#stellan gios critical

[antianakin]

I wanna know what your thoughts on the Jedi of the High Republic Era are, cause I’ve been scrolling your Pro Jedi tag (all your opinions are so real btw) and while the Jedi orders painted in a positive light in the PT (not that some people have the media literacy to understand that), THR explores the perspectives of Jedi of all ranks more than the films were able to, as well as seeing how everyday civilians interact with them

My experience of High Republic has been immensely limited because I've only read the three adult novels in Phase 1 (Light of the Jedi, The Rising Storm, and The Fallen Star) and nothing else, so please know that the opinions I express here are based on a very small sample of High Republic content. It's possible I'd like some of the other stuff if I tried it, but I got a little discouraged by The Fallen Star and so I haven't really gone back to it.

So my very first opinion here is that I appreciated that there's a lot of evidence of the Jedi and the Republic's government working together on issues. There's not as much of the separation we see grow with Palpatine in charge during the Prequels and there's a level of respect between the two groups as they work to deal with the problem of the Nihil. There's a lot of commentary from fans about the relationship we see between the Jedi and the Republic during the Prequels and about whether the Jedi should've been more or less involved in politics and whether the relationship was one that did them any good or if it was always a bad idea, and so I really loved the way that Light of the Jedi in particular showcased this relationship as a very positive one right from the jump.

I didn't necessarily HATE any of the Jedi characters, but there were only two that I had strong positive feelings towards and the others I was primarily neutral about. The two I liked the most were Regald Cole (gone too soon) and Bell Zettifar. I thought Regald was ADORABLE and I personally found him really funny, anyone who told him he had a bad sense of humor were just wrong. Bell is really sweet and it seems difficult NOT to feel for him, especially when the various authors seem to just delight in giving him like two to three new traumas in each successive novel. He just doesn't get a break. I loved that he got a service dog, his relationship with Ember is awesome and I think more Jedi should have pets or animal companions of some kind, it's sadly underutilized.

Elzar Mann was fine, I appreciated the exploration of someone who was struggling with darkness but hadn't really lost himself to it completely, that's something I think we've not seen a lot of in Star Wars high canon. I'm less into the romance of it all he has with Avar, I just don't care. Part of that might be because Avar is rarely around and so we don't get a real idea of what their dynamic is in order for me to root for them or feel bad for them, part of it might be that I'm just feeling oversaturated on romance narratives in general, and part of it might be that I just am leery of romance narratives for Jedi specifically.

Stellan Gios was my biggest disappointment. I'd heard he was basically a High Republic Obi-Wan in a lot of ways, and I love Obi-Wan quite a lot, so I'd expected to enjoy Stellan and then... didn't. While you CAN view Stellan's narrative as about struggles specific to him and nothing else, I personally felt like his narrative was meant to be viewed as something of a metaphor about the Jedi Council and the Order itself beginning to lose its way and stray from what it means to be a Jedi. Stellan spends a lot of his time feeling lost and distant from the people he cares about and then a lot of time in The Fallen Star is spent on emphasizing the difference between him and Orla Jareni which seems to lean in the direction that Orla's way of being a Jedi (Wayseekers, who are basically just defined as Jedi who don't answer to the Jedi Council and apparently just do whatever they want wherever and whenever they want, which really just lands them in the category of being a Gray Jedi by another name) is the far superior way of doing things than Stellan's. Stellan also expresses a jealousy over Avar and Elzar's relationship specifically because they have romantic feelings for each other which I guess makes it stronger or something. And then he seemingly dies at the end of that book and if that sticks then it's a really unsatisfying end to the character and if it doesn't, then I'm convinced Stellan is at the beginning of a really Jedi critical storyline that I am so uninterested in that it hurts.

As you can clearly tell from the last paragraph, I'm not a fan of Orla Jareni or the Wayseekers. I don't like what they represent and the way they're being used to send certain messages about the Jedi, specifically about the Prequels Jedi.

