– Spoiler Free Review –
The High Republic’s first Phase is coming to a close and Mission to Disaster, written by Justina Ireland, is one of the opening novels of the final wave. Focusing on characters Ireland first introduced in the opening wave, the novel deals with Jedi Knight Vernestra Rwoh trying to save Avon Starros, and other children, when it becomes clear the Nihil have started kidnapping kids to bolster their ranks. Mission to Disaster, never shying away from the ramifications and its deeper subject matters, while adding to fan-favorite characters and building out a convincing ecosystem, is one of Ireland’s best entries of the era so far.
Set prior to the events of The Fallen Star, the adult novel kicking off Phase I, Wave III’s start, Mission to Disaster finds Jedi Knight prodigy Vernestra Rwoh and her Padawan Imri Cantaros on the search for young inventor Avon Starros, kidnapped by the Nihil. In captivity Avon finds herself struggling to survive and make sure the other kids snatched alongside her are okay, her brilliant mind recruited by the deadly Dr. Mkampa, who’s responsible for the Nihil’s fog of war, for a project that could change everything for the planet she’s imprisoned on. As with Ireland’s previous middle-grade entry, A Test of Courage, and even Daniel José Older’s own MG novel, she doesn’t shy away from hard-hitting moments, emotional exploration, and mature-like themes, making it all accessible to the younger readers but complex enough any age reader will have much to take away from it. Plus, if you’re like me, then Vernestra and Avon are among your favorite characters and there’s no way you’d ever miss their next appearances! Ireland has produced some stellar novels/works so far, Out of the Shadows being a YA entry for Wave II of Phase I, and I’d place this alongside and just below OotS simply due to everything that happens within, but this is easily her most consistent work to date, with some great character moments and details about a planetary system, content I feel like we’ve missed in the large event focused novels.
Vernestra, an even more confident Jedi after the events of A Test of Courage and Out of the Shadows, where her latent hyperspace Force vision abilities led her to Mari San Tekka, the woman providing the Nihil with their sneaky hyperspace routes and gave Vernestra special coordinates before passing, she’s at least still open to learning but has some struggles teaching her Padawan Imri. Their relationship as Padawan and Master despite the closeness in age has been an intriguing part of Vernestra’s story and character, as they’ve both had to deal with the awkwardness and issues with respect, while it shows how important teaching is to mold a better Jedi. She’s still having her hyperspace visions but doesn’t seem as ruled by what they show as most Jedi we know who have them, be it Luke Skywalker, Ezra Bridger, or Sifo Dyas, and is more willing to understand the vision is just one of many outcomes. Imri has progressed, the meditations he and Reath Silas uncovered in OotS have helped, but that doesn’t mean he’s still overwhelmed in certain moments Vernestra doesn’t try to protect him at times, a small source of friction that doesn’t gain much here but could be something down the line. Both of them have to come to terms that their feelings for Avon, and desire to rescue her, aren’t as important as the larger scandal unfolding on Dalna, and it was interesting to see them thread the line of attachments here whereas even the slightest amount of their feelings in the prequel era would’ve likely been a bigger deal to the Masters/Council. I look forward to High Republic stories further discussing the debate on helping the Republic/fighting the Nihil, something these two both don’t feel comfortable with yet it seems like the larger swath of Jedi do, which could cause friction from how the Jedi decide to respond after the events of The Fallen Star, which like I said earlier takes place after this. Vernestra feels like she’s becoming this era’s Qui-Gon Jinn more and more and I am so here for it, as she’s definitely my favorite Jedi right alongside Keeve Trennis. Speaking of, it seems like it might be a good idea to be reading the final The High Republic issues for more Vernestra before Phase I closes…
Since AToC, and after she didn’t appear in OotS (though her mom Ghirra Starros did), I’ve been eagerly awaiting the return of Avon Starros, still my favorite non-Jedi of the era so far, even over the crew of the Vessel (though they are VERY close), and her return here didn’t disappoint. In Mission to Disaster, Avon is nearing her work on synthesizing the kyber crystal she took from Imri’s broken lightsaber (one Vernestra cut in half when they fought…it’s complicated) when the Nihil raid the lab, kidnapping her. When we first found out she had taken Imri’s kyber, I immediately thought it could lead to her making the first discoveries which inadvertently could later lead to the Death Star, but here she discusses how she’s excited to harness it’s power conducting abilities to help power entire planets, which feels like a fun play on words with what the kyber crystals end up being used for anyways/what I was first thinking. Having already been kidnapped before, her mother is a Senator and she was held for ransom at one point, her previous experience, even at such a young age unfortunately for her, combined with her analytical mind means she’s always tinkering and planning, looking for a way out for her and the others captured with her. This analytical mindset is why she’s become such a favorite of mine, as while she’s still a kid and deals with emotions like the rest of us, she’s able to detach to some degree thanks to her scientific mind, calculating survival rather than worry about if she can survive. It gets used against her, as the Nihil Tempest Runner Kara Xoo, teased to have plans to mess with Dalna way back in AToC, and the nefarious Dr. Zadina Mkampa essentially recruit her compliance or face death/being sold to slavers (like I said, this doesn’t shy away from mature themes!), though she manages to find a way to mess with their plans…or does she? What happens and how she deals with it are important and intriguing parts of MtD and made me even more eager to see more of Avon, especially once she picks up on a surprising turn for another character (one of the confusing moments in The Fallen Star but makes a little more sense here). Considering what we know about October’s Phase II start,* it might be awhile before we see Avon again to deal with the fallout.
