news and rumors

Trailer delay. Okay, I can hear about a million people on the web moaning when they read this. From Cinescape, Dark Horizons and Mr.Showbiz, it seems that we will not get to see The Phantom Menace trailer among the Siege. Lucasfilms had a deadline to send in the finish trailer over to 20th Century Fox in order to have it go along with the Siege. From what I hear Lucasfilms delayed it in order to fix up all the special effects. This is what Mr.Showbiz had to say about the trailer.

DISTURBANCE IN THE FORCE: Everyone knows George Lucas' first Star Wars prequel, reportedly titled Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, will hit screens May 21st. But when will the long-awaited film's long-awaited trailer finally show its face? Word from the moles at 20th Century Fox is that vice-chairman Tom Sherak wanted the Phantom trailer to make its debut as an attachment to The Siege, the studio's Arab terrorism thriller that opens Nov. 6. But Lucas, I'm told, ended up fiddling with the trailer footage and effects for so long that the Siege deadline came and went. (Too bad for Fox—opening-weekend business for The Siege would've almost certainly surged if Star Wars had been part of the show.) Lucas, says our Fox source, "is his own bird. They can't push him too hard. He considers the trailer tantamount to a preview of the film, the first big peek at it. He can't leave it alone. He can't stop saying, 'What if we went back and added this? What if we do this?'" Sherak, chuckling at my questions about the trailer, would only say, "It's getting ready." But when? Will we see it sometime during the holidays? Tacked on to Star Trek: Insurrection on Dec. 11, perhaps? Keep guessing: "It's getting ready," Sherak repeated.

Anakin Casting news and rumors. Okay the Prequel Watch, Cinescape and The Force Net have commented that James Van Der Beak would get the role of Anakin Skywalker. Cinescape has contacted Van Der Beak's Spokesperson and this what they had to say.

Van Der Beek as Anakin?: "No Comment"
Prompted by the rumor on Prequel Watch (which I'd heard sometime ago) that Dawson's Creek lead James Ver Der Beek was up for the role of Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars Episode Two and Episode Three, yours truly put in a call to the actor's representatives.
When put to the question, Van Der Beek's spokesperson would neither confirm nor deny the rumor that the young, up-and-coming star was being looked at for the highly coveted lead in the Star Wars prequel, issuing a "no comment." Yours truly found this non-committal response particularly intriguing because one of would think the actor's reps would have no problem offering up a denial if the rumor was false. For example, Sean Patrick Flannery's reps at ICM issued a firm denial when queried this afternoon on the very same topic ("No one's called me. As far as I know it's not true.")
Prequel/Dawson's Creek spies ... see what you can dig up. Meanwhile I'll be checking out a few other leads ...

LATEST NEWS
MORE ANAKIN STUFF
10/29/98 10:30am EST: Go ahead and prepare for it now, folks. After the trailer for TPM comes and goes, and after we have fulfilled our wait for the film, the next big topic of prequel rumor, speculation, and discussion will revolve around the casting of Anakin Skywalker in Episode II & III.

Last week, we posted that we have heard rumblings that a cast member from the television show Dawson's Creek may be in the running and on the list of candidates to land the pivotal role of Anakin in the next two prequels. There had been reports before that actor James Van Der Beek ("Dawson") might be up for the role. However, a new contact claims it is JOSHUA JACKSON ("Pacey") who is being looked at. Still, it's very early and all of this should be taken with a grain of salt at this point. But, have no doubt... the search for the future (and arguably more important) Anakin is on, even if Lucasfilm might be downplaying it.

TrueFan did a little digging and sent in the following report, which he believes might dispell the rumors surrounding Van Der Beek:

"According to a representative at Central Casting Agency, who represents James Van Der Beek, the rumors of him being considered for Episode Two are (quote) "..way out of line. Mr. Van Der Beek has not met with nor have we had any discussions on his behalf with anyone at Lucasfilm or FOX. This is exactly what you are calling it.........a rumor."

"The contact I spoke to at Lucasfilm had no comment stating that 'Lucasfilm has a company policy of not discussing details of a project that is still very much in pre-production.....' BUT, as always, I did some further digging and was able to find out that Lucasfilm has expressed an interest in 5 actors to portray Anakin in Episode Two and was able to confirm through my bro-in-law that Van Der Beek is NOT one of them. I was told that their is an interest in Brad Renfro at the moment, but no discussions have taken place."

As always, thanks for the input "TrueFan". Hopefully, something solid will come across soon in regards to the next Anakin Skywalker. We'll be sure to stay on top of this issue as much as we can.

Update: We were contacted shortly after this post by Chris Kivlehan of Cinescape, who has some good contacts within the industry. Chris says that Van Der Beek is represented by J. Michael Bloom, who does not work at Central Casting. We're not sure who "True Fan" talked to at Central Casting, or if he may have just gotten the name mixed up. Sorry for the mix up. In any case, it all may be much to do about nothing, as signs (on our end, anyway) still indicate that JACKSON is a more likely Anakin candidate. What does that mean? Nothing, really. All of this has just provided further evidence that topics like this are simply speculative in many cases, and should be taken as "rumor" until things are confirmed officially by Lucasfilm or "The Man" himself.

Official Site profiles Trisha Biggar. Trish Biggar has a small section on the official site on what she did for the film. The interview is not really revealing. But it does have an image of the costume design for the Theed Guards. Just take a visit if you want to do a little bit of reading.

Cinescape Trailer Description Analysis. Sadly this is not really news. But Cinescape posted up an explanation of every shot of Dark Horizon's Trailer description. The thing that makes this different is that Cinescape got one of their inside spies to explain each shot. The sad part is that it sound more like guesses on each shot, and I assume that anyone could have figures them out themselves. But if you want to read here is a link to the page itself.

Ain't It Cool News Episode 2 rumors. Like I have said a million times before, "Don't take all rumors seriously." Ain't It Cool News's Harry posted up all these rumors, which are not even confirmed, on his site. Just read on, don't worry none of them have a big spoiler in them.

Weird Speculative News About EPISODE 2!
Folks, I'm sorry. I'm posting this up, and I'm sure I will be eaten a new waste exit for writing about this "wildly specualative and non-confirmed rumour-mongering rallying up the geeks non-news" But ya know... I really could care less. I'm going with it whether you naysayers like it or not. Why? Because I'm trying to see what out of all this stuff may be true.
Today I got people writing me out the wazoo about Episode 2. WHY? I mean aren't we all excited enough about Episode 1? But hey, the news and rumor patrol is in overload today. I'll start with the more likely and go to the out right speculative stuff down at the bottom.
Ok, the following comes from VERY RELIABLE PEOPLE... as in MULTIPLE SOURCES and has been CHECKED UP ON BY OTHER SOURCES. I would say this is the most reliable piece. And according to HOUDINI --- that spy I told you, you never ever hear from, it is FACT. So take this cracker and add a single granule of sodium chloride and swallow.

I have it on good authority that JONATHAN HALES has been hired to write Episode 2. He was a writer on THE YOUNG INDY show...

Like I said, the above has been checked out. The next stuff is more in line with speculation. But follow through if ya like....
I've been hearing from lots a people that Steven Spielberg is gonna direct Episode 2, and that's why he moved Memoirs of a Geisha back 4 months. Yeah, like 4 months was enough time to shoot and put together EPISODE 2. Welll along comes this stuff about Spielberg moving GEISHA back till 2001.... 2001..... 2001 .....2001 ....2001... Well... gosh... that would give him enough time to shoot.... Episode 2 and the next Indiana Jones film. Of course that is pure hokem till the man, the legend steps up to the microphony and says, "I hereby declare my most excellent self directing EPISODE 2 and/or INDY 4" Now, I can here fanboy slapping of midriff flesh with their eyes tightly clenched, but it may come true. "A DREAM IS A WISH YOUR HEART MAKES!!!"

I was watching CNN's Showbiz today Oct. 21st. In one of the stories, there was a report that Steven Spielberg was have told the studio he is doing "Memoirs" that he would not be able to do it until 2001 due to other projects that he is working on. What is the news on this?
Remington Steele

Oh, and then there's this .... ahem... scoop about the film filming...

Last Week Ewan Macgregor turned up in London with a neatly kemped beard very much like Obi Wan's from A New Hope. He said he'd just got back off holiday in Australia.
I knew they'd been location scouting in Australia for Episode 2, but then today I got a call from a contact at The Sunday Times who interviewed Rick McCallum three weeks ago and is to interview him again in one week's time.
The script for Episode 2 is finished. So finished in fact that they started shooting Episode 2 in Australia a couple of weeks ago. That crap about re-building the set in Tunisia for Mos Espa and that 40% out of focus crap was just that - crap. It was a front for Episode 2 stuff.
Stuff at Leavesden has really quietened down, but it's been purposefully taking all the limelight while Lucas goes off and shoots Episode 2 elsewhere. Did I say Lucas? Don't get excited, I can get no confirmation at all that Lucas is directing Episode 2. He's said all along he didn't want to.
What's more, I have a friend involved with a movie shooting here in England early next year that stars Samuel L. Jackson. They've just had a spanner thrown in the works by him because he's had written into his contract that has the right to delay shooting to go shoot one more big budget movie before he flies over. Word is it's in Australia.
So all I ask is... Who the hell do you know in Australia?!

HARRY NOTE: Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeey GARTH!!!!! LINCOLN!!!!! THIS IS YOUR BACKYARD

You can call me The Transformed Man

And as if to lend credence to the above, I got this from Australia.

Hey Harry with this episode 2 stuff I live in Australia and there has been quite a bit of stuff going on in the Fox studios also today I read that Lucas is going to be in Sydney for quite a while 'holidaying'.....yeah sure, also he's here long enough to present an award in the local film industry awards, sorry it isnt much but i thought you could get one of your spies onto it
Zaius

Most recently I got this about the AUSTRALIA shooting, so it ain't happening yet.... that we can tell... Just thought I should let you know, Ep 2 is not currently shooting in Australia, how do I know? I'm (deleted) and next week I'll be flying up to Sydney to listen to George give the Keynote speech at SPAA, a local conference for producers.

