Lit A Chronological Journey Through the EU: Currently Disc. Interference

Gotcha. I think that Darth_Dreadwar agrees with you on Talismans of Conversion but he has an interesting explanation for the one dark jedi/many dark jedi inconsistency and I think you'll like that explanation. The out-of-universe explanation is poor communication between Strayton and KJA.

If you said "I hate the Sith species", Lord Dreadwar probably would smite you down with wrath.

 

Well, Ku'ar Danar stands out as a candidate for that sole 'Dark Jedi' referenced. He was a Jedi who learned the Sith arts on Korriban and became a Sith Lord shortly before the Hundred-Year Darkness, and was believed to have instigated that conflict.

If not that wonderful S-canon character, then I would suggest Tulak Hord. It increasingly seems like many of the twelve Dark Jedi (who, interestingly, declared themselves Dark Lords, plural, suggesting infighting over the title to match Pall's account of a civil war between the Exiles) left the Caldera to start a full-blown Sith War shortly after 6,900 BBY, with Tulak Hord rampaging across Yn and Chabosh with Aloysius Kallig and Orton Cela at his side, Terrak Morrhage and his female Sith alchemist master (Sorzun Syn?) creating plagues to be used against the Jedi on Malachor III, Remulus Dreypa on Syngia before he and several others crashlanded on Kesh, Muur's talisman being lost on Taris, a Sith sorceress attempting 'Nathema-lite' rituals on Ambria, Darth Andeddu fleeing to Prakith, and so on. Hord presumably returned to the Caldera after Pall died (given that Pall never witnessed the return of those Sith Lords who had departed), this very first Sith War having failed, and after forging the Sith Empire pretty much single-handedly (conquering 100 out of a total of ~120, including Dromund Kaas), stands as a strong contender for being that single Dark Jedi who subjugated the Sith people to become the sole Dark Lord of the Sith.

Don't have much of a problem with Talismans of Conversion, to be fair. There's plenty of evidence that the dark side does have a swiftly, magically corrupting effect as soon as one succumbs to it even a little (what else could explain Palpatine's strategy in ROTJ, for instance?), so my headcanon is that it takes a Jedi already tempted by the dark side to access such a device. Furthermore, it's less a talisman of conversion and more a talisman of mental control; it's like the Imperius curse from Harry Potter, or what Vitiate does to the Hero of Tyhon in TOR. Fallible, and will never produce a genuine dark-sider, just a temporarily insane Jedi. Perhaps the mechanism by which they operate is that every such talisman is the phylactery of a particular Sith spirit, who possesses the Jedi, a la the Heart of Graush or the Sith Holocron Kun smashes? Either way, they're enough of a nuisance to serve their purpose of warding Jedi away from Sith devices, but they'll never create a Sith Lord - they're not D&D Helms of Opposite Alignment.

 

Holy ****.

 

Tales of the Jedi Companion: Neutrals - Running a Tales of the Jedi Campaign



3,998 BBY

*So, we’ll go ahead and make some real time now. We’re going to wrap up the Tales of the Jedi Companion and also finish out the current year.

*Chapter Six is all about Neutrals: criminals, droids, explorers, etc. Basically anyone who isn’t a Jedi or a Sith.

*The chapter includes sample profiles of people like Minister of Defense Netius and Grimorg, a Weequay thug employed by Bogga the Hutt.

*God, there’s ol’ Finhead Stonebone again. His profile tells us that this name is an alias. NO KIDDING?!

*Chapter Seven is about Species and it traffics in some of the most unbelievable racism imaginable.

*There’s a drawing here and the caption is: “A Vultan scout searches the horizon for evidence of native life.” Funny thing is . . . it’s an absolute rip off of Luke’s famous binary sunset pose from ANH.

*So, there’s a section here on Miraluka, Nazzar, Vultan and Zexx.

*Here’s a great detail: “Vultans are generally curious and friendly, although some have been known to possess a relentlessly competitive nature. They are fascinated by devices they have not before encountered, and are often willing to part with a great deal to be the first Vultan to obtain a given piece of technology.”

*So, Vultans basically = those nuts standing out in a freezing sleet storm all night so they can be first in line when the Apple store opens the next morning.

*Why, no, I don’t have an iPad yet, why do you ask?

*Chapter Eight is about Creatures. You know, Boma Beasts, Colossus Wasps, Gorm-Worms, Hssiss, Neeks . . .

*Essentially, this is the chapter you want to skip if you’re trying to convince a friend that Star Wars has literary merit.

