Star Tours 2.0

With the grand reopening of Star Tours comes the youtube video:

Welcome to the Dark Side.....We Have Cookies

This little girl went to Disneyland and decided Lord Vader had a better 401k than the Jedi.

Star Wars Windows Parody

Presented without comment:

REVIEW: (audiobook) Death Troopers by Joe Schreiber

Death Troopers (audiobook) by Joe Schreiber
Read by Sean Kenin
Publisher: Random House Audio; 13 October 2009
ISBN 10: 0307578267
ISBN 13: 978-0307578266
Standalone
Copy Out of pocket
Reviewer: Tyson

Back of the Box
"No fate could be more terrifying than being trapped in deep space.

Unless there's something unknown out there with you.

When the Imperial prison barge Purge–temporary home to five hundred of the galaxy’s most ruthless killers, rebels, scoundrels, and thieves–breaks down in a distant, uninhabited part of space, its only hope appears to lie with a Star Destroyer found drifting, derelict, and seemingly abandoned. But when a boarding party from the Purge is sent to scavenge for parts, only half of them come back–bringing with them a horrific disease so lethal that within hours nearly all aboard the Purge die in ways too hideous to imagine.

And death is only the beginning.

The Purge’s half-dozen survivors–two teenage brothers, a sadistic captain of the guards, a couple of rogue smugglers, and the chief medical officer, the lone woman on board–will do whatever it takes to stay alive. But nothing can prepare them for what lies waiting aboard the Star Destroyer amid its vast creaking emptiness that isn’t really empty at all. For the dead are rising: soulless, unstoppable, and unspeakably hungry."

I have always been a huge fan of the Star Wars universe and some books are by far better than others. With the zombie craze hitting readers and movie goers from all sides it was only a matter of time before Star Wars was brought on board. Death Troopers is a pre New Hope novel that has the Empire stuck at the edge of known space battling mindless aliens out looking for fresh flesh.

Death Troopers starts out with a lot of set up, we have a lot of characters to start out with and their various motivations and backgrounds for why they are stuck on the prison barge known as Purge. The brothers Kale and Trig Longo are teens that had been caught along with their father in a routine sweep and accused of being smugglers. Aur Myss is a life time prisoner, Zahara Cody is the medical officer with a golden heart and Jareth Sartoris is the captain of the guard on the vessel. Each person comes to life in standard Star Wars fashion, with a chapter dedicated to them and a few other insights along the way throughout the book.

The style that Death Troopers was written is a slow build up followed by lots of dramatic action. The Purge breaks down with no hope of an immediate rescue and happens across a derelict Star Destroyer. With no choice but to send a small force to scavenge for the spare parts to fix their own vessel we slowly learn what truly happened to the crew. The novel does a fair job of building up suspense but since it is fairly well known what is coming it does not come as a shock when the zombies are finally uncovered.

Death Troopers does not bring anything new to the table as far as zombie stories are concerned, but does change the face of the Star Wars universe as it is the first horror novel ever written involving the Star Wars characters. I tried to find out if there were more Star Wars novels planned to be written that feature more horror but I could find nothing planned. In addition, the method in which the zombies were created was not very original, but the book had to explain how the epidemic came about and so without spoiling it for you I will just say it was fairly obvious.

The one thing I enjoyed about this book was that none of the big names in Star Wars were featured in the book and five minutes later a certain smuggler and his walking carpet showed up out of no where. It did not ruin the novel for me but, was a bit of a disappointment as we had some fairly decent characters already introduced and this seemed like overkill. I understand that you need some big star power (pun intended) to drive the story but they were introduced nearly at the half way point and already had things well in hand without their inclusion.

The narrator Sean Kenin did a great job of bringing the various characters to life. While he is obviously not Harrison Ford, he did a fairly good job of impersonating the rogue. The voice acting was top notch. I have no complaints about Kenin's performance for the audio book. Death Troopers is first audio book that I have listen to that incorporated a lot of sound effects during the reading. From blaster sounds to music, it was all used while Kenin read the book to you. I have only two complaints about the additions of sound effects and music. When the zombies are making their moaning noise I was annoyed and to tell the truth embarrassed even though I was listening to it through earphones on my iPod. It was just uncomfortable. The other issue I had was the introduction to the new chapters. The horrific screaming was a bit much. I know that they are attempting to create a spooky or scary feeling through the effects but it came out as tacky and unnecessary.

