Animated Star Wars on Cartoon Network

NeoCode writes "There were rumours and speculations first. Now it looks like its a done deal. Harry Knowles, of AintItCool.com has reports on an animated version of Star Wars set after AOTC but before episode 3. This series is produced by Genndy Tartakovsky (Dexter's Lab, Powerpuff Girls, Samurai Jack). The cartoons will be a series of short films. Could this infuse Star Wars with a new life or is this just another merchandising plot? Nevertheless, this could be quite interesting." Yeah look what good Ewoks & Droids did for the SW universe ;)

Comments

Remember the old tv shows..

[seann]

"the ee ee ee ee ewoks"
and that star wars cartoon they had back in the 80s?
I barly do.

Re:Remember the old tv shows..

[Anonymous Coward]

It was called Droids. Good show

Re:Remember the old tv shows..

[greenguy]

The word "ewok" is a tribute to merchandising.

It is never said in Return of the Jedi.

Re:Remember the old tv shows..

[Shadowmancy]

Hey. I never realized that, but it wasn't ever said in the movie.

Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho ....

This has been done a long time ago

[archeopterix]

See telnet://blinkenlights.nl

Re:This has been done a long time ago

[Anonymous Coward]

new to me.. whoever did that has a serious amount of time on their hands.

Re:This has been done a long time ago

[Snowspinner]

And yet, this was still better CGI than Episode 2.

Re:This has been done a long time ago

[Anonymous Coward]

Sweet! I didn't even know there was a Common Gateway Interface in Episode 2. Which scene?

Starwars...

[shaitand]

I hate to see the already over commercialized star wars further cheapened like this. Are they going to have a Leia in the prisoner outfit???? If they do I'll watch it, cheap or not.

Let's hope it's better than Asciimation!

[ToadMan8]

Not that there's anything wrong with Asciimation but I'm not sure if the masses would accept this sort of thing. Hey, and besides, your TV would need screen font anti-alaising! This thing should have sound too, it'd be really cool then...

Too "cartoony"

[MidoriKid]

I've always been a fan of Tartakovsky's work, but I don't think his style suits the universe. I imagine it wouldn't have the detail that I need in a Star Wars franchise.

Re:Too "cartoony"

[Scrameustache]

If you paid attention to his previous works you'd notice a bunch of details, I don't see why he wouldn't put as much detail in a SW cartoon as in Dexter's or the powerpuff.

(Ever notice the A-Team van goin by in the streets of the city of TownsVille?)

Conflict of styles

[CanisMajor]

It'll be an interesting first show...you've got a series where millions of dollars have been dumped into redoing detailed features a la Special Editions, and it's being done by someone who likes to do series without a lot of detail (PPG and Dexter esp., don't watch too much SJ).

Luke Skywalker with a squared off head might get a chuckle.

Poor Children!

[YahoKa]

They are going to make them geeks earlier on in their life. Little children doomed to become obsessed with star wars and read slashdot, never going out or getting a girl(boy)friend.

Re:Poor Children!

[YahoKa]

Oh, and don't even bother to say "speak for yourself" i don't want to hear it. My post is supposed to be humor ;)

Re:Poor Children!

[Anonymous Coward]

Speak for yourself!

Re:Poor Children!

[Alex Thorpe]

Earlier? I've been that way since the first grade! ;-)

Well The Ewoks were warm and fuzzy and all...

[Botunda]

Umm... wait. Thats all GL knows. Time to pass the fire GL. Let someone else take a crack at SW!

Is it just me. Maybe, becuase SW "NewHope" was just so new to us then. Have we become a jaded mess, filling our time until "The Matrix:Reloaded" comes out?

blurgh

[Flamesplash]

Oh dear god I think I'm going to be sick. When has a cartoon version of any real life movie suceeded? One? maybe two?

Re:blurgh

[Anonymous Coward]

or vice versa - when has a real life version of a cartoon worked? MIB maybe aside, but think Flintstones for example...

Re:blurgh

[CableModemSniper]

I thought MIB was based off of a comic book..not a cartoon.

Re:blurgh

[Anonymous Coward]

Well, the cartoon of the movie of the comic book was pretty good.

Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[JessLeah]

Hmm. Well, this could be a boon to the Star Wars franchise (which of course has done amazingly well anyhow ;) ) or it could just throw the chances of any sequels (Episode VII, anybody?) into the toilet.

It's simple, and I'll illustrate it by the example of Back to the Future. BTTF was a successful trilogy with many fans (among whom I am one), but then they introduced an animated TV show, and did a ride at Universal Studios: Florida, which used a plotline set after (fourth-dimensionally-speaking) all three of the movies. Both of these things added quite substantially to "the canon", as they were all officially blessed by the producers of the original BTTF trilogy.

Every episode of any official "Star Wars" cartoon that's even remotely related to the Skywalker clan or other key figures from the series has the potential to -greatly- complicate the Star Wars "canon", and making another series of movies that fit with the sum of the existing canon that much more difficult...

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[TheViewFromTheGround]

There've been a lot of Star Wars spin offs and related items (books, video games, etc) that contradict or alter the details of the movies. How could it really make a big difference? These little pop-culture universes are malleable, just like any sort of folk-lore.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[JessLeah]

I guess, to me, the difference is in the size of the audience. Anything released on a movie or TV screen is hundreds of times more likely for any given fan to see (remember, the books are read mostly by geeks, and I'm not sure how much the additional plotlines from video games-- which also have a much smaller audience than anything movie/TV-- would be taken seriously). This means that anything on TV, or in movie form, introduces tons of new memories of the Star Wars Universe that Lucasfilm would have to work with, contradict or do-a-little-of-both to with any new film...

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[NoodleSlayer]

George Lucas has said in interviews that he never intended to make a sequel trilogy and probably won't, then again the capitalist in him might prevail, if a sub-par Star Wars movies (read: Episode I) can make $200+ million at the box office then more Star Wars movies are easy cash. However considering how long it took him to start making Episode I it seems doubtful.

As for complicating the Star Wars "canon" the general rule of thumb for any SciFi universe is to treat extretaneous sources (Books, animated series, etc.) as seperate and inconsequential in the universe. However there are exceptions, there's been a number of Babylon 5 books released drawn up on plot outlines written by J. Michael Straczynski that works nicely within the existing B5 canon, however there hasn't been many major B5 projects since Rangers. If Lucas is willing to write out some storylines for the animated series that fit into the existing Star Wars "canon", it could provide a nice treat for Star Wars fans.

~Noodle

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[Anonymous Coward]

The SW Expanded Universe (i.e., any story in a medium that's not the films: games, comics, novels, TV) has always been rather consistent with the original trilogy of films, and elements that originated in the EU were incorporated into the prequel films (the name of the Republic capital planet from the Thrawn novels, a Twi'lek Jedi from the comics, other names from places like the Droids series). The few problems have had "continuity fixes" in place for a long time now. Moreover, LucasFilm Licensing has always strived to make the EU consistent with itself, and you'll see things like novels referencing game characters (like the main character from the X-Wing PC games being a prominent general in the last New Jedi Order novel).

This series is rumored to involve the Clone Wars, and LFL held a fairly large summit last summer to plot out the war's major events and decide in which medium they'll be covered. Episode III begins with the last battle of the Clone Wars, so there's no danger of something zany happening in the next film to throw out all the events being depicted in the interim. There's already been several post-AotC EU titles announced and released showing war events:

• Galactic Battlegrounds: Clone Campaigns (game)
• Clone Wars (game)
• The New Droid Army (game)
• Boba Fett: Fight to Survive and Crossfire (children's novels)
• Republic #49 and on (comic)
• Shatterpoint (novel)

There's an article on the CW publishing program here:

http://www.starwars.com/eu/news/2002/11/news200211 15.html

SW licensed stories/etc. are different from things like Trek in that they're edited rigorously precisely to prevent continuity problems. It's all meant to be one story (whether it's a good one or not varies from audience member to audience member).

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[Webmonger]

Yeah, but look at Star Trek: The Animated Series-- it's not considered canon. I dunno about "droids", and since they haven't make a movie set after rotj, no one cares whether "ewoks" is canon.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[poridge]

making another series of movies that fit with the sum of the existing canon that much more difficult... Lucas doesn't seem to bother with fitting the new movies in the "canon" of the original trilogy so why should what happens in a cartoon bother him? Or can you explain why Obi Wan didn't recognize R2 and C3P0 when he first saw them in the first movie or one of a hundred other plot holes?

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[dswensen]

Lucas has said many times he's never had any intention of doing VII-IX, has never written anything for it, and has no story to tell beyond VI. And personally, I hope he never does. With each prequel the fans squeal louder about how it Isn't Like the Old Days.

At this point I'd like it if Lucas just finished up the prequels, put out the original trilogy on DVD to silence the whining legions, and retired. I like Star Wars, but the constant hype and vitriol has made me weary of the whole thing.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[glwtta]

They can always just take the tip from Anime, call it "Star Wars Flash" and later completely disregard anything that happened in it.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[AndroidCat]

Or can you explain why Obi Wan didn't recognize R2 and C3P0 when he first saw them in [A New Hope]

Who said that he didn't? He wasn't above telling a complete lie (from a certain point of view), and he said that he didn't recall owning any droids.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[Anonymous Coward]

"R2-D2, I choose you!"

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[loosenut]

There've been a lot of Star Wars spin offs and related items (books, video games, etc) that contradict or alter the details of the movies.

Can you provide an example? I find that hard to believe. This is hearsay, but I think that Lucas very carefully goes over the details of anything Star Wars to make sure the details are consistent with the rest of the universe before it gets the official seal of approval.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[iosphere]

Exactly how does the Star Wars Holiday Special fit in with the 'canon'?

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[blincoln]

This is hearsay, but I think that Lucas very carefully goes over the details of anything Star Wars to make sure the details are consistent with the rest of the universe before it gets the official seal of approval.

Haha, I seriously hope you were joking.

If not, have a look at The Star Wars Holiday Special, novels like The Crystal Star, or pretty much any of the videogames to see any number of contradictions and alterations.

