Star Wars: Delusions Of Granular

Back in 1999, Ron was reading the latest Star Wars novel, Vector Prime when something occurred in the book that would outrage many fans for years to come. With the Extended Universe (Legends) rendered not canon by Disney, Ron and Jp decided to take another look at Vector Prime, the start of the New Jedi Order series. A series that lasts for nineteen books, we barely scratch the surface of the overall story going on in the Star Wars universe, but we are able to delve into the controversy behind the book and it's author R.A. Salvatore. Many years later, this book along with the entire series is a standout amongst the Extended Universe. Join us to find out if we agree that this is book is something to be lauded or just thrown back into the trash.

Once again, Jp and Ron open up the ol' cracker barrel because frankly we have a lot of stuff to talk about with everything going on in the Star Wars universe. We touch upon the newly announced spin-off title: Rogue One, the addition of Sarah Michelle Gellar to Star Wars Rebels Season Two, the first round of now-canon Marvel comics, George Lucas being spotted possibly purchasing these comics, the ramifications of a LGBT character being added to Star Wars and a whole lot more. Join us as we pause in our usual line up of themed shows to catch our breath and try to comprehend the doings of the Star Wars world as it stands today! 

Ron and Jp take one more look at the first season of Star Wars Rebels. We've had our ups and downs with this show throughout the season but one of us clearly lands on loving the show while the other, not so much. We try to take a point/counterpoint in our assessment of the show. We both pretty much feel that the season ended a lot stronger than it started. With some fan favorites joining the cast in the later episodes, it leads us to the question, "Why didn't you start with these characters?" Join us as we try to figure out our feelings for the show and how we feel as it moves into season two!

This week we take a look at one of George Lucas's friends while he was learning film at USC, John Milius. A writer and director is his own right, Milius is responsible for some of the cornerstones of modern day cinema and pop culture. Many of the most memorable lines of dialog from Dirty Harry's "Go ahead, make my day."  to Jaws's famous Indianapolis speech came from this man's head. Labeled politically as a conservative in a predominantly liberal Hollywood, some of Milius's actions and views quite possibly got him blacklisted as a director. Whether that is the case or not, one thing can be said, John Milius's name is important to the history of cinema as well guiding a young George Lucas on his path to making Star Wars. 

Jp and Ron go back to 1971, a time when a young George Lucas was just starting his journey as a filmmaker. His first film THX 1138, based on a short film that he did as a student, is a futuristic dystopian tale of two people trying to break free from the Orwellian world in which they live. A cold and challenging film at the time, it has since been re-released and reassessed over the years, and now has become a cult classic. Many of the ideas and themes that Lucas has since explored in all his movies including Star Wars started with THX 1138. So strap in for a fun discussion as we look back at a future not so far away where Star Wars was just a twinkle in George Lucas's eye.

Ron and Jp take another episode to profile one of the beloved actors from Star Wars. Not Harrison Ford. Not Carrie Fisher. Not Billy Dee. No, this time we talk about the surprisingly prolific career of Warwick Davis. Starting his career at 13 years old as Wicket the Ewok in Return of the Jedi, Davis has gone on to be a part of a lot of fan favorite movie franchises. From Star Wars to the Harry Potter series, he has been a good sport getting behind a mask to play a character. But he is so much more than that! In the UK he is a pretty well know celebrity, hosting many shows on the BBC and even having his own mockumentary show on HBO, Life's Too Short. Don't judge him by his size, Warwick Davis is a hard working individual with quite a resume under his belt!

Ron and Jp go back to The Clone Wars series to talk about the story arc: The Mortis Trilogy. What exactly is going on here? With three episodes, Dave Filoni and crew take Star Wars in a whole new direction when they try to explore a new aspect of the Force. Anakin, Ahsoka and Obi-Wan land on a planet called Mortis. A planet who's only inhabitants appear to be a father, daughter and son. Each of these characters is a personification of the Force. The son and daughter being the dark and light side of the Force, and the father, a "balance" for them as well as trying to keep them from entering the rest of the universe which is certain to cause doom and destruction. Only the father is getting too old and needs Anakin, The Chosen One, to step in and take his place. This story is heavy on metaphors and symbolism! Join us as we try to make sense of if all!

Jp and Ron take a week off from talking about any one particular Star Wars topic to share their latest thoughts and feelings for The Force Awakens. Is it too early to make predictions about what this new movie is going to be about? Probably. But that hasn't stopped literally everyone from trying to piece together all the rumors and leaks into a coherent plot. Or has it? Who is really talking about the new Star Wars movies? Is it as big a deal to the world as it is to the fan community? We discuss all of this as well as documenting our predictions about The Force Awakens. Are we going to be proven soothsayers or just two idiots without a clue. Only the future will decide!

Jp and Ron turn the pages of the Dark Horse classic, Dark Empire. Created by Tom Veitch, Cam Kennedy and Dave Dorman, this comic from 1991 was one of the first Expanded Universe stories to come out after Timothy Zahn's Thrawn Trilogy. Roughly five years after Return of the Jedi, Dark Empire tells the story of what happens when Luke Skywalker turns to the dark side. Tempted by a dark force in the form of a storm, Luke is confronted by a newly cloned Emperor. And then things really get dark from there! Although now labeled "Legends" we think that Dark Empire is worth your time. Disney may have washed this all away but we still feel that Dark Empire is a fun ride that holds up to the test of time.

