The Force Awakens

The Force Awakens

   I did not know what to expect with this movie. Disney was making a gamble on this. The prequels were hated by so many. (not by me) It's not like Star Wars fans will love anything labeled Star Wars.
   To me I have read 40+ EU novels so now the future of those become uncertain. Jaina, Jacen, Mara Jade... what will happen to these beloved Old EU characters? (I'll call it OEU for short)
    I know this review comes late. I saw TFA when it was still in theaters but now I have watched it a number of times and have noticed a number of details I missed at first. Looking at it through the eyes of an OEU fan...
    In TFA the New Republic apparently didn't rise like it did in the OEU. In the OEU Coruscant once again becomes the Capital of the Republic. Mon Mothma it's leader and eventually Leia takes her place. The fall of the New Republic comes with the Yuuzhan Vong. This would take place before TFA so I guess you could use that to explain why Coruscant is no where to be seen in TFA but what I got from the movie was the New Republic never took hold and this First Order is what rises from the fall of the Empire.
    As in the OEU Luke Skywalker starts a Jedi school where he does teach his niece and two nephews. Jacen and Jaina (twins) and Anakin. In TFA so far we know he has a nephew named Ben not Jacen but clearly the actor was cast to look a bit like Jacen who also ends up falling to the Dark Side. There is a Ben in the OEU but it's Luke's son whom he has with Mara Jade who is one of the most beloved character's in the OEU.
    That brings us to Rey. A girl left on a planet that is quite reminiscent of Tatooine but it is not. So what happened to Tatooine? Anyway... I love when they show she lives in an AT- AT walker and made a doll that looks like a rebel solder! So who is Rey? We know she is force sensitive and is waiting for someone to come for her. Later Leia tells her they won't come but she should seek out Luke... well, that crosses Luke off the list of who was coming back for her. Also at one point she states "Thought Luke Skywalker was a myth" this is puzzling if she had been in his Jedi school and doesn't know he is even real. So I cross Luke off the list. Is she Han and Leia's daughter? Ben's sister like with Jacen and Jaina? This is puzzling too cause wouldn't Leia and Han have known this was their daughter and told her? Leia just simply says that Rey knows who was coming back for her wasn't coming back... which makes me wonder... who can not come back? Yeah, Han. So is this their daughter? Leia nor Han seem as emotionally connected with her then with Ben. I really believe she is either a Skywalker or a Solo but not sure which.
    Just a personal tidbit: Rey looks so much like my mother at that age it is CREEPY! Since I look a bit like my mom I guess I found my Star Wars look a like :-) Rey costume in the works!
    Sticking with Luke Skywalker it seems in TFA his school failed and he split. This is very typical for Luke in the OEU as well. He constantly battled the idea of what if one of his students fell. He also ran off for this reason in the OEU. He does so in one of my favorite trilogy The Dark Fleet Crisis. He also has students fall, one being his nephew Jacen Solo. But is Luke running here or more looking for something? Could he be searching for information about the Jedi? In the OEU he had little to go on but his short time with Yoda and Obwan. In one series there was a holocron with the secrets of the Jedi. Could he be searching for something like that?
    OK, here's the thing... I've been into Star Wars for years and have read many books (I've even played KOTOR)... who on earth are The Knights of Ryn!?! I missed this somewhere... I see people talk about them like they are old news and I've never heard of them nor heard of any knights in Star Wars other then Jedi Knights, so you got me on that one....
    Snoke. I've heard this and that on who Snoke could be. First I cross Darth Vader off the list. "Why?" Well, think about it. In Return of the Jedi we she Anakin as a force ghost showing he was indeed saved. As may times as the first trilogy was messed with I don't think they are going to mess with that. I will admit I've heard some interesting theory but I just don't think they are going to go in that direction. Let's look at the OEU. Who does come back? Emperor Palpatine. In the comic series Dark Empire Emperor Palpatine returns using cloned bodies to live in. His gole is to take over the body of Leia's unborn child Anakin. Also Luke gets pulled under by the dark side and is really never the same in the future because of it. But my point is, I would lean to this being Emperor Palpatine. In the Rogue One movie coming in Dec. Someone pointed out the Emperor kneeling at a bakta tank in one of the clips... interesting... could this be his old master... or maybe a body he has cloned to move into like with the OEU Dark Empire. Mara Jade later on doubts the Emperor ever returned being she would have felt him if was alive but that may have been just to cover up and inconsistency.
    Speaking of inconsistencies. In the OEU Jedi could not read your thoughts. Only feel your emotions. Vader was able to discover Leia was Luke's sister not by reading his mind but reading how he felt about her. So Kylo Ryn seeing the map in Rey's head would not be possible.
    Another thing is with the release of TFA they started using the term "the light side" in fact that was not a real term before. There was only the "Dark side"
    Random notes. Starkiller sound a lot like Star Crusher which destroyed stars. In the OEU a student of Luke's, Kyp Durron turns to the Darkside and runs off with this weapon.
    Anyone ever wonder if Finn was related to Lando? And come on, Fin likes Rey. Fin is not gay. I think they threw that out there just to get people talking knowing people would.
    Who is Poe anyway? I don't know what part he really plays in all this...
    Captian Phazma... no. Why? Just trying to get another female in the cast? Yeah, everyone was just dieing to see a female storm trouper finally, weren't you? They can lose her if you ask me. I don't see the point. She's just annoying.
    One thing had me puzzled, why did Kylo Ryn keep hitting his blaster woud? Was there a meaning to that? Coolist effect in the movie... the frozen blaster bolt! I'm not kidding, I though that was really cool!

