STAR WARS BLUEPRINTS

Santa knew just what I wanted for Christmas! I've had my eyes on this Star Wars book from Quarto Knows for awhile. STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS showcases the original technical drawings for sets and props used in the production of a number of these sci-fi movies from the Lucasfilm Archives.

STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS provides an insider's look at the making of these films. From concept art envisioning how characters, settings and vehicles would appear in the movies to illustrations laying out the directions for building the sets scenes were filmed on, readers will get a detailed look into how George Lucas space opera was brought to life. Get a peek inside the creative process of how iconic Star Wars images such as Jabba's Sail Barge and Luke Skywalker's X-Wing went from art department ideas to being on screen in some of the most popular movies of all time.

The book includes more than 250 blueprints for sets and props utilized in Star Wars movie production including 10 three-page gatefold layouts. Scouring through all the details about the creative process of producing the original Star Wars movies included in this 336 page book has put a huge smile on my face as I learn new insights and trivia about these films. Did you know the space-pod EVA from 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is shown in a Mos Eisley scene from A New Hope (1977) as an easter egg honoring Stanley Kubrick?

STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS author J.W. Rinzler provides readers with extraordinary details of the production of a number of the Star Wars films that compliment the wonderful imagery included within this book. In addition to his own commentary on details and trivia regarding the production of these movies, STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS also includes numerous interviews with the production designers, art directors, set dressers, and draftsmen who crafted the epic sets. You'll feel like you were behind-the-scenes during the making of these movies after reading this book!

While STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS is really interesting to read with all the incredible insight provided by Rinzler within the text, it is the visuals that really stand out. In addition to all the intriguing blueprints, there are also more than 500 photographs and illustrations from the Lucasfilm production archives. From concept art of snow walkers tromping across the snowy landscape of Hoth to pictures of droids being assembled in Tunisia for desert world Tatooine scenes there are numerous eye catching pieces of art and photographs to look through. You could spend hours enjoying looking through this book before even beginning to read it.

Any diehard Star Wars fan will be geeked to flip through the pages of STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS. It absolutely gets a Geek Daddy nod of approval. This dad blogger is going to be enjoying going through this hardback book reading it and looking at its wonderful visual imagery over and over again. If you want to be a master of Star Wars trivia, STAR WARS: THE BLUEPRINTS is a must get! For more information about purchasing the book, head over to quartoknows.com

QUARTO KNOWS STAR WARS

Happy Star Wars Day! In celebration ageekdaddy.com is giving away two books courtesy of Quarto Knows: Star Wars Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner's Guide + Star Wars: Scum and Villainy. May the Fourth be with You!

STAR WARS BOOK GIVEAWAY

For a chance to win a pair of Star Wars books from Quarto Knows complete the rafflecopter entries below by 11:59 pm ET on Friday May 10, 2019. Must be a United States resident over 18 years old to participate. One random winner will be selected from all eligible entries. Must respond to prize notification within 48 hours of receipt or an alternate winner will be chosen. Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Star Wars Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner's Guide

This 22 page novelty book takes readers through a tour inside the legendary spaceship known for making the Kessel Run in less than twelve parsecs. This 3D Owner's Guide provides a pilot's insight into every facet of the Corellian freighter known as the Millennium Falcon. Each page of this owners manual is die-cut fitting together to create a three-dimensional model embedded within the book.

Containing material reflecting on the Millennium Falcon's role in movies ranging from Solo: A Star Wars Story to The Last Jedi, Star Wars Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner's Guide is full of insights and details about one of the most beloved starships in sci-fi. The book is co-authored by Ryder Windham and Cole Horton who both have significant experience writing about Star Wars lore. Windham wrote Haynes' Star Wars Millennium Falcon and Imperial Death Star manuals plus edited Star Wars comic books for Dark Horse. Cole has also authored multiple Star Wars books, including Star Wars Absolutely Everything You Need to Know and LEGO Star Wars: Chronicles of the Force.

