Star wars: How would you change it?

[Infernai]

Yep, it's another star wars thread.

Anyway, i've heard alot of people make claims on the state of the galaxy at the moment and how it has gotten to it's current state: Some blame the prequels, some blame lucas, others blame expanded universe material, etc etc. So, i decided to come up with a nice little hypothetical situation for you all:

You are approached by Lucasarts and asked to work on a project that will help to turn around the current state of star wars. This project can be anything you want: A series, a movie, a cartoon, a game, a novel. However, you only have one chance to do this, as depending on just how successful this is will depend on whether or not Lucasarts even bothers asking you to delve into the mythos again. But still, one chance to commission something that would likely make Star wars seem like a positive thing again.

So escapists, what would you do?

Me personally: I'd basically do something of a pseudo reboot in the form of an animated series not unlike the original clone wars shorts only done for a full thirty minute length. Ok, a bit more of an explaination would be this: Set this series well over five centuries AFTER the end of return of the Jedi and thus cut any and all ties to anything previously done in the series. Not saying these things didn't happen, but they aren't going to be referenced heavily or show up. Basic setup would be the galaxy has essentially gone into a dark age, jedi and sith are not even recognized parts of the vocabulary, neither is the force and hyperspace technology has been completely lost. It would essentially focus on a small group of force sensitives who are tasked with rediscover all that was previously lost and to ultimately discover what caused this dark age in the first place. This would allow for some good yet mild shout-outs but i'd mostly keep it character focused while also giving off a 'similar but different' vibe.

I think, if it was done right, it could capture alot of the feel of exploration and adventure that seems to have been lost to Star Wars in recent years and also allow for me to try out some things without having to worry about screwing up pre-established characters or canon any further.

 

[SillyBear]

I think the EU was the biggest mistake. 90% of it is horseshit.

It should have been left alone with more restrictions from Lucas about who and what game developers and authors can write about it. It would have prevented Star Wars lore from turning into a mess of contradictory, childish fanfic.

I don't know what I'd do. Probably just make a shit load of money.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Leaving it alone seems like a good idea. Sure, it's dead, but let it be dead, don't keep brining it back to show how dead it still is.

 

[lemiel14n3]

Any changes I'd make would unfortunately have to involve a time machine. One of the biggest appeals to me about Star Wars, and indeed any fictional univers is the sense of expanse and mystery. Jedi were essentially wizards, and part of the appeal of magic is that while it may have rules, we have no way of knowing how or why it works. Any attempts to codify or explain magic removes the 'magic' of it.

And this extends beyond midichlorians, although they are the biggest offender. Lucas had the bad habit of wanting to go really in depth when creating his universe, specifically defining whatever is going on, and that lack of ambiguity means, to some extent, a lack of freedom.

Ambiguity is one of the big reasons that one of my favorite series, Homestuck, is so popular. According to Andrew Hussie, the creator, that is the reason he refrains from setting the rules in stone, to allow the fans freedom to imagine.

Yeah, If I could go back and change something, I'd tell Lucas to allow for more mystery. That and tell him to worry about the film and the story first and the toy sales second.

 

[Neverhoodian]

I think the EU was the biggest mistake. 90% of it is horseshit.

It should have been left alone with more restrictions from Lucas about who and what game developers and authors can write about it. It would have prevented Star Wars lore from turning into a mess of contradictory, childish fanfic.

I don't know what I'd do. Probably just make a shit load of money.

I agree, though there are some real gems if you know where to look. There should definitely be more quality control, though. Either that, or they should go the Star Trek EU route and declare everything either non-canonical or canonical in a "what if/alternate universe" sort of way.

As for the prequels, I'd scrap the current incarnation and initiate a reboot. I'll just copy-paste a post I made a while back concerning my take (Spoiler'd for length).

Spoiler

If I was in charge, "Episode I" would actually be where Episode II starts. Stuff that happened in The Phantom Menace wouldn't be brought up, or if it did it would only be through vague allusions. The character of Anakin would be radically different from how he was portrayed in the "official" prequels. First off, there would be no bullshit "Chosen One" prophesy. None of that "virgin birth" stuff either, as I just thought that was creepy (I still like to think Shmi just didn't want to discuss the father, and Qui-Gon was gullible enough to believe her lie).