    OK. Now the BIGGIE! Before they decided to do this last trilogy it was common knowledge that Harrison Ford would not be in another Star Wars film unless they killed him off. They were going to kill him in The Empire Strikes Back but didnt. So yeah, I even told my friends this when they asked me about what did I think might happen in the new movie. I don't know what was wrong with me. I sort of forgot that fact when I started watching it. He was so good in the part! When it happened I was kind of shocked! They really killed him! They REALLY killed him! Wow... that was a little hard and I was never even that big of a Han Solo fan though he was winning me over a little.

    Last but not least. The whole silent Luke deal is Epic! Top billing, no lines, and a couple of minutes of film time... how much did he get paid for this? You know it's funny after Star Wars Mark Hammel became a voice actor... back to Star Wars, no lines....

( I came across this on Wookiepedia. I wondered why they only gave Luke a minute of screen time in TFA. I liked the fact it made Han more of the Star and Luke gets the next film but here is what they say...
'"Luke's minimal screentime in The Force Awakens was decided by screenwriter Michael Arndt, who felt whenever the character entered his draft of the script, he would upstage Rey and the audience would cease caring about her. Ultimately, he, J.J. Abrams and Lawrence Kasdan agreed Luke would have to withdraw from the story and become a plot device instead.[42] Hamill still attended the cast's script reading, thereby concealing Luke's role, and was assigned to read the stage directions. "It was a way of having [him] be part of every scene, every moment, not just spiritually or thematically or narratively, but actually," Abrams said. "Having his voice in it made the read through a better experience for everyone.")

Enemy Lines II: Rebel Stand



Japanese Cover Art

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Irek

  I like how they are going back and pulling out characters from way back when! This one was I was surprised to see. Ever wondered what happened to Irek Ismaren from Children of the Jedi? Irek was a child with his mother who Leia runs into. The women, Roganda Leia had remembered from the days of the Empire. The question is raised if he could be the son of the Emperor. Irek has unusual force abilities. The boy and his mother disappear at the end of Children of the Jedi. 

 

  Luke and his group are now back at occupied Corsucant. Mara did not want to leave her son but feels that she should go on this mission. It was a good call. Just at the nick of time her days with the Empire saves the whole teams life.