Death Troopers is a nice attempt at bringing more than just your average Star Wars story of good versus evil, but as far as zombie stories go this one was not that horrific or scary. I know that it is hard to work within the confines of Lucas' guidelines but, it was lacking the necessary punch to make Death Troopers a truly graphic horror. If you are looking for something new to the Star Wars Universe this may be a good option. I just would not place too much pressure on it to change the genre.

Plot 6
Characters 6
Style 6.5

Overall 6/10

Detailed Map of the Star Wars Universe

Ever wonder just how far the kessel run the millennium falcon flew was? Well Pop Watch has your answer. According to the article and the picture you have a detailed view of just what the Star Wars Universe looks like. Follow the link here for the article and picture.

Empire Strikes Back Celebrates 30 Years

In Celebration of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back 30th anniversary, Vanity Fair has posted some behind the scenes photos from the newest coffee table book. Star Wars: The Making of the Empire Strikes Back. The book takes a look from pre-production all the way to its theatrical release. The link only shows 12 photos but each one is nice to see. It also includes the famous picture of Ford, Hamill, Fisher, and Lucas lounging around between takes.

The sneak peak photos (12 in all) can be found here.

Around the Net

BOOK NEWS

R. Scott Bakker

R. Scott Bakker has established a new blog site called Three Pound Brain. The blog does have some interesting news including hints for his new book The Disciple of the Dog and some information on the second book The White-Luck Warrior from the Aspect-Emperor series.


K. J. Parker

Over at Orbit.com you can read a free extract of K J Parker's The Folding Knife. The extract contains the prologue and the first chapter of the novel. While not a huge Parker fan I may be giving this one a shot if I can clear some shelf space.

From Orbit.com:

This extraordinary book was released in the UK this month, and is a powerful tale of politics and war 

“Basso the Magnificent. Basso the Great. Basso the Wise. The First Citizen of the Vesani Republic is an extraordinary man. He is ruthless, cunning and, above all, lucky. He brings wealth, power and prestige to his people. But with power comes unwanted attention, and Basso must defend his nation and himself from threats foreign and domestic. In a lifetime of crucial decisions, he’s only ever made one mistake. One mistake, though, can be enough.”

You can read a free extract of it here and it’s also available in the States and will be out soon in Australia.

Cover Launch and Extract

Gail Z. Martin

From Orbit.com:

The Sworn, book 1 in the Fallen Kings cycle (US I UK I ANZ). This is a new series but has many familiar faces from Gail’s Necromancer series, so will be great for new readers and Gail Martin fans.

We wanted something that would draw you into Gail’s world, that would hint at the action and pure thrill of her writing and I think Steve Stone has delivered something wonderfully atmospheric with this visual. Here be swords, brigands, dark magics and other forms of mayhem aplenty, so those seeking adventure between the pages need look no further.

In addition to saying something about this new book, we were also keen to produce something that would be in sympathy with the cover style of the Necromancer Chronicles, as this book is set in the same world as that series. But at the same time, we had to balance this against not wanting to reproduce the previous style exactly as this book is of course the start of something new. And to find out for yourself just how much excitement is in store, have a look at our first sneak preview of The Sworn with this early extract here.

Magazine News

If you have not checked it out yet now is a great time to head over to Lightspeed Magazine the latest Science Fiction and Fantasy magazine to hit the internet. They have some short stories for you to read or listen to and an spotlight on author David Bar Kirtley. This is the first month for the new periodical so why not get in on the ground floor and check it out. 

Death Star Tweets

Topless Robot was having a fairly humorous contest over the weekend. Each contestant was asked to create 5 made up tweets from Star War's Death Star. They had nearly 2,500 "tweets." nearly every entry had at least one winner. I recommend checking out the comments for a quick laugh. 

Here are a few of the entries:

@Clone7323: @Clone6323 I'm telling you, they looked really similar. They weren't bf/gf. They could have been brother sister for all we know.


@Motti: And they all just sat there. The f*cking guy is choking me with his f*cking mind, and they do NOTHING!!!!

@TK421: Nocked out, yelld at 4 not @ post, and lost uniform to boot. ASSigned 2 garding cell blok 1138. Could this day get ANY worse? FML

@BigPapaPalpintine You sure you don't want to to order a thermal exaust post cover? They are like 20 credit

@Randall: @Dante I told you working here was a bad idea

@Dante: @Randall I'm not even supposed to be here today!

@Clone9376 @Clone7245 You think your job sucks? Big green laser breezes past me and I don't even have a rail to lean against.