After watching the Thor movie last week, I couldn't help but think to myself that the main character was almost exactly how I envisioned Anakin to be before the prequels ruined my image of him. I imagined a brave, strong warrior that relished action and excitement, yet still cared about those around him. He would exude confidence and charisma, easily forming lasting bonds with his friends and colleagues. He would be prone to theatrical displays, yet still manage to deliver genuine words of wisdom and stir the hearts of those who heard them.

There would be one major weakness however; he would have a burning need to see justice prevail. To that end, he would begin to dabble with powers of the Dark side, tempted by its promise of power. Thinking he could control it, he would delve deeper and deeper until it would ultimately consume him. By the time anyone realized the full extent of his fall, it would be too late.

When it comes to the Jedi Order, I would definitely change a few major things about it. First off, they would be cool with love and raising families. As Jolee Bindo pointed out in KOTOR, love doesn't lead to the Dark side. Passion can, but only if you let it. Indeed, was it not love that ultimately redeemed Anakin in the end? Also, the Order wouldn't be snatching babies away for training. I always felt that such actions were tantamount to kidnapping, something you wouldn't expect a supposedly noble organization like the Jedi to practice. At least wait until they're adolescents before you begin training.

Oh yeah, and no midichlorians either.

Warning: the following is kind of long.

As for the story, it would begin with the Clone Wars. Palpatine secretly creates a vast clone army to fight (not protect) the Republic and begins by launching devastating assaults on many key worlds. Faced with such a ferocious onslaught, the Senate grants Palpatine emergency powers to enact such measures as drafting vast numbers of soldiers from the population to bolster defenses and increasingly invasive monitoring of Republic citizens in the interest of "security." The effects of the war begin to take their toll, and soon the Republic is faced with additional crises like an influx of refugees along with hunger and poverty. Appalled with this turn of events, the Jedi Order agrees to assist the Republic in their military endeavors, but it's still an uphill battle. As the war drags on, Palpatine continues to consolidate his position as supreme ruler.

It is against this backdrop that the tale of Anakin Skywalker is told. While campaigning with his master Obi-Wan, he takes pity on a sick and weak refugee woman and nurses her back to health. Pity turns to friendship, and eventually blossoms into genuine love. With the Council's blessing, they are married. War calls Anakin away however, and is forced to leave his pregnant wife back on Coruscant. It is while he's away that he eventually succumbs to the Dark side and becomes Darth Vader. When he returns for a brief home leave, she is horrified at the man he has become. After he leaves again she flees to a faraway planet and gives birth to twins.

It is around the same time that the full extent of Palpatine's plan finally reveals itself. Knowing that the Jedi Order will challenge any attempt at complete power, Palpatine orders his secret police to destroy the Senate building. Claiming that the Jedi were responsible for this act of sabotage (along with phony evidence to bolster his claims), Palpatine declares them to be enemies of the Republic and orders that they be hunted down and annihilated. The Jedi, already severely weakened by the war, find themselves caught in the crossfire. The remaining number scatter to the far corners of the galaxy, where most of them will eventually be hunted down by Vader.

With the Jedi seemingly out of the way, Palpatine declares that the Republic will be reformed into an Empire in the interest of maintaining security. All of his "temporary" powers are now permanent, along with a whole slew of new ones that grant him total control of the Empire. Palpatine secretly orders the production of clones to be stopped, resulting in the cessation of hostilities (Imperial propagandists are quick to label it a victory). One conflict leads to another though, as a small group of appalled Senators and activists secretly form a Rebel Alliance to stop Palpatine's tyranny. In some ways this plays to Palpatine's advantage however, as it provides the necessary pretext for maintaining his iron grip on the galaxy. Warfare simply becomes a way of life in the Empire.