 

   Want to makes some comments on the cover. Pretty cool looking painting of Han and Leia. Leia's hair is shorter which is true that her head was shaved a little while back... BUT, she's like, what, in her 40's now? That's a lot of grey hair and wrikles for a 40 year old! They did this to Luke as well in Vector Prime! 

 

   Then there is the Japanese cover for this novel. Luke looks really young there along with the rest of them. I like this cover better. I just would like to think they are healthy 40 year olds, lol... and the layout is more dramatic and relevant to the story! 



Enemy Lines I: Rebel Dream

     This book is actually named after a ship in the story. It's often annoyed me that titles don't make much since with the story. Anyway... spoilers... Wow! They have taken the Star Wars Universe and turned it upside down! +Star Wars

    This novel is one of two in a duology. Luke takes his wife and a team with him to see what is going on in the aftermath of Coruscant's fall. Luke fells he must go because he scenes a darkness he must seek out on the planet.

   Mara leaves her son Ben in the care of her brother and sister-in-law, Han and Leia Organa Solo, though she decided earlier that she could not leave her son. When she did in the past she almost lost him. Like I said about Mara in Balance Point, she's not a mother you want to cross! She's a pain in the neck in the best possible way, lol. Writers in this series have muted her a bit, which is annoying since she is such a personality!

Hanging out in Mississippi with Rebel Dream

 Jaina has now become a "Goddess". Or trying to look like one. I was getting a little lost at what that was all about. She's also battling with the loss of war. Losing both her brothers and a whole list of others. In her grief she tries to distance herself from those she loves but it backfires when Jag nearly dies and defying orders saves him making known to him that she cared for him. Afterward he confronts her. Even without the force Jag can somehow read her mind.

   What I found a bit shocking was the creation of a NEW rebellion! A very interesting twist. It's been a while now that the New Republic was not running like they had hoped. With the fall of Coruscant they have discovered out of necessity to start over again.

Star by Star

   One of the longest Star Wars books I have read! over 600 pages in the hard cover. I think the one that comes close is I, Jedi. I read that one in a paper back. I seem to remember it was around 600 pages as well but being paper back I don't know if it would be more or less in hardback.
   One thing I do not like in The New Jedi Order series is the intense gore. After a while I really feel uncomfortable reading the sadistic rituals of the Yuuzhan Vong. Really I feel this is an attempt to make The Black Fleet Crisis into a whole series. When I first read The Black Fleet Crisis I felt it should have been longer then just three books. The Black Fleet Crisis remains one of my favorites. The Yuuzhan Vong feels like a knock off of the Yevetha... I mean the names are similar! The Yevetha were disturbingly blood thirsty as well but the Yuuzhan Vong has topped them. Ugh...
   But I knew something happened in this book cause I thought I had heard a spoiler before I stared reading it... I didn't get it quite right so, well I guess I was somewhat taken off guard and confused when things were not going as I thought...



Anakin and Tahiri

Spoiler ALERT right here...

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   The death of Anakin! Some how I thought he turned to the darkside before his death and his death would take place in Star by Star. Got it half way right! I knew he died at some point in the series but I didn't know which book. I tried not to find out but I accidentally did.
   I'm really going to miss Anakin! He was one of my favorites.

Fey'lya's last stand.
( Isn't his fur white in the book?)

   Another thing I didn't see coming was the fall of Coruscant and the death of Chief of State Fey'lya!!! As surprising as these deaths and events are I think it is a smart move because it does add an extra edge for the reader cause you know they will go as far as killing someone! Someone who's a pretty important person! Hate to say I'm glad they knocked him off! I don't know how many books Fey'lya has been in but he's been annoying the Solos & Skywalkers for YEARS! An irritating character! But he did sort of die as a hero so I can give him that. In the end he truly did care about the New Republic and not his own hide.
   One thing I greatly disliked about this book was how long it was!!! I love long books... but there was just too much of unneeded information that was boring! Less battles and more depth! I mean with a 600+ page novel you'd think they would have plenty of room for both...