As far as I know, he and Rick Mac are finalising the deal with the Government, re; tax breaks etc, but they haven't started rolling yet. At this point there isn't a local crew guy and or chick that's even booked as far as I know, so either it's the most secert shoot in history (it's a big country but a small industry so no way) or it's still some months off As far as I know, I don't think Lucas has begun Episode 2. I mean the actual shooting, casting and special effects. I can assume that he has a rough draft already done and he has talked to Doug Chaing about a few sketches. But Lucas works all day on a film and sometimes he might add some changes in the postproduction (remember the change at the end of Empire, "Luke, Obi-Wan is your father"?). Once all these changes are made he might have to change the script to Episode 2 just a bit. And I can only assume he can get to work on Episode 2 once 1 is complete.

Lucas #4 on most powerful people in Entertainment. This week's issue of Entertainment Weekly is about 101 most powerful people in entertainment. Lucas made it in on number 4, and this is the reason why Entertainment Weekly choose him.

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Editor's Note. Halloween is coming soon, and I really wish I had a Boba Fett Costume, a Spider-Man costume or a Shaft Costume. But I am not going to be out trick or treating, I am going to sit home and work on a few designs for this site. And I just love handing out Candy to the kids. I mean I was once like them only a couple years ago. Don't worry I am not going to poison the candy, I am going to hand them Recess's Peanut butter Cups, Butterfingers and M&M. The Kind of stuff that I enjoyed receiving. So have a happy Halloween everybody!

October 26, 1998

The Phantom Menace Trailer Description. Dark Horizons has admitted that they have been shy on posting up Episode 1 news. I think it is because they are afraid of spilling out some bad news. Well, now they have some news worth talking about. Now the descriptions have some spoilers, it describes scenes in the trailer and descriptions of characters. Now if you want to read it, I am warning you that this is a spoiler if you highlight the following text.

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace: I've always been very wary with Prequel info, especially the many supposed 'descriptions of the first trailer' which have popped up (none of which seem to have panned out as yet). But, when one of my long-term and usually reliable sources has an in-depth description, I sit up and notice. Just follow the link below to read what they claim to have seen. Is it real? The backstory around it sounds real, and this source usually doesn't send me anything unless its pretty solid. But previous experience with Prequel info has always left me sceptical of anything about the film. If its real, then god damn this movie is gonna ROCK!!!! If it's not it, then just add it to the heap of fake ones out there. I'll let you decide:

"Star Wars: The Phantom Menace" Trailer Description

SHOT 1: Swamp. Somebody slowly emerges from the mist. It's not clear who it is, but it's not a humanoid. Maybe someone riding on something.
SHOT 2: Title card: EVERY GENERATION HAS A LEGEND...
SHOT 3: Slowly panning across the desert to a small parked spaceship.
SHOT 4: Title card: EVERY JOURNEY HAS A FIRST STEP...
SHOT 5: Majestic shot of a city (of Mos Eisley variety) with what appears to be a large palace in the background (the palace itself isn't there, just some unfinished CGI and a large gate with two statues). Surprisingly, this is accompanied by typical "swamp" sound effects, so there's also a possibility the gate leads to a swamp, which will be added digitally.
SHOT 6: Interior of the palace. Large window, large columns. There is a shadow of someone (queen Padme?) visible on the wall.
SHOT 7: Title card: EVERY SAGA HAS A BEGINNING...
(All the previous shots are really slow, with fade-ins, accompanied by "The Force" music. Now the trailer really kicks in with several fast shots and Star Wars main theme.)
SHOT 8: POV shot of some vehicle flying very fast above the desert, through some rock arches. Two front parts (guns?) of the vehicle are visible, miniature bolts of lightning are flowing between them.
SHOT 9: Side shot of someone quite small with a helmet (Anakin?) pushing the lever inside the vehicle, making it go faster.
SHOT 10: Wider side shot of the vehicle overtaking another vehicle of the same type (seems like race?).
SHOT 11: Close-up of Queen Padme (not quite sure but who else?) looking very royal in REALLY WEIRD makeup and dress - something between Japanese geisha and the Diva from the Fifth Element - sitting in front of a large window.
SHOT 12: Front shot - Jar Jar (CGI, mouth like a horse, eyes like a frog) and Obi-Wan sitting side-by-side inside some sort of vehicle, Qui-Gon Jinn is sitting behind and slightly above them. This shot is very reminiscent of the shots of the Millenium Falcon crew in Star Wars 4-6.
SHOT 13: Underwater shot (probably) of a sub turning away from a big monster, looking like a cross between old-fashioned fairytale dragon and that nasty thing from Deep Rising.
SHOT 14: Close-up of Obi-Wan swinging his lightsaber.
SHOT 15: Small fast spaceship is leaving an enormous space stations orbiting close to a large planet. The space station is "C"-shaped with a large sphere in the center, connected to the "C" shape. Thus, it can be said it looks somehow like the Rebel insignia, but you have to think creatively to see it...
SHOT 16: Several people shooting at each other between the columns inside a royal palace (which really looks like plain old Earth palace), no effects anywhere excepts the laser beams.
SHOT 17: Watto turning towards the camera and making "Hmmmm" sound. He's CGI, with insect-like wings, large snout (hanging down over his boar-like mouth) and human eyes.
SHOT 18: Many four-legged creatures are running towards the camera (it's not clear if they have riders on them), dragons (or whatever) are flying overhead and some very strange and very large mechanical thing is either chasing them or supporting them from behind. This shot is not quite comprehensible but will probably look cool as hell when it's finished.
SHOT 19: Jar Jar getting up from the crouching position, getting zapped by the mini-lightning (it looks like he was repairing the parked vehicle described in SHOT 8) and making silly sound. Very funny.
SHOT 20: Small sleek spaceship flying above what appears to be a planet-wide city (Coruscant?).
SHOT 21: Jar Jar, Obi-Wan and a queen Padme (dressed as a commoner and without a make-up) on a street of the city, reminiscent of Mos Eisley. CGI Dewbak behind them looking much better than in SW:SE.
(Now the trailer slows down again)
SHOT 22: Anakin with a backpack over one shoulder, turning towards the camera.
SHOT 23: Mace Windu (sitting): "You refer to the prophecy of the one who will bring balance to the Force. You believe it's this boy?"
SHOT 24: Anakin sitting at the table.
SHOT 25: Qui-Gon (voiceover): "He can see things before they happen." This is accompanied with the shot of Obi-Wan, wearing a black cape, turning towards the Anakin with amazement.
SHOT 26: Shmi Skywalker: "He can help you." R2-D2 (or his close kin) partly visible behind her.
SHOT 27: Shmi stroking Anakin's cheek.
SHOT 28: Qui-Gon: "The Force is unusually strong with him."
SHOT 29: Shmi: "He was meant to help you."
(Now the trailer speeds up again)
SHOT 30: Quin-Gon shouting: "Anakin!" (He pronounces it "Anaekin!")
SHOT 31: Very fast shot of someone all in black swinging his lighsaber.
SHOT 32: Qui-Gon dueling with the aforementioned individual.
SHOT 33: Qui-Gon (still dueling) shouting "Tell them to take off!" Actually, in the dialogue list, this is written as a single sentence ("Anakin, tell them to take off!"), but it sounds like another sentence, not necessarily addressed to Anakin.
SHOT 34: Anakin (almost crying) to Shmi: "Will I ever see you again?"
SHOT 35: Shmi: "What does your heart tell you?"
SHOT 36: Queen Padme as a commoner on the street, Jar Jar visible behind her (seems to follow SHOT 21). She says: "Are you sure about this?"
SHOT 37: Qui-Gon reacting.
SHOT 38: Padme (continuation of SHOT 36): "Trusting our fate to a boy we hardly know?"
SHOT 39: Anakin standing beside a vehicle, waving to enormous unfinished CG texture. :) Cheering of thousands of people can be heard. Probably after winning the race.
SHOT 40: Qui-Gon introducing Anakin to Obi-Wan: "Anakin Skywalker, meet Obi-Wan Kenobi." There's a nice touch: This pivotal point in the Star Wars saga is presented in a very civil, matter-of-fact way. R2-D2 standing in the background.
SHOT 41: Obi-Wan reacts. R2-D2 beeps.
SHOT 42: Space battle involving many ships and the space station from SHOT 15.
SHOT 43: Yoda (with abundant hair): "I sense much fear in you."
SHOT 44: Anakin standing in the center of circular room. A dozen or so different creatures are sitting around him. Probably galactic senate. The aliens are not clearly distinguishable, but one of them is very small (1 or 2 ft) and another one has almost 2 ft. long neck and a bald head (or enormous eyeball instead of head). Neverending city and flying vehicles are visible through wall-sized window. Accompanied by Obi-Wan's voice-over: "The boy is dangerous."
SHOT 45: Door opening, figure in black robe standing menacingly behind it.
SHOT 46: Obi-Wan walking alongside Qui-Gon: "They all sense it. Why can't you?"
SHOT 47: Qui-Gon standing with lit lightsaber, looking focused, preparing to duel.
SHOT 48: Yoda: "Fear is the path to the dark side."
SHOT 49: Obi-Wan striking a pose very similar to Qui-Gon in SHOT 47.
SHOT 50: Yoda: "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate."
SHOT 51: Side shot of Anakin looking not-so-sure. Someone in black robe gently putting his hands on Anakin's shoulders.
SHOT 52: Yoda: "Hate leads to suffering."
SHOT 53: A guy with bald head and what looks like small horns, holding a lit lightsaber. Suddenly, second laser blade emerges from the opposite end of his lightsaber!
(Now it really gets into overdrive. The following shots are each only a fraction of second long.)
SHOT 54: Another shot from the race (SHOTS 8-10), this time a vehicle flies towards the camera and above it. Awesome sense of speed.
SHOT 55: Sebulba (looking like a camel with old WW2 style pilot goggles) laughing. The vehicle from the races is visible behind him
SHOT 56: Another shot of queen Padme in strange make-up, this time with even stranger headgear.
SHOT 57: Robot sentry raising his head (looking like a long conical cylinder, you know which one). Thousands of the same droids are visible behind him.
SHOT 58: Detailed shot of the guy from SHOT 53. He has contrasting light-dark makeup like someone from Japanese kabuki theatre and what appears to be THREE small horns (one at the top of his head). He's dueling with someone.
SHOT 59: Enormous space dogfight.
SHOT 60: Anakin sitting in a cockpit, being rocked around, looking very much like Luke in Death Star battle.
SHOT 61: POV shot from inside the cockpit. Dozens of ships that look vaguely like TIEs are intercepting.
SHOT 62: R2-D2 turns his "head" and looks towards a humanoid droid standing beside him.
SHOT 63: Close-up of this droid. It's skinless C-3PO! The eyes and mouth are unmistakable, the rest of his body looks like the Terminator.
SHOT 64: Dozens of droids from SHOT 57 turning right. Very synchronized, looks like military parade.
SHOT 65: Looking just plain weird, like something from Dune, probably unfinished. Some organic-looking "altars" standing in the desert (they are all looking exactly the same) and many nomadic humanoids in light robes (their faces hidden) are squatting/kneeling in foreground, each of them holding a spear.
SHOT 66: Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan with lit lightsabers preparing to jump.
SHOT 67: Wide shot of the same scene. Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are jumping (sommersaulting!) from one platform to another, where a dark figure is standing. It all takes place inside some huge vertical shaft full of neon lights and machinery (like when Luke's hand was cut off in ESB).
SHOT 68: Droid from SHOT 57 flying on a pogo-stick type vehicle through the forest, firing its twin lasers.
SHOT 69: Something crashing/blasting into a huge space structure, resulting in enormous explosion.
SHOT 70: Main title: STAR WARS. The lettering has completely different design than in the original SW. At first I thought it was simply some standard font used for preliminary title, but it looks to be designed by hand, the letters are connected to each other in a very specific way. It looks - how to put it - "deliberately primitive", like some drawing from the stone age. I don't like the look of it and I hope it indeed is a preliminary version. And - get this - the subtitle is not, repeat, NOT "The Phantom Menace"! No, I will not tell what the subtitle is, but I was surprised. Still, it could all be changed, as the final title card (following the movie title) is obviously preliminary, taken from original SW - unless Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher really star in this movie.