*Hssiss. I mean, good Lord.

*Also, why would anything as big as a Colossus Wasp have evolved a frigging stinger in the first place?

*Okay, whatever . . . Chapter Nine: Vehicles and Starships.

*There’s a whole page dedicated to all the different manufacturers of starships. Complete with their logos. Akin-Dower actually has a pretty great logo.

*So, we get complete profiles on all the ships used in the TotJ series. This is really interesting. Let’s move on, shall we?

*Chapter Ten is Technology in which we spend an inordinate amount of time talking about Dehydrated Food Packs, Breath Masks and all kinds of other bizarre things.

*Chapter Eleven is Sites.

*Ood Bnar gives some really wise advice: “As a Jedi, you may be appointed the guardian of a system or planet . . . you must come to know the system as well as you know yourself. If not, your efforts will be wasted. You cannot wait to begin your study of the system – yes, I know, you have not yet been commissioned. So how are you to know which system to research? The answer is simple: study them all . . .”

*Okay, Master Ood, this kind of sounds like one of those snipe hunt things people are always talking about.

*So, let’s get this straight. You want me to do in-depth research on every planet and system in the galaxy? And you want me to do this so I won’t waste any time?!? Are you high on something?

*So, we are told that the Sith library on Arkania covered more than five square kilometers on the surface and went down underground for ‘countless levels,’ eventually becoming so large and labyrinthine that even the most experienced Sith Lords couldn’t locate anything.

*Okay, so I know it’s a Sith library, but still . . . Most. Awesome. Library. Ever.

*I actually kind of want to write a fanfic set entirely in that library.

*Then, finally, comes Chapter Twelve, Running a Tales of the Jedi Campaign. It’s kind of hard to read this as in-universe text, I must say.

*So, this is basically a sort of pragmatic how-to guide, with guidelines on structuring a campaign, what’s allowed, what isn’t, all that sort of thing.

*And that’s about all of that.

*I really found little of interest here. I don’t know why I read this.

*CANONICAL STATUS: While certain information found here may have its basis in reality, the document remains a patchwork of facts and misinformation. This work is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Warned against. 1 star.

George R. Strayton

*I never thought I’d say this, but after this book, I’ll be glad to get back to the TotJ comics. Next time, we’ll move into 3,997 BBY with Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith.

Star Wars Reviews!

 

Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith



3,997 BBY

*Exar Kun, baby, Exar Kun!

*Vodo Baas, baby, Vodo Baas!

*Sylvar and Crado, baby, Sylvar . . . and . . . you know, these guys aren’t important really . . . never mind.

*So, I like this early scene where Vodo Baas fights Exar Kun using only his staff as defense.

*Kun loses his temper and utilizes TWO lightsabers. He manages to break Vodo’s staff. Kun says he’s the best and Vodo hilariously admits it: “Yes, with your two lightsabers you have managed to break my humble staff.” Sick burn!

*Satal and Aleema, the youngsters who the spirit of Freedon Nadd anointed as the next generation of the Sith in the previous comic, take over the Empress Teta system by using Sith illusions. Including making a man think his tongue is a worm. This is perhaps not as menacing as choking the life out of someone with a gesture, but they’re young.

*Exar Kun, having left his master, comes to Onderon to investigate the Sith artifacts. Despite knowing that he is interested in them primarily so that he can toy with the Dark Side, Master Arca allows him access, stating that “A Jedi is free.” This is the first instance of a totally idiotic and ludicrous philosophy that runs through the Jedi mindset here, wherein you have to let people do what they want, even when they end up causing incredible amounts of pain to innocents. It’s like Kant with a lightsaber. Except even stupider.

*The Jedi however move against Satal and Aleema with a battle fleet which seems to run counter to the leeway they just gave Exar Kun who is also toying with the Dark Side. Is it because Satal and Aleema aren’t Jedi? Are Jedi given more human rights than others?

*Anyway, Ulic is grievously wounded by shrapnel when a ship crashes into the bridge of the Republic flagship. Hilariously, this just sprays shrapnel around and doesn’t make anything depressurize or vent into space or kill anyone or anything. Which is not how it would actually work.

*So, a meeting is called of every Jedi in existence. To deal with two kids who can’t do anything but create illusions. All the actual violence comes from plain old weapons, weapons constantly referred to as out of date. Why are the Jedi having a hard time with these jokers?

