The 8th Trial - CATASTROPHE

[YAK_Chewie]

Holy cow, Chewie! This is too cool!

Thanks, glad you liked it.

:wink:

 

[CloneCrazy]

Always a pleasure to support your awesome work! I actually really liked the look of the TIE battle, give yourself more credit! So glad to hear Kala is safe... for now Looking forward to more my friend!!!

 

[Lance Quazar]

CHEWIE!

Wow, what an awesome, slam-bang adventure!!! You have been promising us this massive battle for the past couple chapters and - once again - you killed it. The visuals here are just phenomenal, what an exciting ride!!!

The battle is huge and epic and thrilling.

Just a few comments and criticisms. Overall, this is such a solid and fun chapter and the culmination of the rising tension you have been ramping up in all the other chapters.

I really liked the "artifact" storyline, but I'm glad that the zombie story - fun as it was - has been put to bed and that this feel much more like "classic" Star Wars. It's really Rykrof's first proper battle against the Empire and I love the fact that he's now in the "Galactic Civil War" era, even if it's just at its early stages.

Other great things - Clorri! She's awesome in just two short lines of dialogue. Very funny and cool.

I've accepted the fact that T-3PO is just basically C-3PO redux and I'm cool with that. So I thought the jokes about him getting blown up were hilarious. I think you should have Freelo rescue his head. The running joke should be that he keeps getting damaged/blown up/etc. and repaired with crazier parts. I'd love to see his head on an R2 unit at some point, to his extreme frustration.

Having been a huge fan of the "Rebels" cartoon, I love seeing the infancy of the rebellion, how it's small factions and assorted random uprisings that are still in search of unity and a larger sense of purpose.

A few comments -

You repeat the "Long Ago" panel. Also, I think wording in one of the earlier panels might read better as "horrors beyond imagination" instead of "horrors beyond imagine."

Like Darth Kikinou, I'm not super crazy about Rykrof's jacket, as it does look too Solo-ish to me.

I am a little confused by the evacuation of Senator Tame Heem. Why was he more important than Sulo? What was the big deal about him getting off, other than that Heem is kind of a coward.

I think the dialogue is confusing, too, since he's whisked away on a shuttle immediately after they discuss how the "escape cruiser" isn't working.

I think just a quick extra line would clarify -

"The escape cruiser isn't working."
Kala - "We have a two-man shuttle. It's enough for me to get you to safety."
"But everyone else will be killed!"
Rykrof - "This place isn't going down without a fight, etc."

It's weird that they specifically say there's no way off and then immediately leave without any explanation on another ship.

Also, I didn't quite buy that Kala would leave. I'm not sure what the plan is for the next chapter, but I really was hoping we'd see Kala and Vader square off. I don't think he'd just fly away and leave everyone else in great danger.

That said, I'm sure you will not disappoint with the next chapters.

I do hope Clorri sticks around for at least a little bit. Maybe SHE can have the confrontation with Vader? I do hope Vader and Rykrof get another scene together.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Congrats for a phenomenal chapter. We have seen great action sequences before on this series, but this feels like it's on another level.

Thanks for continuing to work so hard to bring us this fantastic entertainment!!!

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Chewie,

I won't lie. April has been a tough month for me. But this chapter really brightens my day. One of the things I have liked about your stories is the storyline and dialogue--which makes these so fun.

Thanks for the feedback my friend - and April, March, Feb, Jan, and preceding months have been terrible for me. Life has not been easy (mostly job related). I hope things get better for you.

This episode really was action packed and I loved it. Pure Saturday morning serial. Wonderful photography. The positioning of figures in combat positions and explosions are really fun. The blown up droid is great. Upon a second reading the dialogue is really top notch too.

I usually don't go with too much action in a story, but it was fun this time. I'm glad you liked what you saw and were happy with the pace.

The custom figures are super. I am not big on so many jedi remaining and playing prominent roles in the rebellion. But Lucas, Disney and hasbro disagree so I won't get on you for the direction. Those are wonderfully contructed figures and I really like them. And based on the storyline we probably lose them quick. I like the exchange between them during the battle.

That is not a knock on Kala--who is a neat character who really was a strong addition to the Clone War era. But we are not at the full blown official rebellion era either.

Yeah, I can understand the thoughts about the Jedi still showing up some. I figure in the years leading up to ANH, the survivors or Order 66 were hunted down - which essentially is the only reason that Vader is interested in Rykrof at all right now, using him to track down Kala and his band of survivors.

Great catch up on the recent events. The dreamy setting. Enloe's father looks so dead. Great photography.

Thanks, I liked the "flashback sequence" a lot after I was done, and tried to "read this as a reader." The Josser Enloe "corpse" is a custom I ended up being really happy with, in a morbid way, I guess.

This is just well done. The scenery and use of the Endor mini rig is FANTASTIC. I really like it. Can't wait for more.

