STAR WARS EPISODE III EDITORIALS - We here at the Inland Empire Strikes Back Fan Club have decided that we just can't stand listening to each others opinions about Episode III any longer. Therefore, we have decided to share them with you lucky viewers. Here are our thoughts, opinions, questions, basically everything we feel relating to the Star Wars Saga and it's upcoming conclusion. This editorial is all about our expectations and in some cases our fears. Do you have an opinion on the subject? What do you think is going to happen? Share your thoughts with us here at IESB and we will be happy to post them along with ours.

Posted 01/04/04 Flashback - Carrie Fisher defends the prequels and reveals dark intentions for Ewan McGregor! The Force.Net reports: AN EWOK ATE MY HAMSTER sends us this summary of the Jan/Feb edition of Star Wars Magazine U.K. has a great interview with Carrie Fisher. She talks about all of the usual stuff but the most interesting part is when she talks about the prequels: After speaking about her famous slave girl outfit she says "All I have to say is that Natalie Portman walks through a doorway and has a wardrobe change, I get one, sorry, two dresses, and the first one looks the same all the way around." On the criticism - "Reviewers go back and they judge the new films against the old. The new standard becomes the first three films, and I suddenly get wonderful reviews. I promise you, the first reviews were terrible to begin with, so they are just doing the same thing again. Who knows what will happen with time? Certainly no one else is doing visually what George does, and if he's setting the standard and is being judged against himself, then hallelujah! The bigger the target, the bigger the artillery, so they should back off. It becomes personal sometimes, and some critics are really enraged. I don't hold much in that tactic. I don't go by what they say about this stuff." She adds - "But I love Ewan McGregor. I could eat his head".

Posted 12/31/03 Steph138 - It's times like these that make me happy I am a Southern Californian. Don't forget that John Williams will be the Grand Marshall at the 115th Tournament of Roses Parade tomorrow. The theme this year is "Music, Music, Music" and who better to represent? Here is the official release.

Posted 12/02/03 Jedibob - ILM gearing up for Episode III !!! While Editors Roger Barton and Ben Burtt busily piece together the first cut of Episode III, some initial work has begun with a small team at Industrial Light & Magic. ILM artists are preparing the digital assets required for the estimated 2,000 visual effects shot to be delivered, and the teams are closely examining the previsualized sequences provided by the Animatics Department from Skywalker Ranch. At this stage of postproduction, Director George Lucas meets weekly with Visual Effects Supervisor John Knoll and Animation Supervisor Rob Coleman, along with key members of their teams. Lucas approves or asks for changes on unpainted digital models (with an eye towards construction and proportions) and approves models that have undergone "viewpaint" and have their finished textures. In examining animatics -- the low-resolution computer-generated "templates" for the finished effects sequences -- Knoll and Coleman ask Lucas crucial questions about the composition and look of the finished shots before any of the concentrated work begins. At this stage, the ILM team is currently a small fraction of what it will become. "Right now, we've got about 18 or 19 people," says Producer Rick McCallum."We've probably got 150 [digital] vehicles, objects, and model work done and painted," says McCallum. "George comes down to ILM every Thursday, and we spend a couple of hours going through all the models. We started our Matte Department; we've got three matte painters that are working on five set backgrounds."These backgrounds are cykes -- digital cycloramas providing the expansive vistas that replace the bluescreen currently visible through most windows. These views include Palpatine's office, the Jedi Temple, Padmé's apartment and Padmé's verandah. New angles and changes in Coruscant's skyline necessitate new views of the returning locales. "We can get a lot of the matte paintings locked even though we haven't cut the sequence, since we know we're going to be in these places," says McCallum. With a first cut of the film expected by January, it is only a matter of months before the ILM team swells from dozens to hundreds of artists and technicians. StarWars.com

11/22/03 Jedibob- Angels For Angelica Benefit Concert-In Memory of Chanel Vanecek!! You might be asking who is Chanel Vanecek. She is you and she is me, a daughter and mother who was to young to pass away. She was a active member of the 501st and very active with her local Star Wars fan club. I did not have the chance to personally meet with Chanel but I am sure that we crossed paths at this years Comic-Con. I am going to have to go thru all of my pics of the con and she is she is in them. I received an e-mail from the San Francisco Star Wars fan club which is helping promote a charity concert for Chanel's 8 year old daughter. Please try to help Chanel's daughter by donating what ever money you can to make sure that this little girl gets a jump start on life considering that her Mom won't be their to watch her little girl finish High School and start College. As a father I am totally heartbroken thinking about Chanel's passing even though I did not know her personally. My heart and prayer's go to her mother Eva and her daughter Angelica. This is the following e-mail that I received from the sfswfc :

Angels For Angelica Benefit Concert-In Memory of Chanel Vanecek

Sunday, December 14 at 12:30pm
Location: Gaslighter Theater
400 East Campbell Ave.
Campbell, CA

Hello Friends of the Bay Area Community,

Several weeks ago, a good friend of mine, Chanel Vanecek passed away at the young age of 23. According to her mother, she has been battling Pulmonary Fibrosis along with asthma for the past several years. She was feeling ill the weekend of October 17th with the flu and she went to the hospital on Sunday, October 19. While she was in the waiting room, she suffered a heart attack. She passed away that Saturday, October 25th. She is survived by her mother, Eva and her seven year old daughter Angelica. I know it can be very difficult to raise a young child. I also can imagine that it would be very difficult to suffer the loss of a parent. That is why I am inviting all of you to join us on Sunday, December 14 at 12:30pm for the "Angels for Angelica" Benefit concert. Proceeds from the Benefit Concert will go to the Scholar Fund that her grandmother, Eva, has set up. We will have three bands performing at the Benefit Concert; Latin Funk Express (Latin/Jazz Fusion), The JT Horns (R&B/Funk/Soul), and The Silicon Valley Houserockers (Rock N' Roll) performing a part of their "Rock N' Roll Christmas Show". In addition to the concert, we will be accepting additional cash donations for Angelica's Scholar Fund as well as selling baked goods and possibly holding a raffle with donations from the local community.

Tickets for this event will be $10 per person. You can purchase tickets via Paypal by visiting www.paypal.com and send the money to the account jazmachine@hotmail.com. In the subject line, please put "Angels for Angelica Benefit Concert" and put the number of tickets you would like to purchase below the subject line. Please include a mailing address you would like the tickets to be sent to.

Please visit Chanel's website and sign her guestbook!!!
www.vanecek.com

Posted 11/21/03 Jedibob - What will we see when we get the Holy Trilogy on DVD?? We have reported in the past that John Williams has gone on record to say that he will bridge all movie with the Imperial March. We have heard the rumors for a few months that George will be making an archival edition of the Holy Trilogy. TFN has posted run down of possible and very rumored changes:

Episode IV: A New Hope
01. The Imperial March has been added to Darth Vader's first appearance on Princess Leia's ship.
02. When Obi-Wan is talking to Luke about his father Anakin's Theme plays in the background and then it turns into the Imperial March as he talks about Vader.
03. The lightsaber effects have been redone and the frame jumps of lightsabers being turned on has been removed.
04. There's a new scene which has been shot during the filming of Episode III in which the Emperor dissolves the Senate.
05. In the Cantina, the Duros (green aliens guys) have been replaced with Neimoidians and some aliens from the prequels have been added.
06. The bleeding arm on the floor in the Cantina has been replaced with a non-bleeding arm because it's now canon that lightsabers cauterize wounds.
07. The original shooting scene between Han and Greedo has been restored.
08. Jabba the Hutt has been given a makeover and Han no longer steps on his tale.
09. In place of R2 wobbling down the stairs to the Falcon's hangar, a CG R2 navigating the stairs like he does in Attack of the Clones was added.
10. The white boxes around space ships have been removed and new CG shots have been added.
11. The scene of the Falcon being chased by the two Star Destroyers was modified. The Falcon now does spinning moves, avoiding the Star Destroyers' fire.
12. When the Death Star destroys Alderaan there's a new scene of Yoda's reaction to the disturbance in the Force that is created by all those deaths and then it cuts to Obi-Wan reacting to it as well.
13. The Dianoga has gotten a CG makeover and were are now able to see more of the creature.
14. The Death Star's paneling and computers have been slightly altered to show similar displays to those in the prequels.
15. The words "Tractor Beam" with Aurebesh lettering.
16. More stormtroopers have been added to the Death Star.
17. Temuera Morrison's voice is being recorded for use with all the stormtroopers.
18. The Obi-Wan/Vader duel has been spruced up. It is much more epic and there is much more movement. A modified version of Duel of the Fates is being considered for the scene.
19. The Death Star plans that are taken from R2 have been updated. When the Rebels are reviewing the Death Star plans they look similar to the plans we see in Attack of the Clones.
20. The Death Star battle is much more epic with more Tie Fighters and more Rebels being blown to bits. We get to see old Naboo starfighters being used by the Rebels.
21. There's a new scene (shot during Episode III) where Darth Vader goes to Coruscant and lands his ship in the same building Count Dooku does at the end of Attack of the Clones. Except now the building is all fixed up and it is now Palpatine's palace. He meets with Palpatine to ask for forgiveness for his failure and inform him of a new potential who is strong in the Force.
22. Chewbacca now gets a medal.
Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
01. The taun-tauns are now CG.
02. The battle of Hoth is much more epic. We see the Imperial ships land on Hoth and release AT-ATs. The AT-ATs have been sped up a bit. There's a ground battle between the Rebel soldiers and stormtroopers featuring new ships and vehicles.
03. Temuera Morrison's voice is being recorded for the older Boba Fett and all the stormtroopers.
04. The white boxes around space ships have been removed.
05. The slug monster is CG.
06. Ian McDiarmid has refilmed scenes as the Emperor. The conversations between Vader and Palpatine is now longer and features a few connections to the prequels.
07. Yoda's face is now animated in CG allowing more expression of emotions yet his movements remain the same. Also two deleted scenes featuring Yoda instructing Luke have been restored.
08. A new scene was shot in which the stormtroopers, after they capture Han, Leia and Chewie, bring Vader the box containing C-3PO in pieces. Vader orders the stormtroopers to bring the broken droid to Chewbacca's cell so that he can fix him.
09. The lightsaber effects have been redone in certain parts.
10. Luke's fall from Cloud City has been reshot against bluescreen using a stuntman.

Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
01. Jabba the Hutt is now a combination of the puppet and CG.
02. The Rancor is CG and looks disgusting as ever.
03. Yoda is CG. Yoda disappears leaving his clothes behind like Obi-Wan now.
04. The ewoks are now mostly CG and there are a lot more of them.
05. The plan is to insert the love theme Across the Stars when Luke is talking with Leia about their mother.
06. Temuera Morrison's like before is now the voice for Boba Fett and all the stormtroopers.
07. In the battle of Endor there are thousands of Ewoks and they are more vicious than there midgets-in-suits counterparts. More bite the dust now.
08. White boxes around ships removed.
09. The black blotches around Palpatine's face are gone.
10. Some of the lightsaber effects have been redone. The shadows that the lightsabers made on the floor are gone.
11. During Anakin's death scene it starts with a sad rendition of the Imperial March and slowly evolves into Anakin's Theme.
12. Sebastion Shaw who played Anakin when he was unmasked has been replaced with Hayden Christenson in make-up to make him look older. Anakin has much more dialogue. He apologizes for the destruction he caused, he thanks his son for turning him back to the light, he tells his son to rebuild the Jedi and he says he loves him and his sister. Just before he dies he says, "It is finished...".
13. We see more planets celebrating at the end of the movie. We see an aged Jar Jar, who is now the leader of the Gungans, on Naboo celebrating with the people of Naboo and the Gungans. We see an old Watto, who is now unable to fly, sitting in a hover chair cheering on Tatooine. During these scenes Across the Stars plays transitioning to the victory celebration music at the Ewok tree village.
14. Anakin's spirit is now played by Hayden Christenson with make-up to make him look his age. He looks on proudly at his son Luke with the spirit of Padme by his side.

Again, these are more of a wish list than accurate information. We also wanted to tell you something perhaps even more significant. Episode I: The Phantom Menace is getting a full overhaul as well. We'll leave you with that for now.

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Posted 11/19/03 Stonewall- Nude scenes in Episode III!!! Okay it might not be what you think, but in the new issue of Star Wars Insider#72 Rick McCallum was asked if one of the principle characters was going to have a near nude scene. McCallum responded "No. Topless." Now when I read this I got all warm and fuzzy with thoughts of Padme. But then I regained my composure and realized it was going to probably be Obi-Wan or Anakin without a shirt or Jar Jar in drag. Honestly, McCallum was probably just trying to cause a stir on the Internet. Anyway, McCallum was also asked if indeed Chewbacca would be the one who delivers the twins to safety and he said "Negative" So I guess the moral of the story is don't believe everything that you read. Especially if it's an Out of Order sign.

Posted 11/10/03 Jedibob - Major Episode III spoilers. TFN has posted some more spoilers for EPIII, you must hightlite to read the following : Hayden Christensen as Darth Vader really isn't in the film for all that long of a time. In fact, he gets maybe five minutes at the maximum. Here's some details on what scenes you can expect him in:
1) He will be seen just for a couple minutes in the much talked about "waking-up" scene. This is after his recovery from the duel and he realizes what he has done and what has happened to him. He is shown here without the cape and upper helmet.

2) There's the "Sith christening" scene also known as the knighting as a Sith Lord. Another couple of minutes when he'll be seen during the film. He is also named here.

3) And finally, there's the "superstructure being built" minute where you can see the Death Star being constructed from his viewpoint with a few other notable Empire characters.

Posted 11/06/03 Stonewall- The Holy Trilogy on DVD by September, 2004! Our friends at AICN are reporting that the original Star Wars trilogy is going to be released on DVD next year. Here is an excerpt from their website:
Some interesting things came to light. The marketing timeline for Star Wars is as follows - This week, The Clone Wars, then the original Star Wars trilogy is being released September 2004, then Episode 3 teaser advertising begins in January of 2005, Episode 3 May 2005, Episode 3 DVD/VHS November 2005. One little fun fact - seems that they have TWO Star Wars television ideas floating around the ranch...one would be animation and the other - LIVE ACTION. These television projects would be in 2006. Let's hope they're better than the Star Wars Christmas Special, or those Ewok films.
Click here to go to AICN.com!!!!!!!

Posted 11/01/03 Flashback - Animation Insider launches the Clone Wars Ready Room. With less than a week to go until the premiere of the Star Wars: Clone Wars animated mini-series on Cartoon Network, Animation Insider has set up a page devoted to the site. The Clone Wars Ready Room contains all manner of info on the series, including characters, vehicles, worlds, and a guide to the first ten episodes.