To wrap up Anakin's personal story, Obi-Wan tracks him down to Mustafar in order to confront his former pupil. The resulting fight plays out much like the one in Revenge of the Sith, but much shorter and more of a focus on the emotions at play than the set pieces. Vader is left for dead, but manages to survive due to his new Dark side powers. Donning his iconic suit of armor, he becomes the Emperor's second-in-command and a not-so-subtle reminder for the military commanders to remain loyal. On a final tragic note, Anakin's wife is unable to support her children while in hiding. She makes the heartbreaking decision to give the twins to foster parents on Tatooine and Alderaan. The deed done, she dies shortly thereafter due to hunger brought about by abject poverty. Knowing that he can do no more at this time, Obi-Wan decides to keep an eye on the boy Luke, for he may yet be the galaxy's new hope...

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

You are approached by Lucasarts and asked to work on a project that will help to turn around the current state of star wars.

Delete the Special Editions. Release the Originals. De-canonise (but not delete) the Prequels.

Then put an injunction on the creation of anything new within the Canon Universe.

Play around as much as you like with the EU, just leave the originals alone.

 

[Revnak_v1legacy]

No midiclorians or whatever they are called, no episode one, make anikan and obi-wan equals rather than student and teacher, don't try to give the background for everything, and less focus on romantic sub-plots.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

[Delete the Special Editions. Release the Originals. De-canonise (but not delete) the Prequels.

Then put an injunction on the creation of anything new within the Canon Universe.

Play around as much as you like with the EU, just leave the originals alone.

I'll go with this, but I'd de-canonize ROTJ as well.

 

[FangShadow]

I think the EU was the biggest mistake. 90% of it is horseshit.

It should have been left alone with more restrictions from Lucas about who and what game developers and authors can write about it. It would have prevented Star Wars lore from turning into a mess of contradictory, childish fanfic.

I don't know what I'd do. Probably just make a shit load of money.

I agree, though there are some real gems if you know where to look. There should definitely be more quality control, though. Either that, or they should go the Star Trek EU route and declare everything either non-canonical or canonical in a "what if/alternate universe" sort of way.

As for the prequels, I'd scrap the current incarnation and initiate a reboot. I'll just copy-paste a post I made a while back concerning my take (Spoiler'd for length).

Spoiler

If I was in charge, "Episode I" would actually be where Episode II starts. Stuff that happened in The Phantom Menace wouldn't be brought up, or if it did it would only be through vague allusions. The character of Anakin would be radically different from how he was portrayed in the "official" prequels. First off, there would be no bullshit "Chosen One" prophesy. None of that "virgin birth" stuff either, as I just thought that was creepy (I still like to think Shmi just didn't want to discuss the father, and Qui-Gon was gullible enough to believe her lie).

After watching the Thor movie last week, I couldn't help but think to myself that the main character was almost exactly how I envisioned Anakin to be before the prequels ruined my image of him. I imagined a brave, strong warrior that relished action and excitement, yet still cared about those around him. He would exude confidence and charisma, easily forming lasting bonds with his friends and colleagues. He would be prone to theatrical displays, yet still manage to deliver genuine words of wisdom and stir the hearts of those who heard them.

There would be one major weakness however; he would have a burning need to see justice prevail. To that end, he would begin to dabble with powers of the Dark side, tempted by its promise of power. Thinking he could control it, he would delve deeper and deeper until it would ultimately consume him. By the time anyone realized the full extent of his fall, it would be too late.

When it comes to the Jedi Order, I would definitely change a few major things about it. First off, they would be cool with love and raising families. As Jolee Bindo pointed out in KOTOR, love doesn't lead to the Dark side. Passion can, but only if you let it. Indeed, was it not love that ultimately redeemed Anakin in the end? Also, the Order wouldn't be snatching babies away for training. I always felt that such actions were tantamount to kidnapping, something you wouldn't expect a supposedly noble organization like the Jedi to practice. At least wait until they're adolescents before you begin training.

Oh yeah, and no midichlorians either.

Warning: the following is kind of long.

