#especially sw prequels

[fanfic-lover-girl]

[anghraine]

wind-sage replied to this post:

it is a really fun compare and contrast between Leia I am FULLY an Organa and Luke I am a Skywalker. Neither is Wrong, just important to respect the others choice with it.

Yes, I agree! Their experiences and identities wrt the family members who raised them are often framed as equivalent, but in the OT, they really do seem to relate to each of their families in very different ways.

Leia is not indifferent to her biological parents; she has a tie to Padmé through the Force that lingers with her and matters to her, and it's very upsetting for Leia to find out her natural father is Darth Vader. But the Organas are no less her parents for that. To Leia, "my father" means Bail Organa as much as it invariably means Anakin Skywalker to Luke. She is Bail and Breha's daughter and heir in every way that matters, the princess of Alderaan to her fingertips. Even her blood relationship to Luke only reinforces the close friendship that already exists between them, and would probably matter much less to her without the pre-existing relationship and accompanying Force bond.

But all suggestion in the OT is that Luke was raised as a beloved nephew with his father's and grandmother's name, not a son in the way Leia is a daughter. And it's a potentially dangerous name, at that, which only reinforces the importance in that family situation of honoring Anakin and Shmi in how Luke was brought up to think of himself. Luke's powerful consciousness of himself as Anakin's son doesn't seem just his own thing or conflict at all with how Owen and Beru talk about Luke's tie to Anakin, but rather, reflects it— they say "your father" or "his father" to refer to Anakin and are extremely aware of Luke's legacy from Anakin (and presumably Shmi).

The fostering of a relative's child within the family can often be complex in that way, even IRL, so this isn't even improbable. And given that Owen is Luke's uncle because Owen's father bought and then freed and married Luke's grandmother who died horribly later on, it's not surprising that they would have qualms about erasing the Skywalker history or that the general family dynamic might be a bit more fraught. Luke pretty emphatically does not see Beru as his mother, despite his affection for her; he refers to Padmé as Leia's "real mother" and adds "I have no memory of my mother. I never knew her"—clearly he can only mean Padmé. It seems to me that he's digging for information about Padmé because her absence represents a different kind of loss for him than it does for Leia herself.

And yeah, I could see the disparity in their experiences being something they have to navigate later on, but ultimately the only way to fully reconcile that, IMO, is for them to realize that their family dynamics and sense of legacy were fundamentally not the same and they're not going to relate to their parents the same ways.

[david-talks-sw]

What's 'Star Wars' about?

A while ago I got an 'Ask' that concluded with "what is Star Wars about, if not the Jedi, right?" And weirdly enough... I have to disagree.

I mean... to me? Yes. Star Wars is about the Jedi. A Jedi-less, Sith-less, lightsaber-less Star Wars movie or series will struggle to get me on board (which is why I was surprised that I loved Andor so much).

But if you read everything George Lucas said, if you think about the Jedi's place in his two trilogies... they're not front and center, right?

Sure, there's Luke Skywalker... but he's a learner, in the Original Trilogy. Same goes for Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, in the Prequels. They're going through character arcs.

Otherwise, the Jedi are either used as mentors to the protagonist...

... or to deliver exposition...

... but they're mostly vectors Lucas uses to present his thesis.

Functionally-speaking, the Jedi are important in that they embody the Buddhist philosophies the movie's themes are based on.

But when it comes to the plot, they're secondary. That's because the the themes of these films are bigger than the Jedi themselves.

So the question becomes... what's are the themes?

The primary goal of the Star Wars films is to inspire kids to start thinking outside the box and teach them a set of values and psychological motifs that have been passed down through mythology and fairy tales.

These values can be summed up in the dichotomy between greed and compassion / selfishness and selflessness / pleasure and joy.

We all have both aspects and need to strike a balance between the two. After all, being greedy ultimately comes from fear and being afraid can happen to all of us. Problem is, unchecked fear can lead to anger, hate and a whole lot of suffering.

The more selfish you are, the more you want things and the more you're afraid that you'll lose everything you have, you'll get angry when someone tries to take it and that will hurt everyone around you.

In other words, fear is the path to the tempting/addictive Dark Side.

Thus, seeing as we'll be inevitably tempted by the Dark Side and give in at some point (because nobody's perfect), we should aim to be as selfless and compassionate as possible for our own good... but also for the greater good, because we're all connected to a life energy. You can call it Qi or God; in Star Wars it's known as the Force.

As such, we all form a symbiotic circle and working with that in mind is better than putting ourselves first and draining from everything and everyone around us.

