Archived News and Website Updates 2007

(The former has titles, the latter doesn't)

12/31/07 Celebrate the new year...

...with Darth Bane: Rule of Two, which came out on Wednesday. Great read! Also, head to the comic shop and grab the final Clone Wars Adventures #10, Dark Times #7 and KOTOR #24.  This site will see some changes in the new year by finally splitting into its respective domains. www.timelineuniverse.net will still be the umbrella site under which all the other timelines will fall, but from here on in, www.starwarstimeline.net will forward to the main page on the Star Wars portion of the site, whereas www.oztimeline.net will forward to the main page on the Oz portion of the site, and www.xfilestimeline.net will forward to the main page on the X-Files portion of the site. 

Makes a lot more sense that way.  This Latest News page also officially becomes the Star Wars news page, as each of the other sites either have or will have their own 'latest news' pages, as is appropriate. With a new X-Files film coming out in late July, new Oz projects and books always on the horizon, and Star Wars constantly producing new titles, including the upcoming multimedia project and two new TV shows, it's only fair that each universe have its own news page.

12/31/07 Added entries and cover images for KOTOR #23-24, Dark Times #7 and Clone Wars Adventures #10, and Darth Bane: Rule of Two, which I'll be expanding as I did with Path of Destruction to show how it's structured alongside Jedi vs. Sith.

Also, redirected the domain names: www.starwarstimeline.net, www.oztimeline.net and www.xfilestimeline.net to their appropriate main pages. www.Timelineuniverse.net remains the umbrella page, but each site now feels more independent and individual. The Latest News page is now officially a Star Wars news page and the X-Files portion of the site will be getting its own in the coming days. (The Royal Timeline of Oz already has its own news page.)

12/14/07 Added a cover image and entry for Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force, a wonderful and wonderfully illustrated new book from Ryder Windham that's pretty darned comprehensive! I will eventually break the book down into the individual sections and flashbacks that belong to each of the different time periods, in fact I look forward to that. And Ryder was kind enough to provide the exact dates for us timeliners! Right now, however, I'm in the middle of a project that I hope to have finished by the end of December, beginning of January. More on that as the days move forward.

12/7/07 Force Unveiled

The Official Site just released the cover of the upcoming Sean Williams novelization of The Force Unleashed, the big multimedia event of 2008 which will feature a next-gen video-game from LucasArts, a graphic-novel from Dark Horse Comics and lots of toys and action figures. Should be fun! Best part is that no fan is left behind. Those who don't play the video games for various reasons will be able to enjoy the story, and those who do play will have a chance to see the "canon" events revealed. It's a good move on LFL's part and a nice way to continue the 30th anniversary of Star Wars (which runs from May '07 to May '08), not to mention usher in the next generation of Star Wars via the television shows, the first of which is the Clone Wars 3D animation series which will debut in the fall of 2008.

12/5/07 New Star Wars in Theaters?

Leaked news from a VIP Hasbro meeting seems to indicate that on 8/8/08, the Star Wars Clone Wars animation series (which they're saying is so unlike any animation we've seen before they're calling it "cinemation") will launch in theaters before coming to television!  Yes, this is big news. No confirmation from Lucasfilm as of yet, other than to say it's one of the options they're exploring.

SW Comic Two-Packs

Marvel SW fans rejoice! Fenn Shysa and Tobbi Dala are at long last being released in a comic-two pack!  This will be as part of the third wave: Fenn Shysa will be packaged with Dengar; and Tobbi Dala with Princess Leia!  Happy news indeed!!

11/27/07 The Fury of Solo!

The new paperback in the Legacy of the Force series, Fury, is out today! By Aaron Allston, here's the back cover blurb (minus spoilers): "Fighting alongside the Corellian rebels, Han and Leia are locked in a war against their son, who grows more dangerous with each passing day. Nothing can stop his determination to bring peace with a glorious Galactic Alliance victory–whatever the price."

This is the seventh book in a nine-book saga. If you haven't caught up yet, there's still time. The saga begins with Betrayal.

11/19/07 Added covers for KOTOR #22 and the handbook and Legacy #14-17. Also, based on Cindel's revealed birthdate (on her databank entry on the Official Site) I've adjusted the time of her adventures on Endor (in both Ewok films) to 3 ABY.

11/07/07 Made some cosmetic changes to the link bars on the site.  Mesa liken it!  You'll notice I changed the upper left corner with a FAR cooler image, IMO, one of my favorites actually (that just happened to fit the right dimensions!) 

10/30/07 From the Producer's Mouth

Recently at the French Star Wars convention (Reunion 2), Star Wars producer Rick McCallum shined some light on the future of Star Wars:

The Live-Action series:

• Boba Fett will definitely be in it.  McCallum is hoping to get Daniel Logan (who played Fett in Episode II) for the part, which knowing what a fan Logan is of the universe and of the character, consider that done! 

• As has been said before, expect at least 100 episodes.  If the series is successful, McCallum is hoping to extend that to 400 (which may include spin-off series)!

• Also, the cast will be all new characters and minor ones from the films, but no EU characters just yet. However, if the show is successful, we can expect EU characters to start showing up.

• Six screenwriters have been hired.  They'll begin writing in November.

• McCallum wants John Williams onboard.  He also wants a new score for each episode!  We'll await with baited breath for further news on this front!

