell-esque.

I honestly think they like the trolls because it drives traffic. Not that this site has any problems with traffic.

This forum has always been pretty much without censorship of any kind for as long as I can remember. It is a blessing and a curse. I don't like to use the ignore function, but some people are making me reconsider. I won't quote him anymore, and I'm done responding because he is either a troll, or someone so obstinate that arguing won't change his mind. Either way, there are far better uses of my time. Like counting down the days until the star wars movie comes out...

Did you see the "leaked script" story on Reddit? Highlights including Rey is the reincarnation of Anakin. She is the product of a virgin birth and is the chosen one - there have been many before her. Luke doesn't want to train her because she is, potentially, much more destructive than Kylo. She was a young padawan who was placed on Jakkut by Luke to hide her while he figures out what to do with her. Rey gets pissed and bitter, accusing Luke of being her father who abandoned her. He responds "No, you are my father" or something (imo) goofy like that. He then decides to train her but other threads in the movie cause her to leave and rescue friends (sound familiar?) and Luke gives her the same warning that Yoda gave him, but says that he's not Yoda and does things his own way. He joins her and they take off together to mount a rescue.

Also here's a fun exploration of the Snoke identity:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W-xuSjtc_u4?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Oh here's a chunk of explanation based on the "leak":

https://m.reddit.com/r/StarWarsLeaks...debunkconfirm/

Do not like.

I'll go ahead and post the summary and put the things in red that I don't like:


I read a possible link, but cant find info: Please Debunk?
Spoilers:

• Working title is "Echoes of the Dark Side"
• It's divided into three equally important plot threads that don't converge until the third act: Rey's, Finn's, and Kylo's.
• There's not nearly as much action as TFA in the first two acts, but the third act goes full-on crazy.
• The broad structure isn't as similar to ESB as TFA was to ANH, but the parallels are still present. Rey is training in the ways of the Force with an old Jedi master (Luke) on a wild planet while Finn and Poe are in a beautiful city that has a shady, sinister underpinning. Finn and Poe are betrayed and captured by Kylo Ren who uses them as bait to draw Rey out of hiding so Kylo and Rey can have a duel in an industrial portion of the city.

• The backstory to Luke and his Jedi being wiped out is that Snoke seduced Kylo and a few of the other students to the dark side and tasked them with killing everyone. Luke and a few others survived, including a young Rey who was subsequently dumped on Jakku by Luke.
• Rey's mom died in the attack.
• Rey is pissed at Luke because she guesses that he was her father and is angry at him for abandoning her. Luke turns to her and says "No, you are my father".
• Yes, really.
• Rey is the reincarnation of Anakin Skywalker. Luke went to the first Jedi temple to better understand how the process works. He learned that the spirit of the chosen one is reincarnated by the Force every time the universe is thrown out of balance, which apparently happens on a semi-regular basis (Anakin was hardly the first time the chosen one reincarnated). This is why she's so crazy powerful with the Force (remember that Anakin blew up the Trade Federation donut ship by himself when he was like 8 years old).
• Rey was the product of a virgin birth, but midichlorians aren't mentioned (Luke says "you are a child of the Force").
• Luke is hesitant to train her because, according to Jedi history, the chosen one always struggles with staying on the light side of the Force because of the chaotic power running through them. He's afraid that she could become Vader 2.0. If he trains her to fight Kylo, and she turns dark, she would do way more damage to the galaxy than Kylo could ever dream of doing.
• He ultimately trains her anyway and leaves everything up to the Force. He makes this decision in a scene where he confers with the ghosts of Obi-Wan and Yoda (Ewan MacGregor and Frank Oz come back).
• Rey learns lightsaber skills, Force skills, and has a vision quest thing where she talks with Maz Kanata (unsure if it’s telepathy or just a dream) and Hayden Christenson. The latter tells her that she is him, but different, and there’s a quick scene where we see hundreds of other Force ghosts who are implied to be past chosen ones.
• Rey feels Finn's distress elsewhere in the galaxy and says she needs to go to him. Luke tells her about the time he felt his friends in distress and Yoda told him to stay and finish his training, and his disobedience led to pain. But then he says he isn't Yoda, and has his own way of doing things, and tags along with her to go help.