Pure fun. Thanks. Keep up the great work. Another edited/new comment. I like the change of pace; one episode we have multiple locations as different pieces of the storyline is explored. In this chapter we fous on battle at the hidden rebel base. Artistically I like the flow.

Also--while not cheap the new jurassic park monsters and the schleich dinosaurs would make positive additions background wise for future chapters. Speaking of dinosaurs, I really liked having that feathered one from chapter 7.

Again - thank you. I'm so glad you liked the pace and how I try and go back and forth between stories -- sometimes showing several locations, others not. On this one, while it was all on the same planet, I tried to vary it up a bit - forest, base exterior, sky battle, control room. Gotta try and mix up the scenery, or it can get boring fast!

And I agree, some more monsters/etc. would be a good idea. Thanks for the suggestion.

:wink:

 

[UKHistory]

There are several different environments within the planet. It is a credit to your story telling that I saw it as just one location. But that is not accurate. There is a lot going on and I usually need to reread the chapters multiple times to catch it all.

I can't wait to see more.

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Another fantastic chapter!

The kind of claustrophobic action shots lend themselves well to creating a sense of real tension to the battle. It's hard to get convincing action shots out of action figures, but you manage it masterfully here and make the battle seem real. Well-done. Oh, and nice digital effects in the action shots as well.

Thanks! Battle scenes aren't my strong suit, but they are fun to read through after the chapter is completed. I think I'm getting better at it but realize there's room for improvement.

I always love your customs, but all of your rebel soldiers through this chapter take the cake. I *love* how you differentiated them enough to make it seem like they're a ragtag bunch, but there were enough similar motifs in their outfits to make it obvious that they were a group.

I appreciate that, glad you like the variety of troops. I tried to make them look a bit less "official Rebellion" but still have a coordinated look, as much as possible.

The protocol droid humor was great. It's really (really really) tough to write humor well, but those couple of lines/scenes nailed it. "I'm everywhere." Heh. Perfect.

Yeah, humor can be tough, especially with action figures in still shots. Glad you liked how that turned out. I certainly do NOT try and overdo the humor because I have a feeling it would be too dry, and maybe even annoying.

Intrigued to see how all of this ends next chapter. I have a feeling that we'll be seeing the end of several of these characters. Do you find it hard to kill off characters that you worked so hard to create? As I still work on never-ending prep work and character creation for my own (maybe someday) photo novel, the thought of killing off these people that have been in my head terrifies me. lol. Kill your darlings, as they say... But it's a particularly strange sort of revision when it is a custom figure as well as words on paper. Maybe I'm getting far too "meta" here. haha.

Regardless, more fantastic work here. I love reading these stories and seeing your creations. Looking forward to more.

It's not going to be the typical "heroes escape" and live to fight another day chapter. My goal is to make it very dark, and even a bit upsetting.

It is very hard to kill off some of characters. The hardest ones I've killed off, for me, are Redwind (Jedi during Order 66) and Josser Enloe (Rykrof's father, courtesy of Tylin Gere's men).

Thanks as always for taking some time to read, and share your thoughts. It means a lot to me.

BTW, If you do make a series, I bet it's going to be a lot of fun...

:wink:

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Another great installment, Chewie. Wonderful customs once again and I love the use of the Endor Forest Ranger and the McQ Airspeeders as well. I really wish Hasbro would Focus on stuff like that again because those ships are a lot of fun.

Thanks my friend, I certainly appreciate the feedback!

And yeah, I just HAD to use the Forest Ranger and Airspeeder here... it seemed like this was a great chance to finally get them in!

I really like how here we see how efficient the Empire is and not a bunch of bumbling idiots (like stormtroopers on Rebels). Obviously, they had to be good to Keep the universe under control.

Exactly, I hope in EP7 they are more badass... like they were on the Tantive IV. That's the only time they really seemed to have their act together in the OT...

I'm really looking Forward to the next chapter as well as Chapters 10-12. The way you described them, it sounds like the story is going to take another interesting turn.

It's going to get quite a bit darker, and hopefully for Rykrof and his pals... I expect to have Chapter 9 completed by late Summer...

Thanks again for the feedback and support!

:wink:

 

[YAK_Chewie]

There are several different environments within the planet. It is a credit to your story telling that I saw it as just one location. But that is not accurate. There is a lot going on and I usually need to reread the chapters multiple times to catch it all.

I can't wait to see more.

I should be able to snap most, if not all pics for next chapter in a few weeks... so that means more previews in July...

:wink:

 

[YAK_Chewie]

I just realized that I have 1-2 more comments in here that I still owe responses to -- but wanted to quickly share that the "script" for the next chapter is complete! I plan on beginning preliminary shooting of the images over the next week. Time flies - I expected to start those pics a few weeks ago!

