Category: Books

Entertainment Update for June 2024

Hello friends! A few new Star Wars things to talk about and a movie, so let’s get to it!

(SPOILERS AHEAD!!!)

The Acolyte, Episodes 1-5. I’ve been really enjoying this latest Star Wars offering, despite the haters and all their ridiculous criticisms. Let them complain; they’re missing out on some cool Star Wars. Is it perfect? Nope. Is it a new flavor of Star Wars that is intriguing, fun, and tragic all at the same time? Heck yes!

The only real problem I’ve had with it is the pacing, but it’s a minor grumble. As a reader of the High Republic books, I’m a bit sad that Vernestra has become so entrenched in politics and keeping things from the Council, but maybe that’s part of her character arc and that might change (people tend to change after a hundred years, I guess, lol). We’ll see.

I’m assuming if you’re reading this, you’ve been watching, so I’m not going to recap anything; let’s just talk about that awesome Episode 5. Holy lightsaber fights! This episode was full of not only the kind of Jedi action that we love, but some plot twists, shocking deaths, and on-point dialogue that had me glued to the screen.

I assumed that all the unnamed Jedi were goners, but Jecki’s death really hurt, and #YordHorde is mourning deeply. I’m a little shocked that Sol just left them there in the jungle, but I guess he couldn’t very well carry them both out, or any of the many Jedi that died that night; besides, they were in a hurry to get back to the ship and didn’t have time to bury them.

I was kind of surprised/not surprised that “The Stranger” turned out to be Qimir. I mean, it was obvious, but I figured it was a little too obvious. I’m still glad it was him, because Qimir–or whatever his name is– whether he’s the bumbling smuggler or the badass darksider, is very entertaining. Whether or not he’s an actual Sith has been up for debate in the fandom (some people think he might be an early Knight of Ren), but I’m going with yes, he is a Sith. The fact that he quotes part of the Sith code in an earlier episode (“Peace is a lie”) and he mentions the very word “Sith” makes it clear, at least to me. At any rate, he believes he’s a Sith. The whole Ki Adi Mundi outrage seems silly to me. I really don’t care when Legends said he was born; and clearly, his words about the Sith in the prequels shows he either a) doesn’t know about this guy because it was covered up, b) is lying, or c) is in deep denial over the whole thing, which is quite indicative of prequel Jedi in general.

Mae’s twin-swap, and the swapping of Masters, is something I was not expecting. I don’t like to predict anything about this show, precisely because it’s unpredictable and surprising, but I’m thinking Osha may become the Acolyte this guy’s looking for. I hope not, but I wouldn’t be surprised. I’m not sure about Mae’s fate, but I can’t wait to find out, as well as what actually happened on Brendock. Sol is the only one left who knows the truth and he’s going to have to confront that painful truth, whatever it is.

This show is keeping me on my toes, and I’m loving every minute of it!

Temptation of the Force, by Tessa Gratton. This is the second adult novel for Phase 3 of the High Republic (The Eye of Darkness by George Mann being the first, along with the YA offering Defy the Storm by Justina Ireland and middle grade book Escape from Valo by Daniel Jose Older and Alyssa Wong). This one came out the first week of June, so I’m only halfway through it, but I’m thoroughly enjoying it.

This one focuses on the Republic and the Jedi crossing the Nihil’s Stormwall for rescue and relief missions, trying to help those still stuck in the Occlusion Zone. With the help of Xylan Graf and Avon Starros, they find a way to bring down the Stormwall and launch an attack against the vicious General Viess, who has taken over the planet Naboo.

Meanwhile, Marchion Ro is investigating an intriguing but terrifying blight that is spreading across some worlds, hoping to use it to his advantage.

The book centers on a few personal relationships, the most obvious being the one between Jedi Masters Avar Kriss and Elzar Mann, as the cover would suggest. Close since their time as Padawans together, Elzar has always struggled with his feelings for Avar throughout the series, while Avar had maintained a boundary that she refused to cross. After many brushes with mistakes and the dark side, Elzar had been finally coming to terms with who he needed to be as a Jedi. Now, however, after escaping the Occlusion Zone in The Eye of Darkness and being away from Elzar for a year, Avar realizes she’s in love with him and has been slowly introducing the idea to him that they can be together and that their love is a good thing, without being possessive or selfish in that love. Hmm, I don’t know Avar, I don’t think you understand romantic love, or at least, the tendency of romantic love to go that way, lol. I’m totally shipping them, but I also am convinced that this relationship does not bode well for them, the Jedi, or the future of this story.

Another relationship it explores is that between Jedi Master Porter Engle and his nemesis General Viess. Their long history began many decades ago and was explored in a comic that I didn’t read, but I do know it resulted in Porter’s sister taking a vow that was ultimately named after her: the Barash Vow, in which a Jedi abstains from taking action from the Order and isolates oneself to listen only to the Force, as a kind of penance for some wrong-doing (this is seen in The Acolyte with Master Torbin, who had taken the Barash Vow sometime after the events on Brendock). At any rate, the two hate each other, but also respect each other; Viess has shown considerable skill in holding her own against a Jedi and the Force (having a beskar sword helps). Viess nearly killed Porter in the last book; now, he is determined to end her life and pursues her throughout this book relentlessly. Porter is clearly on a revenge mission, operating outside the Order, but he’s accepted that. Maybe he feels that if he survives, he’ll take the Barash Vow himself, but I don’t think he expects to live. It’s interesting because Porter has not fallen to the dark side at all. He just decided that he’s going to kill this woman or die trying, and that’s that, lol.

It’s these personal relationships and thorny Jedi choices that make these High Republic books so great to read, at least for me. We’re seeing the beginning of the end of the High Republic, events that lead to The Acolyte a hundred years on (which clearly shows the Jedi have become more political), which of course leads to the Prequel Jedi and their downfall. Good stuff! I’ll write more about this book next month after I’ve finished it.

Medstar I: Battle Surgeons and Medstar II: Jedi Healer (Legends), by Michael Reeves and Steve Perry. These two books are basically Parts 1 & 2 of one long novel, focusing on Jedi Padawan Barriss Offee, who has been sent to the planet Dongar to help the medical personnel stationed there. She suspects that her master, Luminara Unduli, has sent her there for her Jedi Trials. The planet is being contested by the Republic and the Separatists for a particular fungus that acts like bacta, but works even better. It focuses not only on Barriss, but on human chief surgeon Jos who has seen his share of clone injuries and deaths, a Sullastan reporter looking for his next big story, and an unnamed spy in their ranks, who works for both the Separatists and the Black Sun crime syndicate.

I picked these novels out mostly because of a renewed interest in Barriss considering her shorts in Tales of the Empire, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I really enjoyed these books on their own. Jos’ struggle with coming to terms with seeing clones as actual, individual human beings (and seeing droids as possibly sentient beings) while also struggling with his feelings for a woman who is not permissible according to his people’s traditions, really captured my full attention; Den Duhr, the Sullastan reporter, finds that he’s actually less cynical than he thinks and might even be a hero, though he’s loathe to admit it; and Barriss learns an important lesson about the dark side–that it can be deceptive and cloak itself in the illusion of doing the right thing. Or at least, what feels like the right thing. In fact, it doesn’t feel evil at all; it feels good. All the while, the question of who the spy is continually intrigues and makes the reader consider and eliminate various characters as the books go on.

I don’t read a lot of Legends books, but I personally loved these Medstar books.

Honor Among Thieves (Legends), by James S.A. Corey. I just started this book on my Kindle and haven’t gotten very far, but so far, it’s pretty good. It takes place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. Leia asks Han to extract one of the Rebellion’s spies, Scarlet Hark, from the planet Cioran, deep in the heart of the Imperial-run Core. I’ll write more about it next month when I’ve gotten further or finished it, but I will say I like that it’s all Han’s point of view, which I don’t see too often.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. I’ve always loved the Mad Max movies, though The Road Warrior is by far the best of the lot. When Fury Road came out a few years ago, I thought, a Mad Max movie without Mel Gibson? Pshaw! But Tom Hardy did an impressive job of filling those shoes, and anyway, Max wasn’t really the focus of that movie, Furiosa was, and I absolutely loved her! When I heard that another Furiosa movie was in the works, I got excited because I knew I’d love another go-round with Charlize Theron as the titular character. But wait–it’s not that. The filmakers go back in time and tell Furiosa’s story of how she came to the Citadel, beginning when she was taken as a child from The Green Place. And Anya Taylor-Joy would be playing young adult Furiosa. Disappointing to me, but I thought I’d give it a chance.

And by and large, I enjoyed the movie. It was interesting to know Furiosa’s backstory. How she was taken by marauders from her lush, green home in the middle of the Australian desert; how her mother pursued them across the wasteland like a demon and nearly succeeded in getting her child back; and how, ultimately, she was caught, tormented, and killed. The leader of the marauders, Dementus, is played by Chris Hemsworth, who’s been given a prosthetic nose to…I don’t know, dial down the handsome? I guess, but it works, because he looks strange to me, lol. But he does a great job portraying this weird, vicious, driven, but ultimately broken man, a man that Furiosa vows to take her revenge upon.

