Wednesday, April 29, 2015

A few thoughts on the Clone Wars TV serie [OBVIOUSLY SPOILERS]



The Clone Wars series basically redeemed the Prequel Trilogy for me. The way they portray Anakin was what really did it for me.

In the movies it seems like he turned to the dark side overnight, but in the Clone Wars you can see his slow turn. He becomes more aggressive, more hateful, and most importantly, more suspicious of the Jedi Order and their intent. 

The way they handled Ahsoka's leaving was perfect, because seemed to really solidify his distrust of the Jedi Council, and that made it much easier to believe that Palpatine could turn him to his side.


Not only that, but humanizing the clones is something that was very powerful. Some of my favorite arcs and episodes were clone-centric ones.


It seems George Lucas used the series to tell the entire story of the prequel era the way he originally intended it to be told. That's what I really like about the Clone Wars.

Here is my thoughts:
  • I watched the show all the way through in chronological order
  • HOW THE FUCK DID THIS SHOW GET A PG RATING? The amount of beheading, dismemberment, animal abuse, people getting run through by lightsabers and horribly tortured is off the fucking charts.
  • I absolutely loved the emphasis on the clones. Its commendable how hard they try to make sure that every member of an army of soldiers with the same face and voice had a degree of individuality to them. Special credit to Dee Bradley Baker. It couldn't have been easy giving some few dozen soldiers their own unique personality with the same voice. All the clone death scenes were legit feels-inducing (especially when they DON'T die honourably (Waxer, Fives)).
  • The battle scenes are amazing and are enhanced by the personality given to the clones. You really get that "oomph" feeling when a clone in the foreground gets shot and screams in agony as he falls out of the frame. The opening battle sequence from "Darkness on Umbara" is some legit war movie shit and reminded me of the Omaha Beach scene from Saving Private Ryan.
  • Despite being a "kids show", it really does reward hardcore fans of the universe. I don't think any kiddies knew of the importance of Tarkin, or homages to the originals like the escape scene from Zygerria. The conversations between Tarkin and Anakin also explains why Vader really respected Tarkin in Episode IV and even obeyed his commands.
  • Ahsoka and Lux are my OTP. Filoni please make them a thing in Rebels
  • Watching the Order 66 scene from Episode III was already a feels trip. Watching it again after having watched the series is even harder now. Its not just "Oh no all these Jedi are getting murdered" but "Oh no all these clones we got to know and love are murdering all the Jedi we got to know and love and the clone commanders and their Jedi were like best friends how could this happen ;_;"
  • Anakin's character is infinitely better than in the prequels. Matt Lanter seems to be a way better fit for Anakin and should have played him in the movies. Anakin of the series is a fucking badass who doesn't take shit from no one but is still a good guy. His path to the dark side is much more fleshed out than "woop my wife gonna die, better become evil". Seeing him turn in Episode III is also much sadder because its less "This whiny bitch is finally a badass" and more "This kickass awesome dude just became an evil asshole"
  • Thank the lord that the mystical elements of the universe are explored beyond "WHAT HIS MIDICHLORIAN COUNT? ITS OVER 9000"
  • If I didn't know any better I would have thought the prequels were like some shitty live action version of the show (kinda like what The Last Airbender movie was to the cartoon)

EDIT: Something I forgot to add: HONDO OHNAKA. I think it is actually impossible to hate this guy
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Sunday, April 26, 2015

Dave Filoni on Luke being last of the Jedi and what that might mean for the characters in Rebels.



I found this pretty interesting. Thoughts?

StarWars.com: I have a bit of a continuity challenge for you. In Return of the Jedi, Yoda tells Luke, “When gone am I, the last of the Jedi will you be.” But now he knows that Kanan and Ezra are out there. We obviously don’t know at this point what will happen to them, but is that something you’re aware of?

Dave Filoni: I don’t see it as a challenge at all. It’s what the Sith call an absolute. When Obi-Wan says to Luke, “Your father was the greatest starfighter pilot in the galaxy,” is that true? Or is that something you tell a kid because you want him to believe his father was great? It doesn’t have to be empirical or absolutely true. Saying Luke is “the last,” is that a singular thing, or is he the last of a group? I don’t know.

It definitely is something that comes up, and we discuss that moment all the time for what it could mean. It is possible to interpret it as, Luke is the last person that’s following the path as laid out by the Jedi Order, which we knew. The way of the Jedi is not the only way to use the light side of the Force. Luke is taught by Obi-Wan and Yoda, who very much followed the dogma of the day. So, he is the last of that line for sure. That’s absolutely true. But you don’t have to be a Jedi to use the Force. You don’t have to be a Sith to use the dark side.


