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Books The Last Jedi by Jason Fry

Discussion in 'Literature' started by GrandAdmiralJello , Jul 21, 2017.

Page 17 of 27

AdmiralNick22 Retired Fleet Admiral VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 28, 2003

Jedi Ben said: ↑

Sadly, this was a disappointment. It's quite clear Jason gave it his best shot, but his aim was fatally compromised and hindered by the fact he was novelising TLJ. The one thing that would have made it far, far better is more Luke, but that just wasn't here. I was hoping for a better sense of Luke's viewpoint, but what's here is more or less what the film gives us minus Hamill's killer performance to sell it. In that respect, most of the weaknesses of the film are replicated here.

As to the fabled NR references, either it was a sentence here, another there or they were too damn subtle I missed them completely. (Quite, quite seriously - gimme the page numbers.) In this respect I can recognise that Fry's hands were probably tied by the lack of knowing whatever is being done in Ep 9, but I still feel it's a missed opportunity. Especially with regard to Bloodline, this could have paid that book off but doesn't.

The big success of the book lies elsewhere then - Luke, Rey, Holdo, Poe, Ren, Hux - they are very much as they are in the movie. Where Fry does work a good amount of magic is in character recollections:

Snoke's musings about the true nature of the Contingency
Poe learning to fly in the atmosphere and orbit of Yavin with his mother Shara, including flying around the Death Star wreckage
Hux recalling that the Jedi used child soldiers - he has the Imperial version
Snoke running through the list of his rivals - Brendol Hux, Sloane, Rax
Luke's adventures in the decades before were aimed at uncovering the greater truths of the Force
Snoke aided the Empire in the Unknown Regions - that demands to be expanded on, as does the greater truths he claimed to hold and wished to deny Skywalker

These were excellent and hinted at a grander tapestry that absolutely has to be developed further.
Click to expand...

I take it you weren't a fan of the film, Ben?

We agree that Jason knocks it out of the park in terms of his character POV's. I'm still in awe of the Ackbar one, it's only a few pages long but it encapsulates all of the aspects that make this character great. Hux was fantastically written too, IMO.

--Adm. Nick

AdmiralNick22 , Mar 9, 2018

#401
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

AdmiralNick22 said: ↑

I take it you weren't a fan of the film, Ben?
Click to expand...

You might enjoy my initial monster post about it Nick:
http://boards.theforce.net/threads/...mors-spoilers.50038540/page-202#post-54754606

If this story didn't have Luke, Han and Leia in it, if it were say 100 years later, I'd probably enjoy it far more.

Jason does what he can, but Hux remains, for me, Evil Weasley.

Jedi Ben, Mar 9, 2018

#402

Padme501st likes this.
AdmiralNick22 Retired Fleet Admiral VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 28, 2003

While I obviously disagree with a lot of that, I respect your opinion and respect you even more for giving the novelization a chance.

--Adm. Nick

AdmiralNick22 , Mar 9, 2018

#403

Jedi Ben likes this.
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 25, 2002

By the time I get and read my copy this thread will probably be down on page 3..

LAJ_FETT , Mar 9, 2018

#404

Giovs likes this.
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

Weird that Amazon is taking so long on your copy Laj.

Jedi Ben, Mar 9, 2018

#405
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 25, 2002

I think it's because I had other books in the order. However, since the order is coming in two parts now I'm surprised it wasn't in the first part - unless they are sold out of it. Normally you get an email about a delay if that's the case though.

LAJ_FETT , Mar 9, 2018

#406

Jedi Ben likes this.
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

It's just that I got my copy from there too and it arrived fast. Maybe they did get a spike of orders?

Jedi Ben, Mar 9, 2018

#407
PCCViking Chosen One

Registered:

Jun 12, 2014

LAJ_FETT said: ↑

I think it's because I had other books in the order. However, since the order is coming in two parts now I'm surprised it wasn't in the first part - unless they are sold out of it. Normally you get an email about a delay if that's the case though.
Click to expand...

Well, you should have made sure it was the...First Order. Pun intended...

PCCViking, Mar 9, 2018

#408

Valency Jane, cwustudent, jSarek and 2 others like this.
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

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May 25, 2002

I waited to see if my local Waterstones had it earlier this week when I was in town. When they didn't I put the order in online.

LAJ_FETT , Mar 9, 2018

#409

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The Raddinator Jedi Knight

Registered:

Dec 18, 2017

Just finished the audiobook. I love about a million things that it'll take some time to unpack. (But I ESPECIALLY loved the early First Order stuff; Cannady, Hux in the turbolift etc was all gold) One thing that had slightly bugged me before which I *really* appreciated though was the seamless blending of the Leia: Princess of Alderaan Crait material with the Marvel one-shot Crait stuff. They were sort of hard to reconcile with one another before, but here it's not only done casually but pays off in that great scene with Leia instructing the others in how to use the ski speeders!