She ends up at the Citadel, run by the horrendous-looking Immortan Joe, while Dementus takes control of Gastown, one of the three communities in the wasteland (the other being Bullet Town). She’s brought to Joe’s harem, witnesses one of his women give birth to a baby with too many limbs and resists the gross advances of one of Joe’s sons. She decides she’d rather take her chances masquerading as a boy than stay in that harem, cushy though it may be (besides, you know, having to have sex with ugly Joe and giving birth to his mutant children).

She grows up learning what she can to survive, until one day she stows aboard a big rig that regularly makes a run to one or the other communities, to trade food for gas or weapons. The rig is attacked by marauders, though, and she and the driver, Praetorian Jack, are the only ones who survive. Jack, impressed with her, offers to teach her how to be a Praetorian (basically, a driver of the big rigs).

During the course of their time together, they fall in love. Yep, I said it: there’s an actual love story in a Mad Max movie (besides the first one all those years ago). It’s not overly done or thrown in your face, but it’s sweet and actually kind of nice to see such tenderness in this awful, vicious world. But of course, it can’t survive said viciousness. Inevitably, they get attacked by Dementus and his goons on one of their runs, and it doesn’t end well: Jack is killed (and not quickly) and Furiosa loses part of her arm, explaining that prosthetic arm she sports in Fury Road.

Eventually, war breaks out between the Citadel and Dementus, and Furiosa uses this opportunity to go after the man who kidnapped her and killed her mother, as well as her lover. She pursues him relentlessly and eventually gets her revenge. But here, it gets a bit ambiguous: did she simply shoot him in the head? Make him suffer like Jack? Or…plant a tree in his guts (the seed her mother gave her) and watch him suffer as it grew out of him? The fruit of which she brings to the women in Joe’s harem, beginning a relationship of trust with them? Which leads, of course, to her helping them escape in Fury Road.

I really enjoyed this movie, though I felt it was a bit too long. Taylor-Joy does a good job of portraying younger Furiosa, but Hemsworth as Dementus was pretty entertaining. A truly horrible man, but he must have had a family at some point, as he wears his (presumably dead) child’s teddy bear on his belt. This world had chewed him up and spit him out, and he survived by becoming as violent as the world that broke him. It’s a contrast to someone like Jack, who shows kindness and love despite his losses, and later, Max, who, while distant, still has a heart in there somewhere.

Speaking of Max, I blinked and nearly missed his “cameo” in this film: a distant shot of him leaning against his instantly recognizable vehicle atop a cliff, watching a chase from afar while eating his dogfood from a can. He’s in the title of the movie, so I guess he had to be in there somewhere, lol.

For some reason, this movie didn’t do well at the box office, but I thought it was a winner.

What’s been entertaining you lately? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Entertainment Update for May 2024

Hello friends! May was a busy Star Wars month, so let’s get right to it. 🙂

The Bad Batch series finale. Although this is the first thing listed, it’s the last thing I wrote because I don’t even know where to begin with this, lol, and summing it up in a few paragraphs is impossible. I’ve been very emotionally involved in this series since it began, and having it come to an end has been bittersweet. I’m not going to go into details of the show here (I’m assuming you’ve watched), just feel all my feelings, lol.

First off, I feel that Season 3 has been pretty solid, particularly Crosshair’s character arc and redemption. There are lots of characters I would have liked to see return or at least know what happened to them (Cody? Cid? Wolfe? More Rex and the clones? I definitely would have liked more Phee, too) but the season focuses on the Batch and their mission, as it should.

The whole “Is Tech still alive?” thing was really up in the air for me; at the beginning of the season I thought there might be a possibility, and there seemed to be some clues planted here and there. But by the last few episodes I concluded he was truly gone and subsequently had to grieve for him all over again, but also feel relieved that he didn’t come back as some awful brainwashed assassin like the CX’s, Winter Soldier-style, which is the only way I feel he could have come back. But now I can at least move on and know that his sacrifice allowed the happy ending for his family that we got. (There’s always my alternate-universe fan-fiction, where he does survive, and I can live there simultaneously with the canon version, lol).

Anyway, there were so many doom-sayers that were convinced that everybody was going to die at the end in Rogue One style and I just wanted to say to them: um, shutup? I suppose it was one possibility, but I really didn’t think the series would go that route. At most, I thought we’d lose maybe one more member, but I think Tech was enough to make the point that not everyone gets out alive and that there are stakes. The fact that they all survived and got to live out their lives on Pabu pretty much made me over-the-moon happy (At least this part of my fan-fiction was validated! As well as Omega eventually going off to fight in the Rebellion). Even Emerie survived, who I thought for sure would sacrifice herself to help the children escape. I’m glad she lived, too.

Like I said, there’s so much I could touch on here but I’ll just say that I loved every minute of this last season and the finale was everything I hoped for. The tears didn’t start until the credits rolled, because it was then I knew it was over, and that made me sad; but the Batch were allowed to get old on beautiful Pabu and be whatever they wanted to be, and that made me happy. I like to think that they not only helped Rex find the kids’ parents, but also helped out with the Hidden Path in some way, helping Force sensitives evade the Empire. Not fighting anymore, just doing their little part, helping where they could. A good life with purpose.

I’m hoping to see Rex, Echo, Emerie and the other clones in some future project, as well as Omega during her Rebellion adventures. I dream of her and Hera reuniting and giving the Empire hell! And maybe a cameo by the Batch in any of these stories. A girl can dream, lol.

Tales of the Empire. So this show was part of the May 4th festivities, and I couldn’t wait to watch it. I really liked it, for the most part. I think I like Tales of the Jedi better, but this one gave us some insight into Morgan Elsbeth and the long-awaited return of Barriss Offee. Out of the two characters, I preferred the Barriss episodes. The theme of the shorts was how these two different characters reacted to the rising dark, and how they dealt with the idea of revenge.

Morgan was a young Nightsister on Dathomir when her people were slaughtered by the Separatists, led by General Grievous. She survived, but instead of joining the Mountain clan (which seems to be guided by the Light side of the Force, while the Nightsisters draw from the Dark side), she decides to strike out on her own and seek revenge. At first, I wasn’t sure who she was going to wreak vengeance upon, since the Separatists are no more. But I see now that she’s playing the long game, using the Empire (and Thrawn) to consolidate her own power for Dathomir (as she says in Ahsoka, “For Dathomir” under her breath in response to Thrawn’s “For the Empire.”) Unfortunately, that means hurting others in her quest for power.

Barriss, after Order 66, is offered the opportunity to become an Inquisitor, which is what a lot of us theorized. Even though I did like her shorts better, there’s always been something about Barriss that just didn’t make sense to me. She’d been disillusioned with the Jedi and thought they were becoming more war-like, losing their way, so she…rigged an explosion in the Jedi temple? And framed her “best friend” Ahsoka for it? It didn’t quite make sense, especially since she seemed to be an excellent Padawan in every other way. But okay.

Now, after Order 66, she’s given the opportunity to become an Inquisitor, considering her aforementioned crimes. But every step of the way, she resists the darkness. She kills the other Padawan to survive, not because of any inner ambition. She repeatedly questions their orders and missions and seems naive about their true aims. She doesn’t seem brutal enough to have passed their tests in the first place (having read Rise of the Red Blade, yes, they are terribly brutal, culling any sign of weakness whatsoever.)

Anyway, Barriss decides the Inquisitorious is not for her and saves a Jedi she and the Fourth Sister are supposed to kill (I do like that we get more of her, since she didn’t have much to do in the Obi-Wan series). She goes off and becomes a “Wise Mother,” using her Force healing skills to help others. There’s some evidence she’s a link in the Hidden Path, helping Force-sensitives get away from the Empire. I like this destiny for her; she may have believed the Jedi Order didn’t work, but neither did she think going to the dark side would help anything, either. She just uses her gifts to help others.

I do feel like the Fourth Sister came back to the Light much too quickly, but maybe she was already halfway there after years and years of anger and hate. Honestly, I don’t know how anyone can sustain themselves on those exhausting emotions for so long. She accidentally impales Barriss in the cavern in trying to get out; but we don’t know if she actually died or not. So now we’ll continue to get more questions of “What happened to Barriss?” LOL.

The Acolyte excitement and trailers. I just want to point out that in two weeks, The Acolyte premieres and I’m sooo ready for it! The trailers have been awesome and I can’t wait to sink into this Jedi murder-mystery thriller at the end of the High Republic. Naturally I’ll be talking about it more next month.

The Phantom Menace in the theater. For May the 4th weekend, I caught The Phantom Menace in my local theater. It’s celebrating 25 years since its premiere, which is a little crazy to me, lol. When it first came out, I brought my 8-year-old stepson, who loved Qui Gon Jinn, and Maul’s double-lightsaber. At the time, I wasn’t quite so open-minded as I am now and just didn’t get it. It wasn’t “my” Star Wars. It was so different from the OT that I couldn’t really embrace it at the time. But I did it for the boy, lol. And subsequently brought him to see Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith, when they came out.

