Star Wars

Star Wars is one of, if not the, most influential media franchises of all time, let alone its effect on science-fiction and fantasy. Indeed, among nerddom, it is challenged by only a few others, like Star Trek and The Lord of the Rings. The incredibly ardent fandom is spread worldwide and has a strong presence in popular culture. Many of the characters, like Darth Vader and Yoda, are iconic even to the general public. John Williams' score for the original trilogy is probably the best-known film score of all time. The universe has spawned numerous video games, hundreds of novels, multiple TV shows, one of the largest merchandising franchises ever, and, relevant to /tg/, a whole bunch of board, card, and roleplaying games.

The Basic Concept

Star Wars was originally a series of epic science-fantasy "space operas" that roughly followed the mythic cycle that's been around since Homer. They're set "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away," where a mysterious life force called (reasonably enough) the Force permeates everything. This, in turn, can be wielded by certain people, giving them psuedo-magical abilities. Those who use it for good become mystical, selfless warrior monks called Jedi, whereas those who use it for evil are ruthless, self-serving bastards called Sith. However, the Force must always be in balance, so there's always some Jedi and some Sith.

The so-called Original Trilogy (made up of films IV through VI, released from 1977 to 1983) followed a young man named Luke Skywalker who becomes a Jedi and rebalances the Force. Meanwhile, the Rebel Alliance is fighting to end the oppressive Galactic Empire, which is secretly led by the Sith. Luke and his Rebel companions eventually defeat the evil Emperor Palpatine, but along the way they discover that his lieutenant, Darth Vader, is actually Luke's father.

The so-called Prequel Trilogy (made up of films I through III, released from 1999 to 2005) explained how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader and how the Galactic Empire was established. This involves a lot of convoluted politicking in the Republic, which is then torn apart in the Clone Wars, where the Republic (with an army of clones led by the Jedi) fights against the Confederacy (with an army of robots led by General Grievous and secretly controlled by the Sith). It was not as well received as the first trilogy, for reasons we'll talk about below.

There's also a new trilogy (presumably made up of films VII through IX) that is going to start in 2015. However, it's being directed by J.J. Abrams, who's mostly known for the skubtastic Star Trek reboot, so who knows how it'll end up being.

There are also three separate TV series. The first one, Clone Wars, was based on traditional animation, whereas the later one, The Clone Wars, was a weird 3D animation. They're both pretty good. There was also a terrible theatrical release that was basically just an advertisement for The Clone Wars, but, since it's even worse than the Prequel Trilogy (hint: babysitting Jabba the Hut's kid), nobody talks about it much. The third series is Disney's "Rebels" which is set between episodes 3-4 and it takes itself far less seriously than Clone Wars did, and is more of a homage to the original trilogy since not every character in the series is the owner of a lightsaber nor are they constantly talking about grown-up politics, senators and trade embargoes... pretty much the things that clogged up the plot of the prequel trilogy.

And then there's the whole Expanded Universe, which covers pretty much everything not covered by the films, like the Old Republic (set hundreds of years before the prequel trilogy, when there were a hell of a lot more Sith and Jedi around) and the New Republic (set immediately after the original trilogy, explaining what became of all the characters. Also features Force-less Space Mongols). Update: No longer considered in the main canon of the films and TV series, due to the new sequel trilogy. The reaction to this was, well, mixed, for lack of a better word.

Why was it so popular?

Star Wars is accessible. It doesn't require extensive knowledge of a fictional world (a la The Lord of the Rings) or cultural background (as Star Trek sometimes requires) to make sense, although those elements are present for those who want them, albeit in the background. It has a variety of action and dialogue to make it interesting for both kids and adults (as well as allowing parents who grew up with it to watch it with their children, thereby hooking the next generation of viewers). It has simple, good-vs.-evil themes that resonate with almost anyone, anywhere, at any time. The science fiction elements are generally handled well if you don't obsess over Science Fiction harness (Issac Asimov rather enjoyed the films).

There's a ton of merchandise that is, of course, really cool. Also, given it's crossed over into the mainstream, many people feel comfortable being part of the community without feeling judged as "nerds" (as they might with Lord of the Rings, D&D, Star Trek, Warhammer, etc.).

Finally, there's the fact that the original trilogy films are simply good. The fact that they're not only watchable today, but still stand on their own as good films, is a testament to the story-telling ability of the team that made it. John Williams' excellent score, Ralph McQuarrie's amazing concept art, the impressive performances put in by all of the actors, and, hell, even George Lucas' drive and ambition all steered the films towards the cultural significance they enjoy today.