But we also need to be careful because there will be people who give in to that selfish side and will try to control everything. When the time comes, we must stand up for what's right.

So that's Lucas' thesis.

If I had to sum them up, the six movies illustrate it as follows:

The Prequel Trilogy is about the consequences of greed, explored through Anakin on a smaller scale and the Senate on a larger one.

The Original Trilogy shows the triumph of compassion, through Luke, Leia & Han and the Rebellion's fight against the Empire.

Lucas talked about it multiple times, the Prequels are about how Anakin becomes Darth Vader and how the Republic becomes the Empire, and in both those cases, it happens because they're greedy.

The Senate is greedy in the more classical sense. They could give a shit about "symbiosis", no they're taking bribes, letting corporations dictate policy, using loopholes to keep themselves in power and halting any meaningful progress out of fear that the new status quo will conflict with their own self-serving goals.

Anakin's greed manifests in a different way. He turns to the Dark Side because of his attachment. He wants to stop Padmé from dying... but not because he wants to save her, rather he wants to save himself from feeling the pain of loss again and will do anything to not have to live without her, her own wishes and the natural cycle of life and death be damned.

In both cases, they cave under pressure orchestrated by Palpatine, but nobody puts a gun to their head. They make a deliberate choice that comes from a selfish place, and neither one takes personal responsibility for it, they blame others, the Separatists in the case of the Senate and the Jedi in Anakin's case.

The Republic becomes an Empire with thunderous applause, betraying the people it was meant to protect.

And when faced between doing something he knows is right and giving in to his selfish desires...

... Anakin elects to do the latter, thus betraying his family and leaving the Force in darkness.

These selfish choices impact the galaxy as a whole, including the only characters in the trilogy who were doing their best to be compassionate and live in symbiosis: the Jedi, Padmé and Bail.

These champions of the Light Side are stuck playing catch-up or helplessly witnessing the events unfold, throughout the trilogy. They're playing by the rules and Palpatine uses this to his advantage.

Thus, as the galaxy tears itself apart because of Palpatine's manipulations, the Jedi and Bail are ignored and gradually weakened until they're either rendered irrelevant or killed.

A new order is born, one built on blood, lies and greed: the Empire.

But a new hope remains.

While before, the Jedi and people like Bail stood alone as everything around them became willfully corrupt... now, a Rebellion inspired by their legacy has banded together to overthrow the current order. But they don't fight for power or personal glory, they fight for altruistic, compassionate reasons. There's a sense of general responsibility that moves them, they're all doing their part.

On a larger scale, we focus on the Rebels, who are tired of seeing people suffer and decided this needs to stop. They have gone from being passive, to proactive.

On a more personal scale, we see the evolution of Luke, from naive farmer to a hero, and guess what? More and more selfish people - like Han or Lando - are inspired to join the Rebellion, after seeing the exploits of Luke, Leia, or even Ben.

It all culminates in the final film, wherein:

The Rebels band together with the Ewoks - literal teddy bears whom the Empire, in their arrogance, never even considered to be a threat - to destroy the Second Death Star and free the galaxy from imperial tyranny.

At the same time, Emperor Palpatine pressures Luke, who is tempted by the Dark Side like his father was.

But instead of giving in to his selfish desire to kill Darth Vader for all the horrors he's done...

... he finds the strength to rise above it, instead showing compassion for his father, which, in turn, inspires Anakin to do the same.

He faces a choice, like he did in Palpatine's office, two decades prior...

... and this time he chooses right.

Children teach you compassion. Anakin lets go of his fear and anger, and saves his son at the cost of his own life, finally bringing balance back to the Force.

Good triumphed over evil. Its champions achieved victory by being selfless, hopeful and fighting together / helping each other.

And that's it, that's how the movies thematically tie together.

As you can see, the Jedi aren't that directly impactful on the overall plot, because it revolves around Anakin, Luke and the respective factions/institutions around them.

But what the Jedi do bring to the table is their ability to teach and inspire others, both in-universe and out. They're spiritually impactful.

The Jedi are the epitome of compassion, and it's partially through them that George Lucas teaches his values to the audience.

[anakindoodles]

Happy Star Wars Day! Have A Darth Maul!

[weregonnabecoolbeans]

I love Obi-Wan and I know it's not his fault

But if I were Anakin…I would NEVER forgive Obi-Wan for Shmi’s death

[anakin-mrforce-skywalker]

Don’t question his love for his Padawan he doesn’t take kindly to it.