And now to clarify some things about this trailer: It runs for 2 minutes and 5 seconds, is preceded with Fox and Lucasfilm logos and is "SUITABLE FOR ALL AUDIENCES". As far as I noticed, it doesn't contain any original music. The official spelling of the characters' names is "Qui-Gon Jinn", "Mace Windu", "Jar Jar Binks", "Shmi Skywalker" and "Padme Naberrie", which has an acute accent above the "e" in "Padme"! (Just like the "e" in "Les Miserables"). I could probably safely put some more character names in the the shot descriptions, but I tried to just describe them in a factual way and list only the names of the characters that have speaking parts (which I saw in printed form). You can make your own conclusions.

Finally: I'm not making any claims that this is what you'll see in theatres. The trailer is obviously not finished and may change quite a bit. I will not digitize the trailer, the stills from it or its sound and send it to anyone, under any circumstances, so don't ask. I will not tell you what was the subtitle of the movie, so don't ask either. I will not tell you where and how I got the trailer, but Lucasfilm should sleep well. This was an one-time opportunity and their security procedures remain intact. Don't try to find out who I am, I will not tell you anything more and I want to remain anonymous. I just wanted to tell you about this trailer because I know how much I would like someone to tell me about it if I didn't see it. I hope you all enjoyed it. Bye.

Huge thanks to 'Non-Disclosure' for the info"

And here Garth talks about confirmation on the Trailer description. And he talks about seeing an image of the film. Just read on.

Follow-up to yesterday's item. OK OK OK I have to calm down, wheew!!!. As I've said before with Prequel trailer descriptions I usually find out the next day that they're false. But this time I've found the opposite - I tend not to believe in something unless I see it with my own eyes and by god I HAVE!!. Under promise that I wouldn't show anyone else and delete the shot once I'd seen it, my source allowed me to randomly pick a shot from the description they gave and they would send it to me. I requested a shot which I knew would be very hard to fake (one involving at least two main actors, complex CGI and a distinctive background) and 60 seconds later the still came through. What I saw CANNOT be a fake and nor is it from another film, this shot was real. I know everyone out there is dying to see it but I can't print it (in fact even I deleted it from my computer in accordance to my source's request).
One other form of proof I can offer you is this scoop from 'Willy Wonka' - "I have several friends who are working over at ILM and they have told be some details about the CGI effects and they match up pretty well with what was said in the trailer preview. Just wanted to say that hes not busting out some wet dream he had and expect to see the stuff he said."
In any case, just follow the link below to read the description again, but this time its extended. You see I removed certain information relating to the film's title from yesterday's description because it would've caused all sorts of confusion and doubt - something downright annoying from simple rumours. I've restored that bit now that the scoop is confirmed, I guess all we can do now is wait till it hits theatres. When will that be? Quite likely with "The Siege" on November 6th, if not then definitely before the end of the year. In the twelve hours since its been posted there has been reaction all over the net and the response? A unanimous "AMAZING!!!":

And this is Harry Knowels of Ain't It Cool News, confirming the Trailer description. Harry's description is a bit different because he refers to the script he read just a few months ago as reference. But I assume you all trust Harry and what he posted up on his page?

Dark Horizon's STAR WARS TRAILER SCOOP!!!
Over at Dark Horizons, Garth has a very very detailed description of the STAR WARS: THE PHANTOM MENACE trailer. I decided to put to rest any doubt about that trailer description, Click Here To Read It.
About a week ago I had someone send me a very loose description of a trailer that kinda sounded like this. BUT that person didn't go anywhere near the detail that needed to be given to convince me they saw the trailer. So instead I sent it off to a fella I know that has been saying he could see it whenever he wanted. Yeah right. Well I never heard back. BUT the info on Garth's page right now could only come from either, some one that read the script or saw the trailer... multiple times. And with Garth's insistence that he has seen a shot from the trailer... well, I have no doubt he's telling the truth. There are some spoilers in what I'm about to do. So if you don't want to know... do not read below the countdown.

Ok, I'm going to go through and explain what Garth's spy was seeing.
SHOT 15: That is a Trade Federation Battleship.
SHOT 23: The line being said by Sam Jackson's character is in the script. It takes place during the first sequence in the TEMPLE OF THE JEDI. The line follows a line by Qui-Gon, the line is "A boy...his cells have the highest concentration of midi-chlorians I have seen in a life form."
SHOT 26: This line refers to Anakin's ability to help Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, Padme, Jar Jar, etc. It is a set up scene at Anakin's hovel that begins setting us up for the Pod Race.
SHOTS 30-33: This is basically all together in the film. In the script the line was slightly different, but that's the difference between scripts and finished product. This is the escape from Tatooine sequence that we had pics of a loooooooooong time ago from the French Premiere magazine.
SHOTS 36-38: This is right before Qui-Gon makes the deal with Watto that'll seal the reason to have Anakin in the race. The line is said exactly the same way in the script, but continues a bit more. I won't spoil that though.
SHOT 44: That sounds like the scene when Qui Gon brings Anakin before the Jedi Council group. In the script they are descibed as sitting in a semi-circl and number around 12. You should be able to see Yoda and Mace Windu in this shot, though having no idea of the angle... well ya know.
SHOTs 48, 50 and 52: (The Yoda Dialogue) This takes place if memory serves between Yoda and Qui Gon, I'll have to ask MILO. The inbetween shots: That's for the battle with Darth Maul.

As for the other descriptions. Well they are a bit abstract. The only thing that completely through me was the SHOT 65. I have no idea what that is. But then there are a couple of times where I think he is seeing perhaps Gunga City, but I'm unsure, since it really isn't described in the script. That opening shot I believe is of a Gungan riding on the back of a "Kaadu" Kaadu are a bit like that creature that PEACE rode in WIZARDS, a bit more duck-billed. That's something that we don't see till near the end of the film.. at least in the script I've read.
In all I'd say Lucas isn't keeping much secret. It looks like he's just going to hit us in the face and create an army of droolers. I have heard that the trailer was going to be over 2 minutes, that it showed a lot of stuff and well... this sounds like it.
Great work Garth!!!
I don't know about the rest of y'all but I'm just so damn excited that we are on the edge of seeing footage. I really really can't believe we are about to see footage. Actual real live film footage of a long time ago and a galaxy far far away. This is it man. The moment so many have been waiting for. Rumor has it that this trailer will play on THE SIEGE coming out in TWO WEEKS. God I hope that isn't another damn RUMOR that doesn't come to pass. If it does, I'll pay to see THE SIEGE 7 times in two days. I hope THE SIEGE will be playing at a local multiplex on 3 screens so I can go from theater to theater watching the trailer repeatedly. My god, can you imagine seeing the trailer as described on Dark Horizons?!?!?!? Holy shit. How friggin cool is that?
Ya see folks this is why I can't imagine being angry at another page getting a scoop. Cool news is cool no matter where it is. Damn. I'm sooooo dying to see this thing. Memories of SOLDIER are drifting away. COME ON TRAILER, I need to see you 100 times. Every film, every screen, every commercial break. PLAY IT PLAY IT PLAY IT PLAY IT!!!!!
Well guess I need to go before I get too stupid looking. Too late. Argh!!!!

Another Ain't It Cool News Spoilers and Pictures. Ain't It Cool News posted up some spoilers and some images. I do warn you that it is a description of C-3P0, the Sebulba, Watto and Darth Mulan. Highlight the following if you want to be spoiled. I must warn you that the writer uses a bit of foul language. I am all for freedom of speech but I am just warning you about his language in case it offends anyone.

SPOILERS! STAR WARS EPISODE ONE - PICS AND INFO
Well I'm just gonna say... Gosh, you people really got him stirred up. So he sent in a second report. WARNING THERE ARE LOTS OF SPOILERS
What's up Harry, it's Patch again. Quite a reaction that stuff I gave you got, huh? It's amazing that a few little neat things that made my day a little better could cause such a stir with people. I wish they could just enjoy some of this stuff and leave it at that. I felt a little guilty divulging all that stuff. A few months ago I was not a spoiler reader, yet having alot of urges to just say "fuck-it". I'm just really excited about this film, and anything interesting I see, even if it reveals something a little, just serves to build the lack of patience. I got a closer look at those style sheets, and if your interested, I have some clarifying points and tidbits.