Posted 10/27/03 Flashback - Print of A New Hope shown at film festival was enhanced! A patron of Ain't It Cool News reports: "Today I attended that screening of Star Wars: Special Edition here in L.A. at the City of Angels Film Festival. As you mentioned on your site, this was the Special Edition print, not the original cut. Special Edition or not, it's always cool to see Star Wars on the big screen. But there was something unusual about this screening. This was not the Special Edition print that is on VHS. There were changes in this print - specifically, the lightsabers in the Obi/Vader duel were enhanced. This has been a nitpicky thing since the SEs were released: why didn't they fix the rotoscoping on the lightsabers? Well, in this print (which, strangely, was not a new looking print) the sabers WERE fixed. Obi-Wan's saber was brilliant blue and Vader's saber was bright red (not white) in every shot - even in the shot as the blast doors are closing. In the shot where Ben's saber is pointed at the camera (where it suddenly looks like a stick) it was correctly filled in and had a glorious blue glow. I wasn't imagining things because the guy next to me immediately whispered, "Did you see that?!" There was one other minor change as well. In the first binary sunset shot as Luke is walking out of the homestead, the lower right sun had CG clouds passing in front of it. I came home and checked my VHS copy -- no clouds. It seems a few changes were slipped into this print since the initial release. Perhaps this seems like minor stuff, but the lightsabers have bothered me for years. I'm happy to report they HAVE been fixed. Hopefully soon, everyone else will get a chance to see it on DVD." The IESB had reported earlier about this screening, and even posted it on the Calendar, but unfortunately, no IESBers were able to attend. We're kicking ourselves as we speak! UPDATE It seems the reports of the enhancements were somewhat exaggerrated. Other attendees of the screening do attest to the enhancements, but downplay the significance of the print as a mere alternate/in-progress version, much in the way the original 1977 and subsequent theatrical releases, as well as various 1980s video releases, feature slightly alternate cuts and audio mixes. Looks like we'll all just have to wait til the eventual DVD release of the 'Definitive Edition' to see what George has in store for the Holy Trilogy.

Posted 10/27/03 Flashback - The Emporer In Action: Ian McDiarmid gets physical in Episode III. Empire Online reports: Given that the film charts the rise of the Empire and the dominance of the Dark Side, Epsode III was always going to be a good film for Ian McDiarmid. Taking Chancellor (soon to be Emperor) Palpatine to the height of his political fortunes is not his only function however and, according to McDiarmid, Palpatine finally gets a slice of the action in the final prequel. "You'd imagine that my character has been rather deskbound in the past but this time he will get to take part in the action," the actor told Teletext. "I can't give the story away as George Lucas would kill me but I have been engaged in far more physical activities than any of the other films." Lightsaber fights? Bantha wrestling? McDiarmid isn't telling, though he did drop a few oblique hints. "I have found myself sliding down chutes at speed and landing on heaps of rubber, it's been a completely new experience for me. I haven't had to go down the gym to get fit for the scenes but I did need a few rehearsals to get up to speed."

Posted 10/24/03 Jedibob - Major announcements to be made by Lucasfilm very soon. The rumors are hitting the web at the speed of light. If the two latest rumors are true , Star Wars fans around the world will be shocked by one of them. One of the rumors is that Lucasfilm will finally release an Archival Edition of the Holy Trilogy on DVD. That's right finally we will have Hope, Empire and Jedi on DVD. This set will be a six disc set of yet an edition that we have not seen . It will not be the Original nor will it be the Special Edition, it will be the rumored final edition with a reworked score by John Williams and yet more footage than ever before. One of the things that will be on this disc set is all of the lost footage of the Sandstorm from Jedi and even the scenes of Luke and his friends from Hope that never made it on the big screen. I can tell you that I have been able to confirm that there is a lot of work being done at ILM to assure a release before Episode III , most likely this time next year. But this is not the announcements that will shock Star Wars fans from around the world. Here we go,... Dark Horizons posted earlier this week that there is talk that there is preliminary movement on another trilogy in the Star Wars saga. Dark Horizons posted that the new trilogy would be Episode 7 ,8 and 9 and that Steven Spielberg would take over the Directorial duties and that George would continue to write. We do know that Steven has mentioned plenty times in the past that he would love direct a Star Wars film. So a lot of this is not too far off base of previous reports. But this is not exactly what I have been told. This is what I have so far, Star Wars will continue but not necessarily on the big screen, maybe TV and it most likely will not be Episodes 7,8 and 9. Steven will take charge but there is good possibilities that we will see 1000 years before the Skywalkers. Can we say Golden Age of the Sith??!! Once again nothing is final until we here it from the horses mouth. So stay tune!!

Posted 10/21/03 Stonewall- Clone Wars website is up and running on Cartoon Network.com!!!!! That's right!!!! Click here to see the new link at cartoonnetwork.com!!!

Posted 10/17/03 Steph138 - Upcoming novel Jedi Trial is set to fill in the gap between Episodes II and III. Here is the scoop from Sci Fi Wire, "A 2004 hardcover, Jedi Trial, will detail an important development that Anakin Skywalker faces in a major battle of the war, the site reported. The Sluis sector has become a crucial battleground for control of a vital communications center. The forces of Freedom's Sons fight under the flag of the Republic, but they need clone trooper and Jedi reinforcement to hold their ground. Young Padawan Anakin Skywalker is dispatched to Praesitlyn, accompanied by an older Jedi Knight who is almost as headstrong and reckless as he, the site reported. Jedi Trial, written by David Sherman and Dan Cragg, is scheduled for release in hardcover in November 2004.

Posted 10/15/03 Steph138 - Hayden Christensen had a few things to say about Star Wars Episode III recently!! Here is the scoop from Latino Review,

Julian: George Lucas has described the tone of Episode Three as being the darkest of the franchise yet. Is that true?

Hayden: "Yes, it really will be. It still has to reach out to a specific audience, but it will be substantially darker than the previous films."

Julian: Nick Gilliard (the stunt coordinator) has said the light saber battles in the film will be the greatest so far. That’s a bold statement once you’ve seen Yoda and Count Dooku go at it. Can you confirm this?

Hayden: "I will say, on the record, the final fight sequence in this film will, in my opinion, and not having seen any of it cut together, should surpass any fight sequence that has been put on film so far. It’s the longest, I can’t give you specifics, but it is quite the bad-assed fight scene. Nick Gilliard has done an amazing job instilling an arc of story in the fight. It justifies, because you know Anakin and Obi-Wan have it out, but Anakin is the chosen one-he is supposed to be the best. But he comes out on the shorter end of the stick in the fight. It justifies it really nicely as the fight progresses."

Julian: Does Jar-Jar get hurt at all?

Hayden: (Laughs) "I wish I could share some specifics."

Julian: You are playing an iconic character in the Star Wars franchise. As the fan base goes, Star Wars fans are pretty hardcore. Do you get hounded on the streets?

Hayden: "They’re full on fanatical. But the only people that make a point of embarrassing me on the street are six and seven year olds. I get such a kick out of it. They still can’t differentiate between movies and reality to a certain point, so they can’t see me as an actor."

Julian: Do you really embrace it, think of doing other sci-fi films, or do you try to move away from it?

Hayden: "I’m very proud of my involvement with the films. I feel privileged to be a part of something that is so prominent in popular culture right now. But they were two films I was involved in. Hopefully I’ll get to do many more in many different genres. I don’t really see it as something I have to fight against. It’s obviously a character that people will associate me with. Its not like I was in a TV series for ten years and that’s all they’ve seen me in. Hopefully they will be able to see me as someone else. That’s the fun of what I do. I love that I get to be a part of it."

Julian: Are there a lot of Wookies in Episode Three?

Hayden: "There are some Wookies." (Laughs)

Julian: Are there some butt-kicking Wookies in Episode Three?

Hayden: (Laughs) "I can’t say any more, but there are some Wookies in the movie."

Well there is the scoop from the Dark Lord himself!!

Posted 10/11/03 Stonewall- Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope to play on the big screen!!!! That's right!! If you are in the mood to watch Episode IV on the big screen and are in the Los Angeles area, it will be playing at the 10th annual City of Angels Film Festival at 1:00pm on October 26, 2003. Click here for more info about ticket prices and directions.

Posted 10/07/03 Stonewall- Am I clairvoyant? It seems that are friends at theforce.net have came across some new evidence on the new title of the next Star Wars film is indeed "Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith". If you may or may not remember I wrote an article for IESB.net WAY back in January of 2003 on what the title of Episode III will be. Am I psychic? Am I just lucky? Hardly. There has been no new announcement on the title of Episode III. So we will have to wait and see! Click here to see the original article posted on IESB.net.

Posted 10/02/03 Stonewall- Cartoon Network is counting down to the premier of the Clone Wars!!!!! Cartoon Network has updated their website. There is now a download available with a countdown clock to the premier time of 8 pm Eastern and Pacific on November 7, 2003. Also make sure to keep going back to the site because every time you do there is a different picture. I have seen at least 3 but there maybe more!!!! Click here to see the Clone Wars website on cartoonnetwork.com.