[inquisitor-apologist]

Just rewatched aotc and honestly I’m in awe of how good the aliens looked especially in comparison to 2023 Star Wars aliens

[thebrainofocto]

Star wars sonas for me and a cool youtuber called King Exbee

[facultativeactivity]

Man, Star Wars has such a great lore, I wish more of it was in the movies

"the jedi don't have therapists-"

jedi philosophy, and in particular the practices and teachings that jedi were expected to implement in their everyday lives, was therapy. dialectical behavior therapy (dbt), to be exact. anyone who's familiar with dbt knows where i'm already going with this, but like genuinely look up the basic tenets of dbt and it's identical with what the jedi were doing.

dbt, to put it simply, is a specific therapy technique that was designed for ptsd and past trauma. it's pretty different from traditional talk therapy. it combines a few different environments (individual, group, etc.), recognizing that no single format of treatment can stand alone.

the key focuses of dbt include:

emotional regulation- understanding, being more aware of, and having more control over your emotions

mindfulness- regulating attention and avoiding anxious fixation on the past or future

interpersonal effectiveness- navigating interpersonal situations

distress tolerance- tolerating distress and crises without spiraling and catastrophizing

i'm sure it's already clear from that list alone how much the jedi teachings correspond with the goals of dbt. the jedi value, teach, and practice the following:

identifying and understanding emotions

mindfulness and living in the present

compassion, diplomacy, and conflict resolution (on interpersonal scales, not just planetary or galactic)

accepting and tolerating certain levels of distress or discomfort (particularly mental, such as discomfort at the thought of losing a loved one to death)

idk man seems almost as if jedi mental health practices and dbt are two sides of a completely identical coin. (fun fact: both star wars and dbt are products of the 70s.)

and guess what? dbt was specifically designed as a treatment for borderline personality disorder. remember that one? or, if you don't, maybe you remember a specific character, the one who was literally used as an example by my professor in my undergrad psych class when she was teaching us about bpd?

tldr: simply existing within the jedi community, practicing jedi teachings, surrounded by a support network of other jedi of all life stages, was the therapy for anakin. even when viewed through a modern lens. it was even, more specifically, the precise type of therapy that has developed in modern times to treat the exact types of mental issues he was struggling with.

[shapelytimber]

Part 2 part 2 part 2 !!!

Still working on the new recap / height chart for my sw sapphic au ! Last time was the prequels gals, this time it's our favorite og trilogy rebels :D

[COMMISSIONS]

[PART 1] - [PART 2] - [PART 3]

Yapping and a dumb bonus sketch below vvv

I had so much fun with these (and they turned out better than part 1 djdndk strangely being in a slightly less stressfull political climate leads to doing better art who would have thought-) !!

Especially with the Han Lando and Leia sandwich- idk placing looser dyke Han Solo in the middle of her ex and current partner, both incredible femmes... it adds to her inexplicable rizz ! Also here's a shitty comic I made to show the vision(tm) to my friend djdkdk

(Link to featured post)

But I must say I'm also kinda proud of Luke :) I am guetting closer to something I like with their design ! And I'm proud of this outfit

PS : I didn't place pride flags next to chewbacca's name, these are answers you must find within (or ask @quijicroix, n1 girl chewbacca fucker)

[tossawary]

Something I found surprising when revisiting the prequel trilogy is how much the clones aren't full characters in the movies. They're props. They're devices. The films give them the same weight and attention as they give the Separatist droids, really. The only two clone troopers I can easily name off the top of my head who get "named" in any way are Oddball and Cody, who are both just barely in "Revenge of the Sith", and interchangeable in their roles with any other background clone.

It's interesting when held up against "The Clone Wars" and other extension material, which had the time and inclination to say more directly, "Hey, these are people and what's happening to them is wrong." Like, obviously what's happening in Ep2&3 is wrong, the audience can draw that conclusion on their own, growing people as cannon fodder is a clear part of the greater tragedy if you take about five seconds to think about the situation here. Even without the element of the entire war being constructed and controlled by the main villain, the clones are a tragedy.

But, oh man, the movies themselves don't really care to focus on that. It's SUCH a background element. I had a "oh, yeah, Order 66 being programmed into a control chip was a later addition to / clarification of canon" moment while watching, because as far as Ep3 actually shows us (as was the initial intention by some, I know), Cody apparently knew the entire time that he might be called to fire on Obi-Wan Kenobi and was just waiting on the call. The "homogenous evil army" trope is... very much present and even more identical than usual here.