As for the story, it would begin with the Clone Wars. Palpatine secretly creates a vast clone army to fight (not protect) the Republic and begins by launching devastating assaults on many key worlds. Faced with such a ferocious onslaught, the Senate grants Palpatine emergency powers to enact such measures as drafting vast numbers of soldiers from the population to bolster defenses and increasingly invasive monitoring of Republic citizens in the interest of "security." The effects of the war begin to take their toll, and soon the Republic is faced with additional crises like an influx of refugees along with hunger and poverty. Appalled with this turn of events, the Jedi Order agrees to assist the Republic in their military endeavors, but it's still an uphill battle. As the war drags on, Palpatine continues to consolidate his position as supreme ruler.

It is against this backdrop that the tale of Anakin Skywalker is told. While campaigning with his master Obi-Wan, he takes pity on a sick and weak refugee woman and nurses her back to health. Pity turns to friendship, and eventually blossoms into genuine love. With the Council's blessing, they are married. War calls Anakin away however, and is forced to leave his pregnant wife back on Coruscant. It is while he's away that he eventually succumbs to the Dark side and becomes Darth Vader. When he returns for a brief home leave, she is horrified at the man he has become. After he leaves again she flees to a faraway planet and gives birth to twins.

It is around the same time that the full extent of Palpatine's plan finally reveals itself. Knowing that the Jedi Order will challenge any attempt at complete power, Palpatine orders his secret police to destroy the Senate building. Claiming that the Jedi were responsible for this act of sabotage (along with phony evidence to bolster his claims), Palpatine declares them to be enemies of the Republic and orders that they be hunted down and annihilated. The Jedi, already severely weakened by the war, find themselves caught in the crossfire. The remaining number scatter to the far corners of the galaxy, where most of them will eventually be hunted down by Vader.

With the Jedi seemingly out of the way, Palpatine declares that the Republic will be reformed into an Empire in the interest of maintaining security. All of his "temporary" powers are now permanent, along with a whole slew of new ones that grant him total control of the Empire. Palpatine secretly orders the production of clones to be stopped, resulting in the cessation of hostilities (Imperial propagandists are quick to label it a victory). One conflict leads to another though, as a small group of appalled Senators and activists secretly form a Rebel Alliance to stop Palpatine's tyranny. In some ways this plays to Palpatine's advantage however, as it provides the necessary pretext for maintaining his iron grip on the galaxy. Warfare simply becomes a way of life in the Empire.

To wrap up Anakin's personal story, Obi-Wan tracks him down to Mustafar in order to confront his former pupil. The resulting fight plays out much like the one in Revenge of the Sith, but much shorter and more of a focus on the emotions at play than the set pieces. Vader is left for dead, but manages to survive due to his new Dark side powers. Donning his iconic suit of armor, he becomes the Emperor's second-in-command and a not-so-subtle reminder for the military commanders to remain loyal. On a final tragic note, Anakin's wife is unable to support her children while in hiding. She makes the heartbreaking decision to give the twins to foster parents on Tatooine and Alderaan. The deed done, she dies shortly thereafter due to hunger brought about by abject poverty. Knowing that he can do no more at this time, Obi-Wan decides to keep an eye on the boy Luke, for he may yet be the galaxy's new hope...

You've essentially said what I was going to say about the prequels in terms of chaning anakin's character (and in much better words, too), though I still think that palpatine should still be involved in anakin's push towards the darkside in some way. Also, I could never feel the droid army as a complete threat. I don't exactly know how I would change that...but part of me feels that the republic should have a had a enemy similar in tempermet to the mandalorians (though not exact copies), with droids as a back up. The jedi try to stay out of the war completely, though they do help when asked, until they find out the mandalorians are being manipulated by the sith.

Note: I'm not a star wars expert in either the movies or EU so i'm just going by what I saw in the movies and the tv cartoons.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

[Delete the Special Editions. Release the Originals. De-canonise (but not delete) the Prequels.

Then put an injunction on the creation of anything new within the Canon Universe.

Play around as much as you like with the EU, just leave the originals alone.

