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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Lit Books Cynically Reliving the X-Wing Series

Discussion in 'Literature' started by Cynical_Ben, Jan 2, 2014.

  1. Revanfan1

    Revanfan1 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 3, 2013
    Well...maybe. [face_mischief] [face_whistling]

    But seriously guys, she'll get there, don't spoil it all for her! :p
     
  2. Iron_lord

    Iron_lord Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 2, 2012
    "Nobody stays dead" is a bit of an exaggeration though.
     
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  3. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    You all have me envisioning ZombieSard now. :p

    But yeah, no spoilers please.
     
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  4. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000

    This. It's common courtesy. I've had people do to me before and while I'm not one for violence, face-punching becomes increasingly tempting whenever that happens.
     
  5. blackmyron

    blackmyron Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Oct 29, 2005
    I said I was sorry, but I still think it was a natural assumption that if you posted here you had seen TESB and knew about Luke and Vader.
     
  6. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    LOL, reminds me of some guy who trolled LACWAC on the temp boards.

    Anyway, I started Wraith Squadron and so far I think I'm going to like Allston's books better than Stackpole's. And I started it the same day a picture popped up on my Facebook feed of a crowd at SDCC in Hawaiian shirts, honoring Allston. RIP sir, your sense of humor will be missed.

    "Yub Yub, Commander."
     
  7. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    Double post but it's not like Lit has unlimited edit time. :p

    Finished Wraith Squadron. It was definitely enjoyable, and had a more eclectic set of characters, which I'm sure was part of the point.

    Seemed like a lot of time was spent on recruitment and training in the first half of the book, which was to be expected, and made for some funny moments. The pranks, and "I want the majority of the squadron's sarcasm concentrated in one wing pair so we can dispose of it more conveniently." Sure, why not? And Face the actor impersonating Darillian made for some good moments. "Thank you, thank you, performances every hour, Imperial madmen a specialty."

    With the funny came the sad later in the book though. I was actually surprised at the number of deaths; I thought Jesmin Ackbar would somehow make it out and be found somewhere. But even as sad as I was when she and Falynn went down, the one that got me the most was the damn droid, Thirteen.

    Donos' revenge-kill of Trigit was sad and satisfying at the same time. And Kell...I like the way the book addressed his issues with his father's death, anger at Janson and panic attacks. And I really like his relationship with Tyria . Here's my favorite part of the book, and yes, I'm typing up the entire damn thing.

    Well, I have something to tell you. After I realized you were right, I decided that it was enough to be your friend."

    "Good."

    "Then I fell in love with you again."

    Her expression became one of dismay and exasperation. "Oh, Kell--"

    "No, bear with me, just for a minute."

    "It's just the same words again."

    "Same words...different Kell. This time I know what I'm talking about."

    "Of course you do. So. Set Honesty to On?"

    "Honesty to On."

    "How much time did you spend thinking about me today?"

    "Every chance I got. Every chance I had when Commander Antilles and Janson weren't working me."

    "Ah, but in how many of those little fantasies of yours was I wearing any clothes?"

    He snorted in amusement. "Lots of them. Most of them." The words, the truth, came easily to him. "I saw us together in quiet times. When the war with the last bits of the Empire was over and we could argue and be confused about what to do next. Deciding things together. I saw myself presenting you to my family...and saw them making a place in their lives and hearts for you." He saw the distress in her expression but pressed on anyway. "I saw a hundred ways for our lives together to be, and the only thing that made me sad was that we couldn't explore all of them." He sighed. "But now, like the galaxy's worst general, I've told you my objective--I'm going to win your heart. I just don't know how I'm going to do it, you being forewarned and all--"

    She lunged at him. Her tackle took him off the end of the sofa. Suddenly she was atop him on the floor, her arms around his neck, embracing him but glaring furiously.

    He rubbed the back of his head where it had hit the deck. "Ow."

    "Shut up." She kissed him.
     