The Star Wars Saga Box set:

• Finally, some official word on this: McCallum says they are going to wait for the HD format wars to end and see who the victor is: Sony-Blu Ray or HD-DVD.  This seems to point to the fact there won't be a standard definition release prior to a high-definition one (and if there is standard-def release it'll be along with the high def one.)

• They are planning ... get this: 100 hours (that's right: one hundred hours) of documentary footage for all six films!  That is amazing!!  That's over 16 hours of documentaries for each film!

No confirmation yet on any changes Lucas is making to the films (beyond Yoda in TPM which we all know about), deleted scenes, bloopers or any of that, but the documentaries are without a doubt a big step in the right direction and certainly more than most fans were hoping for or imagining.  And still no word on the animated Droids or Ewoks box sets!  But that might be an announcement they're saving for next year.

10/28/07 Servers were down yesterday as Successfulhosting.com moved to a larger facility.  Apologies to anyone trying to access the site during that time.

10/27/07 Added covers of KOTOR #19-21, Dark Times #5-6 and Clone Wars Adventures #9.

10/18/07 Just a Friendly Reminder

In the wake of such vicious and heinous cruelty that we seem to see daily on the news (and so much that we don't see), let's not forget to do whatever small share we can to alleviate the suffering of our animal brethren abroad. So click on the purple button on the right (and when you get to the site, click it there) which means free food to animals in shelters for every daily click. It only takes a moment, so make it a daily habit.  Thanks!

10/16/07 Live Action TV Show

At long last, some news (or strong gossip at this point) on the upcoming 2009/2010 live-action Star Wars TV series. Some spoilers, but nothing too revealing. You can find the full story at aintitcoolnews.com.  The short version:

• The TV show will embrace the scope of the films, the politics, events and even places.

• We'll see Rebel bases and Star Destroyers. Imperials will be everywhere. But not everyone will be entirely good or evil and undercover operatives will be at work.

• The EU will be represented! Thall Joben from the Droids cartoons will be a podracer that we meet! We may also get to meet the father of Kyp Durron (from the Jedi Academy Trilogy as well as later books.)

• We may also meet a relative of Padme's and it seems pretty certain that Boba Fett will appear (with vague hints of other Mandalorians.) Also, there may be a relative of Baron Papanoida, the Lucas cameo in ROTS, in General Papanoida. We'll see Bib Fortuna and Oola as well.

• The characters will be more nuanced as the focus will be on character development, more so than the films were able to be.

• Action and excitement will abound as the films will mimic the spirit of the Original Trilogy, only edgier.

• The Death Star plans may be featured (which is interesting to note as the novel on the subject comes out today!)

All in all, some interesting news to get fans salivating for the series! I think it's great that they're continuing to embrace the EU. Rick McCullum had said recently that they were thinking of hiring writers that had worked on some of the books and comics, so that's a major step in the right direction.

9/25/07 Added the cover for the fourth Shadows of the Empire mini-comic, which came in the mail today, and surprise of surprises... it's a completely new comic.  Where the other three mini-comics have a script by Ryder Windham and artwork by Bill Hughes, the fourth one with Luke, Xixor and Fett on the cover has a script by John Wagner and is illustrated by Ron Randall, and it's exclusive to this rare mini-comic.  The story covers the time from the Boba Fett's departure on Gall to Luke's departure on Tatooine in the 16th chapter of the Shadows of the Empire novel.  Pretty cool, but a very rare item.  Your best bet in finding this may be to track down the original AMT/ERTL model kit  it came packaged with (which was included in the Return of the Jedi Millennium Falcon and the "Encounter with Yoda on Dagobah" set and possibly others.)  Look for the sticker on top of the box advertising the Shadows of the Empire comic inside.

9/20/07 The TV Shows Lucas Watches

TV Guide has a really good interview with George Lucas discussing his two upcoming shows, the animated Clone Wars and the as-yet unnamed live-action show.  Lucas clarifies some things that will make fans happy.  You can check it out here.  Some of the highlights include confirmation of the fact that Clone Wars will be 100 episodes (they're almost half-way there now) and it's currently being shopped around.  Lucas feels that because it's neither off-color "adult" humor or kiddie stuff, the networks don't know how to market it (real geniuses, aren't they?!)  So it's a PG-13 show.  That's pretty cool!  And as for the live-action show, same kinda deal: 100 episodes, produced beforehand and shopped around.  Lucas talks about how this show will allow him to explore his universe in a way that he couldn't with the films b/c they were primarily about Darth Vader and his story.  And here's a quote regarding that latter series that's pretty exciting for SW fans: "conceptually, it's so much more interesting than anything I've ever done before."  Now THAT'S saying a lot!  Lucas goes on to talk about some of his favorite shows and his annoyance that Rome was cancelled.  Good stuff all around.  Also too you'll notice just how excited Lucas is in general about both of his upcoming series.  These aren't just money-making schemes; you can tell he's totally into these and is enjoying himself!  As has been said before, Star Wars is not only NOT dead; it's just coming to life (and in a whole new way)!

