Tag Archives: Star Wars Expanded Universe

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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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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The New Book Is “Maul: Lockdown” by Joe Schreiber

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Maul: Lockdown book coverLooks like the mystery of what the unannounced Star Wars project will be has been solved!  The official Del Ray Star Wars twitter account just tweeted a link to io9 announcing that Joe Schreiber will be turning his horror expertise to focus on Darth Maul.  The book is due out at the end of 2013.

The synopsis of the book, taken again from io9, is as follows:

From the mind of Joe Schreiber, New York Times bestselling author of Star Wars: Death Troopers, comes the delirious follow-up to last year’s Darth Plagueis. In a tale of retribution and survival set before the events of The Phantom Menace, Darth Plagueis and Darth Sidious dispatch Sith apprentice Darth Maul on a secret mission to infiltrate a criminal empire operating from inside Cog Hive Seven-a hidden prison teeming with the galaxy’s most savage criminals. There, he must contend against the scummiest and most villainous in gladiatorial death matches while carrying out his masters’ clandestine commands. Failure is not an option; success will ignite the revenge of the Sith against the Jedi Order.

I’m fairly sure that this never came up in speculation the other week.  Surprise.

Cosplay Monday: Mandalorian 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 highlighting a pretty cool costume by hydraness over on DeviantArt.  Check out her original Mandalorian character: Umi.  The armor looks pretty awesome and it’s always neat seeing someone create and costume as their very own character in the Star Wars universe.  Plus, anyone who’s willing to go outside and shoot in the snow for a photoshoot has my respect.  You can check out more pictures of the costume and more of hydraness’s work over at her DeviantArt page.

Umi hydraness

EU Retrospective: Return of the Jedi

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I’ve finally made it through the Battle of Endor.  The Emperor is dead, the Rebels have won, huzzah!  (Cue everyone who knows otherwise laughing hysterically.)  Cue me also laughing hysterically because even though I’ve read through thousands of chronological years in the Expanded Universe, I’ve still only read 45 out of 130 books on my list.  Send help.  Please?

Tales of the Bounty Hunters
“Bounty Hunters.  We don’t need that scum.”  WELL SAID ADMIRAL PIETT.

Okay, okay, I jest.  Mostly.  This book is actually something that I would like to see more of in the Expanded Universe albeit with different characters and I’m thrilled we’ll be getting it with the digital novellas.  It’s five stories of about 70 pages each and they are essentially character studies for each bounty hunter.  If we could get these about members of Rogue and Wraith Squadron, I’ll be happy.  (Have you figured out my preferred characters yet?  If you have, you’ve probably also figured out my cunning plan to talk about my desire for more Rogue/Wraith short stories until Del Rey notices.)

The stories themselves are fine, I guess?  None of them really thrilled me but then again, I don’t really care about most bounty hunter characters.  I do, however, want to know if there are any other smugglers in the galaxy aside from Han Solo and Han Solo Light/Dash Rendar because the books I’ve been reading lately make it seem like there aren’t.  But there really should be because I’m really not sure how Han had enough time to do all the things he’s supposedly done and tick off all the people he supposedly has.

I think my favorite of the stories was probably the one with Bossk although Zuckuss’s does get bonus points for using Toryn Farr.  Boba Fett’s story amused me because it spends a solid couple of pages on Han Solo trying to figure out the best way to cause trouble and get thrown in jail for a few days because he’s bored.  (Let’s have a moment of silence for all the previously canon material about him that got blasted to smithereens by Attack of the Clones though.  Honestly, I’m more amused by how he was written here than anything else.)  Nothing else about these really stands out to me though.  Except that Dengar is just… sad.  In multiple meanings of the word.

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Cosplay Monday: Darth Traya

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It’s Cosplay Monday again, aka the post we fill with a cool costume every week to try and make your Monday morning more bearable.

This week, we’re spotlighting an awesome costume from the Knights of the Old Republic video games.  Check out DarthCuddle‘s costume of Darth Traya, aka Kreia from Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords!    Not only is it a cool looking costume that you don’t see very often but she looks amazing!  I’m especially impressed by the work she put into the headdress.

Kreia2 Kreia1

EU Retrospective: The Empire Strikes Back

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Remember everything I said about dropping Shadow Games from the list?  Yeah, scratch that.  It arrived the day after New Year’s so I felt obliged to read it anyways.  Sorry, New Rebellion.  This retrospective is like fashion: one day you’re in and the next day you’re out.  But it’s okay because I’ve had A Very Zahn New Year which is making this go much faster.  Except for the part where I drank my way through a certain book.  That’s right, folks, you get another spam of my face via reaction pictures.

Shadow Games
When I first picked up this book, I was relieved to find out that it wasn’t about Jax.  No offense, buddy, but I just didn’t want to read about you again this soon.  Unfortunately, I don’t think I really care about Dash Rendar either.  Seriously though: it’s been awhile since I’ve read the books in this era.  Am I supposed to care about him beyond this rivalry with Han Solo?  I’m sure I’m forgetting something about him besides a tragic history.

