The star wars universe is more than just a handful of blockbuster films and animated television shows. Courtship picks up a few years after the return of the jedi and shows the aftermath of. If so, i highly recommend reading books from the star wars the expanded universe. One of the first grownup books i read was dave wolvertons the courtship of princess leia.
Dec 09, 2008 this is the complete star wars encyclopedia published in 2008, and provides information on anything and everything to do with star wars up until that date. If it was published before 2014, then its not canon. This time, thea tackles a subject close to her heart. The 10 best stories in the star wars expanded universe. Occasionally, youll see non star wars material from my other timeline sites included, as this was before i had the lightbulb moment when i realized that each universe should have its own latest news and updates page. In 2012, disney bought lucasfilm, adding another wrench to the works.
The new legends clone wars timeline was never established by lucasfilm. May 04, 2017 ask any star wars reader what book to start with. See, before disney took over, star wars had a huge amount of extra material novels, comics, etc. Understanding the star wars universe will be easier than ever now since all of it.
Star wars legends should follow marvels comic example. With the star wars expanded universe having grown so large and encompassing, its also a great way to explain many of the discrepancies and continuityerrors that occur from time to time within the body of lore comprised by the books, comics, films, cartoons, video games and more. A reading guide to the new star wars expanded universe. The star wars expanded universe timeline home facebook. Star wars is an american epic spaceopera media franchise, centered on a film series created. The star wars expanded universe is dumb and should be forgotten. A new hope this was added for the april 10th, 1981 rerelease came out after the book b. The star wars expanded universe timeline august 17, 2017 policy guidelines for new and old fans alike.
The book largely kicked off the expanded universe, as it began just five years after return of the jedi. Novel publishing timeline this is the realtime chronological novel publishing timeline. For those puzzled as to why the postdisney buyout titles would be included on a star wars eu timeline, the complete saga page follows the one canon approach, which permits any story that reasonably fits into the expanded universe on the timeline. Say you decided youd like to read all the star wars books in existence. The ultimate guide to reading the star wars books reedsy. On the screen, the first new canon to appear will be star wars rebels. Nov 18, 2015 the star wars expanded universe is dumb and should be forgotten. The 20 best star wars books of all time canon and legends. This is the realtime chronological novel publishing timeline. Understanding the star wars universe will be easier than ever now since all of it is technically. Quite possibly the best novel to come out of the star wars new expanded universe, this story of two star crossed lovers, by claudia gray, is just incredible. So it is possible that disney will bring more legends material into canon indeed, disney has introduced grand admrial thrawn into canon. I had been reading the star wars expanded universe novels for ages. It is not for comics or short stories in legends continuity.
The 10 best star wars legends books, ranked screenrant. It begins with the birth of the empire, and covers the gap between revenge of the sith and a new hope, and continues through the original trilogy, ending with the battle of jakku. The legendary star wars expanded universe turns a new page. The phantom menace, my first venture into the expanded universe was timothy zahns novel heir to the empire. New movies and other stories arent based on these books, and will sometimes contradict them. How disney killed the most interesting thing about star wars. It is derived from and includes most official star wars books. Ranking the canon novels from worst to first duration.
This was the very first fulllength novel released after that first star wars film hit in 1977, and it was actually written by foster to be the basis of a fall. For many fans of star wars who decide to read the books, the expanded universe generally referred to as the eu can appear much like wild spacecrowded, confusing, and potentially dangerous. From the adventures of luke skywalker 1976, the novelization of the 1977 film. Star wars is an american epic spaceopera media franchise, centered on a film series created by george lucas that includes star wars 1977, the empire strikes back 1980, and return of the jedi 1983. An easy way to spot a canon novel is to look at the publication date. As regards the ongoing controversy over the disney universe and the expanded universe, this page which is an extension of the star wars expanded universe timeline website regards the latter as canon and the former as infinities, though it accepts workable elements from the du into the eu. We are primarily a source of discussion and news for anything involving the star wars expanded universe legends or story group canon. His best writing and storytelling is subtle and smart. Han solo and the lost legacy 1980 one of the mostfascinating aspects of the star wars expanded universe was how the early authors were kinda making up how everything worked and casually. Specifically, the yuuzhan vong first appeared in the first new jedi order book. Here are the best star wars books from the old cannon. Was star wars a book series before it was a film series. The expanded universe, or eu, is the moniker for the entire body of work that comprises the stories set in the star wars universe ranging from novels, comics, cartoons, short stories, young adult books, television shows. May the fourth be with you as we explore my collection of star wars expanded universe novels.
