Continuity in Star Wars vs. Marvel/DC

[fallenangel327]

I've gathered that in contrast to the single continuity and 'definitive' canon that exists for the Star Wars universe (or at least tries to), Marvel and DC franchises have harbored over the years a myriad of parallel universes, cross-overs and the like. What I would like to ask you comic book fans are... how does it affect your fandom?

[Flynn]

My attitude towards canon in general is "Screw what anyone else thinks, this is what I choose to accept".

It's very helpful for some properties- especially something like Doctor Who, which has no official canon.

[dWhisper]

Wired had an interesting article on this a few years back. The short story is... "it depends."

The long story basically comes down to that they treat different things different ways. If you ever go around Wookiepedia, you see that canon is treated on different levels. You have the movies, which are the core canon, nothing overrides what they say. Then you have TV shows and the books, which effectively become the Extended Universe. After that, you get the comics, which is basically a no-mans land. It works like an onion, with only stuff inside being treated as canon to any specific layer.

So, basically needlessly and gloriously complicated. Probably why it resonates with nerds so much.

[Draykov]

...which is basically a no-mans land. It works like an onion, with only stuff inside being treated as canon to any specific layer. .

That's an interesting way to put it that I have never been able to articulate. I never liked the expression "levels of canon" because the concept kind of undermines the definition of canon. However, when you say that Canon A affects Canon B and C, Canon B affects Cannon C but not A and Canon C has no affect on Canon B or A, that's pretty much an acceptable way of describing it in my mind.

That said, I think I find Flynn's approach the most practical, especially if your nerd-centric arguments on the Internet tend not to transcend Canon A.

My personal opinion is that, ideally, you have a world with 100% continuity across the board with some stuff left to the imagination. That's great for one-shot stories or single movies. On the other end of the spectrum, when you have something as expansive and wacky as the Marvel or DC universe, you kinda have to throw continuity out the window to an extent and take every individual piece of content as it's own thing...lest you handcuff your creative talent and prevent them from trying to do their own thing with established characters. How else can the real Nightcrawler come back from the dead?

[DocBlock]

Wired had an interesting article on this a few years back. The short story is... "it depends."

The long story basically comes down to that they treat different things different ways. If you ever go around Wookiepedia, you see that canon is treated on different levels. You have the movies, which are the core canon, nothing overrides what they say. Then you have TV shows and the books, which effectively become the Extended Universe. After that, you get the comics, which is basically a no-mans land. It works like an onion, with only stuff inside being treated as canon to any specific layer.

So, basically needlessly and gloriously complicated. Probably why it resonates with nerds so much.

Good answer. It always gives me a head ache when I see people arguing about SW canon. And the above reflects best my stance on it.

[CWAL]

I tend to be in the same camp of 'whatever I feel like at the moment is cannon'. Now, typically that means for me all the original movies (non special edition), the books, the comics that I've personally read, the prequels, and other comics, in that order of importance.

Some special exceptions exist such as the Jedi Prince series which I'm pretty sure nearly everyone just writes off as unnecessarily wacky.

That all being said, I do love me some Infinities.

[crazybirdman]

So, basically needlessly and gloriously complicated. Probably why it resonates with nerds so much.

brilliant

[MisterFubar]

My attitude towards canon in general is "Screw what anyone else thinks, this is what I choose to accept".

That's basically my attitude. It's all fiction anyway, why shouldn't I be able to pick and choose what I like and don't like?

Came into my "office" the other day to find that my daughter had manned my Black Monarch's Castle with Stormtroopers and Olivia(one of the Friends) and her dog had landed a Jedi Starfighter in the middle of it. That could all be canon too as far as I'm concerned.

[CWAL]

Hey, don't post the plot of Episode VII without giving a spoiler warning, you could ruin it for people!