*So, Exar Kun saves a couple of followers of Freedon Nadd from an angry mob. Again, we’re supposed to believe that Kun is falling to the Dark Side when he’s only guaranteeing free speech. Are the author’s trying to say free speech is more evil than censorship? Bastards. This story is doing something none of the others have done: ticking me off. Let a Jedi go his own way even though the Force tells you that he’s falling to the Dark Side and will be responsible for the death of thousands. And, oh, yes, defending someone’s right to speak their mind is the same as agreeing with them. Yeah, this seems like a fairly logical moral code. I’m surprised the Jedi lasted as long as they did.

*So, the tomb of Freedon Nadd is constructed out of material that a lightsaber will not cut through. Unless the person with the saber tries really hard? How does that work again?

*Well, I guess when you’ve got a name as drop dead stupid as Freedon Nadd, it’s going to be tempting to resurrect the character just for laughs.

*Geez Louise, Odan Urrr (the scholar Jedi from The Golden Age/Fall of the Sith duology) is still alive? His master prophesied that he would live to be one of the most ancient and respected Jedi, but over a thousand years? Even Methuselah didn’t hit that milestone.

*Okay, in what frigging galaxy would droids be able to attack a gathering of every Jedi in the galaxy and actually take names?

*And in a bit of irony so subtle that Wes Anderson is shaking in his boots, Master Arca gets blown away from behind while lecturing Ulic on how a Jedi must always be watchful and never turn his back on an enemy . . .

*So, the Jedi masters believe that Ulic is going down a dangerous path by going to avenge his master’s death, but they say that he must be allowed to go his own way. They don’t even attempt to argue with him! Despite the fact that he flatly states that he’s going to investigate the Dark Side in order to gain his revenge. These guys are just way to laissez faire.

*In a nice scene, Freedon Nadd makes Exar Kun fall to the Dark Side by breaking all of his bones and promising that the Dark Side can heal him. If only the rest of the story had been so bleak and horrifying.

*In a nice twist, Satal and Aleema know that Ulic plans to destroy them, but they take him in anyway, for the challenge.

*I also like the challenge set up between Exar Kun and Satal and Aleema as to who will be the next Dark Lord.

*The Jedi Masters try to dissuade Nomi and Cay from going to snatch Ulic. Again, Ulic has fallen to the Dark Side, helped Satal and Aleema update their weaponry and cut all his ties. What does it take for you guys to decide it’s time to put a stop to someone?

*After confronting Ulic, Nomi says that, after mounting this huge rescue operation, that they must leave him to follow his own path (again with that crap!), stating that a Jedi must pay for his decisions. What, I wonder, about all the innocent people that are going to die because of Ulic’s upcoming actions? How do they fit into this “A Jedi must be allowed to take his own path” thing?

*And did I mention there was this whole multi-part rescue mission launched to get to Ulic? And so after this massive battle with fighter pilots and blaster fights and all kinds of stuff, then Nomi’s just like, “Well, let’s head home.” I think it’s a real misnomer to call this a “rescue” mission. If you can call it a “mission” at all.

*This was several years ago now, but there was a whole thing once about everybody listing their twenty favorite EU moments. That probably cycles around, but this was because of some official Star Wars.com blog entry or something, I don’t remember. Anyway, I did my top twenty and also my bottom five, ie. the twenty best moments and the five worst. And this scene was somewhere in that five worst list. I don’t even remember the other four and I have no idea where it was on the list, but, yeah, that should tell you something about how I feel about this series.

*Exar Kun shows up and joins forces with Ulic, pushing Aleema onto a second tier, I guess. How . . . menacing, I guess. Okay, anyway.

*CANONICAL STATUS: This document is clearly based on true events, but it is full of distortions, fabrications and outright deceptions. While figures in this text are based on real historical figures and many of the events here are more or less based on the events that led to the Sith War, this book is mostly inaccurate and is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Strongly warned against. ½ star.

Kevin J. Anderson

*Next time, back to the audio dramas as we get an audio adaptation of this story. Oh, man . . .

Star Wars Reviews!

 

What a great project! I've been thinking about doing something similar, with only the adult novels however. Don't know for sure if I'll ever really get around to it, but I'd love to at least give it a shot. Fun to see that there are other fans doing the same thing (to an even greater extent than what I was planning on doing!). I've read a few of your reviews (of the works I'm already familiar with, like DotJ: Into the Void, some of The Lost Tribe of the Sith short stories, etc...) and they are fun reads. Keep it up! I'll be following along.

 

Yoda and Odan Urr in their prime are babies compared to the end of Ood Bnar's life.

