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For those of you who aren't aware there is a growing controversy between the Star Wars Fandom and Disney over their decision to purge the E.U. or Expanded Universe from Star Wars lore. For those of you who don't know the Expanded Universe covers a large variety of materials that aren't directly portrayed in any of the Star Wars films. They include video games, books, comics, short stories, etc. Each one of these pieces of lore helped add to the Star Wars Universe by giving it depth and making it feel more like a modern mythology than some half baked story that George Lucas cooked up. Disney made the decision to purge the E.U. from Star Wars canon because of the direction they wanted to take the franchise after they gained control of it from Mr. Lucas a few years ago. This decision was made in part because Disney has planned to release three more Star Wars films that take place after Return of the Jedi along with numerous spinoff films. In effect they are hoping to maximize their profit margin by giving Star Wars fans more Star Wars rather than the quality story telling that many in the Star Wars fandom have come to expect. This decision has not been received well by the Star Wars fan community as many of the best and well loved Star Wars characters can be found in the Expanded Universe. The reason I posted this is I want to know what you think of this decision or if you have any opinions at all on Disney's decision to kill the soul of the greatest piece of modern mythology?

As a longtime Star Wars fan, I wasn't too pleased about that decision. I did, however, hear that some elements from the Expanded Universe might make their way into the new trilogy and other related media. The EU isn't completely dead. It's just gonna be different from what most fans know.

It wouldn't have been so bad had the Lucasfilm Story Group wiped out some elements of the E.U., but they didn't. They killed everything including stuff that directly links elements of the E.U. to the six films like the game Star Wars The Force Unleashed.

They may have killed off much of the old EU, but that doesn't mean we're never gonna see any elements from those works again.
http://starwars.com/news/the-legendary- ... -page.html

If they had stayed with the EU:

1) Chewbacca would be dead in Episode VII. That would have been a huge disappointment, especially to the numerous fans who view the films as the only "true" canon.
2) It may have hindered what they could have done with Episode VII. If getting rid of the EU means a better story, I'm all for it.

Yeah, I don't think Chewbacca fans would've liked that at all. Especially if Episode VII was based on the book Vector Prime, in which Chewie sacrificed himself to save the life of Anakin Solo.

Luckily, Episode VII will not be based off anything. It's a completely new, original story.

Speaking of Episode VII, check out what I found earlier.
http://www.jrn.com/kivitv/now-trending/ ... 15961.html
Star Wars Episode 7 Fan Casting Call

It is really sad to see how much of the E.U. will now be considered non-canon or at least until the Lucasfilm Story Group gets around to sorting it out. I can understand the need to create a single cohesive timeline for Star Wars but there has been so much material that does tie the Star Wars Universe together it is sickening to think that it is all gone. I can see why Disney would wipe out anything that takes place after Episode Seven in order to let JJ Abrams have the creative freedom he wanted without feeling like he needed to work within the confines of an already established framework but why wipe out any of the lore and canon from Pre-Episode 1? Games like KOTOR, and comics like Dawn of the Jedi or Tales of the Jedi, and books like Darth Plagueis really explain a lot of the lore that is clearly needed for such a large Universe like Star Wars and is mentioned in the films and TV shows. It must be a headache for those in the Story Group to have to sort out what will be considered canon and what won't be. The show Star Wars: The Clone Wars borrowed so many aspects of the E.U. such as characters like Asajj Ventress and Quinlan Vos or Delta Squad from Republic Commando. It isn't like these stories would interfere with Episode Seven. I have heard it said that Mr. Lucas isn't beholden to the Expanded Universe but the universe he created is. There are so many things that aren't covered in the films that provide crucial backstory and history to the Star Wars Universe that makes them more accessible for fans. I mean games like The Force Unleashed add an explanation to how the Rebel Alliance was formed and what happens between Episodes III and IV since there is like a nineteen year gap between the films. I suppose the new series Star Wars: Rebels will explain this but it isn't like The Force Unleashed would get in its way especially since Mr. Lucas was directly involved in the creative process for the game to make sure that it felt like an organic extension of the Universe he created. Personally I am in favor for integrating the new Star Wars films and TV shows into the already established lore of the Star Wars Universe. There is enough room for these things to exist side by side. I don't understand why Disney felt the need to ignore the E.U., maybe in the rush to create something new and put their own mark on the franchises they ignored the potential that the E.U. and its rich variety of characters, settings, etc., could offer them. Instead I think they damaged the new films chances of being accepted by the Star Wars fandom because they chose to ignore the E.U. So much remains uncertain and I hate being uncertain about the future of things that I love especially when it comes to Star Wars. Hope this whole situation works out for the best.