CLASSIC ART: VALORUM MEETS THE COUNCIL!

With the trade routes dispute escalating into chaos throughout the Republic, the harried yet benevolent Supreme Chancellor Valorum liaises with the senior members of the Jedi Council about the expanding crisis, and to get advice, especially with the soon shocking news that a blockade has now been activated by the greedy Trade Federation against the peaceful world of Naboo.  

Terrific art by Chris Trevas showcasing the unseen lead-up to EPISODE I. 

NOW AIRING WORLDWIDE: 'TALES OF THE JEDI'

The deservedly ever-popular The Clone Wars animated series makes a welcome return via a distinctive new way of storytelling - Dave Filoni's innovative Tales of the Jedi series, now airing exclusively on Disney+. And well worth watching it is too, filling in the character/story gaps before, during, and after the Prequels, and most notably for an excellent Count Dooku arc.

All-in-all, it's a fitting end to a great year celebrating both the Prequels and the Twentieth Anniversary of Attack of the Clones.

A lovely batch of recently released episodic promotional images.

                                               

CLASSIC IMAGE: A 'BELEAGURED' POLTICIAL FORCE FOR GOOD

Though sadly underused in his role as Supreme Chancellor Valorum during the political Coruscant-set events of EPISODE I, the casting of iconic sixties/seventies actor Terence Stamp in the role was nonetheless a welcome one, with the character thankfully going on to appear in The Clone Wars animated series, too. Posed character reference shots, also used for merchandise and publicity, taken at Leavesden Studios Summer 1999, by Keith Hamshere.

THE CLONE WARS: POLITICAL INFLUENCES...

Striving hard to bring peace to the galaxy, and to especially sooth the escalating troubles with the Hutt clan and its vitally needed space routes, Senator Padme Amidala confers with Supreme Chancellor Palpatine on Coruscant, in a scene from The Clone Wars animated movie.

The late Ian Abercrombie did a fine job continuing the work of Ian McDiarmid in the role of Palpatine and Darth Sidious, and the same too for Catherine Taber, bringing her own interpretation to Natalie Portman's morally courageous Padme. Attending the film's London multimedia screening back in 2008, AFICIONADO noted that the cinema audience was clearly pleased to see these two politically important characters make their way into the film's later stages.

CLASSIC IMAGE: INTO THE GALACTIC CORE!

Queen Amidala's Royal Cruiser prepares to enter the heady commercial traffic packed atmosphere of the core planet of the Republic: Coruscant, in a striking visual effects moment from EPISODE I.

CLASSIC REVIEW: 'CLONE WARS GAMBIT - SIEGE' NOVEL

STAR WARS: CLONE WARS GAMBIT

BOOK 2: SIEGE

  

By Karen Miller

Published in hardback in the UK by CENTURY PUBLISHING

(Available in Paperback in the UK from ARROW from 26th May 2011)

Reviewed by Scott Weller

Note: this book review contains possible spoilers

Heroes come in all shapes and sizes, often born from circumstances that are not necessarily convenient or of happy expectancy- he/she/they emerge from tragedy, horror, desperation and necessity, sometimes springing from a well of expectancy or from a need to survive-not only as individuals but for the others around them that they care for and want to protect. In the new STAR WARS CLONE WARS GAMBIT book: SIEGE, author Karen Miller shows how, in a time of desperate crisis and struggle, a race of beaten down people must overcome their fears, prejudices and the lies of the past in order to work and form an alliance with two Jedi knights whom, in the end, are their only hope of survival against a cruel and tyrannical enemy swarming across the galaxy...

Only just escaping Lok Durd’s droid trap, and the captured and beaten scientist Bant’ena Fhernan betrayal’s of them to him in the city of Lanteeba, our Jedi heroes, on the run, injured, over exhausted and injured from their lengthy combat use of their Force abilities begin book two by crash-landing their damaged air car and seeking shelter amongst a town of Lanteeb villagers located near a local Damotite mine.