StarWars.com: Like the Inquisitor.

Dave Filoni: Exactly. So, there’s definitely ways around it, but it’s definitely something that’s come up. It doesn’t mean we have to kill them, but it doesn’t mean that we won’t. We’ll have to see what makes sense.

Source
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Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Translated the Admiral Thrawn Image

I translated the Admiral Thrawn image. To avoid confusion, this was a direct translation. I did not typo, if it says Shielf Generator that's what was written.




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Sunday, April 12, 2015

[spoiler] TIL The Jedi Temple on Coruscant was built on top of a....

First off, I apologize greatly if this is going to be a spoiler of Tarkin in any way. I was not sure if I should treat this as a spoiler, so I figured I should just treat it as such. But to continue on with the thread...

...a Sith Shrine.

I'm currently reading through the Tarkin novel and came across this paragraph and it immediately got me [O_O]. Explains how the dark side was able to cloud the minds of Jedi in the Jedi Temple from the inside.


That wikia page cites the author's inspiration for this and I found it interesting. At first I thought it was a silly thing to do, but according to the author's inspiration of it, it's a real thing to happen and has happen in our world's history.
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Thursday, April 9, 2015

Republic Commando may be over but it is not forgotten



I have to say, Star Wars Republic Commando is my all time favorite Star Wars game and perhaps my favorite video game overall.

As a game, mechanics wise, it was well ahead of its time. Years before left 4 dead, gears of war and other shooters this game was well ahead of its time. 

To this day the game remains the best squad shooter I have ever played. The command mechanics truly put you in charge of the situation and let you really take command of the AI. The AI is very unique too, it finds a perfect balance in both enemy and friendly AI. 

The battles were tough and you honestly couldn't go lone wolf. Some droids took the entire squad to take down and required team work. The friendly AI was perfect. It was strong enough to win battles without you but weak enough that it would struggle and possibly fail without your commands.

Now story wise, I still hold the game in high esteem. Each and every member of the squad was likable and relatable. Their dialogue was fresh and witty and they stood apart from many of the bland squad members from many FPS games. Each level was unique, interesting and carried its own sense of identity.

The enemies were challenging and innovative. Who can forget fighting the genosians or the trandoshans?

I loved and still do love this game to this very day (wish I could get it on steam). It is seriously the most under hyped game in Star Wars and if any game deserves a sequel, this is it.

This game was a true experience.
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Sunday, April 5, 2015

A compilation of everything we know about Star Wars Rebels Season 2. - Big Time Spoilers.



Also I'll come out and admit I did not make this list, I found it over http://www.swtorstrategies.com and have modified it a bit, but it's so good I thought I'd share it here.


  • So this is what we do know of Season Two from the interviews and what they have already released:
  • Season 2 will be darker and more like Empire Strikes Back.
  • Season 2 will have twice as many episodes as Season 1.
  • Ahsoka will be somewhat of a mentor character in the show, but wont set up a bunk on the Ghost. In other words she will not be in every episode. Her lightsabers blades are now white to represent her non-affiliation.
  • Dave Filoni has already discussed at great lengths with George Lucas how Vader and Ahsoka would go down, but it's unknown whether this will take place in Season 2 or at all. (It's obviously going to happen at some point lol imo anyway)
  • The Ghost crew is getting off Lothal because the Imperial presence is too strong for them to operate.
  • More planets, including ones from Legends, will be shown.
  • Vader is gonna kick Kanan's butt hard in some form
  • Vader will not be poorly handled as he was in "The Force Unleashed 1-2" in the words of Freddie.
  • Vader also will do something this season that might have parents upset.
  • Somebody tied to the Jedi or simply to the events of Order 66 helps Kanan work through some issues.
  • More cameos.
  • Lando shows up again.
  • Hondo is gonna show up. Here
  • Twice now, in two different interviews, Freddie Prinze Jr. teased at a Legends character being introduced as one of Vader's lieutenants or operatives.
  • Sabine's back-story is gonna be explored more and what we learn will "cause some people to flip".
  • Kallus is gonna continue to play a major role in the story.
  • We learn more about Zeb's past.
  • Sarah Michelle Geller is voicing a new major character.
  • Sam Witwer has joined the cast, believed to be voicing Palpatine.
  • A new Rebel commander, Commander Sato, and his unit, A-Wing squadron and carrier, show up.

Podcast with Freddie Prinze Jr Interview with Freddie Prinze Jr

Interview with Dave Filoni

FYI there are more interviews where this stuff was pulled from so I'll expand it with more links later.
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