Star Wars Sequel Trilogy's Relationship With Expanded Universe Seems Murky

A recent rumor regarding the use of the character Mara Jade and other expanded universe material in Star Wars Rebels and the sequel trilogy has garnered attention but all may not be as it seems.

By oscargungan - Jan 30, 2014 07:01 AM EST
Filed Under: Star Wars
Source: starwars7news.com

Will Star Wars fans be asked to unlearn what they have learned. As Yoda says,"Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future."
Recently a Star Wars fan site, starwars7news.com, garnered attention for itself by posting a rumor from an anonymous source which was then backed up independently by sources they claim are connected with the production of the new trilogy. The claim was that fan favorite character Mara Jade would appear in Star Wars Rebels and be established later in Episode 7 as Luke Skywalker's wife and the mother of his son.

Since posting this article, the web site claims a source from inside the production, they are referring to as JediDigger, has shed some light into what Lucasfilm and Disney's intention are.

JediDigger explains:

"Right now they're looking at using the basic descriptions of EU characters with different names. Luke's wife will follow the same template as Shira Brie/Mara Jade. Red hair, Green eyes, attitude etc.

The same with the kids of the big three.

Fans should not expect to see Kyle Katarn, Corran Horn or Cilghal, but characters who are very much like them.

This can not be made clearer, the post ROTJ EU launched in 91 is dead.
No story from Outbound flight forward counts.

That's why Bob Iger said they would use the 17,000 character for inspiration for new characters. Shira Brie and Mara Jade are the templates for Luke's wife/Love interest.

Jaina will be the inspiration for the Solo daughter, Jacen for the Solo son and Ben for the Skywalker son.
Most of the new characters in the new continuity are based on characters from the old continuity."


The site does remind readers that until some official confirmation from Lucasfilm/Disney to take the information with a grain of salt. Their source seems to suggest that Disney views the current expanded universe as a well of ideas they can draw from and alter to suit their plans. If true, it seems they run the risk of adding insult to injury to the more hardcore fans who have followed the current continuity for years, to see a ghost of a favorite character behind a new identity, rather than creating their story elements from scratch. The article suggests names from the expanded universe are being used as code names, rather than the names the characters will actually have in the new films.

Jedi Digger also hints that a meeting had taken place with a popular author, but the reasons for it are pure speculation.

"At some point J.J. Abrams had a meeting with the Thrawn trilogy writer Timothy Zahn. Actually there might have been more than one meeting and it was probably just for consultation."


So is this a good move? Is it a middle finger to the fans? Does this make little sense and sound totally bogus? Sound off on the comments below.
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Nick56
Nick56 - 1/30/2014, 7:17 AM
I've never really been a fan of the post ROTJ EU but Id still like some characters to appear (mainly Thrawn and the Solo kids). But if they are using characters from the EU, why would they change their names? Seems a bit pointless.
MrCBM56
MrCBM56 - 1/30/2014, 7:54 AM
I HATE THE EU!!! So much more complicated than it what the Star Wars universe has to be.
ndwwrestler2
ndwwrestler2 - 1/30/2014, 7:59 AM
I have absolutely no problem with them using new stories, I even welcome that. But I am attached to the characters. At least characters like Karrde, Mara Jade, and Thrawn.

You can still use EU characters while still using brand new characters.
oscargungan
oscargungan - 1/30/2014, 8:25 AM
Using EU characters as templates and then changing the names seems counter intuitive. Even if someone hasn't read the books, I would think there would be name recognition. There has been quite a bit of merchandise produced over the years from Mara Jade and Thrawn action figures to role playing game elements and little Micro Machine vehicles. I would think they could take advantage of some of it without having to give up freedom in the direction of new stories.
I am wondering at this point how much of the chatter is a directed effort at disinformation.
oscargungan
oscargungan - 1/30/2014, 8:57 AM
Out of curiosity I looked up recent merchandising and found that last year, Her Universe began producing apparel with Mara Jade and Jaina Solo images. Kotobukiya produced bishoujo statues of Mara and Jaina and Hasbro released a Mara Jade figure with text on the back of the packaging that says, "An assassin for Emperor Palpatine, Mara's life changes when she meets - and eventually marries Luke Skywalker." It seems odd to me that licensing would sign off on products, some of which are barely six months old and to have these rumors be completely true.
DukeAcureds
DukeAcureds - 1/30/2014, 10:03 AM
Of course this is not a good move. It's not rocket science. This is a bad move. They should have left this with Matthew Vaughn.
Dumegg
Dumegg - 1/30/2014, 10:09 AM
Well, that blows. There were some great characters in the EU.
faver
faver - 1/30/2014, 10:38 AM
I don't mind if they ignore the EU stories (altough I really like all that has to do with Thrawn), but I'd really love it if they take some of the more important characters of that universe (Mara, Jaina, Jacen, Ben, with those four I'd be satisfied)) and their basic characteristics and introduce them in the new trilogy, even if they eventually have different stories. Just as a small acknoledgment to the EU and the long years its followers gave it.
wookiefit
wookiefit - 1/30/2014, 10:43 AM
.............I'm so mad right now. If this is true, I will give away my 80+ novels and all my graphic novels to. I will never buy another book, comic, or toy. I will not see the movies, nor will I take my sons and daughters to see this. I will change my avatar and screen name here to something else. I will cancel my StarWars Insider subscription. I will cancel my Obiwantstoknowme.com membership. I will scarap my 501 armour that I've been trying to work on. I will sell all my old figures and buy animal poop, because that's what this means to me.
Dumegg
Dumegg - 1/30/2014, 11:17 AM
^ will any of this news affect your " My Little Pony " collection?
wookiefit
wookiefit - 1/30/2014, 11:45 AM
@ Dumegg