By the films alone, you can easily assume that the clone troopers have no love for any of the Jedi (whom we're meant to believe are relatively decent people) for a variety of reasons. Their upbringing and training on Kamino was presumably cold and brutal. They're (possibly enslaved) soldiers in an even more brutal war. This army is offered no development or individuality that makes the appalling Jedi Temple massacre out of character for any of them.

But when the various Clone Wars shows first turned the clones into individual characters and even protagonists, many of whom are shown to be good people and become friendly with the Jedi through years of teamwork in life-or-death situations, Order 66 became weird. "Wait, why would the majority of clones (all the clones we see in the movies, at least) just go along with this? What went wrong here?"

I get why TCW and SW canon settled on the control chips option and I find it interesting enough. The tragedy of it all makes me want to lie facedown on the floor. Darth Sidious is really winning at sheer evilness here.

On the other hand, there are some really fun and interesting "Order 66 was taught, not programmed" AUs to revisit here. Especially when some of the other (Legends canon now) contingency orders include what to do if the Supreme Chancellor is incapacitated or declared unfit, or even getting rid of the Supreme Chancellor and assuming control by lethal force if necessary. Presumably these orders existed as a back-up in case Palpatine wasn't elected to the seat in time for the war or didn't manage to get rid of term limits and was replaced as Chancellor at any point.

That really sounds like Palpatine's evil army of ruthless Jedi-Killers (unchipped) could have easily backfired on him if they'd ever decided all of these non-clones were unfit and organized to take power for themselves. I love any scenario where Palpatine's arrogant and overly complicated plans get him in trouble. The "homogenous evil army" often gets treated as a mindless mob, but while the clones may have some degree of emotional suppression, they're clearly very capable and not unintelligent, and they're not given many (if any) reasons to be loyal to the Republic. And it is FUNNY to imagine any Dark Lord's created army deciding that he fucking sucks at war (there's obviously a leak, why the FUCK are they losing so much ground to fucking droids) and they're overthrowing him for better benefits, so that they can create and run a more efficient Evil Empire themselves.

You could make this angsty as hell or a comedy, or both. I'm imagining the clones at the eleventh hour murdering Chancellor Palpatine with such brutal efficiency that it feels like its own kind of prejudice. And he gets revealed as a Sith Lord in the process (this was taken into account as a potential problem when planning the assassination), so there's an initial moment of: "I can't believe it! He was the Sith Lord in the Senate all along! How did you know?"

Cody: "Didn't."

Obi-Wan: "...Pardon?"

Cody: "This is a coup, sir."

Like, if we're going by what's shown in the movies alone, there's a clear Emperor Cody AU to be had here. Which can be played as a temporary (years long) measure to reinstall a Republic with proper checks and balances, while a bemused Jedi Order and Senate are held hostage, or the First Galactic Empire is established as per canon just with the clones running it and reaping the benefits. I'm currently enjoying thinking about the latter scenario as a dark comedy, in which Future Emperor Cody (or the clone of your choice) has to negotiate in his spare time with the various demands of his fellow clones. (Who are, let us remember due to the horror that is the accelerated aging, a bunch of teenagers at the oldest here.)

Rex: "I want Tatooine."

Cody: "The whole planet?"

Rex: "Yeah."

Cody: "It's a shithole."

Rex: "Yeah, but it'll make Skywalker so kriffing mad, so I'm calling dibs."

Cody: "Noted."

And if you want to write shipfic, there's always the AU of various Evil Army Clones meeting their love interest and then going, "Not evil anymore! Sorry, guys." Which could be angsty or another dark-ish comedy.

Cody @ the clone commander group chat: "WE'RE NOT GIVING UP ON THE 3-YEAR IMPERIAL COUP PLAN JUST BECAUSE YOU HORNY ASSHOLES WANT TO FUCK JEDI!!! STOP TALKING ABOUT THE POWER OF LOVE!!! STOP IT!!!"

[roselightfairy]

One seriously big emotional plothole in the SW prequels that I wish Clone Wars had filled in is why Obi-Wan decided to take Luke to Owen and Beru.

I don't actually have a problem with how they're shown to be Anakin's relations, but it does feel kind of strange to me that they would come up for Obi-Wan as a place to take Luke when he has, to the best of my knowledge, never met them and barely has a reason to know they exist. But this could have been really simply backfilled! A three-episode Tatooine arc in the Clone Wars show, maybe where something happens to send Anakin and Obi-Wan to Tatooine to solve some kind of problem (maybe building on the Jabba arc from the movie? Or maybe something else - maybe Anakin has a vision of some sort?). Maybe Anakin is really cagey and doesn't want to go anywhere near the area where he lost his mother and massacred innocents, and especially doesn't want to admit to Obi-Wan about that last part, so they determine to get in and out as quickly as possible.