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  8. Revanfan1

    Revanfan1 Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 3, 2013
    Yes, that whole scene was amazingly done. Kell's speech there totally made me "d'aw" and want to make the same kind of speech when I fall in love with a girl. :p
     
  9. CT-867-5309

    CT-867-5309 Chosen One star 7

    Registered:
    Jan 5, 2011
    He kissed me in a way
    That I've never been kissed before
    He kissed me in a way
    That I wanna be kissed forever more

    I knew that he was mine
    So I gave him all the love that I had
    And one day he took me home
    To meet his mom and his dad


    Oh, sorry, what?


    But no I didn't care for that passage. Or any of the romances in the X-Wing series.
     
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  10. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    You heartless monster.
     
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  11. IG_2000

    IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 5, 2008
    I'm halfway through The Bacta War. I LOVE the series so far, so I'm only saying this out of love, but...

    THE DIALOGUE IS SO AWKWARD.

    Someone could just ask someone else how they're doing and the answer would be something like

    "Well, you see, Iella, I was piloting my X Wing when, in the most inconvenient and spontaneous manner, the breakfast burritos I acquired from the local tap cafe and had promptly ingested hit the inner sanctum of my bowels, and thus I had accidentally jerked the steering yolk of my craft and had inadverdently caught the brunt of Mr. Qyrrg's attempt of vaping a nearby eyeball. Luckily, the fuselage of my craft only sustained minor damage and thus I was able to navigate it into the canyon safely. To my chagrin, there were no nearby refreshers, so I had no choice but to evacuate my bowls in the craft. I can only imagine Emtrey's reaction when he went in for the scheduled repairs."
     
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  12. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    LOL.

    "And poor Corran, he had to smell the awful stench which was certainly beneath his dignity and brought back memories of other awful stenches he had to endure, especially in prison, and kept him from concentrating on his decision about accepting Luke Skywalker's offer to begin his Jedi training."

    It gets better, I promise.
     
  13. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Luke hears about Corran's..... mishap.. Informs him that a Jedi must first master their bowels before learning the Force.
     
  14. IG_2000

    IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 5, 2008
    So this is pretty much what I've been picturing in my head the whole time.

    Chris Pratt with longer hair as Corran Horn

    [​IMG]

    Top Gun era Tom Cruise as Tycho

    [​IMG]

    Dane Dehaan as Bror Jace

    [​IMG]

    Taylor Momsen with a lot less makeup as Erisi

    [​IMG]

    For Ooryl, I'm just picturing Tom Kenny doing a really subdued version of Spongebob's voice.

    [​IMG]
     
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  15. Duguay

    Duguay Jedi Grand Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2002
    I'm also reading through The Bacta War, almost but not quite halfway through. I've been going through this first wave of X-Wing books with a year or two separating each read-through, and the longest gap has been between The Krytos Trap and this one. This has actually worked out well for my reading experience, because the extensive re-cap of events from prior books have not been boring, but instead very helpful in bringing me back into the fold with the characters and situations. I'll briefly comment on the dialogue to say that some of it is awkward, some of it is very functional; I tend to go in analytical-read mode and just ask myself, "Okay, what point is the author trying to get across?" so I've been able to detach myself from it beyond the information it conveys about the story and how the characters interact with one another. The only other thing I'll say is that sometimes, characteristic with other dialogue and conversation in the other books, the conversations don't flow in the ways I expect, transitioning curiously. Just an observation.

    It's interesting seeing Corran reintegrating with the rest of the characters; after the traumatic events of his escape, and the exhilaration of seeing him reunited with them, now that the day to day interaction sets in I see once again Corran's flaws. Stackpole accentuates it a bit, and I think that's the point, after all the calamity of capture/escape/death/resurrection, he's still human. He wasn't there to see Gavin's maturing moments in TKT, and I rolled my eyes at the moments when Corran is affectionately/condescendingly treating him like a kid. But then, Gavin doesn't seem bothered by it, and my own mind came up with a curious fill-in-the-blank explanation that Gavin is comforted by that rapport with Corran, like those times we allow ourselves to sink into moments of comforting nostalgia. I didn't remember Corran being so pushy, and I certainly didn't remember that he was short of stature. He speaks without thinking, and that's a great laugh out loud moment for when he first meets Booster; and says to Mirax, "You must take after your mother," who says there's no humor in the Stackpole X-Wing books?! It was curious to realize that there's a lot I don't like about Corran, and I like the fact that I don't like him; so in a roundabout way I do like him. I think it helps that he is very capable of self-reflection, and is very self-critical. It's also hilarious that Wedge spots out that he's noticeably subdued after a trip in the Pulsar Skate to the Yag'Dhul station, and gets flustered by a rival fellow hotshot pilot they meet up with on Thyferra.

