The NJO. A good series?

Any real Star Wars fan can't miss it.

Yeah. You're not a "real" SW fans because you only love the movies and bantam books and dark horse comics. I'm a "true" fan though, because I love each and every little aspect. Any fan is a "real" fan unless they're...not real I guess, if that makes sense

 

And if you want to read about the Solo kids consistently having all the answers ans daving the day again and again and again, read them. If you don't want to see Luke, Han, Mara and Leia acting like they've had full frontal lobatamies, stay away from it.

And if you want to read about an enemy who enjoys pain and getting pages and pages of descriptions of mutilations and just having all their organic superweapons dropped into your lap with no explanation of how they work--by all means, pick up an NJO novel.

 

Is it a good series? No.

Unless of course you enjoy seeing the kids as Power Rangers, and the grown ups without brains, and favorite planets destroyed and lets not forget violence and torture.

 

I love it.

In a way it has a more negative feel than the other books, this annoys some, but I love it. I has more of the feel of the original movies than the Bantam books did and the characters and plot line is different, but good. I recommend you read it, and then form your own opinions. If you are worried about wasting money, check the books out from a library or try a used book store. In any case, read them.

Darth Parth

 

Okay, I went out and bought the first three of the NJO books. I'm just starting into Vector Prime and I don't really know what to expect. I've been away from the SW books for a long time. I vividly remember loving the Thrawn trilogy and I hope the NJO is on that level. I've read some posts here and the opinions seems mixed on the NJO. Well, I'm on page 15 and I think I'm about to meet the mysterious Nom Anor. I really want to like these books - we'll see....

 

Just don't listen to anyone here. Read them with an open mind.

 

Just don't listen to anyone here. Read them with an open mind

Too true. I like the NJO, and that's all that matters to me

 

I agree that to form an opinion you have to read them with a balanced mind, however I think that the advice to borrow a few from your local library first is the best course to follow.

Personally, I have mixed emotions about NJO. On one hand, it is very gritty and shows that the universe isn't as simple as 'wave a lighsabre around and your enemies will fall to your feet by the final chapter'. I like the fact that there are some threats out there the New Republic simply can't match. I like the fact that Han and Leia are having their ups and downs like many married couples go through (I'd always found their marriage portrayed as a bit fairytale-perfect before).

On the other hand I feel that I'm being blackmailed into buying more and more books with no end in sight. Forget about reading 'just this book' or 'just that book'. If you're going to read one, you'll have to read them all to understand what is going on. I know. I live in a rural area away from big book stores and have had to snap up the NJO books when they become available, which is NEVER in the right order. So I spent six months being thoroughly confused because I hadn't read them all, and what I had read was out of chronological order. I like epic story arcs, don't get me wrong (I'm a big fan of Babylon 5 for this reason), but there should be SOME closure to a book. Especially when it's declared to be part II of II on the cover. Essentially every book in NJO should be finished with a 'To be continued...' label at the back, possibly with an additional comment '...with no end in sight'. It's getting irritating, especially as a student with little money for books in the first place! (our library unfortunately doesn't have most of the SW series in stock) </rant>

 

I'm an Imperial fanatic. Will my hunger for more...MORE! Imperials be satiated? Or will I be left starving for a decent Imperial appearance?

 

Mastage, ?

****

 

Is it a good series? Tough question, certainly the Salvatore and Stackpole books were excellent, but found the Luceno books to be highly lacking, worse, they perpetuated a sense that the New Republic is so disorganized and its leaders so incompetant, and so busy squabling amongst themselves that very little is being done to address the fact that the galaxy has just been invaded. I am also sick of Borsk Fey'lya playing the ultimate martyr for the past 25 years and despite his continued bad mouthing heroes like Luke Skywalker and Leia Organna-Solo, has managed to become the guy in charge. Think about that, will you? These heroes, because of their actions, collapsed an entire empire, freed a galaxy and ended a civil war, and yet somehow their credibility cannot stand up to being shattered by one wily Bothan.

What I think has happened, (and bear in mind I have only read the first 5 books so feel free to correct me), is that the series has lost direction, that the writers don't really know where to take the overall story or how to end it. What I am afraid of is that there will be some deus ex machina ending where someone has a gizmo or just so happens to find a.) a cache of ships that no one knew about, again. b.) a left over super weapon from Palpatine's Super Weapon Ship Yards. or c.) Someone will discover why the Vong have no relation to the Force and exploit it.

Is it a good series. The first 3 were very solid, the Luceno books were hot and cold at best.

 

I love the series. For all of you out there who think it's to violent for younger people I am 13 and have read them since Vector Prime came out. I don't think it at all that violent.

Anyway it's been very well written in my opinion. So yes I say start readen.

 

Yes, the NJO is worth reading. Unlike what some people have been saying, I find Luke, Mara, Han, Leia and the rest of the adult characterizations to be good so far. Statements like the Solo kids having all the answers and are acting like like "power rangers" are wild exaggerations. They share the spotlight with the older SW heroes.