I'll go with this, but I'd de-canonize ROTJ as well.

I did think about this, and it would be good to see the Ewoks go, but you'd lose Vader's arc, Palpatine's loss, Luke's step up and the Force ghosts.

Much as it pains me, you have to keep the Ewoks.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

I did think about this, and it would be good to see the Ewoks go, but you'd lose Vader's arc, Palpatine's loss, Luke's step up and the Force ghosts.

Much as it pains me, you have to keep the Ewoks.

Can we hot-swap them with Wookies at least?

 

[kortin]

I blame Star Wars The Old Republic.

Knights of the Old Republic 1 and 2 were fine, but The Old Republic was the straw that broke the camel's back.

 

[Axolotl]

Do an ultraviolent, very gory and loose adaptation of the new Jedi Order series as a big Film Trilogy.

I'd mainly do this because the fan reaction to the original characters being killed of by a bunch of random would SnM aliens would be hilarious.

 

[Nyaoku]

How about a different class of jedi? Maybe something with a shield and/or whip.
Non-lazer-based gun? Low tech and a reason they don't use them?
A weapon that utilizes the power of the force in concentrated amounts.
More feral combatants.
And finally, ... necromorphic disease ridden planet.

 

[Dave In A Cape]

I don't think I'd change anything other than the actors in episodes 1 - 3...awful...awful acting.

 

[Shadowstar38]

I'd remake the prequals so they're just about Obi-wan and Anikan kicking ass all over the galaxy. No trade federation BS or scenes in the senate. Just those two guys being bros. Then cut out all the characters that didnt need origin stories like R2 and Boba Fett.

Keep the EU but get rid of the retarded stuff like the Emperor having clones and all the jedi being alive but just not doing anything for 20 years.

Make some sequals to the originals. Set it a few months after Return of the jedi so we see how the Empire is doing without its leaders. But have all new characters. Like a new jedi and some recruits.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

First thing I'd do is officially declare the entire EU non-cannon. Secondly I'd scrap the prequel trilogy and redo it without Qui Gon, Midclorians, Jar Jar, or the sappy love story drama. Although I'd probably keep Natalie Portman because she's hot.

 

[Combustion Kevin]

I'd create a series that focusses on a squad of clone troopers, starting up from their tubes from the second movie all the way to the end of the sixth.

the story would be character driven, mostly, since the actions of these individual troopers would barely affect the great plot, so they should be characterised well enough that the viewer actually cares about seeing them get through everything alive (which, evidently, most of them don't).

I think the clones are THE most interesting characters, especially from the clone wars series, because they are so unlike normal human beings, yet they still are.
Imagine someone with no past or childhood, in a world where so many people are morivated and inspired by what they, as a child, have experienced, how would someone reflect on that?
they are also specifically bred for war, how would they view the more leisurely activities of normal citezens, what will they do when there is no war?

they're also not alone in this, they have one big family of brothers, every one of them shares his uncertainties and questions, and may deal with them differently based on the curcimstances they've been through.
this creates a great sense of comradery and brotherhood, and actual bond among the clone troopers that will drive the story.

not to mention other issues like loyalty, compassion, duty, family, leadership and all that stuff, imagine what they would think fighting for vader, or the devastation from the deathstar's destruction.

it'd be like Band of Brothers, in space.
with a deeper look at what makes up a human psyche.

 

[varulfic]

I would release the original trilogy, as is, not the special edition, on blue-ray and dvd. After that, I would put this franchise to rest forever. I love the old trilogy, but seriously, the Star Wars franchise sucks. Not just the prequels, but the universe itself, the whole setting makes less sense the more it's expanded upon. I'd rather not spend any more time among the twi'leks and sith and dexter jettsers, because the more I learn about them, the less I care.

 

[gideonkain]

I didn't hate Episode 1 until they tried to tell us that Anakin built C3P0 in his mud hut between chariot races...wow, not only is that totally nonsensical being that robots are no doubt manufactured by the millions inside factories, but the chance of that very same robot finding his way into the hands of his son 30 yrs later? COme on.