Anniversaries always provoke memories that race to the forefront of our minds as we look back at those special moments we want to celebrate. Shadows of the Empire is one of those moments and was a catalyst for many Star Wars fans and also a starting point for so many more.
Some of the team and friends of Jedi News took to their keyboards to share their own memories with us.
| Fabio Fiori (Founder and Creator at Tatooine Times) | |
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I have always been fascinated by the Shadows of the Empire multimedia initiative. The ability to enjoy a brand-new story within the Skywalker saga and across different platforms while getting introduced to new, iconic villains and heroes like Xizor, Guri, and Dash Rendar has been amazing to say the least. My favorite memory is without a doubt reading the comics (both the main run and Evolution) while listening to the epic soundtrack, but also reading the novel and afterwards seeing some of the key story moments coming to life through the breath-taking work of the Brothers Hildebrandt. Shadows of the Empire holds a special place in my heart, and I find myself coming back to it again and again. |
| Nick Brokenshire (Comic book writer and artist – Star Wars Adventures) | |
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My first recollections of Shadows of the Empire are strongly connected to being at University and churning my way through the N64 game. I can’t remember if I read the book before or after playing the game but I distinctly recall being really thrilled by brand new Star Wars. Only a few years earlier, we’d had the Thrawn books, and the Dark Empire series and they had been enough to keep the flame burning for me – but this Shadows of The Empire thing really crept up and took me by surprise! Dash Rendar and Prince Xizor were new and fascinating additions to the Star Wars universe, but both the book and the game were skillfully crafted enough to maintain a very strong flavour of classic Star Wars. I recall being both hugely excited by the prospect of a story that was woven into existing canon, and trepidatious about the idea. What if it interfered with the main story in some way? As a young and foolish fan at the time, I was perhaps somewhat unevolved with regard to the idea of the saga being tampered with. Now I know better – stories and storytellers are fluid and ever developing but that doesn’t mean that the things you like cease to exist. Having come to see the effect that each phase of Star Wars has had on corresponding generations, I’ve arrived at a place where I’m more than happy to allow Star Wars to change for each new generation. In fact, it must, or it will stagnate. Shadows of the Empire and the Thrawn Trilogy were my first steps into a larger world, a broader view of Star Wars. I mean, of course there would be more cool characters out there! It’s a huge Galaxy.
I recently watched a YouTube walkthrough of the game and it’s amazing how one can recollect little details! The gameplay was terrific, and the use of the John Williams music made the game super immersive! I remember losing many hours to this thing. Fighting IG-88! My old chum! I wonder if that’s why I wanted to write and draw him so much? Hey, and what about Dash Rendar’s (I always thought that the name was a bit Masters of The Universe-ey but I got used to it) ship, the Outrider? Now that was a very tasty bit of design. Making it clearly related to Han’s YT-1300 was an inspired choice. It further solidified the Star Wars vibe! I don’t recall much of the plot of the book, to be honest, but I do remember being incredulous and wildly intrigued by the idea that anyone would willingly position themselves against Darth Vader. Xisor had cojones, that’s for sure! It’s kind of a shame that all that storytelling has been relegated to Legends status now, but on the other hand, I had such a blast at the time! Thrawn, Shadows and then the EU that blossomed from that point onward – it was all so much fun! Sometimes really silly and a bit skew-whiff but always fun. I’m thankful for Shadows of The Empire. The story kept the Star Wars lights on, and the game gave me a chance to be ‘in’ Star Wars for a while during the dark times… before a galaxy of stories would erupt again with the arrival of a little sandy-haired boy. |
| Jay Manchand (Topps Trading Card Artist) | |
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My first experience with Shadows of the Empire began with the action figures as a kid, I vividly recall seeing Princess Leia in ‘Boushh’ disguise & Prince Xizor, on the peg in a toy store, with the purple cardback – unlike the green or orange Power of the Force figures I was used to seeing. I was immediately intrigued and knew I had to collect them all. For me this was my first voyage into the expanded universe (now legends). I was blown away that these characters I’d grown so attached to, had stories outside of the movies I had seen countless times. For a child with a big imagination, that made Star Wars that much more exciting to me, that anything was possible.