The Raddinator, Mar 9, 2018

#410

Hypatia, WebLurker, Jedi Ben and 1 other person like this.
Giovs Jedi Master

Registered:

Apr 29, 2013

Originally I've pre-ordered from Amazon Brazil, they usually get the book the next day it's released in the US, but alas... that was not the case with The Last Jedi, so I've ordered from Amazon US in the morning of march 7th, and nothing so far. I'ts been awhile since I've ordered something from Amazon US, but they used to ship my order in one day. I've heard the delay may have something to do with Amazon prioritizing Prime members or something.

Last edited: Mar 9, 2018

Giovs, Mar 9, 2018

#411
Diego Lucas Jedi Knight

Registered:

Dec 12, 2015

Giovs said: ↑

Originally I've pre-ordered from Amazon Brazil, they usually get the book the next day it's released in the US, but alas... that was not the case with The Last Jedi, so I've ordered from Amazon US in the morning of march 7th, and nothing so far. I'ts been awhile since I've ordered something from Amazon US, but they used to ship my order in one day. I've heard the delay may have something to do with Amazon prioritizing Prime members or something.
Click to expand...

Also from Brazil, but i will wait the Brazil version, will be release on march 26.

Diego Lucas, Mar 9, 2018

#412

Giovs likes this.
Giovs Jedi Master

Registered:

Apr 29, 2013

Diego Lucas said: ↑

Giovs said: ↑

Originally I've pre-ordered from Amazon Brazil, they usually get the book the next day it's released in the US, but alas... that was not the case with The Last Jedi, so I've ordered from Amazon US in the morning of march 7th, and nothing so far. I'ts been awhile since I've ordered something from Amazon US, but they used to ship my order in one day. I've heard the delay may have something to do with Amazon prioritizing Prime members or something.
Click to expand...

Also from Brazil, but i will wait the Brazil version, will be release on march 26.
Click to expand...

I think it's great Brazillian fans are getting a Portuguese translation of the book so soon after the original release. I mean, look at the Aftermath Trilogy, Empire's End hasn't been released here yet! But I'm glad Aleph is releasing the translated Star Wars novels so fans around here can enjoy the larger Star Wars Universe beyond the movies and animated series.
But me? I always prefer to read the books in english. It's good practice (to tell you the truth, if I can speak english today, I owe that to Star Wars ), and I like to read them in their original language.

Giovs, Mar 9, 2018

#413

Jedi Princess, MattOrgana and Diego Lucas like this.
Diego Lucas Jedi Knight

Registered:

Dec 12, 2015

Giovs said: ↑

Diego Lucas said: ↑

Giovs said: ↑

Originally I've pre-ordered from Amazon Brazil, they usually get the book the next day it's released in the US, but alas... that was not the case with The Last Jedi, so I've ordered from Amazon US in the morning of march 7th, and nothing so far. I'ts been awhile since I've ordered something from Amazon US, but they used to ship my order in one day. I've heard the delay may have something to do with Amazon prioritizing Prime members or something.
Click to expand...

Also from Brazil, but i will wait the Brazil version, will be release on march 26.
Click to expand...

I think it's great Brazillian fans are getting a Portuguese translation of the book so soon after the original release. I mean, look at the Aftermath Trilogy, Empire's End hasn't been released here yet! But I'm glad Aleph is releasing the translated Star Wars novels so fans around here can enjoy the larger Star Wars Universe beyond the movies and animated series.
But me? I always prefer to read the books in english. It's good practice (to tell you the truth, if I can speak english today, I owe that to Star Wars ), and I like to read them in their original language.
Click to expand...

Me too, bought LOLS from Amazon BR, the question it's the price, for me worth it buy the english version of LOLS, but TLJ, the BR version have a good price.

Diego Lucas, Mar 9, 2018

#414

Giovs likes this.
GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque Staff Member Administrator

Registered:

Nov 28, 2000

Finished the book today. It was wonderful -- I sort of wish I could have read it even slower, but I was torn between wanting to savor it and wanting to discuss it without the risk of spoiling myself.

I think the strength of this book is the POVs. Like Rogue One, getting into the heads of the characters helped me with some of the plotlines that were subject to much debating after the film. The Finn/Rose plotline is the weakest in the film despite featuring Canto Bight (obvious interest) and despite Rose being such a good character that KMT sells. I suspect the reason for this weakness lies in editing -- the film was long, there were things cut, and I think some of the things that were cut would've really helped that plotline because it was all about character development. The novel had room to get into it, and really make explicit what you might've had to think about or watch the film a couple times to get about Finn/Rose: that Finn needed to grow from being interested only in saving Rey to someone who was actually committed to the fight. It was also great for Rose insofar as it tied right into Cobalt Squadron and Bomber Command (from what I've heard, I still need to read both.... so much Star Wars) and showed Rose growing to becoming a hero in her own right instead of just hearing about them from her sister.