Apr 16, 2016 quite possibly the best novel to come out of the star wars new expanded universe, this story of two star crossed lovers, by claudia gray, is just incredible. Star wars legends, formerly known as the expanded universe abbreviated. Please note too that these pages are being kept for nostalgia and research purposes. Star wars has been expanded to media other than the original films. And if youre looking at what expanded universe legends are most deserving of further exploration, the most obvious place to start is timothy zahns novel heir to the empire.
Its about time lucasfilm brought back the star wars. Here are the best star wars books and book series ever written for the series, both new and old. The 2003 animated series clone wars and various spinoff books, comics, and video games. A guide to all the new star wars books in the expanded. Dark force rising by timothy zahn, heir to the empire by timothy zahn, the last command by timothy zahn, sh. Author karen traviss explores a third great power source in the lucas universe, neither the jedi or the sith, really not even directly involving the force, but rather the mandalorians and fetts miraculous escape from the tatooine sarlacc. When disney purchased lucasfilm in 2012, they swiftly realized that they had a difficult choice to make. New canon the newly standardized star wars canon includes all the movie episodes, the clone wars and rebels tv shows, and new books since. Jul 10, 2017 where to start with the star wars expanded universe by thea james. Force awakens, ive become extremely enthuastic about learning about expanded universe. In what order should i read star wars expanded universe.
The first star wars spinoff material was star wars. A definitive guide to star wars legends the fandomentals. Star wars legends, formerly known as the expanded universe abbreviated eu, encompasses every one of the licensed, fictional background stories of the star wars universe, outside of the original six star wars films produced by george lucas and certain other material such as star wars. Jan 10, 20 star wars on where to begin with star wars books.
All star wars fans are welcome here, but this is a pro expanded universe site, and as such, there is a zero tolerance policy for eubashing. Episode i the phantom menace, lucasfilm has divided its titles by fictional era with symbols designating such. For years before disney purchased lucasfilm the star wars story was primarily told through the expanded universe, or eu, a collection of books, comics, audio dramas and games that continued and expanded on the stories from the movies. In print, the first new books to come from this creative collaboration include novels from del rey books. Where to start with the star wars expanded universe. Sure, theyve mostly kept that old material in print, but there havent been any new stories set in the expanded universe since 2014s star wars. May 05, 2016 may the fourth be with you as we explore my collection of star wars expanded universe novels.
Lucasfilm later rebranded the expanded universe as star wars legends and declared it noncanonical to the franchise. A definitive legends clone wars timeline was never established by lucasfilm. However, after the disney acquisition, the expanded universe books became known instead as legends, and a new, official canon that ensured the continuity of the star wars universe was established. A guide to all the new star wars books in the expanded universe. Star wars wasnt the only scifi franchise to have tiein books, comics, video games and tabletop adventures. Nov 18, 2016 you know a series is going to lovingly examine the ancient evil of the star wars universe when the first book is titled the golden age of the sith.
While the main focus of the eu novels has been the star wars movie characters, even the early expanded universe explored side characters in more detail. The star wars expanded universe is dumb and should be. Mar 22, 2019 in this video, we take a look at the origins of the star wars expanded universe with the ten novels that established the entire first 15 years of star wars books. Over the course of the 1990s, lucasfilms publishing program helped sustain the legions of star wars fans out there, first with books like. Star wars expanded universe book collection youtube. These books are part of the original star wars expanded universe, and follow an internally consistent timeline. The best books from the old star wars expanded universe. Originally appearing in our fourth quarterly almanac, where to start with the star wars expanded universe is the latest in our ongoing series of essays detailing where one can start with any number of sffpopgeekery topics. Heir to the empire, kicking off the enormous expanded universe publishing experiment.
The new star wars canon has existed for four years now, but we still remember the old days. A practical man is a 2006 short story featuring boba fett and acting as a precursor to the new jedi order series of novels. Dec 27, 2019 as such, i would argue that fans who connected with star wars through the expanded universe did so in a way thats fundamentally different from how fans who only saw the films interacted with that. Disney has announced a new publishing initiative for its star wars expanded universe, titled star wars. May 23, 2017 since the star wars universe spans so much time, it cant all focus on the same characters. What is the expanded universe and why is continuity such a major issue. If youre new, and want to learn more about the expanded universe, you can find a few links in the sidebar that may be helpful. Because the star wars universe this guide covers is as vast and populated as george lucas galaxy far, far away, its impossible for even the most prolific researcherwriter to keep up with all the new additions as books, games, collectibles and even animated episodes appear almost on a monthly basis. Here is a brief history of the star wars expanded universe. Of the approximately eleventy billion books in the original star wars expanded universe, there are the hallowed the thrawn books by timothy zahn, the good the xwing books. For purists, the other pages on this site remain free of post20 stories. Crystal star really is the worst star wars book ever. Lost stars represents the star wars sagas first foray into the world of young adult fiction.