Posted 09/30/03 Jedibob - Major EPIII spoilers!!! TFN reports the following: Highlight to read.I can see that the original reports of Anakin meeting the lava are causing quite a stir. What I'm about to tell you details the look of Anakin at the end of the film, I hope you don't mind being spoiled this early.
Basically, there's several "toasted Anakins" - three to be exact. I can give you the details on each, though I have no idea which one(s) actually will be used in the final version of the film.

Anakin Test #1: Anakin is burned black almost completely head to toe, except for his face. He is charcoal black and it honestly is sickening. The only burn marks on his face creep up along his right side of the face and the top and bottom of his eye. His ear is almost completely gone and around his lips there are several severe burns as well. This is really a sight to behold.

Anakin Test #2: This test involved Hayden getting made to look very close to the unmasked Vader from Return of the Jedi. His skin is very dark tan in color and he has that huge gash in the right side of the top his head and other marks you may recognize. There are many small burns and scrapes on his face, with the most substantial burns appearing on both cheeks and then burned to a black crisp the rest of the way down.

Anakin Test #3: In this final version, Hayden was made up to be burned, but not NEARLY as severe. He has massive bags under his eyes and his hair is almost completely singed off - but not quite, some stubble still remains. The left side of his face is in terrible condition, extending down his neck then to an entirely burned body as well. The others look more over the top, where this one looks more like just terrible 2nd degree burns.

Whichever of the three they choose, we're in for quite a sight. Wow...

Posted 09/30/03 Jedibob - Bai Ling speaks out on Episode III!! Bai Ling, who plays a small but key role as a senator in the upcoming Star Wars: Episode III, told SCI FI Wire that she worked on the film for more than three weeks this year in Sydney. "It's a very cool part, and ... I think everyone will be surprised," the Chinese-born actress said in an interview.Ling added, "I was there for over three weeks [working with the main cast]. But every day, whether I worked or not, I was on set, because I just don't want to miss that experience."Ling said that the production, which wrapped principal photography earlier this month, filled several sound stages at Fox Studios in the Australian city. "[When] I was in Sydney, I was calling everybody all over the world to share the experience," she said, sounding like the Oz fan she is. "I felt like [I was] in heaven. I called everybody and said, 'I'm in beautiful Sydney and working with George Lucas!' What else can you ask for?"Sci-Fi wire. Hmm what else can I ask for??? How about New Zealand and working with Peter Jackson?? Just Kidding!!

Posted 09/23/03 Stonewall-The countdown is on for Cartoon Network's Star Wars- Clone Wars!!!! I was home from work the other day and my kids were watching the Powerpuff Girls on Cartoon Network. I walked into the room and thought "I wonder if they are advertising Clone Wars yet?" Suddenly, as if on cue, the commercial came on. I will have to admit chills ran down my spine. The 30 second spot showed some quick images and ended with Yoda doing some flips and spins and the Clone Wars logo with the coming soon attached. I got so excited I went online to cartoonnetwork.com to see if they had any new info on the micro series. They had a home page for it but nothing yet. Below is a cool animated picture of Anakin with a lightsaber and his robotic hand!!!!!!!!!!

Posted 09/18/03 Stonewall- What do you mean they are done filming? That is correct. starwars.com is reporting that principal photography has been wrapped up and all that is left is for Lucas, McCallum, Burtt and ILM to work diligently until the films release in 2005.

Posted 09/17/03 Steph138 - There are some really cool Episode III pictures up at Comingsoon.net!! These pictures apparently appeared in the French Lucasfilm Magazine and can be found here!!

Posted 09/14/03 Flashback - This is too cool! Found this over at TheForce.Net, and had to share it with everyone. This fan art was created by CJ Franks, and is dubbed 'Anakron/Vader'. It's obviously a Vader robot that transforms into his TIE Fighter. Very cool design. Enjoy!

Posted 09/13/03 Jedibob - Are you ready for more Episode III spoilers??!! TFN has posted these spoilers, make sure to highlight the following: "Lets clarify a little about the "new bad guy" that is talked about in almost every chat. He is not a sith or a jedi traitor. He does wield at LEAST 2 lightsabers at the same time in combat. He has never been seen before (but keep your eyes peeled to the Cartoon Network). He is going to be cool as all heck, BUT he won't steal any thunder from when you see mechanical Darth Vader for the first time. Sounds like they recently filmed Obi-Wan taking on the new bad guys' henchmen. Don't be surprised if you hear about Obi-Wan filming his scene aboard a digital creature soon. There is currently no Boba Fett in the film at all. But wait there is more, the person who ordered the clones was seen in Attack of the Clones. Who is this mystery person?" There is still more!! Highlight: "news of some of the bad guys we'll see in Episode 3. They wear cloaks. Their weapons are effective against the Jedi." That's the latest from Theforce.net...doesn't it just make you want more?? We'll just have to wait and see!

Posted 09/08/03 Steph138 - Here is the latest news on Episode III! Dark Horizons reports, "'Kenny' is back with more tidbits garnered from recent online chats with crew members. Spoilers begin so highlight to read! The shooting schedule for March next year does not require any of the principle actors to come in for pickups. However, as the film is edited some new ideas and angles may rise up, so they may have yet to appear. The shoot is entirely studio based, no outdoor scenes for now but about 1/3 of the movie takes place on new planets. Christian Bale is not playing governor Tarkin and has no connection to this film. The Death Star has no real importance in this film, the reason for Obi-Wan's name change to Ben is in the movie, and Obi-Wan's actions are pivotal to events that end the Clone War. Force Ghosts and the fate of the younglings is explained (the kids with Yoda), Darth Sidious has much more screen time (and he will remove his hood). We will see proto-type Tie-Fighters, we will see rebel craft - the Jedi Starfighters are of a different design though. Finally, its been revealed that the big duelling sequence scheduled for last week will instead be done in the next few days - the delay due to a leg injury sustained by Hayden Christensen, however it shouldn't affect the schedule of principal photography which wraps very soon."

Posted 09/05/03 Steph138 - Latest inside scoop on Star Wars Episode III from TFN, "Here's today's dose of spoilerage, including the word on events that take place just before the movie begins: (highlight to read) The EU character is not Durge or Asaaj Ventress. The connection the Bruce Spence alien has with a former Boris Karloff character probably is not the one people think of first. "The Mummy" is the character people should be looking at. As has been hinted, the film starts out with things that have already happened (that the audience needs to be told in the opening scroll.) Supreme Chancellor Palpatine has been captured by the Separatists. Perhaps you can speculate on where the movie will go from there ...

Posted 09/03/03 Jedibob - Major Episode III spoilers!!! TheForce.net posted this earlier today, highlight to read!!!

The imagery is going to be FAR MORE GRAPHIC then anyone would suspect from a Star Wars film. I'm talking definitely PG-13 material. When they said this one was going to be dark, they meant it. Anakin is burnt to a crisp from neck down in what I saw, indeed his hair has been burned away and his head contains the exact same scarring we see in Jedi, including that large tear/scar. However, his face is WAY more burned up and disfigured than is seen in Jedi. Presumably some of the disfigurement has healed over the years when he finally is liberated by Luke. I really can't overestimate how freaky it was...if this incarnation sees the light of the day on the big screen, be prepared for a really disturbing sight. In fact, burned to a crisp is an understatement.

And theforce.net had this on 09/02/03 -

So you heard that Anakin loses a leg? I'm impressed, they haven't even shot that scene yet - maybe this week? Between that and his arm and you've got a wicked mixture of man and machine. That, and that whole burned to a crisp deal. Literally.
Well, I've got something else to add. His leg is gone from about the knee down or so, not at the thigh like some have speculated. AND he loses something else as well. All of his hair is gone - singed in the fire. And he gets that massive head wound in Episode III - the one you see briefly on Vader unmasked in Return of the Jedi.

