Vince McMahon, WWE, and the New Jedi Order

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-11 09:19pm

Hear me out before you declare a Whisky Tango Foxtrot!

I got back into watching wrestling again about the time the Rock became popular, because my nephew was completely into it, and watched it every time he came to my house. The stunts these guys did amazed me, even if it was all a put-on. Anyway, I slowly began noticing a trend. ..

During the televised shows, like "Smackdown", the "bad" guys would always get to beat the shit out of the "good" guys. I mean long, drawn out, very bloody stuff where you're thinking, come ON! The good guy is being beaten with chairs and everything else, and hasn't fought back once! You sort of get into the "story" and are waiting for the come-uppance the bad guy is supposed to get. But it NEVER came!

...Unless you pay to see the "Pay Per View", which Vince McMahon holds about once a month!

I started to notice this trend with the New Jedi Order novels. Notice that the biggest turning points of the entire 5 year run of the Vong story, happened in the HARDCOVERS. The paperbacks were for the most part, filler pieces of crap. You either had the choice of reading a main turning point in the war for 25 bucks, or waiting for a YEAR for the paperback version of that novel to come out! All the while, the regular paperbacks refer to the major events that happened in the hardcovers!

And this is exactly the same case with wrestling! If you don't watch the PPV, you are completely in the dark about what everyone is referring to all month before the NEXT PPV!

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-12-11 09:22pm

I don't get exactly what you're saying here...

Rogue 9 · Post by **Rogue 9** » 2003-12-11 09:24pm

He's saying that its the same moneymaking scheme. In wrestling, the good (I use the term loosely; wrestling sucks) parts only happen in the Pay-Per-View. In the NJO, the important stuff only happens in the more expensive hardback novels.

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-12-11 09:25pm

But all the novels come out in hardcover first and then paperback later.

So as far as I can see, in the face of facts, he has no point.

No offenses intended, Wayne.

Darth Mall · Post by **Darth Mall** » 2003-12-11 09:32pm

No I thought that the NJO books came out in the order of one hardcover, a few paper backs, a hardcover, a few paper backs, and so on. I read that some where official that thats what they where planning on doing IIRC.

So

Spanky The Dolphin · Post by **Spanky The Dolphin** » 2003-12-11 09:40pm

What, you're serious? They didn't all come out in hardcover first?

Damn, I guess that's what I get for not following the publishing news, not reading the EU novels since highschool, and only buying the paperbacks...

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-11 09:43pm

Spanky you little.....!

Actually, no, not all the NJO novels are hardcover. From memory, Vector Prime, Balance Point, Star By Star, Unifying Force were all hardcover first. The rest, less interesting ones (Refugee, Remnant, etc.) were paperbacks.

Darth Fanboy · Post by **Darth Fanboy** » 2003-12-12 09:37am

Of course Traitor, and FH: Remnant we're actually two decent books (for this series anyway). they're kind of like those Monday night events where they actually have some quality matchups, but there's a run in at the end spoiling the main event completely. and let's not forget the E-Books which could be equated to the bastard younger sibling events (Sunday night Heat, Superstars, etc..)

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-12 10:44am

Darth Fanboy wrote:Of course Traitor, and FH: Remnant we're actually two decent books (for this series anyway). they're kind of like those Monday night events where they actually have some quality matchups, but there's a run in at the end spoiling the main event completely. and let's not forget the E-Books which could be equated to the bastard younger sibling events (Sunday night Heat, Superstars, etc..)

First of all, here's my thoughts on Remnant:

But secondly, its scary how the NJO can fit into wrestling so easily!

2000AD · Post by **2000AD** » 2003-12-12 12:51pm

Lord Poe wrote:Spanky you little.....!

Actually, no, not all the NJO novels are hardcover. From memory, Vector Prime, Balance Point, Star By Star, Unifying Force were all hardcover first. The rest, less interesting ones (Refugee, Remnant, etc.) were paperbacks.

Destiny's Way was also a HC.
And IIRC the NR got it's ass kicked in Vector Prime, Balance Point and Star by Star so the WWE PPV comparison doesn't really work, unless you take into account that there are examples of the bad guys winning at WWE PPV's in which case it does work a bit better.

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-12 04:35pm

2000AD wrote:Destiny's Way was also a HC.
And IIRC the NR got it's ass kicked in Vector Prime, Balance Point and Star by Star so the WWE PPV comparison doesn't really work, unless you take into account that there are examples of the bad guys winning at WWE PPV's in which case it does work a bit better.

Well, it doesn't work in the sense that good guys win in the HCs. But the comparison comes with nothing at all happening in the paperbacks/TV shows, and everything (major events to push the story along) happens in the HCs/PPVs!

Solauren · Post by **Solauren** » 2003-12-12 07:14pm

Hate to break it to ya Lord Poe....

The WWE(F) has been using that formula since the early to mid 90's.