Now that boy is thirty-three and brings his own young son to see all the Star Wars (and Marvel) movies. And me? I love them, of course. I’ve since relaxed A LOT and just enjoy them for what they are–fun Star Wars movies. Back then, Jar Jar grated on my nerves, and I thought he was a stupid character; now I just want to give the big goof a hug. Obi-Wan Kenobi as played by Ewan McGregor has become one of my all-time favorite Star Wars characters. Qui Gon is also a favorite Jedi character; they’re all quite interesting, but I think they’ve been improved upon in subsequent material like The Clone Wars, and many other projects like the Obi-Wan Kenobi and Ahsoka series, never mind countless books.

So it was a fun ride watching the film on the big screen again, this time with a lot more appreciation.

In books, I was kind of all over the place this past month. While waiting for the next High Republic book to come out (Temptation of the Force on June 11th), I went back and forth with a few different things, not really sure what I was in the mood for. Here’s a few books I started but haven’t finished yet (and may or may not finish):

Stone Blind, by Natalie Haynes. I’m often drawn to retellings of ancient mythical stories, especially since modern retellings will often turn them on their heads with different perspectives and interpretations. The Medusa myth has always fascinated me: the story of a goddess who was turned into a monster, and whose gaze turned men to stone. Naturally, when I found out some time ago about the details of the story–that Medusa had been raped by Poseidon, was blamed for the incident and turned into the monster–I felt outrage. Typical “blame the victim” patriarchy, misogyny at its worst; good for her, turning arrogant men who would hunt her into stone, they deserve it, and what have you. Yet I wanted to see what this version would bring to the story.

But I wasn’t too far in when I realized why I haven’t read Greek myth retellings for a while now: the rapes kept adding up, and so did my rage. They weren’t particularly graphic scenes; just the fact that they happened on the regular, by Zeus in particular (what a vile creature he is), just made me sick. In fact, all of the Olympian gods are vile and arrogant and petulant and just plain odious. I suppose that’s the point. But I just couldn’t get through it.

I suspect I’ve been spoiled, in a way, by Star Wars books (and movies and shows). Gender oppression isn’t a thing in these stories, not by a long shot. It doesn’t exist. Rape is never, ever mentioned (this is a PG-rated world, after all), but more than that, in the world itself, women (or transgender persons, for that matter) are simply taken for what they are without question. Good, bad, meek, strong, beautiful, ugly, rulers, peasants, soldiers, parents; gender doesn’t play into the role at all (neither does ethnicity nor sexual orientation). Certainly, there are those in our world who have something to say about this and Star Wars “wokeness;” but I have no patience for any of their nonsense and ridiculous labels.

Anyway, what I’m saying is, I’ve read so much Star Wars and immersed myself in this world so much, that when I encounter misogyny and other bigotry in other books, it’s jarring and upsetting to me. As it should be, but…mental health, lol. So Stone Blind has been set aside for now.

Canto Bight, by various authors. So I retreated into another Star Wars book, one that I haven’t had much interest in but thought I’d finally check out since there didn’t seem to be much else I wanted to read. But…it’s boring, lol. The first story was a bit amusing, but I don’t know or care about these characters at all. And Canto Bight isn’t a setting I’m particularly fascinated by. Set aside for another time, perhaps.

Medstar 1: Battle Surgeons, by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry. So now that I’ve watched Tales of the Empire, I’ve got Barriss Offee on my mind, lol, and want to know more about her besides what we see in the Clone Wars. She’s in a couple of Legends books called Medstar: Book One: Battle Surgeons and Book Two: Jedi Healer. They’re like a Star Wars M*A*S*H, following a group of doctors and nurses on the planet Drongar that sew up and treat clones that are injured in battle. The battle is being waged here for a special substance called bota that’s kind of like bacta, and both sides want it. There’s an arrogant Tera Kasi warrior, an ambitious Republic Admiral, and an unidentified spy in their midst. I like how Barriss is portrayed as a Force healer in these books, as we see in the last short of Tales of the Empire. We don’t see too much of that in canon until Rey in the Sequel Trilogy. I just started the first book, and already I like it better than the other books I’ve tried to read lately. I’ll write more about them next month.

That’s it for this month (that’s plenty!). How did you celebrate May the Fourth? What’s been entertaining you? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Entertainment Update for April

The Bad Batch S3. We’re just one episode away from the conclusion of The Bad Batch as a series, and I’ve got mixed emotions about it: anticipation, dread, excitement, sadness, and curiosity about how the heck they’re going to wrap everything up in one final episode based on where we are right now. There’s been some speculation that the last episode (titled “The Calvary Has Arrived”) will be longer than the usual 25 or so minutes, but I’ve also heard it’s just going to be 22 minutes. So who knows?

There’s also speculation that the finale will introduce the beginnings of a new animated series about the Clone Rebellion, led by Rex, Gregor and Wolfe and perhaps Echo; but again, we don’t really know. Bad Batch fans are just holding their collective breath to see how this story ends, who might die, who lives to fight another day, and darnit, who’s CX-2? Is it Tech? Cody? Just another clone? There’s so many questions that need to be answered. And, ready or not, we’re going to get them (hopefully) next week. I’m planning on writing a post after the finale for my final thoughts. What are your predictions?

Tales of the Empire. I’d been hoping for a Season 2 of Tales of the Jedi, but this will definitely do. All six short episodes drop on May 4th with three focusing on Morgan Elsbeth, and three on Barriss Offee. It will be interesting to see Morgan’s beginnings with the witches of Dathomir and how she became Thrawn’s ally; but I think we’re all a bit more excited about seeing Barriss for the first time since her arrest in Clone Wars. Questions about her fate have been swirling in the fandom for years, and now finally we’ll get some answers. Based on the trailer, she’s obviously been recruited to become an Inquisitor after Order 66, but will she ultimately commit to the dark side? Can’t wait to find out!

The Living Force, by John Jackson Miller. I’m not quite done with this book but I’m getting close, less than a hundred pages left. It takes place just before The Phantom Menace; Qui Gon Jinn has offered a challenge to the Jedi Council: to reconnect to the Living Force, get out of the Council chambers and away from their focus on the Cosmic Force (the big picture), and “Just help one person.”

So they do. All eleven members of the Council decide to meet up on the planet Kwenn. The Jedi Temple there, manned since the High Republic, has been slated for closing, a common occurrence at this time. During the High Republic, the Jedi established Temples on a great many planets, to send a message to the people that “The Jedi Stand With You.” Since then there aren’t many Jedi outposts left, as the Jedi increasingly retrenched to the main temple on Coruscant and made decisions in close concert with the Senate and the Republic. The Jedi Council, in particular, have lost touch with the common people of the galaxy, who increasingly don’t trust the Jedi or know very little about them.

Anyway, off they go: Ki-Adi-Mundi, Yarael Poof, Plo Kloon, Saesee Tiin, Even Piell, Eeth Koth, Mace Windu, Adi Gallia, Yoda and Yaddle. Depa Billaba is also a member of the Council at this time, but she’s on a mission. Mace becomes concerned when she goes missing, and his part of the story is trying to find her and what her mission involves, while the others arrive on Kwenn and soon become enmeshed in helping the locals with solving their problems. Kwenn’s society has been declining in recent years and has seen an influx in pirate activity, which in turn has led to less tourism, and the corporations operating there leaving the system, which impacts everyone living there.

While they’re helping various people and groups, they’re also planning a big celebration where they invite all the citizens of Kwenn to show their solidarity with them. The problem is, the villain of the book, a pirate named Zilastra who has kidnapped Depa Billaba, plans on consolidating her power in the sector and killing all the Jedi at this celebration.

John Jackson Miller does an admirable job switching back and forth between all these characters and their individual missions, while making the story fun and lighter than most other books. There’s quite a bit of humor, and we get to know these lesser-known characters and their personalities better. It’s kind of sad, knowing the fate of all these characters at the hands of either the Separatists, Sidious, or Order 66 (Yoda being the only survivor). Because of this, I’m glad of the opportunity to get to know them better.

Star Wars and Philosophy Strike Back, by various contributors. I was browsing through a Barnes and Noble store recently and came upon this book in the philosophy section, so of course I had to get it! I don’t usually read a lot of nonfiction about Star Wars but I want that to change and this seemed like an interesting place to start. I haven’t gotten into it yet because I wanted to finish The Living Force first, but it addresses questions like:

Should droids be free? Should clone troopers?

What political and ethical ideas ground resistance and rebellion?

What’s wrong with the way women are portrayed in Star Wars?

Does Han Solo have a philosophical worldview?

Was Galen Erso responsible for the destruction of Alderaan?

Should you eat Baby Yoda?

