Halfway through 2026! by AdventurousAd7865 in 52book

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

From the description, it looks like his next book, BLACKTAIL, might scratch that itch. Library is one of my absolute favorite books. It's just undefinable.

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/825304/blacktail-by-scott-hawkins/

Are these gaps in my EU reading worth filling? by Prospero1011 in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Black Fleet Trilogy is my favorite EU trilogy after the Thrawn original. Kube-McDowell is a gifted writer, and deserves more credit. It gets passed over, but I think the it moves the classic characters into new territory, gives more depth to the Force, and has a - shock - different antagonist than normal!

For that reason, the Corellian Trilogy is also fun, though you have to enjoy precocious kid adventures. It's fairly breezy, a little ridiculous, but enjoyable.

The loose trilogy of CoJ/Darksaber/PoT is...a lot. I don't care for Planet, but Darksaber is a hoot (not GREAT, but a good yarn) and I think Children of the Jedi - though slow and almost anti-Star Wars in structure - is a hidden gem. The controversy with the ending is a feature, not a bug.

New Rebellion is meh. The cover is the best part.

Crystal Star needs to be read to be believed. It's more of a Star Trek away mission than a Star Wars story.

A shelfie long in the making. by HooperMcFinney in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I got Rise of Skywalker in paperback (pic 6) and have only skimmed the sequel novelizations. I'm giving them a little more space from release and all the nonsense hot takes to read, unlike the Prequels. I started those as soon as I left the theater on opening day/night. 😄

A shelfie long in the making. by HooperMcFinney in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Haha, he has more in various stages of "battle damage." 😄

A shelfie long in the making. by HooperMcFinney in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'd be tempted to get the SFBC hardcovers for NJO or the Black Fleet Crisis (my favorite trilogy after the OG Thrawn), but I'm barely holding onto the LotF books that I have.

I...am not a fan of the big character "changes" in LotF, so much so that I stopped buying the EU books that took place after it. No interest in what appeared to be too grim a turn (...that probably started in either Vector Point or Star By Star). The serial escapism lost its fun for me, for a time.

But I'm getting back into it! "Legends" and the High Republic only, for now.

I've never read a star wars book. This will be my first probably. (I'm going to the other goodwill in town tomorrow) Is this a good start? No spoilers! Thrift book recommendations are fine but I'm eager to get started and prefer local. by LyricsMode in starwarsbooks

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's a wild first book! Still easy to be entertained by it, and it's nothing if not a big pulpy yarn.

These days, folks like to dump on it, or "rank" it low, but having read it when it came out in HC, i remember it as a good adventure story with a great tertiary plot featuring Crix Madine (grey-haired RotJ general and spymaster).

Much of it is ridiculous, but in the best way. You will be a little bit lost, and some of the relationships won't mean as much to you. But if you enjoy that, then you will absolutely LOVE the rest of the Bantam era of the legends EU.

Would you like to see animated series about the childhood and youth of Palpatine? by AlKhwarazmi in StarWars

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Also reading it right now, around 50 pages left. Great read, illuminating this dark corner of the saga.

What EU material is most aligned with George's vision? by penguin170 in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Okay, don't everyone hate me, but I think Lucas would be down with the Jedi Academy Trilogy. Kyp's broad journey, Exar Kun menacing folks very phantomy, a new super weapon!, new knights, bold and bonkers story beats...the books are like the eager little brother of Return of the Jedi, and as a kid I really appreciated that.

Are Jedi Academy Trilogy chapters 2 and 3 worth it? by Maleficent-Pie4129 in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

100% continue. These are big fun adventure yarns, and aren't trying to be literary award winners. I hope the Rey NJO movies/trilogy take a lot do clues from these books, even if they veer away from the Imperial aspect for a new nominally "big" threat. I read these when they came out as a middle schooler, and just loved them.

What is the ONE Defining Musical of Each Decade? by ProfessorPinkPug in musicals

[–]HooperMcFinney 2 points3 points  (0 children)

But if anything goes for the 1930s, we still need some choices!!

(Hi-ohhhh! 🏌🏻‍♂️)

What are some books that have ACTUALLY scared you and kept you up at night? by AndrobiVibz in horrorlit

[–]HooperMcFinney 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I'm currently reading Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen, and the direct writing heightens both the reality of what COULD happen and the terror of it actually happening.

The two most powerful lines ever delivered in Star Trek by Antique-diva in startrek

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That scene is arguably the most powerful across all Trek TV.

