Although the 'SW' Expanded Universe is not at the top of the
Aficionado's Priority List I thought this may provide for some
interesting look-over

Top 100 Expanded Universe Works

The ppl at TF.N have been running a poll (on their message boards) to
vote for the Top 100 stories from the Star Wars "Expanded Universe".

This poll obviously isn't a scientific study of the fandom with a
statistically significant and valid sample of respondents. It's just
a bit of fun, really.

It has thrown up a few interesting surprises though.

Here is the countdown from 100 (well, 97th-equal, anyway)
Will be posted in four parts over the next few days...
The comments are their own so don't take them all too seriously.

97 = Tales of the Jedi: Redemption Kevin J. Anderson/Chris Gossett.
In which the author redeemed fallen Sith Lord Ulic Qel-Droma, and
also his own reputation among many of the fans who'd hated Leviathan
and Darksaber... but departed wildly from the intended character-arc
for Ulic.

97 = Splinter of the Mind's Eye by Alan Dean Foster. The very first
novel in what would later be known as the Expanded Universe. Quirky,
sometimes unsettling, but still a milestone in Star Wars.

97 = Jade Solitaire, by Timothy Zahn. A compact little short story
explaining how Mara got from the end of The Last Command to the start
of Specter of the Past.

97 = Battlefront II, LucasArts. The first computer game to make the
list. You can massacre Gungans, and Havac, the message-boards
moderator who ran the poll, reckons that may have something to do
with it.

97 = Star Wars Radio Drama, Brian Daley. The NPR audio-serial version
of the story now known as A New Hope. With nearly seven hours of
airtime, there was a lot of space to develop ideas barely hinted at
in the movie itself.

93 = The Corellian Trilogy, Roger MacBride Allen. The novel that
really developed the Corellian system, and also, perhaps more
importantly, set the Solo family firmly in the context of their
homeworld. Neither the New Jedi Order nor Legacy of the Force could
have happened the way they did without it.

93 = Jedi: Mace Windu, John Ostrander/Jan Duursema. Sam Jackson
wields his big purple lightsaber in anger against a group of rogue
Jedi... and, in the background, there's a Whiphid in a mysterious
straw Hat, which probably explains its inclusion here, somehow.....

93 = Rogue Planet, Greg Bear. The first Prequel-era Expanded Universe
novel. In the end, though, it was probably most important for setting
up some of the themes that would later be developed in the New Jedi
Order - notably the idea that the Force might have a fundamental
unity, above and beyond the dualistic teachings of the Jedi and the
Sith.

93 = Boba Fett series, Terry Bisson and Elizabeth Hand. In the old
days, young readers Star Wars novels were about noble-hearted,
ideallistic Jedi schoolboys. Even the Glove of Darth Vader books had
Prince Ken Palpatine as their nominal protagonist. In this age of
more complex morality and continuity, we have an orphaned pre-teen
assassin, and another contrasting take on the backstory of the silent
hunter behind the T-visor mask.

90 = Republic: Honor and Duty, John Ostrander/C.P. Smith. The
beginning of the end of the Old Republic, seen through the eyes of an
all-too-human Senate Guard. Sagoro Autem is probably one of the more
understated characters to appear in the comics, but his journey
describes the rise of Palpatine's dark New Order as a force
throughout the Galaxy, rather than simply the end of the cloistered
Jedi Order. Evidently, it caught some of your attention.

90 = Republic: Darkness, John Ostrander/Jan Duursema. A milestone in
the Quin Vos story-arc. Not only did it take the shadow-tinged Jedi
Knight home to Kiffu, but it forced him to face off aginst a fallen
Jedi Master mind-vampire, it transformed Aayla Secura into the
vampire Jedi's scantily-clad slave, and it introduced both Quin's
sneaky old mentor Tholme, and Tholme's fellow Jedi Master and lover,
shape-shifting tree Tr'a Saa. What could you not love about this
story?!

90 = The Truce at Bakura, Kathy Tyers. What is it that makes this
novel popular? Is it the reptillian villains and their droid armies
powered by imprisoned human souls? Luke Skywalker's tendancy to get
badly beaten up and nearly fall in love? The weary Imperial captain
at the furthest outpost of the Empire? The Wedge Antilles plotline
that disappears after the opening chapters? Or the geriatric
libertarian politicians who get their deserved chance to sock one
back to the Imperial occupiers? Maybe all of the above.

