John Ostrander Live Chat Recap

May 21, 2013 at 5:14 pm | Posted in Books, Events, Star Wars Books | 1 Comment
Tags: dawn of the jedi, john ostrander

For anyone who missed out on the Star Wars Books live chat with John Ostrander, you can check out the full chat here. You can also check below for our edited transcript.

John Ostrander: Howdy one and all.

Which Star Wars movie is your favorite?

John Ostrander: Nothing will ever beat my first Star Wars experience, which was the original film, aka Episode IV. I was blown away by the opening moments and I still don’t think I’m recovered!

I’m still pretty green to Star Wars comics as a whole, have you ever worked with your long time collaborator Tom Mandrake on a Star Wars series, and if not, do you think you guys will sometime?

John Ostrander: Actually, I’m currently working with Tom’s Wife — Jan Duursema. I love working with Tom and would do it in a heartbeat but we haven’t done it on Star Wars thus far.

Thanks for answering John. I’ve seen her work awhile back on an Elric adaptation miniseries, she’s a wonderful artist, I’ll have to check the new series out.

John Ostrander: You need to check ALL her Star Wars work out. She’s been doing it for 10 years or so along with me and just gets better and better. Amazing stuff.

What led to the concept of the beginnings of Star Wars – Dawn of the Jedi? I love the idea and look forward to reading it.

John Ostrander: We’d already been doing Legacy which was set beyond the current era so our first thought, after Legacy finished for us, was to go back and see how the Jedi started.

The Dawn of the Jedi books are great. No one ever touched on the origins of the Jedi or the Sith. I wonder how Disney will deal with that now (first thing leave the books at Dark Horse they do they quite well thank you very much)?

John Ostrander: Thanks. I don’t know that the books are leaving Dark Horse. And what Disney decides to do is what they decide to do.

Yeah, well I go by the “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” saying and Dark Horse has nailed it every time so I’d just prefer it be left with you guys doing it. You do a hell of a job, which my crying wallet can attest to.

John Ostrander: We wants all your money!

Ha you are getting a fair bit as is. I do need essentials like soap, food, detergent deodorant etc.

John Ostrander: C’mon. How much soap does one really need anyway?

Greetings John. What Character do you find yourself most drawn to write about? And what character do you least like narrating for?

John Ostrander: As a writer, I have to find something of myself in all the characters that I write. The characters I find myself most drawn to are the ones who are not perfect, who have defects — true in all of my writing, not just Star Wars.

Hi John! The Expanded Universe is in so many eras now. When it comes to writing, which one is your favorite?

John Ostrander: My favorite era is he one that I’m writing in at the moment. This week it’s Dawn of the Jedi. When I was doing Agent of the Empire, it was that one.

Hi John. Do you see Cade making a comeback?

John Ostrander: Always a possibility — he’s still out there.

Is there any chance that some of your (and Jan Duursema) character will appear in Star Wars Rebels?

John Ostrander: I have no idea. Quin and Aayla appeared in The Clone Wars so it’s a possibility.

One of the most popular character you worked with – Quinlan Vos…do you have any conclusion for this character? – or was everything you wanted told about his destiny was already told in the Republic series?

John Ostrander: I have no further conclusions for Quin. I like to think he’s around somewhere.

This is not question, but … your work inspired me for creating own costume of some Jedi child of Korto Vos (with Korto Vos I mean Quinlan Vos son) – thank you very much for your inspiration!

John Ostrander: Thanks!

I particularly enjoyed your short story for the Star Wars Insider. Was this your first foray into Star Wars (non-comic) fiction? Any chance we’ll see more, perhaps a novel, maybe featuring Cade Skywalker…or Villie?

John Ostrander: First time in Star Wars prose, yes. I would love to do more prose in general. Cade or Villie would be fun!

In Legacy, what was your inspiration for a Jedi on drugs? What would you say is the main theme of your run on the series?

John Ostrander: Cade wasn’t really much of a Jedi for most of the series; he rejected his legacy and the Jedi. So I can’t say he was really a Jedi on drugs. He was a Skywalker on drugs — scary enough!

John, what character would you like to do a story for but haven’t yet?