Star Wars: Scum and Villainy

Star Wars: Scum and Villainy delves into the misdeeds of infamous smugglers, pirates, gamblers, bounty hunters, and thieves a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. It is written as if you are reading the files of three generations of galactic law-enforcers. Flip through their case reports, surveillance images, warrants, and much more learning about infamous as wall as brand new Star Wars characters. The 128 page book contains more than 100 original illustrations.

The book was authored by Pablo Hidalgo who as a member of Lucasfilm Story Group is involved with the development of Star Wars storytelling across all entertainment mediums, including feature films, animated television, video games, novels, and comic books. In addition to his numerous published Star Wars works, Hidalgo has also written books about G.I. Joe and Transformers. He has some serious geek cred!

STAR WARS SCUM AND VILLAINY

This movie geek is always fascinated to learn details from science fiction films that further bring these motion pictures to life beyond the silver screen. I love to read books that share background biographies about characters, blueprints of vehicles, maps of locations and other details that expand upon the scenes shown in films and provide a greater glimpse into these fantastic settings. So I am really geeked about a new book that The Quarto Group sent my way to peruse called STAR WARS: SCUM AND VILLAINY -- Case Files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious by Pablo Hidalgo.

This book is filled with law enforcement investigative files from three time periods in Star Wars canon: (1) Clone Wars and the fall of the Old Republic, (2) the Empire, and (3) the New Republic created after The Return of the Jedi. Star Wars: Scum and Villainy introduces readers to the Divo clan where they learn about the experiences of Tan Divo (an Old Republic Police Investigator on Coruscant whose assignments included looking into the assassination attempt on Senator Amidala in Star Wars Episode II), his daughter Andressa Divo (who served as an Imperial Security Bureau Agent whose caseload involved hunting for terrorist Saw Gerrera), and her son Exantor Divo (Police Commissioner on Hosnian Prime at the time of the planet's destruction in Star Wars: Episode VII).

Hidalgo, a creative executive in the Lucasfilm Story Group that is responsible for the development of Star Wars storytelling across all mediums, including feature films, animated television, video games, novels, comic books, and more, is obviously the perfect author for this book that delves into the exploits of notorious criminals through out the saga. He has crafted case reports which make up the bulk of this book that engrain these three new characters into  Star Wars' canon of feature films,  television shows, comic books, and novels.

These case reports include written memos, surveillance images, artifacts, warrants and other evidence compiled during the Devos' criminal investigations of the likes of Doctor Aphra (Marvel Comics), Cornelius Evazan (Star Wars: Episode IV / Star Wars: Rogue One), Boba Fett (Star Wars: Episodes II, V, VI), Moloch of the White Worms Hold (Star Wars: A Solo Story) and the Guavian Death Gang mercenaries (Star Wars: Episode VII) that expand upon the back stories of these rogues and enhance the backdrop of the Star Wars galaxy where the space opera takes place.

Scum and Villainy expands beyond the military conflicts that are often the focus of Star Wars and delves into the seedy side of this galaxy that includes gangsters in the dank lower levels of Coruscant, smugglers making the Kessel Run, pirates preying upon vessels at hyperspace jump points, and organized crime syndicates taking advantage of the less civilized areas within the Outer Rim of the galaxy's explored space. I appreciated that this book wasn't adding more details about the Galactic Civil War between the Empire and Rebel Alliance but rather examined the Star Wars galaxy from another perspective.

Of all the characters in Star Wars, my favorite one isn't actually from a movie but rather from the Clone Wars cartoons. For years my kids and I shared an enjoyment of Star Wars watching a new episode of Clone Wars each week. It really was some special family time spent together during the years this show was on TV. My favorite character is a bounty hunter named Cad Bane from that show who presented himself with a wild west attitude and always seemed to get the best of anyone he encountered. No wonder Tan Divo describes Cad Bane as the "best bounty hunter in the business" in File 7956.901.3 in his case files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious.