But Owen could come find them, having gotten word that there are Jedi on Tatooine, and ask for help with something. Or maybe they could be wrapped up in whatever the conflict is. We could see what happened to Cliegg, learn that Owen and Beru are married now, Obi-Wan and Anakin could share a moment at Shmi's grave (or could very decidedly not share a moment, with Anakin refusing to tell Obi-Wan about something horrible that went down here). Or maybe something new could go horribly wrong with Anakin, such that he insists he's never coming back here again - but Obi-Wan would at least be aware of them, and the groundwork could be laid for Obi-Wan's own return to the planet in just a couple of years.

I don't know what could happen, I'm not a TV writer, but if anyone knows about this kind of gapfiller fic, please feel free to share!

[whorevader]

Now if Mace went back. Then I genuinely think that one AU about Mace Windu going back and becoming Anakin's master would happen, I can't remember who that belongs to but like it's well accounted for. Mace would try to step in, as he wanted to in that one comic panel I've seen where he's like I don't like how we are letting Anakin get groomed actually >:/. Unless I conjured that in a dream

The idea that if post redemption Anakin was sent back he'd do anything besides trying to work out how to take down Palpatine without disrupting the timeline enough to prevent Luke and Leia's birth... I'm sorry, Obi-Wan would be a major factor in Anakin's wider plans, but he himself wouldn't be priority... which is WAY more interesting to me, how would Obi-Wan handle not being the center of Anakin's world with little explanation and combined with strange behavior? I picture him going to the council with his concerns, but them being, not approving of Anakin, never that, but amenable to the changes in his attitude. Yoda tells him to support these improvements, and if Anakin suggests any less than warm feelings for the senator, great, they'd rather he not be in the man's pocket anyway (even if they do keep sending him to visit the man privately like responsible jedi who care for child safety). I'd like to see someone write how Obi-Wan handles that. Because I truly don't see Anakin trusting him with his knowledge of the future, and I do think Obi-Wan would be shaken to have love-monster, validation-hungry padawan Anakin suddenly cool on him overnight and focus on... Idk it would depend on what Anakin's plan would hinge on, and I don't think he'd blow his chance to right things by being a toddler and running straight at the sith lord guns blazing, I think he was a powerful opponeny both as Vader and Anakin, and not just for sheer strength.

Anyway. Here's to an ANH-compliant ambivalent-to-Obi-Wan time traveling Anakin and a confused and suspicious younger Obi-Wan grappling with that

[swartists4palestine]

Meet the team!!

Here’s a little bit about the people behind the project.

"Hi! I'm Moss, my comfortless comfort character is Boba Fett, and I'm offering icons and busts! Also, I'm big on AOTC but I turn it off right before the battle of Geonosis starts." -@baufraus

Howdy! I'm @maulfucker but you can call me Youni, I love alien ocs and villains the most, and my favorite star wars is Phantom Menace :]

Hi! I’m Ty! (they/them) I’m offering half or full body drawings of your OCs or fave characters! At the moment I’m pretty into rebels and the clone wars :)) -@tyquu

“Hii! I’m gooserolls! (they/he/xe) I am offering pencil or colored digital portraits of ocs or canon characters! I love all things mandalorians, although the clone wars has a special place in my heart too :] -@gooserolls

"Hiya, I'm Mel (or Melon) (she/her) I'm offering coms of ocs or canon characters! I especially love drawing togruta and prequel era characters but have fun with most any portrait :>" -@notsomeloncholy

"Hello, I'm Nova (he/they) and I'll be offering commissions of your OCs! I am obsessed with Mandos, Chiss and the First Order, and a big fan of Empire strikes back". -@mandalorian-general

"hello hello, I'm Crypt, (they/them) lover of animation, ocs and all things silly. Offering half body and full body sketches and doodles. Favourite characters? No one in particular, but I'm fond of the clones and Hondo" -@dragon-subway

“I’m Ben, (he/him) an art student who aspires to be a character designer. I’ll be offering character portraits and sketches! My favorite Star Wars tends to be animation, in particular the Clone Wars and the Bad Batch!” -@phi-guy

"Hey I'm @stealingpotatoes, (she/her) but you can call me Potes! I'm offering half-lined doodles for donations! My favourite sw character is Cal Kestis (closely followed by Ahsoka and the Skywalker fam), but I can't wait to draw your faves too!"

