If I Could Do Something With The Star Wars Property

 I would definitely stay away from the Skywalkers.

I think it would be funny to make the whole post just that single sentence above, but since I'm here, I thought I'd express myself.

And it wasn't a joke either. I would stay away from the Skywalkers, and the Jedi in general.

Why?

The main reason is that we've been teased with what I believe are called different Force disciplines. That basically means that there are other groups of people that practice using the Force in ways different from the Jedi.

The witches of Dathomir are an example of this, as is the monk from Rogue One.

And so, if I were ever to have a chance to work in the Star Wars property, I'd concentrate on a practitioner of one of those other disciplines. More than likely, I would invent my own. 

For example...

The Shield Maiden

It was common for some Jedi to express doubts, or even disapproval, of what the Order was doing during the Clone Wars.

It's not hard to imagine someone would desert to train by themselves. To get away from the artificially imposed mission the Jedi Order subjected itself to, and to get closer to the Force so they could listen to it more closely.

After a long time of meditating and listening, I envision this individual forsaking her lightsaber. Instead, she takes up greaves and guantlets, and perfects her unarmed fighting style as much as possible.

Like the Jedi of old, she travels the universe, helping as much as she can. In battle, she imbues her greaves and gauntlets with Force, as was done in the early days of the Force-imbued blades, to use them as shields against blasters, or even lightsabers.

During her travels, of course, she meets many people, and eventually, a small crew of kind travelers forms, going from one planet to the other, doing all they can to help as many people as possible. Soon enough, our "shield maiden" meets potential apprentices...

And a new, different order is born.

The Troubled Gunslinger

Or another example. Let's say a Force-sensitive individual. He's always felt a connection to something, but doesn't quite know what it is. Throughout his life, he explores this connection. Not as deeply as he could if he had a master, but just enough.

Enough that it will let him shoot at exactly anything he wants, no matter the distance, or if he's even looking at it. He grows up to be a bounty hunter, of course. Unfortunately, he's affinity with the dark side of the Force is quite strong.

Because of this, his temper gets the better of him sometimes, and this leads him to take actions he will never be proud of.

Or will there ever come a time when he will?

So Many Possibilities

That's what I would do. These stories happen in a galaxy far, far away. The sheer size of an entire galaxy makes it so that possibilities are nearly infinite. To focus solely on the Jedis is, in my opinion, not seeing the forest because you're sticking your face to the trunk of a single tree.

So Good-Bye Jedi and Skywalkers?

Of course not. The Jedi will always be there. People want to see Jedi. There have to be Jedi.

As for the Skywalkers... Well, I'd rather not dig too deep into that. Whether they're still around after Episode IX is debatable.

But what I would try to do is expand the franchise so that there are not only Jedi.

I Have a Thing for Adaptations

I've always found it funny that many of us are willing to take something that's not ours and do with it as we like, but when someone else takes something we ourselves created, and they want to do as they like with it...

It's the same thing with adaptations, which I've come to view as fan fiction. Take comics, for example. The truth is that all the current Batman or Spider-Man stories are fan fiction. 

Given its reputation, I get why people are opposed to calling "official" material fan fiction, but the truth is that no matter how licensed the work may be, and no matter how much the author is paid, modern comics are being written by people with an interest in an intellectual property that is not theirs.

A.K.A., fan fiction.

And this applies to adaptations. Let's take Disney, for example. They've taken work in the public domain, and adapted it to animations. In essence, these are also a form of fan art. Going back to the initial point, I find it very funny when Disney, as a corporation, gets overly protective of their property.

I believe it's human nature to take things and change them. History is littered with examples of it. It's happened, it's happening, and it'll happen. I don't completely agree with it, but things are what they are, and this is.

Why Don't I Completely Agree With It?

Stories tend to reflect the setting and people in which they were created. It's from these kinds of stories that we are able to reach into the depth of history and pull out little instances of the values these people held to be important, and the things they paid attention to. It's thanks to these stories that we are able to understand the people of the past a bit better.

And mind you, I don't necessarily want to imitate the people of the past. I want to understand them, analyze, identify their mistakes, and endeavor not to repeat them. If I find something worthy of imitation, however, I will adopt it.

Stories and history have an important role in helping us become better. The best thing we can do is to leave them as untainted and unaltered as possible so we can see and study them clearly.

Is this possible? No, I don't think so. History is written by the victor, after all, and stories can all too easily fall in the hands of people with agendas. I know very well that untainted, pure history and stories are inexistent. This frustrates me. I don't lose any sleep over it, but it frustrates me.

And the thing is, adaptations can be amazing. And some changes can, in all honesty, enhance the story incredibly.

If done right, of course. There is a plethora of examples of bad adaptations out there that give adaptations the same reputation as fan fiction.

But take the newest Mario movie, for example. I think it's safe to say that it is an objectively good adaptation, and proof that if done right, even things that are normally looked down upon can be amazing.

I took to writing adaptations a couple of years ago, and I have to admit it's something I've fallen in love with. My one vexation with it is that I wish I could be 100% faithful to the original source, but can't be.

Take Snow White, for example. Take the original story from the volume collected by the Grimm brothers. A good writer would not mention Snow's father, and then forget about the character as if he had never existed.

Or let's say there's a writer who decided to adapt the first Legend of Zelda game, incorporating as much of the consistent lore of the other games that have come out since then. (cough, cough). With all that additional context, it is impossible to render the story as presented by the first video game.

Both of those are projects I've undertaken. So how do I cope with the fact that I'm changing, twisting, and altering them?

Very simple. I am blatant about the fact that I'm changing them, and encourage people to read or consume the original. In Snow White's case, I even plan to include the version that comes in the first edition compilation of the Grimm stories; the one in which the evil queen is Snow White's own mother, and not her step-mother.

So Why Do I Love Adaptations?

The first adaptation I attempted was "Little Snow-White". When I first set out to do this, I thought it would be an easy thing. I even thought it would be a 50-page story at most.

Tons of work, and 174 pages later, I found myself marveling at the result, and feeling stupidly proud of what I'd achieved. Not only that, but I managed to get feedback on it, and it turns out those who read it actually liked it.

I changed things, yes. Of course I did. I had to, in order to satisfy my skill as a writer. But I believe I was able to show it the utmost respect twice. Once for maintaining its essence, and twice for doing all I can to ensure people know of the original.

It was an amazing writing exercise, and the story that came out of it is something that's worth sharing with others. Every time I look at the manuscript, which is sitting on my desk at the moment, I can't help but smile. It was an amazing time, working on it, and I truly believe the result of that work is a little gem.

And that is why I love adaptations. That is why I can accept it is our nature to take things others make to change them, and why I can accept that the results can be well worth the effort of producing and consuming the work.

I just wish we could be more respectful about it.

Plug

By the way, I'll be publishing that Snow-White adaptation I wrote soon. By the time you check this, it might already be out. Be sure to check here for it.

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