I don't want to see Joss get saddled to a franchise that the creator seems hell-bent on destroying. :)

I'd like to see Jane take over a new iteration of Trek though.

ringworm | September 29, 19:00 CET

Do we really need a Star Wars TV series? After Episode III they should just leave it, if they absolutely must do more, they should do the final trilogy, but with as little involvement from George Lucas as possible.

I don't want to see any people from the 'verse get involved with this (don't get me wrong, I like the films), but I feel that this TV series can't be anything other than terrible. Saying that, I believe it might have potential if Lucas were hardly involved, and whoever did control the show was allowed to do anything they wanted, to take risks.

Ghost Spike | September 29, 19:08 CET

Noooooooo! Please don't let Joss get tied up to this albatross of a project.

Lucas is way too controlly to ever let anyone else have a decent say on what happens to Star Wars. It will be his way or nothing. To be honest i can't see this even happening anyway but the idea that Joss take this on and then be constantly overruled and restricted with what he was allowed to do and the way the show developed? Talk about a waste of his talent.

I'm fine with Joss working on other peoples creations when he is allowed to do his thing but George Lucas would never go for that in a million years.

I have to admit i'm a little biased here due to my total lack of interest in Star Wars. Never really liked the original trilogy and i slept through the second half of Phantom Menace. Now if Joss was asked to write and direct a Stargate feature that would be a very different matter. Richard Dean Anderson delivering lines written by Joss Whedon? Too cool! ;)

The Watcher | September 29, 19:25 CET

I also can't see this happening, but if it does I pray that no one from the Buffyverse gets sucked into the wacky vortex of George Lucas. That man's talent turned into a CGI monstrosity long ago, and I can't imagine that the creative vision of a Jane Espenson or Tim Minear would be used at all in a series that Crazy George was overseeing.

Is anyone else besides me boycotting the new Star Wars DVDs until the REAL movies are released?

MindPieces | September 29, 20:26 CET

Piffle. This will never happen.

Willowy | September 29, 20:35 CET

Hoping for the original trilogy is hopeless, it's never going to happen, Lucas considers them unfinished, I reckon we'll probably be getting the holiday special on dvd before the original trilogy (apparently lucas would burn every copy of the holiday special if he could).

Most of the changes aren't bad, Han should shoot first, but now shoots at the same time, the Jabba scene is pointless, and I hate that Han still steps on his tail, Haydn at the end of Jedi, well that sucks. The other changes are alright, they finally fixed the Rancor in Jedi, the continuity is better with the emporor being played by the same person in Empire, and the picture quality is so damn good I spent most of my time watching the trilogy thinking how good the picture was.

Ghost Spike | September 29, 20:42 CET

Ghost Spike -- It's more the principle of the thing than the actual changes themselves. I want the films that I grew up with, not the tinkered versions. If anything, I may just buy homemade DVDs on Ebay that were copied from the original laserdisc versions of the trilogy. You can get them for about the same price, and it's my own way of sticking it to Lucasfilm like they deserve.

MindPieces | September 29, 20:59 CET

“Is anyone else besides me boycotting the new Star Wars DVDs until the REAL movies are released?”

But don’t you know those versions, the ones fans world wide fell in love with, are crap and only a small percentage of the films he wanted to make(according to Mr Lucas)? A franchise-o-crap that made him a gazillion $$$ in merchandising, it must be said. Give your fans a slap in the face. They love that. Now where’s that sarcasm font?

bloodflowers | September 29, 21:00 CET

Sarcasm font? I know of no sarcasm font.

And regarding the DVDs the only thing that irked me was the pointless overdubbing done for Boba Fett. Apart from that, the old magic was there.

Moving onto the Star Wars TV series, well all indications point to Lucas moving onto smaller indie films or even Indy films. So I'm guessing he'll take a back seat and let a show runner have most of the say. And heck, I'd love to see a Joss Whedon directed and written Star Wars episode. The Phantom Menace needed a touch of Whedon magic.