Now in my early thirties, I’ve read the Shadows of the Empire comics, the novel and my interest in the extended Star Wars stories beyond the movies has grown considerably. Though currently, my licensed sketch card art for Topps excludes anything from legends, I have dabbled painting and drawing EU characters – from Darth Talon to Bastila Shan. Hopefully one day I’ll have the opportunity explore the exciting characters and costumes from Shadows of the Empire on canvas. |
| Denton Tipton (Comic book creative and former Senior Editor at IDW) | |
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After the Dark Empire comics and Thrawn Trilogy brought Star Wars back into my life in a big way, Lucasfilm really opened the floodgates with Shadows of the Empire with their unified multimedia approach. The criminal underworld had long been fertile ground for storytelling in the Star Wars universe, and a personal favorite going all the way back to Crimson Jack from the Marvel comics. Prince Xizor quickly proved to be a galaxy-class villain, and that’s half the battle when it comes to a satisfying storyline. |
| Cole Horton (Star Wars Author) | |
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As someone who discovered Star Wars in 1995, long after its original theatrical run, Shadows of the Empire was the first time I got to experience a new Star Wars story that transcended a single medium. I devoured it in all of its forms. The novel was my first adult hardback. The Outrider was as big a star as the Millennium Falcon in my well-loved action figure arsenal. And thanks to the video game, to this day I still associate many musical cues not with their films, but with the levels I played over and over again on my Nintendo 64. While it was by no means perfect, Shadows of the Empire was perfectly designed to capture my young imagination, fueling what would become a lifelong passion for all kinds of Star Wars stories and undoubtedly inspiring my eventual career in publishing and gaming. |
| Thomas Deer (Comic book colorist and illustrator at IDW Publishing) | |
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Shadows of the Empire was so welcomed by fans when it came out. It was the first new Star Wars content fans had since Return of the Jedi and combined with knowing that George Lucas was developing Episode I – it was an exciting time. The toys, the comics, the novelization, and especially the videogame for the new N64 console. It even had an original soundtrack (composed by Joel McNeely) for a non-existent film! It was food to a starving person. I have such fond memories playing the game with my friends and going to Toys’R’Us to hunt down the toys. In hindsight, it’s too bad that Lucasfilm didn’t produce an animated film of Shadows at that time. |
| Steve Galloway (Literature Editor at Jedi News) | |
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How could I not miss the anniversary for Shadows? 1996 was a very important year for me in so many ways. England hosted the European Nations football championship, Damon Hill won the F1 Drivers Championship, Shadows of the Empire was released, and oh yes, and I got married too!
Buying our house, put us in a position to be able to buy expensive items on credit and the purchase of a Nintendo N64 was not cheap at the time. I remember talking my wife into letting me buy the N64 on credit so I could play Shadows. Many hours of play then ensued, playing alongside my brother-in-law, Mark. Life or level was the key to our joined-up gaming method so we could both share the experience of a galaxy far, far away. But it was not just the game that grabbed my attention, it was everything that went with it that made it so special. The Kenner figures, the novel, comics, Micro Machines… you name it, I probably bought it! To this day I still own all of my Shadows collection except for the N64 and game. But after rekindling my love while bringing this celebration to you all, that N64 and game may be rejoining my collection sooner than I thought! |
| Mark ‘Spooked Hippie‘ Alders (Literature Reviewer at Jedi News) | |
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Strange what we remember. If you have read my reviews for this anniversary, you will know I recall a lot of things about Shadows of the Empire. Yet my very first encounter with the release is what I remember most. As a ten-year-old boy in 1996, I had not seen much fanfare for Star Wars. These were the films that I adored, obsessed over, and played with again and again, yet there was never really much out. I remember getting excited on holiday in Wales, having found a vintage Ewok catapult in an old toy shop. Slim pickings. Everything else was just rehashes of the old. The VHS release in 1992, the Power of the Force 2 line of figures (which to be honest, I was much happier playing with my vintage ones!), I didn’t want this, I wanted something new.
So, on a Saturday morning, my parents would take me and my brother to Lichfield. We’d kick a ball about, run around and then wonder around the shops for a little bit. On this particular day, I walked into John Menzies (the shop is still there now as W H Smith). There was a central aisle with magazines on the left and as you walked further, the science fiction section. I can still vividly see myself walking down the aisle and stopping in amazement at one of those cardboard book holders, the ones that would have the books in, but the top would be some artwork of the new release. This was my first time seeing the novel Shadows of the Empire. It wasn’t just the Star Wars I knew for there was someone there I didn’t recognise, someone completely new to me. I was in disbelief. I needed to know what it was all about. After saving my pocket money for a couple of weeks, I went back to buy my first Star Wars audiobook (aside from the NPR radio dramas) on cassette. I remember listening to the narrator, to the sound effects, the music, all of it was Star Wars. It was the first novel in the Expanded Universe I ever listened to and paved the way for my fandom to reach ever increasing heights. |
| James Burns (Owner and Brand Director at Jedi News) | |
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My most vivid memory of Shadows of the Empire was reading the novel and collecting the Hasbro action figures. Coming after the excellent Thrawn novels from Timothy Zahn in the early 90’s, the annoucement of more Star Wars stories, and in a special crossover event, was well received. The event did not disappoint, with some amazing new characters including Xizor, Dash Rendar and the Outrider, along with the return of some familiar faces including Luke, Leia and IG-88. This was the moment I knew that Star Wars was here to stay. |
Thank you on behalf of everyone at Jedi News to Denton, Nick, Cole, Thomas, Fabio and Jay for their contributions!
These shared memories help to demonstrate why Shadows is still so important to so many of us still today. We also hope that this series of articles has given you an insight into why Shadows of the Empire struck a chord with so many fans 25 years ago.
Stay tuned to Jedi News as we bring our celebration of the 25th Anniersary of Shadows of the Empire to a conclusion later today with a competition to win a unique piece of commissioned artwork by Nick Brokenshire!