• Finn wakes up on a Resistance cruiser and is told by Poe that they're already en route to the makeshift Republic homeworld in the wake of the capital planet being blown up by Starkiller Base.
• Leia wants to lobby them to go to war.
• The Republic is being led by an interim dictator named Lord Vikram (Benicio Del Toro), who was quickly put into power by the few senators still around to maintain order.
• Starkiller's destruction of the Republic core worlds caused a galactic communications disruption because everything was routed through those worlds, so Vikram is trying to reestablish contact and ensure the Republic doesn't collapse into anarchy.
• Leia and Vikram butt heads. Vikram agrees that the Republic has to go to war with the First Order, but wants to wait for communications to come back online so they can muster up a sizable force (all they have right now is a single small fleet). Leia disagrees, and wants to take the war to the First Order now while Snoke is still reeling from Starkiller's destruction. She says both sides are in chaos, which makes this an opportune time to strike. Vikram counters by telling her she's letting her personal emotions over Han's death get in the way, and Leia throws it back at him by telling him he was always a little snake of a politician when they would argue back in her senate days, etc, etc, they have old bad blood or whatever.
• The Republic planet is safe because it's protected by a heavy duty shield that can repel any invasion or bombardment from the First Order.
• Finn and Poe are tasked by Leia to investigate the city because one of Leia's contacts informed her that the First Order have spies embedded in the Republic. Leia suspects Vikram.
• Finn quickly becomes enamored by Leia's contact, Chala (Kelly Marie Tran), who tags along with him and Poe through the underbelly of the city to gather information.
• Finn and Chala have a flirty romance subplot that involves a nighttime adventure through the rustic old city (this is the second entry in the trilogy after all, and poetry demands it).
• Finn, Poe and Chala all corner the culprit: Vikram's aide, who has evidence of contact between Vikram and the First Order. Leia and some Resistance fighters confront Vikram and throw him in jail for treason. He denies everything, and the rest of the Republic officials are horrified because Leia basically just coup-de-etat'd the **** out of their leadership. Leia assumes control of the planet's defenses and absentmindedly puts Finn in charge of the shield codes.
• Finn and Chala have a moment and Finn mentions his confusion about why Vikram didn't just lower the shields for the First Order. They walk into a room and Phasma is standing there and Chala draws a gun on Finn and forcibly takes the codes for disarming the shield from him. She says she planted the evidence, used Finn to get the codes, and basically that she thinks he's a dirty traitor to the First Order. In a moment of pure poetry, Phasma makes Finn lower the shields.
• The First Order fleet jumps out of hyperspace and invades the planet, quickly capturing Finn, Poe and Leia. Kylo starts to torture Finn using the Force, knowing that it will draw Rey out of hiding and into his trap.

Pretty much.

See, I'd do the code thing more like this:

When Leia assumes command she is presented with the codes; two physical devices that are meant to be similar to the "football" - POTUS nuclear launch codes device. She gives one to Finn immediately because they have to be attuned to a specific person to work and she trusts him completely by now, and a code device has to be activated according to protocol, but she's busy. He says he'll guard it with his life and goes to the code chamber. Chala goes with him.

Chala makes a sarcastic remark about how she only hooked up with him because he is going places, everybody laughs, ha ha ha. They get to the chamber and the guards stop them, a bit rudely. Finn tells them what's going on. They call Leia and she bitches at them, orders the guards to treat him well, telling them that Finn is an extension of her because he's the only one she trusts. The guards back off and allow Chala and Finn into the code device control room then lock it after them.

Inside Finn plugs the code device in a slot in a console. The console begins scanning him and he is startled. A 3D model of his body in outline pops up with his name over it. Immediately we see his fingertips, eyeballs and brain start to fill in. Chala looks at him and says, "See? This won't hurt a bit!" Then she hits him over the head with her blaster and he is knocked unconscious.

He wakes up in makeshift restraints as Chala does the big reveal and berates him for being a traitor. The console now displays "Chala" and the model of her body is about halfway filled in. He attacks her and they fight while simultaneously playing a strategic game of "capture the flag" over the console. The fight drags on and Finn eventually barely beats Chala and restrains her. He approaches the console to finish the attunement. Then you hear Phasma say, "Hello, Finn." He turns around as she clubs him to the ground. Behind her are the two smiling guards.

I want no redemption for Phasma. That character truly sucks.