Simon | September 29, 21:06 CET

Mindpieces and bloodflowers, I'm with you. I've got the original releases on vhs and I'm keeping them forever.

Like I've posted elsewhere, those movies are a connection to my youth and fandom that I will never be able to recapture. I will never forget the feeling I had the first time I saw Star Wars in the theater. I was riveted. Lucas can say whatever he wants about the originals, I'll love those movies till the day I die.

Willowy | September 29, 21:26 CET

Uh. I'm... lost.

Why is there a question about who should direct this thing, rather than articles about what the bejeezus it's going to be about? I mean, are we talking recasting people for roles we already know? Entirely new characters?

I'm lost. And not entirely against it, but live-action frightens me. I think they should stick to the animated stuff, because those Clone Wars episodes are spectacular.

numbereleven | September 29, 21:28 CET

I've heard two rumors, one was a "bounty hunter" show, which I believe could actually be quite fun, the other was "the adventures of luke skywalker", which would be the continuing adventures of a recasted luke skywalker, this would have to be handled very carefully, to both manage to be good, and to not piss people off.

[ edited by Ghost Spike on 2004-09-29 20:11 ]

Ghost Spike | September 29, 21:53 CET

wtf? Speaking as an avid Star Wars fan--this tv show is a terrible idea. I am perfectly satisfied with enough of the SW novels that continue the saga, and a program wouldn't be necessary.
If it were done, I would hope it would focus on a completely new set of characters and leave Luke, Leia, Han and all those prequel stars out of the disaster.

Ghost Spike--

The adventures of Luke Skywalker? ooh yikes, were there any rumors as to when in the timeline this would take place? If Lucas is going to involve cannon in this show, he'd be better off doing live action versions of the SW novels, that way, nothing that's already been established is compromised.

even though I think the show is a bad idea, I'll admit I'd be more than tempted to watch if Mara Jade was in it

[ edited by redtenko on 2004-09-29 20:15 ]

redtenko | September 29, 22:12 CET

Recasted Luke would be good. Mark Hamill gives me the heaves. He is sooo bad. I love the original trilogy, but he is so dodgy!

And I didn't boycott the dvds just because of a couple of measley changes. The movie is bigger and better because of the cleanup - who gives a rats about one or two annoying changes when Mark Hamill persists! You know where you can stick those power converters ya whiney all-american git!

[ edited by Mort on 2004-09-29 21:08 ]

Mort | September 29, 23:04 CET

I just read an interview with Lucas (off of CNN??) that said he would be interested in taking Star Wars to tv or another medium rather than make more movies (after episode III). I'm not sure there is actually any intent to make a star wars tv show. here is the link - http://www.cnn.com/2004/SHOWBIZ/Movies/09/20/film.qa.george.lucas.ap/index.html

Star Wars canon is the movies. The novels are not a part of the canon - at least from all that I've read or heard. George Lucas, if and when, can blow holes through the novels (i.e. no Mara Jade, Bobba Fett is not rescued from the sarlacc pit, no Xixor from shadow of the Empire) any time he decides to. Hell, he can "fix" the first three movies any time he wants to. In truth, none of anything in the novels actually happened. Sometimes I think that is a blessing and curse. I think this was basically said by Steve Sansweet - the guy who wrote the star wars encyclopedia and i believe he has helped on the prequel movies- I'm pretty sure he works for lucasfilm.

Anyone get the new DVD? How is the documentary? - sorry i guess this is a little off-topic.

[ edited by jaw on 2004-09-29 21:39 ]

[ edited by jaw on 2004-09-29 21:42 ]

[ edited by jaw on 2004-09-29 21:42 ]

jaw | September 29, 23:36 CET

Mister Lucas, these are not the geeks you're looking for. Move along.

ZachsMind | September 29, 23:57 CET

Oy. Just... Oy.

First of all, Joss is far too big and far along in his career to take over the reigns of someone else's creation. ... Uh, except for X-Men. But that's only because he's always expressed a long-standing love for the comics. (Heh.)