Characters

• Luke Skywalker: All-round good guy and idealist, despite some flaws, Luke wishes to learn the ways of the Force to defeat the Emperor and save the galaxy. A Jedi prodigy, he can lift heavy ton space fighters with just his force powers, though he struggles with doubts. Although he starts all brash and teenage and shit, by the conclusion of the trilogy, Luke is well on the way to becoming a wise and powerful Jedi ready to rebuild the Order.

• Han Solo: Loveable rogue who shoots his way out of debt with the mob, ends up a general, and bags himself a princess. Not a bad day's work. His ship, the Millennium Falcon, deserves a mention too for being as iconic as he is.

• Princess Leia: The regulation piece of lady crumpet in the movies, Princess Leia was a leader in the rebel alliance and Luke's long lost twin sister (spoiler!). Her being forced to wear a metal thong by an overweight space slug has since cemented her role as sex idol to legions of adoring fan boys. Despite her appearances, she was tough to boot, could decently fire a laser and went on to become a decent Jedi Warrior.

• C-3P0 and R2-D2: Two completely heterosexual and yet married for life robots who are the only characters to have been in all the movies so far for some bizarre reason. C-3P0 is the shiny golden binge humanoid robot who constantly fusses and worries his pies are overdone in the oven while R2-D2 is the brash, brave husband figure who swings into action regardless. He looks like a salt shaker next to the Dalek's pepper shakers, although is he more a plucky rabbit to their rabid wild cats. The robots often have comedy roles in the movies, otherwise they might threaten to upstage the human actors if they became too useful, though R2 is generally the party computer skillmonkey.

• Chewbecca: The original furry in space. Nothing sexy about him; he is just hairy, huge, knows how to pilot a space ship, fix stuff fire a gun and get shit done which strangely then makes him the coolest furry ever. Best friends with Han, has a family that we can all agree did not appear in the terrible Christmas special that does not exist.

• Lando Calrissian: Suave, charismatic, and an expert con artist, this guy is the original pimp in space. He betrays Han and co. when Vader invades his city, later regrets it, and then atones by saving Han from the mafia and leading the fleet that blows up the Death Star 2.0.

• Obi-Wan Kenobi: If, at any point, in any work of fiction, the hero has an old master/father figure who teaches him part of what he knows, makes sure that he will grow up to be a virtuous and decent hero, but ultimately dies fighting a great evil to buy the hero time to escape, before returning as a spirit guide for the hero later, the Internet has probably accused that character of ripping off Obi-wan Kenobi. The prequels show him as a young Jedi and a deuterotagonist to Anakin Skywalker, acting as his master, teacher, partner, and dear friend before their eventual falling out ends with Anakin losing most of his major extremities and organs and Obi-wan hiding out in a cave waiting to turn into Alec Guinness.

• Yoda: Anicent wise master of the Jedi Order who is a tiny green alien. Because of his size and age, most assumed he was just a harmless old teacher, like your nice old granddad. His pulling out a lightsaber and engaging a Sith Lord in combat at the end of Attack of the Clones stands as one of the most surprising and popular fights of the movie series. Became the mascot of Star Wars despite being meant to be a surprise to the audience in his first appearance. Has a unique way of speaking, he does.

• Darth Vader: The black-helmeted face of evil and the most well known villain from Star Wars, he has become an iconic and memorable figure due to his menacing, robotic appearance and ultra-deep, wheezy respirator voice. He is (spoiler!) secretly Anakin, Luke's fallen Jedi father, thus allowing him to be able to say the most memorable line in the film series, 'I am your Father!' Abaddon wishes he could be this sinister. His children eventually manage to rekindle the spark of human decency in his heart, and he redeems himself by giving up his own life to save them and destroy the Emperor. Hates Sand.

• The Emperor: A creepy old wrinkly dude who sits in his badass evil throne constantly screaming "Just as planned!" And occasionally frying fools with force lightning. Built a giant planet-destroying weapon, years before Abaddon tried to do it, then built another, bigger one as a trap when the first one blew up. He is very clever, managing to scheme and outwit everyone in the prequel trilogy, moving them all into place so he could take over the galaxy (although he still needed a big superweapon anyway to hold onto said power). Chews so much scenery.

• Admiral Ackbar: Giant tactical fish who has the need to point out obvious traps.

• Wedge Antilles: The anti-redshirt. Has almost no lines in the original movies but somehow survives all of them, even blowing up the second Death Star with Lando. In the EU he is one of, if not the best starfighter pilot in the galaxy, and co-founder of the über elite Rogue Squadron along with Luke.

• Padmé Amidala: Darth Vader's waifu who spends most of the prequel trilogy being a hopeless pacifistic idealist (which makes her a hypocrite with all the fighting scenes she's in.) Get's choked by Vader and dies giving birth to Luke and Leia, which ironically Vader was trying to prevent in the first place. Way to go, douchebag.

