Another Disturbance in the Force

As I suspected, Episode VII will be an original story, not an adaptation of the Thrawn Trilogy from the expanded universe. This has fans of the expanded universe going through another round of conniptions before they're even done with the one they had upon learning that Disney was taking over.

Anyone paying attention should know that the Thrawn Trilogy hasn't been a real option for well over a decade now. For one thing, the books feature Luke, Han and Leia. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, and Carrie Fisher are simply too old to reprise those roles, and no sane person would want to see other actors in them, at least not in the role of Han Solo.

Speculation is now rampant that the movie will somehow "fill in the gaps" left by the Thrawn Trilogy. I'm afraid there are going to be a lot of fans of the expanded universe up for a great deal of disappointment. Disney isn't going to pay any attention to the Thrawn Trilogy when they make Episode VII, and here's why:

Disney isn't going to make the mistake of trying to introduce story elements that don't actually take place on screen. They are going to create an original story that references the previous movies, and that's it. They won't go out of their way to destroy expanded universe canon, but they will make no special effort to avoid doing so either, because that would get in the way of making the best movie possible.

Disney Wars

I think just about every geek in the world has already heard about Disney buying Lucasfilm. It seems like 90% of them are hating it, and I'm not sure I understand why.

Now, if this had happened back in 1997 I'd be one of the people leading in the weeping and gnashing of teeth over this, but at this point the franchise is pretty much dead to me anyway. The worst that Disney could do to it would be to completely fail to revive it, which would essentially leave it in the exact same position as it is now under Lucas.

Of course, there will be the inevitable crossovers with Mickey Mouse wielding a lightsaber, but let's face it, George just approved a Star Wars/Angry Birds crossover, so even that is a step up from what we have now.

Disney also has a decent track record when it comes to managing their big acquisitions. They're certainly a lot better than EA is when it comes to that kind of thing. Although Pixar may not be quite the same studio under Disney that it was when it was independent, Disney hasn't ruined it, and the Marvel purchase led to the Avengers movie!

The only real concern I have over the deal is what's in the fine print in regards to current licenses. I'm particularly concerned over what it might mean for the future of the Fantasy Flight Games license. While I still have some concerns over how the RPG is going to turn out, I'd at least like to get a chance to see the finished product. I'd also like to see at least a few more releases for the X-Wing miniatures game.

So, overall, I'm actually mildly optimistic about what this might hold for the future of Star Wars. If it turns out I'm wrong and Disney is just as bad at managing the franchise as Lucas has been, then we're really just back to the status quo.

Mobile Frame Zero Update

Still waiting on the final version of the rules, but I did get the Mobile Frame Garage kit that formed the bulk of my Kickstarter pledge, and I wanted to show what could be done with it. I probably paid significantly more than I would have if I'd put the order together myself on Bricklink, or even Pick-A-Brick. Still, even though I am now more familiar with putting together orders on Pick-A-Brick, I'm happy that I had this one put together for me.

It's taken me a few days to figure out just what I can do with the parts in the kit. The kit lets you make five basic frames for whichever of the three factions in the game you want to play. Just to be clear, you can only have five mecha build at a time, because the different designs share parts.

The three options are Chubs for the Solar Union, Scramblers for the Ijad, or Hi-Legs for the Free Colonies. You do not get the parts needed to make variants or alternate mecha like the leader version of the Hi-Leg, the artillery version of the Scrambler, or the Free Colonies Commisar and Conscript mecha. You just get what is needed to put together the basic frames, but that will give you a good starting force for any of the factions.

I believe everything in the garage is available through Pick-A-Brick. Unfortunately, the red sloped brick seen in the pics is the only color that particular brick is available in through Pick-A-Brick. That's why the Chubs I put together before use an alternate front piece. This is also probably the reason I will eventually place my first Brinklink order as I'd really like to get the piece in some alternate colors.

I'm really psyched to now have the ability to be able to field a basic Ijad or Free Colonies force against the Chubs I already have. It's also good that I now have the ability to field enough mecha for a three-way, or possibly even a four-way, conflict as I really want to try out this system with more than two players at some point.