Good grief, I hope that's completely false.

What a travesty.

That "leak" completely dismisses Laura Dern's character, who's already confirmed to take over the Resistance after Leia's accident and doesn't jibe with more reliable sources.

It sounds like fan fiction.

We can only hope...

Most fan-fic is fair to partly garbage-y.

Leia practicing for VIII. NSFW, but the tags don't work on embed.



If you haven't seen the show BTW, it's absolutely hilarious.

Yeah. It's horrible.

Can someone explain why the people from Force Awakens aren't in Rogue? Or are they? Swore I saw a trailer and none were in it.

I could maybe roll with the child of the force thing, but the reincarnation stuff is a bridge too far. The "no, you're my father" line is sub-fanfic level hackery.

Rogue One is a prequel, set just before A New Hope. It's the story of how the rebels stole the Death Star plans.

the reincarnation and child of the force thing sounds to matrix to me. hope that isn't the route they take.

Even the Reddit member that posted this "leak" thought it was fake.

I would hope the half-Anakin/half-Vader ghost thing is bullshit too. Lame.

There are a couple of websites that got every single bit of Episode VII info correct (and they're doing it with Rogue One, too).

None of the info on those sites regarding Episode VIII match the Reddit post.

Nothing at all.

Good. Per canon, Anakin was restored to the light. Trying to make him a Vader-ghost would contradict that.

And would be lame.

Last night, my daughter asked if we could re-watch the entire Clone Wars series on Netflix. I was more than happy to oblige, especially since when we first watched it, my internet speed was about 5 mbps, which meant we saw several episodes with terrible quality along with stops and starts.

Okay, the reason for this post: In Episode 1, Season 1, the droids and the king of Toydaria continually referred to Assage Ventress as Supreme Leader.

https://farm3.staticflickr.com/2938/...205a3625_o.png



http://www.cinemablend.com/images/ne...oke_106637.jpg

So Snoke is Rey's mom.

LMAO

I was just throwing it out there because I found it interesting.

I doubt that Ventress is Snoke but she does look similar and is very tall.

https://theofficesportsguy.files.wor...bd05.jpg?w=700

Hmm. Rey has her staff, the blaster that Han gave her, and the light saber. Suppose in her training with Luke she creates a double bladed quarterstaff saber. Kind of like Darth Maul's, but it can also be separated into two one handed sabers. So she could spin it around with her left hand as a defensive maneuver while shooting the blaster right handed. Or she could use two one handed blades simultaneously. Do you know anyone in the Star Wars universe who had a saber like that. Hmm? Anyone? Bum bum bum...Asajj Ventress!

OK, I'll admit it, I haven't even actually watched the Clone Wars series yet.

The appearance is close. But everything about Snoke feels masculine though....

I completely agree. It's just something that I thought was interesting. Had we not gone back to watch the entire series again, I would have never remembered that phrase being used for her.

On a side note, I've always thought she was an awesome character, so it would be cool to see her on film someday.

It's phenomenal. I mean, absolutely phenomenal.

The second half of Rebels season two approached the quality of the TCW series (especially the final two episodes) but there's so much detail in the TCW series that I can't imagine watching the new films and series without seeing all of it.

Also, it's a completely different spin on Anakin. He's a general and a very strong leader. He'll often ignore the advice of the Jedi Council but still achieves the goals they've set for him.

It makes the character so much richer, deeper and better than what we saw in II and III.

I might give it a shot. The character of Anakin in the prequels is a big part of what I didn't like about them. Maybe if I watch the series I can get into them.

It's really well written and gives a ton of backstory to the entire Clone Wars.

Like Rebels, it starts out a little clunky, especially some of the animation, but by the end of Season 2 and into Season 3, it just kicks all kinds of ass.

I understand Ventress may be coming back. The old canon had her killed during this big to-do with Dooku and Vos, but the old canon is dead.

He's right.

Look at it this way - the writers found a way to make clones, Anakin, and SW's politics entertaining.

That alone should be award-worthy...

That would be cool. She was easily my favorite non-Ahsoka character on clone wars.

OK. I watched the Clone Wars movie. It was kind of interesting but it did have a bit of that Saturday morning cartoon feel to it. I'm not used to watching shows that are meant to include kids in the audience anymore because mine are all grown. I'll keep giving it a shot, but it's a culture shock to be going back and forth between catching up on this and catching up on Orange Is The New Black.