As much as I adore Bell as a character, I wasn't a big fan of the idea that he was ready to be knighted at 18 years old. Even if we assume he was chosen earlier, like around 11-13, that still means that he got 7 years of training AT MOST, which is three years LESS and a year younger than Anakin, who is supposed to be a prodigy. I personally believe that Anakin's record of 10 years should be the minimum a Jedi Padawan could possibly take to become a Knight if they become a Padawan that early. Obi-Wan himself takes 12 years when he is chosen at 13. I would only accept a 7 year apprenticeship for a Padawan who was chosen at the more normal age of like 16-18. Bell doesn't seem to be indicated to be a prodigy of any kind, so I find it weird and unrealistic that he would somehow be ready to be a Knight at the age of 18 (which is arguably closer to the age he should've been CHOSEN, not the age at which he should be getting KNIGHTED). This to me seems like it's just trying to associate becoming a Knight with reaching adulthood, which isn't quite how it works. Even outside of Star Wars, that's not how apprenticeships ever work. It doesn't help that Bell seems so far from being ready to be a Knight when this poor kid can't even jump from a tall height yet, which appears to be a pretty basic skill for Jedi to learn. He needs like 3-5 more years of apprenticeship at minimum.

I don't know if I can really talk about my opinions on "everyday civilian interactions" with HR Jedi given that the three books I have read primarily focus on large scale crises and catastrophes the Jedi are dealing with and so there's relatively little of that. I don't remember having a ton of strong opinions on it, so I assume it was probably fine and not like notably off or memorably excellent. There's just enough respect for Jedi for most civilians to listen to them in a crisis but when things go wrong, those same civilians often lose faith pretty quickly, which is a pretty common theme in Star Wars in general, even in more Jedi positive content.

So TL;DR I think the first two adult novels are quite Jedi positive and I did enjoy them, but I found Stellan's narrative a little grating and by the third book it seemed to get more overtly Jedi critical and that put me off of reading more within the High Republic universe.

[i-will-always-love-the-jedi]

Me when projecting on my faves: 👍

I won’t change my mind, they are all little neurodivergent gremlins in my head and I love them

…

[brachiosaurus-on]

The Jedi Order in High Republic is the same Jedi Order we see in the prequels but we spend a lot of time with and get into the heads of Jedi who actually like being Jedi and find the lifestyle fulfilling. Most of the prequels are shown from Anakin's perspective and, well... he broke his vows before he even took them. We do see it in the prequels with Obi-Wan and the other Jedi, but it's overshadowed by the plot and how the circumstances the Order finds itself in have changed. I can confidently say that if the characters switched circumstances, they would make the same decisions.

In High Republic, the Jedi are working with the Republic instead of for the Republic. We also see that the Jedi are not spread thin as they are in the prequels. Instead of pairs of Jedi, we see groups of four or five, or even more, being common. The Jedi are able to show up in number in a way that they can't in the prequels (outside of Geonosis). The Jedi aren't weary and exhausted as they are in the prequels. There's breathing room, they have time to recover between crises.

Another subtle thing is that there's a distinct absence of the Sith. The Jedi are focused on the Republic and the Nihil, and there's no mention of the Sith other than artifacts, because the Sith are the stuff of history. But we the audience know that somewhere in the galaxy, the Line of Bane is working on The Grand Plan and are sewing the seeds of corruption in the Republic. No matter how many victories the Jedi and the Republic win, they can't fight an enemy whom they don't know exists.

More importantly than the Jedi, we see the citizens of the Republic, fighting to unify the Republic, to make it better, to work together, to keep the peace and to help everyone. They truly believe "We are all the Republic" but that sentiment is going to fade. The Jedi will keep fighting until the very end, but we will eventually see the citizens of the Republic give up.

It makes the tragedy so much more heartbreaking because now we've met other generations that loved and fought for the Republic. And now we've seen what the Republic can be. We've seen how much this democracy can accomplish when it works together. That it really does work. This is what Padme Amidala and Bail Organa and Mon Mothma fought for. This is what Mace Windu and Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda fought for.

