It’s Star Wars season once again, and along with new trailers and TV spots for The Last Jedi, Lucasfilm made some big announcements this month. We talk the Rian Johnson trilogy announcement, pitch what we might want from a live-action Star Wars TV show, and review Leia: Princess of Alderaan. We dig into theories about when and why Rian Johnson was chosen to guide the Star Wars saga forward and what his placement might mean for Lucasfilm’s plans for the larger saga. Could the next Star Wars movies be set far in the future or the past of the galaxy far, far away? The young adult novel by fan favorite Claudia Gray, author of the Leia-centric political book Bloodline, caused some debate among our crew as we talk about what makes for a good story and point out some of the hidden references in Leia: Princess of Alderaan. (This episode was recorded before the release of Star Wars Battlefront II, but you can check out further coverage of the game on Den of Geek.) Follow us on Twitter at @blastercanonpod Timecodes: 0:00 Rian Johnson Trilogy 6:00 The Last Jedi trailer 10:00 Live-action TV Show 33:00 The Legends of Luke Skywalker 38:00 Leia: Princess of Alderaan Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC14: Rian Johnson Trilogy, Live-Action Show, Leia: Princess of Alderaan

This podcast explores every angle of the Star Wars canon, from the classics to the new releases, from the books to the cartoons. Blaster Canon covers it all! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Film Reviews

Mid-lockdown, Den of Geek’s Star Wars experts talk The Clone Wars and The Rise of Skywalker news. Episode IX is out in home release, and Paul breaks down the merits of different versions, including digital, physical, and 4k editions. He has high praise for the physical version, laying out an argument for sticking with physical disks to preserve the dynamic look of the film and avoid the grainy look of the digital version. 
We have relatively few new tie-in books or book schedule changes to talk about, but do have a brief review of the Prequel Era novel Queen’s Peril. Star Wars comic books have been disrupted like other comic book lines, and the comic book industry is responding to that in ways that affect readers and comic shops. In Star Wars TV news, writer Joby Harold has been reported as being attached to the live-action Kenobi series on Disney+. That prompts us to talk about the rumor that Ahsoka Tano will appear in the second season of The Mandalorian, played by Rosario Dawson. 
Our main topic this month is the The Rise of Skywalker novel, which greatly expands on what was seen in the movie. New scenes and references to other parts of the saga give us a lot to pick apart, including some speculation about Alphabet Squadron. We talk about whether we enjoyed the novel and whether the connections and additions in the novel improved our experiences of the movie. New information about Palpatine’s son adds another wrinkle to the themes of Star Wars overall as well as to the conversation about the canonicity of tie-in books. 
Epilogue: Hey everyone, thanks for listening. I’m sad to report this has been the last episode of Blaster Canon. We’ve had a great time making it and hope you’ll join us for the next endeavor. Thanks to Den of Geek for supporting us so far, and may the Force be with you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC37: The Rise of Skywalker, The Clone Wars, Kenobi

The mysterious Project Luminous has been revealed as a new crop of books set in the High Republic, 200 years before The Phantom Menace. Jedi are at the height of their powers, fighting against a group called the Nihil, described as “space Vikings.” Concept art by Iain McCaig of Prequel Trilogy fame has fans excited about a whole host of new characters who may or may not actually appear in the books. We discuss how the initiative can bring in new fans and why the era Disney and Lucasfilm chose for it makes sense. There are also some deeper canon cuts: what does the inclusion of a loth wolf in the lineup mean for the future of animation in Star Wars? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC36: The Clone Wars, Project Luminous

In this episode, we tackle this month's news and the finale episode of The Mandalorian. Season nine of The Clone Wars is drawing closer, and a new trailer shows some unexpected but familiar faces. The Star Wars books world is also reaching into the Prequel era with the upcoming Queen's Peril.
The Mandalorian ended with a bang! We talk about the state of the Imperial Remnant and how canon differs from Legends, then fangirl over Moff Gideon and speculate on what might come next for Mando and Baby Yoda. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC35: The Mandalorian Season Finale, The Clone Wars

The Rise of Skywalker is here, and it’s wild. We have mixed opinions on the final (?) installment of the main Star Wars saga, with some surprising alliances. Saf and Paul enjoyed it, while Megan has criticisms and questions. We cover the twists and surprises in The Rise of Skywalker, the character development and script, and what it might mean for the future of Star Wars. 
Before that, we take a jaunt into tie-in material with The Mandalorian. At the time of recording episode 7 was the most recent episode, so we cover episodes 4 through 7. Everyone is enjoying them, but Saf has some suggestions for viewing order. 
Paul has been reading The Rise of Kylo Ren, and Megan takes a look (and maybe read the whole issue in the course of recording this podcast). Things have been a bit quiet in the Star Wars books realm, but Megan has read Force Collector and has a brief review. It’s a fun book, but what are its implications about the First Order? Like The Rise of Skywalker, they’re a bit weird.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC34: The Rise of Skywalker, The Mandalorian

This episode contains spoilers for episodes 1 through 3 of The Mandalorian. 
The Mandalorian is here, and our Star Wars podcast hosts are excited to talk about the first live-action Star Wars television show. First, Saf and Paul have played Jedi: Fallen Order and are in agreement about the entertainment value of the game but have very different ideas about the quality. Performance issues affect the gameplay, especially the traversal. Saf, a narrative writer for video games, picks out the parts that didn’t work for her. Paul brings the perspective of someone who doesn’t play games often, and praises the story. 
Then it’s all hands on deck for The Mandalorian. With Baby Yoda and Pedro Pascal’s Mando taking the internet by storm, we talk about how we went from excited anticipation (or weary skepticism) to fully on board with the new show by the time episode 3 was released. We break down what the different directors brought to each episode, and the hopes we have for Deborah Chow’s upcoming Obi-Wan Kenobi show. 
It wouldn’t be Blaster Canon without a look at the previous Star Wars canon that was moved aside to make room for the Disney timeline. In this case, there’s a lot to say with regards to how the Mandalorians are portrayed in the show as compared to the Expanded Universe. In what ways are the show's Mandos actually more like Legends author Karen Traviss’ in-depth culture-building than like the Mandalorian politics shown in The Clone Wars? 
The next episode of Blaster Canon will cover The Rise of Skywalker and the end of a Star Wars era, so buckle up for that after November's cascade of content from a galaxy far, far away.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

BC14: Rian Johnson Trilogy, Live-Action Show, Leia: Princess of Alderaan

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