:wink:

 

[YAK_Chewie]

CHEWIE!

Wow, what an awesome, slam-bang adventure!!! You have been promising us this massive battle for the past couple chapters and - once again - you killed it. The visuals here are just phenomenal, what an exciting ride!!!

The battle is huge and epic and thrilling.

Thank you, Lance! I had been meaning to respond earlier.

Just a few comments and criticisms. Overall, this is such a solid and fun chapter and the culmination of the rising tension you have been ramping up in all the other chapters.

Slowly but surely, right?

Yes, been trying to slowly raise the tension level, establish a plotline, show why Vader sees Rykrof as a means to get to the Jedi, etc.

I really liked the "artifact" storyline, but I'm glad that the zombie story - fun as it was - has been put to bed and that this feel much more like "classic" Star Wars. It's really Rykrof's first proper battle against the Empire and I love the fact that he's now in the "Galactic Civil War" era, even if it's just at its early stages.

I liked the artifact storyline, but it was mostly used as a way to drag Rykrof back into the fray. Tylin wanted it, and decided that his best option was to force Rykrof to get it for him. And in turn, the Emperor found out about the plan (and the artifact) and sent Vader to make sure things were handled properly - which in turn, Vader used as a means to use Rykrof so he could located Kala's and his Jedi allies.

Tylin is full of ambition and pride, and wants the artifact still, but has been handcuffed by his superiors. He does have Rykrof's wife/son in custody now though, so he definitely has the upper hand on his nemesis.

Other great things - Clorri! She's awesome in just two short lines of dialogue. Very funny and cool.

I've accepted the fact that T-3PO is just basically C-3PO redux and I'm cool with that. So I thought the jokes about him getting blown up were hilarious. I think you should have Freelo rescue his head. The running joke should be that he keeps getting damaged/blown up/etc. and repaired with crazier parts. I'd love to see his head on an R2 unit at some point, to his extreme frustration.

Having been a huge fan of the "Rebels" cartoon, I love seeing the infancy of the rebellion, how it's small factions and assorted random uprisings that are still in search of unity and a larger sense of purpose.

Glad you like Clorri, but don't get too attached...

Yes, T-3PO is my tribute to C-3PO. Who happens to be my favorite character in all of Star Wars after the Emperor. And yeah, Freelo is going to rescue his head for sure. Ha ha.

I like seeing the infancy of the Rebellion too!

A few comments -

You repeat the "Long Ago" panel. Also, I think wording in one of the earlier panels might read better as "horrors beyond imagination" instead of "horrors beyond imagine."

That was a photo hosting issue on the "repeat" and I also changed that wording, nice catch.

Like Darth Kikinou, I'm not super crazy about Rykrof's jacket, as it does look too Solo-ish to me.

Consensus is that most people don't like it! I really do think it suits the character well as a casual outfit, but he won't be in it much longer and I'll keep that in mind moving forward. He's had a couple dozen looks across the series too.

I am a little confused by the evacuation of Senator Tame Heem. Why was he more important than Sulo? What was the big deal about him getting off, other than that Heem is kind of a coward.

I think the dialogue is confusing, too, since he's whisked away on a shuttle immediately after they discuss how the "escape cruiser" isn't working.

I think just a quick extra line would clarify -

"The escape cruiser isn't working."
Kala - "We have a two-man shuttle. It's enough for me to get you to safety."
"But everyone else will be killed!"
Rykrof - "This place isn't going down without a fight, etc."

It's weird that they specifically say there's no way off and then immediately leave without any explanation on another ship.

I guess I could have explained that better. Truth be told, I ran out of usable frames for the sequence. So I cut it short and tried to write it as best I could given what I had to work with.

Tame is more important than Sulo due to his contacts in the Senate. His political influence dates back to before the rise of Palpatine as the Chancellor. I'll explain that more in a future installment. As for the ship, Tame mentioned that the escape cruiser was not ready - which is something to get the full population off the planet. The ship that Kala and Tame left on was the same one that Rykrof and Kala arrived in from the previous chapter that they got off Dathomir from the Badoo Corba base...

Arrival:

Departure:

Also, I didn't quite buy that Kala would leave. I'm not sure what the plan is for the next chapter, but I really was hoping we'd see Kala and Vader square off. I don't think he'd just fly away and leave everyone else in great danger.

That said, I'm sure you will not disappoint with the next chapters.

My view was that Kala understands that Tame is much more vital to a future rebellion than Rykrof is, and there wasn't time to argue about the situation because for all they know, the Empire could be there in a matter of minutes.

Rykrof kind of "made his own bed" with the situation by bringing the tracking device to the planet, so his honor would not allow for him to just take off and leave. I probably should have mentioned more about Tame's background, as I took it for granted that people would remember who he is.

I do hope Clorri sticks around for at least a little bit. Maybe SHE can have the confrontation with Vader? I do hope Vader and Rykrof get another scene together.