• Jar-Jar Binks: Solely exists to fuck up everything (and I do mean EVERYTHING) at the worst possible moment. This guy is so hated by everyone in and out of universe that even Lucas shitcanned his role down into a very brief cameo at the end of Episode 3

• Jango and Boba Fett: Badass, silent mercs who get shit done and come from a line of Spartan/Vikings in space (Though both are actually Māori). Sadly, these two had very anticlimactic deaths (though Boba survived his in the EU, through the power of being too popular with the audience to kill permanently.)

• Jabba the Hutt: Obese slug who is a cross between a Mexican drug cartel kingpin and Mafia crime-boss. He runs his criminal enterprise from an old palace-monastery on Tatooine. A /d/eviant at heart, likes to fap to hot alien chicks dancing for him, until they try to escape, then faps even harder when he feeds said chicks to Rancor. Gets strangled to death by a bikini-wearing Leia with her own chains, because symbolism.

• Mace Windu: The original only black guy in space, he was the hardest-as-nails Jedi master of the council during the prequal trilogy and he is perhaps the most badass of the lot. If Anakin hadn't interfered, he would have killed Darth Sideious and none of the original trilogy would have taken place. His subsequent anti-climatic death in the movie is regarded with annoyance by his fans.

• Qui-Gon Jinn: Liam Neeson as a Jedi. He was the only one smart enough to recognize a Sith plot, and would've uncovered and exposed Palpatine if it weren't for Darth Maul's sword going through his gut. Was the master of Obi-Wan, and tried to teach Anakin the basics from beyond the grave.

• Count Dooku: An elegant, charasmatic, gentlemanly Sith Lord who had dreams of liberating the galaxy from Republic control, but didn't entirely count on his partner in crime to be a backstabbing douche bag. Hates Anakin/Vader for not being a gentleman.

• Darth Maul: Horned Sith only concerned with bloodshed and fighting. He'd do well as a Khornate Champion. Got his legs cut off, then came back more badass than ever, until he was utterly stomped by the Emperor. Wields a sick-looking double-bladed lightsaber, doesn't actually get any lines in the first film, and played by famous martial arts master Ray Park.

• Stormtroopers: The elite soldiers of the Galactic Empire. Originally, these soldiers were vat clones of Jango Fett cloned in large numbers, trained from birth in combat and clad in environmentally sealed suits of their famous gleaming white full body armor. After the rebels blew up the gene-banks, the Empire switched to an enlistment system. Numerous sub-categories exist, specializing to operate in different environments (deserts, frozen tundra, zero gravity, underwater, etc.) and serve different roles (Scouts and Jump-pack equipped troops). They are unwavering loyal and obedient to their Empire, ruthless and brutally efficient foes in combat, and incredibly precise shots with their state-of-the-art weapons. They, of course, inexplicably outmatched in those instances in which they are sent against the main characters of the series, but that's life when you're wearing a helmet.

• Ewoks: Strange little savage teddy bears that were only introduced towards the end of the last sixth film but instantly became such a fan hit they spawned their own animated kids show and merchandise beyond compare for the franchise (seriously). Considering they were brave (or mad?) enough to go up an army of Imperial Stormtroopers with Jetbikes and walkers means they are hardy little bastards. Oh and they ate them.

From the EU

• Baron Soontir Fel: Han Solo's only real rival at piloting starcraft. He turned the 181st Fighter Wing from a bunch of lowly misfits into a kickass TIE Interceptor unit that was only rivaled by Rogue Squadron. His son, Jagged, goes on to fight the Vong, marry Jaina Solo and become the founder of the Fel Dynasty of Emperors.

• Grand Admiral Thrawn: The evil Star Wars version of Creed, and generally made the Republic shit themselves whenever he came near. Like Revan before him, he believed that an Empire was what was needed in order to combat the true threats of the Unknown Regions (AKA the Yuuzhan Vong). And like Revan, his troops followed him out of loyalty and respect, rather than fear like so many other Sith/Imperials seem to operate on. Unfortunately, he was killed by his own bodyguard after he found out the Empire lied about the state of his homeworld. A lot of other stuff about his personality varies depending on the writer since his creator intentionally left it fairly ambiguous by never telling the trilogy of novels he originally appeared from his point of view.

• Gilad Pellaeon, The Old Man of the Empire: Thrawn's second-in-command, and the man responsible for holding what remained of the Empire together for nearly forty long years until a New Emperor, Jagged Fel, was chosen. He was so well beloved by the galaxy at large that an entire new class of Star Destroyers and various buildings and gardens were named in his honor long after his death. Not as smart as his old boss, but not as evil either, so it all kinda evens out.