Posted 08/29/03 Steph138 - Another chat was held at starwars.com yesterday with Pablo! If you are a member of Hyperspace you can access this link, if you are not here are some of the spoilers from Theforce.net,

• The Darth Vader scenes will be filmed next week.

• If Pablo had to venture a guess, he'd say that the EU Character will not be the only EU thing (ship/place, etc) that we will see in Ep3.

• Pablo believes there will be components of the film that are leaps of faith similar to the Yoda fight and pod race. And part of the challenge is the massive scale involved with bigger and more complicated shots.

• The duel between Anakin and Obi-Wan is not a gentleman's duel. It will get nasty (when asked about kicks and moves similar to Darth Maul).

• The character who speaks the classic line, "I have a bad feeling about this" is one that has not spoken the line before.

• We will see at least two sunsets in the film.

Posted 08/19/03 Steph138 - Some more juicy rumors out of the Episode III camp!! theforce.net is reporting that a familiar face will have a cameo...highlight to read..."Stunt Coordinator Nick Gillard will be seen at one point. No word on what he'll be doing, but prop master Ty Teiger commented that "I haven't seen him look this way since 1982." And second, theforce.net also had this to say about another familiar face...highlight to read..."So you're hearing rumblings that in Episode III there's to be some Wookiee fighting? Yup, Lucas has stated publically there is a small action sequence involving the classic creatures including Chewbacca. Well, the original version of the scene involved them fighting alongside Yoda - fighting off stormtroopers. They're all dressed up in battle armor and everything. At one point (not sure how this will play out in the end) it was decided that everyone of them would die except Chewbacca, giving him motivation for helping the Rebellion against the Empire in the original Star Wars movies." Hmmm, very interesting!!

Posted 08/19/03 Stonewall - Episode III to have a new villain. Who could it be? There have been rumors that Episode III will be having a new villain to pester Obi-Wan and Anakin. Rick McCallum has confirmed this. But everyone has been tight lipped. Could we be in for another CGI character? Maybe someone from the Expanded Universe? There are a couple of theories we might explore:

1. A totally new character- It is more than likely that George Lucas has come up with a cool new character to be the new antagonist in this film. So far we have not been disappointed in the new characters that have been introduced. Qui-Gon Jinn, Watto, Padme, Darth Maul, and yes even Jar Jar! (My kids loved him!!!)

2. Someone from the Expanded Universe- There have been a bunch of rumors that someone from the Expanded Universe was going to be involved in Episode III. The one I would love to see but is probably the most unlikely is Darth Bane. He was the last Dark Lord of the Sith. I think it would be hard to work him in the current storyline. Another interesting choice would be Grand Admiral Thrawn. Maybe not as a Grand Admiral but he could impress Palpatine so much that it explains where he came from. I think the most likely choice would be a new character from the Cartoon Network's Clone Wars cartoon. On one of the internet chats that McCallum did he did say that characters from the cartoon will be Episode III. I guess we will have to see!!!

3. Someone we hadn't expected-It would be interesting if someone who had he film all along would be suddenly become a bad dude. How about Mace Windu? Kit Fisto? Jar Jar Binks? Or maybe Boba been in tFett all grown up will be raising hell.

Posted 08/19/03 Stonewall- Good news for members of the Jar Jar Binks haters club!!! In the latest issue of the Star Wars Insider #70 Rick McCallum is asked by SWI writer Dave Gross some questions on casting decisions for Episode III. McCallum confirms that the role of Jar Jar will be "very small". McCallum also confirmed that Jimmy Smits character Bail Organa will have a slightly expanded role compared to Episode II. McCallum also cleared up some speculation that had been circulating over the Internet. When asked if Anakin was going to be losing anymore body parts McCallum gave an overwhelming "Absolutely!!" Also when asked if the Millennium Falcon will be making an appearance. He said that rumor was untrue. Please stay posted for more information.

Posted 08/15/03 Jedibob - Rumors Rumors Rumors!!! AICN has posted a very interesting rumor regarding the beginning of Episode III. Harry has a lot of friends so who knows if its true or not. So take it for what its worth....a rumor but you will have to highlight to read the following:

Harry,

I have seen the official presentaion by LucasFilm for Episode III. Below is a summary of the first part. I will send more when I have a chance.

Title Crawl: The clone wars continue on and the war is being fought above Coursant. The separatist forces have captured Chancellor Palpatine. Two Jedis, Obi-Wan and Anakin have found out where Palpatine is being held and lead a Squad of clones to rescue the Chancellor...

A huge space battle is taking place above the planet of Couruscant.

Obi-Wan and Anakin are flying new Jedi Starfighters that have a strange similarity to TIE fighters in the original trilogy. It's a very exciting scene with lots of action. Obi-Wan and Anakin try to get a lock on Shaak Ti's tracking device (she was captured along with Palpatine) and find that she and Palpatine are in the most heavily guarded ship. Obi-Wan and Anakin call for backup from the Clone troopers just as 20 or so droid fighters leave the ship and attack.

The droid fighters look like smaller Imperial shuttles. The battle continues and one of the droid shuttles deploys a bunch of sphere shaped droids, about the size of basketballs. They attach to Obi-Wan's Starfighter and arms, legs and lasers pop out. They begin to attack the various components of his ship, much like the Sentinels did in the Matrix. One of the droids cuts the head off of the R4 droid in the starfighter.

Anakin flies in to save his master and best friend. He tells Obi-Wan to keep steady and he starts to shoot the droids off the ship. He hits Obi-Wan's starfighter a few times and decides to try a different method. He flies in close to Obi-Wan and brushes the droids off the ship with his wing. One of the droids hops onto Anakin's ship and tries to cut off R2-D2s head. R2 extends an arm and hits the droid with a blast of electricity knocking it off the ship.

One last droid is still on Obi-Wan's ship and does some major damage. The ejector seat doesn't function and he loses control. His plan is to crash land his ship in to the hanger of the large separatist ship where Palpatine is being held. However, a shield is up. Anakin must fly in and knock out the shield to allow Obi-Wan to land.

Just as the two Jedi's enter the ship, the steel hanger doors shut. Obi-Wan pulls out his lightsaber, cuts open the canopy of his starfighter and jumps out just as the ship crashes and bursts into flames. He does a flip in the air as he is surrounded by battle droids. Anakin, still in his ship, flies through the hanger and crashes into the droids once again saving Obi-Wan.

Anakin and Obi-Wan then run off following Shaak Ti's signal. Hayden Christensen has obviously bulked up since Episode II. He stands a few inches taller than Ewan McGregor, and has much broader shoulders. Christensen now has shoulder length hair and is wearing more black leather underneath his Jedi robe. McGregor's hair is cut close to his head and he has a full beard, reminiscent of Alec Guinness. In fact, his voice sounds strangely like Guinness' as well.

The two are encountered by battle droids and they fight their way through. When they find Shaak Ti, she is in a room filled with battle droids, General Grevious and his body guards. Grevious is mostly machine with only the brain and eyes of a human. His metal body looks similar to that of the TX endoskeleton in the new Terminator movie but he wears a cloak that covers most of him. On his belt he carries the lightsabers of the Jedi he has killed. His body guards carry electrified pikes that are impervious to lightsabers.

Grevious has Shaak Ti kneel in front of him and then executes her with her own lightsaber. Obi-Wan and Anakin rush in and fight with the battle droids as well as Grevious' guards. More and more battle droids show up and the Jedi's realize they are outmatched. To escape, they cut into the floor and fall into the engine room of the star ship.

All the while the battle continues to rage on out side and the starship has taken heavy damage. The engine room is starting to fill with liquid fuel. Covered with fuel and no longer able to use their lightsabers, they try to make their way out of the engine room. Battle droids have followed them down and are now chasing them as the room is quickly filling with fuel. Anakin and Obi-Wan struggle to find a way out but it seems that all the openings are far too small for a human to fit through.