9/19/07 The year 32 BBY wherein the events up to and including The Phantom Menace is going through a major overhaul to more accurately reflect what story goes where.  This includes breaking up the novelization a bit since it contains some EU material that's been adapted in comics and other sources.  Because the Scholastic and Dark Horse adaptations are directly from the film, I don't see the need to break those up into chapters, although I will consider it over the course of the next few days.  This may be the start of an entire overhaul for how the films and their ancillary and supplementary sources are handled on this timeline.  Obviously, I don't want it to get to the point of ridiculousness.  I don't think even the most ardent fan of chronology is served by pausing the film at various intervals throughout in order to jump into this book or that graphic novel.  But where the novelization is considered, I think a chapter-breakdown to allow room for other stories which take place in-between chapters (or even pages if needed) may be a nice balance point.  We'll see how it goes...

**Update: Well, it seems The Phantom Menace era is done.  I may yet split up the the Scholastic young readers adaptation (although I think I'll leave the Manga adaptation as is).  So far I like what I see...

9/16/07 The Rise and Fall...

...of release dates!  Head to your bookstores: Both The Rise and Fall of Darth Vader and The Last of the Jedi #8 are out now (at least in NY)!!

9/13/07 The New Rule!

The upcoming sequel to Darth Bane: Path of Destruction now has a cover (as displayed on the Random House website), and what a weird one it is!  I love it! Check out Rain/Darth Zannah!  Apparently she's all grown-up, and she's adopted the double-lightsaber first wielded by Exar Kun!  Can't wait for this one!

 Darth Bane: Rule of Two should be hitting bookstores on December 26th!

9/10/07 Dark Horse Announces New Title

Though not much information has yet been given, Dark Horse announced a new Star Wars ... series?  mini-series?  graphic novel?  Whatever it is, it's called Vector, and the main character from it (a new character) will purportedly crossover to each of the other four Dark Horse series, apparently from the KOTOR series (set roughly 3900 BBY) to the Legacy series (set 137 years after A New Hope.)  John Jackson Miller and John Ostrander will be the head writers on the series which is being described like the Civil War.  More info as it comes up...

9/10/07 I've rewritten and expanded my essay "On Swamp Thing" to better express my feelings toward the first two series, its triumphs and flaws, and the mockery that came later.  You can check that out here.

8/26/07 Sue Speaks Out!

There's a nice interview with executive editor for Lucasfilm Licensing Sue Rostoni over at www.theeucantinaforums.com. You can find it here.  You'll also find another interview with her and the creative minds behind the Legacy of the Force authors in the upcoming novel Inferno due out this Tuesday!

8/24/07 Some of you may be wondering why I haven't been posting the minor updates I've been making on a nearly day-to-day basis.  No real answer other than lack of time and frequency of the updates.  As I go through the timeline chronologically, I've been noticing and correcting minor mistakes and tweaking things for improved accuracy.  Others have helped in this regard (a big shout-out to you guys at the Dark Horse Boards!) and it's appreciated!  But for the most part, these haven't been earth-shattering changes.  I'll try and record them here if I feel they're significant enough or if you tell me you really want to know every time anything on the timeline changes.  I am planning on putting up a Jude Watson timeline so that you guys can see how we come to the conclusions we do about the dates.  But more on this later.

8/9/07 Minor tweaks all week long, particularly to the Rise of the Empire era and the Jedi Apprentice series of books.

8/3/07 Marvel Star Wars Action Figure

The very first action figure from the EU of the Marvel series (as opposed to just the movie adaptations) is exclusively hitting the Walmart shelves on October 1st.  From issue #81: Jawas of Doom: Boba Fett (with Sarlacc slime and a Death Star droid.)  Some of you might remember that Fett first escaped the Sarlacc soon after the end of Return of the Jedi in this issue.  He ended right back into it when he got trapped in an out-of-control sandcrawler (only to have a much more difficult time escaping the second time.)  This is exciting news and hopefully the first of many Marvel Star Wars characters to debut in the Hasbro line.  Let's hope we start getting some characters exclusive to the line (Lumiya, Jaxxon, Flint (in Sith armor), Dani the Zeltron and Den the Nagai would be great to see one day!)  Also expect on October 1st some troops (Commander Keller and Galactic Marine to be more specific) from the Dark Horse series Republic.

7/30/07 And that's why you don't spread rumors!

As some of you are aware, contrary to rumors the San Diego Comic Con produced no news on the upcoming Ultimate Star Wars DVD box set, much to the chagrin of those of us who've been anxiously awaiting some glimmerings of this.  And no, the Lego Star Wars Saga and Indiana Jones video games are no damn substitute, not even close, thank you very much!  Ok, so we continue wait.  But it is starting to look like the 30th anniversary will pass without a release.  Maybe next year?  We can hope.  For all of you annoyed by this and wondering why Lucas and LFL are suddenly so gunshy about releasing a new box set, you can thank that faction of online fandom; you know them as the loud-mouth, vitriolic so-called purists out there who constantly complain that Lucas is greedy and raping them every time a new video or DVD was released.  That's always the way: the rest of us suffer because of the idiots and jackasses out there.  If there's one thing we can thank the Prequels for, it's getting rid of a nice chunk of those losers.  Let's hope the upcoming TV series don't bring them back (or a whole bunch of new ones in!)  Signing off.

7/27/07 Gossip...

I don't normally post rumors, but as this is pertinent to news I've posted on this site and which many of you are interested in, here goes: The word around town is that Lucasfilm has a special surprise in store for those of you attending the San Diego Comic-Com.  Despite evidence to the contrary, there may be an announcement that the long-awaited "Ultimate" Star Wars Saga DVD Box Set may be released this year after all!!  Remember, this is only a rumor, but the weekend is upon us and we'll find out for sure in a day or so. 