She'll end up squaring off against Vader in the next chapter, but don't expect her to be able to bring him down (or the other Jedi with her).

But I'm getting ahead of myself. Congrats for a phenomenal chapter. We have seen great action sequences before on this series, but this feels like it's on another level.

Thanks for continuing to work so hard to bring us this fantastic entertainment!!!

Thanks buddy, it means a lot. For a full decade now we've been talking photonovels and you've always been supportive of this series, which has helped keep me going!

I'll send you a PM soon too...

:wink:

 

[jlw515]

WOW!! What an amazing chapter full of action!!

Once again your dioramas are just incredible as also your custom figures. The pic of Traedon Cusiro flying in on his jet pack is just incredible - the custom figure is awesome and the angle of the picture is spot on. I also love the mix of genres in your custom figures from using SW, GIJoe and Avengers pieces. Once again you show that you are the master at awesome kit-bashed customs!!!

The only nit-picky complaint I have about this chapter is the blue computer in the background with the decals. Not use to seeing decals with your diorama pieces - would have rather seen "greeblies," but again I'm just being nit picky.

Jason

 

[YAK_Chewie]

WOW!! What an amazing chapter full of action!!

Once again your dioramas are just incredible as also your custom figures. The pic of Traedon Cusiro flying in on his jet pack is just incredible - the custom figure is awesome and the angle of the picture is spot on. I also love the mix of genres in your custom figures from using SW, GIJoe and Avengers pieces. Once again you show that you are the master at awesome kit-bashed customs!!!

The only nit-picky complaint I have about this chapter is the blue computer in the background with the decals. Not use to seeing decals with your diorama pieces - would have rather seen "greeblies," but again I'm just being nit picky.

Jason

Thanks Jason for still finding the time after all these years to take the time to not only read my stuff, but share some thoughts too. It means a lot.

Lol, I see what you mean about the computer... boy, that's an old custom... from the amazing Owen Driscoll.... he made that for me at least 10 years ago, it's always kinda fun for me finding a use for his items when I can. There's a couple greeblies on it, but yeah, much are decals. The computer itself was scratch built from styrene.

:wink:

 

[jlw515]

Justin,

I check in from time to time to see where you are on the photonovel. I do the same over at Imperial Shipyards to see if Julian has added any new stuff. I've got a ton of GIJoe customs I need to get photographed and uploaded, but I barely find time to customize let alone photograph. Man I really want to get back into doing photonovels - I think I've got a really cool idea for a GIJoe photonovel with a complete graphicnovel type story.

It's awesome to see how far you have progressed in story telling, customs, and dioramas. As you know, I'm a bigger fan of the dioramas than the customs and I've always loved how you piece things together. A suggestion for you on maybe a future diorama. I'm not sure what the circular tower is suppose to represent in this picture

But to me in some of the shots where it's kind of blurred in the background which makes it appear further off in the distance, it looks like a futuristic high rise apartment complex or hotel. The spaces between slats? have sort of a balcony look to me - gives it kind of a real world yet futuristic look.

Jason

 

[YAK_Chewie]

That diorama piece is really a generator - I positioned it upright just for "background filler" in various shots...

As for your own PN series, man I miss that... time seems to be our greatest enemy these days, eh?

:wink:

 

[DarthParallax]

I promise I am not trying to flood here lol , but again it's another great installment of your story here. The battles were just so fun, the TIE fighters vs those speeders .... just epic shots, seriously movie quality !! Troopers invading the outpost ... looked fantastic, i know it was said in an earlier comment , but it really did give off an Empire Strikes Back vibe but you made it your own masterfully. You really felt what an imposing force the Empire brought with them to take down this outpost, and really feel the struggle of the groups survival from this all out assault.

Clorri, I really like her figure a lot and really like her as a character , would love to see more of her , she comes across BA! Seriously cant say how awesome her custom figure looks.

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Slowly but surely... another older chapter has been re-hosted and is up again.

 

[Lance Quazar]

Slowly but surely... another older chapter has been re-hosted and is up again.

Was this offline?

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Was this offline?

Yep... all of the chapter photos went down. I am in the slow process of re-hosting them all with new URL's.

😉

 

[Lance Quazar]

Yep... all of the chapter photos went down. I am in the slow process of re-hosting them all with new URL's.

😉

Ah, good luck. Yeah, when photobucket crapped the bed, I'm sure mine are either gone or have horrible watermarks on them. Perhaps I'll try to rehost them, too. Especially with the Alliance gone....

 

[YAK_Chewie]

Ah, good luck. Yeah, when photobucket crapped the bed, I'm sure mine are either gone or have horrible watermarks on them. Perhaps I'll try to rehost them, too. Especially with the Alliance gone....

It is a very tedious task.... would love to see your old series again... good luck!