Eventually they do find one and start climbing up the ladder inside the shaft. The battle droids are right on their heels and the fuel in the engine room is getting close to electrodes on the walls. The two Jedi climb out of the shaft and into a hallway as Anakin seals the hatch behind them with his lightsaber. The fuel reaches the electrodes in the engine room and explodes. The explosion rips the ship in half.

Quickly, Anakin and Obi-Wan make it to the bridge where they find Chancellor Palpatine and General Grevious. Anakin and Obi-Wan attack Grevious but he quickly knocks Obi-Wan out and fights alone with Anakin. Through the window of the bridge we can see that the ship is crashing into Coruscant.

Grevious sees this too and makes a daring escape. He smashes the glass and climbs out the window. Because he is mostly metal he can walk on walls, ceilings and the outside of starships. He runs along the outside of the ship, makes his way to an escape pod and gets away.

Back in the bridge Obi-Wan has woken up and he finds Anakin at the helm of the ship, trying to prevent it from crashing. As the ship enters Coruscant's atmosphere, the ship starts to burn up and debris starts to fly off. Just before they crash into the city below, Anakin is able to get the nose of the ship up and make a somewhat safe crash landing.

Posted 08/13/03 Steph138 - Rick McCallum chats on Starwars.com!! What did he have to say about Episode III?? Highlight the following to find out some juicy tidbits!

Posted 08/12/03 Stonewall-Major character to die in Episode III!!!!!!!! News from our friends at TheForce.net and ComingSoon.net.They have been reporting that a major character is to meet their doom early in Episode III WARNING: THIS IS A POSSIBLE SPOILER! HIGHLIGHT TO READ!!!!!!

Christopher Lee's character Count Dooku aka Darth Tyranus, meets his doom in a mere 10 minutes after the opening crawl. Lee has already finished filming his scenes, with the exception of a few pickup shoots scheduled at a later date.

Now just a reminder that this little juicy tidbit is just rumor, and many of us Star Wars fans probably are saying "tell me something I don't know" but we can all dream!!!!!!

Posted 07/28/03 Kyoty - Review of “Star Wars: A Forest Apart” an E-book by Troy Denning. I have to admit that this book sat on my hard drive for quite a while before I actually sat down in front of my computer and read it. When I did I realized that waiting had been a mistake. This story delved wonderfully into the character of Chewbacca in a way no other Star Wars book or novel has to date. So far Chewie has been used as a second-string character in Star Wars novels which is why Del Rey’s Star Wars book editors decided that when they were going to kill off one of the classic main characters it would been the 200 year old “walking carpet.” With ‘A Forest Apart’ Denning proves that not only can the character work as the central driving force in a story, but it can be done well. Here we see Chewie dealing with things most authors seemed to forget about when dealing with the Wookie. Things like his paternal responsibilities to a son he hardly knows and his marriage to a wife he hardly sees, then mixing those elements into his everyday life on Corruscant. Denning has painted a portrait of a struggling father and husband who’s just trying to get it right and not always hitting the mark. Denning has proven much better than anyone before that there’s a lot more to Chewbacca than just a bunch of grunts and growls. In ‘A Forest Apart’ we see into the heart and soul of this character. We see his good qualities as well as his flaws. I highly recommend ‘A Forest Apart’ by Troy Denning, a must read for any Chewbacca fan. All I can say is, “What a Wookie!”

Posted 07/26/03 Steph138 - The location of Celebration 3 will be decided in August! Here is the announcement from theforce.net, "Josh calls in with news that the location of Celebration 3 will be chosen in August, and will also be announced at the end of August. Lisa Stevens from the Fan Club also stated that they expected to do more Celebrations in the future after Episode III."

Posted 07/24/03 Starcat - http://www.stuff.co.nz is reporting that Sabers are to be changed out with stronger models. "Not so long ago, in a factory not so far away, some of the most feared weapons in film history were under construction. Rotorua's Kilwell Fibretube Ltd, a division of Kilwell Sports, has made about 200 carbon-fibre tubes for the producers of Star Wars: Episode Three, the last instalment in the stars trilogy. The fibreglass tubes are being used in the movie as lightsabers – weapons used by Darth Vader, Dark Lord of the Sith and his adversaries, the powerful Jedi knights. The movie's producers requested the tubes after they started filming at Sydney's Fox Studios last month. The aluminium rods actors had been using for lightsabers kept breaking, creating headaches for director George Lucas. Producers spotted Kilwell Sports' carbon- fibre fishing rods in Australia and contacted one of the company's Brisbane-based agents to supply them with a similar product. The fibreglass tubes, coated in texalium (a silver aluminium-based coating) were considered the perfect weight and strength to hold up to the challenge of physical battle scenes. Kilwell Fibretube's manufacturing director Neil Goodwin was sent specifications for about 200 tubes of varying lengths and sizes. The tubes were quickly assembled and sent to Sydney for filming to resume.It is understood the lightsabers' "glow" will be added to the tubes by digital editors in post-production. With worldwide interest in the movie building every week, Mr Goodwin said staff were looking forward to seeing their handiwork on the big screen, despite having to wait until 2005. "When the movie comes out, we'll all be watching." The company has made oar shafts used by Olympic gold medallist Rob Waddell and made a lot of fibreglass tubing for America's Cup syndicates. It also makes fibreglass products for hang gliders, model aircraft and artists wanting them for sculptures. Mr Goodwin said the most unusual request the company received was from the Iraqi Government. "They were looking for a very large carbon tube but we declined to be involved."

Posted 07/21/03 Steph138 - A collection of sketches from Cartoon Network's Clone Wars cartoon!! Friday at Comic-Con the Clone Wars presentation was amazing! WARNING!! The following information may contain spoilers...please highlight to read...Nick Gillard was seen training with one of his stuntmen who was using a double sided lightsaber via the Hyperspace webcam. Then, on the online chat he held on Hyperspace he mentioned that one of his guys will be portraying Kit Fisto. Is it coincidence that one of the following sketches shows the character of Kit Fisto with a double sided lightsaber...you connect the dots!! The man in the webcam shots must me Kit Fisto??? Hmmm....Click on the picture below to see a sneak peek of the character and background sketches from one of the most anticipated animated events of the year!

Posted 07/21/03 Jedibob - Interview with Daniel Logan, young Boba Fett, at Comic-Con 2003! I had a very good time Thursday at Comic-con with a lot of Star Wars personnel out on the floor. I was able to speak a bit to Jeremy Bullock, the original Boba Fett as well as Steve Sansweet. Lisa Stevens, president of the Star Wars Fan Club, was also running the halls before the Exhibit Hall was open to the public. But a big surprise came when I heard that Daniel Logan was also slated for an autograph session, something that had not been publicized. He was accompanied by both his mother Caroline and his little sister Charmayne. While he was doing his autographs I was able to sit beside him and ask him a few questions.

So there you have it. Stay tune for an IESB gallery with tons of pictures from Comic-Con!!