I’m not sure what that last question is all about, but I’m certainly curious, as I am about all of them. There’s a total of thirty-six essays addressing some deep questions presented by Star Wars, written by various philosophers, and I’m looking forward to delving into them.

That’s about it for this past month. What’s been entertaining you? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

Entertainment Update for March 2024

Hello friends! I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying whatever it is that entertains you. Quite a bit to get to this month, so here we go:

Defy the Storm, by Justina Ireland and Tessa Gratton. This is the YA novel of the first wave of Phase 3 High Republic books, and centers around the characters from Phase 1’s Out of the Shadows: Vernestrah Rwoh, Avon Starros, Sylvestri Yarrow, Jordanna Sparkburn, and Xylan Graf. On my reread of that book, I really came to love these characters, so I’m happy to get back to them and see how they’ve fared since the Stormwall went up.

I’m not done with the book yet, so I’ll have more to say next month, but I’m enjoying it so far. Avon Starros is the daughter of Ghirra Starros, the ambitious Senator who has aligned herself with Marchion Ro, and Avon is none too happy with that. She strikes out on her own (with the help of Deva Lompop, a Nihil who has come to be Avon’s protector) to find vengeance against Dr. Mkampa, a Nihil scientist who stole her work to create the Stormwall, and to try to destroy the Stormwall itself. She seeks out Venestra, who has been on Sabbatical, of sorts, since the fall of Starlight Beacon. Vern believes her Padawan, Imri Cantaros, died on Starlight, but Avon knows he’s alive and wants to reunite Vern with him (and also get her help without letting her know about her plan of vengeance).

Jordanna and Sylvestri have been doing jobs for Maz Kanata and helping the Republic in any way they can against the Nihil, but Jordanna wants to do more, and find her brother and his family on the other side of the Stormwall; while Syl is still struggling with the death of her mother, Chancey Yarrow, and the part she played in the fall of Starlight.

They get mixed up with Xylan Graf, who is “working” for the Nihil in a guest/hostage sort of situation on the Lightning Crash, which is where the technology for the Stormwall originates. I can’t decide how I feel about Xylan; he’s both interesting, if flamboyant, and exceedingly annoying. But I can never quite figure out what he’s got up his sleeve, and where his allegiances lie, so he keeps me guessing. There’s a lot of backstory that I’m guessing went on in some comics, which always irritates me since I don’t read the comics, but it’s not that hard to catch up. I’ll give my final thoughts on the book next month.

From A Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back. While I was waiting for Defy the Storm to come out, I kept busy with this book’s short stories. All the FACPOV books are by various authors and tell a story from that movie from the point of view of a minor character. I never finished the one for A New Hope; most just didn’t grab me that much. This one turned out much more interesting, and there are some good stories in there, although I’ve only read the first 6 or 7 tales, and we still haven’t gotten off of Hoth, lol. I think it’s a book I’ll read in between other books while I wait for them to come out. The Return of the Jedi version recently came out, and I really think that one will be good, too, but I’m going to wait for it to come out in softcover so my copies will be consistent.

Dark Disciple reread. So I debated re-reading this one ever since we found out Asajj Ventress will be making an appearance in The Bad Batch, and finally decided to dive into it again (the day before her appearance in Ep 9 The Harbinger, so last minute). But it really is a fantastic book, and I’ve put down Defy the Storm a few times to read large chunks of this one at a time. It’s one of the first few canon books I read when I started on this journey and remains one of my favorites. It tells of how the Jedi Council decides to assassinate Count Dooku to end the war and chooses Quinlan Vos to do the job–and that he should connect with Ventress for help. This opens up a whole can of worms, as Vos and Ventress fall in love, Vos falls to the dark side, and the Jedi continue down a questionable path. Spoiler alert: Ventress dies at the end of the novel, protecting Vos from Dooku’s Force-lightning. She sacrifices herself to save the man she loves. But, lo and behold! she’s not dead, apparently, as she makes her appearance in the Bad Batch.

TBB showrunners promise that her appearance does not contradict the events of Dark Disciple. As Ventress was “buried” on Dathomir in the same manner as her Nightsister family–from which they can be “resurrected” through Nightsister magic–I don’t have a problem with this, but it will be good to get some details about it when the time comes. Of course, the Fandumb Menace are up in arms about this, a la “Death doesn’t mean anything in Star Wars anymore!…blah blah blah.” Look, it’s overused, I get it, but in this case, it’s totally plausible. Witches, you know. Anyway, I’m happy to see her back.

One of the awesome posters for Season 3. This one of Crosshair with his helmet is my favorite.

The Bad Batch Season 3 so far. I’ve been loving the new season so far and have managed to post my thoughts on the first five episodes. I had a plan to post every week with my thoughts on each new episode, but you know, life, lol. At some point I will do a catch-up post. As it is, I think this season so far is fantastic, and I’m loving the little moments between Crosshair and Omega, especially, and just how he’s trying to adjust being back in the squad. I’m curious to see how this whole M-count thing with Omega turns out, how they’ll find Tantiss, who will help, and who the latest clone assassin is (so many theories! And honestly, it could be no one special, like the infamous Marrock, but I highly doubt it). And I just know Pabu is going to be attacked by the Empire (there are clues in the trailer), and I’m sick about it. 😦

Anyway, it’s agony waiting an entire week for 28 minutes of story, but I’m not one who can wait for them all to drop and then binge. It’s hard to believe we’re halfway through the season already and I have a feeling that things are going to ramp up big time after a foundation of quieter moments. So I’m getting ready for a wild ride, and I’m here for it!

Dune Parts 1&2. So I had every intention of going to see Dune Part One in theaters when it came out, but I just didn’t get there and then it fell off my radar. When Part Two came out, I was determined to see it on the big screen, so I rented Part One on Youtube to catch up, and boy, I’m glad I did.

Ever since I heard of Dune, I’ve wanted to love it, to know it, to understand it. I tried to read it many years ago, but for some reason, I had no idea what the hell was going on and couldn’t get into it. Then the 1984 film came out, and I thought, here we go, this will make it easier! Well, no, not really. It was pretty bad, lol, and I just didn’t “get it.” But a stubborn part of me held onto hope that someday, the light switch will go on. I think it was because I knew that Star Wars takes a lot of cues from it, borrows from it, while certainly being completely different from it.

Back in the day, I used to think Star Wars was “science fiction” because, you know, space, so I looked for more of the same in things like Dune and Isaac Asimov’s Foundation books. I was sorely disappointed in them, because where were the space battles? Where was the swashbuckling? Why were they so damn philosophical and heavy and, well, boring? Lol. When I finally figured out that Star Wars was space fantasy, things clicked, and I found other books and films that gave me that same sense of wonder. Science fiction, not so much (I do enjoy a good sc-fi book or film these days, though). It’s a different animal. But Dune? I wanted to love it and get it.

And, thanks to director Denis Villeneuve, and the absolutely amazing cast of these movies, I can safely say that, finally, yes, I get it! Maybe not all of it, but I’m totally enthralled and impressed and just blown away by how good this story, and these films, are. It’s complex and weird and visually stunning, and Paul Atreides’ hero’s journey from boy to man, from young nobleman to messiah, is captivating. At the end of Part Two, it seemed that it was going to be a trilogy, but I’ve heard a Part Three hasn’t been greenlit yet. Seems to me, though, it’s inevitable, and I’ll be in the theater with my popcorn, excited to see where this all goes.

Is that…blood? In Star Wars? Yikes!

The Acolyte trailer and release date. We’ve finally gotten a trailer and release date for The Acolyte, and I’m hyped! The trailer looks awesome, and the show will premiere on June 4th. Ever since its announcement, I’ve been intrigued by the premise of this show, which has been described as a kind of dark side whodunnit thriller. Yaaass! And as a High Republic fan, I couldn’t be happier to see it come to life in live-action, even though it’s the tail-end of that era. Basically, the High Republic is the Golden Age of the Jedi and the Republic (about 200-400 years before the events of The Phantom Menace), but here, about 100 years before that film, it’s the beginning of the end. As it states, a darkness is rising.

It’s hard to say off of the trailer alone, but evidently someone is killing Jedi, and the answers surrounding this mystery are not going to be good. The presence of a red lightsaber suggests the Sith are stirring after a thousand years of the Jedi believing they are exctinct. Which of course we know, they are not. I believe the Jedi’s experiences with the Nihil a few hundred years before have changed the Jedi and weakened them in a fundamental way, and the Sith are going to take advantage of that and plan their eventual return, which we see in the Prequels.

Anyway, totally excited for this one, despite the exhausting comments about “wokeness” from the afore-mentioned Fandumb Menace. What a complete and utter bore they are. I think it’s a sign I need to get off social media for a while and take a break from the toxic trolls, lol.