John Ostrander: I don’t think I’ve done a Han solo story. That could be fun.

Is there a relationship between the Tho Yor in Dawn of the Jedi and the Mortis monolith seen in the third season of The Clone Wars?

John Ostrander: Ah, that remains to be seen, isn’t it?

Is the Dawn of the Jedi: Into the Void before or after the comic series? Are there any characters from the comic in the new novel?

John Ostrander: Tim Lebbon did the novel and it takes place roughly at the same time as the first arc of the comic. I did a shot story in the back that actually precedes the events in the main story and does have one of the characters from the comic.

Hi John, was wondering if you had ever thought about adapting any of the Expanded Universe novels to comic form like heir to the Empire stuff? I think sometimes its cool to actually see what the novels would look like.

John Ostrander: Nothing has been said so far as I know. Adapting a novel top a comic or a film for that matter is very tricky.

I love Dawn of the Jedi! It’s been a refreshing take on the light side/dark side dichotomy. Do you feel like the proponents of the dark side have a legitimate point of view and do you hope to express this point of view in future Star Wars works if you have the opportunity?

John Ostrander: They wind up in a Force War against one another. That might suggest their view isn’t completely sound.

So you feel the Je’daii are wrong to balance the two sides of the Force then?

John Ostrander: On the other hand, they’ve done it for a long time. But Yoda always said that once you’ve started down that path it would always mess with your future. Do we think he (and the Jedi) are right?

Do you ever hope to fill in some of the blanks for the Jedi that lived to see Legacy? (Like K’Kruhk)

John Ostrander: Not in the plans at the moment.

Hi John. First and foremost, thank you for all the great work you (and Jan) have done with Star Wars. Star Wars: Legacy seems to be almost universally loved and respected by the fanbase. However, it is one of the works most likely to be affected by the coming of the Sequel Trilogy. What’s it like as a creator to have you work caught up in this interesting mix? Will changes of continuity affect your views of the work?

John Ostrander: Not something that I can control. The books however are out there and will remain so. This is true of my work at other companies like DC and Marvel as well. You do good work and if you don’t own the characters, you’re content to do good work.

At the end of Republic, Quinlan Vos had a son. Is he going to be making an appearance anytime soon? Or have we maybe already seen him/his descendants? Also who would win in a fight, Aquaman or K’Kruhk?

John Ostrander: No current plans for Korto Vos. As for who would win? Trident vs lightsaber. Well, K’Kruhk has been “killed” so many times — who knows?

The Legacy series was a fantastic run! How does somebody get into the Star Wars comic industry?

John Ostrander: That’s really tough. As with the book, you have to already have a track record in the field. They want people who are experienced.

That makes sense. So how does someone start in comics then? In books, you just write one, but in comics, a writer and artist is needed to get something out. How do comic writers get out that first publication?

John Ostrander: That’s a pretty involved answer. The key is to get published somewhere, including online. Then you have something to show a publisher and/or editor.

John Jackson Miller: Just dropping in to say congrats to my comics colleague for his dive into Star Wars prose! It’s “the first step into a larger world,” as someone said. (Some movie character, I think!) Congrats, John!

John Ostrander: Thanks, mate./ Ladies and gents, the fabulous JJM!

Why did Dark Horse decide to discontinue Agent of the Empire? That was a fun breath of fresh air – and I never heard any cancellation announcements either.

John Ostrander: Old story — sales were not robust enough. I loved doing it though.

I know it’s not Star Wars related but….Grim Jack changed my High School life. I just wanted to tell you that.

John Ostrander: Thanks. He was the cornerstone of my career — and Star Wars, in ways, played into his creation!

I’ve always loved your work, especially with Republic, Legacy, and now Dawn of the Jedi and Agent of the Empire. Vilmarh Grahark is one of my most favorite characters. I even dressed up as him (first time ever anyone’s done it, to my knowledge) at Celebration VI. Is there any chance he can make an appearance again, perhaps in Agent of the Empire?

John Ostrander: That is so cool! Villie was always one of my faves. He always threatened to take over any story he was in. Alas, no current plans to bring him back. And no more Agent either.

Posted By: Skuldren for Roqoo Depot.