• Talon Kaarde: Smuggler and pimp extraordinaire, runs an army of smugglers and theives who more than once whip Imperial and Vong ass.

• Mara Jade: Luke's slightly psychotic waifu, and former Hand of the Emperor. She was first sent to kill Luke, but after finding out that Palpsy was a back-stabbing bastard, she instead became Luke's ally, and later lover and wife. They had a son together, Ben, and would have had more if she wasn't iced by Luke's fucked up nephew.

• Joruus C'baoth: Crazy clone of an equally crazy Jedi Master. Thrawn had him use his Battle Meditation (inspires soaring morale in allies and gut-churning dread in enemies)to aid the Grand Admiral in feats of tactical genius. Tried to create a clone of Luke from his severed hand, but got gutted by Mara.

• Jacen Solo: Elder of the Solo twins. Was a well written character for a while, and was on the verge of reforming the Jedi Order, but then a bunch of loons lead by the Travissite decided to make him into a Darth Vader clone and necessitate his shanking by his sister.

• Jaina Solo: Younger of the Solo twins. Got along really well with her twin brother, until he turned into Vader 2.0 and she had to put his ass down. Later became a Jedi Master at the age of 38, and still later went on along with Jagged Fel to found the Fel dynasty of Emperors.

• Anakin Solo: Youngest child of Han and Leia, and was expected to lead the Jedi Order one day, until fate decided "lol nope" and he ended up sacrificing himself to save his siblings and his girlfriend, taking thousands of Vong bitches with him.

• Revan: Perhaps the most badass, or the most Mary-Sue, Force user in the EU. Single-handedly masterminded the defeat of the Mandalorians, then spent three years conquering the Republic in order prepare the galaxy for a coming shitstorm, then got betrayed by his lackey, then got amnesia, then re-learned everything FROM SCRATCH and then returned and kill his lackey in an iconic duel inside a space station/mega-factory that made the Death Star look like a toy. THEN (years later) got his memories of his former badassness back therefore combining it all into one. But still got his ass kicked by Darth Vitiate just to give the guy some street credit. Three hundred years later, he trolls the players by returning as a BBEG despite earlier cameo with the PCs, turns out 300 years of torture can split a man in two, so his body lives on as Dark Side monster while his "spirit" went on to join the light side. Is very much dead when the two become reunited, unless he somehow comes back later as a spirit. Was a tactical genius, pretty much moves the plot of anything Star Wars-related with "The Old Republic" somewhere in its title.

• Bastila Shan: Jedi in the Old Republic age who was, when first met, Lawful Stupid, as she would constantly preach to Revan about the Jedi Code without actually understanding what that meant (a fatal flaw in most Jedi before the Purge). Before that, she saved Revan's life via Force Bond, and they later fell in love, though she was briefly turned by Malak. She and Revan had a son, who later became Chancellor of the Republic.

• Vitiate: The God-Emperor of Man if he was a Sith. No, seriously, I shit you not. He starts out as an average Sith (whatever constitutes for average for a bunch of power-hungry psychos), then goes all out, sucking up a planets lifeforce, and every living soul on it, in order to become an immortal, god-like being. He was on the verge of consuming the whole galaxy and becoming an actual god, until some average Jedi bloke walked up to him and cut him down with his lightsaber. Wat?. This all makes sense when taken in the context of being from god-awful MMO "The Old Republic," of as /v/ aptly calls it "Tortanic."

• Darth Bane: Sith creator of "The Rule of Two." He got fed up with how ineffective the Sith had become (what being filled with psychotic, powerhungry, backstabbing lunatics) and after the Sith wiped themselves out he started over again with only a master and apprentice.

• Yuuzhan Vong: Race of Force-less Space Mongols that invade the Galaxy in the EU, fucking shit up all the way to Coruscant before being defeated. (This is more due to the New Republic being run by a bunch of retards who don't know one end of a ship from the other. And that the Vong typically only scored victories after horrendous casualties on their side) Each planet they conquer, they end up either enslaving the populace or sacrificing them to their bloodthirsty gods of war, and generally terraforming each world to look like a jungle. Fanatic, zealous, and willing to take victory by any means possible, they had a shot at usurping the Sith as the ultimate bad guys if they weren't so badly written, and it looks like they are gone for good in the new canon.

• Jagged Fel: Son of Soontir Fel, and like his father, an excellent star pilot. He was a flight commander for the Chiss Navy during the Vong War, and then became an Imperial Moff (ruling military-governor), being groomed by Pellaeon to take command of the Empire upon the Grand Admiral's death, which he eventually did. He married Jaina Solo, and after it had been put to a popular vote, he was crowned as Jagged Fel I, Emperor of the Galaxy, and Supreme Commander of the Military, and he and his descendants eventually rebuilt the Empire to were it was before the Rebellion; the most powerful state in the galaxy.

