The Other The Star Wars

(Regular Star Wars post put off until a later date because of various reasons conspiring against it, including screwy sleep patterns, an ongoing weird Internet situation, and a trip to visit family for somebody's birthday.

And acquiring RPG Maker. That isn't a help either.)

So this last week, courtesy of my sister's nerdy and genuinely insidious (if unintentionally so, perhaps) ex-boyfriend, I read The Star Wars, a comic based on a rough draft used to pitch the Star Wars films.

It was a bit of a nostalgic experience, to be frank, because in my early days of having an Internet connection I collected a bunch of the early drafts of the first film and read them. (I also read a fanfic that was based on the idea of being a sequel to one of them. ...It was pretty awful. Everyone died.) I also thought that the art direction was pretty great; I loved the alternate stormtrooper armor and the fighter version of the Star Destroyers. Said art direction was also interesting because it was a fusion of concept art from the original ANH production and prequel-era concept design.

On the other hand... well, it had kind of a weird, meandering story that integrated basically everything from the original trilogy in a kind of nonsensical backwards way.

I liked the Obi-Wan Kenobi/Luke Skywalker hybrid character and Annikin Skywalker's dad, though. (Even if the latter was a little too obsessed over the idea that he was more machine, now, than man and died because he gave his life support battery to someone else because they "needed" to keep a kid in suspended animation for the kid's own safety. George Lucas sure loved that one scene, it was in every draft that led to ANH even though it didn't make it into the final films except as that one line from a character who wasn't even the cyborg in question. Even more amazing is that it hopped from character to character as the drafts went on-it went from the Jedi mentor to a mentor that Han Solo had in one draft, because George just wanted it so bad.)

Anyway, decent little thing, even though it has some problems, and the hardcover version's a pretty, well-made book. Wish I could keep the concept art in back.

-Signing off.