A lot of us have been awaiting a box set of new editions of the films for some time.  We know Lucas redid Yoda from The Phantom Menace for just such a release, and there's been speculation and rumors about extended editions for some time. What many would really like to see is what they're doing with the upcoming Blade Runner Final Cut, and that is a release of several different editions: a two-disc set with the new Final Cut and a new documentary for casual fans; a four-disc set with everything from the two-disc, plus 3 additional versions of the film (the original theatrical, the international version and the '92 Director's Cut), and finally an ultimate 5-disc version in a special case which includes everything from the previous versions plus a rare "workprint" version packaged with all kinds of neat stuff for fans (check this page out for further details.)  Could you imagine a Star Wars set like the latter one! 

Personally, I must admit that my main interest lies in whatever new editions he may have cooked up in the editing room.  There is a lot of deleted footage from all six films (some finished, some unfinished that would need work) which could be presented either as a separate "Deleted Scenes" section or within the body of the film itself.  Hopefully we'll find out exactly what's in store for us in the next few days.  With the 30th Anniversary this year and really not much happening in a big way now that Celebration IV and Celebration Europe is behind us and The Force Unleashed multimedia event has been pushed to 2008, a huge box set release would be just what the doctor ordered. 

I also think too that from a marketing standpoint, it's the right time.  With the HD/Blu-Ray format war waging (and some say coming to a swift end in favor of Blu-Ray), we may see players dropping considerably in price and people starting to gravitate towards the high-definition format.  What that means is that by next year more and more of the movie-buying audience will begin clamoring for high-definition releases, and even more the following year.  So, if LFL is going to do a big (and likely expensive) standard-def DVD set, now would be the time. 

7/26/07 Finally sorted out how the comics Purge and the first story-arch of Dark Times fit into the scheme of the Dark Lord novel.  They're all set just before Part II in the book.  Sorry for any prior confusion...  Check it out at 19 BBY in Rise of the Empire or History.  Update: Changed again.  Clearly I have trouble counting.  The war the Jedi fight against the Mandalorians (as shown in flashback to Open Seasons #3 takes place at 34 BBY.)

7/16/07 Rick McCallum at Celebration Europe

Listen to the full audio program here.  Otherwise, here are the highlights from Star Wars producer Rick McCallum yesterday at Celebration Europe:

• Expect all six Star Wars films to begin the process of being made into 3D in 2009 when Cameron's film Avatar is released in 3D.  Expect Peter Jackson to also do the Lord of the Rings Trilogy in 3D as well.  (Note: this is a new 3D technology that is nothing like the 1950's version and is said to be truly amazing.)

• Lucas and McCallum are traveling the world looking for writers for the upcoming live-action TV series. The pair are also considering using writers from the books and comics of the EU.  If everything "goes right" we might be seeing 400 episodes that go on for years and additional concurrent series!  They're going to use the technology that's been developed to make each episode look like a feature film.  They should begin casting in June of next year and conceptual artists have already been working on it for a few months.  McCallum reasserted that this is going to be a darker, character-based series.

• Lucas has shot about 15 episodes of the upcoming Clone Wars 3D animated series.  You can find the new trailer for this series (which debuted at Celebration Europe) here.

• Young Indiana Jones Volume 1 (of 3) will debut on October 13th with the following one in January and the final one shortly after the release of Indy IV in theaters.  They've filmed 100 documentaries to go with each episode of the series.

Update: One further bit of news not available in the audio: The Star Wars films will not be released in High Definition until a clear winner has emerged in the format war.  Interesting news indeed!

7/13/07 Minor updates the last few days.  Each day I'm trying to add at least two sourcebooks or RPG adventures from West End Games (or Wizards of the Coast) to the timeline.  Some of these come in the form of very short stories (some no more than a paragraph) others in the form of adventure seeds; still others are just new character bios.  I've tried to place each where appropriate: stories dealing with the main characters, locales or ongoing story in the main section, adventures in the new RPG sections and short stories with no recognizable people or places in the "Circa" sections.

7/10/07 Added title of upcoming Last of the Jedi novella (due in August): Against the Empire!

7/9/07 More changes.  Added new Adventure Journal page and #17.  Dark Horse members continue to help make this timeline more accurate, this time the padawan Clone Wars!  Added some flashbacks in the Rise of the Empire era.  Added a detailed chronology of how Jedi vs. Sith lines up with Darth Bane: Path of Destruction.

7/8/07 More Official Star Wars Adventure Journal

Issue #17 is now online.  This is a far more abbreviated issue as only four main stories exist.  You can check it out starting here.

6/27/07 Thanks to Korod Vos on the DH boards, I made some changes to better reflect the accuracy of the original sources.  "Yaddle's Tale: The One Below" (from Tales #5) is now at 42 BBY with the flasback at circa 300-100 BBY.  The flashback in "Vow of Justice" from Prelude to Rebellion is at 88 BBY.  The flashback in Prelude to Rebellion #0 has been placed at 74 BBY.  The flashback in Aurra's Song is now at 36 BBY, with the frame story at Circa 30-23 BBY.

