Adventures of the Starkiller, Episode I: The Star Wars

The 'Adventures of the Starkiller, Episode I: The Star Wars' was the second draft of the script to the film which would become Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. It was begun in the summer of 1974 and finished early in 1975. It was replaced in May 1975 by a new synopsis called The Adventures of Luke Starkiller (episode one) "The Star Wars".

This version of the script shows a much closer resemblance to the finished film than any of the earlier drafts. It is particularly interesting because of Ralph McQuarrie's conceptual drawings and paintings, which were commissioned to accompany the second draft. McQuarrie began work on conceptual art almost as soon as the script was completed, working through early March 1975. As such, the second draft can be said to have first established the visual character of the Star Wars saga.

Synopsis
Above the planet Utapau and its five moons, a rebel starfighter fled three pursuing Imperial Stardestroyers. One of the Imperial cruisers exploded, but the Rebel craft was wounded.

Within the damaged Rebel ship were two droids, Threepio and Artwo. The smaller droid led his counterpart toward a corridor. A barrage from one of the Stardestroyers blew a hole in the ship, and Threepio was covered in debris. The Captain, Deak Starkiller, arrived and checked on the hapless robots. He informed his officers that to expect a boarding party, and that a Sith knight was with them. Deak sensed him in the Force.

Deak ordered a group of R2 units into the ship's lifepods to seek help from his younger brother, Luke Starkiller. One of those sent was Artoo, who took Threepio along. Stormtroopers swarmed onto the Rebel ship, and attack the crew. After a firefight, Darth Vader, clad in an armored spacesuit, entered the vessel. He flung objects and fragments of the ship at Deak using the Force, battering the young Ranger. Finally, Vader drained Deak of his life force and the Rebel passed into unconsciousness. Vader believed he had captured the Son of the Suns and had averted defeat for the Bogan.

Meanwhile, on Utapau, Artoo and Threepio are captured by Jawas and imprisoned inside a sandcrawler. After a prison break, the droids escape, and get directions to the Lars homestead from a local. The same local, however, reports the droids to an Imperial spy, called a Gray Tusken.

Characters

 * Bail Antilles
 * Artoo Detoo
 * Chewbacca
 * Darklighter
 * Dodana
 * Emperor
 * Montross Holdaack
 * Master of the Sith
 * Owen Lars
 * Oxus
 * See Threepio
 * Han Solo
 * The Skywalker
 * The Starkiller
 * Biggs Starkiller
 * Deak Starkiller
 * Luke Starkiller
 * Windy Starkiller
 * Tarkin
 * Darth Vader

Creatures

 * Dai Noga

Droid models

 * R2 units

Locations

 * Alderaan
 * celestial equator
 * Great Rift
 * Ogana Major
 * Ondos
 * Outlands
 * Utapau
 * Mos Eisley
 * Yavin 4
 * Massassi outpost

Organizations and titles

 * Black Knights of the Sith
 * First Galactic Empire
 * Gray Tuskens
 * Imperial Star Fleet
 * Stormtroopers
 * Grande Mouff
 * Jedi Bendu of Ashla
 * Padawan-Jedi
 * Power guild
 * Princess of Ondos
 * Rebel Alliance
 * Aquillian Rangers
 * Kesselian Dragoons
 * Republica Galactica
 * Great Senate
 * Son of the Suns
 * Transport guild

Sapient species

 * Human
 * Jawa
 * Wookiee

Vehicles and vessels

 * Rebel fighter
 * Stardestroyer
 * TIE fighter

Weapons and technology

 * hyper-skip
 * laser sword
 * seeker

Miscellanea

 * Ashla
 * Bogan
 * Credit
 * Force of Others
 * Kiber Crystal

Behind the scenes

 * The film script begins with a quote, much like the "A long time ago..." of the finished films: "...And in the time of greatest despair there shall come a savior, and he shall be known as: THE SON OF THE SUNS."--Journal of the Whills, 3:127."


 * This script was the first to feature the Force as a supernatural power. Earlier versions depicted the Jedi merely as potent warriors.


 * This was also the first script begun and oriented with the two droids. By beginning the script with the attack on the Rebel craft and with the evacuation of C-3PO and R2-D2, Lucas returned to the opening he had envisioned in The Star Wars: Story Synopsis, though there they were aboard an Imperial ship threatened with destruction. This was a return to an idea from Akira Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress.


 * However, unlike the Hidden Fortress and his earlier drafts, he now placed the character of Luke Starkiller as the main hero, rather than the General or the Princess.


 * This script introduced the Kiber Crystal, a "macguffin" device, or item that everyone wants, providing essential motivation for movement and action, but is not relevant to the film as a whole.