• Tyber Zann: While only appearing in the Empire at War expansion Forces of Corruption video game and a few short comics, his badassery is so great that such a being deserves a mention. Used to be in the Empire before being backstabbed by Thrawn and decided to fuck this shit and start his own criminal organization, the Zann Consortium. Think of it as a mix between a Mexican drug cartel and an African warband instead of the Hut's Mafia deal. His achievements include: Double backstabbing the Black Sun's by pulling off a robbery and tricking Darth Vader into thinking they did it, befriending a immortal force sensitive chicken man, trolling Thrawn, being the first criminal faction in Star Wars history to eclipse the Hutts in pure power and influence, freed and recruited sexy Sith amazons who ride rancors into battle, rob the Imperial archives AND stole the Eclipse, a super star destroyer with a death star laser mounted on the front before eradicating a sizable chunk of the Imperial and Rebel fleets. Could have been Emperor but decided he wasn't going to deal with that shit and fucked off with enough money to buy himself a dozen death stars. With Jabba dead he would now be the king pin of the galaxy, or he would be if the pour guy got any more screen time.

Locations

The Star Wars movies have quite the variation (if somewhat unoriginal) of planets. These range from the awesome to the fucked-up.

• Coruscant: The capital planet of the galaxy, where all natural features have been covered up by cities and factories. Home to, in order, the Senate (your typical conniving politicians), the Imperial Palace, a Mt. Everest-sized structure resembling a hybrid of a pyramid and a Gothic cathedral, and the awe-inspiring Jedi Temple, headquarters to the Jedi Order right up until their own troops royally fucked them up. As with most city planets, the lower you go, the worse it gets.

• Tatooine: The literal ass end of nowhere in SW. A desert planet with two suns. It gets extremely hot during the day, and frigid cold at night. Most people tend to stay the hell away, except for moisture farmers, savage desert nomads called Tuskens, little midget scavengers, giant lizards, space cows, occasional Jedi hermit, and Criminals. What passes for the developed sections of the planet are run by the Space Mob.

• Mustafar: The only planet that can make Tatooine look like an ice cube. It's basically the SW version of hell on earth, with THOUSANDS of active volcanoes going off 24/7, non stop. How one can not only breathe, but fight a very tiring and brutal dual in such conditions is nothing short of either a miracle or plot armor.

• Hoth: At the total opposite end of the previous aforementioned planet, Hoth is a super-cold, super-snowy world where you can hide a base for years on end and no one would suspect a thing. Space Wolves would absolutely love it here, along with the deadly wampas, though not so much the dumb-as-rock tauntauns

• Utapau: Sinkholes. Giant fucking sinkholes, everywhere.

• Kashyyk: Chewie's home. Has entire forests of trees that are as tall as the Empire State Building.

• Bespin: A gas planet that hosts mining operations that mine, process, and ship out tibanna gas, which is used for weapons and fuel. Host to Cloud City, a massive mining city floating on the top layer.

• Dagobah: Slimy mudhole not on most maps and only accessible via obscure hyperlanes, Dagobah served as a refuge for Yoda after the purge of the Jedi.

• Endor: Home of the Ewoks. It's actually the third moon of a planet of the same name. Famous for hosting a battle where the Empire got its ass handed to it by a ragtag group of rebels, a talking fish, and spear wielding teddy bears. All because old man Palpatine wanted Luke's muscle-y throwing arms. Mmmmm.

• Geonosis: The Star Wars equivalent of Mars. Home to a group of fucking ugly bugs who are good at making weapons. First battle of the Clone Wars takes place here.

• Naboo: A planet full of wannabe politicians and idealists. Was occupied by a greedy mega-corporation, then kicked their asses out and went right back to being herp derp Lawful Stupid. The Empire later came in and clamped down hard when the Queen started to ask questions.

• Lok: Barren and desolate, Lok is similar to Tatooine but with more volcanoes and less flora and fauna; its only spaceport is a popular hub for smugglers and pirates.

• Kamino: Stormy oceanic world, its technologically advanced but isolationist inhabitants were responsible for the creation of the Clone Army.

• Alderaan: Same as Naboo, only way more into the Lawful Stupid, banning all weapons after the Clone Wars and expecting the Empire to respect its peace. Right up till the moment they were blown up by Tarkin in his ironic moment of Stupid Evil.

• Dantooine: Lush and fertile planet of grasslands and lakes. Was the site of a Rebel base until it was abandoned and subsequently destroyed by orbital bombardment. Too remote to act as an effective demonstration of the Death Star's firepower.