No love for expanded universe in new star wars films. The best star wars books to read first a getting started guide. The best star wars books to read first your first star wars book for many fans of star wars who decide to read the books, the expanded universe generally referred to as the eu can appear much like wild spacecrowded, confusing, and potentially dangerous. This is a timeline for novels, young adult books, and ebooks in the expanded universe legends continuity. No love for expanded universe in new star wars films cnet. Where to start with the star wars expanded universe by thea james.
Anders and tom veitch tell a long tale about the great sith war, which starts with an incident thats little more than an accident. Creators of new star wars entertainment have full access to the rich content of the expanded universe. Star wars might want to close the book on the past, but the expanded universe of legends is perfect for new, outofcontinuity stories. The best star wars books to read first a getting started.
Welcome to the star wars expanded universe subreddit. The only issue is i dont know whats the best place for me to start as someone whos only watched the films. Oct 04, 2012 its easy to miss this now that we have an expanded universe built on daleys foundation, but at the time this was a star wars book without a lot of star wars. The series depicts the adventures of various characters a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Disney has signalled a fresh start for its star wars trilogy by officially ruling out storylines borrowed from the scores of expanded universe eu novels in book shops fans of the books.
From the adventures of luke skywalker in december 1976 to the latest novel, this timeline tracks the month and year of every star wars novel excluding childrens and graphic novels published. A brief history of the star wars expanded universe film. Its got gambling, c3po singing, clubwielding force witches. Because disney is not satisfied with just making action figures, childrens shows, and video games, it wanted a whole new set of films, and it wanted those films to go into the direction of the star wars universe that george lucas himself, until now, had left well enough alone. At its peak, it included hundreds of books, thousands of comics, a. While we meet them briefly in other books, the first time we really get to know the kids is when they are kidnapped by a. This body of work represents the original star wars expanded universe, which was rebranded as star wars legends and declared noncanon to the franchise in april 2014. In an official statement friday, lucasfilm said the new star wars films will not tell. There is a whole galaxy of books about star wars, hundreds of them, if were counting the eu expanded universe. Expanded universe legends in 1991, del rey books launched a new novel from author timothy zahn. No if you want to get technical, the film originally titled star wars, and later retitled star wars.
The exact chronology of the events described in this article is currently unknown. Expanded universe is a podcast about the star wars legends series of novels, comics, games, and other media. After years of waiting in the shadows, darth sidious is taking the first step in his. The first movie chronologically is the phantom menace which was released in. This body of work represents the original star wars expanded universe. The terminology of expanded universe was a careful one. The new star wars canon has existed for four years now, but we still. Star wars books to this day, the first widely recognized eu book is. Han solo and the lost legacy 1980 one of the most fascinating aspects of the star wars expanded universe was how the early authors were kinda making up how everything worked and casually. It covers the original trilogy and the prequel trilogy, as well as the expanded universe as depicted in the novels and videogames.
Now known as legends, the original expanded universe is full of amazing stories. Demand for past tales of the expanded universe will keep them in print, presented under the new legends banner. It is the first novel in a nineteenbook series entitled the new jedi order. Designed as an interconnected series of books, novels, and comics, the. This is the complete star wars encyclopedia published in 2008, and provides information on anything and everything to do with star wars up until that date. In 2014, disney struck most of the star wars expanded universe the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s novels, comic books and video games that existed outside of the six films from the canon, and. Simple star wars book list timeline of star wars novels. The expanded universe was rebranded as star wars legends, but it was far from. These books were published between 1978 and 2012 and represent a massive collection of star wars stories.
Conquest was the eighth in that series, and it was the first, ah. If youre new to star wars books in general, you might want to check out this piece by a fellow rioter on where to start, but this list is a good starting point into what i think are the best star wars books. Of the approximately eleventy billion books in the original star wars expanded universe, there are the hallowed the. Heres your guide to everything from the old star wars expanded universe that lucasfilm has gradually made canon again. A new dawn officially rebooted star wars continuity.