 

This is Korriban's first appearance. It's very dangerous and mysterious. We meet the Tuk'ata, Sith-mutated attack dogs that guard the tombs of the Dark Lords.

 

I was actually just looking at my review of the Tales of the Jedi Companion chapter on the Jedi today and noted that Ood Bnar lived "before Naga Sadow."

And welcome to the thread, Cheerios4u98! Always a pleasure to have a new fellow traveler.


Tales of the Jedi: Dark Lords of the Sith



3,997 BBY

*So, if you remember the Tales of the Jedi audio drama, you’ll know what we’re in for here. This is the next in the series.

*I’ve listened to a lot of audio drama. When done right, it can be magical. When done badly, it can be hilarious. Guess which one this is?

*Nominee for most hilariously inept sound bite ever: “’Wait, will you really want to touch that control panel once you realize it’s actually . . . a womprat?!’ *chomp* *bloodcurdling scream*”

*Seriously, it’s stuff like the above that just make you glad to be alive.

*Let me just say once more for the record that Satal & Aleema are just like the lamest villains ever.

*Okay, the actress reading the part of Aleema is just enjoying herself a little too much, if you get my drift.

*Isn’t it amusing how on these things every time people are fighting, they do way more talking than anyone would ever do in real life? And they never seem out of breath. I especially liked how Exar Kun and Sylvar had a debate about what species made the better Jedi while they’re supposedly having a sparring match.

*Is it just me or does Vodo Baas sound hilariously like James Mason? Or rather a James Mason impression as filtered through a synthesizer?

*Someone needs to tell the actor reading the part of Cay that it does not add veracity to constantly be saying “um” and “uh.” What it adds is annoyance.

*First time someone blurts “FREEDON NADD?!?” in shock and horror. It won’t be the last.

*Okay, as stupid as it was for Master Arca to get shot from behind while lecturing his students on being watchful in the comic, it’s even worse here as we hear the droid basically announce three times that he’s preparing to shoot. Does Arca not hear this crap? Does Ulic not? I mean, seriously . . .

*By the way, these people talk way, way too much during action sequences. Admittedly, in audio drama, this is believed to be a necessary evil. It’s not though. Leave it all out except the sounds of violence. We’ll figure it out. Don’t condescend to us by having the characters say things like, “I’m just killing this droid and then I’ll help you, Cay.” “Thanks, Ulic, these droids have me pretty well pinned down.”

*Okay, why is Exar Kun so freaking surprised every time Freedon Nadd’s spirit shows up to help him? He literally bellows “FREEDON NADD?!?!?!” every single time. Criminy . . . he’s going to be helping you, dude. Learn to expect it. For all of our sakes.

*How do you do a Twi’lek voice? Record the guy reading his lines and then loop it together twice. Ah, the miracle of overdubbing . . . thank you, Patti Page.

*I mean, why would anyone’s voice sound like that, no matter what species they are? It’s not like Twi’leks have two throats or two mouths or whatever.

*I’m not sure who propagated the idea that high pitched laughter was frightening (probably Frank Gorshin), but it’s not true. It’s just . . . not . . . true.

*And in the final moments, it is also proved that LOW pitched laughter is not menacing either.

*CANONICAL STATUS: This document is clearly based on true events, but it is full of distortions, fabrications and outright deceptions. While figures in this text are based on real historical figures and many of the events here are more or less based on the events that led to the Sith War, this book is mostly inaccurate and is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Absolutely forbidden. 0 stars.

John Whitman

*Next time . . . well, it turns out I spoke too soon; I actually skipped a chapter in the Tales of the Jedi Companion. Join me next time as we gladly (!) return to that wonderful (!) book with Tales of the Jedi Companion: Jedi.

Star Wars Reviews!

 

Don't know if I ever said this but I really appreciate you doing this. Just reading your posts has me laughing like mad. I can't imagine what it must be like to go through the audio versions.

 

I want to track down these audio dramas just for the sheer hilarity. Like, these sound like Jedi Prince levels of "so bad it's funny." But I wouldn't dare spend money on this kind of turd, either.

 

Yeah, and then there was this whole business...







Dude was old as a tr..umm.. oh.

 

And on the evil side of the scale, Rokur Gepta is supposed to be over 20,000 years old in the Lando Calrissian books - and unlike other ancients, there's no hint of "stasis helped him live that long".