6/26/07 More fiction from West End Games sourcebook, this time the Movie Trilogy Sourcebook scattered throughout the Era of Rebellion.  I also broke up the Darklighter story-arch to better reflect when certain sections take place and when the old "Mutiny on the Rand Ecliptic" short story might fit in.  It's not a pretty fit, however, as the author of Darklighter didn't take that story into account (save to utilize Captain Heliesk) and there are several elements that could use some retcon glue.  Also added the Gamer article, "Starhoppers of Aduba 3" (2 ABY).  Don't ask me how I missed this one initially as it's a favorite topic of mine!  Update: Added some entries from the Shadows of the Empire Sourcebook.

6/24/07 Added short fiction pieces from The Star Wars Sourcebook to the Rebellion (0-2 ABY) and Rise of the Empire (2-0 BBY) eras.  Update: Added fiction pieces from the Imperial Sourcebook and Rebel Alliance Sourcebook.

6/17/07 More Dark Lords...

It appears that in place of the cancelled Darth Plagueis novel, there will be a sequel to Drew Karpyshyn's Darth Bane: Path of Destruction!  Good news indeed!  Fans can expect this book at the end of this year according to the Random House site, which is listing it at 12/26/07!

Update: For those interested in seeing how the comic book series (and trade paperback) Jedi vs. Sith (which the author based his novel on) meshes chronologically with the Darth Bane: Path of Destruction book, click here.

6/14/07 Added cover images of Dark Times #3, KOTOR #15-17, Clone Wars Adventures #8, Legacy #11-13, Rebellion #6-7.

6/7/07 Shifted The Bounty Hunters Wars into more accurate positions in the Era of Rebellion.  Added Empire at War to Infinities.  Added "The Ordeal of Boba Fett" to the 4 ABY in the Era of Rebellion page.  Also added fiction portions of the Dark Empire Sourcebook to The New Republic page.  Added fiction portions of the Jedi Academy Sourcebook to The New Republic page.

6/6/07 Added covers for KOTOR #14-16.

5/30/07 Added Rogue Squadron video game trilogy to the Infinities section (0-3/0-4).  Added covers of the game boxes.

5/27/07 CLONE WARS TRAILER!

This thing looks unbelievably good!!  Forget anything Tartakovsky did, this trailer is full blown amazing 3D animated action that looks and sounds like an extension of the films!  Wow!  Check it out here!  And kudos to everyone involved.  This show is going to kick some serious butt when it debuts in 2008!!

Another video worth watching on that same page is the documentary for Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.  There's lots of clips of the game, its designers and the story behind how Lucas had a lot of input into the concept.  The Force Unleashed will debut in 2008 for the Playstation 360, but non-gamers can rejoice that there will also be a book and graphic novel to accompany it!

Finally, let's also not fail to mention that the redesigned Official Site looks great!

5/25/07 C4 News...

...comes trickling in.  First bit: Book 9, the last novel in the Legacy of the Force series will be called Invincible.  And don't forget that Book 5: Sacrifice comes out in four days! 

5/25/07 30 Years Ago Today...

...the original Star Wars film debuted in theaters across the United States.  For an entire generation of young people who loved and continue to love the saga that may be a little hard to wrap your head around.  It's a milestone for the film and a tribute to the enduring success of the franchise, the fans and the visionary who created it all!  Happy Anniversary Star Wars and many more to come!

5/16/07 Star Wars History...

...coming to TV on the History Channel.  A very unique and fascinating documentary is going to debut this month on the 29th that's well worth checking out at 9:00:

Monday, May 28, 2007

8-9pm -- Star Wars Tech -
Take a look at the technology shown throughout the six Star Wars films and examine their viability through the eyes of cold hard science. Could a Death Star really be built? Can you build an army of clones? What is 3-D imaging, and where the can you get a Light Saber? Travel to a galaxy far, far away to answer all of these questions and more.

9-11pm -- Star Wars: The Legacy Revealed -
The story of Anakin Skywalker's descent into darkness and his son Luke's quest to conquer evil has spellbound audiences for 30 years. The reason for this is simple: the saga of Star Wars is universal and firmly rooted in the mythology and the political history of the entire planet. May 2007 will mark the 30th anniversary of George Lucas' space fantasy that grossed billions worldwide. For the first time take a profound look at the serious subtext behind Lucas' six film milestone. The influence of ancient mythology from Greek legends to King Arthur is visible; but also more recent historical influences, from the political rise of Napoleon to the machinations of Adolf Hitler can be seen.
 

5/14/07 Added the Tales of the Jedi Companion to the Sith Era timeframe and cover gallery. 

5/13/07 There will be some minor changes and fine-tuning to the timeline as I go through everything chronologically for the first time in years.  Eg., I expect to incorporate more of the stories in the "circa" sections to less ambiguous time-frames if warranted and appropriate.

5/10/07 After much work, Adventure Journal #16 is up for viewing.  Thank you to everyone responsible in enabling this to be presented for posterity and for the fans!

5/10/07 The Official Star Wars Adventure Journal Returns...

...albeit unofficially.  After much time and preparation, you can read what would have been Adventure Journal #16 right here.  Thank you to everyone responsible for providing me with the original materials.  You can read more about it on "Old Horizons" from the contents page.  Please note: This manuscript was in a rough state and was not in its polished, final form when West End Games lost the Star Wars license.  I've done my best to clean it up, but it's still pretty rough and is provided solely as an archival, non-profit treat for the fans and for the sake of posterity.  Enjoy! 