• Yavin: Gas giant planet with several moons, one of which hosted a Rebel base until it was discovered by Imperial forces tracking the Millennium Falcon and abandoned after being placed under bloackade. Site of the Battle of Yavin and destruction of the first Death Star.

• Dathomir: Home of the Rancor and tribes of Force-sensitive witches, this largely unexplored planet was also the site of an important Imperial prison facility for political prisoners until Tyber Zann blew it the fuck up. Now the planet acts as a recruitment world for the Consortium's Rancor cavalry.

• Korriban: Sith tombworld, it's features look like they were ripped straight off of Ptolemaic Egypt, giving us the impression that most Sith, are, in-fact, Tomb King/Necron players.

Races

Starwars has an impressive amount of colorful races, some of which worthy of one's attention.

• Humans : You know 'em, you love 'em. For some unexplainable reasons that have nothing to do with the budget of the oritinal trilogy, the galaxy far, far away of Star Wars is mostly populated by white humans. Hopefuly we still have some black dudes, and to keep things balanced, they are respectively among the coolest characters of their trilogy.

• Robots : Not really a race, but unlike some other sci-fi settings, Star Wars has loads of robots, or droids as they are more often called, and they are present everywhere in everyone's daily life. Their use can vary from reparators and overall techies, medics, house cleaners, cooks, toys or expendable soldiers you don't have to pay regularly and who will obey any order (though only one faction in the entire universe seems to understand the potential of military droids, the rest resort to good old conscription, volunteers or considerably more expensive cloning. This might be for ethical reasons, we'll never know since this point is never really adressed). Unlike many science fiction series the droids have not decided to turn on their masters. At worst they will grumble about their poor lot in the universe or the silly things the meatbags make them do.

• Wookies : Big guys, somewhere between the dog and the ape. Mostly known for being tech-savy, having cyber-crossbows shooting lasers that bounce on the walls, living in giant trees, kicking asses, having a langage entirely based on roars that everyone seems to understand, piloting spaceships, getting shit done and overall being the most bro-tier race in both movie canon and EU. If your spaceship does not have a wookie crewman, then you are doing it wrong and cannot be considered a cool kid. They could be considered the only case of cool furries (mostly due to the fact that they lack emo haircuts and big mouths to display retarded smiles or angsty frowns) or even space elves since they do live in trees, and in space.

• Hutts : Giant space slugs, galactic mobsters and crime kings. Hutts are both gifted and flawed by their ability to scheme and control things, that often drive them to paranoia. Infact that need for control helped them build a pretty big empire, but also destroyed it due to rival clan not trusting each other. The conflict got so bad, it rendered their home planet unhabitable. Ever since, hutts decided to control things not by forcing their authority by laws, but by enslaving others, hitting them in the wallet right where it hurts the most. Of course, that isn't compatible with the Republic's laws and ideas, which is why the hutts mostly live in the outskirts and distant regions of it, prefering hives of scum and villainy, in welcoming places like Tatooine. And they are pretty fine with it since it lets them profit immensely from exploiting the locals, while excercing their authority through fear and economy.

• Gamorreans : Orcs in space. Before you say that would make them Orks, here is why it does not : despite living in space, being huge boar-hybrids fighting with axes, they are still stuck at a barely medieval technological level. However, since they are big, tough and menacing, many kingpins (see above) like to drop by their homeplanet, buy a few for almost nothing and keep them as bodyguards. They have the great advantage of being strong, too dumb to bribe and too violent to corrupt. As cool as the idea of a huge orc sith would be, it is important to note that gamorreans are usually too stupid to feel, let alone use the force. The only gamorreans who could do some stuff aside from being tribal brutes are some that had been mutated or genetically enhanced.

• Gungans : A terrible waste of what could have been a good idea, basically Lizardmen done wrong, heck, they even have the same ruins lost in a jungle. Gungans are an indigenous race living on the planet Naboo, and are basically humanoid frogs. Much like Lizardmen, they come in two flavors : a specie of slim but muscular amphibious lizards and another of big, fat scheming toads. They are pretty widely hated thanks to their main representation in the movies being one of the most obnoxious character ever written, but also because it seems like the writers never took them seriously. For real, while fighting what could have been a cool battle, they throw grenades, use energetic shields and have dinosaurs carrying some huge force-fields. Sadly said battle was not only played for laughs, but also lacked any kind of tactical genius. Consider the following : an amphibious army, on their own lands that they know and that is mostly made of swamps, that fight with grenades and they decide to fight on an open field without any cover ? While outmanned and outgunned ? And they charge to close combat ? That's a level or strategic retardation you rarely get to see. And that's sad (They flat out stated they were doing this to draw the driod armies attention, knowing full well how terrible this was), because if their writers tooke them a little seriously, they could have been pretty cool, and that would have started by having more frog-like characteristics like environmental adaptation, poisonous skin or being able to spit blood from your eyes. Thankfully the 3D Clone Wars cartoon fixed them mostly but Not focusing on Jar Jar (and trying their best to fix him).