Other aspects of this book that I found really interesting was learning more about the red-clad Guavian Death Gang mercenaries that were chasing after Han Solo and Chewbacca in The Force Awakens, the doctor and his monstrous walrus looking friend that assaulted Luke Skywalker in the Mos Eisley cantina during A New Hope, and the Enfy's Nest Cloud Riders from Solo: A Star Wars Story. I also enjoyed how Hidalgo included elements from Marvel's publications into Scum and Villainy including a segment about the Megalox Beta prison pulled from a story arc in the Poe Dameron comic book and including Doctor Aphra within a Imperial Security Bureau dossier that is connected to a story in a Darth Vader series.

I've also always been a fan of the bounty hunters featured in The Empire Strikes back so really enjoyed reading through the case files in the book about Bossk, Boba Fett, Dengar, IG-88, Zuckuss and 4-LOM. In addition to hiring them, the Empire was also keeping close tabs on these bounty hunters as well. These bounty hunters are also some of my favorite characters from the Star Wars galaxy.

As a kid, I had a book full of Star Wars artwork by the concept artist Ralph McQuarrie that I would flip through the pages over and over again examining all the details of his incredible illustrations and imagining exploring alien worlds in outer space. Having the chance to see some of McQuarrie's original Star Wars sketches during an exhibit at the Detroit Institute of Arts in 2018 was one of my personal highlights from that year. So have to say that my favorite aspect of Scum and Villainy is the book's artwork.

STAR WARS: SCUM AND VILLAINY -- Case Files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious has 120 original illustrations within it that were created just for this book. From an image of New Republic police officers on patrol to a reproduction of the view from a surveillance camera at Canto Bight, I found the art in this book captivating. Much of the artwork has a McQuarrie style to it that I especially found appealing being that his concept art really created the sense of place for the overall Star Wars galaxy.  There is also artwork though that has its own vibe in the book too including an energetic group shot of the Krayt's Claw gang and imagery of a cloud rider swoop that appears as if it is a photograph of a real version of this sci-fi vehicle. The artwork is what truly earned the book ageekdaddy.com nod of approval.

STAR WARS: SCUM AND VILLAINY -- Case Files on the Galaxy's Most Notorious is from EPIC INK, an imprint of the Quarto publishing company. Epic Ink is known for publishing deluxe, collectible books that celebrate entertainment and pop-culture brands through incredible artwork, in-depth information and original content. Scum and Villainy is a 128 page hardcover book that does just that and is sure to delight Star Wars fans. It will have you scouring through its pages from cover to cover garnering all sorts of interesting details about the most notorious criminals from a galaxy far, far away. The book also includes a sturdy plastic slip cover to protect the book and make its front cover stand out.

For more information about the book or to find out where you can buy it, head over to quartoknows.com.

MAY THE FOURTH STAR WARS BOOK DEAL

Save 40% off some great Star Wars books from THE QUARTO GROUP during the month of May using the code MAYTHE4TH at quartoknows.com.  They've just published a new book called Star Wars: Lightsabers: A Guide to Weapons of the Force that anyone who has ever dreamed of being a Jedi knight will want to read.  This joins a collection of publications that include tutorials on drawing your favorite Star Wars characters and books that allow you to create paper models of droids and spaceships from the sci-fi saga.

STAR WARS: LIGHTSABERS: A GUIDE TO WEAPONS OF THE FORCE

Study the galaxy’s most notable lightsabers and the masters who wielded them, from Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi, to Rey and Kylo Ren. Every featured lightsaber includes a close-up of its one-of-a-kind hilt, a photo of the Jedi or Sith master in action. Each page is filled with detailed statistics, fascinating insights, and little-known facts.

STAR WARS MASTER MODELS R2-D2

Without R2-D2, where would the galaxy be? Queen Amidala wouldn’t haveescaped from Naboo, Luke Skywalker wouldn’t have trained under Obi-Wan Kenobi and Princess Leia would have been executed by Darth Vader on the Death Star. Build the ultimate papercraft model of everyone’s favorite R2 unit, complete with lights and sound! Star Wars Master Models: R2-D2 includes die-cut pieces with metallic-ink printing, push-button lights, a sound chip, and detailed instructions on how to construct the model—everything you need to build a one-foot tall model of R2-D2.