    I also feel like I got the reading order right with the inclusion of the X-Wing comics, so with those stories under my belt, I'm getting the maximum impact from this book. I'm particularly pleased that a lot of elements from one of my favorite stories, Battleground: Tatooine, gets significant revisitation. I really got a kick out of Huff's antagonistically helpful relationship with the Rogues, and nice to see Elscol, she always a bit edgy, good thing she has Iella with her to keep things from getting really grim.

    The book has already caught me off guard with it's shifts in focus, mostly in a good way. I enjoyed early element of having to scrounge an arsenal for themselves, and was a little disappointed that the book shifted from that so quickly. On the other hand, I love the sense of them all being out of uniform, letting their hair down, and painting all their X-Wings with distinctive individualized color schemes. Sad to contemplate that this wonderful individuality might just get painted over, back into dull military uniformity if (hah...when?) they ever go back to the New Republic. The book also starts off with a nice feeling of homecoming, settling back into a nice adventure with these familiar characters. But the conflict for Thyferra really starts to get ugly, ouch! The Rogues get to be Rebels again, too, and we get to see the New Republic from an outsider perspective; it's newly born, newly legitimate, and there's a sense that the NR is going to be mostly okay, yet at the same time still does need help.

    My favorite scene in the book is that wonderful, heartbreaking moment when Tycho Cechu undergoes a ritual of Return to Alderaan. Stackpole has been very understated with his usage of the Force through Corran, but here, with Tycho at the graveyard of Alderaan, is one of the most spiritual moments of these four books (though Corran's spiritual journey through death and life changing return from the underworld of an Imperial prison is a close second). There is painful insight into how Tycho has been changed by the tragedy, and an intriguing pragmatic analysis of how the ritual of Return has developed culturally; including the cynical monetary outgrowths from this practice. Profoundly moving scene, I really felt for Tycho. The scene is kind of a digression from surrounding events in the book, but it earns it's place through sheer emotional Force.
     
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  16. IG_2000

    IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 5, 2008
    This post is your average small talk in X-Wing.
     
  17. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    I'm tempted to read I, Jedi just so I can envision Corran as Pouty!Chris Pratt.
     
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  18. IG_2000

    IG_2000 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Aug 5, 2008
    Is Mercy Kill possible to read without touching anything else in that general timeline placement?
     
  19. JediKnight75

    JediKnight75 Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2011
    I think so. All you need to know their general mission and you'll be fine. I think it's worth giving try.
     
  20. Jedi Ben

    Jedi Ben Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Jul 19, 1999
    Yes. I read it without having touched LOTF/FOTJ.

    Though I think you'd benefit from having read The Unifying Force and Allston's Enemy Lines duo, the latter isn't perfect, but all the stuff with Wedge and co is great.
     
  21. Duguay

    Duguay Jedi Grand Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2002
    I'm a little lost, what you're saying is going over my head. Do you mean that it doesn't make sense, or the content of the post is awkward...? :_| There were so many ideas I wanted to share, but my brain and my typing are not in synch a lot, and it takes a lot out of me to type out some of these monster posts. [face_sigh]
     
  22. Pfluegermeister

    Pfluegermeister Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jun 30, 2003
    ...and increasingly more difficult to accomplish whenever we talk about people on the Internet.

    Unless you think what happened at the end of Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back is actually possible. Hint: it isn't.
     
  23. Havac

    Havac Former Moderator star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 29, 2005
    He's saying the characters in X-wing are verbose.
     
  24. KarrdeFan

    KarrdeFan Jedi Master

    Registered:
    Oct 18, 2012

    I read Mercy Kill without reading LOTF or FOTJ. I had no issues following along. I had read the NJO first though but that didn't seem to matter a whole lot but did help to understand a little bit of what was going on in the background. I was happy I did read it.
     
  25. Duguay

    Duguay Jedi Grand Master star 2

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2002
    Okay, that makes sense, thank you! :)