Spoilers, I guess. I don't know if this is the kind of stuff you would print, but in between slaughtering ninjas in madripoor, and hitten on asian chicks, I went into work today and got to thumb through some stuff, keeping an eye on detail. As far as what I referred to the other day as looking like "Romulan ships", well I still don't know what they are, but I got a better look at them. If you can picture a thick, pinched off three dimensional oval on it's side, then this ship looks like it's made up of three of them side by side. The one in the middle is rounder and fatter and is attached to the ones on the side in such a way that the front view resembles a tweaked out Tie-fighter. RRRREAAALLY sleek looking and will look cool attacking in squadrons.
The other droids that I spoke of were actually pit crew droids. The bodies are pretty standard, but the head looks cool, a sort of mushroom cap with a big camera lense fixture on the front. They are also interacting in a very animated way on the design I saw. There are a bunch of them carrying around parts, and each other on their shoulders.
I saw a good picture of subulba. He looks very insect -like. I've heard him being described as a praying-mantis like creature. I'd say he is more like a cross between one of those and the big eyed visitor aliens I originally compared him to. His nose is high, and he has a braid hanging down each side of his head with a red and yellow bead in each one.
Darth Maul is going to be such a cool character. I mean, I cant wait to see how he looks on screen. He has alot of intricate almost design-like stuff on his face. Black-canyon-like features in a symetrical pattern going up the left and right sides of his face. Crazy horns, all the other bumpystuff I said earlier, and his outfit resembles a cross betw. Vader's and Luke's phat jedi regalia from ROTJ.
Finally, I got a real good look at C-3po. Alot of people were buggin out about his memory, alot of other B.S., but regardless of that, he looks damn cool. He is actually very wacky lookin, no gold armor, only a few peices of silver armor denoting his major features. The rest of him is made of all sorts of multi-colored wires, and that's it! I think it looks awesome, very design oriented and a nice twist.
P.S. To all the Fanboys: If this get's printed, I'M NOT FUCKING HARRY, YOU DUMB SHITS ! GET A LIFE!"

New images on the official site. Some of these images have graced the scenes of this month's Star Wars Insider. And we can view them on the web. Check them out.

Information on C-3P0. T'Bone Fender's Star Wars Universe has keep quite on certain Episode 1 news. Why? Well, from his sources he can only reveal certain news at certain times. So now he lets it slip on my favorite Star Wars character, C-3P0. Before, my favorite character was Boba Fett. But after seeing the Trilogy all over again, I just love this droid that really seems to be afraid of everything that moves. And honestly I would love to have a wimpy protocol droid like him.

"C-3PO in Episode One
Everyone's pretty excited about C-3PO's appearance in Episode One. I just want to tell all those 3PO fans to not get their hopes up too high or they may be let down. C-3PO is barely a factor in this film and is only around for about two scenes. Of course things may happen during post-production that can change that and there may have been alternate scenes shot that have more 3PO in them but from what I can know he is not a major contributor to this part of the story.

Here are a few things that I think are close to the truth:

He is only in the Tatooine scenes (about two of them).
He is only performed by Anthony Daniels in voice (he did not don the suit).
He is constructed by Anakin at his hovel.
He is in a different form and parts of him are C-Thru.
He is not an important part of the story.

The scenes that should contain C-3PO are most likely these:

Anakin shows off his creation, C-3PO, to Padme in his bedroom. R2 is present there as well and I DO believe there is dialoge between the two. That should be hilarious! I hope he calls him a name.

In another scene after the Pod race, Anakin says goodbye to 3PO before leaving Tatooine with Qui-Gon and crew. This scene takes place in another room of the hovel so I assume 3PO can walk or move somehow and is not just a mess of wires.
Now you have to keep in mind that these things can change but I do not think 3PO's role will become more important until Episode Two. Will Anakin go back to Tatooine in search of his mother? Will he pick up 3PO then? Episode Two should answer these questions and more."

Episode 1 Toy Commercials. SirSteve's Guid to Star Wars is back in the headlines, this time he has images of the new Episode 1 figure commercials that have been running. I have not seen them yet, but SirSteve says that they are out right now. So keep your eye out for them. The site, KellyB1138 homepage, that SirSteve got these images said this about the commercial.

10/21/98 Here are three screen shots of the Kenner commercial for Mace Windu. The first is obvious with the new logo design for POTF, but in red not green like usual. The second shows a full body shot of Mace Windu. Two figures are in the shadows. I'm pretty sure that the one on the left is Obi-Wan Kenobi. The one on the right is unknown to me. I think it's Qui-Gon Jin, but that's just a guess. The third shot is a close up of Mace. Very Cool.

Ship images on the Force Net. Well, The Force Net has post up these 5 pictures of ships from episode 1, the original trilogy and an actually 747. The pictures are to compare the size of these ships so you can have an idea just how big they are. This is what they also had to say about ship 1. By the way the federation ship is the same as the one that Ain't It Cool News posted on their site.

An anonymous informant sent us in some drawings of ships from the prequels. The drawings seem to be comparisons in size between the various ships and vehicles. A 747 and the Miillennium Falcon are thrown in for reference. Some of the ships seen are the Federation Lander, Gungan Sub, Battle Tank, and the Queen's Ship as well as a couple of others we can't identify.

Episode 1 to receive a PG-13 rating. The Dune Sea posted this up for one of their sources. It seems that our favorite series might go a step up on the rating from a PG to a PG-13. But it seems to be the way in most film. Right now every film seems to be a PG-13 instead of PG. Remember Big was PG, when now it would have been PG-13? I don't think Lucas is going for more violence, sexual content or even language. I just think that the MPAA is just striker on films. But moviegoers will go to see anything no matter what the rating. I remember that there were hundreds of children around the age of ten in the theater to see Starship Trooper. Even when it was rated R. Oh well, just read on what the Dune Sea posted.

The Phantom Menace may receive "PG-13" - Our pal LazrWriter sent in the following in reference to the rating of Episode One:
"Now that there is more polished rough edit of Episode I done, The Phantom Menace now faces Jack Valenti and the MPAA. Unless there's a significant amount of change in the final submitted film, it'll wind up with a PG-13 rating (for violence). Nothing out of line with what we saw in the original trilogy or say in THE MASK OF ZORRO, just it's in a larger scale, especially leading up to the final confrontation (i.e. there isn't a great deal of spaceships blasting each other in this one, but there are Jedi doing what Jedi do with lightsabers and troops doing what troops do with blasters). Those who've kept up with the rumors can probably guess the specific scenes being alluded to."

I'd have to agree with the lad on this one....I wouldn't be surpised if they slapped TPM with a PG-13. Even though we know that language won't be a factor, the violence might. For your information, I do believe that the last two films that came from the Star Trek franchise were PG-13's as well. The last few Bond flicks were (most likely for sexual content), and even that skank lizard Godzilla stumbled through at a PG-13.

Lucas's Outside Star Wars project from TV. This popped in on Ultimate TV. It seems that Lucas is working on a show called Cyber. Sadly I could not find it all on Ultimate TV. I find the site rather confusing because it is my first time there. But here is what Cinescape wrote about the same the same news.

According to a report on Ultimate TV, the Fox Kids Network has secured the rights to produce a Lucasfilm-hatched project called Cyber. Labeled as a "space adventure", the property has supposedly been on Lucas' backburner since 1977. Yours truly put in a call to the Skywalker Ranch for details and additional confirmation, but didn't hear back by press time.

Nerf-Herder opened up a Prequel section. Just on of the "Shag-A Delic" sites on the web Nerf-Herder has opened a Prequel section. I thought they original had a "Prequel Comscan" which Jordan had said there were some problems with. This new section looks just, "Shag-A-Delic", just like everything on Nerf-Herder. I know that most of the site is not up yet, but I just so eager to tell you guys about this site. Just check it out.

Editor's Note. Sorry about the slow delays on updating the site. I just decided to take it easy on the weekend. And play some Jedi Knight on my father's Laptop. I never dreamed that the truck full of news would have been posted on all sites. I also did a bit of retooling on the cast and crew pages. And I believe it will take me a while to add all the name of the crew members on the film with out making it look like I just took the same coding from the official site. I have been watching Return of the Jedi recently. And you know what, the Ewoks are not bad. Sure some of us have badmouthed them because they are too cute. But I would like to say that those cute, little fuzz balls are very organized. I think I going off track, and I better get back to work. So Stay Frosty everyone.

October 22, 1998

Trailer rumors. Okay this is coming in from various sources, The Force Net and Jedi Net. The first on is from The Force Net.

The same The Siege post-production team member from our Oct 17 update wrote back today letting us know, "I just received corroboration today that the trailer WILL be shown with 'The Siege.' At this point, I'd say it's a sure bet. Now I just wish I knew what was in the trailer. Can't wait for November 6th!" The individual is indeed whom they claim to be. We'll know in a few weeks if this is truth or wishful thinking...

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace the ride? Just read the following, I got this from Cinescape.

Lucas To Film Prequel Attraction?
George Lucas may be lensing a prequel-related short film in the near future. The short in question would be used in Disney's "Star Tours" Star Wars simulation ride, updating the immensely popular attraction with a theme relevant to The Phantom Menace.
Though plans are hardly set in stone, a Disney spokesperson confirmed that Lucas and Disney are in "serious ongoing discussions" and that there is a "verbal agreement", according to Variety. The attraction would not be ready in time for the release of the first prequel, with the trade report vaguely indicating that the short would premiere "sometime after 1999."
Should Lucas actually film the new "Star Tours" footage, it would definitely encourage more than the usual amount of Star Wars fans to seek out Disney’s Magic Kingdom, something I’m sure Disney is counting on.