What’s been entertaining you? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Entertainment Update for February 2024

Hello friends! It’s been a busy month and there’s a lot to cover, so here’s an update of what’s been entertaining me lately:

The Golem and the Jinni, by Helene Wecker. I finally finished this big book, and absolutely loved it. It’s the story of a female golem, a supernatural creature made out of clay by Hebrew magic, and a male jinni, a creature of light and fire from the Syrian desert. These two form an unlikely friendship in 1900 New York. The story of how they came to be and how they met is a long, complicated one, but it turns out the man who made the golem is also the reincarnated version of the man who trapped the jinni in a bottle a thousand years ago. The soul of the man’s many lives is bound–and cursed–by the spell he wove so long ago, binding his soul to the jinni. By circumstance and serendipity, the golem and the jinni find themselves trying to fit into the human world they’re trapped in, and eventually escape the clutches of their nemesis, Joseph Schall. This is a very simplistic summary; the story is richly told, the setting of Little Syria and the Jewish neighborhoods in New York in 1900 is intricately detailed, and the cast of supporting characters is fantastic. It took me a few months to read it, and I loved every minute of it. I just found out there is a sequel called The Hidden Palace, and I’ve promptly ordered it; I’ll be voicing my thoughts on that on my next update.

Escape from Valo, by Daniel Jose Older and Alyssa Wong. This is the first middle-grade novel for Phase 3 of the High Republic. It takes place on Valo, where the Republic Fair took place and was attacked by the Nihil in the book The Rising Storm, from Phase 1. Valo is the home planet of Ram Jomaram, a Padawan who had adventures and battles against the Nihil in previous books. Since the attack on the Republic Fair two and a half years ago, the Nihil put up their Stormwall and took control of Valo. They killed many adult Jedi with the Nameless, and Ram is hiding out in the abandoned Jedi Temple, and masquerading as the “Scarlet Skull,” making strikes against the Nihil and broadcasting his rebellious messages on various channels.

He comes across three Jedi younglings–Gavi, Kildo, and Tep Tep–who had been hiding in the mountains for a year but have been inspired by the Scarlet Skull and have come back to Lonisa City to fight the Nihil. Thrown into the mix is a Zabrak youth called Zyle, a pirate who has come to Valo to find bacta on the sunken ship the Innovator. Together they cause trouble for the Nihil commander, Vark Tarpalin, and hatch a plan to retrieve the bacta.

Another player is Driggit, Gavi’s former best friend who has joined the Nihil, initially to help protect her parents and Valo. She had thought her former Jedi friends had been killed, but when they show up again attacking the Nihil, she inexplicably becomes enraged. I didn’t really understand or like this character. I thought her stint with the Nihil was just a ruse and she wasn’t really one of them, but when her friends come back, she blames them for making things worse and is actually willing to kill them later on in the story, and she feels very much like an actual Nihil. I felt her character was a bit contrived for drama’s sake.

Other than that, I enjoyed the book and thought it a fine addition to the High Republic middle-grade collection. It’s got a lot of heart and deals with Jedi relationships and attachments, their connections to the Force, and of course, learning to deal with fear, to accept risk, and to grow.

The Legends of Luke Skywalker, by Ken Liu. This was a pretty fun book. It takes place during the Sequel era, when Luke Skywalker is still in hiding, and very much just a legend for most people. A crew on a transport ship are heading to Canto Bight for a delivery, and they amuse themselves with stories they’ve heard about Luke Skywalker. Most of the stories are entertaining (even though their knowledge or ideas about the legendary Jedi are garbled at most, and ignorant and ridiculous at worst). There was only one story I thought particularly stupid, and that one’s about a flea-sized sentient creature hanging out on Luke and giving him directions on how to fight the rancor and Jabba’s henchman. Are you kidding me? But maybe that’s the point: these stories about Luke can beggar belief; it doesn’t take long for facts to get mixed up, for feats to be exaggerated, for truth to become tall tales. But I like how in one of the stories, Luke himself, after listening to some woman relate ludicrous tales about Luke Skywalker, say that he doesn’t mind the inaccuracies. The whole point of the war and the New Republic was partly about freedom of speech; people can say what they want without fear of being imprisoned or killed. Luke’s actions weren’t about being celebrated as a hero, but about fighting for what’s right. As long as that was accomplished, it doesn’t matter what people say about him. I thought that was a great touch. Anyway, an entertaining read.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking, by Susan Cain. I’ve had my eye on this book for a few years now, as I am an avowed introvert. As I suspect is the case with most introverts, I’ve always felt out of place in this loud world and that perhaps something was wrong with me. I even feel that my introversion has held me back in my life and I’ve missed opportunities that might have made me more successful. While this might be true, it’s gratifying to know that I’m not alone, that introversion is not a kind of deviance or disease, and that we can learn to work with our personality traits to navigate successfully through life. I’ve just started this book, and the beginning is filled with scientific studies, both biological and psychological, and it’s fascinating. I do hope we move on from all the studies and possibly learn some strategies in making life a bit easier for those of us who don’t wish to throw ourselves into the spotlight. At least not all the time, lol.

I love how Omega looks like a tough little cookie here, lol.

The Bad Batch Season 3 Premiere. The Batch is finally back, and the first three episodes didn’t disappoint! I’m working on a separate post of my thoughts for the episodes, but until then let me just say I’m loving it already and am excited for the next episode! Stay tuned.

Assembled: The Making of Echo. These behind-the-scenes docs are always fun to watch, and this one’s no exception. I was impressed that the entire cast and a lot of the crew learned sign language before filming began, to make things flow easier for the deaf star, Alaqua Cox. They also asked for input from the Choctaw Nation, to be as authentic as possible in their Native representation on screen. I adored this series; there were no global stakes or huge super-hero powers at work, just a woman caught between two worlds who’s trying to make sense of who she is and who she ought to be. All while being very kick-ass, of course, lol.

Upcoming: Temptation of the Force, Tessa Gratton. This book was just announced for release on June 11th. It’s the second adult High Republic novel of Phase 3, and I can’t wait for it!

Forbidden love…it’s going to be disastrous, and it’s going to be great!

Here’s the blurb:

For over a year, Jedi Masters Avar Kriss and Elzar Mann were kept apart by the Nihil’s Stormwall. After Avar makes a daring escape from inside the Occlusion Zone, the star-crossed Jedi are reunited. But while the physical distance between them has evaporated, their shared grief over their failure to protect the galaxy from the Nihil threat remains.
 
To rally the Jedi Order and the Republic, Avar and Elzar cling to their belief in serving Light and Life. Together, they lead a daring mission into Nihil space to liberate the planet of Naboo and show those trapped behind the Stormwall that the Jedi will never abandon them. Now back within close orbit of each other, the two Jedi Masters can no longer deny the bond that has always drawn them back together and made them stronger.
 
After finally embracing their true desires and imbued with renewed purpose, Avar and Elzar devise a plan to turn the tide of the conflict with the Nihil once and for all. Accompanied by Jedi Knights Bell Zettifar, Burryaga, and Vernestra Rwoh, the Jedi begin their hunt for Marchion Ro. But to seek out the Nihil’s dangerous leader, the Jedi will have to survive the Nameless terrors that thus far they have been powerless to stop.

Temptation of the Force

Can’t wait for this one, but first comes Defy the Storm, the next YA novel coming out March 5th, so plenty of High Republic to keep me happy!

What’s been entertaining you lately? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Entertainment Update for January 2024

Hello friends and welcome to my entertainment update for January! Here’s what’s been entertaining me lately:

The Golem and the Jinni, by Helene Wecker. This book caught my eye when it first came out in 2013 and has been on my mental book list ever since. I found this used edition at my local Salvation Army for a few bucks and decided it was time to read it. It’s about two magical creatures from two different cultures: a golem from Jewish tradition and a jinni from Arabic culture. A golem is a being made from clay in human form and brought to life, meant to protect their master. A jinni (genie) is, well, you know; but my understanding of these spirit creatures is being expanded by this book.

The “present” of the novel takes place in turn-of-the-century New York City, but we get flashbacks of the Jinni’s long life in Syria, though he doesn’t remember how he was put into the flask in which he is found by Arbeely, a tinsmith in Little Syria. Turns out he was imprisoned by a wizard a thousand years ago. The golem, on the other hand, is very new, having been created by an old rabbi wizard named Shalmaan in Poland for a man named Rotfeld, who wanted a wife and companion as he embarked on a journey to the New World. Unfortunately, Rotfeld died on the ship over from a burst appendix, and the golem is left alone. In the city, a Rabbi named Avram recognizes what she is and takes her in to help her. Both creatures must learn to navigate this bewildering new world.

It’s a big book (over 400 pages) and it’s a slow burn; I’m about a fourth of the way through and they haven’t met yet. I’m reading it rather leisurely, but it’s very intriguing and compulsively readable. I’ll check in again when I finish it, hopefully at next month’s update.

