– Minor Spoiler Review –
With Phase II done and Phase III on its way, the luminous beings behind The High Republic offer up Tales of Light and Life, a well-prepared treat of a dessert, full of complexity, heart, flavor, and all the toppings you’ve come to expect from them, all while melding together layers of Phases for a scrumptious bite of light and life of the era.
I’m a big desserts guy, I truly do love my sweets if it wasn’t clear from the metaphor which opens this review, but the more I thought about The High Republic – Tales of Light and Life, the more I couldn’t help comparing it to the delectable comfort foods I can’t help having and seeking out on weekend bakery runs. Worry not, I won’t spend this whole time regaling you with desserts and bakeries (as much as I probably could start another site just about that), but they certainly help me make my point. Tales of Light and Life (Tales herein) took me on a journey like any good sweet can, from the opening presentation of how it looks and smells, to the initial few bites bringing oohs, aahs, shouts of surprise, and tears of tartness or joy, and lastly the lingering taste afterwards, which in terms of Tales, meant the simple, yet elegant cover art, followed by Lucasfilm Publishing’s Creative Director Michael Siglain’s wonderful introduction made great first impressions, while those bite-sized stories elicited all sorts of visceral reactions, ranging from tears of joy and sadness all the way to gasps or hollering, while each one found a way to linger long after they were done. Comfortable and satiated are words I’d describe for my feelings after Tales, hence landing on the sweets thing (which, thank you, dear reader, for putting up with), as it addresses some interesting aspects fans wanted more from once Phase II’s glimpse of the past finished, fills in some Phase I moments to heartfelt effect, and plants the seeds of many favorite characters’ returns and how the galaxy has shifted ahead of Phase III. In doing so, never has all three Phases, even if one isn’t out yet, felt more connected (like layers of a multi-tiered cake, mayhaps?), as they did here, when reading one story set before Phase II and another after Phase I felt totally seamless, as in the end there’s a larger, connective tissue of how this era feels. Part of that stems from how often Phase II didn’t feel truly that different from Phase I for me, as I went into greater detail in our Phase II Retrospective, but mainly it’s from each of the luminous authors (bakers, if you want to stick to the theme) perfecting the formula (recipe) for this era and putting forward a series of works which might be tonally different and star vastly different characters, even focusing on “villains,” and yet it still feels like High Republic content and not anything else in Star Wars.
There’s a great variety to Tales’ stories, as some feature big reveals or answer lingering cliffhangers, and even if a story isn’t concerned with answering anything some fans might consider important, each one marinates in its chosen character, exploring them in such great depths, it’s clear what makes each story so damn memorable: how it resolves characters arcs instead. As much as I love learning tons of little minutia on what happened or what comes next/before, the characters are what draw me in more than anything else and Tales is a celebration of them, giving me the one thing I’ve wanted across both Phases so far: more time with these characters. It proves this era is ripe for more storytelling long after Phase III closes, as returning to these characters and filling in their lives around the larger events can be as equally interesting. I’d love an annual Tales collection, giving us an opportunity to spend this sort of detailed time with any character in the era, just based on the strength of these stories alone, and while keeping it amongst the luminous authors like it does here would be preferred, adding new voices worked out well enough in Phase II, having other authors would still keep me interested in another entry like this. Below I’ll go over each story, offering a short reaction and review for them all, while hopefully reading Alyssa Wong’s exclusive tale soon to be able to update this.
“The Queen’s Bloom” by Zoraida Córdova
At first, I was very curious where “Bloom” was going, though I was quite content to have this simply as a little slice of pre-Phase II life for Axel Greylark, a hopeful man with his father still around and his parents both clearly trying to connect with him despite their lives and aspirations. There are hints of the “Chaos” he’ll become, with his schoolboy antics and later when a situation at a fancy party goes sideways, while I loved his outlook on the planet’s beautiful bloom display because it links up to how he’ll see himself and his mindset when we meet him first in Convergence, a moment from this story which sticks with me still. As mentioned prior to Tales’ release, the Mother, leader of the Path of the Open Hand by the start of Phase II aka Elecia Zeveron, is part of this story, though the how and why of I won’t spoil, but I will say it left me aching for more content with her because even Phase II could’ve benefited from more of her point-of-view at one point.