 

I think there's kind of an interesting idea in there of a sort of philosophy that you can't force someone to be good, you can't keep knowledge from him. He's going to do what he's going to do and you can only react to him, not make his mind up for him. There's something sort of Zen in that, sort of like Yoda's "only what you take with you" test and refusal to stop Luke from leaving even though he counseled it was a mistake. And I've really neve liked the running idea that learning about the dark side turns you dark, that the only way to keep people from evil is to keep them ignorant of forbidden knowledge. Knowing too much shouldn't be corrupting. The problem is that it's written idiotically and taken way too far. "I'm going to launch a rescue mission . . . and then give up because he has to make his own decisions about how much evil he's going to do." It's taken way too far into total passivity. Like most of TOTJ, there are some really neat ideas and vision but the execution is not there.

 

Tales of the Jedi Companion: Jedi



3,998 BBY

*So, here’s chapter two of the Tales of the Jedi Companion. Ood Bnar decides it might be of some encouragement if he tells us about some previous Jedi and their struggles with the Dark Side.

*So we get a lot of back story on these Jedi characters.

*Particularly, I found one bit in Andur Sunrider’s back story somewhat moving. It’s when he’s twelve and he has a vision of his recently deceased Jedi grandfather. His grandfather tells him, “You will play a part in the coming war. But do not resist the role the Force wishes you to play.”

*I actually rather liked that. Because of course his role is to die ignominiously in a skirmish with some punks. But because this happens to him, his wife becomes the Jedi who . . .

*Well, she becomes the Jedi who makes bad decision after bad decision and indirectly causes the death of billions . . . but . . . well . . . yeah . . .

*You see what I mean about how you can’t really have a good back story if your front story is total crap?

*So, there’s a story about Arca Jeth leading an assault on a pirate base or something when he was younger too.

*So then there’s this whole back story thing on this dude named Chamma who, best as I can recall, doesn’t even appear in the comics. But he was Andur Sunrider’s master prior to Andur’s being sent to Master Thon.

*It’s a pretty good story, actually, about an encounter he has with a Dark Side minion on a deserted planet as a young Jedi and how he is so shaken by it that he sort of hermits himself away on the planet for over a hundred years until finally another Jedi comes looking for him and brings him back into the fold.

*It’s actually kind of creepy, during the middle passage.

*Dace Diath is from Tatooine. I didn’t know that. I also don’t really care, but you may.

*So, we get a fairly long section on Kith Kark too, but the story is just so idiotic that I can’t even bring myself to talk about it.

*So, it’s all about how Kith wants to be a Jedi, but he can’t get any masters to take him, but he tries and tries and tries and ultimately realizes that he is but a servant of the Force and he surrenders himself to destiny and then he gets taken as a Jedi.

*Which is all very nice and sweet except the section then ends with a note detailing his horrible death in The Freedon Nadd Uprising. So, yes, that was a real feel good story there. Very inspiring. Just think, you too can die in horrible Dark Side agony. If you try really hard. Great. Wonderful.

*So, Ood Bnar is from Myrkr. And he lived even before Naga Sadow.

*So, you might have thought Oss Wilum was kind of dumb before (remember when he fell to the Dark Side because he cut his hand on a piece of Sith glass or something?), but you will really have no respect at all for him after you read his stupid back story.

*So, some of these sections, like the ones on Cay, Shoaneb Culu, Nomi, etc, really give no new information at all really.

*So, they write quite a long section about Master Thon, which is really impressive when you consider that they tell you absolutely nothing about him.

* “The Republic’s Bureau of Xenology has arbitrarily chosen to name Thon’s species Wharl for lack of any other meaningful designation.”

*Uh, what? I don’t think that’s how it works.

*Also Wharl is nothing like Whill, so don’t even say it.

*So, we find out that Tott Doneeta was a slave that was liberated by Master Arca.

*The section about Ulic really should have just consisted of the words, “will fall to the Dark Side soon,” so blatant is the foreshadowing.

*Well, anyway, that’s chapter two, Jedi. A fair amount of new material here in the back stories. But the only really interesting one was Chamma. Perhaps that’s because, unlike the others, he wasn’t so hideously butchered as a character in the actual comics that I was unable to care.

*CANONICAL STATUS: These attempts to give backstories to many of the participants in the Sith War are to be considered mostly fabricated. Small amounts of factual material can be found here, but taken as a whole this work is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Strongly recommended against. 1 ½ stars.

George R. Strayton

*Next time, we’ll hit up the Chronicles of the Old Republic again. I wonder if this story will be any better in the condensed version. We’ll find out next time with Attack of the Krath!

Star Wars Reviews!