5/6/07 Added covers for Prima Guides: X-Wing, TIE-Fighter and X-Wing Alliance, and X-Wing Combat Simulator, Guide and "The Farlander Papers."  Added "A Path to Victory" (from X-Wing Alliance) to 'circa 3 ABY' in the Era of Rebellion.

5/3/07 Lots of little changes and tweaks to the overhaul of last week, particularly to the Era of Rebellion. 

4/27/07 Major overhaul to the History portion of the Star Wars site.  In particular, these changes reflect more consistent (and eye-pleasing) formatting and will be replicated throughout the other eras.

4/16/07 Pick up the Children!

The Children of Hurin that is! Tomorrow, Tuesday April 17, 2007, J.R.R. Tolkien's first prose-style fantasy book since The Lord of the Rings will be released nationwide.  If you're in the NY area, head over to Barnes and Noble (the one on 5th and 46th) and grab a limited edition, signed (by Christopher Tolkien and Alan Lee) copy!  For more details, go here. 

Other bookstores throughout the U.S. are hosting special events as well, for a complete list, check out www.theonering.net. 

4/6/07 Star Wars Chronological Reading

You're Invited! In honor of Star Wars' 30th Anniversary, we're embarking on a read-through of all the Star Wars books and comics in chronological sequence based on my timeline here on Starwarstimeline.net.   Feel free to join us in whatever way fits your lifestyle and reading pleasure.  Tell your friends too!   If you'd like to participate in discussions, feel free to drop a line at the Dark Horse boards in the thread: "My Chronological Path."

3/31/07 Schedules and Reschedules

As many of you have already heard, The Force Unleashed multimedia event for 2007 will in fact not be released in 2007, but 2008.  Video game, book, comics, action figures, etc., all have been pushed back to '08.  At least we're still getting it.  More disappointing is the reveal that James Luceno's Darth Plagueis novel has been cancelled.  (See Sue Rostoni's blog for details).

For more details on the revised schedule, see Upcoming Tales.  Maybe this will ensure that we see the DVD box set many of us have been waiting for...  Time will tell.

3/28/07 Further delineations in the late Rise of the Empire era, particularly in the former 2-0 BBY years.  Also designated the specific strips which correspond to the Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina short story, "A Hunter's Fate: Greedo's Tale."  Re-posted the two rare Middle-Earth novellas by Bradley, "The Parting of Arwen" and "The Jewel of Arwen," to make them larger and more visible.  Thanks to James Leady for the heads-up!

3/27/07 Continuing to make further changes, or more accurately delineations, this time to the Rise of the Empire era, specifically to the time period surrounding the years leading up to the Battle of Yavin, more specifically 3-0 BBY.  Moved the first part of "The Tale of IG-88" to just before the Droids cartoon series in 15 BBY.  Added covers of UK exclusive trades, Droids: Season of Revolt and River of Chaos.  Also added cover of Dig Magazine containing Luke Skywalker story.  Update: Finally, delineated the 2-0 BBY period and added hardcover (HC) page numbers to the entries there.

3/22/07 Updated Darth Bane: POD chronology.  Major changes to the Shadows of the Empire tie-in material, including the book, comics, mini-comic, specials and pop-up Battle of the Bounty Hunter.  See the Era of Rebellion for details.

3/14/07 Completed Infinities section and incorporation of Infinities tales into the History section.

Continued incorporating Infinities stories to the History page and dating them on the Infinities page.  Moved Jabba the Hutt 1-4 to the Era of Rebellion (Year 1) and listed the individual issue titles.  Also placed Visionaries: "Old Wounds" in Infinities due to current thought that it is non-canon likely due to Maul's killing Watto — Watto is said to have lived into the Rebellion era, though from what source that comes I can't tell (possibly the game Galaxies.)

3/13/07 Continued incorporating Infinities stories to the History page and dating them on the Infinities page.  Added Monsters and Aliens from George Lucas cover and entry to the "Circa 5 and 6 ABY" section on the New Republic page.  Added The Wildlife of Star Wars: A Field Guide cover and entry to the "Circa 14 ABY" section on the New Republic page.

3/11/07 Added new page: Upcoming Tales for keep track of upcoming Star Wars books and comics.  See Latest News page for more info.  Also added cover images of Legacy #9 and KOTOR #14.

3/5/07 Changed continuity notes on the Ewoks films and cartoon series to better reflect the ambiguous status of their chronology.  Added cover image of Republic Commando: True Colors (gorgeous cover IMO) and changed its placement to 7-12 months after Episode II.  "101 Star Wars Stories You Can't Live Without" has become "111."  The symbol designating the Reviews and Recommendations pages has been changed to the logo for the Imperial Department of Military Research (which seemed appropriate.)  I'm also in the process of adding Infinities stories to the body of the timeline itself to aid readers in seeing where they would take place on the timeline if they were in continuity.  Changed the wording from "Also During the ___ period" to "Circa ___."  Thanks to Chad Walton for the nudge!  Replaced Galactic Battlegrounds short story into the Rise of the Empire era (in between chapters of Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader.)