And they were able to do it because every generation that came before them did it too. Jora Malli and Indeera Stokes and Loden Greatstorm fought for the Republic. Stellan Gios and Elzar Mann and Avar Kriss fought for the Republic. Bell Zettifar and Burryaga and Vernestra Rwoh fought for the Republic. And the Republic was led by the likes of Lina Soh.

We see the Jedi come so close to beating the Sith, to saving the Republic, to being able to fix the cracks and lay the foundation for another golden age. It took generations to build, and it took generations to decay, and it would have taken generations to rebuild. But it could have been rebuilt. Yet in the critical moment, Anakin broke his vow to the Republic, and the Sith won, and the Republic fell.

[aion-rsa]

Star Wars The High Republic: The Rising Storm Review

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Wave two of The High Republic has a lot to say about the nature of the Jedi…maybe. Glimmers of fun concepts and Star Wars Prequel commentary shine through a book dragged down by odd pacing and low stakes.

About a year after the Nihil raiders nearly destroyed a solar system in Light of the Jedi, the Republic is putting on a show. The Republic Fair — imagine a World’s Fair or Great Exhibition, not a county fair — will show off the glory of the unified systems. In particular, the chancellor hopes to convince the Togruta queen (that’s Ahsoka’s species) to join or form a closer alliance. When the Nihil attack the Fair, the Republic is outgunned. It’s up to the Jedi — dutiful Stellan Gios, maverick Elzar Mann, and young Bell Zettifar in particular — to defend the Fair and its ideals.

Maybe this is just a pet peeve — it’s been in the back of my head since the novel Kenobi — but maybe one typical tie-in novel just isn’t usually efficient enough to really dig into more than one character. There are just too many people in this book. Every side character has a full name, honest work aplenty for Wookieepedia editors but making it very difficult to know where a reader’s attention should be landing at any given time. The pacing is also odd, a long middle sequence leading to a relatively brisk final battle. In fact, it’s paced like a three-act movie…and there’s nothing wrong with that if the character beats give the story a shape.

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But The High Republic being an ongoing series hurts it here. Just as that final sequence gets going, it’s over. Other things that made the series distinct — the Jedi each experiencing the Force in a different way, in particular — are just not present in the second book. The philosophy about the Jedi not attacking first is still here, which is nice.

Connections to other parts of the Star Wars saga abound, on the smaller side of which are some surprising and brief The Clone Wars cameos. What I’d consider the larger ones are thematic. The characters in this era are Jedi on the back foot; while they’re enjoying a golden age, not facing any Sith, they’re also still overwhelmed by the Nihil. It was fun to see Jedi adapt, coming up with tactics that work particularly well against the Nihil.

In the comics, we have an interesting comparison to Anakin Skywalker: Zeen, a young girl who has been informally admitted into the Jedi Order as a young teen. This book’s Anakin is Elzar Mann. I adored him in the first book, and in the first scene of this one: a grumpy, reclusive Jedi, he struggles to connect to the Force. Scenes show without telling his feelings of the universe being against him, of the way his thought process is trapped in some juvenile generalizations.

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A particularly notable comparison between the High Republic and the Prequel era is the way the Jedi handle the dark side. Elzar has some problems in common with Anakin: he slaughters Nihil “like animals,” he has disturbing visions, and he places his fate in the hands of a powerful woman — several, in fact. This is an Anakin without a Padmé, and I’m not sure whether to feel sympathetic or not for Elzar’s emotionally intense attention shifting from one woman to another. His Jedi friends are kinder to him than Anakin’s were, offering meditative retreats and a shoulder to lean on. But what this exactly has to say about the Jedi and attachment, I’m not sure. Meanwhile, Avar in particular has a surprisingly small role for a character who served as a through-line for Light of the Jedi. If she’s the epitome of the Jedi, isn’t there room to show what that means through her?

