#bring on the Starcruiser fics

[lenka-mok]

The tale of “New Beginnings” 2.0 (And my grand plan for reviving this blog)

Back in 2022/2023, I put out the first two chapters of a starcruiser fic called New Beginnings. It was my first time ever attempting a multi-chapter fic. (Okay second but I was 12 the first time so that doesn’t count)

Anyway. It scared the hell out of me. And because I was scared, I didn’t do it properly. Here’s what I mean:

Those who know me know that I’ve always been more comfortable writing scripts than writing prose. But the reality is those are two very, very different animals and need to be treated as such. When I first published New Beginnings, I wrote it like a script - and I even say so in the fic description. I think my exact words were “don’t take it too seriously” which was my way of saying “I’m intentionally not trying.” There was a little bit of spite in there - I was writing so much for my classes that I wanted something low pressure, and something where I was allowed to not care too much if it was bad. But in freeing myself, I actually constrained myself.

There was a story below the surface of New Beginnings, the one that I actually wanted to tell, but doing that meant approaching the piece in a completely different way, a way that I honestly did not think I could do. So I stopped. I never made it past chapter 2.

Earlier this year, I decided to give it another try. And this time I was going to put in actual effort to make this the story I wanted to tell.

I know it sounds like I’m being very hard on myself, and I don’t mean any of what I’m saying to be directed towards anyone but me. What I’m trying to get at here is that I sometimes need to remind myself to recognize when I’m standing in my own way. That yes, trying is scary, but half-assing it is even worse. And I know I’m talking about voluntary, fun work here, but it’s still good practice regardless.

So. All that being said, here’s the plan for keeping myself accountable and not letting this fic fall away again:

Every week, just once a week, I’m challenging myself to post something from the fic in progress. A line. Two lines. A paragraph if I’m feeling that spicy. But I have to post something. If I don’t, I give you, yes, you, permission to poke me, gently remind me, lightheartedly make fun of me, meme me, get my attention in any way you see fit. If I’m gonna get excited about this fic again, I think it’ll help if I bring you along with me.

So to start us off, here’s my first excerpt from “New Beginnings” 2.0 (now retitled “Our Lady H”)

“Oh, yes. As far as Chandrila Star Lines is concerned, we are on strike two.” 

Lenka mulled over her Captain’s words, “and what happens if we reach strike three?” 

Riyola took both of Lenka’s hands, raising them up to chest level and squeezing them tight, “We consider piracy.” 

[croy-on-a-working-vacation]

Okay. So. Lemme organize myself here haha. I am LOVING this discussion.

Croy’s Age/History:

When the Professional Weekenders slip up and tell him they’re fans of the Empire, Croy responds like this:

He ends up talking about how the Empire was great and all, but the First Order “elaborated and moved it forward.” The First Order provides peace, stability, strength etc—implying that maybe the Empire attempted this, but the FO is actually doing. HAH. Little does he know… but that’s another story. I think it’s interesting how he uses the phrase “history buff” when his age from the auditions implies that he was alive and aware of the fall of the Empire. Like you said, @pianopadawan, it may just be this particular actor not giving off 40s vibes and accommodating for that. In the case of him being younger: whatever he knew about the Empire was probably read in books (btw what IS the name for books in the SW universe? Google’s not giving me answers, but I imagine they function like ebooks) or ingested propaganda. The other actors playing Croy are older, so I wonder if they would give a different answer if asked about the Empire or how/why they joined up. I would imagine so.

Oooh, so the datapad says 15 years of service? I’ve only really seen that he was a data analyst before getting the Halcyon mission, so I picture him being a forgettable worker bee in the First Order. He wouldn’t have been recruited for Stormtrooper service; they would have used him for his intelligence as the FO equivalent of a cubicle dweller. Crunching numbers among other FO analysts also crunching numbers, all of them dreaming of moving up within the organization while only seeing the one small piece of the puzzle they’re responsible for. Data analysis as a profession could inspire a meta post all on its own haha. But it thrives on hyper focusing on numbers and patterns, so it’s easy for me to believe that Croy wasn’t seeing the bigger picture of what he was doing in the First Order. Too busy holding a magnifying glass to his Excel spreadsheets haha. Do I think that his first field mission was the Halcyon? 100% yes.

Can you have anything be “canon” with improv-based character development?

Good question! I had no idea that there was an actual line being drawn in terms of what’s considered canon or not, because the Galactic Starcruiser is breaking new ground. It’s innovative in terms of storytelling. I’d be interested to look into the Adventurers Club which was also an improv-based storytelling experience at Disney to see how fans of the club recorded and treated character bios and personalities. In that case, I’m sure there was a script that was used as a baseline, but the actors grew their characters how they liked—so what’s canon and what’s not?

The way I’m approaching it is that anything flying out their mouths is canon to me. But, it’s not canon across all Croys. If one Croy swears off drinks until he stops the rebel scum, I’m not going to assume that the other three Croys are doing the same thing unless I come across it with a different Croy via the vlogs. Is that confusing? Maybe… but not really? I think all the Croys are so different from each other. They have a foundation, but they’re choosing to play their character in different ways, so I kind of compartmentalize them.

When it comes to fan works (esp fanfiction), I think a writer would need to pick a specific Croy and inform their readers that this is the one they’re writing about. That goes with the other Starcruiser characters as well like Sandro, Sammie, Raithe, Gaya, etc. Each performer brings something different, and everyone in this new little corner of the fandom has their favorites.