Posted 07/12/03 Stonewall - Critics get first look at "Clone Wars" on Cartoon Network!! Critics got their first look at Cartoon Networks "Clone Wars" this past week says Zap2it.com, "The Cartoon Network unveiled the first footage from its pending series of "Star Wars: Clone Wars" shorts Thursday (July 10) to reporters at the TV Critics Association press tour. As the title implies, "Clone Wars" will follow the story begun in "Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones." Jedis Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker lead clone troopers in a war against separatist forces led by the evil Count Dooku. Other familiar "Star Wars" characters, including Mace Windu, Padme Amidala and Yoda, will also be featured in the cartoons. The series of 20 shorts is scheduled to premiere at 8 p.m. ET Friday, Nov. 7. The first 10 installments will air at 8 p.m. weekdays through Nov. 21, while the second half of the saga will air in sping 2004. "Samurai Jack" and "Dexter's Laboratory" creator Genndy Tartakovsky is leading the "Clone Wars" team, with cooperation from "Star Wars" creator George Lucas and Lucasfilm. Mark Lazarus, president of the Turner Entertainment Group, which oversees Cartoon Network, says he received the tape of the first episode Wednesday night. "We're really excited about it," he says. "So, with Mr. Lucas' consent we are previewing it." The clips TV critics saw contained finished animation but temporary sound and music tracks. They included several impressive battle and flight sequences, and a scene in which Chancellor Palpatine puts Anakin in charge of a clone-trooper regiment, over the objections of Yoda and Obi-Wan. The Imperial March plays over one scene of marching troops, although that may not make it to the final version. Characters are drawn to resemble the actors who play them in the film, although Tartakovsky's style is evident as well. "Clone Wars" will continue the story laid out in "Episode II," although it doesn't appear that it will establish plot points for "Episode III" as "The Animatrix" did for the "Matrix" sequels. Lazarus does say that the shorts could lead to "a more longer-form partnership between Cartoon Network and the 'Star Wars' franchise."

Posted 07/12/03 Jedibob - Exclusive Clone Wars Poster at Comic-Con 2003. If there is another reason why to pay Uncle George another $20.00 a year is this very cool poster that they will be giving to Hyperspace members. Click here for more details.

Posted 07/11/03 Jedibob- Nick Gillard chat now online!!! Nick has a very nice chat with members of Hyperspace today where he talked about everything from preferring Sith over Jedi and even about portraying a Jedi in Episode III. Check out our forums (Hyperspace) and take a peak on what was posted!!!

Posted 07/09/03 Starcat- Hyperspace.com to have a live chat with NickGillard. Hyperspace online chats have proven a popular way for fans to interact with the talented people currently involved in the making of Episode III. Literally hundreds of questions have been submitted during each session, and so far Producer Rick McCallum, Production Designer Gavin Bocquet and Animation Director Rob Coleman have answered many live from Fox Studios in Sydney, Australia. Our next guest will be Nick Gillard, Stunt Coordinator and Swordmaster for Episodes I, II and III. He's the expert behind the thrilling choreography of Jedi combat and other astounding stunts seen in the prequel trilogy. Gillard is responsible for defining the physical skills and actions of the Jedi Knights when the order was in its prime. Gillard is scheduled to be online on Thursday, July 10 at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Pacific time, (8:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern time, or Friday, July 11 at 10:00 a.m. Sydney time.) Please note that the demands of film production may result in last-minute schedule changes, and that although hundreds of questions are submitted, not all can be answered. Stay tuned for any schedule changes and future talk announcements.

Posted 07/09/03 Stonewall- The IESB would like to wish Bail Organa a happy birthday!!!! Okay, maybe not the character himself, but the actor who plays him, Jimmy Smits. Born on July 9, 1958 in Brooklyn, New York his career has spanned nearly two decades. For biography information on Jimmy Smits, go to eonline.com. For information on Bail Organa, go to starwars.com. If anyone has any cool opinions and information on whether or not Bail Organa is going to be essential to the story in Episode III, please feel free to post in our new forums!! Click here to enter forum!!!!!!!

Posted 07/08/03 Steph138 - Peter Mayhew reportedly spillled a few beans about Episode III in the new issue of the UK's LOK magazine. TheForce.net reports, "On page 49, Robin Hail asked Peter Mayhew how he felt about the prequel trilogy and Episode III in particular since Chewbacca will make his silver-screen return. Peter replied, “I am very pleased with Episodes 1 and 2. George Lucas is doing a remarkable job. However, Lucas assures me that Episode 3 with far surpass the other two in both action and story and from some of the pages I have read from the Episode III script, I certainly believe him.” Later he goes on to say, “As you know, none of the actors get the full script of Episode III, but they do get the pages for what scene they are working on. Therefore, I have not read the full script yet, just a few pages with my character.” Highlight the following to read CAUTION SPOILERS!! After Peter talked about Episode III’s script, Robin asked Peter on the role that Chewbacca will play. I liked what Peter said. Peter replied, “I was told by George Lucas that I would be playing a large part in the story including the delivering of two twin babies and playing a role in a major battle scene that involves many war machines. Sadly, I have not read those sequences of the script yet.” After a small bit of Robin comparing the Original trilogy to the Prequel trilogy, she asked Peter how well he liked the parts of the script that he had seen. Peter says, “Again, I haven’t really seen the complete script. Lucas only gives us copies for that days shooting. But from what I’ve seen, it looks good. Of course, I really don’t have any lines (he laughs). Lucas has really changed his writing style from back when he wrote the original trilogy. He is much bolder and willing to push the envelope in both settings and dialogue. In fact, the opening action scene involving many Wookiees takes place on one of the many new planets seen in this movie.”

Posted 07/04/03 Jedibob-The first pic of Anakin in Episode III !! For those of you want remain completely spoiler free then do not read any further.Highlight to read: Hayden is sporting a longer haircut and also has a glove on his robotic hand. Click here to see the picture.

Posted 07/02/03 Jedibob- One more reason to go to Comi-Con...meet Boba Fett!! Rebelscum: Members of the Official Star Wars Fan Club are invited to register for an early morning breakfast with Jeremy Bulloch, the actor who portrayed Boba Fett in the classic Star Wars trilogy. Fan Club members and their guests will not only meet the man behind the notorious bounty hunter, they also will receive an autograph from Bulloch and one of Hasbro’s convention-exclusive silver-painted Boba Fett action figures. The breakfast will take place Saturday morning, July 19 during Comic-Con International in San Diego, and will also offer fans the opportunity to meet and hear from Steve Sansweet, Director of Fan Relations at Lucasfilm; from Paul Palmer of Hasbro; and from Lisa Stevens, President of the Official Star Wars Fan Club. The Fan Club Breakfast is produced by the Official Star Wars Fan Club. Seats are very limited, and expected to sell out quickly. Guests may register at starwars.paizo.com/comicconbreakfast. Admission to the breakfast is $39.95 per person while seats are available; that includes breakfast at the San Diego Marriott Hotel, an autograph from Jeremy Bulloch, one silver-painted Boba Fett action figure, and the opportunity to meet and chat with notable Star Wars personalities and your fellow fans. Cost of the breakfast does not include admission to Comic-Con.In addition to Lisa Stevens, Dave Gross, Editor-in-Chief of Star Wars Insider, and Vic Wertz, the Director of New Product Development and Associate Editor of Star Wars Insider, also will be available to answer your questions about Insider and the Fan Club at the breakfast.Breakfast registration is limited to members of the Official Star Wars Fan Club, but each member may also purchase one ticket for one guest. This guest is not required to be a member, but must be accompanied by the member at the breakfast.

Don’t miss the fun! Register now! (www.paizo.com/comicconfanbreakfast)

Saturday, July 19 2003
7:30 – 9:00 AM
San Diego Marriott Hotel and Marina
333 West Harbor Drive
One block from the San Diego Convention Center

Fan Club members will not only enjoy the camaraderie of their fellow Star Wars fans, they will get one of the Boba Fett action figures without standing in line.

Posted 07/02/03 Jedibob- More Episode III Roles Cast. The official Star Wars Web site reported more casting news for the upcoming third prequel, Episode III, which began shooting in Sydney this week. Silas Carson will again play the dual roles of the Jedi master Ki-Adi-Mundi and the trade federation's Nute Gunray, roles he played in the previous two prequels, the site reported.Chinese-born Bai Ling joins the cast as a senator, the site reported. New Zealander Bodie Taylor, who appeared in Episode II as the helmetless clone troopers, returns as a clone in Episode III.Meanwhile, the site reported that principal photography commenced on time, starting at 8:07 a.m. June 30 at Fox Studios Australia. The first scenes were shot in a new set environment, featuring returning stars Hayden Christensen (Anakin Skywalker) and Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi).

Posted 06/27/03 Jedibob- Yoda meets the Hulk. TFN website was able to score a great pic of Yoda & the Hulk together. Click here to see pic.