IMO, the only detail anyone at Lucasfilm is concerned with re: spinoff products are the royalty fees.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[gamgee5273]

Actually, you might want to look at Paramount's ST site. They list the ST animated series along with the live action series and movies. Looks pretty canonical to me...

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[vaguelyamused]

Possibly the same reason you don't recognize, say, a car of the same model and appearance as yours when your see it driving down the street. R2D2 is probably far from only the unit like it. Do you think the droid factory made only one and quit? C3P0 on the other hand was drastically different in appearance from Episode I & II than in IV-VI and not the only example of his type either.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[Webmonger]

Just because it's acknowleged to exist doesn't make it canon. Even Star Trek V isn't considered canon. Try looking here for example. Exclusion of ST:TAS from the canon is conventional.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[SmokeSerpent]

I take it you haven't watched the "making of" things on the EpisodeII DVD yet...

(This is slightly paraphrased, since I'm soing it from memory)
Sam Jackson: "We were wondering who we talk to about light saber colors..."
Lucas: "The bad guys get red and the good guys get blue or green, that's just the way it is."
Jackson: "No purple?"
Lucas: "You might get purple..."

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[A55M0NKEY]

They ought to make a Star Trek style series to nowhere out of what's left of the Star Wars beast. They could set it in the EU ( that's Expanded Universe not European Union ) and have Jedi wars w/ those intergalactic bio-invader dudes.

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[A55M0NKEY]

Shmaa Shmaa Shmaa....

Re:Additions to, complications of "the canon"?

[geekoid]

Actually, Lucas has a very specific universe, and all liscensed materal fits within it. If you go to there website, there is a timeline with every pieces of licensed material placed on it.(Possible with the exception of a certian Christmas spcecial)

However Lucas is the exception to the rule.

Hi

[PhysicsScholar]

I have a college degree.

I stopped watching cartoons when I was 10 years old.

I live in my own house that I pay for myself and drive my own car.

I buy and make my meals.

I mean, have I simply lost touch with all of you that much over the past few years? Or are all of these Harry Potter, anime, cartoon, and Nintendo articles as childish as I think they are?

Don't get me wrong -- I love Slashdot and have no grudges against any editors. But really, who the hell cares about this kiddie crap?

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

"It takes a long time to become young." -- Pablo Picasso

Re:Hi

[Botunda]

Who cares! My dad can still beat the "everLovinShit" outta yours. It's still just fun. WTF!? You lose you fucking fun gene in college!?

Ahhh.. nothing like a Sunday morning drink to get you started.

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

Hey, if it's not your thing then fine. Just don't call the rest of us childish for liking this stuff.

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

Blah, blah.
College blah...
I have my own house,a wife and daughter too.
Car: bought and paid for
Cook for the family, blah..blah.
Still watch cartoons. Animation is an art, chump.
And as for who the hell cares.. .the kids do, dickface.

>hugs

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

I think you just got caught up in being an "adult".

I still play the nintendo (not as much as a kid) and still like to watch some cartoons (not anime!).

I'm 37 and have paid for my own existance since I got out of highschool so I didn't even have those "college" years to justify any hanging on to these things.

Re:Hi

[Idarubicin]

So, this is a troll, right? I'll bite anyway, because my lunch is still cooking...

I'll be finished my first degree (Chemical Physics) in the spring. I rent, but I pay for it myself. I ride a bike because it's cheaper and better for the environment. (Ironic that you work in the Department of...Atmospheric Science, eh?) I love to cook. And yes, you have lost touch with us all.

'Growing up' doesn't have to be about losing touch with your sense of wonder. Heck, it's what will keep me going in the sciences in grad school.

Oh, and for the record, I loved Lilo & Stitch.

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

Hi

I have PHD in physics

I bought my house and make my furniture

I stopped watching the news when i was 23

I mean, have i simply lost touch with all you propaganda watching trolls? Or are all of these nytimes, washingtonpost, articles as childish as i think they are.

Don't get me wrong, I love Dan Rathers and all, but really just let me watch my cartoons and be done with it!

Re:Hi

[p4ul13]

I'm educated and am progressing nicely in my career. I've got an active and satisfying social life. When things slow down a little next semester (working part time on an IS Masters) I plan on resuming my search for a house to buy.

My point? I'm also a complete kid. I love cartoons both new and old, and at 25 am still quite interested in stories like these. What I mean is, lighten up. It's all in good fun, and its not like this is CNN, it's slashdot.

Re:Hi

[lvdrproject]

Sigh... either i'm looking harder, or people are getting lamer and lamer recently. While i'm obviously younger than you (which might bias me just a touch), allow me to explain something.

You associate cartoons with childishness. Just because it's animated doesn't make it any less mature than your favourite live-action movie/TV series. There are many serious-minded, dramatic animated features ("Grave of the Fireflies", anyone?), and there are a number of advantages cartoons have over live action:

Virtually-unlimited special effects budget. In animation, you don't have to pay millions upon millions of dollars to show someone jumping out of a huge time portal, or show some horrific monster eat a man whole, or show a squadron of soldiers firing laser cannons. This is as simple to create in animation as anything else.

Character "casting". You don't have to hunt down the perfect actor/actress with the perfect weight, the perfect hair colour, the perfect voice, the perfect skin colour, etc., etc., in animation. You just draw the character the way you want him/her to appear, and there s/he is.

Idealism. The world just doesn't work the way some people want it to. You can't change the laws of physics, every single person you find won't be attractive, etc.. Cartoons work the way you want them to, whether they're realistic, deep, moving depictions of life (like many anime series/movies), or goofy, childish Saturday-morning cartoons (which can be masterpieces, despite their childishness).

What does the fact that you perform the same tasks as any other adult (and some teenagers) have anything to do with cartoons or video games? Seems to me like you've been brainwashed by some of the "intelligent" connoisseur types who associate these things with childishness/immaturity/unintelligence. This same phenomenon can be observed with Pokemon. The Game Boy games (which few who bash it have even played) are actually quite fun, and aren't really any more childish than any other game. What started this whole "Pokemon is for kids, you fanboy losers" thing is the fact that some American corporations saw that Pokemon made money, and they milked it for all that they could. They sold dolls, they sold stuffed animals, they sold cards, they sold McDonald's toys. THAT is why people hate Pokemon. If it had gone on as a regular Game Boy game like any other Game Boy game, nobody would've given it a second thought. Same thing happened to cartoons.

Anyway, video games, Harry Potter, anime, and cartoons are forms of entertainment, no different than your favourite band, your favourite TV show, or your favourite book. If it ENTERTAINS you, it's served its purpose.

:Lav

Re:Hi

[EvilCabbage]

Watching fine animated shorts helps me unwind after dealing with self important jerk-offs all day.

Generally, the kind that feel the need to let me know about their education, car, and / or family.

Now, try sitting down in front of something like, Samuri Jack, Aqua Teen Hunger Force,Invader Zim or, god forbid, The Powerpuff Girls, have a Coke(tm), and try to enjoy yourself for a change.

You'd be amazed how good things work out, when the creators have a hand in making the animation come to life, and dont just sell out to a studio, and let their characters get whored out in marketing promotions.

Cheerio.

Re:Hi

[Botunda]

MOD this bad boy up!

Re:Hi

[Lord Omlette]

You associate cartoons with childishness. Just because it's animated doesn't make it any less mature than your favourite live-action movie/TV series.

While well written, your speech could have been shortened if you had just asked the original poster to sit down and watch an episode of Samurai Jack. Not just watch, but also listen; the music is amazing!

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

This with the assumption that cartoons are only for children. You're a complete kid because you like cartoons? Pheh. :)

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

In fact, I find generally that people who watch good anime and aren't afraid to admit it are much more interesting to converse with about entirely unreleated things.

As for content matter, I absolutely despise the people who decry cartoons for not having "adult" content; as if it is not fit for an adult to watch unless it has at least three gratuitous sex scenes.

No, I'm afraid I associate that not with an intellectually satisfying and imaginative work, bur rather with one fit to be watched by dogs and barn animals. If sex and cussing is your perferred level of discourse, then I prefer that you not speak at all.

Thank you.

Re:Hi

[kamapuaa]

You associate cartoons with childishness.

Not as much as I associate Star Wars with childishness.

Re:Hi

[zapfie]

I will have to second the parent post.. anyone who hasn't seen Grave of the Fireflies really must.

Re:Hi

[Anonymous Coward]

Regardless of your preferences, if I feel like discussing sex with or without cussing, I couldn't give a flying FUCK what you would or wouldn't prefer to hear.

Life doesn't change because you post a SIGN - George Carlin.

Animated Trek

[Crixus]

The animated Trek series of the 70's didn't last long, but there were a few decent stories among the lot.

Rich...

Re: Animated Trek

[LostCluster]

The animated Trek lasted two seasons, which finished the "five year mission" that the live action series promised even though NBC canned them after only three. (Now, there's an example of a short-sighted network move...)

Re: Animated Trek

[BTWR]

If I understand correctly, wasn't Star Trek the show a huge flop at first? It took years before Paramount realized that some cancelled show from 10 years or so earlier was a huge hit? If so, then no wonder a cartoon released a little after the show was cancelled flopped too.

Although, once again, I could be wrong in my above assumption...

Re: Animated Trek

[Anonymous Coward]

Is there anywhere you can get to see the animated Trek? Has it been released on DVD or something?

Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't recall ever seeing this on some star trek dvd list on Amazon or buy.com....then again, I'm not a huge fan of the various series, and I never heard of the animated Trek until just this thread.

Re: Animated Trek

[Anonymous Coward]

I dunno. Did you seen "Spocks Brain" and some of the other 3rd season eps?

Re: Animated Trek

[steveha]

William Shatner, in his book, said that Star Trek was done in by the primitive Nielson ratings of the day. At the time, they only looked at overall numbers, and other shows pulled higher overall numbers.

These days they break the numbers out by demographics, and look at numbers within various categories. Star Trek appealed to some of the very desirable demographics: college-age people, for example.