The other major Prequel connection is that these Jedi are in conversation about a changing “covenant” between them and the Senate, perhaps a decision that will lead them to go along with the Clone Wars more easily hundreds of years later. Stellan criticizes the Jedi’s actions at the Fair, and he’s right. Along with the Jedi having brief and airy conversations about whether the way they’re fighting is effective, The Rising Storm continues to show that this is an era in which people generally mean well, even former rivals. That positivity is nice.

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Author Cavan Scott comes from comic book writing, and you can tell; scenes are very visual. In some sections the perspective swoops around like a camera on a track, and it’s impressive to be able to link those perspectives together smoothly. It’s also jarring next to the rest of the prose, which varies from fine to sophomoric. At times, the story seems to intentionally focus on the characters with the least information about each situation for the sake of cliffhangers. But it’s just missed potential for more detail about the people we’re supposed to be spending a long series with.

I liked Light of the Jedi despite it having a lot of the same technical flaws. Unfortunately, the second volume failws to lock in my affection for the concept of some of these characters. There are too many names and not many solid character arcs. So far, this series has been best when the new cast can bounce off one another; look at the burgeoning mentorship between Stellan and Bell. But, otherwise, there are too many solo adventures and not enough of the characters forming meaningful relationships with each other. Even a cool finale, with Bell and Loden as stand-out characters as always, can’t make the fair and the disparate, flat storylines come together.

Perhaps the series shot itself in the foot by trying to make each book both stand alone and hook to the larger series. The result is static characters and a world that gets more compelling just as the last page turns. There were dragons in this book, and somehow I was still bored. The High Republic has so, so much potential. It’s a pity the execution is so uneven.

The post Star Wars The High Republic: The Rising Storm Review appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[antianakin]

Personally, I believe that a lot of the anti-Jedi arguments are made because of certain EU works that painted the Jedi in a negative light. The Republic Commando novels, Knights of the Old Republic, the Legions of Lettow, Galidraan, etc.

I think having a lot of Jedi critical media in the EU/Legends has certainly helped encourage a lot of anti-Jedi and Jedi critical mindsets in fandom and fanned the flame of the idea that Lucas INTENDED the story to be Jedi critical. Which is unfortunate. But in fairness, those things got written as Jedi critical because those people already felt that way about the Prequels Jedi and their feelings leaked into the things they ended up creating. And if THEY felt that way, then many other fans likely did at the time already, too. It's an immensely popular feeling and interpretation of the source material and was even more so back when most of these things were being released. The anti-Jedi sentiment definitely came first, but the EU media that got released post-Prequels absolutely helped keep it alive to this day.

Which is WHY we need more pro Jedi content out there to help combat this stuff. It's why it's so frustrating that even in things like Rebels or the Cal Kestis games, which are generally fairly positive about the Jedi, there's STILL moments that push the idea that the Jedi were arrogant, the Jedi were old-fashioned and out of touch, the Jedi didn't understand love or relationships, the Jedi rushed into war, etc. Even in High Republic novels, which are set over 200 years before the Prequels happened, there's elements of this sentiment, particularly in Stellan Gios's storyline. I've seen several pro Jedi bloggers discussing recent novels or shows that specifically were critical of Mace Windu and they all have to convince themselves that the authors were totally just making the main character an unreliable narrator in order to enjoy the story at all, even though most of us are perfectly aware that that's not what's happening and it CERTAINLY wasn't the author's actual intended message. We pro Jedi fans have to literally LIE TO OURSELVES about the media coming out in order to enjoy it because Jedi critical stuff is so pervasive that it's impossible to avoid.

The only thing that's come out recently that I have seen that I felt like was genuinely pro Jedi was the Obi-Wan Kenobi show, and even that had a moment that was slightly questionable. It's dispiriting, it's sad, it's disappointing. Maybe one day some of the more pro Jedi fans will actually manage to end up writing things for Star Wars and we'll see the franchise start to turn a different direction. Until then, I'm just going to go into everything at least a little wary.