Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling
Star Wars has reached more than three generations of casual and hardcore fans alike, and as a result many of the producers of franchised Star Wars texts (films, television, comics, novels, games, and more) over the past four decades have been fans-turned-creators. Yet despite its dominant cultural and industrial positions, Star Wars has rarely been the topic of sustained critical work. Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling offers a corrective to this oversight by curating essays from a wide range of interdisciplinary scholars in order to bring Star Wars and its transmedia narratives more fully into the fold of media and cultural studies. The collection places Star Wars at the center of those studies’ projects by examining video games, novels and novelizations, comics, advertising practices, television shows, franchising models, aesthetic and economic decisions, fandom and cultural responses, and other aspects of Star Wars and its world-building in their multiple contexts of production, distribution, and reception. In emphasizing that Star Wars is both a media franchise and a transmedia storyworld, Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling demonstrates the ways in which transmedia storytelling and the industrial logic of media franchising have developed in concert over the past four decades, as multinational corporations have become the central means for subsidizing, profiting from, and selling modes of immersive storyworlds to global audiences. By taking this dual approach, the book focuses on the interconnected nature of corporate production, fan consumption, and transmedia world-building. As such, this collection grapples with the historical, cultural, aesthetic, and political-economic implications of the relationship between media franchising and transmedia storytelling as they are seen at work in the world’s most profitable transmedia franchise.
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Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling
Star Wars has reached more than three generations of casual and hardcore fans alike, and as a result many of the producers of franchised Star Wars texts (films, television, comics, novels, games, and more) over the past four decades have been fans-turned-creators. Yet despite its dominant cultural and industrial positions, Star Wars has rarely been the topic of sustained critical work. Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling offers a corrective to this oversight by curating essays from a wide range of interdisciplinary scholars in order to bring Star Wars and its transmedia narratives more fully into the fold of media and cultural studies. The collection places Star Wars at the center of those studies’ projects by examining video games, novels and novelizations, comics, advertising practices, television shows, franchising models, aesthetic and economic decisions, fandom and cultural responses, and other aspects of Star Wars and its world-building in their multiple contexts of production, distribution, and reception. In emphasizing that Star Wars is both a media franchise and a transmedia storyworld, Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling demonstrates the ways in which transmedia storytelling and the industrial logic of media franchising have developed in concert over the past four decades, as multinational corporations have become the central means for subsidizing, profiting from, and selling modes of immersive storyworlds to global audiences. By taking this dual approach, the book focuses on the interconnected nature of corporate production, fan consumption, and transmedia world-building. As such, this collection grapples with the historical, cultural, aesthetic, and political-economic implications of the relationship between media franchising and transmedia storytelling as they are seen at work in the world’s most profitable transmedia franchise.
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Overview

Star Wars has reached more than three generations of casual and hardcore fans alike, and as a result many of the producers of franchised Star Wars texts (films, television, comics, novels, games, and more) over the past four decades have been fans-turned-creators. Yet despite its dominant cultural and industrial positions, Star Wars has rarely been the topic of sustained critical work. Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling offers a corrective to this oversight by curating essays from a wide range of interdisciplinary scholars in order to bring Star Wars and its transmedia narratives more fully into the fold of media and cultural studies. The collection places Star Wars at the center of those studies’ projects by examining video games, novels and novelizations, comics, advertising practices, television shows, franchising models, aesthetic and economic decisions, fandom and cultural responses, and other aspects of Star Wars and its world-building in their multiple contexts of production, distribution, and reception. In emphasizing that Star Wars is both a media franchise and a transmedia storyworld, Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Storytelling demonstrates the ways in which transmedia storytelling and the industrial logic of media franchising have developed in concert over the past four decades, as multinational corporations have become the central means for subsidizing, profiting from, and selling modes of immersive storyworlds to global audiences. By taking this dual approach, the book focuses on the interconnected nature of corporate production, fan consumption, and transmedia world-building. As such, this collection grapples with the historical, cultural, aesthetic, and political-economic implications of the relationship between media franchising and transmedia storytelling as they are seen at work in the world’s most profitable transmedia franchise.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9789462986213
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Publication date: 10/19/2017
Series: Transmedia , #3
Edition description: 1
Pages: 328
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Sean Guynes is a PhD student in the Department of English at Michigan State University, where he writes and teaches about American science fiction, popular culture, and comics. His dissertation is a critical cultural history of the Futurians.
Dan Hassler-Forest is the author and editor of several books, including The Rise and Reason of Comics and Graphic Literature, Capitalist Superheroes, The Politics of Adaptation, Transmedia, and Science Fiction, Fantasy and Politics. As an assistant professor at the University of Amsterdam, he became involved in the student protests and was among the founding members of staff platform ReThink UvA.