Cobalt Squadron, by Elizabeth Wein. This is a junior novel that takes place between The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi, centering on Rose Tico and her sister Paige. I’ve been in the mood for more sequel stories, and this is one I hadn’t gotten to yet. We see Paige Tico die at the beginning of The Last Jedi in the bomber run against the First Order, and Rose later grieving for her. We are led to understand that they were very close, but we don’t get to see that in the film. So we get it here in this book, as they serve together on the bomber Hammer of Cobalt Squadron. The bombers of Cobalt and Crimson Squadrons are on a mission to help Atterra Bravo, a planet that’s being blockaded by The First Order. They must perform a series of supply drops to the planet while evading asteroids (some of which are armed with automatic cannons) and First Order TIE fighters. The bomber supply runs are dangerous and nerve-wracking, but Rose remains brave and determined as long as her sister Paige is in the gunner turret. In fact, Rose can’t imagine going on a mission without her sister. By the end of the story, she’s ready to be separated from Paige, after the destruction of Hosnian Prime puts them on different ships–Rose on Amilyn Holdo’s Ninka, and Paige on the Hammer, where she’ll be killed. It’s a sad foreknowledge, but I enjoyed this book where they could serve together one last time.

What If… S2. I’ve been a bit picky about the Marvel projects I’ve watched lately, having skipped most of the live-action shows and only viewing the latest movies (the notable exception being Loki Season 2). I enjoyed the first season of the animated show What If…? but when I saw that Season 2 was out, I thought, meh. I don’t know why, I guess I just wasn’t ready. But once I finally watched the first episode, I was hooked all over again. Each episode just got better and better. While the episodes explore variations of our heroes (and villains) in several different multiverses, there is an over-arching story arc involving Peggy Carter aka Captain Carter, continuing on from Season 1. I wasn’t particularly interested in her at first, but she’s grown on me. I loved every single episode here; they’re super fun, often hilarious, and could be heartbreaking as well. I also love how at the end of the last episode, the multiverse here is somehow connected to the World Tree multiverse that Loki is now holding together, though only vaguely. I’m hoping we’ll get more information on that in a Season 3.

Echo. This series is billed as a “Marvel Spotlight” as it’s only five episodes long, just long enough to focus on Maya Lopez, a character introduced in the Hawkeye series. While that series didn’t wow me as much as I’d have liked, I was intrigued by this character who is deaf and has a prosthetic leg. That doesn’t stop her from being totally badass, of course. There’s plenty of action here, but the heart of this series is Maya’s story. We got a little bit of it in Hawkeye, but it’s expanded on here, and let me tell you: it’s fantastic.

Maya comes from a long line of gifted Chocktaw women, and her Native heritage is front and center in this show. The crux of Maya’s story is her need to choose between her birth family in Oklahoma (which includes her estranged grandmother Chula, her cousin Bonnie, another cousin named Biscuits, and her uncle Henry); and her uncle in New York who happens to be the villain Kingpin. I don’t know much about Kingpin, other than he runs a criminal empire. He also loves Maya very much (or what seems to serve as love, for him). After her father died, he took her into his organization and she became an integral part of it, doing a lot of his dirty work. Fueled by rage and a sense of abandonment by her birth family, it took Hawkeye to open her eyes to her uncle’s ruthlessness. Oh, and he killed her father. At the end of the Hawkeye series, she shoots Kingpin in the face, believing him dead.

But of course he’s not. He pursues Maya to Oklahoma, presumably to kill her, but really to try to make amends and bring her back into the organization. But Maya’s having visions of her ancestors and must decide who she wants to be and where her loyalties lie.

I didn’t think I was going to watch this series, but I’m so glad I did! Don’t sleep on this gem if you can help it.

In Star Wars news, we got some pretty exciting announcements lately, such as:

The Mandalorian and Grogu movie, Ahsoka S2 announced. On top of the three movies that have been talked about the past few months (the Rey New Jedi Order movie, the James Mangold Dawn of the Jedi movie, and the Dave Filoni Mandoverse movie), suddenly out of nowhere we get an announcement stating there will be a movie about Din and Grogu called, originally enough, The Mandalorian and Grogu. There was some debate about whether or not this movie will replace a season four of The Mandalorian, but I think the consensus is that it will not. There will be a S4 of The Mandalorian and this movie. At some point. There are no anticipated release dates for any of these films or shows, including the near-afterthought announcement of an Ahsoka Season Two. I was happy to hear about that. Of course, as is always the case, things may change. I’m just going to sit back and wait and see what they bring us and not hold my breath for anything, lol.

Bad Batch S3 Trailer. And of course, we got the first trailer for The Bad Batch Season 3, which I’m super-excited about, as you may imagine. I posted a brief reaction to the trailer the other day and am just counting down the days to February 21st when it premieres.

So that’s it this month. What’s been entertaining you? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

High Republic Highlight: Avar, Stellan and Elzar

If you know me, you know I’m a big High Republic fan and share information on the books whenever I can. I thought I’d do a High Republic post once a month or so, highlighting an aspect of this era of Star Wars for those who are unfamiliar and are curious.

This post I’d like to focus on the three main Jedi characters that have been introduced: Avar Kriss, Stellan Gios, and Elzar Mann. It seems every Star Wars story has a trio of main characters consisting of two men and a woman. The OT has Luke, Han and Leia; the PT has Obi-Wan, Anakin and Padme; and the ST has Poe, Finn and Rey. So why not the High Republic?

This trio happens to be all Jedi, which I find intriguing. They were Padawans together, the best of friends, growing up in the Temple and becoming Jedi Knights. By the time of the first book, Light of the Jedi, Avar and Stellan are Masters, while Elzar has yet to achieve that rank. Elzar is…a bit different. Let’s get into the character of each here.

Avar Kriss by Mike Mayhew.

Avar Kriss. Avar is prominent in the first HR book Light of the Jedi, but then shows up in the comics for most of Phase 1, where she often fights the Drengir (plant monsters, lol), often with the help of the Hutts, with whom she has made a temporary treaty. In time she becomes the Marshal of Starlight Beacon, the High Republic’s much-touted space station. Every Jedi in this era connects to the Force in their own particular way. Avar “hears” it as a song, and every living being exudes a different note. As Padawans, she and Elzar had a, ahem, relationship; this wasn’t expressly forbidden in the Temple at the time, but not exactly encouraged, either. Once they became Jedi Knights, they moved on from the relationship and focused on their Jedi duties. Well, Avar did, but Elzar is having trouble with his lingering romantic feelings for Avar.

Stellan Gios by Mike Mayhew.

Stellan Gios. If there ever was a poster boy for the Jedi Knights, Stellan is that Jedi. Handsome, charming, good at public relations, and dedicated to the Order, he’s dazzling in so many ways. Stellan sees the Force as a constellation of stars (as his name suggests), and Avar and Elzar look up to him and consider him their “polestar.” He’s the only one of the three who has trained a Padawan: Vernestrah Rwoh, a gifted Mirialan and the youngest Jedi to become a Knight in a very long time, at fifteen. Stellan plays a large role in the Battle of Valo against the Nihil and becomes an even bigger hero by saving the Chancellor, Lina Soh. While Avar is away from Starlight Beacon on her quest to find Lourna Dee, a Nihil leader, Stellan steps in and takes her place. Stellan believes Avar is becoming obsessed and perhaps starting down a dark road (and this may be true, but I haven’t read the comics, in which this story is told). Avar becomes rather resentful of Stellan stepping in and criticizing her; so by the time of The Fallen Star, they’ve had a kind of falling out. But it’s in this book that Stellan finds out who he truly is, beyond the shiny image of the Perfect Temple Jedi. Trapped on the doomed station, without the Order to guide him, without his Force powers (as the Nameless runs rampant on the station), he must dig deep within and find resources he never knew he had. Stellan ends up sacrificing himself to save others, going down with the station. I’ll admit, I got teary-eyed, lol.

Elzar Mann from the cover of Light of the Jedi.

Elzar Mann. Elzar is the most conflicted of the three Jedi, at least as the story goes on. Elzar, unlike his friends at the beginning of the story, is not a Master yet. The Order is a little hesitant to bestow that title on him, as Elzar has proved to be rather “experimental” in his Force abilities, trying things that aren’t sanctioned by the Order. He’s powerful, but they feel he’s a bit reckless, or at least, unpredictable. He reminds me a lot of Anakin, and I think he’s supposed to, the difference being in how the Order deals with such things. During the Battle of Valo, Elzar draws on his rage at the Nihil, using the dark side of the Force to pull a Nihil ship out of the sky. Afterward, he feels terribly guilty, and the Order sends him to an island with Orla Jareni, a Wayseeker (another way the Order is different from the prequel Jedi: a Wayseeker is a Force-user from the Temple who operates independently, outside the strictures of the Order). Orla helps him reconnect to the Force, stressing patience and persistence. Elzar sees the Force as an ocean, its powerful waves and its deep, quiet depths. Elzar struggles with his feelings for Avar; he respects her and their duties as Jedi, yet it’s still there. By the time of The Eye of Darkness, they’ve become closer in their grief over Stellan, and once the Stormwall is up and they’re separated, feelings on both sides have intensified. They’re reunited at the end of the book, and I see a passionate forbidden affair in the works, one that could ultimately lead to tragedy (sound familiar?).