 

The Republic Bereau of Xenology is filled with lazy people.

"What's that species called?"

*looks up from space YouTube* "Who cares? Just write something down."

"Like what? I got nothing?"

*throws box from Space Chinese Takeout* "There, have some inspiration."

 

Chronicles of the Old Republic: Attack of the Krath

3,997 BBY

*Once again, the Chronicles are free and were always intended to be free, so no crime if you want to go read them right now at the link above.

*We have reached Part IV: Attack of the Krath.

*I seriously, when I first saw this on the timeline, was like, “Who the heck are the Krath?”

*Frankly, that’s kind of still my reaction to Satal and Aleema. Lamest villains since Ludo Kressh? Yeah.

*It says here about the bit where Exar Kun goes to Onderon, “His arrogance wins him no favors with Master Arca, who refuses to help.” Well, he also refused to hinder. I think that’s called ‘not getting involved.’ Also, ‘being a moral coward.’ Also ‘being a twit.’ Some Arca partisan must have written this thing.

*“Shouting for help, Nadd’s specter appears again.”

*Nothing is as scary as a specter with a dangling modifier.

*Wow, before these were just kind of dull. But as the story gets stupider, so too do these little summaries. Here’s a great nominee for bad line of the month:

*“Letting out a tremendous psychic shriek, Kun startles Master Vodo.”

*Oh, yeah, I think I saw that on America’s Funniest Home Videos. God, I love those tremendous psychic shrieks as prank fodder.

*Well, anyway, at this point, the story just goes totally off the rails. It had been pretty lame and dull to this point, but at this point, it just starts getting actively annoying and morally dunderheaded.

*CANONICAL STATUS: This work is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Strongly warned against. ½ star.

*Well, 3,998 BBY was a long year, but this one is a really short one. We’re already done with 3,997 BBY. Next time, we’ll move on to 3,996 BBY with Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War.

Star Wars Reviews!

 

I have to wonder if that's what the writers were going for, though, just because I'm otherwise at a complete loss to explain that "arbitrary species designation" thing.

 

Tales of the Jedi: The Sith War



3,996 BBY

*Oss Willum and Crado are Dark Siders now? That was fast. They must have fallen in like ten seconds flat.

*It’s that darn Sith glass again!

*And Aleema is still alive? I thought sure Exar and Ulic would have killed her after they formed their allegiance.

*Oh, I see now. She had to be alive because otherwise she couldn’t betray Ulic, now could she? I see . . . it’s all coming together now.

*I wonder if Exar, Ulic & Aleema are all coming together. And I’ll show myself out.

*God, I’ve gone downhill.

*A General Mandalore makes his appearance here, leading some shock troops. I think this will come into play later . . .

*The personal conflicts are interesting . . . Exar is loyal to Ulic and Ulic to Exar. Aleema is not loyal to Ulic, but Mandalore is loyal to her and to Ulic . . . never mind, it’s not that interesting after all.

*That’s fairly gruesome, those people being blasted to skeletons by massive explosions.

*And Exar Kun kills Crado because Crado, er, has too much respect for Exar Kun? That’s a new one.

*So, here we have just another of those stories where a guy turns himself into a tree.

*Cay goes up and tries to shoot Ulic down. Hilariously, when Ulic gets the better of him, Cay calls over his radio, “Brother! Stop, I’m going down!” Uh, given that he’s just doing what you were trying to do to him three seconds ago, I doubt he’s going to be swayed.

*My God, that’s like the third time Cay has gotten his arm cut off . . .

*And, just when we most expect it, Ulic kills Cay. I don’t know why everyone’s surprised. I saw that coming since their first scene together way back in Beast Wars of Onderon. You don’t have brothers in a saga like this one just so your main character can have someone to talk too.

*Oss Willum is back on the side of the light, by the way. Apparently turning to the light is as quick and painless as falling to the dark. Unless, of course, you’re the main character.

*Nomi cuts Ulic off from the Force and then says she didn’t know what would happen exactly or how to stop it or reverse it. Um, yeah, that’s a good thing to be using then, ain’t it?

*And, by the way, Nomi? You had the chance to pull that guy out of the Sith’s lair a little while ago. You didn’t, because you said he had to pay for his decision. I wonder if all the people he killed on Coruscant and Ossus are happy with that judgment call of yours. I wonder if Cay is.