Table of Contents

"I Am Fluent in over Six Million Forms of Communication" 9

A Few Notes on Terminology

Introduction: "What Is This Strange World We've Come to?" 11

Foreword: "I Have a Bad Feeling About This" 15

A Conversation about Star Wars and the History of Transmedia Henry Jenkins Dan Hassler-Forest

Part I "First Steps Into A Larger World": Establishing the Star Wars Storyworld

1 "Thank the Maker!" 35

George Lucas, Lucasfilm, and the Legends of Transtextual Authorship across the Star Wars Franchise Tara Lomax

2 Han Leia Shot First 49

Transmedia Storytelling and the National Public Radio

Dramatization of Star Wars Jeremy W. Webster

3 From Sequel to Quasi-Novelization 61

Splinter of the Mind's Eye and the 1970s Culture of Transmedia Contingency Matthew Freeman

4 Another Canon, Another Time 73

The Novelizations of the Star Wars Films Thomas Van Parys

5 Franchising Empire 87

Parker Brothers, Atari, and the Rise of Lucas Arts Stefan Hall

6 "You must feel the Force around you!" 101

Transmedia Play and the Death Star Trench Run in Star Wars Video Games Drew Morton

Part II "Never Tell Me the Odds!": Expanding the Star Wars Universe

7 Transmedia Character Building 117

Textual Crossovers in the Star Wars Universe Lincoln Geraghty

8 The Digitizing Force of Decipher's Star Wars Customizable Card Game Jonathan Rey Lee 129

9 Publishing the New Jedi Order 143

Media Industries Collaboration and the Franchise Novel Sean Guynes

10 How Star Wars Became Museological 155

Transmedia Storytelling in the Exhibition Space Beatriz Bartolomé Herrera Philipp Dominik Keidl

11 Adapting the Death Star into LEGO 169

The Case of LEGO Set #10188 Mark J.P. Wolf

12 Invoking the Holy Trilogy 187

Star Wars in the Askewniverse Andrew M. Butler

13 Chasing Wild Space 199

Narrative Outsides and World-Building Frontiers in Knights of the Old Republic and The Old Republic Cody Mejeur

Part III "More Powerful Than You Can Possibly Imagine": Consolidating the Star Wars Franchise

14 From Transmedia Storytelling to Transmedia Experience 213

Star Wars Celebration as a Crossover/Hierarchical Space Matt Hills

15 Space Bitches, Witches, and Kick-Ass Princesses 225

Star Wars and Popular Feminism Megen de Bruin-Molé

16 Some People Call Him a Space Cowboy 241

Kanan Jarrus, Outer Rim Justice, and the Legitimization of the Obama Doctrine Derek R. Sweet

17 The Kiss Goodnight from a Galaxy Far, Far Away 253

Experiencing Star Wars as a Fan-Scholar on Disney Property Heather Urbanski

18 Formatting Nostalgia 265

IMAX Expansions of the Star Wars Franchise Allison Whitney

19 Fandom Edits 277

Rogue One and the New Star Wars Gerry Canavan

Afterword: "You'll Find I'm Full of Surprises" 289

The Future of Star Wars Will Brooker Dan Hassler-Forest

Bibliography 297

About the Contributors 317

Index 321

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