Star Wars 7x7: A Daily Bite-Sized Dose of Star Wars Joy

In depicting a galaxy in turmoil on the macro scale, and a disparate band of pilots learning to bond as a squadron on the micro level, Alexander Freed has raised his game with his latest entry into the new Star Wars canon, Alphabet Squadron. My coverage this week starts with the non-spoiler review... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access...

During last month's E3 video game expo, Respawn Entertainment, in connection with EA and Lucasfilm, revealed a chunk of gameplay footage from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order to the world. They also privately shared a separate chunk of footage with the assembled media at E3. Well, that "secret" footage has finally been revealed publicly, and that's the topic for the show today. Punch it! ***I'm listen...

In our final look at Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith (a Star Wars comic series), I'm talking about the first-ever meeting between Rogue One's Orson Krennic and Darth Vader, and about Vader cashing in a favor from Tarkin, which involved using a bunch of bounty hunters in an attempt to kill Vader. In the midst of this, Tarkin learned things about Vader one could consider ... dangerous. Punch it!...

There's a series of panels in the back half of the Fortress Vader story arc that gives you the Star Wars version of Michael Palin as the King of Swamp Castle from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. And it's priceless. It's also probably not the most *important* thing about that story arc, since it also involves Lord Momin resurrecting himself, a genocidal lava attack, and Vader finally piercing the...

Luke wanted to go to Tosche Station to pick up some power converters! His dad, on the other hand, was focused on more serious things. But Vader did have a bit of a whiny "I want my OWN planet!" moment with Palpatine, once things got boring with the Jedi hunting business. The scoop revisited on today's episode... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to...

A rogue former Jedi survivor of Order 66 cons the Mon Cala into open hostilities with the Empire - and predicts the future role the species led by Admirals Ackbar and Raddus will play in the fight against the forces of evil, now and decades into the future... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and other insider reward...

Writer Kieron Gillen has said you can't give Vader an internal monologue, or you'll demystify him. And while I agree with that evaluation, writers are also finding ways around that situation. I'm talking about one way Marvel Comics is taking us inside his head, as well as detailing the first assassination plot against Vader - and how he finally gets the lightsaber hilt we all know and fear. Punch...

Yep, it happened - Jedi librarian Jocasta Nu took on Darth Vader, and in a way, you could say she got the better of him. I'll explain what I mean, and what this has to do with Luke Skywalker getting help in restoring the Jedi Order, too. Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and other insider rewards.*** 

After Palpatine rescued Vader from Mustafar, the Emperor sent Vader on a mission - to get a kyber crystal from a still-living Jedi. Not easy to find them after Order 66, but here's the story of how he did it - and why Palpatine sent Vader to Mustafar once that kyber crystal was acquired. Plus, the beginnings of the Inquisitorius... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://...

So, Mark Hamill gave another interview quote that's being used as a springboard to re-litigate The Last Jedi. I haven't weighed in on any of Hamill's previous comments (though I've been asked to on multiple occasions), but I finally hit the point where I feel like I need to be on the record about the subject. As a side note, he didn't exactly confirm an element of The Rise of Skywalker in his most...

There have been a lot of little Star Wars stories popping up over the last week or so - none that would drive a single episode by themselves, but together, well, that's another story. First up: sell-outs for Star Wars Celebration already, and possibly surpassing Chicago levels? Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and o...

Tickets go on sale at noon ET/9am PT for Star Wars Celebration Anaheim 2020! What will the big headline events be at next year's four-day edition of the love fest for a galaxy far, far away? We already know enough to fill in some of the details... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and other insider rewards.*** 

The surprising history of Mustafar, and Vader's dark purpose for you as the player character in Vader Immortal, are revealed in the second half of the virtual reality experience's first episode. Learn all the secrets in today's episode... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and other insider rewards.*** 

Vader Immortal is only going to be available on the Oculus VR system - there's not going to be an "Expanded Edition" novelization. So if you can't wait to find out the scoop about it, I'll walk you through the story and flag the highlights for you. Today, Part 1 of this first VR episode. Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus epis...

I've had the opportunity to experience the complete ride that is Episode I of Vader Immortal, and it's truly amazing. VR experiences are new to me (my kids are better versed thanks to friends who have headsets already), so I may not be the most critical judge. That said, let's talk about the experience on today's show... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com...

Vader Immortal Episode I has been out for a few weeks now, but back at Celebration Chicago, they gave attendees a chance to get a glimpse of the story inside the standalone Oculus Quest VR headset. I'm very grateful to the PR team at ILMxLAB for letting me try it out there, and on today's episode, I'm sharing my initial reaction video - heart palpitations and unconsciously held breaths and all. Pu...

It's Fathers Day in the United States, so I'm counting down the top 7 fathers in Star Wars. "Traditional" fathers don't appear a lot in these movies, so I'm bending the definition only as much as I need to for us to have seven fathers to talk about. But everyone listed on today's show has appeared in a Star Wars movie... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com...

Maryann Brandon is an Emmy- and Oscar-nominated editor who's worked with J.J. Abrams for more than a decade. While being interviewed for UC Santa Barbara's "Script to Screen" series on the 10th anniversary of the Star Trek reboot, Brandon also shared a couple of stories from the set of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. A few outlet have reported on this already, but in today's episode, you'll get...

It's been a while, so let's check in and do an update on the post-production status of The Rise of Skywalker! Naturally, there's been a very tight lid kept on the goings-on, but the John Williams Fan Network has been tracking the Maestro's Star-Wars-related activities of late, and a new report reveals that a certain TIE design pre-dates J.J. Abrams' time on Episode IX. Punch it! ***I'm listener su...

The trailer reveal for Jedi: Fallen Order at Celebration Chicago seemed to show a couple of similarities between its hero Cal Kestis and another Padawan who'd survived Order 66. Now that we've learned more about Cal thanks to recent reveals, let's compare and contrast Cal with Kanan Jarrus of Star Wars Rebels. Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to g...

What timing! In addition to the reveals from E3 these past few days, Game Informer magazine was given an extra level of access to Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. Today, an additional seven reveals about the game coming to consoles and computers in November. Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7 to get access to bonus episodes and other insider rewards.**...

EA and Respawn Entertainment released gameplay footage of Jedi: Fallen Order over the weekend. But they showed even MORE footage to the assembled press behind closed doors - and many of them summarized what they saw online. I've read a bunch of those reports, and I'm summarizing them on today's episode - including a couple of new Force powers, and a funny story about something that's easy to do in...

Ahead of the big E3 video game conference, EA released 13 minutes of gameplay and cut-scene footage from Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order (the game itself will be available in November). And there are some big reveals in the footage, including a good look at Cal Kestus' Force abilities (which seem to go way beyond padawan levels) and the reveal of a character whose presence means we may encounter some...

BuzzFeed cites three unnamed sources saying Laeta Kalogridis is working on the first script in a trilogy of Knights of the Old Republic films. But rumors also say that KOTOR is the subject of Benioff and Weiss' movies. How do we resolve these conflicting rumors? Let's look at what we know today and figure it out... Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.com/sw7x7...

100 days have gone by since March 1st, and on today's episode - #1800! - I'm looking back at what you and I have discussed over the last 100 days, which includes 107 episodes of the show, two countries, Episode IX, multiple books, 22 interviews, the death of a very special actor, new movie announcements, and so much more. Punch it! ***I'm listener supported! Join the community at http://Patreon.co...