LEARN TO DRAW STAR WARS DRAWING BOOK

Young artists will learn to draw Star Wars characters including Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Darth Vader. The kit comes with a 40-page project book, paper pad, drawing pencil, eraser, sharpener, colored pencils, and markers so artists can get started right away, so grab your tools and get drawing now!

STAR WARS: BLUEPRINTS

This book is an all-access pass into the Lucasfilm Archives to unveil the original technical drawings of the galaxy far, far away. It includes 250 blueprints, 500 photographs and illustrations, and ten stunning gatefolds, in a deluxe volume that reveals the work of the engineers, designers, and artists who dreamed up the look and feel of the Star Wars universe.

I didn't receive any compensation or perks for hyping this deal with you, but THE QUARTO GROUP has earned A Geek Daddy nod of approval from my past experiences reviewing some of the outstanding books they publish and this really is a great deal getting 40% off.  Head over to quartoknows.com to see all of the Star Wars publications they have available. These really are some fantastic Star Wars books! Remember to use the code MAYTHEFOURTH on their website for the discount!

RAZORS EDGE IS A FUN ROMP THROUGH THE CLASSIC STAR WARS UNIVERSE

I remember as a kid wanting to go beyond the Star Wars movies and read about the further adventures of Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia in books.  In the late 70s/early 80s though there wasn’t what is now referred to as “the Expanded Universe” of novels, cartoons, and so on.  I remember going to the library and book stores looking for Star Wars stories and having a hard time finding anything.  So that is why Alan Dean Foster’s  “Splinter of the Mind’sEye” is a classic for me that I still keep on my book shelf.  This 1978 novel follows the adventures of Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia in a time span shortly after the conclusion of events from the original Star Wars movie and was of the only early stories available about these heroes back then. It is rumored that this novel may also have been used as a backup script for a lower budget movie sequel if Empire Strikes Back’s blockbuster budget hadn’t been green lighted.  This was a fun romp of a story for a young grade school kid to enjoy that featured Darth Vader chasing after Luke & Leia who have been marooned on a dangerous swamp world.  As an adult, I enjoyed the story enough that I also went out and bought the Dark Horse comic book adaption of the story … which is also nice that it is illustrated similarly to the style of the StarWars comics by Marvel from the 70s and 80s.

Last month I read a new Star Wars book that reminded me a lot of “Splinter of the Mind’s Eye” called STAR WARS: RAZOR'S EGE.  Nebula Award finalist Martha Wells makes her Star Wars debut for the franchise’s Empire & Rebellion novel series with an action-packed adventure featuring Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Luke Skywalker – set just after the destruction of the Death Star in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.  The rebels are trying to build a new headquarters called Echo Base and Princess Leia is assigned to lead a secret mission to gather vital construction supplies through third party emissaries and smugglers, unfortunately pirates get in the way wanting the cargo for themselves.  Throw in to the mix that a spy has informed the Empire of this mission and Imperial spaceships are in pursuit while one of the pirate ships turns out to have a crew of survivors from Princess Leai’s destroyed home world of Alderaan who aren’t very happy with either the Rebels or Empire and you have a dynamic that will glue you to the pages of this book.  The author also provides a fresh approach to the story by focusing on Princess Leia as the main character with Luke, Han and Chewie in supporting cast roles.

I found Star Wars: RAZOR'S EDGE to be a fun and enjoyable read.  It reminded me of an era when Star Wars was brand new for both its characters and its fans.  If you enjoy “classic” Star Wars stories that have the vibe and energy of when this franchise was just coming alive in the late 70s you won’t want to miss out on reading this book.  Star Wars:RAZORS EDGE went on sale September 24, 2013 and you can find it at most online and brick-and-mortar book retailers. 

DISCLAIMER:  I was provided a complimentary digital pdf reviewers edition of this book to read by the publisher.  The opinions in this article are my own.