Had the studios been using more sophisticated ratings systems, Star Trek would have been seen as a success, and would have been around longer.

steveha

lol

[Tuxinatorium]

This cartoon is probably going to be even worse than the one that spun off of [i]Men in Black[/i]

appealing to all age groups??

[SuperDuG]

Okay well with Episode I we got Jar Jar, then there was the ewoks in V I think. That covers tha younger crowd.

Then we got Senator/Princess/soon-Milf/ Amedalla and Pricess Laya. That covers the middle age male crowd.

Then we got Anakin, Obi Wan, Luke, and Han Solo. That covers the middle age female crowd.

Then we got Episode II Yoda whoppin some ass, but then getting really tired. There's a happy senior citizen crowd.

I think Lucas is just trying to appeal to as many people as possible to make as much money as possible. Make something for everyone and everyone will want one.

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[QEDog]

Ewoks appeared in Return of the Jedi (Episode 6).

"The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am" -Darth Vader

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[SuperDuG]

yeah ... hence the V I ... anyone else believe me? :-)

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[Anonymous Coward]

Pricess Laya? If you weren't able to name more Star Wars characters than I can, I'd envy you for not knowing the correct spelling.

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[greenguy]

Um, you may want to keep in mind that Luke and Leia (note spelling) won't be born until late in, or possibly after, Episode III. And Han is somewhat older, but that would still make him a teenager at most by the time of Episode III, which is after this series.

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[dswensen]

Yeah, Lucas is a monster. He should make movies that don't appeal to anybody and that no one sees, so he doesn't make any money at all. Then Star Wars would be perfect.

Re:appealing to all age groups??

[glwtta]

Then we got Senator/Princess/soon-Milf/ Amedalla and Pricess Laya. That covers the middle age male crowd.

Um, no, that's still the 13 year old boy crowd.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[JessLeah]

I can't believe SlashDot can't censor this sort of crap right off the list. Can't there be a line drawn somewhere?

I'm about as sexually liberated as anyone can get, but this just disgusts the living hell out of me.

If anyone (surely a guy, I doubt girls would do any of this rubbish-- I know I wouldn't) tried ANY of this crap to me, I'd have him arrested. Surely no one really wants to read of this stuff? (Maybe I'm wrong?)

What would be cool...

[REDNOROCK]

A cartoon/live action series, based on the X-Wing books. That would rock.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[The Cydonian]

I can't believe SlashDot can't censor this sort of crap right off the list

Obviously, you're a newbie. The operating word out here is moderation; wait till the Good Guys (tm) come out with their mod points drawn. ;-)

humping my childhood

[someguy]

I wonder some days whether I would have liked the original trilogy even half as much if it were to come out now over when I was a wee little tyke.

(hint:the answer is no.)

I wonder how many people that were in their 20s when the original trilogy came out are at the same level of fandom as the people who are in their 20s now and grew up with the movies.

Re:humping my childhood

[deathscythe257]

most of the people that I know that were in their 20's in the 70's are the very reason why people that are in their 20's now originally saw the movies to begin with. My parents aren't even geeks and they have nothing but praise for the Holy Trilogy. As a matter of fact, while having Threepio and R2D2 for the kiddies, I think the feel of the original three were much more grown-up. These new ones are kind of dumbed down. I feel like I would have to say I *would* enjoy my first viewing of the movies now just as much even though I'm older.

Re:humping my childhood

[ConceptJunkie]

"Empire" was much more grown up, but large parts of "Jedi" were as cartoony as episode 1.

The problem with Episode 1, was that while it really did have a pretty grown-up plot, the grown-up plot was given short shrift so Lucas could show us 21 minutes of Jake Lloyd going "Yippee!", 47 minutes of droids being blown up and chopped in half, 67 minutes of teeth-grindingly annoying Jar-Jar antics and 153 minutes of min-numbing pod racing. The plot, while very interesting, seemed like an afterthought, and was shoe-horned into a couple of short scenes, even though there was much more story to tell.

Episode II was good for pure action, but the lame attempts at characterization dashed any chance of being able to take the characters seriously.

Anakin: "My mother was killed so I became a mass-murderer!"

Amidala: "There, there. That's OK. We all go on a killing spree once in a while. Let's get married and have twins."

Anakin: "For no reason, I don't have a father."

Amidala: "Parthenogenesis is so-o-o-o cute. Can Jar-Jar be our best man?"

Anakin: "I'm just angry all the time."

Amidala: "Hush, dear. We're late for your aqualung fitting."

Re:fuckers

[REDNOROCK]

What the fuck are you here for? This place is for nerds and geeks, not asholes.

Should read "yet, more animated star wars"

[ackthpt]

Title shoudl read "yet, more animated star wars" there was the ewoks and there was some cartoon with c3po and r2d2 for a while. I don't hold much hope for it being anything more than half hour long toy commercials, milking (or further watering down) the Star Wars franchise.

Perhaps on a better note, and possibly already mentioned somewhere here, Rendezvous with Rama is apparently to be all CGI, due out next year sometime. See here for details.

ewoks

[effer]

Put your sorry ass on an abandoned moon and beg for help!

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[JessLeah]

Well, not to offend, but as a woman I'd like to see this sort of nasty, abusive, objectifying, revolting stuff removed entirely from the system. Not moderated down to -37... removed.

I'm actually not a newbie; I've been reading SlashDot for years and know how the moderation system works (It's actually rather like school-- it scares the living crud out of me knowing that everything I say will be 'graded' by a bunch of often-overzealous reviewers). I just think that sometimes, moderation isn't enough. I'd love to see Taco rm -f posts like this right out of existence.

same author as samurai jack

[hfastedge]

If its by tartakovski, i seriously think that this will be amazing.

Samurai Jack is one of the most peaceful, and exhilirating cartoons I have watched. The director is not afraid of satisfying the modern day attention span. Rather, I find this show to be a truly artistic maverick in company with other more marketable shows. Example: in a given episode of Jack, you can easily find 2-3 minutes of pure silence, which brings out the mood of 2 great warriors resting midway through a battle, or a quiet brook trickling next to a snowy field where our hero is seen in the corner of the screen slowly making his way.

Yet....the show is sorta cooky AND funny at times. Its VERY well done, as emersive as Aeon Flux for sure.

I know the cartoon will be good.

Re:same author as samurai jack

[Hubert_Shrump]

Guk!

I'm afraid I have to disagree. Samurai Jack started out fine, loved the pilot - as I remember, less than a dozen words spoken. Great stuff, had high hopes.

Right now, it's pretty stiff. It sounds like everyone is delivering their lines while being held in a hammerlock. And no doubt that it's the same plot as _everything_ since the pilot.

They had it set up for a good saga - a quest - an odessey, and turned it into videogame plot.

Sub-boss, Sub-boss, Sub-boss, Boss - No wait! Fake out! Boss lives! Sub-boss, Sub-boss, etc...

I'd rather watch the mooninites scratch on Carl's car.

Re:same author as samurai jack

[Shadowmancy]

You're kidding, right? I've never made it through an entire episode of Samurai Jack because it's every bit as entertaining as the Carson Daly Show -- which is to say it has no entertainment value whatsoever.

I know what it's going for -- artsy, measured, introspective -- but it moves so agonizingly slow that it makes me long for the physical-pain-inducingly langorous pace of DBZ, which is the more stupid of the two but the better drawn and the faster-moving.

If there's one good thing about Jack, it's that the protagonist loses half or more of his clothes in every episode. The eye candy would be more satisfying, however, if the show didn't look like it was drawn with a ruler and map pencils.

Heigh-ho.

IMHO

[mofolotopo]

As long as Lucas doesn't write it, it will be the best Star Wars since the original.

Re:IMHO

[Anonymous Coward]

cept lucas wrote the original, which was ok, but the best, empire, was written and directed by someone else.

Moo....

[Chicane-UK]

Thats the sound of the cash cow, getting milked for all its worth.

If they make a Star Wars cartoon, they can make a whole new range of merchandise to keep em going until Ep3 comes out..

I wish they weren't so bloody obvious about it though.

Re:Moo....

[Anonymous Coward]

You must be a real hit at parties.

"Hey, let's go to the baseball game."
"MOO, that's the sound of the cash cow, getting milked for all its worth -- I bet that pitcher is making MONEY by doing this!"

"Isn't this a nice restaurant honey?"
"MOO, that's the sound of the cash cow, getting milked for all its worth -- these heartless bastards are probably selling me this steak at a considerable profit."

"Come help me pick out some baby clothes."
""MOO, that's the sound of the cash cow, getting milked for all its worth -- I can almost guarantee that if we buy these baby clothes, someone will make a living off of it -- it's wrong, I tell you, wrong!!"

Re:Moo....

[Chicane-UK]

And you see, thats why I love it when people make assumptions about people based on only a single post which they made on a boring Sunday afternoon.

I have never used the cash cow saying before - it just seemed appropriate here. And believe me.. spending money has never been a problem for me.

Anonymous loser.

Re:Moo....

[Guppy06]

"If they make a Star Wars cartoon, they can make a whole new range of merchandise to keep em going until Ep3 comes out..",

Spaceballs the Toilet Paper!

Re:Moo....

[zapfie]

On the plus side, he unintentionally inferred that you are invited to parties, are happily married, and have a child. ;) I guess he must still be a troll in training or something.

Re:Moo....

[ctar]

Spaceballs the FLAME THROWER!

Now, the question...

[Pig Hogger]

... Will it be a cheap "Hanna-Barbera/Toei"-style flat animation, a good-quality "Looney-Tunes"-quality with Carl-Stalling-quality music flat animation, or will it use extensive CG (à la "Reboot") (and in that case, no one cares about the music)???

Re:Now, the question...

[WibbleMonkeys]

If you watch any of samuri jack, you will probably see that his style could work well for the star wars universe. I've seen episodes of samuri jack which have (i can only assume deliberately) a very SW style to them. Also, the fact that he does samuri well means he'll probably give luke and the other jedi some of the kick-ass quality and smoothness that mark hamil failed to. BLM

Re:Now, the question...

