Author Archives: Bria

EU Retrospective: Thrawn Trilogy

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Ahhhh the Thrawn books.  Honestly, is there anything more classic than Zahn’s trilogy when it comes to the Expanded Universe?  If you’re here for the snark, you’ll have to wait a little bit longer because between these three books and another X-Wing novel?  I have nothing but praise this go-round.  (Shocking, I know.)

Heir to the Empire
One of the first things that occurred to me while I was reading this book is how much the Star Wars universe owes to Timothy Zahn.  There is so much about the universe that I just take for granted that I’m now realizing/remembering is all thanks to Zahn.  Coruscant?  Zahn.  Personalities for character who really only cameoed in the films but are integral parts of the EU?  Zahn.  Bringing Wedge Antilles to the forefront?  Zahn.  Introducing the best character ever, aka Winter?  Zahn.  I mean, I’m not saying that Zahn is god but the amount of canon he contributed is amazing.

What I love about this book and the entire trilogy is that the story still clearly feels like Star Wars but still has its own tale to tell.  It’s not a rehashing of the Emperor or Vader because the villains have their own motivations and characterizations.  (I’ll save my ‘Why I love Pellaeon’ ramble for another post.)  Thrawn is most certainly his own character who takes a very different approach to winning the war than any other Imperial we’ve seen before.  It’s pretty cool that he can study art and figure out how someone will react.  And then you have C’boath who is just bonkers.  His original model wasn’t much of a charmer to begin with so this probably shouldn’t be surprising.

And then we have the introduction of the ever fabulous Mara Jade.  If there are people in our universe who dislike her, I don’t want to know about them.  I positively adore everything about her and what she brings to the story.  I’m also a huge fan of Talon Karrde and his smuggling organization that doubles as the best intelligence agency not controlled by a government.  I’d happily read a book all about Karrde and his organization.  Pretty please, Del Ray?  Also, I will admit to also not really getting the Wild Karrde joke either until a few years ago because I pronounced the ‘e’ in my mind.  Nanci isn’t alone here.

Of course, all the familiar characters are always great to read about.  Zahn clearly gets Luke, Han, Leia, and Lando and writes them all quite well.  Plus, I think he did a great job of bringing each of them five years forward from Endor so we see the same characters but we also get to see a logical progression for each one.

The story is good too.  It’s a set up novel for the rest of the trilogy but never feels like it’s only there as exposition because it has its own tale to tell before the final page is turned.  Enjoyable all around.

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Katsucon Cosplay Round Up

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This past weekend was Katsucon, an anime convention held just outside of Washington DC in National Harbor, MD.  In addition to being a great anime convention in general, Katsucon also has the distinction of making its home in the Gaylord, one of the most beautiful hotels I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing which makes for some wonderful photos.  It’s also a nice sized convention that feels neither small nor overcrowded.  (Yes, walking is totally possible here!)  From the panels to the maid cafe to the artist alley and dealer room to simply people watching, there was something for everyone last weekend.  If you live in the area or simply want to check out a fun convention at the most gorgeous hotel of all time, I absolutely recommend checking it out next February.

One of the wonderful things about conventions is the variety of costumes that convention goers (and the innocent people who wander into the hotel) get to see.  Despite being an anime convention, Katsucon boasts a wide variety of costumes from every anime and manga imaginable to western television shows and comics.  Obviously, anime and manga costumes ruled here but there are some fandoms that will always have a presence such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, Disney, Homestuck, and both Marvel and DC comics.  This year, I also noticed a solidly large gathering of costumes from last fall’s Rise of the Guardians film and Adventure Time along with a ton of Kid Loki and Korra cosplayers.  And, of course, Sailor Moon continued to have a solid presence, something that is likely to only increase with the anime’s return this year.

(Just as a note, please let me know if you recognize yourself or others in any of these pictures.  Unfortunately, my plan of trying to get cosplayer names mostly backfired due to being in costume myself for much of the convention and touchscreen phones do not work with gloves.  Please feel free to comment though and I’ll be more than happy to edit credit into this post!)

Because we are primarily a Star Wars blog, I’m going to start with some of the great Star Wars costumes I spotted this weekend.  (I did my best to sprint down the corridor after most of the ones I saw but undoubtedly missed a few.)  Check out these Star Wars costumers (and many more!) after the jump! Continue reading →

EU Retrospective: The Han and Leia Love Boat

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Welcome aboard the Han and Leia Solo looooooooove boat.   We provide music and history lessons at the low low cost of only two books.  And possibly your sanity unless you just roll with the ridiculousness.  Someone cue up the Bollywood soundtrack because here we go!

The Courtship of Princess Leia
Why yes.  This book is the Star Wars equivalent of a Bollywood musical.  You’ve probably heard us at Tosche Station repeat Dunc’s declaration a time or two.  Honestly though.  This book comes complete with a musical break where Threepio serenades the group with “Han Solo! What a man, Solo!” complete with orchestration and a tap dance routine.  You only think I’m making this up.  Of course, we can’t forget the opening number where the Hapans enter the grand audience chamber and make an elaborate presentation of gifts with women singing “Hapes Hapes Hapes” over and over again in the background.  If they were to film this, I would expect it to end much like Mirror, Mirror with a giant wedding Bollywood number.  Bonus points if they managed to get Sean Bean to play some role and just look miserable in the back ground.  But anyways.  Let’s be clear: this book is indeed ridiculous but it’s still entertaining and somewhat endearing in its own strange way.