3/11/07 30th Anniversary Celebration

In honor of this being Star Wars' 30th Anniversary, George Lucas and LFL are doing a lot to show the world that Star Wars is alive and well.  This will include postage stamps, The Force Unleashed multimedia event (comprising books, comics, a video-game, action-figures), Celebration 4, and hopefully news of the Ultimate DVD box set of the films.  In keeping with this celebratory theme, I'm going to keep a list of upcoming releases on a new page called Upcoming Tales.  Thanks to Chad Walton for the idea and updated compilation!

3/04/07 Star Wars TV

There's been lots of talk and interviews lately about the upcoming Clone Wars 3D animated series.  To sum up: There will be around 100 episodes involving the known cast and a some new characters including a Togruta padawan named Osaka (a Togruta is species represented by Shaak Ti in the prequels.)  It will capture the feel of the films in a 3D animated style and look like "nothing on television."  It is currently in production after which Lucas will shop it around to various stations.  Look for a 2008 debut.  Now in 2009, hopefully we'll be seeing the live-action show which is set after Episode 3.  There are rumors still floating around that Boba Fett will feature in it, and Lucas did confirm that it will not focus on any of the major characters from the prequels, but one of the side characters.  Lucas said that while he will not do episodes 7, 8, and 9, that "Star Wars is not dead" and that its future is on TV.  Video game fans will be happy to note that a new video game is in the works based on the upcoming Clone Wars 3D series.

2/26/07 Start the Petitions!

Bad news from thedigitalbits.com: "You know that mega-bombad 9-disc Ultimate Star Wars Saga box set that's been in the works for a few years now? The one that was expected to be released later this year to celebrate the 30th Anniversary? Yeah... maybe not so much anymore.  Click here to read the rest, and then start sending your polite petitions and pleas to Lucasfilm ASAP!  There still may be time to get this box set released this year, the 30th Anniversary!

Reminder: Don't forget to pick up Star Wars: Legacy of the Force: Exile tomorrow!!

2/26/07 Short fiction story, The Battle of Cadinth by former WEG'er Bill Smith is available on Hyperspace as part of their Insider #92 supplement.

2/22/07 Added Rookies webstrips to the Era of Rebellion and History pages.  This is a tentative placement under the "Also in the 0-2 ABY Period" section until author Pablo Hidalgo releases more concrete information.  Added placement for upcoming novel, Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor in the New Republic era.

2/22/07 Spawn of Shadows!

In wholly unforseen news, the official site posted this very exciting synopsis of an upcoming Matt Stover novel that will take place in the aftermath of Marvel's post-ROTJ comics dealing with Luke, Han, Leia, and Chewie's team-up with Fenn Shysa and the Mandalorians to defeat Lord Shadowspawn on the world of Mindor.  So devastating was this battle it caused Luke to resign his commission! 

From the Official Site:  The Battle of Mindor is one of the great conflicts of the Galactic Civil War that has yet to be documented in a novel, but best-selling author Matthew Stover is tackling this conflict as the subject matter of his new Star Wars novel.

Due out in February 2008, Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor tells the tale of the Alliance's efforts to stop Lord Shadowspawn and his black-clad legions of shadow stormtroopers shortly after the destruction of the second Death Star. All the classic heroes return -- Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, Lando, Threepio, Artoo and the pilots of Rogue Squadron -- in a thrilling adventure of good versus evil, with the fledgling New Republic battling the stubborn remains of a splintering Galactic Empire.

Matthew Stover is best-known for his acclaimed novelization of Revenge of the Sith, and his psychologically charged and challenging Star Wars novels Traitor and Shatterpoint. Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor is due out in hardcover in February 2008 from Del Rey Books.
 

2/18/07 Made some changes to the About... page and shifted the Fantasy/Faith essay over to the Reckoning page.  Added a banner on the main page for The Hasslein Curve: A Timeline of the Planet of the Apes.

2/17/07 Made some changes to the Jedi Code essay.  Added a new essay to the Holocron page: "Fiction Within Fiction: Viewing the Star Wars Saga as "History."

2/17/07 The Force Will Be Unleashed!

Fans who've been wondering about the pictures displayed in 'Secrets of Star Wars 07' (above and on Hyperspace) need wonder no longer.  Force Unleashed has been confirmed as the title of a new, multimedia event from Lucasfilm and its affiliates.  It will encompass a novel by Del Rey, a comic book mini-series from Dark Horse, a new generation video-game from Lucasarts, actions figures and much more!  This hasn't been seen since the days of Shadows of the Empire and to myself and many fans, it is welcome news!  The story was created under the direction of George Lucas and will take place after Episode III.  For more information, check out the official site and www.theforceunleashed.com.  Additional news will be added in the coming days.  Look for the unveiling of this multimedia event in November.  ***Update: The hardcover novel will be penned by Sean Williams (who co-wrote the NJO: Force Heretic trilogy, and will be released in September.  Good news indeed!  Furthermore, it's been released that the story focuses on Vader's first secret apprentice.  This yet unnamed character is sent by Vader to hunt down Jedi (including which may be Ferus Olin, the Dark Woman and Asajj Ventress!) 

2/14/07 New Essay

I wrote a new essay for the site: Fiction Within Fiction: Viewing the Star Wars Saga as "History."  Enjoy!  Feel free to send your thoughts to me here.

2/11/07 New Tolkien Book!

On April 17th, the world will be graced with another masterpiece of fantasy literature!  Check out this snippet from EW.com:

1/31/07 Allegiance Review

My review of Tim Zahn's Allegiance is here.