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-12 08:17pm

Solauren wrote:Hate to break it to ya Lord Poe....

The WWE(F) has been using that formula since the early to mid 90's.

I wasn't watching then! (Not watching now, really!) That's Hulk Hogan era, right?

Darth Fanboy · Post by **Darth Fanboy** » 2003-12-13 05:16am

Oh hell yeah they were using it back then. Go Ultimate Warrior!

But you could really truly tell once WCW started to gain in popularity. That as their bread and butter because they had about fifty different "factions" before nWo showed up. Unlike WWF who didn't have much in the way of that for awhile.

Solauren · Post by **Solauren** » 2003-12-13 12:22pm

Hogan was early 83 - 91 or so (at least, that's when he was the big shit)
92 - 1998 was Shawn Micheal's, Brett Hart, classic Undertaker, etc
99+ is the Rock, Austin, Triple 'Piece of Shit' H, Beniot, Jericho, Angle, Lesnar (and now Goldberg)

Yes, I have watched the WWE(F) since before Wrestlemania 3.

Lord Pounder · Post by **Lord Pounder** » 2003-12-13 04:22pm

I own all the NJO books and with the exception of The Unifying Force they all came in paper back.

Lord Poe · Post by **Lord Poe** » 2003-12-13 08:06pm

Lord Pounder wrote:I own all the NJO books and with the exception of The Unifying Force they all came in paper back.

Yes...the HCs come in paperback up to a YEAR after the initial release....

Phil Skayhan · Post by **Phil Skayhan** » 2003-12-14 12:01am

Actually, this makes perfect sense. Vector Prime was the last Star Wars Book I bought. I still don't think I'm comfortable with what happened to Chewie. Of course, now given your analogy to wrestling, how it happened makes a little more sense.

I vividly remember my roommate's reaction when he read that. He'd taken to reading Vector Prime on the crapper and so one fateful sunny Saturday afternoon while I was watching TV in the living room......

Monkey Boy: [muffelled yell from bathroom] Holy shit!!
Me: [figuring that shit was exactly what he was referring to] You all right?
MB: You've got to be fucking kidding me!!!
Me: What?! Did Jimmy Hoffa come out your ass?

[Flush] Monkey Boy come storming out of the bathroom brandishing the book like a revival pastor waves a bible.

MB: They! Killed! Chewie!
Me: Oh that.
MB: They hit him with a moon! Un-goddamm believable! They didn't shoot him, he wasn't run over, he didn't get sick, or even sliced with a lightsaber. They had to hit him with a fucking moon!!!!
Me: Yeah, I thought that was a little much.
MB: Man I'm so pissed now. Ruined a perfectly good dump.

For the next week, every so often, Monkey Boy would turn to me and say, "A fucking moon!" I still don't think he's over it either.

Lord Pounder · Post by **Lord Pounder** » 2003-12-14 06:19pm

I'M still not over it and it's been 6 months since i read Vector Prime. It's the 1st thing i say when i talk to a RL person about the EU: "The asshats dropped a moon on Chewie". I almost cried when i saw Chewie in the Jedi Accademy Tatooine Spaceport level.

JME2 · Post by **JME2** » 2003-12-18 03:06pm

Rogue 9 wrote:He's saying that its the same moneymaking scheme. In wrestling, the good (I use the term loosely; wrestling sucks) parts only happen in the Pay-Per-View. In the NJO, the important stuff only happens in the more expensive hardback novels.

Not necessarily; I hardly consider book 13, 'Traitor' to fall in that field.[/i]

JME2 · Post by **JME2** » 2003-12-18 03:09pm

Lord Poe wrote:Spanky you little.....!

Actually, no, not all the NJO novels are hardcover. From memory, Vector Prime, Balance Point, Star By Star, Unifying Force were all hardcover first. The rest, less interesting ones (Refugee, Remnant, etc.) were paperbacks.

You're forgetting book 14, 'Destiny's Way'.

Mlenk · Post by **Mlenk** » 2003-12-18 04:55pm

JME2 wrote:You're forgetting book 14, 'Destiny's Way'.

That's understandable. Destiny's Way is a very 'forgettable' book, probably the most 'forgettable' of the NJO hardcovers.

JME2 · Post by **JME2** » 2003-12-20 12:43pm

Mlenk wrote:
JME2 wrote:You're forgetting book 14, 'Destiny's Way'.
That's understandable. Destiny's Way is a very 'forgettable' book, probably the most 'forgettable' of the NJO hardcovers.

Alright, I'll concede that much - unless you (a) wanted Warmaster Tsavong Lah to die, (b) are a huge Admiral Ackbar fan like myself and are pissed off as hell 'that he died in 'The Unifying Force'. I mean, take Chewie's death in 'Vector Prime - got my attention, but I didn't feel too much remorse; same with Anakin Solo in 'Star by Star'. But kill the Mon Cal admiral and there's going to be some serious bitch-slapping before I'm through with LucasBooks...