[Guppy06]

"(User #10379 Info | http://slashdot.org/) ... Will it be a cheap "Hanna-Barbera/Toei"-style flat animation, a good-quality "Looney-Tunes"-quality with Carl-Stalling-quality music flat animation"

What, can't you read? Even by just glancing at the article description, I can tell you that it will be neo-HB Tartakovsky animation ala Dexter/Powerpuff/Jack. Duh!

Re:Now, the question...

[a_peckover]

Now that Futurama is no more, how about hiring all of the animators from that, including the 3D guys ?

This may work

[scotay]

Much of Lucas' dialog writing skillz come off like Mojo Jo Jo.

Luke, I, Darth Vader, am your father! And you shall obey my commands because I am the father (not the son). It is I who you will obey! Obeying my commands is what you will do as the son. I will give you commands, and you will obey them! Ha ha ha ha ha! I do this because I am bad, I am evil, I am the father. I am Darth Vader!

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Tet]

Well, not to offend, but as a woman I'd like to see this sort of nasty, abusive, objectifying, revolting stuff removed entirely from the system.

The point you're missing is that I wouldn't want this removed. People have different points of view about what's offensive, and what's not. For example, I fail to see how the post was any of the things you listed, apart from perhaps revolting, but even that's completely subjective. So why should your wishes override mine? The only solution to this problem is to let the community decide what's suitable, and the mechanism for that is moderation. Sure, it was offtopic. But moderation had already taken care of it by the time I got to it.

Incoherence? Star Wars?

[Lemmeoutada Collecti]

Let's take an objective (yeah, right) look at the Star Wars universe...

First we have episodes 4,5, and 6. Taken in their own right they are a coherent plot spread over three movies, holding a single universe intact.

Then add the many, many books and references, written after episodes 4-6. While each stands well in it's own right, very rarely do two seperate authors works integrate into the overall universe. The books have covered timeframes before the as yet unreleased episodes 1-3, after them, in between them, and anywhere else the authors felt prudent. The Star Wars universe has now grown more complex and massive than congruent unto itself.

Then add the role playing games, cartoons, comics, etc. Over 20 years a lot of Star Wars information has come out.

Now we come to the present, where Lucas is releasing episodes 1-3, and in so doing is pretty much ignoring everything other than the episodes 4-6, thus breaking what little (if any) continuity remains.

So I would expect that any efforts to make a cartoon based off the movies would just further complicate and already messy universe.

This seems to me like trying to build a Beowulf Cluster by combining 8086's running Minix, 2/386's running DOS, Mac IIgs's running MacOS, and whatever else happens to have been built over the last 20 years. Doable, but not easy or effective.

Re:Incoherence? Star Wars?

[Anonymous Coward]

Mr. Lucas has specified many times that the storylines in the deritative books, comics, cartoons and all other spin-offs are 'non-canonical'. The only plotline which matters is that of the movies. Which means all those bad Timothy Zahn books will not be determining the plotlines of episodes 7-10 if a third trilogy were to be made.

I guess George wanted the merch money from a million tie-ins, knowing people will gobble it up.

From the Star Wars Literature Compendium:

"According to the premiere issue of the Star Wars Insider, the only works "canonized" have been the movies and their respective screenplays, novelizations, and radio drama adaptations."

Iopha

Re:Incoherence? Star Wars?

[Anonymous Coward]

this post deserves a much higher rating because it's absolutely correct. any type of spin-off not done by or endorsed by the original creator is not canonical. therefore, lucas should only be using eps 4-6 as reference points for the prequels, and nothing else.

the same hold true for star trek: the only canonical information is that which is published/created/broadcast/whatever by the team who put together the original (ie. Gene Roddenberry and the group he worked with in the first five years of TNG), and that holds up the integrity of the established timeline and history. And here's the problem with Enterprise: it's canonical because it's being made by the same gang, but it shouldn't be because it takes 35 years of real-life history (and 400 years of fiction history) and throws it all out the window.

Re:Incoherence? Star Wars?

[Lemmeoutada Collecti]

Lucas has actually recognized more than just the canonical material, however, you are correct that only the movies are cannonized. However, even in the movies there is a HUGE amount of data to keep consistent, and sacrifices are sometimes made. Google for "Star Wars Movie Inconsistencies" http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/living/movies/sta rwars/world.html

Re:Incoherence? Star Wars?

[LMariachi]

So does the "Star Wars Christmas Special" count as canon? It is, after all, a movie... of sorts.

The fact that a completely fictional universe even has a notion of "canon" goes to show just how deep in Lucas' pocket so many fans are.

If he were so concerned about the continuity, integrity, and quality of his little universe to begin with, he would never have allowed all those "non-canonical" profit mines to have been dug in the first place.

You can't have it both ways: Either your art is a thing in and unto itself for its own sake (however stimulating it might be to outside contribution,) or it's a calculated commercial project designed not for any internal continuity or viewer-enlightenment/satisfaction, but only to encourage the sort of fetishism that translates to "spending lots of money on 'collectible' crap." I think Lucas has made it abundantly clear which side of that particular fence he walks his dog on.

My Grudge with Harry...

[BTWR]

The thing that pisses me off about Harry Knowles is his elitism, which is twofold. First off, he seems like a real nice guy who feels very fortunate about his fame, but some stuff about him just piss me off so much. Harry is a film geek in every stereotypical way possible. This is not a bad thing necessarily, but just pisses me off that he should be SO stereotypical. He loves all the movies a movie geek "should" love (from Night of the Living Dead to the new must-love-if-you're-a-geek films like Pitch Black, Robocop and Princess Monanoke). Occationally, he tries to make himself look good by posting a negative review of some marginally-accepted good film (Like Signs or something) - but coincidentally, he NEVER says something like "I hates Superman, Rocky, Matrix" etc. Just seems so shallow that he loves every movie you're supposed to love and sometimes bashes movies that are too cliche to love. The Newsweek article had him stating his favorite movies. They were all obscure 1930's horror movies that no one knew and just made him sound so intelligent. On Aint-it-cool, whenever some correographer on Hong Kong martial arts movies from the 1960's dies, he cries about how a "Legend has left us" - once again dropping how intelligent he is that he knows the impact that one person had on the entire industry.

Second, WILL HE STOP IT WITH THE NAMEDROPPING??? Honestly, I used to think it was just a matter of jealousy on the aicn users part that they hated when he'd mention Robert Rodriguez as a friend. Now, however, he states in every article almost how some director called him personally, or how scared the industry is of him. Ugh. So annoying.

However, the ultimate reason why I don't visit AICN anymore has nothing to do with Harry at all.

a) His forums are not threaded. When a major forum with 1000 posts comes, it's impossible to have a CONVERSATION (the responses are 100 posts apart)and it's impossible to read any of the posts towards the bottom.

b) The forum posters piss me off more than anything. These people do NOT know how to enjoy something. AICN forums are simply mediums to pick apart every film's most microscopic (and even if non-existing) flaws and state such claims that Spiderman with organic web shooters "robs my childhood" - THOSE are the guys I want to take a bat to (which is why I LOVED the end of Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back!(

Geeks don't bother me (hense, I'm on Slashdot), but assholes do.

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[thecrackerman]

Its not that the organic web shooters betray anyone's childhood, its a lack of respect for the character. Parker's creation of the web shooters in the comics illustrated his intelligence. Also foreshadowing his ability to think his way out of a tough spot when his powers weren't helpful. Organic web shooters also make him a mutant thus harder to identify with and lets face it, that's Spider-Man's biggest audience appeal. This sounds like more whining about things that you know little about. Seems you could use a little "intelligences".

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[Anonymous Coward]

I never really enjoyed comics when I was a kid. That didn't keep me from listening to Stanley talking about the very same subject on NPR. It was replayed this last week, so it should be available on the archive.
What I got from his reaction of the shooter debate was that in the end, he thought it was a great idea that worked very well for the film. You see, a film is usually not made for you. If they really cared what you thought about the shooter, your name would be listed somewhere in the credits as a consultant.
Obviously from the box office and dvd records, the appeal was not in whether he was mutant or not, but in the story and representation of the plot.
Being able to stick to walls and perform very advanced acrobatics after being bitten by a spider does not make you a mutant in some way?

As William Shatner once said:
"Get a life"

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[BTWR]

Seems you could use a little "intelligences".

Wow. Thanks thecrackerman! I was worried for a sec that people who don't visit AICN might not understand what I mean by annoying film geeks who whine and make ENORMOUS protests over such trivial facts. Now I don't have to link them to AICN to show them examples of said activity! And thanks Anon Coward for the Stan Lee-endorsing-organic talk. Geez, some people.

I sometimes wonder what could be accomplished if the same people who spend so much energy debating Spiderman and getting 250,000 signatures to save Farscape could do if they tried to do something to help the real world...

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[Jester99]

[Those] people do NOT know how to enjoy something. AICN forums are simply mediums to pick apart every film's most microscopic (and even if non-existing) flaws and state such claims that Spiderman with organic web shooters "robs my childhood"

And yet you post on Slashdot. Riiiight.

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[Ramshackle]

You're exactly the kind of unsympathetic, joyless dork he's talking about. I've been a big Spider-Man fan since I was a kid, but to tell you the truth, the rational side of me always told me that it's absurd that some high schooler came up with an invention that essentially no human has been able to come up with. It's been crippling the character all these years. The movie actually made it more believable.

Re:My Grudge with Harry...

[Anonymous Coward]

And yet you post on Slashdot. Riiiight.

Huh? The parent post was stating that the posters on that board pick apart everything they see, and I happen to agree. The fact that he/she posts on /. probably means that she/he enjoys INTELLIGENT conversation - not just "X Sucks! I hate Lucas" etc etc

Star Wars TV series

[Anonymous Coward]

Uncle George does not have a good history with the TV medium. Witness the 2 ewok adventures, Droids, and the steaming pile that is the Star Wars Holiday special. I will give it a chance but, I am not holding my breath.

Star Wars does good film (usually) while Star Trek does good TV (again usually).

Re:Star Wars TV series

[Packets]

When I was a kid I thoughly enjoyed the 2 ewok adventure movies, and the droids cartoon.