So these are the main three Jedi introduced into the High Republic, among many, many Jedi, lol. I’ll occasionally do a post on other Jedi from the High Republic, as well as many other people, events, and concepts that I find interesting.

For Light and Life!

I rank the Star Wars books that came out in 2023

Since I’m on a roll with ranking Star Wars content, I thought I’d give my highly subjective ranking of the Star Wars novels that came out in 2023. From most to least favorite, here’s my list:

The Eye of Darkness, by George Mann. It was a close contest between this one and Rise of the Red Blade, but this one was more anticipated by me and didn’t disappoint. It begins Phase 3 of the High Republic, getting back to many beloved characters from Phase 1 after the destruction of Starlight Beacon. Marchion Ro has erected a “Stormwall” around a section of the galaxy that is called The Occlusion Zone. This area is inaccessible to the rest of the galaxy, trapping many worlds behind it, along with many Jedi and Padawans. These Jedi, among them Avar Kriss and Porter Engle, are trying to help those trapped under Marchion’s rule, as well as finding a way through the Stormwall; on the other side, the Jedi, particularly Elzar Mann and Bell Zettifar, and the Republic are trying to find a way through as well. I loved every minute of it.

Rise of the Red Blade, by Delilah Dawson. Delilah Dawson is one of my favorite Star Wars authors. In her own words, she loves to write about “violent women,” lol. She wrote about Phasma’s origins in Phasma, and the Resistance spy Vi Moradi in Black Spire, which I greatly enjoyed. This one tells the story of Iskat Ikaris, a Jedi Padawan who, after Order 66, becomes an Inquisitor. Most of the book chronicles her experiences in the Jedi Order and how they, let’s say “mishandled,” Iskat and her dark side tendencies. We spend most of the book witnessing her frustration at being held back and not allowed to use her strengths in the Force. She seems to be made for battle, and her skills are extraordinary. But the Jedi are keeping secrets from her, and Iskat feels alienated and angry. We come to sympathize with her, while at the same time dreading her descent into the dark, which of course we know is coming. Very compelling story of a woman caught between worlds.

Cataclysm, by Alyssa Wong. This is an adult novel of Phase 2 of the High Republic and was a stronger installment for me than its predecessor, Convergence. It highlights the renewed violence between the two planets Eiram and E’ronoh, and the part played by the Path of the Open Hand in the war. But the main character arc is that of Axel Greylark, the disgraced son of the Chancellor, who is approached by Jedi Knight Gella Natai for help in the conflict. Axel must ultimately decide if he wants to truly help the Republic (represented by Gella, who he’s developed feelings for, and his mother, the Chancellor) or remain a part of the Path of the Open Hand–and the supposed “freedom” the group offers from the weight of his past and family name.

Path of Vengeance, by Cavan Scott. This is the companion Young Adult novel to Cataclysm, and here we get to see more closely the machinations of the Path of the Open Hand through its mysterious leader the Mother, as well as what happens with Marda and Yanna Ro, ancestors of Marchion Ro of the villainous Nihil. We see the Battle of Dalna from multiple viewpoints, both Jedi and Path members, and witness the Mother’s unleashing of the terrifying Nameless–creatures that can turn Force-users into ash. Marda’s story, in particular, is of interest, as it’s she who sows the seeds of the future Nihil. Her path from sweet, gentle believer in the Path to a cold, ruthless leader is chilling.

The Battle of Jedha (Script), by George Mann. I’m generally not into audiobooks. I know some people love them, but I have to read a book rather than listen to it to fully absorb its story. I’d much rather read the script than listen to it, and that’s what I did with the Battle of Jedha, since I didn’t want to miss the story it tells. Representatives from the warring planets of Eiram and E’ronoh have gathered on Jedha to sign a peace treaty, but it’s sabotaged by the Path of the Open Hand with an explosion. The two enemies blame each other, and their forces begin fighting in the streets. To add to the confusion, a Nameless creature has escaped and is destroying many Force-users present in the Holy City. Jedi Master Creighton Sun and Jedi Knight Aida Forte, with the help of the Guardians of the Whills, try to stop the battling armies as well as investigate who caused the explosion in the first place. This is my first audiobook script, and I enjoyed reading it; it’s like reading the script of a play, that’s all.

Tales of Light and Life, by various authors. This is a book of short stories taking place in the High Republic. Some occur during Phase 2, and some are “prequels,” of sorts, to Phase 3. I liked all of them, though some were better than others. The most important, from a plot standpoint, is “After the Fall,” by Claudia Gray, which tells a story about Bell Zettifar soon after the fall of Starlight Beacon in Phase 3, and which reveals the fate of the Wookiee Jedi Burryaga. My favorite story, though, is “A Closed Fist Has No Claws,” by Tessa Gratton, which is about what Mardo Ro is up to after the events of Phase 2, and how she sets the remnants of the Path toward their destiny as the Nihil.

Crimson Climb, by E.K. Johnston. This book is about Q’ira from the movie Solo: A Star Wars Story. I wrote about it here in one of my Updates if you’d like to read it, but basically, it’s about what happens to Q’ira after Han escapes from Corellia, but she doesn’t. It chronicles her rise through the Crimson Dawn ranks and how she becomes Dryden Vos’ lieutenant. I enjoyed the book, but it wasn’t as if I tore through it eagerly. I do think it might be the first part of a trilogy, which would be great and I’d be here for. Despite all the stories of Q’ira taking place in the comic world, I think there’s more room for her in novels, as well.

Quest for Planet X, by Tessa Gratton. The middle-grade books of the High Republic have been consistently good, nearly on par with at least the young adult entries. This one is pretty good, but not one of my favorites. It takes place during Phase 2 concurrently with the young adult book Path of Vengeance; as is often the case, it focuses on some Jedi Padawans or other young people and their stories. This one stars Jedi Padawan Rooper Natani; Skye Graf, a young member of the powerful Graf prospecting family; and Dass Leffbruck, the son of an independent prospector. Dass and Sky recruit Rooper to help them on a race between the Grafs and the San Tekkas to chart new hyperspace lanes; however, their real mission is to find the mysterious Planet X (where, incidentally, the Nameless creatures are from). However, they run into some members of The Path of the Open Hand and must decide if they’re going to help the Jedi during their fight on Dalna.

Jedi: Battle Scars, by Sam Maggs. This one excited me at first; I’m not a gamer, and so felt like I was missing out on some important Star Wars lore with Cal Kestis and his crew. I so badly wanted a novel with these characters, so I, too, could participate in their coolness, lol. But this book falls short of what I was hoping for. It wasn’t terrible; it just wasn’t that great. The romance between Merrin and the female Imperial deserter was cringe-worthy at best. I’m all for romance in Star Wars, but this was like really bad fan-fiction (and I’ve written fan-fiction, lol). The rest of the plot was fine, I suppose, but I guess I was hoping for more characterization of the main characters, probably because I don’t play the games and didn’t really know them that well. Cere, in particular, really interested me, but I was left wanting. Very much my least favorite book of the year.

So these were the Star Wars novels that came out in 2023 and my thoughts on them. Did you read any of these books? Which was your favorite? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

What I’m looking forward to in Star Wars in 2024

Now that I’ve talked about what I loved in 2023, let’s talk about what’s coming up in 2024.

The Bad Batch S3. Again, no surprises here if you know me. The Batch’s third and final season still has no release date, but at some point I heard maybe April, so we’ll see. It can’t come fast enough! How will Crosshair and Omega escape Tantiss? Who will the rest of the Batch recruit to help find them? Phee? Rex? Fennec Shand? Benny? How will the story of the clones in general wrap up? And of course–is our favorite goggled clone still alive?

The Acolyte. I’m pretty psyched about this one. It takes place near the end of the High Republic, perhaps fifty years before the prequel era. Here’s a plot blurb from The Nerdist:

“The Acolyte is a mystery-thriller that will take viewers into a galaxy of shadowy secrets and emerging dark-side powers in the final days of the High Republic era. A former Padawan reunites with her Jedi Master to investigate a series of crimes, but the forces they confront are more sinister than they ever anticipated.”

Oh my word, I am so there, lol. I’m guessing it’s going to hint at the Sith planning their return, which of course leads to Palpatine and his devastating coup d’etat. One of my favorite High Republic characters, Vernestra Rwoh, is presumably going to make an appearance, and will be near one hundred years old (which is prime for a Mirialan). I’m eager to see what kind of role she’ll play in the series. As far as I know, there is no release date as of yet.

Tales of the Jedi S2. I really enjoyed Season One of this little animated series, which focused on Ahsoka and Count Dooku in three 10-15 minute shorts for each character. I’m looking forward to seeing which Jedi Season Two will focus on, and when it will drop (all the episodes of Season One dropped at once, and I assume this one will do the same).

