– Spoiler and Spoiler-Free Review –
The High Republic – Midnight Horizon, written by Daniel José Older, is the final novel entry in Phase 1, Wave III’s story, and it’s the best overall to date. Focusing on a plot around Corellia and potential Nihil forces, several Jedi characters from Older’s and other luminous authors’ works combine in a tale with new characters and tons of emotion, depth, and exploration of oneself, as there’s coming-of-age, love, and Jedi paths plumbed for some of the best character work of the era yet. The following review is largely spoiler free but there’s a clearly marked spoiler section as well!
Taking place just before and eventually overlapping with the events of The High Republic – The Fallen Star and The High Republic Adventures #12, Midnight Horizon finds several Jedi from Starlight Beacon responding to a call for help from a Corellian local, a young woman in charge of a protection agency whose lost employees might have uncovered a Nihil plot deep in the Core Worlds for once. Older pulls a lot of characters from his The High Republic Adventures comic with IDW, bringing them to the forefront and expanding their roles and our understanding of them in new, exciting ways which display an impressive amount of diversity, while his new characters like Alys “Crash” Ongwa (based on Doctor Aphra scribe and all around great human being Alyssa Wong!) and her crew, friends, and family endure themselves to readers quickly. He also breathes quite a lot of life into Corellia, much like Justina Ireland did in Mission to Disaster with Dalna, from luscious, noir-like descriptions of its various locales and seedier areas the characters visit, to the various mindsets of the planet’s proud population and unique leader system. The characters and their journeys are the real meat of this tale, as while Midnight Horizon tells an important part of the Nihil’s big operations in this final wave of Phase 1’s story, what the character pairings bring to their lives, building on and expanding on everything they’ve gone through so far, had a much bigger impact on my reading and is what I still think about long after finishing. It’s the main reason this turned out to be my favorite novel of Wave III, and maybe all of Phase 1 (but I’m saving that decision for the retrospective we’ll have on it later this year), and I feel like fans, whether they liked some of the recent output for the era or not, will find a lot to love here, from the depth of the book, scale of the conflict, and focus on characters. Older really has carved out a stellar, welcoming, hug-giving part of the era and Midnight Horizon basically feels like the culmination of those efforts (even with one THRA issue on the way still!).
Midnight Horizon is a bastion of LGBTQIA+ representation, something Older has been a champion of since his first Star Wars novel, Last Shot, and this feels like the current gold standard of how to do representation right alongside works like Doctor Aphra’s comics and audiobook. Fans who already read The High Republic Adventures have seen Older weave a stellar, slow-burn tale of the budding relationship between Jedi Padawan Lula Talisola and Force-user and Starlight Beacon resident Zeen Mrala, with the most recent issue having them seemingly finally connect, but Midight Horizon takes it several steps further, not only seeing what happens next (while leaving room for the comic’s final issue to finish the story), but also diving into each characters’ internal point-of-view of dealing with the feelings for one another, though it’s mainly Zeen here. It’s a heartwarming series of exchanges and revelations as Zeen struggles with and figures out how she wants to proceed, considering Lula’s likely Knighthood is on the way and the potential of it to push them further apart/Zeen not wanting to hold the girl she loves back; it perfectly encapsulates feelings of these sorts and shows their universal application no matter the orientation of the couple. Seriously, Older’s work with these two left me breathless at times, as it’s such an enthralling series of relatable thoughts and decisions while also being the forefront of queer rep in the Saga, it was hard not to want to thank the author throughout. Zeen also has many great moments in the book exploring her past as well as her own desires for the future, dealing with childhood-friend-turned-Nihil Krix Kamerat and what her place in the Force will be, Lula or not, giving her a well-rounded appearance and exploration throughout. But even more importantly to LGBTQIA+ representation is Kantam Sy’s big role in the novel, the non-binary human Jedi has relatively been a background character, as they are now central to main thesis of the novel and deliver a universal message about the Force, Jedi, and love. It didn’t feel like they’d been in the background all this time by the end of Midnight Horizon, as it becomes quickly clear why Lula feels so strongly towards and supported by her Master, as an even more heartwarming, but bittersweet tale of love for Kantam during their Padawan years delivers such an unforgettable and endearing message, there’s something anyone with a beating heart can take away from it. In a surprising series of flashbacks, Kantam’s feelings for a circus performer lead to some stellar and intriguing conversations with their master, Yoda, while their choice and adventure they go on as they come to understand their place in the Force and as a Jedi feels the most human and relatable Star Wars has ever been, and it honestly was my favorite part of the novel and managed to bring me to (happy) tears at one point. Kantam’s story of their past is told to fellow Jedi Master Cohmac Vitus, a Jedi with complicated feelings of his own since his introduction in Into the Dark, and how he reacts and eventually learns from the tale leaves him as a fascinating character I hope Phase III will continue to follow, as this both feels like a natural step for him but leaves me curious what his plans are next. However, Kantam remaining in focus going forward would not only be an amazing way to help more fans see themselves in Star Wars, but would be greatly appreciated by me as they’ve risen as a new favorite from this novel alone.
