The first phase of Star Wars: The High Republic has come to an end.
The final three books of the first phase of the High Republic, Light of the Jedi, were published in the first months of 2022 and conclude the arc that began in January 2021 with the book Light of the Jedi and the middle grade reader, A Test of Courage.
Phase One concluded with the books Mission to Disaster (written by Justina Ireland), The Fallen Star (written by Claudia Gray) and Midnight Horizon (written by Daniel Jose Older).
Mission to Disaster
Though released third, this book takes place before the other two books that were part of the final wave of Phase One.
Mission to Disaster follows the adventures of Vernestra “Vern” Rwoh and her padawan, Imri Cantaraos. Vernestra is hoping to train Imri for an extended period, only for her plans to be interrupted by a vision of their friend Avon Starros (introduced in A Test of Courage) being captured by the Nihil. Vernestra and Imri travel to Port Haliep and later to the planet Dalnan in their search for Avon. They later meet with their friend Honesty Weft and his partner, xx, who join them in their quest to find Avon.
Avon, meanwhile, uses her smarts to try and escape from her captivity with the Nihil. She works with a Nihil scientist on creating a weapon to be used against Dalnan, which would cause chaos to the planet and its people. Avon’s arc in this story is perhaps the most interesting. She spends much of the novel trying to outwit the Nihil, and in doing so, starts to think like the Nihil by looking out mostly for herself (that’s not to say she doesn’t help others in the story).
Justina Ireland’s story provides a nice closing of this arc of the story of Vernestra, Imri, Avon and Honesty. Since these characters were established, the story is easier to get into and follow and it’s certainly a quick page turner; you never want to put the book down once it’s plot really gets going.
Like the other middle readers in Phase One, Mission to Disaster is accompanied by wonderful illustrations that depict a handful of scenes in the story. This story only has three such illustrations, but they add a flavor to the story by helping the reader visualize the characters and the plot. The illustrations also make a strong case for the story of Vernestra and Imri being adapted into a limited animation series. Hello, Disney+.
The Fallen Star
The Fallen Star is the final adult book of Phase One. The story largely takes place on the Starlight Beacon, Chancellor Soh’s symbol of peace in the Republic.
The book opens with the Jedi and Republic believing the Nihil are on the brink of defeat. Master Avar Kriss has traveled to defeat the supposed Eye of the Nihil and it seems like the galaxy will be able to move on.
Jedi Master Stellan Gios has taken over duties at Starlight Beacon. Throughout the story, he has a sense of forbidding, as if something terrible will happen. He tries to ignore it, but the feeling starts to consume him.
Unfortunately for the Republic, and indeed the Jedi, disaster does strike. The Nihil launch an attack on Starlight Beacon itself, ripping the station into it and sending it hurtling through space and toward a nearby planet, threatening the lives of millions of more citizens. Stellan, Master Elzar Mann and the other Jedi of Starlight must decide how they are going to save themselves and save the planet below.
The Fallen Star can be argued as the Revenge of the Sith story of Phase One. The tragedy of the book echoes the tragedy of Order 66 depicted in Revenge of the Sith and this book is certainly the darkest entry in the series.
Without giving too much away, just be prepared with some kleenexes during the book’s finale if you’re a crier. You’ll definitely need it.
Midnight Horizon
The final young adult reader of Phase One, Midnight Horizon follows the Jedi Cohmac Vitus, his apprentice Reath Silas, Master Kantam Sy and Padawan Ram Jomaram.
The four Jedi are alerted of an attack on the planet Correila (infamously the home planet of Han Solo). There, Reath and Ram team up with a local girl nicknamed Crash to investigate the attack, which the Jedi all suspect was carried out by the Nihil.
Crash is the most important new character in this story. She’s headstrong and smart, but may be difficult to trust, as she has a habit of not telling her comrades everything about a particular job. But she comes to act as a decent foil to Reath and Ram, who bond with her easily, despite their differences in upbringing.
All four main Jedi have been introduced in previous works, so their development was already in motion in time for this book. A welcome addition to the book was Kantam telling their story of their time with the Jedi, including their leaving and returning to the Jedi, along with their memories of Master Yoda.
The book is noteworthy for humanizing its Jedi characters. This is especially true with Reath and Ram. While they are Jedi (Padawans, but still are training to be Jedi), they behave like normal teenagers. The two Padawans tease each other on the regular and Reath continually tries to teach Ram how to properly tell a joke without laughing before the punchline is said. It’s refreshing to see Jedi behaving like any other person, rather than as stoic individuals.
Future
While Phase I has concluded, Phase II will not pick up where we left off, though there are still many questions left unanswered after Phase I.
As revealed during The High Republic Show’s Anniversary Special, Phase II of The High Republic series will jump back in time 150 years and will feature stories that are prequels of the events that have already occurred. While details are limited, it’s possible these stories will show how the Nihil came to be and ultimately set up the stories we’ve already read.
Four authors are set to join the five High Republic authors in continuing the story. Zoraida Cordova, George Mann, Tessa Gratton and Lydia Kang will join the other authors in contributing books and comics to Phase II.
Phase II, known as Quest of the Jedi, will begin in October.
Phase III is known as Trials of the Jedi and will come at a later date. It’s unclear if Phase III will consist of sequels to the stories of the first two phases, but with many questions left unanswered and a final confrontation between the Jedi and Nihil not yet happening, it makes sense that Phase III will culminate the story.
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