Posted 06/27/03 Jedibob - Rick McCallum talks Episode III!! The Sydney Morning Herald: The main cast is back in Sydney. A 1000-strong crew is hard at work. And director George Lucas has finished the script.The final episode in the Star Wars saga is about to start filming at Fox Studios.The producer, Rick McCallum, said yesterday that Episode III would be shot almost entirely inside the studios from next Monday. The main shoot would take 12 weeks, with Lucas returning for additional filming over the next 18 months. The only shooting outside Sydney would be some plate photography - for visual effects - in Italy, New Zealand and Switzerland. The $US115 million ($172 million) film has yet to get a title but covers Anakin Skywalker turning to the dark side to become Darth Vader - completing the six-film saga that began with Star Wars in 1977. The tone of the new episode would be "dark" - McCallum joked that it saw the young Jedi turn "from a sweet youth into a producer". But he declined to say exactly why Anakin turns into one of cinema's greatest villains."Let's put it this way, that's what drives this film."Episode III will use 60 Australian cast members and up to 300 extras. As well as returning cast members Joel Edgerton and Jay Laga'aia, there are roles for Bruce Spence, Rebecca Jackson Mendoza and Genevieve O'Reilly.Also back are Hayden Christensen, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Samuel L. Jackson, Jimmy Smits and Christopher Lee, while Peter Mayhew plays Chewbacca for the first time since Return of the Jedi."It's a huge picture and, under today's standards, it's a pretty moderately budgeted film," McCallum said. "But they're a lot of fun to make."For Episode II, Lucas finished the script only three days before shooting started. This time around, he finished with five days to spare."I think they're always tough for him to write," McCallum said. "Especially this one, because it has to tie everything up from the prequels to the original trilogy. And you've got really big themes and issues in this one - how and why Anakin turns into Darth Vader."The last episode contained two scenes with an Australian flavour - some kangaroo-like animals and a podium shaped like the Opera House. McCallum described them as homages to the country and said more could be expected this time round.After shooting in 40 countries in 13 years, the producer of the last three Star Wars films said Sydney was the easiest place in the world to make a film, partly because of the strong acting and film-making talent."There's no bullshit, no problems, everybody is so enthusiastic and not at all litigious."

Posted 06/26/03 Jedibob - Revenge Of the Sith??? The websites are buzzing that the working title for Episode III is Revenge of the Sith. If you are a regular visitor to our site you might remember that our very own Stonewall wrote a very interesting article back in January on why Revenge of the Sith should be the actual title for this movie. Click here to read the original article and tell us what you think on our Forums.

Posted 06/26/03 Jedibob- More casting news from the Star Wars website. The official website has just released more casting info for Episode III. We will recognize some from Episode II and some new faces for the latest installment. Click here to go to STARWARS.COM

Posted 06/26/03 Stonewall- Star Wars Galaxies to hit stores Thursday!!! Click here for more information from cnn.com

Posted 06/24/03 Jedibob- New Forums and Chatrooms for all of your Star Wars Gossip!!! The IESB has been contacted by Lucasfilm and we have been reminded not to post any articles from StarWars.com especially the pay per view section "Hyperspace". So that we dont get shut down by Uncle George we have decided not to post any more articles from their website. We have also removed old articles that might have been questionable.Dont forget that you are more than welcomed to use our brand new forums and chat rooms to discuss all things related to Star Wars or anything your heart desires.

Posted 06/13/03 Stonewall- Darth Vader is the baddest dad of all time!! MSN has released for this Father's Day its list of the Top 10 baddest screen dad's of all time:

10. Jim Court (John Mahony) in Say Anything
9. Royal (Gene Hackman) in the Royal Tenenbaums.
8. Col. Bull Meechan (Robert Duvall) in The Great Santini
7. Dr. Evil (Mike Myers) in the Austin Powers trilogy.
6. Col. Frank Fritts (Chris Cooper) in American Beauty.
5. Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) in American Beauty.
4. Hank Grotowski (Billy Bob Thornton) in Monster's Ball.
3. Noah Cross (John Huston) in Chinatown.
2. Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) in The Shining.
1. Darth Vader (David Prowse) in The Empire Strikes Back.

Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) is having a lousy day. Darth Vader, his mortal enemy, has not only lasered off his arm in a light saber duel to the death, but he's trying to recruit him to the Dark Side. "I'll never join you!" screams Luke, reminding Vader that he killed his daddy. "No, I am your father," bombshells the mouth-breathing Dark Lord. Luke, who for years has lived in mind-numbing fear of the villainous Vader, doesn't cotton to the fact that they share DNA. "That's not true!" whines Luke. "That's impossible!" Vader, to his paternal credit, does try to reach out to Luke, offering his hand so they can "rule the galaxy as father and son," because, after all, "It's your destiny." See, like many bad dads, Vader is trying to force Luke into a career he doesn't really want (plus, there's that whole "trying to kill him" thing). He fails to realize that by repeatedly reminding Luke of his "destiny" and how strong the Force is in him, he's only making him more resolved against following in dear old dad's jack-booted, universe-conquering footsteps

Article written by MSN.

Posted 06/11/03 Jedibob- Major possible spoilers concerning Chewbacca!!! TFN just posted this very interesting article regarding a possible spoiler that Chewy might be involved with. You must highlight to read the following.

I attended the Walt Disney Star Wars Weekend at MGM Studios, Orlando, on Sunday the 8th of June. The celebrity guests were Jeremy Bullock and Peter Mayhew. At 2pm they had a 'Questions and Answers' session with the two stars. About 200 people attended inside the ABC on-site cinema. Anyway, out of this session came this very VERY interesting piece of info from Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca in EP3).
He confirmed he will be returning as Chewbacca. The interviewer, whos name was Brian Stone I believe, pushed Mayhew a little further into what Chewies role will be in Episode 3. Mayhew seemed pretty uncomfortable at that point, sitting forward in his chair. In a much quieter voice he announced to the audience, and this is almost a straight quote as me and my partner remember it, "Chewbacca rescues and delivers the two children to Ben Kenobi". He then sat back in his chair and refused to commit any more.

So I hope this is of some interest to you. And as we wondered the park that afternoon, one thing seemed to back up Mayhews info. Chewbacca and Obi-Wan Kenobi seem to already know each other in the Cantina in A New Hope. Perhaps this falls into place? What other reason would Chewie be in EP3 if not to show a connection to Kenobi?

We will have to wait and see!!!

Posted 06/10/03 Stonewall AOTC to make television debut!! Attention all Star Wars fans. It is now time to give the DVD player a rest and check out the television debut of Star Wars Episode II the Attack of the Clones. Starting at 8:00 pm Eastern time (5:00pm on the west coast) on Saturday June 14, 2003 HBO will begin broadcasting Clones on their main channel. HBO will also be airing it on their Latino and HDTV channels. Check our local listings for availability. Then after Clones on Cinemax will be the premier of Men in Black II. So grab a bucket of popcorn, put on your Yoda jammies, unplug the phone, put the home theatre on "Max" and enjoy Clones for the 4,138th time!!

Posted 06/06/03 Steph138 - Episode III partial cast and crew information released!!!

Partial Cast Listing

Partial Crew Listing

Posted 06/05/03 Jedibob - Hyperspace is up and running! If you read my previous article regarding Hyperspace you know how I feel about having to pay Lucasfilm another red cent after all the money that we have spent on merchandise. I believe that one way for George to give back to his fans would be to provide a very cool site. However, we are forced to pay $20 a year for the premium content. Now, after going through the new website and seeing what the premium content actually contains it looks like it may be worth the $20 bucks after all. But still the IESB will make a big effort to bring you as much info from Hyperspace as possible without you having to pay for it. Click here to check out the new official website.

Posted 06/02/03 Jedibob- Transformer to meet the Force??? David Kaye known for his voice over work in a The Transformer cartoons, lately as Megatron may be up for a role in Star Wars Episode III. Somebody is