Allow me to sum up the plot of this book for you: Lies, lies, lies, “I ain’t in this for your revolution, sister”, “I expect to be well paid”, and “Well, you’re pretty.”  Okay, it’s not a bad book and once I finally got myself to sit down and read it, it was fairly entertaining.  Unfortunately, it felt a little too much like I was reading an AU version of Han and Leia.  (Seriously though: I bet there’s a fanfic out there where Leia’s a popstar and Han is her bodyguard.)  Dash is going to be so offended when I call him a poor man’s Han Solo but oh well.  Like I said, the story was interesting enough but wow did all the levels of “Okay, so what I told you before was a lie” get to be a bit much at times.  Javul’s lucky she managed to stay alive with basically the entire galaxy after her.

I did like the droid though.  He was snarky and entertaining.  Leebo, you and your pet Mouse Droid can stay.

(In all fairness, my general exasperation with the book and with how much I’m looking forward to taking a break could be unfairly coloring my opinion here so take it with a grain of salt.)

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EU Retrospective: Lead Up to Yavin

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So I didn’t actually read all four books as planned but it was not my fault!  The library has taken over two weeks to get me the requested copy of Shadow Games and I’m not so desperate to read it that I felt like delaying the Waru Express any longer than I already have.  I have struck it from the list and it will be replaced by The New Rebellion.  More likely than not, I will read it anyways once it finally arrives but not in order.  Sorry if anyone was really looking forward to my thoughts on that book.  I might include it as a footnote in another post.

But enough of that!  On with the show and three very very very different books.

Death Troopers
I really have no idea what I was expecting from this book but it probably should’ve been exactly what the book gave me.  It is definitely a horror story set in the Star Wars universe.  Surprisingly, I actually rather enjoyed it and I’m not necessarily a big horror fan.  This goes back to a comment I think I made a few posts ago about how there really is something for everyone in the Expanded Universe.  Schrieber introduces mostly new characters and I even found myself caring about some of them particularly the doctor, Zahara Cody.

I was not, however, expecting Han and Chewbacca to show up.  Wow do those two get around and attract a lot of danger in the process.  Maybe they should considering retiring to a nice quiet planet without any moons.  Joe Schreiber actually writes a pretty good Han and Chewbacca.  I especially liked how he wrote scenes from Chewbacca’s point of view instead of taking the easy way out and writing them from Han’s.  The only “criticism” I have isn’t actually a criticism but just a comment that there wasn’t much tension in regards to their fates since the book is set before A New Hope.

All in all, it’s a short (and I really do mean short at only 234 pages) read but definitely worth it especially if you’d like a change from the Expanded Universe status quo.  At the very least, it’s worth a try.  Zombies on a Star Destroyer, folks, zombies on a Star Destroyer.  What’s not to love?

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EU Retrospective: The Han Solo Trilogy

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I don’t care what anyone else says but I love the Han Solo Trilogy and always have since I first read these when I was 9 or so.  I’ve said before that they’re my guilty pleasure books and that’s just fine with me.  It has, however, been reeeeeally long time since I’ve read these books and wow was it weird to keep reading about a ‘Bria’.  I don’t know you folks with more commonly used names do it when you read books.  But let’s set my personal issues with that aside for now and get on with the reviews!

The Paradise Snare
Oh street rat Han.  You try, kiddo, you try.  Okay sure his background may be a little cliché but did we really expect Han to come from anything else?  Plus, it’s a nice set up for everyone to realize that Thracken Sal-Solo is indeed a-word-that-I-cannot-use-in-this-review.

The book serves as a nice set up for both the trilogy and Han as a character.  For starters, both his relationship with Dewlanna and his experience with Ylesia make it a no brainer for him to save Chewie later on.  You get to see where he came from and how he made the natural progression to the person he is when he first meets Luke and Obi-Wan on Tatooine.  It’s also fun to see how Han seems to attract sidekicks no matter what although the idea of Han teaching Muuurgh proper Basic grammar is somewhat entertaining.  As far as Ylesia goes though?  Wow does Han have some bad luck when it comes to ending up on crappy mining planets.

Obviously, I really do love the character of Bria Tharen.  Sure she’s in a pretty crappy place (mentally and physically) when we first meet her but her evolution as a character through the series is great.  I think her interest in archaeology is a neat touch.  While yes, she has fallen victim to this fake religion, I really like that Crispin makes it clear that this happens to both the weak and the strong-minded.  Similarly, while she does need Han’s help to initially break away from it, I absolutely do not think that makes her a weak character but more on that later probably.

I do love all the subtle little cameos such as the one by Bornan and Aryn Thul on Alderaan.  It’s a cute little tie-in to the YJK books.  I also appreciate the flyby mention of Hal Horn in connection to the ‘Jenos Idanian’ identity.  Say what you will about the Bantam era books but I really love how the authors really did try to make things tie together and fit to the best of their abilities.

The only thing that had me really rolling my eyes with this book was Han’s abuse of endearments.  Come on, Han.  I know you were a street rat but really?  On the other hand, I can wave it off because this is a book about a very young Han Solo and he hasn’t figured out how to be suave and charming yet scruffy yet.

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