Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels [Hardcover]

Stephen J. Sansweet (Author), Pablo Hidalgo (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 3, 2005

For the true Star Wars fan, it doesn't get much better than this mammoth compendium in its evocative die-cut slipcase: a companion to the volume that covered the original trilogy and a visual tour through the final three Star Wars films. Photographs, behind-the-scenes production stills, early sketches, computer renderings, outtakes, and more from Lucasfilm's archives deconstruct Episodes I, II, and IIIevery vehicle, character, planet, and plot line is examined. Featuring more than 3,000 out-of-this-world color images, an insider's-perspective text, and production specifications, this is a gorgeous tribute to the most successful movie saga of all time.

2005 by Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM. All Rights Reserved.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Stephen J. Sansweet is the director of content management and head of fan relations at Lucasfilm. He lives in Sonoma County, California.

Pablo Hidalgo is content manager of starwars.com and has reported for Star Wars Insider magazine. He lives in San Francisco.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (November 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811847357
• ISBN-13: 978-0811847353
• Product Dimensions: 14.5 x 10.5 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #176,262 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

An expert on a variety of genre obsessions, from classic animation to shape-shifting robots, Pablo Hidalgo started writing about fantastic subject matters professionally in 1995 as a freelance author for roleplaying games.

In 2000, he changed careers from a visual effects concept artist and digital compositor in Canada to a full-time Star Wars authority at Lucasfilm Ltd., working with their marketing department. Since then, he has overseen the development of websites, co-authored several books and developed a number of online comic books and strips.

He lives in San Francisco.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE Sacred Star Wars Reference Bible!!!, December 8, 2005

By 

Dave Cordes (Denver, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels (Hardcover)

Even if you are not a fan of the Prequels, this book will simply blow your mind with its unbelievable wealth of photographs and reference material, most of which have never before been revealed by Lucasfilm until now. The presentation is truly epic with an exquisitely designed high-gloss black slipcase die-cut to accentuate the facial features of Vader's mask. Pull the hardbound archival tome out of its protective slipcase to reveal the grayscale visage of Young Anakin Skywalker behind the mask. Thus begins your unfathomable journey into the fantastic and creative worlds of the Star Wars Prequels containing hundreds upon hundreds of rare production photos, fold-out comparison charts, production designs and illustrations chronicling the creation of an entire galaxy of characters, costumes, ships, weapons and worlds from conception to execution. If you thought the Star Wars Visual Dictionaries from DK publishing were impressive, you have not even gotten your feet wet. This tome simply makes all others look amateurish by comparison and I dare say it is even more informative and comprehensive than the Original Trilogy Chronicles book that preceded it. This is THE definitive Star Wars Prequel encyclopedia nearly a decade in the making and should be in the possession of every single die-hard Star Wars fan. To reveal any more details would spoil the surprise of the rich treasure trove of information waiting to be plundered within the lush pages of its hardbound spine. Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels is a veritable Holocron of knowledge extracted from the Jedi Archives itself! What are you waiting for? You owe it to yourself. It is your destiny.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Yeah. This is totally worth the funds., December 5, 2005

By 

P. Rosenberg "rosiewook" (Lilburn, GA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels (Hardcover)

People probably don't remember the insanity created several years back when the first Star Wars Chronicles was released in Japan. Fans from all over the world were trying to figure out how to get their hands on it. It was finally translated back into English.

This book continues the tradition, covering the Prequel films. (Those are the films released in the past few years, for those not in the know.) It is, at its most basic, a big, visual reference book.

You get shots of almost all the characters, props and ships from the Prequels. And many of those are shown from a lot of different angles. Plus, you get these nifty fold-out pages that compare the sizes of different characters and ships.

If you're struggling to find a present for a die-hard Star Wars fan, this is probably a good, solid bet to send them into a catatonic state of wonder. And totally worth the money.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent reference book of the prequels, December 2, 2005

By 

J. Kelly "Roycommi" (Austin) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels (Hardcover)

I am a fan of an anime show called "Macross", and in the world of Macross there are two books that represent the penultimate guides in terms of reference drawings, notes, designer diaries, and rough sketches. These books are called "Perfect Memory" and the "Gold Book". It is no small complement to this book to say the Chronicles Prequel is the "Gold Book" of the Star Wars prequel franchise.

Like the Original Chronicles book, this book starts with fold out size charts of all the characters, then fold out charts of all the vehicles, and then fold out charts of all the ships. It then splits into chapters one for each movie, and one very small one for the animated series.

Each chapter covers vehicles, sets, equipment and a myriad of other things in exhaustive detail. Ever wonder how many clone troopers can fit on the back of that giant walking turbo laser battery? Ever wonder why Ploo koon still used the older Jedi star fighter when he was shot down? How about seeing the giant slug the troopers rode in that scene where Aayla was shot. Or take a peek up Lu-mai's dress :-) I can't stress enough how much visual information there is in this book.

To this day I still get out my old "Macross Gold Book" and go thru its myriad of line drawings and still find new details and things Ive never seen before. This book will fit into the same category, and is therefore a very good buy and very highly recommended.