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I'm one of 7....I can also understand, great photography!Kovecs96":y9cabzkq said:YAK_Chewie":y9cabzkq said:Oh damn, this looks great! I started reading tonight, but got 5 kids here at the house that I'm trying to watch.. full review as soon as I can!
:wink:
Thanks! Looking forward to hearing it! I gotcha, I am one of five siblings. I understand having a crazy/full house!![]()
GrandMoffHux14":20577s0i said:I'm one of 7....I can also understand, great photography!Kovecs96":20577s0i said:YAK_Chewie":20577s0i said:Oh damn, this looks great! I started reading tonight, but got 5 kids here at the house that I'm trying to watch.. full review as soon as I can!
:wink:
Thanks! Looking forward to hearing it! I gotcha, I am one of five siblings. I understand having a crazy/full house!![]()
Lance Quazar":1vlw7m0w said:WOW!! A brand new photonovel by a brand new author!!! This is a cause for celebration! Hooray!!
I think this series is off to an excellent start! Very well done!!!
The sets are absolutely terrific, excellent work with your dioramas, you nail both the look and feel of Mos Eisley. Funny, scrolling down the page, I was actually a little nervous when I saw your screen grab of the CGI Mos Eisely. I thought, uh oh...when you set yourself up for a big visual comparison like that, switching from an actual screen grab to action figures and home made dioramas can sometimes be jarring.
But it wasn't here at all, a testament to your great work. And the painted backdrops used in many shots look really nice - terrific work there.
I like the writing style here - at first I wasn't sure if I liked it, but I really got into it. You have a lot of nice detail, it's very novel-esque, with more prose than many photonovels, which help flesh out the characters, the world and the historical context of the events. Well done, it makes for a very pleasant read!
It seems like you have a "first" - a photonovel set (well, at least partly, given what you've said about the next chapter) in the Episode VII "Force Awakens" timeline.
Honestly, I think many people watching "Force Awakens" were a little confused by the exact state of the galaxy. The world-building isn't very clear in the movie. How power are the First Order? Where do they live? How many people across the galaxy know about them? What is their strength compared to the Republic? etc. etc. etc.
But, I think what you have done here is clear and consistent with the movie. It can believe that the First Order has been slowly infiltrating, if not downright conquering, planets on the fringes of the galaxy, places like Tatooine, which, as we saw in both the prequel and classic trilogy, were far enough away that they had neither a standing Republic or Imperial presence on them.
So this all works just fine for me. My only real nitpick - I didn't quite buy the dialogue when the troopers said "In the name of Snoke and Kylo Ren." Just doesn't feel like something a trooper would necessarily say, especially the Kylo Ren part. Though powerful and important, Kylo Ren still seems like just a powerful enforcer for the First Order, not really part of its leadership structure, so I don't think they would throw the name around - especially because I'd imagine most people would just shrug and say, "Um, okay, who the hell is Kylo Ren?"
That said, the spy sending a message to Ren was definitely a cool and chilling moment.
I really like the characters here - they come to life very nicely. Even the shop keeper has a personality in his brief scene.
Mile seems like a likable everyman, but, of course, the standout is Hallis. All the characters have well-writen, believable dialogue and I'm eager to hear more about Hallis.
While I think the idea of doing flashbacks to Hallis' past is a cool idea, I hope you will keep the bulk of the action in the present as we follow these two on their adventures.
I'm very interested in seeing what happens to these guys and also interested in seeing how you integrate their adventures into the Sequel Trilogy timeline which, as I said, can be a little confusing to navigate. So you have perhaps a more challenging road ahead than a story set in the classic or prequel trilogy (since we understand those timelines so very well.)
So keep up the good work, really looking forward to your next chapter!
YAK_Chewie":1uv4jjfj said:I was able to read through this late last night before going to bed, and just had to pop in and share some thoughts.
This was outstanding! What a start to a new series, I have to echo Lance's excitement!
First off, the era you chose your story to be in is refreshing. It's great seeing someone tackle the era around The Force Awakens... awesome!
Secondly, nice mix of customs and "stock" figures. It's nice to see you not using just stock figures for your photonovel.
Third, the sets! Great dioramas! I just love that you invested your time to make sets. It all comes together so well, and makes your story so much better. Very well done!
Next, the cast - just enough to make it very interesting with Mile, Hallis, and R5-D4 (ha, fun nod to ANH). I'm so glad you didn't try and add too many characters to this.
The writing was also very effective! It was very easy to follow, but also wasn't over-simplified.
And finally... the story! I love that he found the lightsaber, but has no clue what it is. And the First Order troops... loved the way they want after him and Hallis... I did not expect for Hallis to be have Jedi roots... love it!
Thank you for sharing this with us, and best of luck with future chapters! I think we're in for a treat! Oh - and very nice photography too.![]()
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CloneCrazy":35scoag7 said:I have a LOT of catching up to do in this forum, but wanted to comment on this first since it is a new series! Its really exciting to have our first sequel trilogy photonovel out! I am extremely impressed by the quality of this series, it is truly amazing that this is your first chapter!
Your dioramas are extremely impressive and really provides the authentic feel of Mos Eisley. Its always difficult to pull off a location that we saw in the films and you did an excellent job! Everything from your piles of debris, to the cantina are really well done! Your customs are extremely effective and do a great job of creating your own original characters.
Your story is fully immersive and promises to be a truly epic quest! Mile seems like an interesting character, but Squid and Hallis steal the story. I loved them swapping war stories in the cantina, really a lot of fun in that small interaction! The lightsaber is a clever plot device and a major point from the saga that can be told outside of the films. I also loved that you included R5-D4 and referenced his bad motivator!
Looking forward to more!!!