BTW @pianopadawan and @ebay-taxidermy, I am VERY excited about fanfics being written about or including the Starcruiser characters! Like, please, when they come into being, send them my way and I’ll share ‘em on here. I’ll be writing my own eventually. I’m just working on other projects at the moment, and I’d like to watch more vlogs to pin down a few characters better. I wouldn’t worry too much about having your headcanons debunked by future vlogs. Yes, of course, it’s possible, but like with any fandom, sometimes the best ones are the ones that fans come up with themselves :)

Hi! I had a few thoughts and headcanons regarding your post on what happens to Croy after the whole Halcyon story line. (Apologies that this became longer than I expected - you don't have to read it if you don't want to lol)

I feel like a redemption arc of sorts would be possible because he gives me the vibes of someone who's pretty naive about the true nature of the First Order. Therefore, he would try to go back to his station after failing being oblivious to the fact that they would try to execute him. There's a clip of him talking with his commanding officer who threatens to destroy the entire Halcyon cruiser and Croy seems genuinely shocked that he would do that with him and the loyalists on board. Overall, I think he earnestly believes that they're making the galaxy a safer place because he's been sheltered from the dirty work.

It's possible that he hasn't seen this side of the Order since it's implied he's relatively new to being a commanding officer in the audition sides. He doesn't strike me as hardened enough to have grown up in the Imperial Remnant, which makes me suspect he enlisted voluntarily as an adolescent. Maybe his origin is similar to Rae Sloane's (i.e., kid from a crime-ridden planet and when the First Order arrived and wiped out the local gangs, he'd believe the narrative that they're protecting the galaxy).

So, maybe he goes back, narrowly escapes execution on account of recovering the Coaxium but is still pretty beaten up by Ren and slowly uncovers more of the Order's true nature. That could be an impetus for him to desert. Maybe he gets out with the help of some others who have similar feelings. Gaya meets him some time later in the Outer Rim and almost doesn't recognize him because the guy's trying to hide his identity on the run. It's risky for him to go see any of her performances at this point, but he wants to for reasons he hasn't really come to terms with.

Hi @pianopadawan! Thank you for the submission!

So I’ve been ruminating on this for a few days and let me just start out by saying that I really love these thoughts/headcanons about Croy and his potential post-cruiser situation.

Oh my goodness, YES, I got the same vibe about his naivety. There are so many little moments captured by the vloggers that support this theory, just from the kinds of comments he’s made in the Atrium while speaking to passengers, and his exchanges with Captain Keevan and Gaya. He believes the very best of the First Order and thinks they’re providing a positive impact on the galaxy.

That clip you referenced about the First Order threatening (and actually trying to) blow up the Halcyon with Croy still on board—talk about plot twists! When I imagined the FO bridge narrative, this wasn’t it! I thought for sure that rebels would show up and, as a loyalist, you’d be trying to thwart them using the bridge. Never did it EVER cross my mind that you’d be fighting off the First Order itself!

I kind of love the fact that the only reason why the Halcyon is still in one piece at this time is thanks to Croy and the loyalists defending themselves on the bridge haha.

It’s hard to watch this narrative unfold and not take it as the first major betrayal that Croy is exposed to. Up until this point, he trusts the First Order to support him as much as he’s supporting them. His trust should be shaken by these events. But still, he seems like the kind of character who leans on duty and responsibility, with just enough ambition to think that he’ll come out of any challenge on top. He’s shaken, but not stirred lol.

However, the punches just keep landing from here on out. I really would love to put together a compilation of Moments Where Croy’s Faith Is Shaken. On my list to work on for future posts. Anyway, you’re right, there’s at least one more narrative moment where the Croy is told he needs to kill everyone—including the loyalists—and you can hear the shock and disbelief and pain in his voice when he pleads to keep them alive.

Yessss the information that was provided during auditions is fascinating. It definitely sheds light on what type of officer he’s supposed to be and how the different Croy actors have chosen to portray him. Even though everyone iteration of Croy is unique, the origin point is that he’s new to being a commanding officer. Some Croys maintain the illusion of being confident and in control better than others, but ultimately, this is his first time with a real mission and oh boy, he’s not ready for what that actually means.

I did see that Croy hails from Kuat or Coruscant (apparently the data pad says Kuat, but he verbally claims Coruscant as his home planet so… is he lying to seem more impressive or is this simply a glitch? LOL Inquiring minds). Both planets are heavily influenced by the Empire and then the First Order, so most likely he’d grown up being fed propaganda and enlisted because he didn’t know any better. Probably had no basis for comparison. I’m not sure if he grew up in a crime-ridden part of these planets, which would have given him a different perspective. Seems more likely that he was sheltered. Maybe solid middle class, if not higher, though he doesn’t seem to have the nepotism situation that Hux had in having his father already in FO. Croy seems very much alone (BTW thanks for mentioning Rae Sloane—I need to look him up. I’m still only just starting to dive into the fandom on a deeper level).

Your version of how he might survive and desert the First Order is so good. I can definitely see it happening. He would absolutely use the Coaxium recovery to save his own life—maybe he’d be persuasive enough about it to hold off on his execution a little while longer. He could also function as a spy for the Resistance like Kallus in Star Wars Rebels, which would be pretty cool, but he’d still need to get out of there sooner rather than later. He could use his data analyst skills to track a new Resistance pattern and make his escape. I also love the idea of Gaya not recognizing him when they meet again. He would need to have a disguise for a long time, that’s for sure. But how could he resist seeing another one of her performances? ;)

Gifs from WDW News Today of the bridge scene