I haven't seen them SINCE I was a kid, but I loved them back then.

Could be good

[Vinnie_333]

Hell, who knows. This could be the best Star Wars since Empire.

Lucas in it for the money, again

[Gary Franczyk]

I wouldn't get too enthused about it just yet. It has been evident that George Lucas not been in touch with the Star Wars phenomenon since Jedi. Since then, he has only been extending his retirement fund with poor quality "extensions" on the original masterpiece.

- Rerelease of the originals with "additional" footage, with a slew of promotional and marketing gimmicks.
- Three prequels, with a slew of promotional and marketing gimmicks.
and now:
- A cartoon version, with a slew of promotional and marketing gimmicks.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[dswensen]

And the slew of promotional and marketing gimmicks that have been an inherent part of Star Wars since day one...

Were you not alive in 1977? Merchandise has always been part of Star Wars. Merchandising makes money and keeps Pepsi ads out of the Coruscant billboards. More power to them is what I say.

Moreover, little kids like action figures. When I was a kid, I had a ton of them. Was I being marketed to? Was Lucas making money because I liked action figures? Hell yes. But I also got a whole lot of fun out of it, and many fond memories of my childhood, and many entertaining conversations with good friends about the cool stuff we had when we were kids.

And now, because I'm grown up and don't like action figures anymore, it suddenly has to be wrong and evil and George Lucas should die penniless and alone on some street corner for the unforgivable sin of spending his whole life trying to entertain himself and us, and kids today just don't get it and turn down that durn rock and roll music...

Give it a rest. If you're so principled, go make your own movie, with money from your own pocket, and then sell it at a tremendous loss. Then you'll have proved yourself the better man.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[Anonymous Coward]

It has been evident that George Lucas not been in touch with the Star Wars phenomenon since Jedi.

Interesting concept considering this is all Lucas' brainchild. Back in the mid-70's when Lucas started production on Star Wars he was taking a huge career risk. The story was his vision, based on serials of the 30's. I keep hearing geeks bitching about quality and being let down, yet his films have set standards for Hollywood filmmakers.

But bottom line, if you have a problem with the movies, then go get investors to provide the hundreds of millions necessary and create you own series of sci-fi flicks.

It's a story, a fable. PG films targeted at kids and intended to be fun. Over-romanticizing it into something more is just pathetic, like a jilted lover griping over your ex's new relationship. If you don't like the new movies and shows, don't watch them.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[fpp]

Wow, you really don't know Lucas at all...

For him, it's never been about the money. If it were, he would be cranking out Star Wars movies like James Bond films, and there would be 20 of them by now.

The re-release of the films in 1997 was done not for money, but for several other key reasons:

1) to restore the film, because the negative was badly deteriorated (if it hadn't been done at that time, the original negative would not have lasted another few years)
2) to use the trilogy as a test bed for some new effects that he would need to have ready for Episode I
3) as a kind of litmus test, to see if the public was still receptive to the aging franchise (which of course, it was)

The merchandising is an important aspect of the films, as it allows Lucas to stay an independent producer. The money generated from it subsidizes Lucasfilm, ILM, THX, LucasArts, Skywalker Sound, the Ranch, etc...

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[Galvatron]

Actually, if I remember correctly, it was originally just going to be about #1, restoring the film. But, after they showed a couple previews in a handful of theatres, there was such an overwhelming response that Lucas figured he'd give it a bit of a budget, and make the whole "special edition." *sigh* If only they'd left the Greedo scene alone...

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[Anonymous Coward]

Bullcookies.

1. A film is made from shooting negatives and printed to several interpositives that are made into print negatives that are printed to the thousands of copies that go to the theaters. This ain't the '20s; modern print stock and storage methods, especially for billion-dollar blockbusters, are like suspended animation. Several of these copies likely still exist in pristene form, as we will learn if the movies ever appear in digital form.

2. Lucas was more interested in using modern effects to accomplish things he was unable to accomplish in the original production.

3. The only litmus reaction Lucas cared about is turning his pockets green. He already knew that any new Star Wars movie would be the biggest box office ever (nobody saw Titanic coming). He didn't need any market testing.

Aside from assuaging 20 years of directorial regret (assisted by the execs who set the original budget), Lucas' release of the Special Edition was all about milking the franchise while he took his time making the first prequel, putting the product fresh in the public's mind in case there were pockets of forgetfulness, and introducing the stories to an audience that wasn't born when the originals were in theatrical release.

As always, it must be noted that the primary result of Lucas' combination of greed and ego is that he failed to hire the sort of talented directors and writers who had given the original films the transcendent quality that is lacking in the recent, pedestrian episodes.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[fpp]

No bullcookies. 1. The original negatives are always the preferred stock to use when restoring films, and in this case they were in terrible shape. They had been stored under the ground in Kansas, and everyone involved was shocked by how poorly they had withstood the test of time. From Industrial Light and Magic: Into the Digital Realm: "The color had faded away by about 10-15% (this according to Leon Briggs, a former veteran of the Disney lab who had worked on such restoration projects as Fantasia and Snow White, who was called in to help). There was dirt embedded in the six reels of negatives, and pit marks as well. The film stock used was Color Reversal Intermediate (CRI) #5249, and it was so prone to fading that Kodak discontinued making it in the early 80s. Although a master interpositive had been made in 1985 for the purpose of video releases, making prints entirely off IPs wouldn't provide the highest generation release print. No pristine prints benefitting a grand anniversary release existed either - any available prints had suffered their own scratches and general damage from the wear and tear of shipping and exhibition." (page 288) It actually took 3 and a half years to restore the film, which was 6 months longer than it took to make the original. 2. Yes, he was interested in accomplishing things he was unable to accomplish in the original. I left that part out. However, he also uses every film he produces as an R&D opportunity, and in this case, 20th Century Fox was footing the bill (between about 11 million and 15 million, depending on different sources). So he fixed up some things he didn't like, AND used the experience to advance the tricks ILM could use in the new films. 3. Lucas DIDN'T know that the new Star Wars films would be the biggest box office ever. He wasn't even sure the re-releases would make much money. Remember, the last Star Wars movie was Jedi, way back in 1983. That is a lot of years in between films. Who could predict what would happen? Many people thought "More American Grafitti" would make tons of money, but it was a bomb, big time. Who knew? Lucas himself has said how easy it is to screw up sequels. That's part of the reason why he re-released the films, to see if people were still interested! Doesn't it make sense that if George was all that greedy, that he would have made 20 Star Wars films, and just as many Indianda Jones films? And yes, he acted as director for Episodes I and II (and he will for III) because he wanted complete control over the films. Does that make hime egotistical? Not necessarily. It makes him controlling, maybe, but not egotistical. There's a difference. And Lucas shouldn't apologize for trying to make money off the merchandising. He has a huge empire to run, often at a loss (ILM ran at a loss for many years, and still just squeaks by; the visual effects industry is very competitive), and needs the income to keep everything going. The income he gets is poured right back into his businesses; he has no interests in fancy yachts and villas in Europe. That doesn't make him greedy, it makes him a smart business man. Jim Henson was the same way. He had said that he wished he didn't need to go into merchandising, but it was necessary to keep his business afloat. And while I think the prequels are not really very good, I have no problem with Lucas trying to do everything himself to maintain control. And I also see no problem with the merchandising. It brings joy to many children. Just don't make the mistake of calling him greedy. He just isn't like that.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[fpp]

Oops, I guess I should have previewed this. Sorry folks.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[Anonymous Coward]

Still bullcookies.

1. If you have a clean interpositive, you have the primary source of prints. Nobody prints directly from a negative master, they make a set of interpositives first, then spawn those to print negatives, then spawn those to prints. A single interpositive would be fine, if slower, for making enough print negatives. The "restoration" was pointless except as a historical exercise if there was even one copy of the interpositive available for digitization, and that copy, if clean, would be far more valuable than a heavily damaged and restored negative.

2. I won't argue that Lucas uses a film for research. Anyone who fails to learn from his productive work is a factory worker. But even if that was one reason for making the Special Editions, it was by no means the primary reason, it was just a leveraging and internal (or marketable to bankers) justification of the investment.

3. Lucas would have made 20 Indiana Jones movies if that was how you make money. But it's not. This sort of property benefits greatly from scarcity. Notice how he embargoed the main ensemble from the auxiliary productions (books, etc.). Notice how the execrable Phantom Menace still reached bigger box office than almost every other film in the history of Hollywood. Lucas is no financial dupe. He knows all about scarcity and value. And don't pretend to me that he doesn't enjoy the money he gets from his business, in his private valley with his private movie studio and his private chef. His greed is only exceeded by his egotistical need for control, and together they've helped him lay waste to one of the great storytelling goldmines of human history.

Re:Lucas in it for the money, again

[fpp]

1. The problem was, they didn't have clean interpositives. From page 288 from "Industrial Light and Magic: Into the Digital Realm":

'"The original negative is the best, which was Lucas's whole scheme: to make it look as good as it possibly could," noted Pacific Title optical supervisor Chris Bushman.

"We could only go back to the original negative," summed up Rick McCallum. "It's our source, the only life force we have."

and later...

"For parts of the film that were too damaged we went back to the interpositive struck from the original negative, which was the closest we could get to the original negative."'

So they did use the negative as much as possible, and only utilized the IP when they had to. Remember, if you say, "Nobody prints directly from a negative master", ya gotta remember this is Lucas we're talking about, and he doesn't follow the crowd!

2. I never said the primary reason to release the Special Editions was as an R&D effort, I only said it was ONE of the reasons. Lucas knew 20th Century Fox was going to foot the bill, so he saw an excellent chance to have them fund his research.

3. Of course Lucas enjoys the money he makes from his movies. He deserves to have a good life. Yes, he has a private Ranch, a jet, and his own cook (and if I were as rich as he were, I would definitely have those things, especially a private cook, seeing as how he is a diabetic). So he takes a chunk of his income to enjoy the finer things in life. Who wouldn't? That doesn't make his greedy.