A run down but busy place of activity, Torbel has become one of the planets primary prodcers of Damotite- a key ore element being used for the new Separatist bio-weapon- whose people miraculously hold the key as to how they are able to survive terrible working condition effects, a lack of food and other vital resources, and, even worse, the deadly effects of poisoning in their unstable mine. In their guises as members of the Lanteeb populace, Obi and Anakin exchange shelter for mining work, though their acceptance in the town is at first cautiously guarded by its isolationist people, who are continually wary of strangers.

Meanwhile, the sly and deceitful Lok Durd continues to be both a bully and all round nasty piece of work, scaring, beating and humiliating Doctor Fhernan, pushing her onwards to develop a refined version of the new bio-weapon virus, and threatening to kill her closest friends if she doesn’t co-operate (unaware that, bar one deceased loved one, the rest of her friends and family have already been previously and swiftly rescued by the Jedi). Egged on by her promising results, with a new general to aide him, and a retreat to a more secure secondary facility for the weapon, it looks like the next, final stage in the completion of the bio-weapon will be the next stepping stone of victory for the ambitious Durd and the Separatists. The Jedi Council and Bail Organa, out of contact with their Jedi scouts, work hard with the resources available to them to try and find any kind of cure or resistance to the enemies bio-weapon, with Organa’s top Alderaanian medical research scientist, and old friend, Tryn Netzl, drafted in to help.

With no rescue vessels available to travel to Lanteeb, the Republics war efforts are also being hampered by the previous unleashing of Separatists communication and defense sabotage against their fleet, which is continuing to be a severe and disruptive nuisance to them as it affects, and cause operational havoc, at critical times, none more so in their attempts to try and rescue their Jedi comrades-in-arms, on a mission previously so secret only Bail Organa, Padme Amidala and the Jedi Council were aware of it.

Stretched thin across the galaxy with regards to man and firepower, Anakin and Obi know that the Republic forces are too pushed to help them and that, for the time being, they’re now totally isolated. It’s not long before the Jedi and the Lanteeb miners together become embroiled in a deadly siege. With time running out, and Lok Durd panicked by the Jedi’s continued presence on Lanteeb, how long will it be before the virus is fully unleashed into the Republic?

Will the two Jedi, the greatest of their kind, be able to overcome the threat from both the oncoming plague detonation and the converging Separatists forces? If ever the time was needed for faith in the Force, this must surely be it!

Any excitement generated by the exciting closing chapters of the previous book, GAMBIT, is well and truly brought down in flames by a too subdued and ultimately lacking first half of book two-Miller’s STAR WARS literary work still suffers from the same problems as her previous two books in the series in that it does need more editing from time to time, whilst the seemingly relaxed pace for the story in its first half means that nothing really tremendous happens until 170 odd pages in, which is too long a wait for this reader, generating little excitement or verve, and not what I wanted to see in the second part. I don’t think there was enough story material strong enough to hold as a two part adventure to begin with, feeling over long, sometimes not intricately layered enough and often bogged down with the aforementioned overwritten material. Despite her excellent abilities in capturing our STAR WARS heroes, there are no great twists and turns, or major surprises, in this adventure finale and nothing to give it any real zest…

The mining plot line and its characters, and the predicament the Jedi find themselves in, is all pretty bog-standard stuff and could easily be something out of a humdrum episode of a modern STAR TREK series rather than STAR WARS. Un-involving at times, the characters on Lanteeb come over as very dour and uninteresting. It’s like STAR WARS meets THE MOLLY MAGUIRES at certain points when our Jedi heroes meet up and mingle with them.

On a plus note, Anakin and Obi-Wan shine in their characterizations and in their unique difficulties in working both together and with the miners, and despite a routine plot which results in their eventually having to break their cover in order to save the mine and its people from a catastrophe, resulting in the Lanteebs then helping in warding off enemy retaliation whilst the Jedi hold out for possible rescue. The Jedi duo’s relationship in this part of the tale becomes sorely tested and their friendship becomes both very spikey and highly delicate, ready to fracture with events that soon take place in the mining village, as their differing opinions clash as to what to do next in order to protect them. Then, Anakin’s temper only increases when Obi-Wan’s past love, the Shadow walker, Jedi Taria Damsin, becomes involved in the action. Despite the good character moments, overall, this would not make a very good STAR WARS film (of which all modern novels should strive to be as good as in my opinion), and would barely cover an episode or two’s worth of interesting plot for the animated series.

