Stargate.

[Jacques]

I see what you did there. Clever.

...

So unlike the others you wouldn't outsource the work? I'm curious: what would be your vision for any prospective Star Wars TV series?

Could probably recycle a couple ideas already used on here and get a pretty decent script outta it. Just about everything good enough in the archives is probably several years worth of material in itself.

 

[Brandon Rhea]

I see what you did there. Clever.

...

So unlike the others you wouldn't outsource the work? I'm curious: what would be your vision for any prospective Star Wars TV series?

I'd reboot it. It'd be a multi-season show starting with the beginning of Anakin's story and ending with his redemption. The show would be called Skywalker.

 

[Shiuzu]

I'd reboot it. It'd be a multi-season show starting with the beginning of Anakin's story and ending with his redemption. The show would be called Skywalker.

So you'd do 1-6 from a different perspective...and better. I'd be down for that.

 

[BLADE]

Would you start in media res, with Anakin already all grown up, or would you show him as a kid? Always thought that was a weakness in characterization. Anakin goes from sweet kid to whiny teenager with anger issues out of freaking nowhere.

I always thought a retelling of Episodes I-III from Palpatine's perspective might have been interesting. Sort of a Start of Darkness kind of thing.

 

[Brandon Rhea]

Would you start in media res, with Anakin already all grown up, or would you show him as a kid? Always thought that was a weakness in characterization. Anakin goes from sweet kid to whiny teenager with anger issues out of freaking nowhere.

I always thought a retelling of Episodes I-III from Palpatine's perspective might have been interesting. Sort of a Start of Darkness kind of thing.

He'd be 22-24 from the outset, though it'd still be at the beginning of his journey. He'd start as a nobody living in the desert wastes.

 

[BZenwrath]

i miss all the stargate's... i didn't care too much for the first season of universe though.

 

[BLADE]

He'd be 22-24 from the outset, though it'd still be at the beginning of his journey. He'd start as a nobody living in the desert wastes.

Cool. Sympathetic but plausible.

 

[Brandon Rhea]

Cool. Sympathetic but plausible.

Yeah. And it would take a page from Star Trek by not only doing space opera but also by doing what science fiction does best, which is using allegory to tell relevant stories.

For example, since I have absolutely no delusions that I will actually make a Star Wars television series, I'm working on these as a fan fic series. The first story, Star Wars: Episode I - The Chosen One, will deal with religious extremism. This will be both in terms of terroristic tactics used in getting your way, such as in the Middle East, as well as with the kinds of religious extremism we see in the United States amongst certain groups of Christians.

The second story, Star Wars: Episode II - The Call of Destiny, will deal with corruption in society and government as part of the downfall of the Old Republic. This, obviously, is an allegory about the financial system and its control over society and government in the United States, and how if we don't fix it then it will lead to the country's downfall.

Each subsequent story will also have its own main allegorical theme, but they'll also have a more personal theme too. The first trilogy, Episodes I-III, are all about Anakin's rise to peak hero status. It's a coming of age story. The second trilogy, Episodes IV-VI, are all about Anakin's downfall in terms of making the wrong decisions, before ultimately becoming Darth Vader.

 

[BLADE]

Sounds interesting. What I've always thought was really missing from the prequels was a good emotional arc. We know Anakin has trust issues and we can see why (he was a slave), but we're not really given a sense of development there. Was it the sense of powerlessness of being a slave that makes him so insecure? Is he simply given to poor judgment, like King Lear? And so forth.

The "I dreamt my wife died, therefore I will kill children" descent into darkness was never plausible.

One interesting idea that was never really properly explored by Lucas was the notion that Jedi were these cloistered monks who lived privileged positions (in a sense) and thus never got with the times and in fact, defended a corrupt status quo. The Jedi Order has to be sympathetic, but you also want to give it some flaws. Lucas totally missed an opportunity to make Dooku (or really any Sith) at least mildly sympathetic by making them have some points about the power structure in the Republic. All large organizations tend to have blind spots.

Anyhow, all power to you. Looking forward to reading that when it's done.

 

[Brandon Rhea]

Sounds interesting. What I've always thought was really missing from the prequels was a good emotional arc. We know Anakin has trust issues and we can see why (he was a slave), but we're not really given a sense of development there. Was it the sense of powerlessness of being a slave that makes him so insecure? Is he simply given to poor judgment, like King Lear? And so forth.

The "I dreamt my wife died, therefore I will kill children" descent into darkness was never plausible.

One interesting idea that was never really properly explored by Lucas was the notion that Jedi were these cloistered monks who lived privileged positions (in a sense) and thus never got with the times and in fact, defended a corrupt status quo. The Jedi Order has to be sympathetic, but you also want to give it some flaws. Lucas totally missed an opportunity to make Dooku (or really any Sith) at least mildly sympathetic by making them have some points about the power structure in the Republic. All large organizations tend to have blind spots.

Anyhow, all power to you. Looking forward to reading that when it's done.

What I'm doing with the Jedi is having them trying to reform themselves. The Grand Master, Mace Windy (no, that's not spelled wrong), wants to be a more monk-based, less centralized, less politically active group, and instead one that acts as the guardians of peace and justice on their own terms. It's a reaction against the Ruusan Reformations, which essentially made the Jedi a government agency.

The downfall is that the Jedi over the years have become so interconnected with the government that by trying to get out, they start to miss a lot of the corruption that ultimately leads to the rise of the Empire and their destruction.

 

[Fusion]

Just to ask, what do you precisely mean by extremist Christians? I'm thinking KKK, Aryan Nations, Westboro Baptist Church. Would I be correct?

 

[Brandon Rhea]

Just to ask, what do you precisely mean by extremist Christians? I'm thinking KKK, Aryan Nations, Westboro Baptist Church. Would I be correct?

There's that, but also anyone who is beholden to dogma at the expense of rational thinking.

 

[Fusion]

Which would be... :CAbove

 

[Brandon Rhea]

Which would be... :CAbove

There is no specific group that holds a monopoly on that. You can find them amongst Catholics, Baptists, Methodists, Protestants, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Mormons, etc.

 

[BLADE]

Any extremist? For example, Yoda in the prequel series was clearly a status quo figure. So much so that he was outmaneuvered by the far more dynamic Palpatine.

I've always found the notion of the Jedi thorny. People with those kinds of powers do need to be kept in check, if only because of the frailties of human (for lack of a better word) nature. But there's always a risk of becoming myopic and institution focused. Perhaps the best way to deal with it would be to force some Jedi to retire and serve in other manners after a term. That and to actually allow (and encourage) attachment to the community. Sort of a soldier-citizen kind of thing a la Ancient Greece.

The question is whether corruption really matters to the Jedi. Some corruption is the inevitable byproduct of a political system. Do these demigods get to draw the line at what is and isn't acceptable? Are they morally sullied by giving any quarter to any sort of corruption. That'd be interesting. Sort of like The Wire/West Wing Star Wars.

 

[Fusion]

I see.

Anyways, the concept sounds like a new way to deal with old issues. Will be interesting to see how it turns out.

 

[Kaeb]

All I want is a Sci-Fi equivelant to Game of Thrones.

 

[Bianca]

All I want is a Sci-Fi equivelant to Game of Thrones.

Epic.

 

[Kaeb]

That series was high in scope and also required a decent budget to make, it's been hugely successful and for good reason.

I'm not even asking for an original series, if it's an adaptation just like GoT, then perhaps it could be even better.

 

[BLADE]

So a bunch of bastards being dastardly to each other? I'd get behind that.