Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi: Backlash | |||||||||
Aaron Allston | |||||||||
Lucas Books, Del Rey, 331 pages | |||||||||
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A review by David Maddox
Backlash, the fourth installment in the Fate of the Jedi series finds some familiar locations on the battle
front. Dathomir, home to Force-sensitive witches and Rancor monsters, is where Luke and Ben wind up after their
eerie meeting with the Mind Walkers at Sinkhole Station in the middle of the Maw Cluster. Aaron Allston, who
gave us the first installment, Outcast, returns with his great understanding and writing of
the Luke/Ben -- Father/Son relationship.
The adventure is classic Star Wars, our heroes up against insurmountable odds, but managing to save
the day with their usual fashion and flair. Han Solo and Leia Organa-Solo show up to lend a hand and the precocious
Allana Solo (Jacen's daughter) has some fun moments with C-3P0 on the Millennium Falcon.
The thrust of the story, however, is that the mysterious Lost Tribe of the Sith has finally tracked down
Luke Skywalker. After the events of Sinkhole Station, the Skywalkers find themselves with a prisoner, in the
form of young Vestara Khai, a Sith Apprentice from the Tribe, with a quick wit and veiled intentions. Long time
fans will notice some striking similarities between her and the late Mara Jade. The evil presence that stole
the Sith training vessel ship that attacked the Tribe and, though they attempt to lay siege to Luke and his
friends, a more interesting twist is in the works.
Meanwhile, back on Coruscant, Chief of State Daala continues to try and bring the Jedi under her heel
while the Jedi struggle against growing public mistrust. The rash of crazed Jedi outbreaks
continues, and the acting Jedi Grand Master Kenth Hamner is at his wits end on how to deal with it. At the same
time, Jaina Solo and fiancé Jagged Fel (who is also in charge of the Imperial Remnant) attempt to discover
if there is an assassination plot in place to remove Fel from leadership and turn what is left of the
Empire over to the remaining Moffs.
The nine-part Fate of the Jedi storyline continues to please readers with its handling of the
classic characters and the Expanded Universe cast. The mysteries are deep enough that, even when one is
revealed, fans know that there are much deeper revelations to come in the next five chapters. After the last
deep, soul-searching tales, Backlash does a good job of lightening the mood with good old fashioned light
saber battles between Jedi and Sith as well as some good Star Wars monsters.
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