STAR WARS: BEWARE THE SITH
Written and compiled by Sheri Last
Published by DORLING KINDERSLEY
Reviewed by Scott Weller
“The Sith have been extinct for a millennia…”
If any character in the STAR WARS should be remembered for his famous choice of almost last words it had to be Ki-Adi Mundi. Sorry, Master Jedi, but the Sith were certainly not extinct-never had been. If anything the remaining members of their feared order, recovering from the wounds inflicted at them from their feared Jedi enemies, and having got too big for their own boots in their once dominant rise to power, went deep into hiding instead, reorganizing their once ambitious legion into a power symbiotic relationship of two at a time, and began waiting patiently (something they would do very well) until the right time to emerge victoriously from the shadows and defiantly strike back once and for all against their significant, if flawed, opponents practitioning the light side of the mysterious and all-powerful Force surrounding and binding the galaxy.
And by the start of the STAR WARS Prequel saga with EPISODE I: THE PHANTOM MENACE (recently returned back to the cinemas in 3D) up until the galaxy re-shaping events of it’s sixth and final chapter, RETURN OF THE JEDI, that time for the deadly Sith is now, in events chronicled in the dark and dangerous realms explored within the new high quality (as always) Visual Guidebook from DORLING KINDERSLEY: BEWARE THE SITH
Within its fiery red pages, discover the onscreen history of the Dark Side cadre and their wily, deceitful and cruel machinations, their manipulation and stranglehold of the galaxy in George Lucas’s incredible film series-still the greatest space fantasy series of all-time. Discover the Sith culture, history and reformation with one of its most powerful and successful masters, Darth Sidious, and the variety of aliens and humanoids rallied, power bought or puppet on a string pulled into his unquenching thirst for power for both himself and his kind, and as absolute ruler. Witness the rise and fall of his acolytes, like the feral double lightsaber wielding Darth Maul, the once noble but now corrupted Darth Tyranus, and, finally, Sidious’s most successful, famous and powerful ally and servant to ever enforce his deadly willpower across the galaxy: the equally ruthless, dreaded black metal war machine ensconced figure that is Darth Vader, once Anakin Skywalker, the most powerful Jedi of all his kind, now tragically fallen from grace within his order and having succumbed to the will, greed and ultimate fear shining brightly from the Dark Side. Find out about the Sith’s ever evolving and lethal weaponry, the people and planets they have influenced in the Republic that they would destroy from within- their grand design unfolding- and their eventual rise to compete power of the universe and the birth of the tyrannical and totally oppressive Galactic Empire.
The more they tightened their grip, though, the more rebellious and brave star systems and individuals would, despite limited resources and firepower, squeeze through their fingers to oppose them, and this book also charts that fighting opposite: the constant struggle between good and evil, light and darkness, as the fire of the Jedi, previous made majority extinct by the retaliatory Sith and their Clone War ORDER 66 initiating soldiers, return to bring balance to the Force, namely with the arrival of Anakin’s Skywalker’s children, the once secretly hidden Luke Skywalker and sister Leia Organa, who, having joined the growing ranks of the Rebel Alliance, soon create the turnaround needed for the rebellion to make its last stand against the Empire. Its in this critical battle, that Luke soon proves himself a worthy opponent to Sidious (who now declares himself the Emperor of the universe) and tears down the emotional walls of Darth Vader’s once seemingly invulnerable psyche, as the deformed man that was once Anakin Skywalker, barely alive within the iron lung shell, and having survived on raw hate for twenty tears, suddenly realizes the powers and abilities of the son he’s proud of and believes in, and realizes just how much he has been manipulated by his master. As Luke almost falls at the hands of the pure, unadulterated powers of an unforgiving Emperor, the return of the Jedi and the destruction of the Sith is finally inaugurated as Darth Vader, returned as Anakin Skywalker, lives up to the final prophecy predicted for him since his once innocent childhood.
Experience every stunning moment of action, adventure and mythos from the Saga in this “other point of view” that is BEWARE THE SITH- a truly comprehensive guide to the sinister legend from new STAR WARS DK book series writer Sheri Last that’s full of stats, information and classic photos which all fans of the Dark Side will enjoyably devour!
STAR WARS AFICIONADO RATING: 4 out of 5
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