• Neimoidians: Green amphibian humanoids that raise their kids the spartan way giving them limited amouts of food and weeding out the weak. Oddly enough this did not create a culture of warriors, but rather aggressive space capitalists who are always painfully aware of their own mortality. They built a large corporate empire with vast armies of droids to collect back payments. When you really think about it, it's a mystery why they are not trhe leading faction in the universe since they are immensely rich and have an army that does not depends on available recruits and does not recquire training.

• Rodians: Tiny green men with big eyes and suckers for ears. Famous for shooting first not shooting at all. Not the friendlies people you will find, the rodians live on a planet that used to be pretty welcoming, especially if you are edible. Because of that, they evolved into a race obsessed with shooting and kiiling stuff, to the point that once they got rid of all the nasty animals living on their planet, they formed clans so they still have something to fight.

• Mon Calamari : Octopusses crossed with fishes who like to explore the world, build ships, plan stuff and get shit done. Could be considered the local Mary Sues since every good thing that happened in the old Republic seems to have happened thanks to them, if it weren't for the fact that they are almost absent in most official material (as you could guess, their few appearences depict them as benevolent heroes of the Republic, most ancient and advanced civilization in their sector, blah blah blah). Among their many exploits are : establishing a huge sphere of political influence in several systems ; keeping it stable for years ; once it has been absorbed by the Republic, take the power of the Republic to change it so that it doesn't destroy what they spent generations to build ; designing most of the important starships of the Rebel Alliance ; kicking the Empire off of their home planet, TWICE, the second time causing the beginning of the Galactic Civil War…

• Jawa : Indigenous race of Tatooine. Their brown robes with cowls, shiny eyes and gibberish talk are emblematic. No one knows what they look like under their wizard robes and hats. They roam the deserts in huge things that make Baneblades look tiny, looking for wrecks of starships, lost droids and all kind of metal they can get and sell afterwards. Why they have not managed to build spaceships themselves after dismantling thousands of them while being technologically advanced enough to repair and modify droids is everyone's guess.

• Tusken Raiders/Sand People: Race of nomadic aliens that roam the deserts of Tatooine. They ride hairy mammoth like creatures (don't ask us how the fuck that works in the desert), wield archaic projectile rifles and metal clubs, and regularly sound like a racist stereotype of Arabs (the oil crisis of the late 1970's may have something to do with it). They hate the fuck out of everyone whom they view as messing with the desert, most notably the human settlers encroaching on their lands. This has led to several bloody and violent clashes between the settlers and the natives. They also tend to raid Jawa convoys for food and metal. Interestingly enough, a Tusken boy's rite of passage involves killing a massive, carnivorous lizard called a Krayt Dragon with a metal club called a gaffi stick, and retrieve the priceless pearl from it's dead carcass. This proves that these guys are a bunch of hardcore fuckers.

The rise of the original trilogy

A long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away....etc etc you all know the lines.

A man called George Lucas had the idea to create a series of epic sci-fi space operas that would become so successful that Disney would take notice and give it the franchise fluttering eye lashes, trying to seduce it.

They would be called... Flash Gordon.

Unfortunately for Georgie boy, and fortunately for modern nerddom, Dino de Laurentiis already owned Flash Gordon, and were busy making their own, hilariously eighties version, so he said, screw it, I'll make my own!

He decided to start with the fourth movie in the series he envisioned, for at the time he didn't have the special effects to create the first three to the standard he wanted, and/or he just kinda made up the first move up as he went along. So Episode Four A New Hope was created (simply titled Star Wars at the time) and it is not an exaggeration to say it changed the face of sci-fi and general moviemaking forever, bringing a new era of special effects and imagination to cinema and changing the lives of many who would go onto to become dedicated fan boys.

Originally, the studio had forced Lucas to take ever increasing paycuts for what they were sure was going to be a flop, and only let him keep merchandising rights. However, whatever his flaws, George Lucas was a man of vision. Having invented the summer blockbuster, he went on to invent the ginormous pile of movie-tie-in memorabilia. His production company, Lucasfilm ended up rolling in dosh, and with Episode Five The Empire Strikes Back and Episode Six The Return of the Jedi, the legend of Star Wars and its place in cultural history was assured.

tl;dr: Pretty much this.

The coming of the prequel trilogy

With the year 2000 coming, George Lucas felt that special effects technology had reached the level he wanted and began to create the first three movies in the star wars story he had envisioned.

The hype for the movies was immense.