Lucas, Disney plan new Star Wars attraction -- sources
Wednesday, October 21, 1998
ORLANDO, Fla. (Reuters) - Filmmaker George Lucas is considering making a short film based on his upcoming ``Star Wars'' trilogy of ``prequels'' as part of an updated Star Wars simulation ride at Walt Disney World, Disney sources said Wednesday.
Plans remain sketchy and Disney World's public relations arm had few details when asked about the project.
Walt Disney World spokesman Craig Dezern at first said Lucas had ``agreed to a whole collaboration'' with Disney's design team on the project. But he later characterized ``agreement'' as an overstatement, and said the relationship involved ``serious and ongoing discussions.''
``We don't discuss our business deals,'' said Dezern.
A source at Disney later said the company had a ``verbal agreement'' with Lucas, but many details remained to be worked out before an agreement could be formalized.
The first of Lucas' new trilogy of ``Star Wars'' films, which start with the story of Luke Skywalker's father (played by Liam Neeson) before he became the villainous Darth Vader, is scheduled to premiere in May 1999. ``Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace'' will be directed by Lucas, who also directed the original ``Star Wars'' in 1977.
The new Disney attraction would not be ready until some time after 1999, Dezern said, and it would replace Star Tours, which combines a flight simulator with a short film that uses the first trilogy of features for its source material.
Lynne Hale, a spokeswoman for LucasFilm, the director's film company, said features of the new attraction were ``just in discussion.''
Reuters/Variety ^REUTERS@

Episode 2 casting for Anakin. I heard this rumor a while ago, I am assuming that most of you have not read this one. Well, this rumor about this actor for the part of Anakin. I got this from the Jedi Net

ANAKIN'S CREEK?
Well, we just went through Trailer rumor #1139, now let's move on to "Episode II" Anakin casting rumor #3263827... Remember the rumors a couple months back about "the guy from Dawson's Creek" being considered as a candidate for Anakin in Episode II & III? Well, most assumed that it was James Vanderbeek (who plays Dawson) that the rumor was about. Perhaps. But no fewer than 3 different sources (two who are highly credible) claim that in fact actor Joshua Jackson is the actor from the show that LFL casting is "taking a look at". Frankly, after enduring the show the other night to take a look at the guy, he might not be a bad choice. But a rumor is a rumor, and even if the rumor is 100% solid, we are still a little early in the casting game. We'll just tag this one as "maybe" and file it away for later.

Editor's Note. I just want to mention the new design of Jedi Net. I have been a big fan of this site and I just love the new site. If you have not been to Jedi Net then I highly recommend you go there immediately. And if anyone from Jedi Net is out there reading this. I just want to tell you great job.

More Phantom Menace character descriptions from Ain't It Cool News. Ain't It Cool News came out with another tid bit on Episode 1. Just read on. I must warn you though that these are big spoilers, they even sort of explain why C3P0 is in the film.

SPOILER WARNING: Lots of Prequel Stuff Here’s a new spy that works at one of the 1.2 billion licensees that is working on the Star Wars Prequels toy line or fast food line or clothes line or candy line or model kit line or well I don’t really need to go on listing the potential clients this spy could be working for. But suffice to say, Patch is working. Patch is not a very high up spy, as a result, Patch’s eyes and hands fondled the designs in a short one to two hour period in the last 2 months. (Yes, I’ve been sitting on this for a while to provide cover) I’ve gone through and fact checked many items below. As a result, there is nothing below that will lead you off the path. The naysayers can bellyache all they want, but this is true fact. As a result there are quite a few little spoilers here and there. Designs described, scenes mentioned, origin of a character or two. So don’t read if ya don’t want to know. Here you go....

O.K., here goes, As my heart skipped a beat I fingered through lots of designs, and I mean lots. Tons of licensee stuff, so it might of been a bit "smoothed out" and cartoony, but it was pure gold cause it was only officialy approved designs that can't be altered by any artists. Here are some tidbits. May be spoiler stuff so you might want to warn.

Darth Maul- Very nasty looking. Lots of horns and very bumpy facial texture. Looked like freakin satan, really. Any fan art, descriptions or pictures had held him somewhat akin to a human looking character with red skin texture and small horns, but that's not what I saw. This guy looked mean, and more creatur-esque. Kinda reminded me of Spikor from the old He-man shtuff. If you can remember that, try and get a picture the face was VERY similar. Fire in his eyes too! This guy is gonna be cool.
Qui Gon/Obi wan- I saw a picture on the Force. net from the back of the "spirit of the force" action figures, and it gave me a chill. It really made me realize that this was gonna be Star Wars again on the big screen, HELL yeah! If you have not already gotten the jist of their costumes, they have that very classy, regal, two- tone color look. Obi wan's got the little braid on the side. I was quite amazed at how much the drawings of Ewan gave me the feel of Alec Guinnes's Obi wan persona. I saw a picture of them with Yoda only briefly and he had on a dark brown smock with short sleeves.
C3p0- Every picture of him in the stuff I saw, even T-shirts that just had his name and face, he was real trashed. Not put together at all. Not really see through, but more in the sense of only somewhat put together. Actually, he looked like a zombified droid, parts kinda rotted away, at least half of his face this way. This would definitely click with some of what I've heard about him being found in a junk pile by either Anakin or Qui-gon.
(HARRY NOTE: He is not found in a junk pile by either Anakin or Qui-Gon. He is Anakin’s pet project. A protocal droid to help his mother with her work.)

Jar Jar- Oh, yeah, the jig is up. Let me start out by saying that I am a full Lucas supportor, I loved his first three films, I can't think of any reason I wont like the new ones. I didn't like the Ewoks though, but that's not what it's about, it's about making you feel like they could exist simply because he wanted it that way. And anyone who thinks I'm spouting sugar-fairy s#&+ can kiss it, cause you're just lookin for something to say, beeattch! That said, I have alot of faith in the Jar Jar character. If animated more realistically than Jabba looked in the Special Edition, then this is gonna be a cool character. Imagine Chewbacca, but instead of lookin like a guy in a gorilla suit, it will be a fully articulate, out of this world freak! Hell yeah! I have nothing to go on for that but my own intutition, but like I said, I have faith in the man that helped develop the most influential SPFX studio in existance. That said, the Jar Jar designs were very much what was up the other day, the Chiang sketch. If any one remembers the Amanaman headhunter character that was seen in Jabba's palace in Jedi, Jar Jar resembles him VERY much. Similar colors even. Leaf green, light brown, lots of orange. The face is almost duck billed, and reminded me of a dinosaur in that vein. His expressions are very animated. The dreds are long, but not thin like Predator, but thick, and smaller in number like a bunch of carrots. No beard in these designs. Give this guy a somewhat Jamaican accent like I've heard, and I think he is going to make a real nice piece of eye candy.
(HARRY NOTE: Jar Jar does indeed have a bit of a Jamacian accent, but mix it with Italian. For example here’s one line he says that I remember: Dis time, wesa die’n, hey?

Ships and Droids-Only saw the droids breifly, but they looked very cool. Lots of similar stuff to what we've seen, battle droids with the guns and the ones with the dredds. Afew other new ones, all very sleek and cool looking. Some had pictures of them interacting with r2 and 3po, so I was led to believe that maybe these were "good" droids of some sort..
The ships look awesome! I've heard that there are limited space scenes, but I would love to just see five minutes of some of this stuff.
(HARRY NOTE: There really isn’t a tremendous amount of Space activity, there is some, he’ll get more than his five minutes worth)

I saw that circular Gungan ships (I think that what they were). A ball in the center of a C is what they look like. A C on it's side.
(HARRY NOTE: The above ship design is the FEDERATION BATTLESHIP and not a vehicle that the Gungan’s ever use.)

The Naboo ships are awesome. Sleek looking with the ponty front, they look awesome in fleets. There was also some sort of federation ship that I only saw breifly. I don't remember too many details but they kinda reminded me of romulan warbirds. Yeah, definetely Romulan ships, sort of.
(HARRY NOTE: Of all the designs I’ve seen, this last one, Romulan Warbird, has never shown up. Of course most of the designs I saw were circa March and July, so technically they could have been changed. This may be the Federation Star Fighter. I don’t know)

Anakin in Pod Race-This stuff was shockingly cool. Lots of pictures with Anakin in a helmet, right off the bat reminded me of Luke in the X-wing. Subulba's Face was a pretty normal looking alien with a long upside down V- like mouth and small nostrils. He had the complexion of the "visitor" aliens and reminded me of them a little. He is wearing a flying helmet that looks like german WWII stuff, only the goggles are spaced far almost on the side of the face, to cover the eyes. A few pictures were "in action". If any of you have any of the star wars universe cards that Topps published over the last few years, you might remember the ones that had comic book artists doing interpretations of there favorite SW elements and unseen stuff. There was a painted card that had Luke and maybe Biggs piloting T-16's through beggers canyon. Not the one with the womp rats, but the one where luke is navigating through the canyon banking into the sides of it. There was a shot of the race, a perspective shot of the front of Anakin's pod that looked alot like this. Also, and this I thought was really cool, One picture had Anakin in his Pod in an encounter with a bunch of Tuskin Raiders, Bantha's and all.
(HARRY NOTE: This last bit about Anakin in his pod in an encounter with a bunch of Banthas, etc... Well, that’s not in the script. However, it’s nothing to fret over, the pod race will be one of the most incredible scenes put to film. Very very action packed, and should make that sequence between Will Smith and the ID4 alien in the canyons look a bit amateurish)

Well that's it, hope this stuff gets you guys excited, I know it got me going.
Call me Patch

T'bone also gives us some Episode 1 news. T'bone is just a cool guy, I highly suggest you get a chance to visit his web site. T'bone Fender's Star Wars Universe. Well, T'bone posted up a bit of a summarization on one sequence in the film and he also add s a bit of speculation on it. I have read it and seem like a spoiler. So highlight the following if you want to read it.