Just my MLP/StarWars ones.
Dumegg
Dumegg - 1/30/2014, 11:48 AM
I am #1, thats for sure. Your not the first person to tell me THAT.
ndwwrestler2
ndwwrestler2 - 1/30/2014, 1:32 PM
@wookiefit76 You are taking it way too seriously if you do that. Canon or not, if the books & graphic novels are such great stories, why would you want to give them away?

Canon doesn't make a story important, the fans (that's us) are what make them important. I don't like the idea of changing the characters names and just bringing in their characteristics, but it's Star Wars. I am going to enjoy the movie whether it's faithful or unfaithful to the EU.
wookiefit
wookiefit - 1/30/2014, 4:01 PM
@ndwwrestler2
1st: Cool avatar

2nd: 20 years of buying books and graphic novels. Reading all the back stories on characters. Getting so into the history and then finding out it's all for not. That's why. It's the same reason why so many hate the Clone Wars cartoon because it made Fett look like a whiny bitch, the Mandos didn't match the books, Maul became lame as all hell, and it went against what was learned in the books. Some stuff in the cartoon was okay, but mostly not. Imagine if you loved the Tolkien books and then you found out they were going to make a movie on the Hobbit and change characters and add characters that weren't there, and ..."oh-wait! Bad example." Imagine if you read Spider-Man since you were a kid. Then they make a movie about Spider-Man and have him not be with Mary Jane. Instead he marries Black Cat, and Dr Octopus is now called Squid-Girl, and the Green Goblin is now some parkour guy who rides a green motorcycle. Peter Parker also is from San Fran and he has an team to help him. That's why.

Just like they did with other novels and movies in the Star Wars universe. You fit them between the books, or write the books between the movies. In Dark Empire 2, Fett is called a former super storm trooper commando who left. They addapted it to be that the Storm Troopers are clones of Jango (along with Boba) and the Mando's trained them. The original armour is also based of the Mando armour. So it fits.
wookiefit
wookiefit - 1/30/2014, 4:02 PM
They should make Ep7 be either before or after the Jr Jedi Knight series.

Ep8 in the 5 years between the Vong invasion and the Swarm Wars.

Ep9 should be after this recent book run and have it be about Jaina and Ben full filling the arc.

wookiefit
wookiefit - 1/30/2014, 4:03 PM
If they want to use new characters: cool, okay. But don't base them on allready existing characters but not call them by name.
ndwwrestler2
ndwwrestler2 - 1/30/2014, 4:38 PM
@wookiefit76 For the record, I don't mind Parker being with someone other than Mary Jane. As long as it is either Black Cat or Gwen Stacy.

Boba was a kid. The arc that was about Boba made him seem whiny. But the "Bounty" Episode where he comes back, he actually is kind of a bad-ass. The Mandos I can agree with, although they get better in season 5. And Maul was NOT lame, if anything he was better than what he was in The Phantom Menance because they actually made a character out of him.

Although I don't agree with everything you said. I agree they shouldn't use the characters and not use their name, because then it will be just pointless.
Lhornbk
Lhornbk - 1/30/2014, 9:33 PM
I have a hard time believing they will totally throw away the EU. Lucas was always very explicit about what the EU writers could not do, so I have to believe he was saving that time period and certain storylines in case there was another trilogy. And I believe that he did have to approve the marriages, kids, and even namescof the kids in the EU. And when the announcement was made about the sale of Lucasfilm, part of the announcement was that he had given them the basic outline of the next movies. So while I wouldn't rule it out, I don't see them just ignoring the EU. But, if they do, maybe there will eventually be one more novel that comes up with a way to show that the EU was just an alternative timeline.
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