And I second the idea that no Whedonverse-connected talent should go anywhere near any Star Wars TV series, as it would be sure to suck. Seriously. All one has to do is look at the SW Prequels to know that Lucas has lost the plot.

Jaw: I saw a documentary on A&E a couple weeks ago called Star Wars: Empire of Dreams and I think it's the same one as what's on the DVD set. It inspired me to write this. It was a good doc and it reminded me of how much a disappointment the new movies are.

Joss' bitch | September 30, 01:14 CET

Is any one else over the 'I want the movies of my youth' argument? Are the movie's really fundamentally changed by the changes? No. They are not. They still have the same characters and situations, the same plot, the same feel. It's the same bleeding movie!

That said, if there is a Star Wars TV series, it has to be New Jedi Order. And if it's live action, Elize Dushku would be the perfect Jaina Solo.

Gouki | September 30, 02:01 CET

I like the new movies more than the old ones but I wasn't around when the original came out so I don't know, but both proposed plots so far don't sound any good. Why does it have to be between Episodes 3 and 4 why not introduce completely new characters? Anyway I'm a little late I know, but is Joss in charge of X-Men now?

ShotgunWes | September 30, 02:03 CET

I prefer to see ME writers in something new, a creation of their own.

With the exception of Joss in X-Men :p

Angel TheVampire | September 30, 03:23 CET

How can you not like Mark Hamill? The man was great in all three of the original Star Wars films, and he doesn't get nearly enough credit for managing to act with a small muppet he couldn't even hear and making it believable at the same time.

On top of that, this wouldn't be the first Star Wars TV spin-off, and there's certainly room in the universe for it to be good. Between the well loved NJO series of books and simply the potential plotlines you could come up with that are entirely new are limitless.

As for the Continuing Adventures of Luke Skywalker, well, that has a Kung Fu kind of sound to it that might be fun. That or just have him ride from town to town on his lightcycle, busting a move upside gangsta's heads with his saber.

Gonnas | September 30, 08:44 CET

no mara, no watchie

redtenko | September 30, 09:53 CET

I'll say it again. Star Wars, Star Trek, both yesterdays news! Farscape, so much potential but wasted on the abysmal season four and that whole unrealised realities nonsense.

Stargate is the ONLY science fiction worth your time. ;)

The Watcher | September 30, 12:46 CET

I can't take your opinion of Farscape seriously. I know, everyone's opinions are valid (within reason), but I just disagree so much. I do agree that Stargate is pretty good though.

Gouki | September 30, 14:52 CET

If i wanna watch cowboys in space i'll watch Firefly (plot! acting! dialogue! character development! Oh, novel concepts!)
I am an avid (3-4 a week) reader of SF and Fantasy and can sum up my opinion of the Star Wars franchise in one word
BLECH
Translation: No nutitional value and also tastes bad.

Joss and Gang - Stay Away!

redfern | September 30, 22:05 CET

Okay. Have you read New Jedi Order? Seriously, theyre awesome books. Some of them come close to Timothy Zahn quality.

And Farscape has all those things Fiefly has. It has a great plot, great acting, great character development and novel concepts (just to be a smartarse). As much as it [sarcasm]pains me to say this[/sarcasm], Joss and co. are not the only one who can do these things. Although he is one of the few. Jim Raspas and Rockne S. Bannon are the other few of the few. Fewfull realy.

Gouki | October 01, 04:23 CET

Tamara: great piece about Star Wars old and new. I also commend to those of you who haven't read it,
this FilmForce in-depth interview with Gary Kurtz, producer of Episodes IV and V (as I suppose we all now must call them). Full disclosure: Mr. Kurtz is a relative.

And yep I bought the DVDs. As has been said, most of Lucas's twiddling is OK or an improvement, and those changes that I find hard to stomach ironically serve only to highlight how good the surrounding material is.

SoddingNancyTribe | October 01, 06:13 CET