"*** The Opening Battle ***
In the opening scene of the film, we know that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan board the Federation Battleship in orbit above the planet Naboo as ambassadors. Their ship is piloted by a generic Republic Captain and a Republic Pilot. They are the first folks we will probably see in the film in a scene very similar to the opening of ROTJ with Vader's shuttle pilots. TC-3, the protocol droid, meets the two Jedi at the door and leads them to a conference room. Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon wait patiently in the conference room while on the bridge, Nute Gunray and Rune Hako (the Nimoudians) are made aware that the ambassadors are Jedi by TC-3. They confer with Darth Sidious who then instructs them to have the Jedi killed. At this point, the Republic Captain and Pilot look up to see the guns of the Federation ship swing towards them. A fight ensues on the Federation ship pitting Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon against a bunch of Battle Droids including that "Wheel" droid that was pictured on AICN a while back (see the Prequel Poop page for picture). They make their escape and flee to Naboo.
Ok, so it's not all "new" news but hang on a sec. The reason I am describing all this is because I want to do a little speculation on just how the Jedi escape the battleship. It has been said that they simply run back to their ship, come under attack and crash on Naboo. I have a different opinion on this which is purely speculative, mind you. I know that there is a scene where while on the Federation ship, Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan see a bunch of droids being loaded into a landing craft presumably in preparation for some kind of Naboo invasion. This is right around the time of their escape. I think that they make themselves into stowaways on the landing craft and that is how they get off the ship. The last we see or hear of the Republic ship they arrived on is when the guns turn on them and we never hear from the Captain or Pilot again. There is no more mention of the ship after the Jedi escape. No mention of any crash landing at this point and no mention of ever getting back to the ship or going back for the crew. I think that once the guns turn on the Republic craft it will be destroyed and the Jedi become stowaways in order to escape. This is partially why they are chased by the STAPS in the swamp as well. They are right there while the droids are unloading.
Another reason I like this piece of speculation is because there is another scene later in the film where the Queen's ship comes under attack and is temporarily disabled and starts to spin out until R2 saves the day and fixes the ship allowing them to escape. This would be two scenes pretty close to each other where a major ship is attacked and beat up a little. I think that may be a little much and possibly a little repetitive.
Now, the scene mentioned above where Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon see the droids being loaded into the landing craft might just be there to establish that the Federation is planning an invasion but it might also be one of those scenes where Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan sort of look at each other as if to say, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" That's what I envision in my mind. They somehow get in the landing craft or even get in the cockpit for that matter and steal away to the surface of Naboo.
Please keep in mind that this little "stowaway" theory is complete speculation on my part. I just based it on a few facts that I think are true. Once in a while you gotta let your imagination go. If it's wrong, so what. At least I warned you that it was speculation. If it's right, point for me. No big deal. If you have any thoughts on this theory, please take them over to the message boards and start some discussion. Thanks!"

Editor's Note. I came up with about three different designs for the cast and crew bio page. It that might take me a while to decide which one stays and which two goes. As for banners, I have a few on my PC already made. Some of the banners are made specifically for pages on Zombie Film Review, while others are not even finished yet. As time passes I really wish my CD-ROM was working correctly, it has been about 6 months since I have played a game of Jedi Knight. And I really have to say that I would kill to be able to play it again. I just love that game. If you have played the game would understand what I mean. But, I can play Star Wars Behind the Magic on my CD-ROM, which is why this seems so strange. Oh well, I will just continue the crawl the walls.

October 19, 1998

Big news on Jar Jar Brinkssss' character. You notice the trail of "sss", well at Ain't It Cool News posted up a little information on Jar Jar. Harry says that he can confirm that his source is reliable, but I assume everyone thinks Harry and his friend are bogus. Like I usually say, then keep in mind it is a rumor. But Harry has been right about a hundred films in the past 2 years. Highlight the following text if you want to read it. And same thing goes with the image. If you want to see it, view it at your own risk. For seeing this is a big spoiler.

"SPOILERS: Milo report on STAR WARS: THE PHANTOM MENACE
Well Harry here with a report from MILO on THE PHANTOM MENACE. For those that don't know who MILO is, he's that Phantom Tollbooth character that let me read his copy of the script in London a while back. So I know MILO knows of what he speaks. Just so you know this report has spoilers, and the spoilers are absolutely true so don't read if you don't want to know. Ok? Here's the countdown...

Harry,
Long time no chat. I've been busy searching for some sort of Superman present for a close friend of mine, any suggestions? Well anyway I suppose you want a report of some sort to spread to the masses. Before I get to that, let me say that everything I type in is absolutely true as far as the 3rd draft and what I saw on set.
Everybody seems pretty concerned about the character of Jar Jar Binks, pronounced Ja Ja Binksss. The toy of him we've seen on the net looks kinda lame, but as you can see from the Doug Chiang sketch below, he's a bit better looking with a cool skin texture and everything. This is a nude pic of him though, he does wear clothes as do every Gungan in the film. (I'll send a pic next time.)
We meet Jar Jar in the swamps of Naboo. Qui-Gon runs into him and saves his life. Next thing Qui-Gon knows he's stuck with this creature because of the life debt Jar Jar owes him. Obi Wan doesn't care too much for the character because he's a bit of a nuissance, but Qui-Gon keeps around because he believes Jar Jar has a purpose to serve.
Jar Jar is very much the Chewbacca with dialogue of the film. And Jar Jar's dialogue is written quite strangely in a funny accent. His tongue can shoot out and grab stuff, and I'd go so far as to say he's a bit like C3PO too. He's always negative about the current situation. I'm sure Ben Burtt will be adding sound effects and doing quite a mixing job with his voice.
Jar Jar pilots a submarine through the core of the planet, and is seemingly clumsy, but his clumsiness always saves the characters. Imagine Jerry Lewis with the force. Well that's enough this time out Harry. Next time I'll fill you in with more. I have easy access to a computer now, so I can send you more and more reports. I hope you and the fans like."

Editor's Note. I have been working on sketches for a new Shockwave Intro. So far it is just sketches, nothing is on my PC right now on it. Other then that I am working on several Banner ideas. But right now I am just stumped on a few Banner designs.

October 18, 1998

Another Phantom Menace image by SirSteve. SirSteve's Guide to Star Wars has brought in another image of The Phantom Menace. This is from new action figure line, "Jedi Spirits". You know at the end of Return of the Jedi when Luke walks away from the party and he looks at Yoda, Ben and Anakin all as Spirits. I know that to most of us that one of our favorite scene in Jedi (mine is the part where Luke tells the Emperor, "I am a Jedi like my father before"). Well, that is what Hasbro is working on, three clear figures of Yoda, Ben and Anakin. On the back of the box you do see one very interesting picture of Anakin and Ben from The Phantom Menace. Here check it out. SirSteve also wrote up the bio from that hard to read image.

Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker and Yoda - Three individuals with lives ironically intertwined. Before Obi-Wan Kenobi was forced into a life of hiding, before Anakin Skywalker gave in to the Dark Side and became Darth Vader and before Yoda was known as the last Jedi Master, a young Anakin was presented to the Jedi Council for permission to train the boy in the ways of the force. Many years later the Galactic Republic crumbled and the evil Empire rose in its place. Only after the defeat of the Empire at the hands of Anakin's son, Luke Skywalker would the three great Jedi be reunited after death as spiritual guides for Luke and the New Republic.

Another Episode 1 trailer rumor. You might be as sick and tired as everyone else is about all these rumors. But like I have said just keep in mind that it is just a rumor. This rumor came in from The Force Net.

We know that everyone's tired of the constant trailer rumors, but we received a report that was worth passing on to you. A member of the post-production team for the Fox film "The Siege" contacted us. While the trailer is not yet complete, the people working on "Siege" are very excited because Fox is planning to release the trailer with it, if at all possible. "The Siege" stars Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis and is scheduled to open on November 6.

Editor's Note: I just purchase Star Wars: Behind the Magic and all I can say about it is.... You must buy it if you don't have it. It is a must have as for all Star Wars fans. One thing that I have to tell you I have been getting a bad score on the Star Wars Trivia. And it is all because of stupid decisions I have made. So far I have 22 out 48; I know it looks bad. But all the trivia can be found in the CD in the character bios or the script section, you just have to look for them.

October 16, 1998

New Episode Cast Pictures. I have been to SirSteve's Guide to Star Wars page before, and I always seemed to get lost in it. He has a lot of information on new and upcoming The Phantom Menace Toys. I was planning to post up some pictures that he had on the Battle Droid and Mace Windu. This time he has gotten a series of pictures for the "Classic" character series. The whole idea behind the "Classic" Star Wars series is these characters have a link with characters in the Prequel. Well, SirSteve has been nice enough to post up pictures of the figures, the box they were on and the bios that were on the back of the package (Which I have to give him credit for because some of them are hard to read). So check out the site and check out the pictures.

Confirmation on the new THX sound system. Yup, Harry's Rumor was true. But yet, it seems obvious if you were Lucas wouldn't you do the same thing? Posted on both Variety.COM and Ain't It Cool News, it seems strange that Lucas has not posted up an official press release on THX's official site.

Fresh 'Star' sounds
Lucas, Dolby bow new digital tech with 'Wars'
By ANDREW HINDES, ERIC J. OLSON, October 15, 1998
Lucasfilm THX and Dolby Laboratories will launch a new theatrical digital surround sound technology, Dolby Digital-Surround EX, with the release of director George Lucas’ upcoming Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace, next May 21.
The new system, which will be unveiled Tuesday at the ShowEast exhibitors convention in Atlantic City, was co-developed and is jointly-owned by Lucasfilm THX and Dolby.
It employs a 6.1-channel theatrical surround sound format, adding an additional rear center channel to the 5.1-channel format currently used in most theaters. The speakers, which are positioned along the sides and rear of the theater, are wired to create more realistic sound effects that are smoother and more accurately placed than existing systems, according to a statement issued jointly by the two companies.
Real world sound
Gary Rydstrom, Oscar-winning sound designer and director of creative operations for Skywalker Sound (Lucas Digital Ltd.), was responsible for spearheading the development of the new technology. I wanted to develop a format that would open up new possibilities and place sounds exactly where you would hear them in the real world, he said.
Added director and Skywalker Sound founder George Lucas, This new surround technology provides filmmakers with a powerful new creative tool for producing realistic soundtracks.
The new format can be adapted to all existing 5.1 digital systems by installing the new Dolby SA-10 surround adapter, which will cost theater owners less than $5,000, according to Dolby sources. In some cases, the installation of an additional speaker also will be required.
In addition to Lucas’ new Star Wars film, two more pics are already slated to use the technology: DreamWorks’ The Haunting of Hill House and Sony’s Memoirs of a Geisha, directed by Stephen Spielberg. Ironically, Spielberg is a part owner of DTS, a competing 5.1 digital system. Sony subsid Sony Cinema Products Corp. is the maker of SDDS, another rival system. SDDS, an eight-channel system, uses five speakers behind the screen, two surround channels and a subwoofer.
Eyeing upgrades
But in response to the THX/Dolby announcement, Sony Cinema Products Corp. VP Bill Meade said his company would consider adding an additional surround channel to the SDDS system if there was a demand from filmmakers.
We would like to look at the market and see where filmmakers want to go, said Meade, a former Dolby exec. To the extent that this is viable you can certainly look to us to address this need with our products.