Of the new characters introduced in book two, Doctor Tryn Netzl, an old friend of Bail Organa, has some good material, though his relationship with his old friend reminds me a little bit of the crusty but good natured Doctor Leonard McCoy from STAR TREK, and his friendship that character had with Captain Kirk during times of extreme crisis. Netzl also wears a flamboyantly colourful and eclectic wardrobe that, from Miller’s descriptions, wouldn’t look out of place worn on Colin Baker’s portrayal of the sixth incarnation of DOCTOR WHO! On the villains side, Lok Durd and his new general also unleash an intriguing new villain that sadly appears all too briefly in the book-the Drivok Psychic seeker, an inhabitant of Lanteeb- and that brief sequence with it is very interesting if sadly under-developed.

With our other heroes and villains, Yoda and Palpatine get some nice scenes together and some sharp words are exchanged. There’s a great moment when Sidious gets to let rip into Yoda for a little while when the green one has not informed him of a particular plan that’s been set in motion. It’s a very good scene and one of those kind of moments that I wish had been in the Prequel Trilogy, so well done there, Miss Miller!

Ultimately, despite having set up and initiated events in the story’s first book, Bail Organa and Padme prove pretty unnecessary to the plot in part two, the same with Ahsoka, who, despite getting a little bit more to do than in GAMBIT, is not fully involved in the final battle to help the Lanteeb people or the plot linked to the chemical weapons plant-instead, Obi-Wan’s “friend”, Taria Damsin, provides the end of the book with the required action, if quickly written, at that critical point, as well as bringing a sense of reasonably satisfying closure and upcoming tragedy to her relationship with Obi-Wan in the books solid if unspectacular finale.

So, if you’re expecting an action packed finale to the two part CLONE WARS GAMBIT adventure SIEGE delivers little STAR WARS bang for your bucks. However, if your interest veers more towards wanting an ending heavy on intimate character drama you’ll be pleased. I personally, would have preferred a stronger mixture of the two for better reading fulfillment.

AFICIONADO RATING: Very little originality has been added to the STAR WARS universe with SIEGE, though, as ever, Miller writes well for the main heroes and villains. Overall, this two-parter, which was a nice idea on paper and in planning, should have worked better, and could easily have been a very tightly written singular book tale. Instead, in its ultimate final form, it feels very padded out. It’s frustrating that the CLONE WARS books aren’t able to match the imagination and action of the stories currently being seen in the animated series. 6.5 out of 10

CLASSIC REVIEW: 'CLONE WARS GAMBIT - BOOK ONE: STEALTH'

STAR WARS: CLONE WARS GAMBIT

BOOK ONE: STEALTH

By Karen Miller

Published in the UK by CENTURY PUBLISHING (hardback) and ARROW BOOKS (out now in paperback- February 2010)

Reviewed by Scott Weller

This review contains mild spoilers...

In war, they used to say there were rules. In the STAR WARS galaxy, the evil Sith Lord Darth Tyranus, in his guise as Count Dooku of Serenno, knows no such thing as his Separatist forces prepare to unleash a terrifying new biological weapon against the Galactic Republic and its billions of innocent inhabitants, and only our ever reliable Jedi heroes Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi, the pair fresh from a successful though almost fatal mission/battle to liberate the Bothan world of Kothlis from the metallic clutches of General Grievous, have any hope of stopping them in the first of writer Karen Miller’s new adventure duology- CLONE WARS: GAMBIT.