The movie is among the worst episodes of the series. Season one is okay. It gets more mature as it goes on after that, with the occasional obvious kiddie episode thrown in here and there (just like rebels...).

Rian Johnson Contributed to Star Wars Bloodline - Release Date May 3rd
 

1. How and why the Resistance was formed. One thing we know about Leia is that she’s always willing to do the work. She just wants to Get Stuff Done. So how does the Resistance figure into that? What events would push Leia to break away from the Republic she has dedicated herself to serving? And who was there with her from the beginning? There’s one way to find out…

2. Seeds of the First Order. You’ll get hints (and more than hints) as to what’s up with the players who are working to build the First Order and what they want. And I know you want to know that.

3. Political intrigue. Just what was the state of the galaxy before the First Order rose to prominence? Who was in charge? What were the different factions and what did they want? You’ll see Leia work to uncover questionable alliances and shady dealings, and get in plenty of hot water along the way.

4. Han and Leia. Not satisfied with the bits of Han/Leia interaction we got in The Force Awakens? Looking for more about your favorite pop culture couple? We’ve got your back. Han is a secondary character in the novel, but he and his relationship with Leia get a chance to shine.

5. Outstanding original characters. If you loved Thane and Ciena from Claudia Gray’s first Star Wars novel, Lost Stars, you’ll also love Claudia’s newest young heroes: Joph and Greer. Joph is a New Republic pilot who craves adventure, and Greer, Leia’s personal assistant, has her own yearning for excitement. They are loyal to Leia and her cause — and to each other. You’ll also meet a complicated politician on the opposite side of the aisle from Leia, and get some insights into why not everyone might have thought the Empire was such a bad idea.

6. Rian Johnson’s input. Some of the story ideas and elements in this novel came straight from Rian Johnson, director of the forthcoming Episode VIII. We are indebted to him for his creativity and generosity!

7. Huge revelations. In case you hadn’t noticed, there’s a big Darth Vader head on the cover of the book. Let’s just say that the galaxy finds out a scandalous secret, and you don’t want to miss the fallout!

8. Seeing Leia surrounded by a group of dedicated younger people who support her and know that she’s awesome. Okay, maybe not everyone is as excited about that sort of thing as I am. But I’m mentioning it anyway.

Those are just a few reasons why Bloodline is a great Star Wars novel. Claudia Gray has penned a compelling and thought-provoking story that will help scratch your itches while you wait for Episode VIII. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed working on it!

More Bloodline Info:

A steady stream of Star Wars novels have been published since Disney wiped out the original expanded universe and started rebuilding the larger canon from scratch, but only a few of them have felt like required reading. The upcoming Star Wars: Bloodline is being promoted as something more than just another story set in this beloved universe – it sounds essential to understanding the state of the galaxy as seen in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Now, it’s been revealed that Star Wars: Episode 8 director Rian Johnson contributed to the novel in some capacity, which is an intriguing prospect. It certainly sounds like the seeds of the next movie will be found here.

Here’s what we do know about Star Wars: Bloodline: It’s set about five or six years before the events of The Force Awakens, features Princess Leia as the lead character, will explore the formation of the First Order, will explain why Leia founded the Resistance, and will reportedly shed details on Supreme Leader Snoke and his connection to the Solo family. Much of that sounds like information that probably should have been explained in The Force Awakens (where the dynamic between the two conflicting groups really doesn’t make sense unless you leap to a few conclusions), but at least it’s being explained somewhere. That it’s being explained in a novel and not the next movie suggests that Rian Johnson has bigger things to deal with in the actual film.

And that brings us back to where we begin. Heddle reveals that “some of the story ideas and elements in this novel came straight from Rian Johnson,” which suggests a close connection between whatever occurs in Episode 8 and the events of Bloodline. Considering that The Force Awakens left Snoke and the details of his relationship to Kylo Ren a big mystery, it’s starting to feel like Episode 8 will explore that dynamic…and that Johnson was called in to make sure this book aligned with what he was already planning to put on the screen.

Anakin had an affair with an intern while Padme was pregnant, Monka Starlinksee, who later gave birth to Rey.

What? She dies in Dark Disciple. Is canon from the last couple years no longer canon?