But personally (outside of the Ranch, and the rest of his businesses), he is not known to live excessively. And the point I guess I'm trying to make is that he doesn't work to make money to live a lavish lifestyle; he works because it's what he enjoys, but he also works to make his work and the process of making his art (movies) more enjoyable! Hence the Ranch. Hence his wanting to control everything, so that he can avoid the Hollywood system as much as possible.

Lucas refers to what he does as "art". Your personal feelings about the quality of that art aside, he sees himself as an artist first, and a businessman second, or third, or fourth. He wants to perfect, streamline, and economize the making of that art, which is why he puts most of his money back into his businesses.

Does that make him "greedy?" In the sense that he wants to keep acquiring "things" to make his work life easier, maybe. But he doesn't get greedy in the sense that "I'm going to bleed my fans dry of all their money!"

Another poster said that he may be perceived as being greedy from those who work for him (he doesn't micromanage every single things that goes on in his business; that would be impossible), and it is these "suits" who are willing to squeeze the fans dry, but personally, he isn't like that.

Cheers,
fpp

You can tell Kirk got better at the end

[parliboy]

After all, he only needed 30 minutes to save the universe and get the girl, instead of the hour he used to need.

Re:same author as samurai jack[little addendum]

[hfastedge]

I meant : The director is not afraid of NOT satisfying the modern day attention span.

Thats it! You dont fuck with the toons!

[Botunda]

I mean, have I simply lost touch with all of you that much over the past few years? Or are all of these Harry Potter, anime, cartoon, and Nintendo articles as childish as I think they are?

No, you just grew up too fast to appreciate the finer (re:childish) details in life.

It doesn't take the whole of earth to be at war (umm, let me think about that one) to just have fun!!! Fuck, whens the last time you flew a kite just because? You with your "College" degree you're so proud of knows the dynamics of how and why and what weather patterns work best with flying a kite. But have you just for the sheer ( sp? I only have a BFA,*smirk*) fun of it!?

Having something that you built, relying on the forces of nature, be higher than you yourself cannot do without the help of a thousand engineers making sure your "College Graduated" ass can even begin to be as high!

Fuck you! If not the simple pleasures in life that we can enjoy than what do we have?

And BTW that car and house you paid for and live in are most likely killing the rest of us, So once again Fuck you!

Cartoons are fucking Fun! Is that so hard to handle

Maybe it's just me but, I might be wrong. Cartoons seem childish. But have you stopped to realize that the people who started watching 'toons at the same time we did are now making them more "us"ish(well not you apparentley, but the rest of us)?!

Rumors still, right?

[mao che minh]

Word on the street is that it's just rumors for now. I submitted this story four days ago.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[CableModemSniper]

Why did my comment get deleted?
The only time we ever delete comments is if the comment contains malformed HTML that is somehow causing Slashdot to fail to display properly. Comments are not deleted on the basis of content. At this point, however, it shouldn't be a big worry. The comment engine is reasonably bulletproof, and it's pretty tough to post a comment that breaks Netscape.

If you posted a comment and you don't see it now, it may have been moderated down below your threshold (see below). If you set your threshold to -1, you should be able to see it again.

Answered by: CmdrTaco
Last Modified: 6/12/00

from one of the scripts?

[zephc]

(Luke is busy working on a piece of machinery)

Leia: "HI LUKE!!!!!"

(Luke tumbles from the shock of surprise)

Luke: "Leia, what do you want? I wish you would leave, because you are so STUUUPID. You are dumb and you are stuuupid."

Re:from one of the scripts?

[squiggleslash]

Hey it could be worse:

Luke: Our first clue was when Obi-Wan said that Darth was a Jedi who'd gone over to the dark side. At first, we didn't read anything into it. But then...

Leia: Then we found this scrap of paper in the Ewok's treehouse. It said "L ke I m y r fath".

Han Solo: Like that made any sense.

Chewbacca: Huh-hehe-huh-huh. Woooaaaaaa. Sh-aggy!

(The kids laugh and Solo throws Chewbacca a wookie-snack)

Luke: We then got the final clue when Yoda told us almost all the Jedis had been killed when the dark side took over. We realised that Darth Vader had to be..."

Chief Wiggum removes Vader's Mask.

All: Annakin Skywalker, Aka Luke's Father!

Darth: And I'd have got clean away with it too if it wasn't for these meddlin' kids and their wookie.

Wiggum: Take him away boys!

Homer Simpson: I guess you'll be running along to solve another crime in your "Mystery Falcon".

Chewbacca: Huh-hehe-huh-huh. Woooaaaaaaaaa.

Chewbacca takes a step forward and trips over the body of the emperor, causing him to flip backwards and knock over a big pile of light sabers. Everyone chortles. Closing credits.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

I thought it was funny yet revolting. The scary thing is that I actually heard of some of these things before.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

I'm about as sexually liberated as anyone can get, but this just disgusts the living hell out of me.

What's the wildest thing you've ever done? My girlfriend and I masturbated each other in public once. Oh, those crazy college days.

Hey, I never said I'd post logged in. Gimme a break.

Re:fuckers

[Anonymous Coward]

Yes nerds and geeks that's not the same thing as dorks who sit inside jacking off watching cartoons all day.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[JessLeah]

Hmm. Well, I had sex with a geek once! ;)

Obligatory reference

[MainframeKiller]

I've got a bad feeling about this...

Asciimation

[Anonymous Coward]

The original site is at http://www.asciimation.com

Harry Knowles is a stupid fucker...

[Eric Destiny]

Harry Knowles is a stupid fucker...

if it's Genndy Tartakovsky I have faith

[Ghostx13]

I think Genndy Tartakovsky has done a wonderful job with the cartoons he has on Cartoon Network. I mean you can not like the plot lines of Dexter or the Power Puff girls, but you have to admit they are defiantly in the top ten of American cartoons in the past 5 years (I'm not counting movies here). And Samurai Jack is amazing. Granted the style is not realistic, but the animation is really top notch, and the stories are very detailed and well thought out. I haven't seen very many that I thought took the road of "well this is for kids so we can make it dumb." I think Tartakovsky will do an excellent job with this endeavor.

Re:if it's Genndy Tartakovsky I have faith

[Anonymous Coward]

It's not very hard, and not any kind of accomplishment, to be in the top ten cartoons of the past 5 years. Face it, modern cartoons lick balls. The animation is really not top notch, anime especially. If you want good cartoons, you have to go back to the late 80's, early 90's when the likes of Transformers, G.I. Joe, Centurions, Dino Riders, TMNT, Mask, and Thundercats reigned supreme (they still do).

Genndy Tartakovsky

[Lord Omlette]

The force is strong w/ this one.

If anyone can restore the balance, I hope it's him.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

Wow! Care to do it again? ;)

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[JessLeah]

Naah. I'm too busy working on my Jedi Mind Control tricks so I can ensnare Harrison Ford.

"You want to go out with JessLeah, Captain Solo..." >funky hand motion<

You don't need pants for the victory dance...

[secolactico]

*sniff... sniff*
I R is good jedi!
Take that, silly weasel!
*sniff... sniff*

droids

[Ferro_Man]

The Droids cartoon was not that bad. In fact i rather enjoyed it. I wish they would show the droids cartoon again.

Wrong timeline

[Anonymous Coward]

Star Trek "Classic" was cancelled prior to 1969. The animated show was not produced "a little after", but in 1976. The first blessed "Star Trek" movie slightly over 2 years later.

Re:Wrong timeline

[BTWR]

my bad - that's why I prefaced it with "if I understand correctly." Guess I'm not up on my ST facts... damn.

Yup... still it messed with the universal canon...

[Anonymous Coward]

We can, for example, thank Larry Niven for mucking up the Star Trek universe (animated episode: "The Slaver Weapon") with his beloved Kzinti and then forbidding the species use ever again. "Thanks for the paycheck guys, sorry about the mess! Mention the Kzin again and I'll sue."

Reiteration and the Fluff of Life

[MrDeltoid]

The Power Puff Girls are just Rocky & Bullwinkle for a different generation. Not that this is a bad thing at all. As far as a SW animated series goes, who cares? It will be another so-so cartoon series that everyone will call a classic ten years later.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

A) No one would try it on you beacuse you are a fat blob of a girl. and B) You are a prude who only uses her dildo in the missionary position. and CC) STFU, Bey-otch!

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

You do know that Ford is like 60 years old? You really want his old-man nutsack resting up against you at night?

OFF TOPIC Mod this whole thread down to hell

[Anonymous Coward]

Surely no one really wants to read of this stuff? (Maybe I'm wrong?)


Yell, YOU do! Dammit, I set my treshold at 1 so I don't have to read the offtopic trolls like this, but then you start a thread that's at my threshold about it, I change my setting and go read what all the fuss is about.

Why the hell are you drawing attention to this crap? Slashdot doens't censor, it mods down. If you don't want to read stuff like that, don't read it! When you see a post with a title like that, get a clue: its a troll! Now you just got him a lot of attention and he's feeling all proud and motivated to do it again!

There is a line drawn somewhere, in my case its at 1 (except when I'm moderating, then I go at -1). There is a perfectly good working system that lets you not read the posts of that sort, use it, don't sabotage it for the rest of us.

I didn't want to read it, but I wanted to know what got you so excited. (Hint to others, its some adolescent attemps at inventing sexual acts or something...basic scat and humiliation nonsense, don't bother reading it)

PS I'm posting anonymously so that the moderators wil only have to waste 1 point on my post to get down to the "-1 offtopic" place wich it deserves, however your dammed thread will waste many many more points to get it all out of sight. Seriously, this is not cool.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[JessLeah]

Hehhehheh.. nnnnutsack! He said nutsack! NNNNNNNNNNUTSACK!

Sorry, I come from a very ill family.. my mom and dad and I used to watch (yes, all three of us, together) Beavis and Butt-Head... and South Park too. Like I said... very ill family...

Kind of fitting for the prequels, really.

[SimplyCosmic]

"Too cartoony" is how I personally would describe the way the prequels look, with everything but the actors being generated by computers.

Re:Kind of fitting for the prequels, really.