And then the first movie, Episode One The Phantom Menace came out.....and there was nerd rage beyond expectation.

Part of the problem was that the immense expectations of the fandom had grown until anything less-than-perfect simply would not do, so perhaps that is somewhat to blame for the reaction to the prequel trilogy. Certainly, taken on their own merits, they aren't terrible films.

But there was nothing to cover the problems that did exist with the first movie. Jar Jar Binks has become such a figure of ire to the fandom mentioning him will incite rage and prayers to Khorne for his swift demise, and generally wooden acting from other quarters is a frequent target of attack.

Episode Two Attack of the Clones and Episode Three Revenge of the Sith followed after a few years each and fans complained they didn't match the greatness of the original trilogy, more concerned with flashy action and effects than competent story-telling. It didn't help that the acting wasn't exactly better; Attack makes you sit through about 15 minutes of a romance subplot between two actors who simply don't have any chemistry together.

What was generally more well received during this time for Star Wars was the Clone Wars animated series (both the traditionally-animated Clone Wars and the later seasons of the CGI show The Clone Wars), following the war between the Republic and the Confederacy that sprung up during the time between the second and third of the prequels.

Disney and the sequel trilogy

Finally, all the efforts by Disney to woo George Lucas paid off and in 2012 Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise and immediately announced they would produce a new trilogy of films set after the original trilogy.

Expectations for this new trilogy are high.....as are the private fears of the fans about what will happen and what direction Disney will take their beloved franchise in. Bringing on the creative talent behind the skubtastic Star Trek reboot was equally... well, take a wild guess.

Disney also released Star War: Rebels, their own CGI series, which is actually pretty decent. Mostly because not every starring character is an all-powerful mary sue with a laser sword that cuts metal, nor does every other scene pan back to the galactic senate chamber to find out what they voted for this week.

Expanded Universe

It can be said what makes a franchise into a long term lasting thing is when a wealth of extra story and background is created that expands on the original story far beyond what there was. It could be argued Star Wars leads the race in this, as the sheer amount of extra novels, graphic novels and games based on Star Wars can and does overwhelm the ordinary fan.

The background has expanded right into the distance past before the founding of the current Jedi and Sith orders and into the far future looking at the descendants of Luke Skywalker and other popular characters. Uniquely, especially considering other franchises' track records, the Star Wars Expanded Universe is remarkably internally consistent, both with other sources within the universe and with the films themselves. Sure, every once in a while the odd problem child such as a certain Kinect slips through, but on the whole, as a completely unregulated enterprise, it holds up well.

Disney recently said fuck it and threw out everything but the films and the 3d Clone Wars cartoon. (Hilariously there are still some scrub fanatical Star Wankers out there still believing that Disney will still put some form of EU story or character in the new movie despite multiple source and interviews saying as plain as day they will not use the EU as a base for the coming trilogy. Well they're kinda right since the 3d Clone Wars, which is canon, added a lot of them in the show, and the writers stated want to add some EU stories back in)

Impact on 1d4chan and associated games etc

Star Wars has had subtle and clear impacts on a number of other franchises and genres and it can be incredibly hard to gauge the extent of it all. Certainly it didn't create the concepts of sci-fi, space battles, sweeping storylines, and a blending of mystical and scientific ideas, but it certainly popularized them during the years of the original trilogy and influenced many people that would go on to have interests in sci-fi, fantasy and epic adventure today.

Hell, look me in the eye and tell me that the lightsaber didn't give us the power weapon.

Tabletop games for Star Wars

Role-playing games

West End Games made a Star Wars role-playing game called Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game. Wizards of the Coast picked up the license later and made an RPG based on their d20 System, called Star Wars D20 (imaginatively).

Fantasy Flight Games is presently selling a whole line of Star Wars-themed RPGs, whether you want to play a bunch of scruffy space outlaws, members of the nascent Rebellion, or exiled Jedi Knights. Unlike their Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay games, which are all juuuuust different enough from one another to completely buttfuck any attempts at blending, all three gamelines use identical mechanics and are fully cross-compatible.

Card Games

The big card game set in the Star Wars universe is the Star Wars Customizable Card Game. It's no longer produced by Decipher, but there is still a sufficiently large player community to organize annual tournaments, rule on cards, and so on.

Wizards of the Coast made the Star Wars Trading Card Game.

Fantasy Flight Games is presently selling Star Wars: The Card Game.

Obviously, nobody is capable of creating a Star Wars card game with an interesting name.

Miniature Games

Fantasy Flight Games is producing the X-Wing miniatures game based on individual starfighter combat (because, let's be honest, that's what Star Wars is all about). They have also released Star Wars: Armada which is a larger scale "fleet" combat simulator, using capital ships and squadrons of starfighters.