*And also, you said he had to follow his own path and suffer the consequences. He seems to be doing that, having just suffered a nervous breakdown after having killed his own brother. And NOW, now that the damage is done and thousands are dead, NOW you’re interfering by cutting him off from the Force? Damn, woman. . . so, basically, you couldn’t interfere in any helpful way that might save lives, but you can hurt him in a completely spiteful and vindictive way now that all the damage he can do has been done? Yes, it’s no wonder the Jedi disintegrated . . .

*In short, Nomi, screw you and the Sun you rode in on. You are a vindictive, bitter, self-absorbed sociopath and if anyone really falls to the Dark Side, it’s you.

*See, here’s the problem with this whole arc. Exar Kun falls to the Dark Side because he’s intellectually interested. I don’t get that. There’s no emotion, no anger, no rage, no fear, no hate. He’s just curious. Ulic falls to the Dark Side because he wants justice. The council argues that he wants revenge, but that’s not true, because he gets to where Satal and Aleema are and kicks around for weeks, trying to learn more. If it was revenge he wanted, he’d have just killed them. He too, like Kun, is interested in learning about the Dark Side. His motives are, if anything, purer than Kun’s, since Ulic is concerned with stopping the Sith.

*Nomi, on the other hand, gives into emotions of pure rage, bitterness and hatred at the end of this story and commits a truly crippling (both physically and emotionally) act of violence on a surrendered enemy. But she, according to the other characters and herself, DOES NOT fall to the Dark Side. Nomi’s the one touching the Dark Side, not Ulic and Exar Kun. This is idiotic. When she was first introduced, I thought Nomi was a very interesting character. But at this point, she’s a truly annoyingly self-righteous sociopath.

*Not to beat a dead horse here, but these are the worst most ineffectual and anti-philosophical Jedi I’ve ever read about.

*So, Ulic agrees to lead the others to Exar Kun who has fled back to Yavin.

*So, at this point, for some reason, they can interfere? Before they said they had to let Exar Kun follow his own path. What’s changed their minds? Seriously, these guys are just annoying.

*So, Exar Kun escapes them by, I don’t know, possessing the buildings or something . . . this all leads up to the Jedi Academy Trilogy where Kun returns. And as stupid as it looked there, it looks even worse here. I mean what the hell?

*You might expect Ulic to die sacrificially defeating Exar Kun. Nope. We’ve got one more book to wring out of the poor bastard before we can let him go quietly into that good night.

*CANONICAL STATUS: The Sith War certainly occurred and some of the events depicted here certainly happened, but this narrative is filled with distortions and inaccurate fabrications. This work is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Warned against. 1 star.

Kevin J. Anderson

*Next time, we’ll take a little detour to catch a short story from this time period. Join me next time for Light & Shadow.

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So...I have to ask, are there parts of this you're looking forward to? Or is this whole - admittedly impressive - venture just pure masochism?

 

He was extremely positive about DOTJ. I think this era's just a rough patch.

Though I do admit I'm also sort of getting that Zeta vibe.

 

Oh, yes, there's a lot of the EU that I really love. By the time we're through the KOTOR period, you'll be tired of my effusive praise, I'm sure. To this point, I think the DOTJ stuff and the Lost Tribe stories are the ones I recommended across the board.

 

TOTJ has some heavy nostalgia value for me. I ate up that stuff as a kid. Because, basically, apart from TTT, JAT and DE and a few stand-alone novels that had started to come out - that was it. I loved it.

 

Light & Shadow

3,996 BBY

*So, Light and Shadow is a story originally planned for the Adventure Journal, but it was apparently left unpublished when the Journal folded up. It was later published on the web and you can read it at the link above, if you so desire.

*So, this story begins with a fella name of Dray; he has hermited himself away on an unnamed planet that he calls Vigil. He is, and this is no surprise, nursing some demons and has come ‘to try and salvage his very soul.’

*So, it seems our friend Dray was a Jedi, at least a learner. Under circumstances that aren’t entirely clear in the fragmented memories Danner spins, Dray kills a fellow apprentice and a close friend.

*So, Dray is given to having these sort of John on Patmos visions apparently. But one day, those visions are interrupted by reality. A ship has crashed on his lonely planet. Lengthy sequence of Dray rescuing a young girl from the flaming wreckage; her parents have died in the crash.

*This culminates in an admittedly great moment when Dray has been flinging wreckage all around and nearly dying and then he finally gets the girl and drags her out of the flames and collapses to the ground with her, safe at last. She then matter-of-factly says, “I think you’re evil. Usually I can tell.”

*Which, I have to admit, sort of perfectly captures that weird genius kids have for saying something absolutely on point at the worst possible moment.