Hello! I'm Anemonet and I will be doing coloured sketches ^-^ I'm a big Aayla Secura fan and togruta enthusiast, I am also very fond of the prequel trilogy (its so bad, I love it to bits). -@tenomenema

hi, i’m caws!! (he/him) i’m a big fan of the prequel trilogy, the clone wars, and rebels :) i’m offering colored digital sketches of ocs and canon characters! -@cawsceries

hihi! I’m Ophelia, doing comms of ocs or canon characters! Offering digital art—big fan of pantorans but I’ll do my best with anything -@sithbian

"hi!! my name is deck. im offering colored half body drawings of ocs and canon characters. im all about prequels era and tcw but tbh like anything" -@ddeck

“Hi! I’m sam (he/they), I’m an art student who loves the original trilogy, clones (especially cody)and mandalorians. I‘m offering colored sketches and painted pieces, from headshot to full body, depending on the amount donated. I’m alright with most subjects, oc and canon, but I particularly love drawing clones and most sw alien species :)” -@aspic31

Hello there! My name is Lee and Im a big ole fan of clone wars, bad batch, and the Mandalorian! I’m happy to do half body digital drawings of canon clones, clone ocs, and mando ocs (if you have an approved Mandalorian Mercs armor happy to do them!!! -@ofteasandherbs

"Hello, I'm S_C_G! (she/her) I'm offering short one shots. I love the prequels, jedi, mandalorians, and star wars in general." -@s-c-g-s-c-g

“Hello there! I’m @steepedfoxglovetea (they/she/he) and I’ll write medium length one shots. I love writing about The High Republic, the Rebellion, and just after RotS”

“Hi I’m @lost-in-derry (she/they) on tumblr and ao3! I can write short to medium length one shots about Rebels and Clone Wars”

“hi!! i’m lee (she/her), i’m offering short fics between 300-600 words of canon characters/ocs from the prequel/tcw era or original trilogy era.” -@kookyburrowing

"Hi! I'm Lil, (she/her), and I'm a big fan of the Bad Batch, but open to drawing any Star Wars characters or OCs with clear references. I'm taking comms for bust, half-body, and full body colored sketches. Willing to do flat color for higher donations! From the river to the sea." -@the-little-moment

Hi! I’m Trip (they/them) I’m a disabled artist and I’ve been a star wars fan since 2008 I am a really big ahsoka fan, Cody fan, Just mostly a clone wars guy but I love all of star wars all around I will draw any star wars characters but I prefer clone wars era :) -@triple-a-artist

my name is cer (he/him) and i draw sometimes. i also write but poorly so i probably won't do that. i like drawing clone troopers and ahsoka...mostly anything star wars the clone wars 2008 related. i still don't know how to draw anakin but i can definitely figure that out given time -@aliettali

i am ochi and i draw/animate (mostly draw)!! i like star wars the clone wars 2008 a lot and also bright colors and lighting. happy to be here!! -@ochi-does-art

Hi, I’m @chiliger and I’m offering sketch and simple flat color portraits of OC’s and canon characters. I especially love the clones, but Rogue One and Screecher’s Reach have a special place in my heart.

[gffa]

hi Lumi, your posting about star wars books made me want to start reading them, which ones would you recommend?

Hi! There are a lot of Star Wars books out there and there's a lot I enjoy about them! Sure, I'll give a warning that I'm picking out the best moments and a lot of the books are not always great in their entirety, especially depending on how much you want to stay 100% true to Lucas' story.

A lot is going to depend on what you're looking for--are you a prequels fan? Are you more interested in original trilogy books? Jedi-centric books? Bounty hunters or pilots instead? Etc. Generally, I assume if you're asking me, you're here for the prequels books, but I have a more generalized list of recommendations here or you can browse my novels recs tag.

But I always generally recommend starting with: - Revenge of the Sith novelization by Matthew Stover isn't a perfect book, I could nitpick some details here and there, but the heart of this book remains unchallenged as the best SW book there is, imo. It elevates the story it's adapting (already a high bar for me, I love ROTS), Stover knows how to turn a phrase to dig deep into a character's motivations, and there's a reason why we're all constantly quoting that book. It adds so much to the story and it's a compelling tale on its own, it makes me love the characters and hurt for them all over again, and there's approximately a thousand lines in this story that you could write an entire essay on.

