My Own Universe

I've been wanting to write something. I don't know what.

I'm quite fond of the universe I created for the zombie movie.

I've been thinking about rich, fictional universes lately.

Actually, let me back up quite a bit.

I watched The Phantom Menace the other night. Can you believe it's been almost 8 years? Anyway, while watching it, I got to thinking. It's no secret I'm a Star Wars fanboy, and while Iam more than willing to acknowledge all the flaws in the prequel trilogy (and there are plenty), I still love it, and I'll tell you why.

The whole story that the six-part saga encompasses really blows me away. I think it's brilliant. On the one hand, it's about the rise of a great, talented hero, his fall from grace, and his eventual redemption at the hands of his own son (whose story mirrors his own). On the other hand, you have the implosion of a galaxy's power structure, the rise of evil to power, and the ultimate defeat of it. It all just amazes me.

So, while the prequel trilogy was, by and large, poorly executed, in terms of writing, acting, and directing, I can see what Lucas is going for.

So, this got me thinking. I love the story, but it could've been told better. Another great sci-fi story is the one of the Cylons chasing what's left of the colonial fleet as they try to find earth. This originated shortly after Star Wars, but it was also poorly executed. When that story was reimagined in a 2003 miniseries (and subsequent TV series), it worked brilliantly. I got what they were going for both times, but this time, it really worked a lot better.

That inevitably leads to the obvious idea of reimagining the Star Wars saga. Think about it. You take all six episodes of Star Wars, strip away everything but the story, and start over from scratch. It'd be a hell of a project, but it could be done, and I bet it could be done quite well. The downside, though, is that it would entail redesigning the entire universe.

This is when it hits me: It's not just the story that appeals to me. The universe it takes place in is equally important. Imagine having to redesign Artoo Detoo or Darth Vader's suit. Imagine a completely different universe with completely different characters sharing the names of your childhood icons. It's weird. I'm not saying it wouldn't be cool, or it couldn't possibly trump the originals. That's not my point.

My point is that at an early age, I fell in love with a universe in which men in capes fight with laser swords, a world of queens and princesses, a reality in which larger than life heroes fight villains who revel in their villainy.

The hokeyness appeals to me in a way.

Now, I'm not gonna sit here and gush about how great a filmmaker George Lucas is. Frankly, he's a shitty writer and director. But he has a hell of an imagination, and that doesn't get enough credit.

Which brings me back to the beginning of this post.

I want a rich universe that's both romantic and convincing. I want that air of hokeyness with a real world feel. And I want it to be big enough to allow many different, unconnected stories.

- Not George Lucas

P. S. I know it's a repeat, but it fits.