Miller’s return to the CLONE WARS universe with her second book, Stealth, is going to be another success for the author, which sees our noble heroes thrust into a special undercover mission to the far off world of Lanteeb to investigate a hunch by Bail Organa that a deadly new weapon is being constructed on that far away Outer Rim world. The plot unfolds at a good pace, though hardly fast and furious, with Miller obviously using her skills as a writer to build up excitement for Book Two instead, using this first part to expand both character intrigues and character development- Miller doesn’t want to put all of her eggs in one basket and Stealth obviously has to act as the starter before the main course with book two (a subplot linked to the enemy’s interception, jamming and sabotage of top secret Republic communication starts as a side line of the books first quarter but will no doubt play an important part of story developments in the future, as will the Lanteeb race who, apart from their history discussed early on the book, don’t really appear that much in book one). Her enthusiasm and love for the saga continues to shine brightly in this second novel, after the success of last years premiere novel-WILD SPACE- and her confident writing style is easy to follow, though perhaps it could still do with some editing at times as parts of it do feel overwritten, but she captures all the heroic and boo-hiss Prequel characters that fans will enjoy reading, and bringing greater, deeper access to the minds and thoughts of the characters, especially Anakin and Obi-Wan.

Miller clearly loves Obi- this is never in doubt-but her almost obssessional need to physically injure or psychologically torture him and put him through the ringer with each of her adventures concerns me!! Surely he suffered enough in Wild Space! And now she’s got it in for Rex, too. Watch out, Captain!

Anakin is also on the top of the list of Miller’s best character work, coming across as a hybrid of the Han Solo attitude Anakin of the animated series and the concerned and emotional, but eager to action, Anakin played by Hayden Christensen in the movies, and the author pulls off the combination well. Sent on a deep undercover spy mission that they’re not totally prepared for, Anakin and Obi-Wan have to adapt, and quickly, if they are to succeed. Together, on and off the battle field, Anakin and Obi’s relationship is well captured- friends, brothers in arms against the Separatists: strong as ever and indomitable together but also a prickly pair and each showing their own stubborn attitudes and ideals outside of battle.

And, as far as Anakin is concerned, where would a STAR WARS tale set between EPISODEs II and III be without a little bit of Vader foreshadowing, eh? Stealth is no exception and has a couple of interesting pieces dotted amidst the life incidents that have haunted him since he was a child. In the build up to the Lanteeb mission a couple of interesting scenes also occur between Yoda and Anakin-which, again, there really wasn’t enough of in the movies, especially a thorny, heated conversation between the pair which briefly strikes the wrath of Obi against his ex-Padawan. Nice to see Padme and Anakin together again, too, albeit briefly, which shows some of the elements from their EPISODE III relationship moments. His jealousy around her is certainly amped up-again, another intriguing element deleted from the films but successfully resurfacing in book form.

For the first quarter, young Ahsoka Tano also teams up with Obi-Wan for a sequence- a pairing that hasn’t yet happened in the new animated series (at least so far), and it’s a nice idea harkening back to THE CLONE WARS imaginers Dave Filoni and Henry Gilroy concept of originally wanting them to be a duo, before Lucas asked for Anakin to be Ahsoka’s master instead. With very little of the young Togrutan’s presence in her previous novel (presumably due to limited information being available at the time whilst the first season of the animated series was still in the works), Miller has the chance to make amends here and, taking part in the well described battle of Kothlis that starts the books first quarter, has her fully integrated on and off into team Jedi through the tale, capturing her spirit and youthful exuberance well on the printed page.

Of the rest of the support characters, Bail Organa also shines out easily. Again, Miller obviously uses a lot of Jimmy Smits personality and acting style as a barometer in bringing the character to life alongside what we’ve seen in EPISODEs II and III. She pretty much captures my ideas as to what I‘d always wanted to see in the movies, that was sadly lacking and under-developed, in regards to a friendship banter between him and Obi-Wan. Organa is a pretty clever guy-an intelligent, adaptable and savvy politician and a gifted Republic Intelligence Commander, but he’s also a bit of a loose cannon within the rules and a bit of a hustler, who, with Padme, and unlike most Senators, is prepared to fight with the best of them and act on hunches to protect the Republic.