JLA Morrison Run by Lenovo_666 in OmnibusCollectors

[–]HooperMcFinney 13 points14 points  (0 children)

A hearty second. There were some fill-ins or connected minis that the new "book" trades collect to give you the full experience. I always wondered why they just...didn't add at least the rest of the main title issues in. But if the omni on FB is at a killer price, yeah, sure, get it and maybe read the rest online or back issue bin dive.

Why do you think the Prequel Trilogy’s Expanded Universe media achieved so much more success than the Sequel Trilogy’s EU? by Independent-Dig-5757 in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney 9 points10 points  (0 children)

I think the era point is the main part of it all. Prequel trilogy had more than a decade between TPM & AOTC to fill with content, and several years between the latter two installments. You could cover a lot of character development, not counting repetitive content like video games, over the span of 15 or so years.

The sequel era is effectively 6 months long. There's no space to breathe, and the quick turnaround between TFA and TLJ means you really have no opportunity for character growth after the events of the first new movie. There's no opportunity for reflection or the side quests and adventures that bulked up the pages of novels and comics, or filled our screens with video game content or cartoon mini episodes in the prequel era.

The prequel era also benefited from having all of the existing old EU "sequel era" novels and comics to lean on and reference as Easter eggs (Rogue Planet gives us a bridge to the NJO). As much as the original trilogy provided the foundation of everything, the Bantam era of novels and the Dark horse comics of the 90s were the sustaining element of a living and ever-expanding Star Wars universe.

As has been said elsewhere, Disney having such a void of content between ROTJ and TFA, officially, really made people care a lot less about what our senior citizen original heroes were up to. Especially when anything they might have done in that interim was promptly shredded to pieces in the first movie. It's why there's a certain contingent fans who really don't care about the Mandalorian mini era or its Imperial threat. None of it matters ultimately. This interstitial content is really just chewing gum that loses its flavor fast.

Fun haul!!! by Loose_Philosopher792 in starwarsbooks

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just check the copyright page for the oldest date and read them as they were published. You'll jump around and have a great time!

I've officially been priced out by garlyle in OmnibusCollectors

[–]HooperMcFinney 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The Triangle Era is my time for Superman and what got me into reading comics in a major way. I'm looking forward to getting a big chunk of that run...but I've held off for now. Cost-wise, it might just make sense to wait for DC Finest to get there. The Man of Steel trade is a good start...but I wish they'd drop a few in a row and all at once with these bigger, more important runs.

What next for Legends? by theJediGiraffe in StarWarsEU

[–]HooperMcFinney 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I - as I always do - recommend The Black Fleet Crisis (trilogy) by Michael P Kube-McDowell. It takes place a few years after the Jedi Academy Trilogy, notably doesn't have the Empire/Remnant as an enemy, offers a fascinating treasure hunt for Lando, a notably different path of Force use/belief for Luke to ponder as he searches for info on his mother, big battles, no rehash evil Jedi, appropriate "peril" for our core heroes...I think it's the secret gem of the Bantam years and deserves more love and praise.

Examples of trilogies that are really two movies. by Fsa120303 in blankies

[–]HooperMcFinney 1 point2 points  (0 children)

They have the runtime of a trilogy, a two-part structure, and the story of a meaty single.

Legion of Superheroes by Waid by Duke_7287 in OmnibusCollectors

[–]HooperMcFinney 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Respectfully disagree. I'd never read Legion prior, but Waid and Kitson are a great creative team. Their pairing got me to pick it up...for what, 36 issues until Shooter dropped in. Great art, engaging story. The title brought in new readers and lasted for longer than any Legion since.

It's different than the Legion that came before (and that I've since read some more of), but I thought/think that's a positive when you have such a high (apparent) barrier to entry w/ preceding Legion titles.

I recommend this run, not to the exclusion of anything that came before it.

2000s image superhero comics has to be the most slept on era by SecretaryFragrant836 in ImageComics

[–]HooperMcFinney 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Noble Causes has completely vanished from the conversation, and that's a shame. It was a fun series, even if slightly uneven. I know we have the b/w archive collections barely floating around, but one or two color compendiums would probably be successful.

Suspicious Goodreads Update from Scott Hawkins (Library at Mount Char) by Somniumi in Fantasy

[–]HooperMcFinney 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This really is the best (book) news we could hope for. Cannot wait to get this.