Espionge, Corporate, Military, and Moral. SWKOTOR Days of Fear, Nights of Anger.
Written: May 24 '08 (Updated Mar 14 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great storytelling in the far past of the Star Wars Galaxy.
Cons: None worth mentioning.
The Bottom Line: A great storyline branches and grows in complexity. If you want more Star Wars, this is an excellent way to get it.
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| talyseon's Full Review: John J. Miller III, - Star Wars:Knights of the Old... |
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic Volume 3: Days of Fear, Nights of Anger. Written by John Jackson Miller. Art by Dustin Weaver, Brian Ching and Harvey Tolibao.
What has gone before May contain spoilers for Volume One Commencement.
The year is 3,964 Before the Battle of Yavin. The Republic has just emerged from the last Great Sith War and is now facing a growing threat from the Mandalorians, an aggressive and expansionistic race of armoured warriors. (Jango and Boba Fett were Mandalorians)
Taris is a world on the outer rim, a planet sized city, like Coruscant. A Jedi Academy is stationed there, with five masters, and five Padawans. This is the story of one of them, Zayne Carrick. Zayne has a very…special relationship with the force. He is not a very good Padawan and in his own words “My luck ranges from barely tolerable to cataclysmic. Master Lucien says I’m living proof the force has a sense of humor.”
However when he arrives late for his own graduation ceremony, he finds his classmates slain by their own Masters, and his, Lucien, is coming for him.
Zayne escapes with the help of the prisoner he arrested before, a Snivvian named Marn Hierogryph, and two of his associates, a pair of Arkanians, a young nubile female with an attitude named Jarael, and an old crazy coot called Camper, who mumbles and talks to himself, but can fix anything.
Together, they have dodged Jedi, police, and invading Mandalorian Armies. They have suffered kidnappings, and rescues, and Zayne has told his former masters that he is through being prey. The one of them that confesses his innocence first will live. And the rest will die. And it is beginning to look like Zayne might actually be able to carry out his threats.
Here ends the summary Spoilers over.
Camper has never been in good health. He and Jareal are offshoots of the Arkanian race designed to be miners. They do not enjoy the general good health of mainline Arkanian stock. But Camper has been getting progressively sicker. Finally, Jarael has determined she needs to take him back to the home world where he can get proper medical care. So with some regret, she and Zayne part company. She takes the Last Resort, Camper, and Elbee, a loader droid with the personality of Bartleby the Scrivener, and sets course for home, leaving Zayne with Marn.
Marn has been arranging alternate transportation. He hired Slyssk, a Trandosian (remember the big lizard standing next to Boba Fett when the Empire hired bounty hunters to find the Millennium Falcon?) to steal them a ship. Slyssk is to Trandosians what Zayne was to the Jedi. In his own words, “I’ve heard it all my life. ‘How did YOUR egg get into the nest, Slyssk?’”
Marn: “I understand. Kids can be cruel.”
Slyssk: “What kids? That was my Mother!”
He wants to sell them the ship; not get paid 9000 for stealing it, but 90,000 as its value. Marn and Zayne execute a plan to avoid this; Marn saving Slyssk from a falling pylon Zayne used the Force on to pull it down. Marn suggests that sticking to the original deal should wipe out the life debt Slyssk owes him for saving his life. Slyssk won’t hear of it. The ship is theirs for the taking. “You’re my ghrakhowsk! You’re the first person I’ve ever owed a life debt to! Nobody’s ever wanted to save my life before!” (Hugs Marn vigorously!) Marn mutters, “You don’t say. I find that hard to believe….”
So now Zayne and Marn are masters of the Little Bivoli, with an eager puppy of a Trandosian in tow. The ship is a mess. A real Mess, as in a flying Chow Hall for the army, and the heroes find themselves caught up with a convoy for the front lines, and no way to ditch out…
Meanwhile on Arkania, Jarael seeks to get Camper medical help. She discovers that she is a second class citizen on her home planet, and discovers medical aid is rarely wasted on offshoots. But she is determined, she is beautiful, and she has been learning to run the con for Marn and Zayne.
She also attracts the attention of Lord Adasca, the hospital administrator, and a very powerful man. It’s really sad that he is exactly who Camper has been hiding from for 20 years.
We also get further insight into the Murderous Infallible Jedi Masters. Master Raana Tay (rhymes with Run Away) is a very violent woman who suffers from nightmares. Sense murdering her Padawan, she barely sleeps an hour a night. That, of course, takes a toll. And her nightmares are enough to erode anyone’s sanity.
This rough outline can not give you the full scope of the books complexity. The spoilers are just too woven through. Just suffice it to say, this is not an issue that ties up loose ends, it instead introduces several new storylines, and expands on previous ones.
The writing on this book is superb. It has plot, it’s well paced, and the characters have distinct personalities, speaking with unique voices. It’s well crafted, reads easily, and involves one quickly, then holds your interest through out. It is a bit lighter that the first; Zayne has adapted to life on the run.
The Art of Brian Ching is also excellent, very realistic, not at all “cartoony” and in point of fact, much more realistic than your average super hero title. The colorist, Michael Atiyeh deserves kudos on this as well as his shading word really pops the characters out into the third dimension. Brian Ching has excellent proportion and perspective, and his portraiture, (the ability to give everyone a recognizable face so if all you see is head shots, you can still tell who is who) and he loves filling in the backgrounds, giving the piece a realistic feel in keeping with the movies.
The other two artists, Dustin Weaver and Harvey Tolibao work hard to match the style that was laid out in the first book. However, they drift a little further afield this time. Dustin Weaver’s work looks a little more like a Super Hero title. It is simpler, less cluttered than Ching’s. He gives Zayne a fresh faced innocence and wide eyed joy in life that Ching has missed with his (superior) art. And his take on the puppy dog Trandosian, Slyssk is hilarious. As near as I can make out, (and apologies to anyone who’s work I am devaluing) Tolibao mostly worked with Ching, finishing his rough sketches. It makes for a consistent look, but does not show off his style as an artist.
Taken together, these factors, Story and Art, make for a superior reading experience. Try it and see for your self.
May The Force Be With You.
The New Frontier: Younglings.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Check out the other completely different Clone Wars cartoons.
Star Wars Clone Wars Volume One. and
Star Wars Clone Wars Volume Two.
Check out these Star Wars Novels:
Tatooine Ghost
Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice
Star Wars Legacy of the Force: Invincible
The Cestus Deception.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor
Check out these Star Wars Comics:
Tag and Bink Were Here
Jango Fett: Open Season.
Rites of Passage
Star Wars Rebellion: My Brother, My Enemy.
Check out my reviews on Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic.
Commencement
Flashpoint.
Days of Fear, Nights of Anger.
Check out the Future of Star Wars in Legacy:
Star Wars Legacy: Broken.
Star Wars Legacy: Shards
Star Wars Legacy: Claws of the Dragon
Star Wars Legacy: Alliance
The Star Wars Role Playing Game:
Star Wars Role Playing Game
Star Ships of the Galaxy
Threats of the Galaxy
Knights of the Old Republic Campaign Guide
The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
Scum and Villainy
The Clone Wars Campaign Guide
Check out all the Star Wars Saga:
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope
Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back
Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
Recommended:
Yes
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