The Yuuzhan Vong are enemies that we learn more and more about with each book read. They do not simply mutilate and have no superweapons, at least not yet. I find them to be an interesting adversary.

In the end, one has to make up their own mind whether they like the NJO are not. Reading Vector Prime and Onslaught are a good start. If you like those two books then continue on. If you don't like them then you could try reading Balance Point to see if your opinion changes, if not then the series might not be for you and you should save yourself further heartache and not read the rest of the books.

 

Kier_Nimmion, I think after you read the Edge of Victory duology you will start to feel like the NJO is coming back together. I too didn't much enjoy the Luceno books, but Conquest got me excited about the NJO again.

 

I'd have to say yes. I actually like these books more than most of the Bantam line.

 

No. Not worth it.

But, by all means, waste your money on the books just so you can read them with an open mind. Heck, buy them all and read them with an open mind. That is after all what Del Rey and LFL want you to do. Buy them all. And you may only end up liking 5 out of 20, but if you didn't buy them all you might not have found those five. :rolleyes

Except for Vector Prime, the adult characters are portrayed as stupid idiots who are old and tired. They show almost no initiative in combating the enemy. "Rogue" (not Rogue Squad) elements of the Jedi, many of them killed off, and the Solo kids are the ones who have all the answers and save the day. Instead of sharing the page with the adult heroes who have gone through a war before and know how to handle things, the novels revolve around the heroic actions of the Solo kids. For crying out out, Luke almost faints after using two lightsabers to fight off 3 or 4 Vong warriors.

Each new author has introduced a new Vong weapon of mass destruction that rivals or outdoes the previous novel. The speed and level of destruction certainly rank right up there with the superweapons of the Empire. I'd give examples but don't want to spoil.

The title of the series is a misnomer. We haven't really seen any new Jedi. The ones that we have seen walk on, then walk off, or are carried off. The title of the series should be the New Solo Order, or Teenage Jedi Knights.

 

What I think has happened, (and bear in mind I have only read the first 5 books so feel free to correct me), is that the series has lost direction, that the writers don't really know where to take the overall story or how to end it.

The series was essentially planned out from the beginning. With 20 books spanning five years, there obviously isn't going to be resolution in the first year.

Year 1: Establishes Threat
Year 2: Gets all the elements in place
Year 3: The good guys go to hell, all hope is lost
Year 4: Glimmer of hope, good guys get a plan, start moving towards resolution. This will typically be the year with the least action and the most plot.
Year 5: Resolution, climax, and beginnings of clean-up.

As to all this talk about Vong superweapons getting bigger and better in each book, I'm not quite sure what you're all talking about.

The Vong were introduced in VP and had a bunch of weapons. In DT they were more of a threat, granted -- they were the military, not the politicians. In AoC there was no superweapon. There was, granted, the one vacuum cleaner beastie, but that's not really a superweapon. Since then there really hasn't been anything new in terms of Vong weapons.

 

The only thing that would make the NJO worse is a highly detailed Yuuzhan Vong love scene.

*Shudder*

And I wouldn't put it past one of the authors and Del Rey to put that in one of the books.

 

If you're starved for Star Wars then its worth reading yes, but I personally don't think its a good series.

 

No, I don't think this is a good series. As someone said, borrow a couple of books from the library or from a friend to see if you like them.

There are so many things that I dislike about this series that I don't even know where to begin. Some of the major things are:

1.It's very dark, depressing, and violent, with little of the hopeful spirit that has always been associated with Star Wars. It seems as though the SW galaxy is being systematically destroyed, with more and more well-known worlds falling to the relentless Vong.

2.The adult series exists no more and we now have a teenage Jedi Knight series or a young Jedi Order. The adult characters accomplish little or nothing, while the teenage Jedi lead missions, come up with most of the answers, and save the day, as well as the lives, of the adults around them.

3. There are many repeated plots, and many, many dangling and completely dropped plotlines and characters.

4. There is very little plot resolution. As someone said, every book could end with a '...to be continued with no end in sight'.

5. I don't like the fact that this is a 20 book series, which means that you need to read 20 books to get only ONE complete story and there are no other story choices. If you don't like this story arc, too bad, you're stuck with it for 5 years. There are no alternatives. At least with the Bantam books, you knew that if you didn't like one book or trilogy, there was a chance you might like the next one.

6. I don't like the Yuuzhan Vong with their living technology and their self-mutilations and penchant for death, pain, and torture.

7.In all the books except VP, Luke, Han, Leia, Mara and other well-loved adult characters are portrayed as weak, stupid, useless, tired, and old has-beens. They have regressed instead of grown, and are often barely recognizable except for their names.

8. Except for the teenagers, we see very little of the Jedi Knights in action in these books, and very little use of the Force.

 

Those are you personal dislikes, but really folks, don't listen to anything anyone here says. I really like the NJO a lot, and I know it's going to get even better. But if you want to know if it's good or not, find out for youself. We can't make those decisions fo you. Go to you local library and pick up as many as you can. Read 'em. See if you like 'em.