[CaptainCrunch]

So after trying to read the Disney EU books and finding them pretty much unsatisfying, I decided to dive back into the Legacy EU and read series that I hadn't read before. I few month back I read the Killick War series, and it was ok with some good moments, but stumbled around unsatisfying villains and weird character interactions, including a very horny Jaina Solo. I decided to jump into the New Jedi Order series. I hadn't read it before because a 19 book series seemed to be pretty intimidating. But I dove into into a couple of months ago and I'm into the 11th book.



I understand after reading reviews that this was a pretty contraversial book series with Star Wars fans, there's no middle ground, people either love it and will defend it with their lives, or hate it and will attack it like a 5 year old looking at a plate of steamed brussel sprouts.


The series is built around an invasion of the GFFA away by a intergalactic species known as the Yuuzhan Vong. The Vong are a ultra religious species that worship multiple gods based on their sects. These sects are broken into Warriors, Priests, Shapers, Intendants and shamed ones. The whole species worships pain and mutilation to show their veneration of their gods, they hate technology instead relying on biotechnology and genetic engineering, and as a species they live outside of the Force, which means the Jedi can't sense them or attack them directly.



From a villain species the Vong at times flutter between interesting but unoriginal. They seem to go over the top with the obsession with pain, and mutilation, and sometimes come across as deliberately edgy yet generic villains because they are villains.



The other key point that comes out of this book series is a similar message to Disney EU that the New Republic was probably a worse choice of government then the Empire. In this book, the government is endlessly corrupt, decide to abandon most of the galaxy to the horrors of the Vong to protect the core worlds, and once again the government was all too eager to betray the Jedi, declare them enemies of the republic and willingly turn them over to the Vong in exchange for a ceasefire.



When you read about the galactic government, you get a sense that the writers saw them as the collaborative French Government that ruled over Nazi conquered France during World War 2.



In terms of the characters, the key focus beyond the Vong leadership is around the next generation of Jedi Knights. Sure Luke, Mara, Han and Leia have key roles, but they're more like plot accelerators them anything else. No the key focus is around the children of Han and Leia. Jacen, Jaina and Anakin Solo. Jacen who was ripped off by Disney when they created Kylo Ren as he turned to the Sith in the final series in the Legends EU is portrayed as a young man that is unsure of the role of Jedi Knights in the Force. He believes that any offensive action is tainted in the Dark Side and wants to be like a Monk meditating on the Force. Jaina is the warrior the crack pilot who briefly turns to the dark side after Anakin is killed off. Anakin is the youngest son, and is seen as the future of the Jedi Knights until he nobly sacrifices himself leading a strike team of young Jedi in taking out a Vong anti-jedi modified life force that hunted Jedi.



But death isn't unusual in this series of books, in the first book Chewbacca basically has a moon thrown at him, later Anakin dies, Leia and Mark nearly dive, and I'm sure more death is to come.



Overall its a well written series, James Lucerno, Michael Stackpole Troy Denning and Mathew Stover are all well destablished Legends EU writers and they're solid in this series.



That isn't to say that there aren't issues. A 19 book series with roughly 300 pages per book can become a slog, and some of the books are just slow. But the best of the book series are really really good. But I can see the problems with this series.



The main villains are made all pain inducing and outright villains to the point that it feels like they did it to create a edgy and different type of villain. But it makes them predictable. There are cool concepts, a race flying around in living spaceships while using organic weapons and technologies is quite a change. The problem being that it directly attacks the Ben Kenobi understanding of the Force as a living energy field that binds all life together, which means that a species that lives outside of the force shouldn't be possible.



Some of the minor villains, a treacherous senator that betrays the Republic was well written, as well there was a group of collaborators, that act as a background threat that pop up once in a while is interesting.



The progression of background characters like Wedge, and Kyp Durran, and other Jedi was interesting and well done as well. The split philosophy in the Jedi order between Knights who see themselves as all victory at all costs and flirting with the Dark Side versus Jedi like Luke was don't want to fight offensively is an interesting debate.



At times this series just seems to do things to be edgy and outside of StarWars. Also sometimes there are so many plot lines that are disconnected happening at the same time that things get confusing.



There's also a link to the Star Wars movies, that's a bit awkward as the remains of the Empire for the most part come across as heroic and far less corrupt and fractured then the New Republic, but the writers do cross the line as they hint that Palpatine's reason for seizing power was that he saw the invasion in a vision and thus heroically tried to save the galaxy by getting rid of the Jedi and building an Empire that could fight the Vong.



Overall its good with segments verging on great, but at times its draggy iand inconsistent, but for Star Wars fans and especially those that like the EU and maybe were intimidated by a 19 book series, I believe its worth a read.