The Rise and Fall of Darth Vader = ...Just a Fall

Wow, was that book worthless or what? Its basically just a recap. Boooo-hiss!

Ye shall discuss the book here.

 

Considering the audience it's aimed at--young readers who haven't read any of the Expanded Universe--it's probably a good book with a bunch of cool scenes, factoids, and characterizations that go beyond the movies.

For those of us who have more experience with the EU, eh, there are still some nice scenes--like Anakin's arrival on Tatooine--that aren't covered anywhere else.

TC

 

And plenty of fresh looks at old scenes - the new undertones it gives the old Splinter of the Mind's Eye climax, for instance, are brilliant.

 

We're allowed whining thread in Lit?

 

I wish Traviss would write a Vader book. She's the only author that understands the character (besides Stover), and writes him as he should be written.

Most authors (LIKE 97%) write their OC as the little Sue that loves to show Vader up, but it never makes sense becuz no mater what, he's always 2nd in command.

 

TC: Even those "fresh perspectives" are glancing looks, one-to-four lines max. And the EU appearances and such (Splinters and comics post ANH and SOTE being the only ones, not including the Clone Wars cartoon which was aimed at this demo.) they in TOTAL comprise MAYBE one page of a large font.

Its not whining, its just a "meh" type of thing.

 

There are more references in there than you think.

Anyway, Talon Card's original point stands - this is a book made for children who probably haven't even seen all of the movies, let alone steeped themselves in the lore of the EU. It needs to cover the basics, and it does that admirably. The fact that it's got anything for us in it is extra, since we're not its target audience.

 

QFT

Say what you will about Traviss and her Mandos, but she writes one helluva Vader.

 

An opinion! Like everyone else's!

I think she does write Vader well. The other authors want to make any obscure OC the equal of Vader. Zahn was the worst where he even throws in some unknown character and tries to make him significant too. It was supposed to come off as all mysterious and deep, but it it ain't on the page, it ain't on the stage. Or telling rather than showing. We're supposed to believe anything a character says. Zahn's biggest flaw I think. We're supposed to just believe him.

Vader is a very complex character, and is seldom written with any depth. Too many fanboys that write SW either want to tear Vader down or write him like the unknown mystery man in he was in ANH. Really ha can be neither for the story to really work.

(Zahn's attempts to shoehorn Mara Sue worked OK before the PT. Definitely not so well after. Though I like the character, we really have no real viable proof that she meant that much.)

If Vader was as lame as everyone implies whilst Palpatine also had it in for him, he in no way would have lasted as long as he did. Someone would have done him in.

 

Well, you can't please everyone.

 

No, we're not, and this is a big part of why Zahn gets so much undeserved flak.

 

When did Traviss write Vader? In the RC novels?

 

I know she wrote a Vader short story that originally appeared in Star Wars Insider but I'm not sure if she's written anything else featuring Vader.

 

# In His Image, in Vader: The Ultimate Guide
# A Two-Edged Sword (sequel to In His Image, in Star Wars Insider 85)

this from the wook