Is The Phantom Menace a joke title? This came in from the Dune Sea's The Prequel Countdown. Remember this could be just a rumor. I mean even the Dune Sea could not confirm if they knew the individual who wrote this in. But it is an interesting story.

Fact or fiction on the true direction of the title of Episode One - Today's early morning news comes from inside Skywalker Ranch. He's established himself as "friend". The individual claims to be an employee at the Ranch, in one of the production departments. Here's what "friend" had to say:
"Everyone in my department and those that I spoke with in general about "The Phantom Menace" title think this is a false lead, sort of a little humor on George's behalf. We have not seen any official logos or poster art featuring "The Phantom Menace" here at Skywalker. The working title is "The Phantom Menace" but we just aren't swallowing it as what will finally be released as the official title of episode 1. There is a vague story going on around Skywalker Ranch about how "The Phantom Menace" was chosen. I don't know the details but the gist of the story is that a kid up in Seattle, who is a very talented artist created a comic book that was a tad violent and had some sexual themes in it titled "The Phantom Menace" (or something to this effect). He distributed this book around his school and it was a cult hit. Basically there was an uproar over this comic book because of some of the content and the kid got in trouble and the book is banned in the local schools. The surrounding controversy received a lot of media attention and was big 6 o'clock TV news in the Pacific NorthWest. Word is that George Lucas was somehow introduced to this controversy and greatly respected the creativity of the kid and hence the title "The Phantom Menace" was borrowed as a teaser."

Editor's Note. Sorry about the delay on this. It took me a while to write up and post. You know it take me at top speed about 2 hours to update a site. The reason why, I always have to check links spelling, grammar, and HTML coding. I really don't want to screw up on anything. I was working on a few designs for the cast's bio pictures. I hope I can get that up sometime soon. And if you notice I change a bit some of the graphics on the site. I got annoyed with the invisible colors on the GIF's Oh well, Stay Frosty.

October 14, 1998

Harry corrects yesterday's Episode 1 news. Okay, yesterday I posted up some news that was on Ain't It Cool News. Well, Harry has made a few corrections, and yesterday did warn everyone that this was a spoiler. Which is something he forgot to do yesterday. The Correction is that the Sebulba is not a Hutt, which was the thing that I covered up because I thought that was a spoiler.

Harry here with an update. The Sebulba character is not a Hutt, but rather a spidery type character. He is the number one opposition in the pod race to Anakin. Think of him as a bit of an alien Messala, does dirty tricks, etc. As for the rest of the following scoop (ie.. the face mapping, we'll just have to wait and see how it turns out.) JUST ADDED--- Sebulba has no power in Episode One, he is merely a racer, an alien being that races pods and is a s.o.b. That's it. There is no question as to his placement. We first meet the character when Jar Jar tries to munch a bit of a frog-like thing that he hasn't paid for.
As for the removal of certain posts in the TALK BACK section. First off, I know Roland DeNoie and he's been my best friend since the age of about 5, he asked me to remove all fake posts using his name. As for the other posts, they are by a guy that spreads lies. I do not 'create' or 'enhance' stories I get. The below was printed verbatim. And I did a follow up when I woke up this afternoon. As for traffic on the site, it continues to grow, thus the increase in advertisers (if ya haven't noticed)

Editor's Note. I would just like to say that I love working on this site. Even though I have Zombie Film Review, just to bitch and moan about all the film that are right now, but I love to read and write up movie news. And I like doing that here on Episode 1, and not on ever movie like I use to do on Zombie Film Review. I am hoping that I can get Zombie up sometime soon, just so I can continue with my Bitching and Moaning. Just to inform you I do have a basic layout design for the site right now, but I need to write up new reviews and add texts and hyperlinks. Sometime I would have to say that it feels really like busy work. And that's why I love to work on this site. It is just simple News and a few updates on this site. Or maybe that is because this site is already up and Zombie is not even done? Oh well, I assume when Zombie is up I will feel better about this. In the mean time what you could do for me is try to get use to the name "The Phantom Menace". I know it is hard for most of you to accept this new name. But just say it out load a few times and maybe you could get use to it.

October 13, 1998

An unconfirmed actor talks about the Sebulba. This was posted on Ain't It Cool News, Harry didn't say that this would be a spoiler. Yet, there are a lot of things that he does go out and tell it is a spoiler but then it isn't. I don't know if this is too much of a spoiler, but it just tells a character's name and a little about the character. I do think that one section does seem to be a spoiler, so if you want to read it highlight that section. Remember I warned you.

From Scotland comes this Star Wars: The Phantom Menace tidbit
This doesn't really need an introduction, it speaks for itself.
Got some Star Wars info here I thought you & your fans might appreciate.
In one of todays daily papers, The Scottish Sun, there is an article about a Scottish TV actor that no one outside Scotland will have heard of, Lewis MacLeod.
He plays a scary alien in the new trilogy, in the interview he says the following:
"I appear as a loathsome, ugly character that everybody hates, originally I was just called in to do the voice of this new alien character, but while I was at Leavensdown Studio in London, Lucas said he wanted to use my face. I thought he had another role in mind and had images of swinging a light saber above my head. But then he told me he wanted to turn my mug into a huge, ugly alien."
"So I play a new character called Sebulba, who is a clone of the vile gangster Jabba The Hut. Sebulba is completely computer generated, but they made him look exactly like me. He's big and he elongates into different shapes. He's a likkable baddie, but still a baddie."
"My face was filmed at all angles with digital vidio cameras. They capture my mannerisms which the animators used to make the alien. So the thing moves it's eyebrows the same way I do and has the same expressions."
Lewis is quite a famous mimic up here in sunny Scotland and when he went to the auditions he did Darth Vader, Yoda, Jabba The Hut and anyone else he could think of for five minutes, when he finished Lucas looked at him and said 'you're the most bizarre man I have ever met'
He also said, "filming was great because I got to work closely with Lucas, he was excellent as he knows exactly what he wants. The security was incredible though, after I had filmed a scene a security guard was on hand to deliver the reels."
Roadkill Russell, the meanest Scotsman alive

A report on Episode 1 and the Fan sites. Now this is not really news, and it doesn't reveal anything about the plot or anything from Episode 1. But I did find it entertaining. This is a short segment from ZDTV on Episode 1 and the fan sites. It mentions some of the fans sites we all know and love like, The Force Net, Ain't It Cool News and Jedi Net.

New Samuel L Jackson picture. "I was a young brother trying to survive the ghetto... Something, something, something.... Down on 1010th street...... Something, something...." I just saw Jackie Brown and it got me in a singing kind of mood. Oh well, the advertisement to order the new Mace Windu figure appeared in this months Disney's Adventure. The cool thing is that they also have a picture of Sam Jackson in costume and on a chair. I can only assume that this maybe the chair that Sam sits in for the Jedi Council, or maybe every Jedi member has one. It would be humorous to see Yoda with his legs hanging off the edge of the chair. The image is a bit graining, I got this from The Force Net and they too also want to scan in a better version. So if anyone out there has a scanner and a copy of this months Disney Adventures, email us or the Force Net. By the way, Jackie Brown has come on Video. I suggest you should rent this movie, just to see Sam Jackson play one of the coolest villain in movie history. Now, I want to get another Mace figure and change him a bit to look like Sam in Jackie Brown or in Pulp Fiction.

Brian Blessed on Episode 1. This was posted on The Force Net a while ago. Brian Blessed was at PanopiCon '98 Dr. Who convention because he had a cameo appearance in the 80's. In the convention he mention this on Episode 1.

"He confirmed he was playing Boss Nass, whom he said was the king of the Gungans.
He also said their language sounded like a cross between Italian, English and Jamaican. (I assume he meant someone from the West Indies speaking English rather than Creole.) He then said a few words to the effect of 'you talk like this as a Gungan' with a Gungan accent. To be honest it sounded more like a (rather surprised) west Indian speaking English, than Italian, but there's always the chance that they may change the voice electronically.
He also said that there would be lots of creatures that looked like dinosaurs in the film and said that most of his filming had been done against a blue screen. (No great surprises there.) "
As a reminder, we've heard that the Gungan do actually interact with a number of Naboo's beasts of burden. They ride creatures called Kadoo that are very much like the duck billed dinosaur, then there are larger beasts called Fambas that carry large shield generators on their backs. So, Blessed's comments certainly fit.

And this was posted later on the Force Net on what Blessed said word for word. Highlight the following.

"Obviously the Naboo and the Gungan inhabit the same planet...Naboo. Now the humanoids (mostly if not all?) are the Queen's people and they are referred to simply as the Naboo. They inhabit the bright, lush, and green side of Naboo. It's sparsely populated, and it's few cities have many beautiful gardens and plazas. There is another side of the planet that is quite different however. The grassy Naboo plains separate the lush green side from the damp, grey side. Few of the "surface dwellers" venture into this hemisphere covered with swamps, marshes, and larger bodies of water. This is the area that the Gungan inhabit. The relationship between the Gungan and the Naboo is nearly non-existent. They're aware of each other but fear, and prejudice keep the species from living in harmony. The Gungan actually live below the surface of the planet in their city of Otoh Gunga. As reported officially on the Behind the Magic CD the planet Naboo defies traditional geological laws because it is made up of many layers and has no molten core. The Gunga city is underwater in a layer below the surface and the core (which we'll also see in the film) is filled with water and many strange aquatic creatures. If you are familiar with the old Flash Gordon comic you can liken the Gungan unto the Hawkmen. In fact the relationship between the different peoples is very similar. Although the Gungan and the Naboo are separated by prejudice they must unite to battle a common foe...the menacing Trade Federation. Lead by Nimoudian viceroy Nute Gunray, and Rune Hakko, the evil trade barons are bootlickers of the evil Sith Lord Darth Sidious. The survival of the planet Naboo is at stake but allying the Gungan and the Queen's people will not be an easy task. What better mediators could Naboo have however than a couple of valiant knights of the Jedi order. When Jar Jar leads our beloved duo to Boss Nass, the King of the Gungans, so they can request aide in the conflict, he staunchly replies..."No!!! Wesa no like da Naboo...dey 'tink dey brain so biig!". How will our heroes resolve this conflict?!? It's going to be impossible for the Naboo to fend off the Trade Federation threat without the help of the Gungan people. Will the freedom of the Queen's people be preserved?!? Is there hope for the planet?!? Only The Phantom Menace knows!"