@Mark Hamill: The moon is so beautiful tonight

@Alec Guinness: @Mark Hamill That's no moon, it's a space station.

@Gold_5 RT @Gold_5 hey @GoldLeader maybe you should STAY ON TARGET

@CorrellianPimp: I can't believe they bought that. 12 parsecs? Might as well have been 573 wookiemiles. 9384 jawameters. Effing N00bs.

@Master_P: @YoungJedi - you want this? Hmm? Gonna strike me down? Hmm? Use your hate? Hmm? So cute when they're young. #shitmyapprenticesays

RebelAgent1: Boooored in my prison cell. Death Star food sucks. Pretty bummed Leia's gone. Hopeful our comrades will rescue me soon!

@R2D2DaShizit: Why do these MFer's not understand I am telling them Vader is their F'ing DAD! Beep wooo Beep Beep Wooo MFer's!!!!

UFettUrAss: Slave 1 in pursuit of Milennium Falcon, OMG HATE YOU SO MUCH SOLO #followfriday

@LonelyGunner15: It's like no one gets me. But at the same time, everyone IS me. #Confused

@Clone1579: Someone explain why WE don't get laser swords! I mean wtf?

@OB1KENOBI @LukeSky NOT DEAD! QUIT SHOOTING AND GET IN THE FALCON!

WaxOnWaxMoff: Terrorist attack a government structure, and WE'RE the bad guys?! #NVR4GET

@Dianoga: You know what would be great? If you guys threw something other than random scraps of metal down here.

@DeathStarPR: Don't think of us as a "Death" Star, think of us as an "Opportunity" Star. #deathstarcares

StormTrooper3482: I'm supposed to guarding the exhaust, but I'm on Twitter, LOL!

MOVIE NEWS

Green Hornet

New official pictures from the Seth Rogan film Green Hornet have been released. Thanks to SciFi Wire for the images. Green Hornet will hit theaters 14 January 2011.

City of Scars

For a limited time (30 days) you can catch the 30 minute Batman fan film City of Scars. The movie was made for $27,000 by Aaron Schoenke.

REVIEW: Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith #1 Precipice by John Jackson Miller

Star Wars: Lost Tribe of the Sith #1 Precipice by John Jackson Miller
Publisher: Lucasbooks 26 May 2009
File Size: 142 KB
ASIN: B002B9MGIM
Free download
Copy: Free from Amazon.com


Product Description: "SURVIVAL—NOT SURRENDER For the ruthless Sith Order, failure is not an option. It is an offense punishable by death—and a fate to which Commander Yaru Korsin will not succumb. But on a crucial run to deliver troops and precious crystals to a combat hotspot in the Sith’s war against the Republic, Korsin and the crew of the mining ship Omen are ambushed by a Jedi starfighter. And when the Sith craft crash-lands, torn and crippled, on a desolate alien planet, the hard-bitten captain finds himself at odds with desperate survivors on the brink of mutiny—and his own vengeful half brother, who’s bent on seizing command. No matter the cost, Korsin vows that it will not be his blood and bones left behind on this unknown world. For the way of the Sith leaves little room for compromise—and none for mercy."


I have had this free short story on my Kindle for a long time and finally got around to reading it when I was between books. The story is the precursor to a new series in the Star Wars saga Fate of the Jedi. While a quick blurb is available at the end of the first story, I did not bother to read it.


Precipice starts out with a Sith vessal smuggling goods (crystals) that are badly needed by the Sith in order to continue their war with the Jedi. When a jump goes bad, they find themselves stranded on what appears to be a fragile planet. It quickly turns into a "Alive" situation ala Sith style when resources quickly become depleted. 


The characters are very one dimensional and that may be due to the fact that it is a short story and that it continues in two more installments, which they may build upon what is here in part one. However, I was not all that intrigued with what I read. I will more than likely delete the other two sequels that are in my Kindle as Precipice left a bad taste in my mouth and did little to advance the myth of the Sith.


I would have loved to have seen more of the backstabbing and underhandedness that we would expect a group of Sith to behave. Instead we get a story with a good premise but finds itself failing to deliver.


Precipice is exactly what it appears to be. A backstory that prepares the reader for what is to come in the next Star Wars series. As a free story you are not out anything for reading it but time. Precipice and the three other sequels are free from Amazon and can be read on iPhone, PC, and blackberry.


Plot:  4
Characters:  4
Style: 2


Overall: 3