- Padawan by Kiersten White cannot dethrone the ROTS novelization, but I would say that I think it wound up being my favorite of the Disney era books, because it's such a straight shot to my id. It's definitely on the lighter side, it's a happier look at Obi-Wan's childhood (which I think fits his character better), he struggles and has a lot going on, but overall he's pretty well-adjusted and happy, plus there is an absolute ABUNDANCE OF CUTENESS in this book, it was so delightful and whimsical and adorable, it just made me happy.

- Light of the Jedi by Charles Soule if you're at all interested in The High Republic. This is still my favorite book of the entire series, I think it set the stage incredibly well, it had some absolutely banger lines for someone with prequels brainrot like me, and genuinely made me excited for the entire line-up.

- Dooku: Jedi Lost by Cavan Scott, which is an audiodrama but has a script version available if you're hoh or just don't like them. It's a solid look at Dooku's time as a youngling and why he left the Jedi Order and backstory with Sifo-Dyas that'll break your heart. I prefer the audio version here because the Asajj framing works so much better with the actress' voicework, it really digs into her feelings about all of this as well, making it a nice gut-punch of a story.

And now I would add Padawan's Pride by Brian Q. Miller (audiobook only, unfortunately) because it's a lovely, charming look at Anakin's time as an apprentice. It's very deliberately written as a lead-in to the Obi-Wan & Anakin comic (which I think you're supposed to be keeping in mind as you read, so I'd suggest reading in release order rather than chronological order), showing the conflict between Obi-Wan and Anakin, between Anakin the Jedi way of life, yet all the love that's growing there and the hope that they weren't wrong to hold onto. Just the right amount of crunch and sweet.

I recently read The Living Force by John Jackson Miller and, while I have a couple of issues with it (it was less spiritual than I'd like, some clunky "attachment" discourse moments that clash against Lucas' definitions, etc.), overall it was a book I loved. It was laugh out loud funny at several moments, it showed the Jedi as deeply caring, it gave time and page space to Jedi who don't usually get much focus, it had some knockout administrative worldbuilding details, and a genuinely fun experience of a story.

There are more that I personally loved (Force Collector was really good for me but not an easy one to recommend, The Legends of Luke Skywalker was very dear to me for being so in love with the galaxy far, far away, Obi-Wan & Anakin: Choose Your Destiny is a Choose Your Adventure style book that's not going to be for everyone but I adored and got so much out of, that's where Theater Nerd Mace Windu came from, the first and third From a Certain Point of View anthologies had 3-4 incredible stories in them each, the ESB one didn't impress me, etc.) and a lot of comics that I think are just as good to read if you haven't started on those, but I think this is a good starting place for prequels nerds.

(I stuck mostly to Disney continuity, it's what I'm more familiar with, and the only Legends books I fully recommend are Revenge of the Sith novelization and Dark Rendezvous, not even my beloved Wild Space comes without a bunch of caveats, but if you're interested in Legends, let me know!)

[mwolf0epsilon]

Sometimes being in the SW Fandom is about diving into the annals of the internet researching the most obscure tidbit of batshit insane Canon or EU Lore imaginable to man (which is honestly my favorite thing to do because people have done some pretty insanely funny things with this universe and characters). But for the majority of the time, being in the SW Fandom is also watching people repeat a cycle of asinine arguments that make an absolute ass out of them for the worst possible reasons.

So here's a quick reminder of past arguments to be mindful of and always consider, when you see something in the tags that makes you wrinkle your nose at:

Everyone has something they like or dislike about the overall universe and story. Be it the Original Trilogy, the Prequels, the Sequels, the Animated series, the Live-Action series, EU stuff, Novels, etc. No one is above or below anyone else just because they don't love the entirety of the universe and/or the direction the current writers are taking it.

Canon can be a good baseline for your own creative purposes. You don't have to love it (because yes the whole thing can be inconsistent as hell), but don't get to a point in your fanfic/AU world-building where you vehemently deny that canon is an actual thing. This goes hand in hand with your personal depiction of characters vs someone else's depictions. Reading comprehension and the creative process depend on perspective and how you process the information you're given, so it's only normal that no two person's idea of a character is the same. But saying that your headcanons are how the characters should be written by everyone is not gonna do you any favors in the long run, because it's not up to you to decide on that. Don't forget Blorbo's actual roots and what it took to get him where you took him, but don't try to force someone else to accept the journey you orchestrated for them!