“A Closed Fist Has No Claws” by Tessa Gratton
Gratton’s work here left me absolutely floored from start to finish, not only because of this eye-opening glimpse of how Marda Ro’s story bleeds into the beginning of the Nihil and thus answering some lingering questions after Path of Vengeance/end of Phase II, but mainly the way they write Marda’s tortured, fractured yet brave and bold transformation. As much as I like answers, this character study of Marda coming to embrace her Evereni heritage and her new outlook on the galaxy after Phase II’s events was enthralling, especially as it becomes clear how it fits into what we know, as well as when we start to meet other Evereni along the way. Much like Phase II, it doesn’t answer everything, but what it does reveal helps fill in some gaps and expand our knowledge before Phase III, as well as proving why Phase II didn’t need to really answer every question in the first place. I’d love several novels of Marda’s life, building up this legacy for her children in the broken shell of her old beliefs, if this is the way it would be presented.
“Shield of the Jedi” by George Mann
SILANDRA SHO! Sorry, had to get it out of my system, but it’s a requirement when talking about the shield-wielding Jedi Master. She’s not the main star of “Shield of the Jedi” however, her Padawan Rooper Nitani is, much like she was for Mann’s Quest for the Hidden City and Tessa Gratton’s Quest for the Planet X. Set several years after Phase II, Rooper is much older now, truly inhabiting the ideals Master Sho tried to instill in her student, about being a shield for others and not craving adventure as much, but as all Jedi find, there’s always more to test them. In fact, Sho puts together Rooper’s Jedi Knight trial, an interesting and engaging situation which tells us as much about Rooper and where she could go next as a Jedi as it does Sho herself. Along the way we get references to Dass Leffbruk, Rooper’s friend and now Pathfinder for the Republic, so fans of the characters in the middle-aged books will find some details to enjoy. What really stood out to me was the background on Silandra’s shield, which left me not only wanting more of Silandra’s time with it but getting stories to see more of its history…and where it goes next.
“The Lonely Traveler is Home” by Daniel José Older
Prepare for a comfortable, strong, and memorable hug of your heart like only Older can deliver. Set during Phase I, towards the tail-end, Ram Jomaram senses Zeen Mrala is in distress and goes about trying to help her out, involving many familiar faces from Older’s works which results in a heart-warming surprise for all by the end. It helps set up characters for their appearances in Midnight Horizon while gives fans a little more time with them before it all goes downhill and chaotic.
“After the Fall” by Claudia Gray
The Vessel crew are a unique, interesting bunch I find surprises me the more we see them and this look at how Affie Hollow, Leox Gyasi, and Geode deal with the fallout from Starlight Beacon’s fall is another one not to be missed about them. Affie’s POV is our view into the immediate aftermath, like them helping Jedi Master Avar Kriss dole out supplies to affected locals, to weeks and months later as a chance encounter helps Affie refocus her future given what happened and how the Republic, the Jedi, and even the Nihil have reacted and changed since. It’s one of a few stories which provide us a glimpse of what to expect in Phase III, though I liked how it’s through this crew’s eyes, especially as it gives action to the phrase “We are all the Republic” as they take matters into their own hands ahead of Phase III.
“The Force Provides” by Justina Ireland
Vernestra Rwoh is one of my all-time favorite High Republic Jedi and essentially tied for top place with Keeve Trennis for Jedi favorites overall. Set between Phase I and III, we find Vernestra adrift, assuming her friend Avon Starros (Ireland’s stellar Sana Starros comic assures us otherwise) and her Padawan Imri Cantaros dead following the fall of Starlight, while not agreeing with the Jedi’s approach to the changing galactic situation with the Nihil, so she’s unofficially gone Wayseeker instead. On her travels, helping people in the galaxy, she stumbles into a very unique situation which left me guessing practically up until the end, with engaging new characters and a very distinct sense of place for the new planet she finds herself on, showcasing Ireland’s many strengths. It’s a story which shows how ripe this era is for storytelling, particularly with Jedi in the galaxy, assisting in problems small and large, as the Force wills it. Her journey, as always, is worth the price of admission alone, and I’m curious to see what she gets up to when Phase III starts in earnest (especially since she still has Mari San Tekka’s special Path to use…).
“All Jedi Walk Their Own Path” by Charles Soule
BURRY LIVES! I’m not really spoiling this one because they already did with the special High Republic show, but I will say it doesn’t even begin to describe this epic sized journey Bell Zettifar goes on to find his missing friend. Bell fans will not be disappointed in the slightest, as Soule’s tale, split between the past and a post-Phase I present, give readers time with another fan-favorite, Loden Greatstorm, while shepherding Bell’s spirit on quite the voyage. Through this story, we also see “We are all the Republic” come to vivid life, and how the coming changes to the Jedi Order due to events in Phase I look to take them away from what made them so much more effective and different than the ones we know in the prequel era. Also, proves we can never have enough Bell, Loden, or Burry!