JOHN WILLIAMS WILL SCREEN EPISODE 1!!! Why, did I have to yell? I assume you would too if your were to say the same thing. The Force Net posted up that on Monday October 12, John Williams will finally screen the film in order to start up scoring the film. If you know John he usually scores a film 3 months before the film is ready to be released. He likes to understand the film before he gets into it. I assume he screening the film early so he would have music ready for any trailers that 20th Century Fox or Lucasfilms might be showing soon, I am just assuming. This is exactly word for word what the Force net said about Williams.

"A long-time contact has let us know that John Williams will be seeing Episode I for the first time on Monday (Oct 12) and will then set into motion scoring it."

Interview with Terry Brooks on writing the novel of Episode 1. If you don't know whom Terry Brooks is, he working on a novel for Episode 1. ZDTV interviewed him on writing it. Brooks has a few interesting this about the novel, but really doesn't give anything about the film away. He also says that Lucas intended the novel would be different then the movie. If you want to see the interview then visit ZDTV.

Top Ten Star Wars Reject Titles. I think everyone loves to hear David Letterman's Top Ten List more then anything on his show. It seems that David Lettermen is asking people on the net to send in their ideas on reject titles of the New Star Wars film. This is weekly event held on the Official Site. If you want, to sent them in you title, I think I will go with "Episode 1: Spaceballs 2: The Search for More Money".

Star Wars number 1 on Entertainment Weekly's Sci-Fi Top 100. Pick up the October 16 issue of Entertainment Weekly, in it they list one hundred of the best Sci-Fi. And what they mean by Sci-Fi they mean Movie, Television, novels, comic book, or video game. Other then Star Wars the top five are Star Trek at number 2, Twilight Zone number 3, Frankenstein number 4, 2001: A Space Odyssey number 5. Deep in the list we have Classic Godzilla: King of the Monster (my hero J ), Superman, The Incredible Hulk, Akira, Blade Runner, E.T. A Trip to the Moon, the Back to the Future Trilogy (yeah), Brazil, V, Soylent Green, Flash Gordon the series, Predator, Space Invaders (the game, kool), Tron, Them!, Max Headroom and even To Kill a Mocking Bird.... You just have to see this to believe it. Check it out in news stands right now.

Editor's Note. I have been a bit busy. I am working on Zombie Film Review. I do think I could have it up soon. But I will only have the movie review and the email sections open. So far it looks great. And I hope you like it.

October 2, 1998

The rest of the Episode 1 figures. Well, here are the rest that I promised you. I did not add all of them, because some of them are the just cropped up picture of the group shot. Well, right off I can tell you that Mace Windu is the one in the back with the black cape. Yeah, I at first thought he was Dark Jedi. But Samuel L Jackson looks great even in a movie like this. The off creatures on the far right might be Jar Jar; we can only assume this because Lucasfilms has not released anything on Jar Jar. And the man in black next to Jar Jar, we assume is Ki-Adi Mundi a character who is getting a pre-prequel comic book by Dark horse. If you want to know more about Ki-Adi Mundi then head over to Dark Horse. For the rest of the characters I assume you could guess who Anakin, Obi Wan and Padma are.

In formation on Mace Windu figure. Official Hasbro Star Wars Site. has put up a press release on getting Mace Windu. Check it out.

HASBRO OFFERS FANS A SNEAK PREVIEW WITH FIRST TOYS FROM STAR WARS EPISODE I As fans await the release of Star Wars: Episode I in theatres on May 21, 1999, Hasbro is pleased to announce the release of an exclusive "Sneak Preview" Episode I action figure and vehicle.
A totally new Star Wars movie with new characters, vehicles, weapons and worlds will premier in movie theatres next Summer. It is Episode I of the Star Wars saga and the first movie in a new Star Wars trilogy. The original Star Wars trilogy told the story of Luke Skywalker, a young farm boy who became a hero in the struggle to overthrow the evil Empire and had to confront one of the Empire's staunchest henchmen, his own father, Darth Vader. The new Star Wars trilogy will go back in time a full generation to reveal the origins of Darth Vader. In Episode I, Darth Vader is a hopeful, nine-year-old boy named Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi is a brash, young Jedi Knight. This first chapter in the Star Wars saga follows Anakin's journey as he pursues his dreams and confronts his deepest fears in the midst of a galaxy in turmoil.
MACE WINDU' - EXCLUSIVE MAIL-IN FIGURE OFFER
In the days before Palpatine's Empire began its reign of terror, the Galactic Republic governed the affairs of the galaxy from the capital of Coruscant. In addition, the city-planet was also the seat of the legendary 12-member Jedi Council. Wisdom and experience were equally as important as abilities in the Force among the Jedi Council members. For this reason, Mace Windu, a senior member of the Jedi Council, was especially honored and revered throughout the Galactic Republic.
Kids and collectors can receive this exclusive Episode I figure of Mace Windu through the mail by sending in six proofs of purchase (original UPC's) from any Kenner Star Wars basic figures for each sneak preview figure, along with the original cash register receipts dated between 10/1/98 and 12/31/98. In addition, a check or money order must be included made payable to Hasbro Promotion and Direct for $2.99 per figure. This should be mailed to Star Wars Prequel "SNEAK PREVIEW" Promotion, P.O. Box 8855, Young America, MN 55551-8855. You can also visit our Web site for further information at www.starwars.hasbro.com.
STAP' VEHICLE WITH BATTLE DROID" FIGURE (Approx Retail Price: $14.99) The STAP is a small, one-pilot, repulsorlift vehicle outfitted with two laser cannons. It is extremely maneuverable, making it perfect for patrol, reconnaissance and battle. STAPs are operated by battle droids who function as the infantry of the Trade Federation army.
The STAP vehicle includes a transparent pedestal for display and allows kids to recreate the hovering action as is depicted in the film. The pedestal also has push buttons to remotely activate the dual projectile launchers, foot pedals and handle bars. The STAP vehicle with exclusive battle droid figure will be available at all retailers where toys are sold.
Recommended Age: Four and up
Availability: October, 1998

Lynn Hale Video Diary 4: 'Boys in Paradise'. When I was a kid, I loved playing with my Han Solo Blaster. And I would chase my friends around with it, and they would have Stormtrooper blaster pointed at me. And we would make the sound effect from the films as best as we could. "Peebouwsh!!!!" I assumed everyone did that, and I bet they did the same thing while they were making the props for Episode 1. Just check out the props for the new movie.

Sound System for Episode 1. I think it is cool that Episode 1 will be a breakthrough in sound technology. I can't wait what other films will be using this technology? Maybe Tarantino might use it for his next film? Or maybe Woody Allen might use it? This popped up on Ain't It Cool News. Just read on it.

Star Wars: The Phantom Menace to debut a new Sound system?
I've been trying to get to the bottom of this rumor, one I haven't put on the site before now, because I didn't want to get it wrong. It began with an email about a year and a half ago. Then little echoes from time to time. Then when I talked to some Lucasfilm people, the same ones that Chitwood and gang talked to a while back, I popped the question, there was an uncertain silence followed by a "yu..NO!" So I knew this was probably going to happen. I've been trying to get someone inside SKYWALKER RANCH mixing a flick or to install carpet... anything to see if we could get to the bottom of this. And well, here we go. This should be considered rumor, till they get the system finished and offer it up to Theater Owners, but all I can say is, it sounds like it would sound cool. I'll call this source, the phantom menace...
I had the good fortune to visit Skywalker Ranch over the weekend on a Tech Tour held during the annual Audio Engineer Society convention in San Francisco (it was a beautiful place, but I digress...). Talking with a few people who work at the Tech Building on the Ranch, I discovered that The Phantom Menace will be the first release in a brand-new surround sound format that is currently being worked on in a collaboration by THX and Dolby. The big cheese who I spoke with said that there will be three surround channels, because there will be a new low-frequency (sub-bass) channel at the back of the theater, behind the audience. I was told (as closely memorized as possible), "The idea first came up when Gary Rydstrom was mixing "Jurassic Park" here. Mr. Spielberg asked, 'Can't we make the sound come from behind the audience?' And of course, they couldn't so they were pretty frustrated, although Gary tried." It was also joked--extremely tounge-in-cheek--that it was merely a move to make theater owners shell out for another speaker. No word on what the new sound format will be called. Hope you find this of interest (and of course, please don't divulge my address).

Another Trailer rumors. You could add this to the list of films we have seen that have not carried Episode 1 trailers (Alien Resurrection, X-Files, Godzilla, etc.). But I always like to here each rumor there is, because you never know which one is real. I got this bit of news from The Force Net.

Wurd on the street these days is that "A Bug's Life" from Disney will be where we see the first "The Phantom Menace" trailer. Sorry, we know some of you are slapping your noggins saying, "Not another trailer rumor. I already rushed to see Titanic, X-Files, and every other movie rumored." But you see, it's part of the strategy. If we slap up every trailer rumor, eventually we'll get one right. It's playing the odds. :) Actually, "A Bug's Life" has as good a shot as any movie since it appeals to a large family audience, it's a very anticipated film, Disney has a good relationship with Lucas (Star Tours), and Lucas is rumored to have said we'll see a trailer in November. So keep your ears open for any confirmations.

More Episode 1 one action Figures. Well, these confirm the pictures that were posted before on Jedi Net's Prequel Watch. Jedi Jimmie's Power of the Force 2 Page has gotten pictures of Episode 1 figures. You do see some of the figures that were posted on The Prequel Watch, and you will be happy to see that there are more figures. I am a bit busy right now. I will just show you the group shot off all the figures, so I will post the rest of the pictures later. Now this might be a spoiler to most of you. So if you don't want to see them then don't click on the following links.