[Anonymous Coward]

Amen! Saying "George Lucas" in public these days is bad enough! The man ought to retire to his beloved skywalker ranch and raise turkeys! (for eating instead of viewing)

Voice acting

[yerricde]

You don't have to hunt down the perfect actor/actress with the perfect weight, the perfect hair colour, the perfect voice, the perfect skin colour, etc., etc., in animation. You just draw the character the way you want him/her to appear, and there s/he is.

Do you discount the importance of a good voice actor? In some respects, voice acting is harder than traditional stage/screen acting.

Re:Voice acting

[JakiChan]

Do you discount the importance of a good voice actor? In some respects, voice acting is harder than traditional stage/screen acting.

That has been the major problem with dubbed anime in the US...the voice acting has been poor. I think it is primarily that they aren't using good directors. The director for the voice actors makes all the difference, since he's the one who knows what he wants it to sound like.

If the american anime companies tried to get better voice directors instead of having some production person with no experience from their own company do it (which does happen)then maybe the hardcore fans wouldn't be so pro-sub/anti-dub. (Though with DVDs these days it doesn't really make a difference...I have the Region 1 Mononoke disc, and the region 2 Spirited Away disc. Both have Japanese dialog with English subtitles :-)

Umm...different details.

[fireboy1919]

Like making people look like people.

Dexter is roughly the shape of a pill. Dee-dee and her friends have all of her limbs extending from a single point. All legs look like they did in the flintstones - like pipes that have a turn and end with a round stub (the turn is where the feet begin).

Almost nobody has any noses, or the noses look very strange. Also, no one has normal looking hands - very few have thumbs, or a full complement of fingers (10 total). The powerpuff girls have no hands and no feet. Samurai Jack is a little better, but still...there is very little detail in the characters. Jack himself has fingers that are apparently glued together, since they never seem to separate. Also, his four fingers are all the same length, unlike human fingers (his thumb is opposable, they show that when he holds a sword).

I would expect a Star Wars Universe to be much more lifelike since its based upon a live action universe, with, at the very least, five fingers on each hand, and the ability to move them the way humans do, and normally drawn noses. I don't expect that it'll happen because I think it costs more.

Which means really, really bad reviews, I think.

Re:Umm...different details.

[fenix down]

If you're looking for realistic character design, it ain't gonna happen. I'm sure this thing will be closer to Samurai Jack than Dexter, but it's not gonna be like Disney or something. It's cable, they've got the money for either movement or detail. You can have pretty Luke and Han repeating a 4 frame run animation with repeating bulkheads behind them, or you can loose a finger and cheekbone definition and have them do something cool. I think Jack, despite the square finger thing, gets a lot closer to human movement than the Shaggy Trot(TM). I like Jack's design, personally. He's got enough detail to be capable of subtle (beyond happy/sad) expressions, but not so much that emotion become prohibitively expensive.

And since when have critics wasted time reviewing cable cartoon shows? The closest I've seen is the TV Guide having a picture of triangular Superman torso with the caption "Superman hits shit! WB! 2:30PM!"

Re:Umm...different details.

[Scrameustache]

Ah, ok.

That's not "details", that style. : )

The PPG, Samurai jack, Dexter, are all done in a very stylised way. (you explained it all, no need for me to repeat)

They do that because it reduces the time it takes to do a frame (time is money), and for more artistic and less capitalist reasons too.
Since those 3 cartoons were original creations, they were done in an "original" style (well, there are a lot of influences, the special blend is unique at least). For Star Wars I would expect that they would be asked to produce something in a style more closely ressembling that of the established characters (wich they can very well do, look at the Justice Friends characters from Dexter and the PPG, they look a lot like their Marvel inspirations). However, I wouldn't mind if they had the "square hand" look and all, its all in style, just because Star Wars is mostly a live-action product doesn't mean that they need to have photo-realistic drawings in an animated production.

and normally drawn noses

I hope you meant "normally" as in "characters from a race with a nose should have the nose drawn in", not in a "looking like the way I'm used for a nose-drawing to look" way...

Re:Umm...different details.

[chimpo13]

There's nothing "original". Everything is a mix of something else already done. There's just different degrees on where they've got their influences.

Would a bunch of /.ers rather see Justice League Marvel type animation or Powerpuff Girls animation? Wait, is /. even a consideration for what they're aiming at? No, I don't think so. I don't think their intended range is for a bunch of window$ using (while hollering about how great linux is) bunch of geeks.

Man, it's just a cartoon. And based on Genndy Tartakovsky's previous work, I think it'll be good. No John K back in his prime, but still entertaining.

It'll be better than the Christmas special even if they characters are yams with toothpicks poked in them for arms & legs.

Re:Umm...different details.

[n9hmg]

Like making people look like people.
When I read the post, I, like most here, thought of informational details, not how "pretty" it's drawn. Are you one of those people who likes "Gone in Sixty Seconds", AND gets bored by "Citizen Kane"? I'd just as soon have effort expended in plot and spared in the eye candy for the weak-minded.
Once the story's good, sure, go hog wild on the special effects, but first things first.

How many are there?

[fireboy1919]

Not many, really. I can only think of a few, myself.

The Real Ghostbusters comes to mind. That ran for quite some time - several years. Also, Voltron, which was basically a rehash of the old Ultraman movies (they're kind of like Godzilla flicks). MIB has done pretty well as well. Jumanji lasted one or two seasons, which was enough to make money.

Captian Simian and the Spacemonkeys obviously drew its inspiration from the Starwars movies, and that one was on for a while (though you may not have heard about it - it was kind of a small scale cartoon).

Of course, if we open up the category to include series based upon movies, there are a few more, though still not many.

The ever popular Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a shining example of that. And we probably should add Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers, which are really just rehashes of Ultraman mixed with Voltron.

And then there are all of the Spy shows inspired by James Bond: first Get Smart, and then Inspector Gadget, and then young Inspector Gadget (or whatever they called that).

It all comes down to whether or not enough people identify with the ideas in the series to make it work. Just because its live action doesn't mean it doesn't translate into a cartoon or a series.

However, the cartoon or series can't stand upon the concept of the movie to work, just as a sequel can't be a rehash of the first movie and expect that it will do incredibly well (*cough* Home Alone 2 *cough*). It has to have its own new ideas, even if it has the same beloved characters.

Say it ain't so...

[Brendan Byrd]

This series is produced by Genndy Tartakovsky

Nooooooooooo! I'm going to be victimized with cheesy anime-like fight scenes:

Droid
Droid
Droid

Fire
Fire
Fire

Slash
Slash
Slash

no, confirmed

[Anonymous Coward]

I saw it posted on "slashdot", that means it must be true.

What about 'uncle owen'?

[autopr0n]

Yeah, but can you explain why 'uncle owen' didn't recognize the droids? And why the hell wouldn't the droids recognize him or anyone else?

Re:What about 'uncle owen'?

[UserGoogol]

Maybe he did. But he really didn't wanna bring it up because that might lead over to the subject of Anakin.

I mean, you have this droid (C3P0) which your half-brother makes. Then the half-brother comes back with another droid (R2-D2), and C3P0 then leaves with him. (I think. I don't entirely remember what happens to C3P0 at the end of the movie.) Your half-brother then becomes one of the most powerful and evil men in the Galaxy. Then, whaddaya know, the two droids show up together again.

Better have Luke wipe their memories before they start talking about their pasts!

Or you can just assume that they are both pretty common models, and he didn't make the connection. I like the first theory more though, because it adds character.

Re:What about 'uncle owen'?

[Anonymous Coward]

Step-Brother not Half-Brother, they didn't share a common parent, thier parents married.

Roughnecks?

[Anonymous Coward]

I for one think that this series could do very well if it was gone about in a similar manner as Starship Troopers: Roughnecks. Roughnecks was a well done story-arc of the SST universe that gave the viewers an idea of what "day to day combat" was like, and introduced new concepts/characters(Ice Bug in particular) without breaking the main story too much.

If this cartoon were done in a similar manner, say a story-arc of the Clone Wars, it could be equally as good I believe. Just think about it, a chance to see more battles, on different worlds, and see what kind of enemies the Republic faces besides the Droids.

With an idea this tantalizing, I think I'll give Lucas a chance here.

Add that and...

[Botunda]

"The Liea sleep over" and thats some funny shit..

Luke in tights or a robe.. oh wait.

already been done

[Anonymous Coward]

What the hell's the point in doing this? Episodes 1 and 2 are already animated!!

Did I hear anyone say...

[cmburns69]

"StarWars Christmas Special"?

'nuff said!

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Short of the Simpsons

[Anonymous Coward]

every successful American made cartoon aims strictly for the children. Star Wars has a enourmous audience that caters to all ages.

At least it is being handled by the gang from Dexters, PPG, and Samurai Jack so I don't have to worry about some moral at the end of each episode.

Other than that I find it unfortunate that they didn't speak with ADV, Pioneer, Bandai, etc, etc to be made into an anime where a good plot, and believable characters could come to life in a story told over many episodes that connect to each other. Not just jump from one episode to another.

And to the anime nay sayers. If you don't hate cartoons to begin with. There is an anime out there that you would love. It's just a matter of finding it. Trust me.

Animated Cartoon Series as Real-Time?

[antdude]

I have a feeling that this cartoon series is related to this news tip (while we're all waiting for episode 3 movie to be completed) from TheForce.Net's archive:

I work in a bookshop in England. Yesterday our friendly Penguin/Dorling Kindersley rep was in and was going through new books for next year. He showed me the cover for Star Wars - The Worlds of Episode II and told me an interesting story.

Very recently, the head of LucasFilm UK was giving a small presentation to the Penguin Group. She was telling them how Episode III was going to be the biggest thing ever, partly because of it being 'real time'. "You mean, "asked a quizzical rep,"it will only cover 2 hours of Star Wars time?"

No. What she meant was that when Episode III opens in May 2005, the Clone Wars will be just finishing as the film opens. The Clone Wars last for three years. "So the Clone Wars are happening now," she said. Ergo, Episode III takes place exactly three years after AOTC. Cool huh?

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

Sure! Bend over!

Comment removed

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

The sad thing is...