Not that any of this excuses the characterization of Han or Leia.  It’s all just… off.  Very off.  Han is crazed and obsessed and Leia is just… yeah.  It’s just all so very very very wrong.  Also, I’m pretty sure that at this point in the timeline?  Han still finds Threepio irritating and even if he didn’t, I’m fairly sure that he is the LAST person or droid you should go to for love life advice.

Aside from the ridiculous characterization and strange plot, there are some good things about this book.  First and foremost, we get the planets of Dathomir and Hapes which I shall always insist are wonderful additions to the Expanded Universe.  Are they somewhat strange societies?  Sure but they make for fascinating reads.  Not only that but this book lays the foundation for one excellent character in the Expanded Universe: Tenel Ka who shall forever be my favorite warrior princess/queen but more on that in a few weeks.  Honestly, I wish that we’d gotten a chance to see more of both worlds in canon.

Also, this book gives us the infamous “Kiss My Wookiee!” line.  Come on, how can you not find that in the least bit amusing?

I am honestly convinced that Winter must have been off on some sort of mission for Intelligence while this was happening.  When she got back and Han and Leia told her the whole story, she listened calmly without comment and then smacked them both over the head, confiscated all of their spice, and gave them a stern lecture about the dangers of drugs.

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EU Retrospective: Wraith Squadron

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Only books I adore get sticky-noted like this

I love Wraith Squadron.  There are not enough words in any of the languages I know to properly express how much I love the Wraiths and these three books.  Reading these has never been anything less than a joy and I have strong emotional attachments to these characters.  Heads up, there’s going to be a lot of gushing in this post.  There are also going to be a lot of rambling emotions in this post.  If you want proper reviews of the X-Wing books, go read the retrospectives the rest of the staff wrote last year.  Yes, there will be more flailing and emotions than in the Shatterpoint and Revenge of the Sith reviews.  Brace yourselves.

Wraith Squadron
Rogue Squadron has officially rejoined the New Republic and Wedge Antilles, not content with the stack of medals and accolades he already has, is going to create a brand new squadron that will totally kick some Imperial behind but in their own distinctive way.

It’s actually Wedge himself who iterates why I love the Wraiths so much, even more than the Rogues.  Wedge assembles the Wraiths from the pilots in Starfighter Command who appear to be chronic screw-ups and are dangerously close to washing out.  He finds the men and women who are good to decent enough pilots and have skills to offer the New Republic but who’ve just had trouble making it.  In contrast, the Rogues were mostly from backgrounds that were quite the opposite.  Wedge specifically cites Corran’s CorSec and Bror’s Bacta Prince roots.  Not everyone can relate to something like that.  On the other hand, the Wraiths and their backgrounds make it a lot easier for the everyday person, including myself, to relate to them.  Allston lets us watch throughout these three books as these characters not only overcome their personal issues but also as they becomes heroes.

I enjoy both the plot and the characters development in Wraith Squadron equally.  It never feels like one is dragging the other along but rather that they go hand in hand which is absolutely how a novel should be.  It’s easy to become invested in how quickly this unit goes from not even being operational to capturing spaceships and doing some serious damage to Warlord Zsinj.  Plus, as Wedge and Wes both note, the Wraiths have a tendency to look at a problem and jump outside of the box that the main box is inside of and come at it from a completely different angle.  It’s what makes them dangerous and it’s why I love them.

Obviously, this is Kell Tainer’s book and wow does he have a lot of character development to go through.  In a lot of ways, he’s Corran Horn’s opposite.  Both of them are naturally gifted pilots with dead fathers but that’s where the comparisons stop.  Kell knows that he’s a good pilot, gifted with demolitions, and a more competent mechanic but he is plagued with the biggest case of self-doubt and fear of screwing up and letting others down.  It’s rather neat getting to watch him slowly get over both his fear of Janson and his fear of being a failure.  It doesn’t happen over night and it doesn’t happen without some encouragement from his friends but it happens.

The other thing that I really like about the Wraith books is that I feel that the readers actually get to know the entire squadron instead of just the leads and a few others.  Kell and Face may battle it out all the time for who’s my favorite Wraith but it just wouldn’t be the same if I didn’t finish the book feeling like I knew who each of the Wraiths was.  As a comparison, I can name every single member of Wraith Squadron in these three books but I don’t think I can say the same about all the Rogues in the X-Wing books.  (Peshk who?)

Okay, I think that’s enough emotions about the first book for now.  I have to save some for what’s coming next.  You know what’s about to happen.  And if you don’t, please go read these three books before reading the rest of this review.