Bookworm turned adventurer Reath Silas, also featured in Into the Dark and Out of the Shadows, still grapples with his new lot in life, now curious about what path ahead should be for him but doesn’t want to burden his already burdened Master, Cohmac. Ram Jamoram, a main character introduced in Older’s high-energy Wave II novel Race to Crashpoint Tower and has been in THRA ever since but in the background mostly, is struggling for an emotional core after his life has been overturned since the attack at the Republic Fair on his homeworld. Paired together, their journey to Corellia allows these two teenagers acting like teenagers for once, as before the depth of the problems on the planet become clear, the influence of someone like Crash gives the Padawans a chance to simply live life, not worried about what paths are ahead for them or how to emotionally deal with the galaxy’s dangerous turn after starting off in relative peace. There’s tons of fun to be had here, from their growing friendship to their goofy fun helping Crash as bodyguards despite the potential threats, making both Reath and Ram even more relatable and enjoyable characters to read, making me totally understand why everyone who meets Ram wants to protect him at all costs or why Ram would look up to Reath despite their similar age. Much was said before the initiative started the Jedi of this golden era enjoyed peace, with many characters, like Ram and Reath, telling us about never expecting to pull their lightsaber besides for training, and for once we got to see that in the initiative during a good portion of Midnight Horizon, a refreshing change of pace in a novel so expertly paced as this one. Watching these two grow up as the threats present themselves is a rewarding experience in MH, from how Ram comes into his own as his mechanical focus is vital to stopping the Nihil and Reath understands what’s next for him in the Force, and much like the other character development in MH, it all feels natural for what we already know with these characters. Plus, we get to see Ram become the one behind the infamously fun phrase, “Wizard,” uttered by many centuries later, so what’s not to love about this book on that alone?
Crash and her ragtag team of bodyguards, as well as the slightly complicated and twisted world around them with the politics of the planet, are also a real delight throughout Midnight Horizon. Crash’s laser-focus on her job leaves her often distracted and keeping others at bay, while the recent loss of operatives and the desperate search to find out what happened, and if they are still alive, drives much of her story. There’s some real pride for Corellia seen through Crash, which is where much of the great descriptions and intriguing details about its ‘Fathers’ political system come into play, fleshing out the conflicts while also building up Crash, her team, her relationships, and her reasons for being so involved as things get far bigger than missing employees. There’s a kinetic energy to the character, the way Older writes her, that I immediately fell in love with her and her story, as she brings chaos but directs it, molds it, and uses it to her advantage, and it’s clear why she’s so good at what she does. Her friendship with a musical starlet, whose family made music is something I both want to hear and never want to hear, and the potential between them also brews up some great relationship drama Being the same age as Ram, Reath, and Zeen, but having seen and been through far more, she brings an unique perspective to the young Padawans trying to work through their feelings and futures, putting them through situations they get to explore other avenues than their usual Jedi roles and, like I mentioned earlier, allows them all to be teenagers for a moment here and there. We previously met Crash and a good portion of her team in The High Republic Adventures Annual 2021 in a short story written by Older, but several members of the crew are fleshed out or have fun roles in the story, from the Wookiee who works with Ram or the Arcona and her way with sticking to the shadows, while her mother is another delight later in the novel. I don’t know how much room there’ll be for Crash in the upcoming Phases of the era, but I hope we’ll find more time with her and her eclectic team in other ways going forward.
FOR LIGHT AND LIFE
CLICK BELOW ONLY IF YOU WANT SPOILERS
Here are a few other things:
- Beyond a few things I mentioned in the spoiler section, there are other hints on potential places Phase II of the High Republic will go, to the point I’m even more ecstatic about the idea it actually goes 150 years further into the past. We’ll bring you all the details as we get them in, but for now expect Phase II to launch in October!
- Older still has a few stories left for Phase I, Wave III: As mentioned earlier, there’s The High Republic Adventures #13, which should fill in the Lula-sized blanks MH has, and is out February 23; the manga, The Edge of Balance Vol. 2, which follows up with Lily on Banchii, is out Feb 15 on digital platforms (and physical in May), which Older shares story by credits with Shima Shinya; and Trail of Shadows #5, the finale to the noir-infused miniseries trying to ascertain what’s turning Jedi to dust.
- Exploring the Grindalids, the worms first seen with Lady Proxima in Solo, and their part on Corellia was not on my bingo card for things I was happy to read about or expected in this book, but I’m glad they made it.
The High Republic – Midnight Horizon is an absolutely joyous read by Daniel José Older, though things certain get grim as the scope of the Nihil’s attack come clear, but the way he balances the many emotions and characters is what makes the experience so rewarding.
+ Character developments and pairings produce tons of heartwarming joy
+ Crash’s energy
+ Relationship focus, from Lula/Zeen to Kantam’s past
+ Representation takes center stage
+ Scope and scale of Nihil attacks and Corellia details
– A little slow to get going
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.
DISCLOSURE: I received a copy of this book from the publisher at no charge in order to provide a review. However, this did not affect the overall review content. All opinions are my own.