The Empire Strikes Back: The National Public Radio Dramatization

Thank you Mr. Brian Daley for expanding a good story and making it GREAT! If I haven't heard it on NPR when I was young or read the book years later, I would not have created my own radio drama. If you love radio dramas and science fiction, please visit my web site below. May the force be with you, always..... Mark McLaughlin - [...]

My main purpose in ordering this book was to find out what had been cut from the series after its first airing. I have only heard the second version that was aired, which was released on cassette and CD. I must say the small edits that were made, and they were all infinitesimal, actually make the audio series better. They're little excesses that when removed clearly improve the flow of the series. The one bit I wish they had left in was an extended exchange between Han and Luke before the turret sequence. Han tells Luke to lead his targets and "Invest in the future", a classic Han-sounding line. It should be noted that this appears to be a first or second draft of the script. This becomes obvious when Heater is referred to several times as "Preacher" which I assume was the first name of the character in the script. Also, the dialogue overall is not as polished as it is in the series. Editing may have been done by someone other than Daley, or even the actors themselves, which would explain why Daley only had this version to give to the publisher. If you've never listened to the series, do so before buying the book. I think it's much more interesting as an example of how editing can turn good writing into great writing than as a piece of writing itself.

After reading the books and listening to the audio adaptions, I can't watch the movies anymore. Buy the CDs/Cassetes...to borrow a line from Garrison Keillor, the pictures are better. Anthony Daniels intro and insight was worth the jacket price.