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Cosplay Monday: Boromir

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We’re back with another Cosplay Monday to try and take your mind off the dreary work week ahead.  This week, we’re featuring a Lord of the Rings costumer who went above and beyond the call of duty.  Check out this fantastic Boromir costume by Anduril9226 over on DeviantArt.  The attention to detail is amazing enough is that I could easily believed he smuggled this off the set.  This is a job seriously well done.

Boromir anduril9226

EU Retrospective: Rogue Squadron

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I’ve finally reached the first batch of X-Wing books and there was much rejoicing!  Obviously we here at Tosche Station are very pro-X-Wing books and I always enjoy getting to read them again.  So sit back and enjoy me gushing about the first four books focused on the flyboys and flygirls of Rogue Squadron as they do the impossible which is absolutely what they do best.

Rogue Squadron
I love these books.  I really do.  But WOW IS CORRAN HORN AN ARROGANT PAIN IN THE BUTT in this book.  I do like him as a character especially with some of the character development he’s gotten over the years but he is infuriating to read about in this book.  The arrogance and the monologing do get a bit old after awhile.  At least I know he gets better.  Corran will always have some of that arrogance because that’s just who he is and I appreciate that but it’s at an all time high here.

I do enjoy reading this book though because it’s a solid read that offers both a good story and some great characters.  It simultaneously tells the story of the squadron’s reassembly and also sets up the overarching plot for the next three books.

With the exception of certain arrogant Corellian and a certain Bacta Queen-who-was-clearly-a-traitor-the-whole-time-in-retrospect, the characters are rather enjoyable!  (Okay, maybe I was a little harsh grouping Corran with Erisi there.  That was mean, I’m sorry, Corran.)  I always love getting a chance to look into Wedge Antilles’s head and Stackpole does such a good job of it.  I also enjoyed getting to meet such great characters like Tycho Celchu, Mirax Terrik, and Gavin Darklighter.  Poor Tycho though.  Like his backstory wasn’t already tragic enough without adding in the ‘he might be a traitor’ thing.  At least Mirax gets to balance it out by being sassy.

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Cosplay Monday: Gamorrean Warrior

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We’re back with another edition of Cosplay Monday: the weekly post where we try and awe you with an awesome costume and distract you from your case of the Mondays.  This week, we’re spotlighting an incredible looking Gamorrean costume spotted at Dragon*Con 2010 by photographer Insane-Pencil.  (If you know who the costumer is, please let us know and we’ll add in credit!)  Everything about this costume looks great and super impressive.  Well done!  (Who thinks this costumer should tackle a certain Wraith Squadron pilot next?)

Gamorrean_by_insane_pencil

EU Retrospective: After Endor

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The Waru Express is moving once more!  Did you miss my weekly descent into madness?  I return to my journey through the Star Wars universe with the two books that take place right after the Battle of Endor.  The Empire defeated just because the Death Star blew up again and some people tore down some statues?  Hardly!

The Truce at Bakura
It may not make my Top Ten list but I definitely enjoy reading Truce at Bakura every time I pick it up.  It’s a fun read that could work quite well as a starting point for a new reader to the Expanded Universe.  Even though the Rebels and the Empire have a very tentative truce against a common enemy, it still has a very Star Wars feel to it.  It feels like the logical next part of our heroes’ adventures.  The more I think about it, the more I like that Kathy Tyers chose to write an immediate sequel but had them facing a different enemy while simultaneously having to keep an eye on the Empire.

I also really enjoy getting to see Leia handle the startling revelations that she and Luke are twins and that she too is the child of Darth Vader.  Obviously news of that magnitude isn’t going to be accepted calmly and without question.  Can anyone really blame her for having less than warm and fuzzy feelings for the man who tortured her?  On a similar note, I like that Kathy Tyers also shows us that Luke did have some medical issues from being electrocuted with Force Lighting a lot.  Actions and their consequences are the best, folks.

Also, if you don’t love Eppie Belden when you read this book then you’re probably reading this book wrong.  There is undoubtedly some trope pertaining to sassy old ladies who put up with nobody’s crap and kick some butt along the way.  Whatever that trope is, I adore it and also adore Eppie who really is having none of that rotten Imperial Governor’s $#@!.  I also like the character of Gaeriel Captison.  In a way, she’s what Leia might have been like if Alderaan had been a more remote planet with leaders who didn’t stand up to the Empire.  Gaeriel gets to go through a nice character arc in the books and then she and Luke decide to break each others’ hearts and not try out being together because they have too many responsibilities.  It’s kinda sweet in a way.

At the end of the day, this is another book that I’d recommend you check out if you skipped it in the past and it’s also one that I recommend if you’re looking to ease your way into the Expanded Universe.

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Cosplay Monday: Toph Bei Fong

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It’s time for another Costume Monday where we try to make easing back into the work week more bearable with some cool costumes.  We’re going back to a Tosche Station favorite this week and highlighting an amazing costume from Avatar: The Last Airbender.  Check out this great Toph Bei Fong costume by melonl0rd.  Not only does her costume look great but she definitely has the Toph attitude down pat.

Toph