No one's OC should be put on a pedestal. It's good that people feel comfortable enough to play Barbies with each other's OCs in roleplay sessions, or even add a cameo in a fic to a character of a friend and/or artist/writer they admire from a distance. Hell, the fact many people are passionate about someone else's little fella/s is great! But the moment someone's OC becomes an object of obsession within a Fandom community, things can go a little wrong... It stops being fun to be in that kind of space that goes from welcoming OC discussions to suddenly shunning new people in favor of someone's Ultimate Blorbo who now has a Cult Following and should be written into every fanfic ever.

No one is evil for lacking knowledge or self-awareness of certain grievances that people rightfully have with the source material. The SW Fandom has always had a long-standing issue with racial stereotyping, whitewashing, cultural appropriation, sexism and many other equally serious topics that have been more eloquently explained in posts made by people much more eloquent and qualified than I am or ever will be. However, one must recognize that not everyone who joins the Fandom is immediately aware of these things. Especially the younger generations that have either not been exposed to these concepts due to one reason or another (upbringing, biased educational curriculum, etc), or because they were simply never in a position where they could delve into these topics with someone knowledgeable on them (some experiences simply aren't universal, especially if you come from a more privileged family). For the most part, SW is just a silly sci-fi universe that is nothing more than a simple means of escapism or dumb fun. Not everyone is going to study it under a microscope or go through it with a fine comb. That said, another important thing to remember is to listen to those who know their stuff and that have had personal grievances with any of the topics above. You can be excused for lack of knowledge, but you cannot be excused for purposefully ignoring the voices of those who provide you said knowledge for free if you go searching.

This is kinda returning to the second and previous topics, but I really need to put emphasis on this: If you're going to cling to certain design choices with an iron first and incorporate them into your personal ideas/headcanons, please always consider how it SOUNDS when you say characters that are written with basis on real POC people/communities are much better/superior if they have phenotypical trait expressions that are not present (or considered rare/atypical) in their real world basis. This is a CONSISTENT problem I have seen crop up specifically within the Clone Wars and Bad Batch sides of the fandom, especially when talking about Rex (who is a blond) and Clone Force 99 (who do not look like standard clones). Always remember: The problem isn't that Rex can't be naturally blond (genetics can be unpredictable and we really don't have an extensive look into the cloning process), the problem is the way some people think he'd be inferior in some way if he were a bottle blond who chose to distinguish himself (almost as if having darker skin, darker hair and darker eyes is somehow worse than having lighter skin, lighter hair or lighter eyes.. How curious isn't it?). Needless to say, I don't think I need to elaborate further on why CF99's "desirable mutations" giving them considerably lighter skin and less ethnic features, while also making their most POC presenting member look and sometimes act like a moronic brute (something which this Fandom pushes further by infantilizing him relentlessly), is a bit of a red flag...

Star Wars has always been political. It is literally in the name and in the meat of the writing. The entire thing is basically a political and social critique presented in a sci-fi/fantasy wrapper, with colorful plasma swords, cool spaceships, and kickass explosion bow on top. You cannot separate the political conversation from the universe's overall lore, and trying to do so makes you look foolish. Disney may have taken creative liberties with some of its shows, but at the end of the day they can't ever eliminate what the Original Trilogies and even the Prequels tried to tell us about. With that said, complaining about how some of the new shows are "too Woke" or PC is the equivalent of saying you read Romeo and Juliet and that the story is relationship goals. You might need to revisit the original material.

For the love of god if you don't like something, don't go after someone who does, it's not worth it. Sometimes the best thing you can do is either filter something you actively dislike/that makes you feel uncomfortable, or simply unfollow/block whoever is repeatedly bringing it onto your doorstep. And you also have no real obligation to explain your decision to block someone, especially if they hound you for questions. Rule of thumb: Don't like something? That's perfectly fine and valid. Take the steps to make yourself comfortable then, but don't go out of your way to be a royal asshole to someone else just because they themselves enjoy it. This encompasses things from anti-jedi demonization, actual ethnic cleansing in canon, siding with personifications of alt-right extremists, proshipping apologism, etc. The block button was added to this hellsite for a reason. Use it.

Sometimes you can't change someone else's opinions on a matter and that is perfectly fine. Just don't start a feud. People come and go, and their opinions vary (we're all individuals with out own perspectives and unique experiences after all), but getting up in arms every time someone either refuses to yield in a long-winded argument, or continuously tries to shove their unsolicited opinions/advice onto you, or even makes incredibly uncomfortable/forward/gross comments that they definitely shouldn't be saying to a complete stranger on the internet, is kind of pointless and will drain you of energy faster than you can say Death Star. You're not the lesser person for walking away from a lost cause. It's ultimately not your job or responsibility to fix/better someone else. Especially if they don't want to change.