Who Should Write The Last Jedi Novelization?

Fine. I'll do it

 

Matthew Stover did pretty well with the novelization for ROTS. Terry Brooks didn't do half bad with the novelization for TPM. I'd say really anyone can do it, for the most part.

 

James Luceno is the guy, for me. His "Plagueis" is masterpiece and considered by many amongst the best novels ever released in Star Wars.
I am just re-reading Tarkin which is canon and more important now and am discovering again how deep Luceno is.

 

A second vote for me. Excellent. Much appreciated.

 

Tarkin family is so ruthless, sending an 11 year old boy into a wilderness of Eriadu with his uncle Jova, to hunt and eat wild animals, to feel blood to learn to fight for survival despite his family the Tarkins been de-facto rich rulers of the entire star system.If Tarkin was Force sensitive he will be one of the greatest Sith ever. Inteligence, lust for power, ruthless Darwinian approach towards the others. It gives great insight in Palpatines thoughts , Vader's also.
.The book also delivers unique and subtile Tarkin's perspective about Jedi order.(this Luceno's "skill" would be precious in The Last Jedi I think)
Tarkin is great book, and it is because of Luceno.
Only negative side-effect is while watching The New Hope, destruction of the Death Star means Tarkin death, and after reading Tarkin it almost feels like a loss.

 

It will feel like George is writing Star Wars again

 

Tarkin the novel made me have an appreciation for the very apparent RESPECT Tarkin commanded in a New Hope, even from Darth Vader. That novel made me realize there was a real reason Vader saw him as a colleague not another choking post. The only Imperial human Vader didnt try to intimidate.

I agree James gave me empathy for Tarkin. I want that of this upcoming film. We will no doubt get some sharper reveals. I want to know I will get to read into the mind of our beloved Dark and Light characters.

How ever if there is alot of action and less deep explanation; I would enjoy Alexander Freed. Battlefront was amazing. I felt connected to the characters that dont get screen time. He wrote in a way that made me hope for traffic jams or a fever so I could spend more time in front of my book.

--- Double Post Merged, May 29, 2017, Original Post Date: May 29, 2017 ---

HA

 

Tarkin also befriended Palpatine while he was still a cadet on Republic academy and Palpatine was a senator . Palpatine I think felt they are very similar souls, and, in fact only significant difference between the two was Palpatine been Force sensitive.

And aboslutely epic line is when Emperor Palpatine tells to Vader that them- Palpatine, Vader, and Tarkin rule the galaxy now (like a triumvirate), and all 3 of them have in common that they came from the periphery of the galaxy (Naboo, Tatooine, Eriadu) to rule in the center of the Galaxy and change its destiny......

 

Cant wait to pick up the prequel series. I have to start and finish Return of the Jedi so the Original trilogy is done first. NOW, I am even more excited about reading the Prequels, especially now that you mention the novelizations add to the story. I was rather disappointed by The Force Awakens novel. But am enjoying the other novelizations.

OH QuiGon and Anakin I will be in your head soon enough!

 

I miss one book so much in the new canon.

Darth Plagueis is so fluent and powerful book, possibly best written novel in Star Wars lore ever. To bad it was decanonized as it had some references from other decanonized Expanded universe books so it was cut because of that.

The main protagonist of the book is in fact Palpatine and in this book Palpatine was developed unlike never ever described enywhere to my knowledge.

I guess Canon department should take care one day to somehow canonize that Luceno's Palpatine from Plagueis.

If I would be Disney CEO ( or Pablo Hidalgo at least) I will fight to make one day a standalone movie made upon "Darth Plagueis" book, excluding EU references from the original novel, and than assign Luceno to adapt his original Darth Plagues novel, now released as a novelization of that standalone movie. This will be a great asset to Star Wars Canon.(and great Film).

 

I really liked Stover's ROTS. Very character-driven (where the movie was not ). He would be an intriguing choice for TLJ, I think.

 

There are so many people that found that book to be top shelf (AKA Alderaanian Wine of books); maybe Disney has too much potential to BLAST it up. And needs this new schedule of movies and release of information to feel more normal before they tackle a Highly regarded character like Plagueis.

Side note: Only Legends book Ive read so far is Dawn of the Jedi. I swore to myself finish the canon novels, comics and novelizations first (almost there).

James Luceno deserves a go at it when Plagueis is concured, given the closeness in time he was in the release of his now Legends book to the Star Wars "Canon" concept's birthdate.

 

I am gradually "cleaning" my Star Wars shelf at home and want to make it canon shelf. If for nothing else than for my kids to have one day the realistic reference for Star Wars movies .
Tarkin, trough Aftermath trilogy, Bloodline, Lost Stars and Sith Lords, Thrawn.., novelisations.. and all that woud come.

Only book that stays in that my personal canon for now and that is not in the real canon is Plagueis. I can't discard this great novel.

I really hope they will make one day a film about Dark Lords Plagueis and Palpatine, about their plot to overthrow the Jedi and get rule over the Republic, and about their quest for unlimited power and immortality.
If they decide to make film script based upon Plagueis( without non-canon references) they already have, from the shelf,one great and dark Star Wars movie that explores deeper mysteries of the Sith, the agendas of the Republic, and Palpatine himself. Perhaps a film about Sheev Palpatine, which the book Plagueis really is about. Some elements from Tarkin could be also included in this film since Tarkin befriended Palpatine early. So Luceno could novelize this film, which will be in fact canonized modification of his Plagueis.

 

while i agree the Foster novelization ain't great, interpreting characters and their thoughts as a novelistic choice is a matter of preference. i prefer my authors to stay out of characters heads and let their actions speak.

so far i'm okay with Freed doing it (i like his style in Twilight Company; it's relatively balanced, it seems).
i am also probably the only fan here of Wendig, though i think he's not right for this.

Gray is too heavy-handed for my tastes, though she was a little less so in Bloodline than Lost Stars.
Lucerno and Zahn are similarly too in love with the internal landscape for me.

but again, i'm one of those people who doesn't ask all those questions about why this and why that, and what is so and so thinking.
i like to participate in the text/art by bringing my own imagination/interpretation to the table.
i don't really care for authors who think they need to tell us everything about what characters think or feel.
if their choices and behavior isn't conveying those things, then the author isn't really doing that great a job in my opinion.

 

My top three choices would have to be Matthew Stover, Alan Dean Foster, and Alexander Freed. The ROTS novel was fantastic. It's written so beautifully and reminds me of a kind of Greek tragedy tale. Alan Dean Fosters TFA novelization was decent, but he could have done better. My problem with it was that he took to much time explaining the visuals and not enough time with the characters. The third act was also only like 50 pages. Alexander Freed did great with the R1 novelization. It helped expand on the characters thoughts and he did a good job with pacing too.

 

Jason Fry is writing the novelization. (Rey's Survival Guide, The Weapon of a Jedi, etc.)

Michael Kogge is writing the junior novelization. (He also wrote the TFA junior novel.)