“Light in the Darkness” by Cavan Scott
In as masterful a way as Scott normally does, “Light in the Darkness” piles on the darkness in this story where locals find themselves at the mercy of the grubby hands of the Hutts, the Jedi nowhere to be found after Starlight Beacon’s fall. Kiana of the Enami, a new species as far as I could tell, and her brother Hoi try to fight back and get their village some food after the Hutts and their goons stole it all, but her people feel helpless as its been month since they called for aid and no one has come, believing the light of the Jedi has diminished. It’s a moody piece, effective in cutting off even my hope we’d see a happy ending to the story, though when the light finally comes, it’s damn flipping glorious and has me anxious to see what Scott has in store for Jedi Master Keeve Trennis in Phase III, as well as a few of her friends, who survived mysterious attacks in surprising ways that I immediately need to know more about. Speaking of what’s to come for Master Trennis, after the all out confirmation in Scott’s Yoda #10 issue she is in the Order’s Lost Twenty, as first seen in his Dooku: Jedi Lost, fans need to prepare themselves.
“The Call of Coruscant” by Lydia Kang
Kang truly knocked it out of the galaxy with her debut in Phase II with Cataclysm, so I kept an open mind about this tale since it was set to star new characters who would later be important to Phase III. By the end, I was eager to see more of Jedi Master Mirro Lox and his Padawan, Amadeo Azzazzo, as Kang makes both interesting new additions: Amadeo’s soul-searching in the bright lights of Coruscant’s nightlife was a fascinating adventure and exploration of a Jedi’s call to the Force, while Lox has lots of trust in the Force and his Padawan, even despite the news about something turning them all to dust and his inability to let the famous lullaby out of his mind, while I imagine his unflappable nature will be key as they head out into the galaxy to face the latest threat. Where and how will we see this pair again? How important will their role be going forward? Will it mainly be in Kang’s Chronicles from the Occlusion Zone for Star Wars Insider, since she’s not writing any of Phase III’s novels? Or will they appear across other stories? We’ll find out soon enough!
“Rogue Element” by Alyssa Wong
As this was a Barnes & Noble exclusive, it was not available in review copies. I’ll update this once I get my hands on an edition with it (which might be a little bit, as I’m on vacation the week this releases), while hopefully they’ll announce something soon for non-US fans to get access to this story as well (Siglain says they’ve been working on it)!
Update 9/19 with “Rogue Element” thoughts: I can’t imagine stepping in to write a character inspired by oneself, but Alyssa Wong continues Alys “Crash” Ongwa’s story after Midnight Horizon like they were born for the role…which, I guess they literally were thanks to Older basing the character on them. While there’s some interesting revelations about what’s happening on Corellia, as the Nihil’s presence and recent Starlight Beacon felling victory have inspired a civil war on the planet, “Rogue Element” is far more interesting thanks to its characters and their actions in the story. Especially newcomer Ruu, a former Jedi Padawan whose tragic story puts him on a dark path, even if he’s doing good and trying to stop the Nihil. I’m eager to see more from him in Phase III, especially with how his story ends, all thanks to Crash and her crew. I quite enjoyed seeing more from Crash and Svi’no as well, their dynamic and relationship such an organic and healthy thing, it even gives them the chance to help others as well. Top this all off with the knowledge Wong once again is helping push the franchise’s representation visibility, even beyond their work in the Doctor Aphra series, as Ruu is confirmed transmasculine, a first in Star Wars as a whole, and there’s more to love about this story the more one thinks about it!
Here are a few other things:
- There were a few Mynock Mentions across the stories, which we’re always happy to see added to the list!
- The upcoming 4 issue miniseries Shadows of Starlight will also fill in some blanks between Phase I and Phase III and you can get your first glimpse of the opening issue here (and I translated the Aurebesh and the directives within are what Soule says are called the Guardian Protocols)! It begins in October, followed by Phase III’s official start in November with The Eye of Darkness by George Mann!
- I said Ruu’s name from “Rogue Element” out loud and my dog, Roo, perked his ears up.
The High Republic – Tales of Light and Life is a resounding, multi-layer cake of delicious High Republic dessert (had to bring it back), as it’s a collection of hope, delight, surprise, familiar faces, new status quos, and so much more, something which manages to both stitch the Phases together while also throwing hype for the final Phase through the stratosphere. Fans will not want to miss this collection and will be eager for more just like it!
+ Making the Phases feel more connected than ever
+ Letting us spend time with many of our favorites
+ Intriguing glimpses of what’s to come
+ Electrifying, engaging stories, with new and familiar characters
– Why wasn’t this 100 stories long?!?! (I kid, sort of) Could’ve read so much more!!
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.