Additionally, other players also get a look in and contribute in small but important ways. Palpatine continues to effectively emotionally manipulate a totally unawares Anakin to his own advantage in some good dialogue scenes. There’s also a welcome chance to beef up and add little bits of depth to some of the support cast like Admiral Yularen who’s not so much of an ass this time as he has often been in the animated series. And even Queen Breha of Alderaan gets a little scene which is nice to see.

On the villains side of the scale, last seen trying to destroy the Lurmen population in the animated episode Defenders of Peace, the repulsive egotist and bully Lok Durd makes his first appearance in book form, and continues to relish any opportunity to rise above the ranks in the Separatists army. How Lok Durd actually managed to escape his previous Republic capture has not yet been revealed (I’m sure we’ll find out by book two) but he is the perfect choice for Miller to adapt to the book universe of STAR WARS, making him even more vain, arrogant and bullying to the point of almost committing murder at one point in order to achieve his aims, unleashing a series of psychological and physical violence against one character that I found actually quite a rare development-interesting and surprisingly adult- to read in a STAR WARS book, with Miller showing a certain ruthless touch in her writing there- I doubt that this almost too realistic violence, with its shades of the horror of real-life domestic violence, would ever have been seen, allowed or justified in a Lucas created STAR WARS film, and the author just about gets away with it in this EXPANDED UNIVERSE novel.

STEALTH also opens up the opportunities for more newsupporting characters, especially of the female variety to help move the story along (and obviously in a bid by Miss Miller to even the scales up a bit after years when the Classic films had predominantly male characters), including a tough female security expert aiding Bail Organa who is distrustful of the Jedi, the return of spiritual Jedi Master Taria Damsin (previously in Wild Space, and an attempt by the author to create a more accessible Jedi, who, in her friendship with Obi-Wan, we’re bound to see more of in book two, I’m sure), and a coerced scientist, Bant’ena Fhernan, devising the new enemy weapon. The tragic dilemma and consequences of the scientist, working under duress and mental/ physical intimidation is an interesting one-there’s also her moral and ethical scientific dilemma to add to her instability-proud of her creation but ultimately aware and devastated by the fact that so many lives will be lost if its released.

As well as some references to certain WILD SPACE incidents and characters, there are some more pluses with further scripted but unseen plot elements of EPISODE III being re-awakened, such as Coruscant’s over zealous security measures and political machinations in the senate being briefly explored, though I fear there are also a few little continuity contradictions here and there character-wise between the Lucas animated series and what was established by Genndy Tartakovsky in the excellent 2-D animated series from 2003 an 2005, of which Miller may have been caught up in in trying to address. I may be wrong-I haven’t seen Genndy’s version in a while- but I don’t recall, as Miller’s book states, Obi-Wan thinking that Anakin was rushed in too early to become a Jedi Knight during the Clone Wars-in the GT version I thought Obi and other Council members pushed for his promotion, what with the dwindling amounts of experienced Knights leading/ partaking in the wars? Surely, Genndy is cannon still, isn’t he?

AFICIONADO RATING: By no means an exciting thrill-a-minute page turner, Miller’s second book is instead a case of characterization incident over plot incident, as the author carefully splits the adventure into two-this first part being investigation. STEALTH has a steadily building pace, with all the plot elements being set up here before the (hopefully) action packed and satisfying finale to come in the summer of 2010.

Prequel fans will enjoy Millers continuing love affair with those STAR WARS characters, and in that aspect STEALTH delivers. 7 out of 10

CLASSIC IMAGE: VIP SEATING!

Set within the vast Senate Audience Chamber, STAR WARS fans watching EPISODE I would get their first taste of intergalactic politics and the machinations of later Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, with the film's middle part providing some important signs and portents linked to the future fate of the soon outmanoeuvred Jedi and the internal destruction of the Old Republic.

CLASSIC IMAGE: POWER AND CORRUPTION

An EPISODE II shot of the Republic Senate building on Coruscant-once the home to wise and dedicated men protecting the peoples of the galaxy, now a corrupt powder keg of ambition and greed.