After “Star Wars: A New Hope” came out in 1977, further adventures were told in three media: I recently wrote about the first novel, “Splinter of the Mind’s Eye,” and the first comic book issues from Marvel. But there’s also a less-talked-about third medium that was big back then but pretty much dead today: Syndicated […]
Alan Dean Foster’s “Splinter of the Mind’s Eye” (1978), the very first “Star Wars” Expanded Universe novel, has somewhat of a murky reputation. It’s been criticized for hinting at a romantic relationship between Luke and Leia, having Vader duel Luke (and Leia!) before “The Empire Strikes Back,” and other minor oddities, such as Vader having a blue […]
If you’re looking for a good flick to watch in the middle of the night with the lights out, you could do a lot worse than “Mama,” which is now available for rent from Redbox. Directed by Andres Muschietti, based on his own short from 2008, it starts by showing the disturbing way in which two girls […]
“X-Wing: Starfighters of Adumar” (1999) is a standalone story with none of the continuity concerns of the previous eight books, and it was the last novel of the Bantam Books contract (although one collection, “Tales from the New Republic,” would follow). Perhaps for these reasons, Aaron Allston writes what I think is the best of the […]
Although I’m not religious, I can see the appeal of Bible study — scouring a massive, sometimes contradictory text in order to better understand it. This is because I’m a “Star Wars” Expanded Universe fan. After reading Marvel’s “Star Wars” No. 35, where Darth Vader discovers that a kid named Luke Skywalker destroyed the Death […]
The previews before my screening of “This Is the End” included “Grown-Ups 2,” and I’m glad I saw it, otherwise I would’ve assumed Adam Sandler and friends would be making a funny movie to make up for the original dud; now I know otherwise. While that one can be avoided, “This Is the End” should be on […]
It’s a shame that the “Star Wars” Marvel comics are dismissed out of hand by some continuity gurus, because Archie Goodwin — the first long-term writer for the series — clearly cared about continuity. Issues 31-38, written between the announcement of the film’s name (“When the moment is right, the Empire will strike back!,” a villain not-coincidentally […]
Before May 1999, we heard a lot about how the prequel era was off-limits to Expanded Universe writers since George Lucas was saving it for himself. Nonetheless, a few stories from this era slipped through the cracks. The very first one was Marvel issue 24, “Silent Drifting,” which hit newsstands in March 1979.
TV review: Rob Thomas introduces an iconic teen detective for the new millennium.
“The Wheel” arc, issues 18-23 of the “Star Wars” Marvel comics run marks the first time the series truly feels like “Star Wars.” Writer Archie Goodwin and artist Carmine Infantino invent the Wheel, a gambling paradise that the Empire leaves alone in exchange for the considerable tax revenue.