Oh, and having Poe's POV helped with the whole mutiny thing. It's again, something that is present in the film and you can pick up on... but maybe only if you had the context from other Poe stories in mind. The book makes it clear what's going on in Poe's head and why he did what he did. And while he's still (in my view) still utterly in the wrong, you can see exactly where he's coming from. I only wish that we had some more Amilyn POVs but Jason's said that the reason we didn't is because he wanted to preserve the film's revelation about her plan. There were some nice Leia: Princess of Alderaan tie-ins, which I appreciated.

Other than these POVs, I really liked the fact that the narrative let us see a lot of minor POVs. The droid POVs were hilarious. The old fogey Imperials in the First Order were fantastic, and I particularly enjoyed their disdain for Hux. Actually, disdain for Hux was a general theme in this book from practically every POV but his own and this was all worth the cost of entry to see on one hand, Hux's utterly delusional POV and the other hand, everyone laughing at his prancing antics.

There's some great Force stuff about the living vs cosmic force, a discussion of attachment and Luke's philosophy on that old Jedi prohibition that reminds me of discussions we've had in Lit, stuff on the future and destiny that reminds me of Greek mythology and prophecy, and some discourses on the state of the NR and the state of the FO. I particularly enjoyed this passage on Snoke musing that nobody would've imagined him being the leader of the First Order, not just because of the continuity (although I love a good RAE SLOANE namedrop), but because it's so meta.

Oh and naturally yes, I enjoyed every bit of Canto Bight and the Libertine yacht.

I highlighted a lot of passages in this book for either being funny, clever, or attacks on feelings.

Overall I enjoyed it a lot.

Last edited: Mar 9, 2018

GrandAdmiralJello , Mar 9, 2018

#415

Hypatia, Valency Jane, hermiona52 and 8 others like this.
Endol Jedi Master

Registered:

Nov 14, 2014

Just picked my copy up from Sainsburys. £9.99 so very respectful. Knew it would be worth waiting for a supermarket release for this.

Only just started, but man, what a prologue!

Endol, Mar 9, 2018

#416
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

GrandAdmiralJello said: ↑

The droid POVs were hilarious.
Click to expand...

So very true.

The idea that Black One's computer is a prima donna pain in the arse was brilliant.

Jedi Ben, Mar 10, 2018

#417

DarthSienna and JoinTheSchwarz like this.
LAJ_FETT Tech Admin (2007-2023) - She Held Us Together VIP - Former Mod/RSA

Registered:

May 25, 2002

Endol said: ↑

Just picked my copy up from Sainsburys. £9.99 so very respectful. Knew it would be worth waiting for a supermarket release for this.

Only just started, but man, what a prologue!
Click to expand...

If I see it at my Sainsburys tomorrow I might be tempted to buy it and cancel the one on order from Amazon - assuming that order hasn't shipped yet.

LAJ_FETT , Mar 10, 2018

#418

Jedi Ben and Endol like this.
Iron_lord Chosen One

Registered:

Sep 2, 2012

Now that I've bought it this morning, and read it - I thought there was a great shout-out to A. C. Crispin's Han Solo Trilogy. Just a single small reference - but I liked it.

Wonga winga cingee wooze, which of these do I choose.

Iron_lord, Mar 10, 2018

#419

Jedi Knight Fett, darthcaedus1138, Dr. Steve Brule and 6 others like this.
Vialco Force Ghost

Registered:

Mar 6, 2007

Iron_lord said: ↑

Now that I've bought it this morning, and read it - I thought there was a great shout-out to A. C. Crispin's Han Solo Trilogy. Just a single small reference - but I liked it.

Wonga winga cingee wooze, which of these do I choose.

Click to expand...

Sarn Shild in his final moments.

Vialco, Mar 10, 2018

#420

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Giovs Jedi Master

Registered:

Apr 29, 2013

My book is finally on it's way!

Giovs, Mar 10, 2018

#421
Jedi Ben Chosen One

Registered:

Jul 19, 1999

For those who've read it: Am I alone in thinking that

the secrets of the Unknown Regions that Snoke held and blocked Luke from will come into play in a big way in ep 9?

Jedi Ben, Mar 10, 2018

#422

Darth Caliban, Sinrebirth , darklordoftech and 1 other person like this.
GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque Staff Member Administrator

Registered:

Nov 28, 2000

Jedi Ben said: ↑

So very true.

The idea that Black One's computer is a prima donna pain in the arse was brilliant.

Click to expand...

Threepio was also a stand-out favorite too. And the Falcon.

GrandAdmiralJello , Mar 10, 2018

#423
Thrawn082 Force Ghost

Registered:

Jan 11, 2014

This novel made me despise Rose even more than I already did.

Thrawn082, Mar 10, 2018

#424

Hypatia, cwustudent, Vialco and 2 others like this.
Jedi Jessy Force Ghost

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Feb 28, 2016

Thrawn082 said: ↑

This novel made me despise Rose even more than I already did.

Click to expand...

I feel sorry for Kelly but yeah, her character is too abusive to Finn and treat him like an idiot

Jedi Jessy, Mar 10, 2018

#425

Hypatia, cwustudent, anakinfansince1983 and 1 other person like this.

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