*After this rather surprising moment of verisimilitude, we are plunged into absolute camp. Allow me to quote: “Bracing himself, Dray prepared to enter her deep subconscious. That was where a Force-sensitive being maintained a protective barrier that would prevent another Force wielder form penetrating his or her inner mind. This powerful ‘shield’ violently pushed back such an intruder . . . The stronger the push, the greater the being’s strength in the Force.”

*Well, I have to say I prefer Danner’s ‘shield’ to Kevin J. Anderson and all his talk of ‘rubbing the nub’ or whatever the hell he was going on about in Jedi Search.

*So, Dray pushes into the young girl’s subconscious. And he is promptly blasted through the forest, screaming as he careens through the trees to finally land in an ice-cold lake half a mile away.

*Makes all that stuff with Kyp seem kind of subtle, doesn’t it?

*Seriously, I’d so love to see that on the big screen. It’s just so awesomely terrible.

*So, the girl introduces herself as Nova and Dray introduces himself, for some damn reason, as Lian.

*Actually moving: “Did you come here because of your heart?” “My heart?” “I can feel it. I think it weighs more than my daddy’s ship.”

*So, suddenly a couple of Dark Siders show up, Xash and Sindra, twins. They’ve come for Nova, obviously.

*This is a pretty good lightsaber duel.

*It has a nice flow and sort of turns on a dime a couple of time. Ultimately, however, after flirting with it a couple of times and avoiding it, Dray gives in to the Dark Side himself and blasts the twins with some Force Lightning.

*In so doing, of course, he freaks Nova out and she runs away from him into the forest.

*So, then we get a lengthy flashback to Dray’s training. It involves him having to go alone to the Citadel of Shadows and . . . doubtless meet his Most Dangerous Foe if you know what I mean.

*I’m seriously so sick of this trope. I mean, Empire did it. Does that mean everyone else has to do so also?

*So, Nova has been captured by this dude, Thannor Keth, Sorcerer of the Sith. He’s given to saying things like “Jedi whelp” and “I answer to no one” and stuff.

*So, Dray engages in combat with Keth. There’s a nice moment where Keth does his whole dramatic thing and he closes with “You don’t know the power of the Dark Side!” to which Dray coolly replies, “I am familiar with it.”

*So, then like Dray and Nova like mingle their Force essences or something and defeat Keth. You remember the end of Dark Empire? And how it was like completely unclear what the hell had just happened? This isn’t that bad (nothing is that bad), but it head fakes that direction.

*So, then Dray fixes up his ship and prepares to take Nova to Ossus to be trained. I suppose this is the detail that fixes this as being around Sith War time. I really didn’t see any other real markers at all.

*Allow me to quote the beautiful ending: “He glanced at Nova and nodded in thanks, for his new ward had helped him find something he thought was long-lost . . . Hope. And at that moment, all was right with the galaxy.”

*Except, not really, because at that exact moment, Ossus was being reduced to a smoking ruin and everyone died except one guy who managed to turn himself into a tree, which is kind of Pyrrhic victory if you ask me, am I right, and, anyway, the Jedi are basically decimated and the rest of the galaxy ain’t much better and it’s all because the Jedi are hopelessly lost in a world where they can’t see the forest for the trees, no pun intended, and basically, if you can even find a frigging teacher for Nova in all this chaos, she’s basically just going to get turned into an idiot anyway.

*Truly, all is well.

*Well, seriously, this is an enjoyable story. Danner has an engaging style, particularly in the action sequences. There’s nothing really new in Dray’s story except Danner’s strange decision to really leave his past mostly vague. I mean, we never really find out what actually did happen at the Citadel or why he killed his friend or why he left the woman he loved, Cayli.

*I forgot to even mention Cayli, didn’t I? Ah, well.

*But it’s longer than you might think and so has a little more time than some of these stories do to actually breath and actually adhere to some sort of internal rhythm. And that lightsaber fight at the half point really is very good.

*CANONICAL STATUS: While there is a distinct possibility that this story has its roots in truth, there are no outstanding historical records to corroborate it. It is NOT RECOMMENDED as a historical resource.

*Above average. 2 ½ stars.

Paul Danner

*Well, it’s been ten reviews again already and you know what that means! Or, well, actually, you don’t. I’ve been doing my take on the 111 Star Wars Stories You Can’t Live Without, posting a new review every ten reviews. Well, I’ve decided to shake things up a bit. I’ll continue with my reviews of that list, but next time, something a little different.

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