What a difference a quarter-century makes. Earlier this week, with the help of the fan community, StarWars.com finally found Rusty Miller, the author who penned 1982's The Jedi Master's Quizbook: 425 Comics Questions & Answers About Star Wars & The Empire Strikes Back. He was 11 years old at the time, and the object of much fan envy and discussion. Come the Internet age, and he seemed to vanish.
Now, the book itself: as the years have added more and more Star Wars lore, it seems a bit quaint to look through a 1982 trivia book, especially one that contains its contents to just two movies. Here's a look at some of the simpler questions, and how 25 years of added Star Wars history have made for not-so-simple answers.
Q: Where was Princess Leia from?
A (1982): Alderaan
A (2008): Polis Massa is her place of birth, though she was raised in Aldera on Alderaan.
Q: What vehicle did Luke drive on Tatooine?
A (1982): A landspeeder
A (2008): A SoroSuub X-34 landspeeder, in addition to an Incom T-16 Skyhopper, and conceivably, a SoroSuub Courier V-35 landspeeder or a Mobquet SX-14 field hover-ute if required.
Q: What was Leia's starship called at the beginning of Star Wars?
A (1982): Blockade Runner
A (2008): It was originally christened the Star of Alderaan before having its name changed to the Tantive IV. Production referred to the vehicle as a "Rebel starfighter," a "Galactic Cruiser," and a "Rebel blockade runner" at various times throughout the making of Star Wars, while the term "Alderaan star cruiser" was also used during the making of Episode III.
Q: What were the names of Luke's two friends who had already entered the Academy?
A (1982): Biggs and Tank
A (2008): Biggs Darklighter and Janek Sunber.
Q: What made Vader's TIE fighter different from other fighters?
A (1982): It had (curved) or angular wings
A (2008): Vader's x1 prototype had a more robust spaceframe, particulary at the pylon points where the solar gather panels connect. The panels themselves are longer, and angled. Unlike the standard TIE of the line, the TIE x1 featured deflector shields and a limited class 4 hyperdrive. Its increased range gave the x1 five consumable days of non-combat flight time, as opposed to a TIE fighter's two-day yield. A standard TIE featured a pair of Sienar Fleet Systems L-s1 laser cannons, while the x1 had L-s9.3 cannons. Powering the standard TIE was an SFS I-a2b solar ionization reactor and SFS P-s4 twin ion engines, while the x1 featured the SFS 1-S3a and SFS P-s5.6 counterparts, respectively.
My special thanks to StarWars.com, for such an interesting newsletter. Cheers! May the Force be always with you!
Mauro Bex : maurobindo