This week Ron and Jp look at the multimedia event from 1996, Shadows of the Empire. It was a novel, a video game, a comic book and it had a soundtrack. The one thing it didn't have is an actual movie! Created by Lucasfilm at a time when we all thought this was all we were going to get in the way of new Star Wars canon. Oh we were so young and innocent at the time. Now taken out of canon (we think), we look back at the highs and the lows and what we did and didn't learn from this storytelling experiment. Join us for an extra sexy episode of Delusions Of Granular!

Ron and Jp are joined by special guest Mike Klimo, author of starwarsringtheory.com. In his fascinating essay Mike makes the claim that although possibly not aware of it, George Lucas used an ancient literary technique known as chiastic structure or ring structure when writing the entire Star Wars saga. Chiastic structure is when narrative motifs are presented in a symmetrical structure, often with an opening and closing, forming a ring pattern. Chiastic structures can be found in the Odyssey, the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. With a well researched essay and many visuals from all six movies that support this theory, Mike believes that Star Wars uses this ring pattern as well. Join us as Mike elevates our usual conversations and gets granular with SWDOG!

Jp and Ron stay granular this week by discussing the number one Star Wars fan, Kevin Smith. What started with a five minute discussion in Clerks about the innocent workers on the Death Star, Smith brought in a new era of discussing Star Wars: by poking fun at it and looking beyond what was on screen and focusing on what was happening just off screen. In a way, he ushered in countless dissections of the Star Wars universe that happen every day on the Internet and in podcasts just like ours. Yes, Kevin Smith, we salute you! And we honor you in the only way we know how, by dedicating a rambling episode of Delusions of Granular just to you. Snootchie bootchies, my friend. Snootchie bootchies.

Ron and Jp kick off the new year by talking about what else? ...Dune! We explore in depth the classic science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert and briefly touch upon all of the various sequel novels that have been written throughout the years. We also take a look at the film adaptations that did and didn't happen. Sure, David Lynch's 1984 version of Dune is a flawed film that has since become a cult classic but is that the definitive version of Dune? Or is it Alejandro Jodorowsky's version even if it was never actually made? Hear the opinions of Ron, who is completely new to the Dune world and Jp, who has delved deep into all of the novels and movies. And how does this all relate to Star Wars? Listen in and find out!

Jp and Ron are feeling festive! Join us as we bring to you a special holiday edition of SWDOG. What better to celebrate the holidays? By talking TOYS of course! And as any Star Wars fan knows, toys are a big part of the Star Wars universe. Ron shares his experiences of being a child of the 70s who played with the toys, grew up and became a collector and then finally selling his collection and leaving it all behind...or did he? Does the child in him ever grow up or does he still have an addiction to the toy aisle? Enjoy our year end episode that also happens to be our 25th episode! Happy Merry everyone!

As the series takes a mid-season break, Ron and Jp share their thoughts and opinions of Star Wars Rebels. We try to stay positive but keeps slipping to the Dark Side with this show. The fact is, we feel that this show is not living up to the precedent set by The Clone Wars. Will it get better when it returns in January? We plan to stick with it but our expectations have definitely been lowered by what we've already seen of this show.

While Ron paid to see The Force Awakens teaser on the big screen, Jp saw it online in the comfort of his own home. We share our reactions to the teaser while promising not to spend three hours over analyzing 88 seconds. We do spend a good amount of time dissecting the latest rumors to hit the Internet from an unlikely source. Do these rumors start to connect the dots of the plot of the movie or do they leave us with more questions? Intrigued by this new batch of rumors, Ron and Jp feel like they might be getting into spoiler territory...but then again we might just be dealing with a new batch of lies instead.

The man chosen by Disney to kick off the new Star Wars movies. Ron and Jp get granular when they discuss the career of J.J. Abrams. From his early beginnings as a screenwriter to Hollywood power player, we touch on all the highlights of his career. But does he have what it takes to make The Force Awakens into a film that the fans love? Or will we find more disappointment in the franchise? Only time will tell. Join us in our discussion of the first person to direct a Star Wars movie since George Lucas retired.

Jp and Ron go back to The Clone Wars to discuss one of our favorite story arcs from that series as well as our favorite character from the show, Ahsoka Tano. What started out as a seemingly pointless character that many people found annoying, Ahsoka grew into the heart and soul of The Clone Wars, and quite possibly entire Star Wars saga. As we focus on her heartbreaking final story arc of the series, we explore how she manages to give depth to all the characters she interacts with including Anakin and the Jedi. We ponder if we will ever see Ahsoka again, and if any Star Wars project will ever be worthy enough for her to grace her presence. 

What happens when Ron and Jp have a lot of random thoughts about a lot of random Star Wars subjects? You get an episode like this! Join us as we talk about the upcoming trailer for The Force Awakens, Star Wars Rebels' holiday break, Marvel Star Wars, the state of fandom on the Internet and more! Is this an elegant episode for a more civilized age? Probably not. But sometimes we just need to get stuff off of out chests! Enjoy! 

Is The Empire Strike Back the best Star Wars film of all time? Many fans and critics think it is but is it the movie that George Lucas originally wanted to make? Reading through the history books tells us it isn't. In fact Lucas wanted a very different film than what Irvin Kershner had made and the results changed the course of the Saga and Lucas's future plans, both personal and professional, forever. Join us as we explore the making of Empire and the conflicts between Lucas and Kershner!