In this week’s edition of The Week in Star Wars, new information about the First Order Stormtroopers revealed, plenty of LEGO Star Wars bits and pieces and the secret history of Obi Wan Kenobi…
Kicking things off with only a couple of bits of The Force Awakens news (which is bound to explode this coming week with Disney heading to Comic-Con this week to promote the film), and a couple of toy displays have given us some new details on the new First Order and their legion of Stormtroopers. The tyranny of imperial rule sparked rebellion, and the Stormtrooper legions were scattered in the aftermath of the Empire’s fall,” the packaging reads. “Now, the rise of the First Order ushered in the next chapter in the Stormtrooper’s legacy as a new era of ruthless brutality begins.” Read the rest of the packing here, and check out a promo poster for the toy display here…
…We’re bound to be inundated with details of toys and action figures for The Force Awakens in the coming months, but this week gave us our first glimpse at the LEGO series of tie-in sets. Details from a RedditAMA has revealed that the first wave of LEGO sets will include Rey’s Speeder (193 pieces), First Order Snowspeeder (444 pieces), First Order Special Force TIE (517 pieces), Poe’s X-Wing Starfighter (717 pieces), First Order Transporter (792 pieces), Kylo Ren’s Command Shuttle (1004 pieces) and the Millennium Falcon (1332 pieces). We also got our first look at the Minifigure for Captain Phasma, which you can see here…
…Moving away from The Force Awakens, but sticking with LEGO, we also got our first look this week at a Comic-Con exlclusive set – Yoda’s hut down on Dagboah. The description reads, “While Star Wars fans await any bit of The Force Awakens news from San Diego Comic-Con 2015, LEGO has announced a return to the franchise’s roots. The toy company will release a 177-piece Dagobah set exclusively at Comic-Con as a recreation of one of the most iconic scenes from The Empire Strikes Back. The Outer Rim planet was home to Yoda after his exile and served as the training grounds for Luke Skywalker. Both Skywalker’s X-wing and Yoda’s hut are a part of the set…”
…Lastly on the LEGO front, LEGO and Lucasfilm announced this week that we were going to see the entire Star Wars saga once again – only this time from the perspective of C-3PO and R2-D2, which will air on Disney XD in December. LEGO Star Wars: The Droid Wars will kick off with The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones in the first episode, with the second looking at The Clone Wars and Revenge of the Sith. A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi will all be getting their own individual episodes. Here’s the synopsis: “Following their victory celebration in the Ewok village on Endor, seen at the close of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, C-3PO and R2-D2 have gathered to regale Luke, Leia, Han, Chewbacca and the other Rebels with the tales of their adventures that led to the events of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. An accidental kidnapping occurs while the droids are reminiscing and suddenly viewers are taken on a new adventure that leads to encounters with familiar faces and places that prompt the re-telling of the entire saga. The series offers all of the playful humor that viewers expect from LEGO Star Wars…”
…Just quickly on the video game side of things and DICE announced via a RedditAMA that there will be no Death Star map available for Star Wars Battlefront. “We will not offer a Death Star-based map,” they wrote. “But stay tuned for details around the maps we will offer…”
…Those hoping to see a Blu-Ray release of Star Wars Rebels in the UK will be rather disappointed…
…This should come as a surprise to pretty much no one, but it looks like second-unit production has begun on Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One over at Pinewood Studios in London. Reports are saying that lots have trees have been moved to the set to film a jungle sequence and several sets from The Force Awakens are being re-purposed as Star Destroyers and the interior of the Death Star. Expect to see some set photos fairly soon…
…Moving on to the Marvel comics side of Star Wars and we got some of Stuart Immonen’s sketchbook art of Star Wars #8 thanks to Marvel’s official website with the artist also revealing that A New Hope was his favourite movie. “There’s a lightness in the dialogue and performances, and the concepts and designs and shooting style are still fresh and new almost forty years later,” he said. “The other films undoubtedly make for a richer experience, but all the seeds are present in Episode IV…”
…We also got a preview of Star Wars: Lando, which you can see here. “Before there was Cloud City, before he joined the Rebellion – there was just Lando. Trying to make his own way in an unfriendly galaxy with some swindles, some swagger and an irresistible smile. With his trusty companion Lobot at his side, he’s on a mission to steal one of the galaxy’s most valuable objects. But has he bitten off more than he can chew? The heist of the century kicks off this July when the can’t miss LANDO #1 comes to comic shops and digital devices!” Star Wars: Lando will be released on July 8th…
…Star Wars #7 is set to give us the secret history of Ben Kenobi, a preview of which you can see here. “Luke Skywalker has uncovered the journals of his departed mentor Obi-Wan Kenobi. Now, experience Kenobi’s harrowing accounts of days long gone by! It is a time when injustice reigned on Tatooine. As villainous scum runs rampant over the blistering sands, only a Jedi Master stands any hope of liberating the planet from the grasp of gangs, thieves and thugs. But would Ben risk everything to do what was right? Even if it meant revealing himself to those searching for his whereabouts? Find out this July as Aaron & Bianchi bring you STAR WARS #7!” Star Wars #7 is released on July 29th…
…And finally, we got an official synopsis for Marvel’s upcoming limited series Star Wars: Journey to The Force Awakens – Shattered Empire, which is set to bridge the gap between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens: “Emperor Palpatine’s twenty-year reign of terror came to an abrupt and fiery end in the skies above the forest moon of Endor. A decisive victory for the Rebel Alliance, to be sure, but even with the loss of its leadership, the Empire’s Moffs and regional governors retained their hold on important systems from the Core to the Outer Rim, thanks to the might of the Imperial Starfleet. Now, with a power vacuum atop the Empire, those Moffs will jockey for position and control, and the heroes of the Rebel Alliance will soon discover that a wounded and fractious Empire may be more dangerous than any threat they faced before!”
That’s all for this week, may the Force be with you!
Luke Owen is the Deputy Editor of Flickering Myth and the host of the Flickering Myth Podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @LukeWritesStuff.