Phase Three High Republic books. I’m including books in this list as well as streaming content, since I’m a huge Star Wars book reader. Phase Three (Trials of the Jedi) began in late 2023 with George Mann’s Adult Novel The Eye of Darkness in November. The Phase continues this year with the Middle Grade book Escape from Valo at the end of January and the Young Adult book Defy the Storm in March. That’s Wave One of this Phase, and waves two and three will continue throughout the rest of the year, wrapping up the Phase, as well as the entire series, in early 2025. The High Republic has really been a highlight of my Star Wars love since it began three years ago with the release of Light of the Jedi.

Other Canon Books: The Living Force, by John Jackson Miller, and The Glass Abyss, by Steve Barnes. There seems to be a pattern to Star Wars publishing lately, namely that early in the year we get the latest High Republic, then in the spring a standalone canon novel, another standalone at the end of the summer, and then the High Republic again in the fall and winter. The Living Force, about the Jedi High Council on a mission in the Outer Rim, will release in April, while The Glass Abyss, about Mace Windu, will be out in August. I’m looking forward to both books.

Skeleton Crew. This show has been talked about for a long time now, but because of the writer’s strike (which I absolutely supported), it looks like this one won’t be out until the end of the year. I’m okay with that, as it’s the thing this year that I’m the least excited about, but I will certainly be happy to watch it. It’s about a bunch of kids going on adventures in the galaxy, to put it very basically. It stars Jude Law as a Force-sensitive who looks after these lost children; the show is being billed as a fun family adventure. Perfect for Christmastime.

As of this writing, Andor Season Two is not on the roster for 2024 and seems to be slated for release in 2025.

What about you? What Star Wars projects are you most excited about? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!

My Favorite Dystopian/Apocalyptic Books

I’m a fan of dystopian fiction, but I’m a bit finicky about it. I tend to stay away from Young Adult dystopian (no Hunger Games or Divergent series, thank you). I usually like more literary-minded picks, but there are exceptions. I’ve been reading Octavia Butler, so I started thinking about my favorite dystopian novels. Here they are, in no particular order:

The Stand, by Stephen King (1978).

How it all ends: Accidental release of deadly bio-weapon

Basic premise/plot: A superflu kills 99% of the population; the survivors must choose between the powers of good and evil for the fate of humankind, following either Mother Abigail (good) or Randall Flagg (evil).

My thoughts: One of my first Stephen King reads, and one of my favorites. It’s a huge book with a ton of characters, but gripping for the most part. It’s been years since I’ve read it, but there are memorable characters I’ll never forget: Trashcan Man, in particular, who likes to set garbage (or anything, really) on fire–and even sets a whole empty city on fire; Tom Cullen, the mentally-challenged guy who is always spelling moon (“M-O-O-N, that spells moon.”) King is always entertaining.

Adaptations: I’ve seen the 1994 miniseries with Gary Sinise as Stu Redman and Molly Ringwald as Frannie. I liked it, for the most part. I haven’t watched the 2020 version, but maybe I’ll put it on my list.

The Handmaid’s Tale, by Margaret Atwood (1985).

How it all ends: Subjugation of women through theocracy take-over.

Basic premise/plot: In the near future, America has been taken over by a theocracy and renamed The Republic of Gilead; in a world of dwindling birthrates, women of child-bearing age have become property with no rights and used by wealthy couples to have children.

My thoughts: I read this book years ago, and it outraged me. Not the book itself, which is brilliant, but what happens in the book. I was young and couldn’t imagine such a thing coming to pass, couldn’t imagine women’s rights being so eradicated and reduced to basically medieval status. Ah, the naivete of youth. Now, it not only outrages me, but scares the hell out of me. Because it absolutely could happen, as far-fetched as it sounds. I won’t get into politics here, but let’s just say I’m not too optimistic about women’s rights just about now.

Adaptations: There was a 1990 film that I never saw (and I heard it wasn’t very good), but I’ve watched the first season of the series on Hulu in 2017. It’s fairly true to the book with a few smart changes, and was sobering and upsetting to watch. In fact, I decided not to watch the following seasons because I just couldn’t bear it, lol. I’m someone who can get through every brutal season of Game of Thrones, but this show just hit a nerve for me and I couldn’t continue.

Station Eleven, by Emily St. John Mandel (2014).

How it all ends: Worldwide Deadly Pandemic

Basic premise/plot: A worldwide pandemic has nearly destroyed the human population; a group of actors and musicians travel the countryside in the Great Lakes region to entertain the survivors with Shakespeare and classical music, as they believe “Survival isn’t enough.”

My Thoughts: I adored this book. I mean, it’s tragic that the flu happened, but the story and the writing is wonderful. If you’re looking for a Mad Max kind of post-apocalyptic world here, you won’t find it–it’s too quiet. There’s just not enough people. But those who are left behind find a way to survive, and this particular group–actors and musicians–try to bring a little joy back into life through art. It makes you think about what makes life worth living, beyond survival. It’s about art and memory and what lasts. There’s a bit of danger from a religious zealot (of course), but it’s the connections between past and present that’s really interesting to me.

Adaptations: HBO Max has a miniseries adaptation, but I haven’t seen it. It sounds like a lot of changes have been made, and I love the book so much, I don’t want to experience that.

The Road, by Cormac McCarthy (2006).

How it all ends: Unknown; landscape destruction and societal breakdown.

Basic premise/plot: An unidentified disaster has reduced civilization to rubble and anarchy. A man and his ten year old son travel the dangerous landscape, heading south along the east coast for warmer weather and hope.

My Thoughts: This is a very difficult book to read. I’m not talking about the language; it’s simple and clear. But the subject matter is so damn heavy. There’s been some vague disaster (I think it’s clever that we, the readers, don’t know what it is, because it puts us in the characters’ shoes–they don’t know, either.) It doesn’t really matter what happened, only that it destroyed life as we know it. A nameless man and his ten year old son traverse an ash-covered wasteland, heading south along the Atlantic coast in search of warmer weather. They must find food and shelter along the way, and avoid those who would steal from them or kill them. Cannibalism is a very real thing (there’s a few scenes concerning this that traumatized me, lol). The man is determined to keep his son alive and safe, though he knows he himself his dying. His son, a sweet, good boy despite the horrors he’s seen, “carries the fire,” which I interpret as the light of civilization, the hope for humankind. It’s a very dark read, but does offer some hope.

Adaptations: There’s a 2009 movie with Viggo Mortensen as the Man and Kodi Smit-McPhee as the Boy. I thought it was a great adaptation, and not just because I love Viggo.

The Passage/The Twelve/City of Mirrors, by Justin Cronin (2010-2016).

How it all ends: Accidental release of scientific experiment that turns humans into vampire-like creatures.

Basic premise/plot: A scientific experiment intending to make humans stronger goes awry; it instead turns the test subjects into vampire-like creatures who escape and either kill or transform the rest of the human population into more of them. The key to saving humankind resides in a little girl named Amy.

My Thoughts: I was totally mesmerized by this trilogy of books. It was recommended to me by my sister, who had read the first book, and I instantly fell into it. My sister ended up not reading the next two books, lol, but I tore into them eagerly. It alternates between past and present, from just before the experiment destroys the population, to a hundred years into the future with people trying to deal with the aftermath. Each book gets closer to the origin of the experiment and how it all went wrong, and how those in the future will begin a new era.

Parable of the Sower/Parable of the Talents, by Octavia E. Butler (1994, 1998).

How it all ends: Societal breakdown and anarchy; theocracy take-over.

Basic premise/plot: In the 2020’s, society has broken down into violence, illiteracy, drug addiction, and corporate slavery. Precocious 15-year-old Lauren Olamina sees the direction her world is going in. After her walled neighborhood is attacked and destroyed, she heads north from LA to northern California with a group of survivors, traversing the dangerous roads, determined to survive and start a new way of living.

In Talents, Olamina and her people have been living in their new community, Acorn, for five years, and it’s beginning to grow and thrive; she and her husband have a baby, Larkin. But disaster strikes–the community is raided by Jarrett’s Crusaders, an extremist group from Christian America; the men and women are enslaved and the children abducted. They live in abject slavery and horror for seventeen months. When they’re finally free, Olamina must decide how to rebuild her life, and Earthseed. Her husband was killed and her two month old baby taken, while her passion about Earthseed is stronger than ever.

My Thoughts: I really wish Butler had been able to write her intended third book in this series, because I did not want to say goodbye to these characters and this story. Talents ended in 2090, with Earthseed flourishing and fulfilling their Destiny, but Olamina and her daughter, finally reunited years after the disaster, have a strained relationship. The ending was fairly rushed, and I think Butler intended to write more about Olamina’s final years, and her struggles with establishing Earthseed and her relationship with both her daughter and her brother, in the third book, which she was going to call Parable of the Trickster. But alas, we will never know that story. These books will stay with me for a long while.

Adaptations: I’ve heard that an adaptation is in the works; A24 has bought the rights and slated to be directed by Garret Bradley, but no other details as of yet.

I’m sure I’ve overlooked other dystopian books that I’ve read over the years, but these are the ones that come to mind and I loved the most.

What are your favorite dystopian stories? Let me know in the comments and we’ll talk about it!