[Guppy06]

"Yeah look what good Ewoks & Droids did for the SW universe ;)"

I suspect that some of the people who worked on the plot and storylines for both episodes 1 and 2 were some of the very same people who wrote for those two shows.

Re:The sad thing is...

[CokoBWare]

You know... having read a LOT of the Expanded Universe, I think we're needlessly comparing apples to shit... there is NO comparison.

The Expanded Universe concept was introduced in the 90's, where the Ewoks and Droids were introduced in the 80's. The current Star Wars novels are on average pretty good, and LucasArts Licensing has done a pretty good job with continuity across the storyline over the years. I certainly hope (as an avid Star Wars fan) that LucasArts Licensing does the series some justice and manages to incorporate enough of the historical mythology of the Star Wars universe before and during the E1 and E2 movies. Please no more winner TV specials either *ugh*!

Ok, just so I don't end up eating my words in 6 months from now...

Dear LucasArts and Mr. Lucas,

Please don't screw up this new animated series. Most of your Star Wars video games until recently have sucked, and your animated series from the past have sucked too. Don't forget your awful TV specials either. Your books are good, and your last two movies have been passable as entertainment. Please don't add this new animated series to the pile of Star Wars material that sucks monkey bobo.

Your fan,

CokoBWare

P.S.: If you all screw this up, I will personally hire a clone of Jango Fett and have him unleash a can of whoopass on all of you.

Re:Legendary sexual manouevres and tricks

[Anonymous Coward]

you've obviously dont watch porno, i have tons of CDs with pornos doing almost everything in that list, and more

Tartovsky?

[Anonymous Coward]

Any relation to the revered Soviet director? Doing cartoons?

I don't think so....

[Anonymous Coward]

...not unless they can find a slave outfit to fit her unborn fetus.

Damn! You're one sick dude.

Two cents and in for a pound. . .

[Fantastic Lad]

I love animation.

But it's only as good as the scripting. And because this is a less important project than the big films, perhaps, PERHAPS, a good writer or two will sneak in under the radar and do something which has apparently become of late truly offensive; A good bit of story telling.

I hope they go for high-end dramatic realism with proper pacing; for all those kids who haven't burned out their attention spans on video games, MTV and E. --The last couple of Harry Potter films, though by no means land-mark works, were still pretty damned good considering. And they were both LONG! --Which just goes to show that slowing things down will not annoy the younger set, and certainly won't annoy the older viewers.

My recommendation to the studio: "You have an opportunity to make good. Please don't blow it."

-Fantastic Lad

Off topic.

[crashnbur]

I hate it when I read news on Slashdot that I heard about days before. Slashdot, in my opinion and because of its millions of "reporters", is supposed to find all the cool news no longer than forty-five minutes after it breaks! Why the dealy on so many good news articles?

Better to do New Jedi Order

[nedron]

Cartoon Network would have been better off to contract for something set in the New Jedi Order period, where everything has fallen apart, the New Republic has basically collapsed, the Star Wars galaxy is being invaded by a seemingly unstoppable new alien race, major characters in the Star Wars universe are killed, etc., etc.

Of course, that would be adult anime, not childrens' cartoons which are better suited to the new pre-episode IV world of pablum.

An unfortunate lack of manners.

[watchful.babbler]

But really, who the hell cares about this kiddie crap?

Judging by the traffic on this story, quite a few people.

Just because you neither share nor even understand their interests doesn't make your post any less rude. Although I'm not particularly interested in either Star Wars or cartoons, it would be uncivil for me to simply barge around like the proverbial bull, accusing those who are of being "childish." Nonetheless, to judge by your post -- and its snide insinuation that many of the posters to Slashdot are, unlike you, incapable of caring for themselves -- civility is not a priority of yours. Unfortunate.

Move that stale Merchandise

[NetNinja]

If it gets rid of the whole aisle of action figures from the toy section in Wallmart. I am all for it!

You haven't seen the Holiday Special, have you?

[SaraSmith]

*shudders*

Re:You haven't seen the Holiday Special, have you?

[mofolotopo]

Ok, good point.

MOD PARENT UP!

[grendelkhan]

If I had mod points, you, sir, would have them all.

I thank God that I was not drinking as I read this, all I can picture is Mojo Jojo wearing a Vader mask. And pulling it all off without seeming out of place.

How about NO

[tomkit]

I would not like to see a Star Wars animated series. One of the appealing aspects of Star Wars is that it is something we take semi-seriously. When you watch a Star Wars movie, you are indulged in the world and it's physics and rules seem to be second-reality. If they create an animated series with slapdash plots and create superficial characters, it destroys the sense of a real Star Wars universe that George Lucas and his movies try to create. The extensions of the Star Wars universe thusfar have taken the Star Wars universe seriouesly, e.g. the independently written Star Wars books are rich in detail and try to remain undeviated from George Lucas' universe. These authors go through extensive research to write one of these books that carefully expands the Star Wars realm. I do not think that an animated series will continue this precedent. Instead, it will, with a simple stroke, destroy all that has been created.

Done deal? Sure it is.

[Anonymous Coward]

Anyone that reads AICN frequently knows that "done deals" are reported almost daily, and less than half of them ever materialize. Harry Knowles publishes twice as much disinformation as he does scoops. He's either a mark or a whore, and either way you'd be a fool to consider his site useful for anything other than laughs.

Oh, and why would anybody believe that Lord Lucas the Tyrant would ever allow a low-tech, terrible animator like Tartaovsky to even come within a mile of his baby? This is the guy that's obsessed with the bleeding edge of EVERYTHING. This story is false. If it's true, I'll eat my hat and post pics. And I mean a leather hat, not a delicious chocolate hat or a hat made of scrumptious truffles or anything like that.

Why ILM just squeaks by

[Galvatron]

Don't underestimate Lucas's ego. After all, he puts his businesses at a tremendous competitive disadvantage by locating where he does. He likes to have everything right there, he likes having his own little private empire. The downside is that it's a pain in the ass having an effects studio located in the SF bay area, rather than down in LA where the movies actually get made.

Nowadays, of course, distance is a bit less of a problem. Movies are shot all over the world, whereas they used to be done almost exclusively in Hollywood backlots. Had it not been for the unprecedented success of the original trilogy though, ILM never would have made it off the ground.

I do agree, absolutely, that money is not Lucas's concern. However, those below him in the power structure most certainly do care about the money. Since Lucas probably does not micromanage the promotional material and licenses, that may be where some of the "moneygrubbing" accusations come from.

I am drinking

[sirshannon]

and that Mojo Vader post was the best
post
ever.

are you serious?

[sirshannon]

I hope you're not.
IF (capitolized on purpose) Lucas was actually re-releasing those films for the reasons you listed, then the HORRID Taun-taun (Tawn-tanwn?) in Empire would have been replaced (you know the one I mean) and Greedo would not have shot first, and that black thing on the emperor's cowl in the climax of Jedi would have been fixed.

Those things are all the evidence I need to say that money was all he was worried about.

Re:are you serious?

[fpp]

I'm quite serious.

Yes, there are other problems in the trilogy that could have been fixed (for instance, in the fixed up Star Wars, there was STILL a scene where Vader's lightsabre was white, instead of red...why the hell didn't he fix that?), but apparently Lucas didn't agree with you that the Tauntaun scene was bad. I happen to think it looks pretty good, considering the technology they had available at the time.

The Greedo modification scene was a travesty, I agree, but Lucas is free to change things however he wishes.

Just because you think Lucas didn't fix ENOUGH flaws doesn't mean he was out to make a quick buck. At first, he just wanted to fix up the first movie. He overhauled Empire and Jedi much later in the production schedule, therefore he had much less time to work on those films.

As for the money issue, look at my second posting. Lucas just isn't the money grubbing evil man people make him out to be.

Spaceballs the Toilet Paper!

[cosyne]

You laugh. Try "Starwars the 70's Custom Van!" I shit you not.

Phasers on stun

[A55M0NKEY]

A jedi invasion of TV Land has begun. We must neutralize this threat before the borg assimilate them and all is lost.. Shma Shma Shmaa...

Well, George Lucas is a capitalist running dog

[peter]

> then again the capitalist in him might prevail

Apparently, all of star wars was designed to make buckets of money. Interestingly, it's still fun to watch, so I guess Lucas has some kind of talent :)

"I'm going to make five times as much money as Francis [Ford Coppola] on these science- ficton toys and I won't have to make The Godfather," he boasted to cult filmmaker John Milius. "I've made what I consider the most conventional kind of movie I can possibly make."

Re:Well, George Lucas is a capitalist running dog

[NoodleSlayer]

I'd believe it.

Cannonical, apocryphal, whatever

[Enocasiones]

With all the talk about the "canon", I can picture the archaelogists of the 30th century quite surprised when they find a "Project Time" bag enclosing a video tape depicting His Fallen Lord Faeder and His Son Lucca (or a teen Angel Solo?) as stylized cartoons. They will be known as the Apocryphal Vids.

I still don't buy it.

[sirshannon]

Lucas: "wow, there are a lot of bad scenes in these movies. A lot of mistakes I can fix. A lot of mess I can clean up.
Or I can add a bunch of ewoks, a couple dance numbers, some dewbacks and a few ships!"

If he wanted to "fix" things, he would have done so instead of adding more crap instead. Adding crap took precident over fixing problems to the point where fixing problems can not be his goal.

Re:I still don't buy it.

[fpp]

Perhaps what you define as crap is just the kind of thing he likes. His goal was to fix those things which HE THOUGHT WERE BAD, not what you thought, and to add some things which HE THOUGHT ADDED to the movies, not what you thought. Lucas: "Well, I fixed some things, and added some things. Now, I'm happy to bring the films closer to my original vision." You: "He didn't fix anything, and those added scenes are garbage! He must be in it for the money!" That's quite a logic flaw.

Last Post!

[alpg]

At first sight, the idea of any rules or principles being superimposed on
the creative mind seems more likely to hinder than to help, but this is
quite untrue in practice. Disciplined thinking focuses inspiration rather
than blinkers it.
-- G.L. Glegg, "The Design of Design"

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