News

We’ve had a little bit of fun and a little bit of apprehension about Kinect Star Wars over the last few months, but we are glad to hear that it has a release date now of April 3, 2012, which will include not only the game, but the Star Wars Xbox 360/Kinect Bundle.

The game, in a statement by LucasArts and Microsoft, will include a few key events as you make your way through the adventure.

This edition we feature what happened when a guy wielded his lightsaber in a retail store, a new kid featurette advertising Phantom Menace 3D and a new Star Wars Volkswagen Super Bowl Ad.

You may remember last December the case of a Portland Oregon man who went into a Toys-R-Us and started attacking people with the plastic toy lightsabers they have on sale there. He hit at least one, but since they are pretty light, he didn’t really do any bodily harm.

I am almost starting to feel bad for the developers of this game. Either they’ve just given up after numerous delays or they are letting marketing go crazy with no rhyme or reason towards their audience. Either way, they certainly don’t seem to be taking the fans, who would play the game, to heart in their latest moves. Of course, Lucas has said basically that the input from the large community doesn’t really matter, so I guess he can basically throw anything in the mix and expect people to lavish in it, even if it is kind of smelly…

Case in point, the new “trailer” for Kinect Star Wars. Now I’m not the kind of fan of Star Wars that dresses up as a stormtrooper at Comic-Con’s, but I do appreciate a good storyline and strong characters, something I believe A New Hope had in droves. And so I hate seeing those characters messed with in a way that downgrades the scenes they are in. Yes, Star Wars Uncut was pretty funny and forgivable in its inherent hokeyness...

Last year, you may remember that we talked about “Star Wars Uncut”, a fan based project in which potential film makers would send in 15 second clips from any scene they chose from A New Hope. In these clips, creative people could basically do anything from making tie fighters out of cardboard and R2D2 out of a garbage can. Once all the scenes were represented, the producers edited the movie together into one glorious film.

As you are aware by now, the age of remade Star Wars films in 3D is almost upon us. Jar Jar in stunning 3D, er Phantom Menace, the first episode (or the fourth depending on how you look at it) will be out on Friday, February 10th. But AMC Theaters wants to make it far more memorable than just getting a ticket and sitting down with the usually ugly 3D glasses. Instead, participating locations will be giving away collectibles (with purchase) and customized glasses, while 10 places are even having cool events and activities on Saturday, the 11th.

In an announcement that will probably be as though thousands of voices suddenly cried out and then were silenced, George Lucas said that he is retiring from making blockbuster films like Star Wars after the Red Tails promotional period was over.

News of his comment spread across the internet like wildfire, even though it was a day that had many sites blacked out due to SOPA protests.

One of the forgotten few of WWII were the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American pilots, crew and commanders of the 332nd Airborne Division that fought so bravely, both in the air, at home, and in a military at a time when people were segregated by their color and few believed that those who were not “white” could even fly a plane. History had practically written their bravery right out of the books, which was a real shame as they had fought as hard as any men against Nazi Germany. But George Lucas plans to change all that and give these men the recognition they so rightly deserve.

One can say a lot about Lucas, but one thing that has always impressed is that he puts characters first, but with action to keep it from drifting into boredom, and he does this in “Red Tails” as he did in Star Wars. The film is not about a history lesson of the unit, but it gets into the personalities of the men, tracing their individual stories, their pain and triumphs...

In this edition, Bioware gives in with two day grace period for registering copies of Star Wars: The Old Republic, Kinect Star Wars gets dancing, and the Jedi Faith is gaining traction worldwide.

For those who were upset about the lack of a grace period in Star Wars: The Old Republic, the developers have decided to heed the call and announced a two day period that will extend from the official launch time, 48 hours to December 22, 2011.

Don’t you just hate when you are sitting there minding your own business at a Toys’R’Us, when a guy toting a Rebel Alliance lightsaber comes over and hits you with it? Well that’s exactly what happened in Portland, Oregon when a man attacked three customers, making us wonder if he was really a Sith in disguise.

In this edition,.we’ll look at the high stakes for Star Wars: The Old Republic, stormtrooper motorcycle gear, and how you can help Princess Leah, a baby who’s won the hearts of Star Wars fans everywhere.

Of course, the internet is all abuzz about the imminent opening of Star Wars: The Old Republic, which begins early access on December 13th for the first round of players. And EA and Bioware are betting that their work will finally pay off. It’s a big gamble for all involved, including George Lucas, who for nothing else, has his reputation and the reputation of his franchise on the line. Six years of development went into the world that will tell the story of the Jedi and Sith of a thousand years before Anakin flew a racing pod. But perhaps the biggest concern is the $100 million dollar cost it took to make the game, one of the highest amounts ever.

Debbie Reynolds, actress, dancer and mother of Carrie Fisher, put up many of her Hollywood memorabilia on Saturday at the latest Profiles in History auction, but the one that would make any Star Wars fan drool over was a camera. Not just any camera, but the Panavision PR 35 that Lucas himself used to film Star Wars: The New Hope. The item was certainly a rare piece indeed, a piece that sold for over $625,000.

Chewbacca to appear on Glee, Minecraft Player recreates trench scene, and Darth Vader plays the Grinch. All in this week's news.

Fans of Chewbacca will either be overjoyed or appalled to see their favorite wookie on Fox’s musical show Glee, but he is going to make an appearance in their Christmas special. We aren’t sure how Han’s number two will be included, but we are thinking it’s some sort of tribute to the Star Wars Holiday special?