1/31/07 Added placement of Republic Commando: True Colors to immediately after Triple Zero in the Rise of the Empire era.

1/29/07 Added cover image and placement of Allegiance in the Era of Rebellion.

1/29/07 Zahn Mania

Tomorrow, two Zahn Star Wars books hit bookstore shelves, the paperback edition of Outbound Flight (a prequel to Survivor's Quest), starring Jorus C'baoth, Obi-Wan and Anakin on the doomed flight into the Unknown Regions and the heart of Chiss space, and Allegiance featuring young Mara Jade, Luke, Han, Leia and a squad of renegade stormtroopers in the year following A New Hope.

1/26/07 Darth What?!

As per the Darth Who contest which asked fans to submit Sith names for Jacen Solo, five names have been posted.  The general reaction from fans has been pretty negative.  Needless to say, my choice of name has not been chosen for the five, so no Darth Cabal (or Darth Kabal) and no fan favorite Darth Solus either.  The list from which you can vote until February 27, 2007 is:

Darth Acheron (a river in Hell for those who deny justice)

Darth Caedus (a battle of darkness)

Darth Judicar (the final judge)

Darth Paxis (bringer of peace)

Darth Taral (ancient Sith for "he who protects").

As you can imagine, fan reaction has been less than thrilled (not surprising for SW fans.)  The concept behind the name is that Jacen is choosing his own name.  So it should have to have meaning to him. My thoughts: Acheron?!  Are there Greek myths in the SW Universe?  A little too obvious.  And if Judicar sounds like its more appropriate for a star destroyer, that's because it is a star destroyer.  Taral ... a little too feminine maybe, a little too AD&D perhaps.  That leaves Caedus and Paxis as my two top choices.  I'll be honest, I'm not thrilled with either.  Caedus has a nice ring to it, although Paxis isn't bad and seems to have the most appropriate meaning.  It may not be the most "evil" sounding name, but this is Jacen we're talking about, and he thinks he's going to be the first good Sith!  Agree, don't agree?  Vote here!

In related news, Book 8 of the Legacy of the Force series will be titled Revelation.

1/26/07 Dark Times #2 is out and as with issue #1 is great!  Cover posted here.

1/24/07 Added cover images and placements of the two Star Wars Manga titles (Black and Silver.)  Note that all of them are Infinities, with two exceptions, "Phantasmagoria" which takes place at the end of Return of the Jedi and "Dear Anakin" which is little more than a short letter from Kitster to Anakin which I've placed just prior to Attack of the Clones.

1/18/07 Added cover for Clone Wars Adventures #7 and placement at the six-month period after the start of the Clone Wars (this despite lack of evidence on three of the four stories which are undated -- subject to change if further information is forthcoming.)

1/16/07 Hyperspace has started the Archie Goodwin strip Revenge of the Jedi. Check it out.

1/12/07 At long last, Hyperspace has updated their fiction section with Kathy Tyers' story, "Only Droids Serve the Maker" which first featured in the Star Wars Adventure Journal.

1/11/07 Added cover images of the following SW issues: Knights of the Old Republic #11 and 12, Rebellion #5, Legacy #7.  Also added cover image of the upcoming fifth book in the Legacy of the Force series: Sacrifice.

1/11/07 Time for the Sacrifice!

The Official Site today has revealed the cover and brief synopsis of the fifth book in the Star Wars: Legacy of the Force series: Sacrifice!  This hardcover scheduled for May 22nd represents that half-way point of this series and will undoubtedly prove a shocking and pivotal entry.  This title will also finally reveal Jacen Solo's designated Sith name which will have been voted on by fans at the end of this month (once Del Rey and LFL editors along with the authors of the LOTF series settle on the final five.)  You can check out the story here.  I actually submitted a name pretty early that I think is pretty fitting for the character.  I'll reveal it as soon as voting gets underway, and if you agree it works, you can support it by voting on it.

In other exciting EU news, Karen Traviss' third Republic Commando book (to be released in August '07) will be called True Colors.

1/10/07 Added cover images of the various Star Wars Radio Dramas from NPR (Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi) and indicated where the first two episodes of the first dramatization (Star Wars) go during the Rise of the Empire era.

1/06/07 Finally added the rare cover of Dragon Books' Droids: The Trigon Unleashed.  The exclusive UK translations of the Japanese Manga Star Wars graphic novels (produced by Tokyopop) should be arriving soon.  I'll be posting timeline (or Infinities) entries for each story.

12/24/06 Lots more little changes, this time rearranged events in the Era of Rebellion, particularly those surrounding Lando's acquisition of Cloud City (in Tales #3: Lady Luck), EV-9D9's story, the Missions books (#9-12) and others.  Some of you will be interested to note that I've added back some more of the Star Wars Kids stories from Scholastic, primarily issues #2-5: The Rebel Thief (minus issue #1 due to the fact that it's the primary source of continuity problems) and X-Wing Marks the Spot (issues #6-9.)  No doubt this period is the most challenging in which to figure out the placement of stories, but it's also conversely the most interesting as well, especially as it harkens back to a time when authors and fans were less pedantic about exacting chronological weeks, months and days.  Fictional universes, especially shared ones like Star Wars, function much better when dates and times are left a little fuzzy, especially as those elements (though interesting to some) really represent the forest for the trees.

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