Another returning character is Honesty Weft, as well as some Jedi on Starlight Beacon, though they all have minor or short roles for the most part. It was neat to check in with Honesty again though, his experiences with the Avon and the Jedi from AToC having changed him enough that he’s one of the few helpful Dalnans on the planet as Vernestra and team look into the child disappearances; the politicians we do meet from Dalna have varying levels of mystery around them and their actions, though I appreciated the nuance Ireland’s able to tuck in during their brief roles. Otherwise, we meet a handful of new Jedi from the Dalna Temple, first introduced in November, and I liked the variety within: Lyssa Votz (a fun reference to the hardworking, all important publicist for Disney Publishing Lyssa Hurvitz), an archivist who often purposefully forgets to bring her lightsaber along on mission; Yacek Sparkburn, who may or may not be related to Jordanna Sparkburn, a last name that functions much like Snow does for the families of Winterfell in Game of Thrones but here it’s the San Tekkas, whose bravado doesn’t make you think he’d have bigger conversations but he does join the group chatting about the Jedi and their place with the Republic and fighting; Master Nyla Quinn, an older Twi’lek woman who runs the Temple, whose history there makes me interested to see her again in Phase II.* They’ve relatively been untouched by the Nihil and Drengir situations unfolding across the galaxy, so therefore are one of the few Jedi still not called into action in this mostly peaceful era, reminding me of all the Jedi from Phase I, Wave I back in January 2021, answering the call when they never expected to beyond maybe settling disputes. And lastly, though definitely not least, I loved the slow reveal of Deva Lompop, a character first revealed in June prior to her first appearance in the comic War of the Bounty Hunters – Jabba the Hutt #1, which for older readers would be a great place to see if her threats about eating people is legitimate or not, and her first THR appearance doesn’t disappoint as we learn a little more about her that the comics never covered; while Phase II* is heading in a new direction, the fact she’s a long-lived species means this certainly won’t be the last we’ll see of her.
Considering much of The High Republic content has been focused on propelling the plot forward, we haven’t had many works so far that sink into the locations, sometimes introducing some new and interesting planets or unique ships for the era, but not really exploring them beyond using them as a setting, though thankfully Mission to Disaster changes that by making the planet Dalna a character in of itself. Dalna is considered a young planet, in the relative sense of the term, and the conditions of these early years makes it ripe for a very delicious fruit that has transformed their economy. Ireland unearths even more details about its plate tectonics and other scientific aspects, and while it can often sound like mumbo jumbo (way less than what Avon and Dr. Mkampa spout to each other though is fun to read), it adds realism to the tale and adds stakes to when the threat to Dalna becomes clear. I hope more stories can breathe as much life into their locations in the future as MtD does, as it helps ground the tale in the places they are set and makes you connect with it more so if it is in danger, it ratchets up the tension. I won’t go into specifics here, but there are also a lot of references throughout MtD regarding events that happened over a hundred years ago, which after the High Republic Anniversary Special* revealed Phase II: Quest of the Jedi would take place 150 years before Phase I even started, means we should probably expect to see Dalna a lot more and knowing as much as I do about the planet now and the mysteries of its past, makes me even more excited for the unique direction of Phase II.
Illustrator Petur Antonsson returns to delight with three new pieces of art, one of which was already revealed when it was announced the Halcyon, the real-world Star Wars hotel’s in-universe location, would make an appearance in the era. It’s a neat image, recently replicated in an issue of The High Republic comic, but the other two images are actually even more stellar, one with their depiction of two characters together I had a blast seeing and of course an action Vern shot. If you want more of Antonsson’s work, don’t forget to check out the picture books, which retell events from the adult novels, containing more of his art and stickers!
Here are a few other things:
- *The High Republic Anniversary Special not only teased the 150 years in the past direction, it revealed 4 new authors joined to tell tales, a few of the projects we can expect, that it would start October 2022, and more. Check out the article for all the latest details.
- Ireland also co-wrote alongside Shima Shinya the first original Star Wars manga, The High Republic – The Edge of Balance Vol. 1, a fun side tale that bathed in the era since it wasn’t about galaxy-wide stakes. The second entry, The Edge of Balance Vol. 2, will be out January 26 on digital and May 24 for a physical release, though this time is co-written with Older and Shinya instead.
- Mission to Disaster was originally supposed to launch its physical edition on January 4, alongside The Fallen Star, kicking off Phase I, Wave III. Months prior to its release, Lucasfilm Creative Director (responsible for getting this whole initiative started, thank you!) announced MtD would be delayed to March 1 due to printing issues, which is understandable considering the paper shortages/shipping issues happening around the globe. Surprisingly enough, at least to me, the digital edition of MtD still released on Jan 4, which was awesome considering it was my most anticipated novel of the Wave. I still have my physical edition ordered, a signed copy via Justina Ireland’s local bookstore Caprichos, and I can’t wait to have it, but this was a pleasant surprise to get to enjoy this now!
- Avon’s Professor on Port Hailep, Glenna Kip, already mentioned in AToC but I didn’t realize it, has a bit more to do this book, while it’s clear now she’s a long-lived species considering she’s also in Ireland’s Spark of Resistance, set in the sequel trilogy era!
- J-6’s further modifications, Avon’s once nanny droid now independent security droid with an attitude, delights as comedic relief throughout
The High Republic – Mission to Disaster brings some of my favorite characters together for a tight, focused, and an intriguing tale, packed with interesting details and hints of what’s to come for the era going forward, proving once again Justina Ireland can balance content for any age.
+ Avon Starros tinkering again! Verenstra becoming Qui-Gon before Qui-Gon
+ Dalna the planet as a character
+ Not shying away from some maturer themes
+ All the hints and teases for Phase II
– Some appearances felt too short
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.