85 = Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War, Kevin J. Anderson/Dario
Carrasco, Jr. (story by Tom Veitch). Like Havac, I was surprised that
this comic-book epic about double-bladed lightsabers, Mandalorian
invasions, massive space-battles, and the dangerous willpower of a
red-headed Jedi woman proved more popular than it sequel Redemption a
psychological story of loss, betrayal, forgiveness, and time passing.
In hindsight, I'm not sure why.

85 = Republic: The Siege of Saleucami, John Ostrander/Jan Duursema.
On a besieged planet, Quin Vos faces down his darkness. Tholme's
sheer badassery suggests he may be an ancestor of Roan Fel. The last
of the Morgukai pursues a doomed, desperate attempt to avenge himself
on the Jedi. Sagoro Autem watches from his Star Destroyer in orbit,
tense and uncomfortable in his new Imperial uniform. Perhaps
the "classic" Clone Wars story, combining powerful character-arcs and
all the major elements of the overall war story in a single coherent
and impressive narrative.

85= Of Possible Futures: The Tale of Zuckuss and 4-LOM, M. Shayne
Bell. A philosophical short story about a Force-sensitive alien
bounty-hunter and his droid sidekick. Presumably voted for by the
same person who wrote the plot-summary on Wookieepedia? Or maybe just
one that more people ought to take a look at...?

85 = The Bounty Hunter Wars Trilogy, K.W. Jeter. The author of the
Blade Runner sequels gives us a very pared-down portrait of Boba
Fett, a complex, switchback narrative structure, and an exotic alien
broker sitting at the centre of a web of semi-sentient servants. Also
starring KDY kingpin Kuat of Kuat, his cute pet cat, and his kinky
cousin Kateel of Kuhvult . And some hover-capable Hutts in heavy
armour. And a guy who had his head replaced by a tank turret.
Certainly memorable.

85 = The New Jedi Order: Balance Point, Kathy Tyers. Mara Jade spends
the opening chapters gazing thoughtfully at Anakin Solo, and then
abruptly finds herself pregnant.

79 = Union, Michael A. Stackpole/Robert Teranishi. I can't do better
than quote Havac's comments on this one: Luke and Mara's wedding will
forever be remembered as a work showing the rare happy moments in
which the heroes take time off from the battles against the
Imperials, relax, and get attacked by a bunch of celebrity-lookalike
Imperials.

79 = Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy, LucasArts. There's a lot of ironic
commentary in fandom about "warlord of the week" stories that reuse
lots of familiar movie locations. Perhaps the biggest irony is that
they tend to work quite well. Like this one

79 = The Lando Calrissian Adventures, L. Neil Smith. Quirky early
adventures for everyone's favourite cape-wearing gambler, from a
prominent libertarian speculative-fiction author. Notable for
featuring an Imperial planet guarded exclusively by Kenner mini-rigs,
and for establishing that Star Destroyers are armed with "continent-
destroying hell projectors". Canonists, please take note.

79 = Legacy: Ready to Die, John Ostrander/Jan Duursema. Roan Fel's
badassery knows no bounds. Nothing more need be said.

79 = X-wing Rogue Squadron: In the Empire's Service, Michael A.
Stackpole/Darko Macan/John Nadeau. The Empire may be bad, but this
was the story arc that really established that even the worst of the
bad guys are also human. And some of the people fighting against the
Rebellion, like Colonel Baron Soontir Fel, might even be noble and
heroic.

79. = X-wing Rogue Squadron: The Making of Baron Fel, Michael A.
Stackpole/Darko Macan/Steve Crespo. Following neatly on from In the
Empire's Service, above. Looks at how a good man can come to serve
the Empire so effectively, and subtly shows how even genocidal madmen
and ego-driven killers can be considered with affection by their
friends and comrades.

77 = Legacy of the Force: Bloodlines, Karen Traviss. The first
paperback in the 'New Jedi Order' series, introducing an older, more
introspective Boba Fett, and seeing Jacen embark on his path to
become President of the Galaxy/reigning Sith Lord. You think they're
trying to tell us something by combining those two roles?

77 = Vader: The Ultimate Guide, Dan Wallace/Abel G. Pena/Karen
Traviss/Pete Vilmur. The first non-fiction book to make the grade;
but according to Havac, that's largely due to the fact that it
includes "In His Image", a short story by Karen Traviss.

To be continued: tomorrow, numbers 75-50!