Tag: Mike Chen

Novel Review: From a Certain Point of View – Return of the Jedi

Posted on August 20, 2023August 29, 2023 by Head Butler Ryan

– Minor Spoilers –

The finale 6 years in the making, From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi closes out one daring, fun, and always exciting initiative to celebrate the 40th anniversary for each original trilogy film. Considering it would be at least 16 years before we’d ever see one again (yes, The Phantom Menace’s 40th is closer than I imagined), if they do one then, this is the end for the foreseeable future, and at least it went out on a high note. Despite 40 different authors across 40 different stories, an overarching theme, consistent quality of tales, mini-trilogy finales amongst the stories, and surprising choices lead to a finale which takes readers back to 1983 in the best way possible. Continue reading “Novel Review: From a Certain Point of View – Return of the Jedi” →

Novel Review by Chris: From a Certain Point of View – Return of the Jedi

Posted on August 15, 2023August 29, 2023 by Chris

40 years of Return of the Jedi can only mean one thing…a new edition of From a Certain Point of View! Does the third movie’s edition hold as much fun and excitement as the previous two?

Continue reading “Novel Review by Chris: From a Certain Point of View – Return of the Jedi” →

From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi Character Cards Revealed!

Posted on August 2, 2023 by Head Butler Ryan

The moment fans have been waiting for ahead of From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi’s release on August 29 is here…the character cards have been revealed! Over an hour and half, the details for all 40 stories in this trilogy finale dripped through on Twitter (no, it’s not named anything else), and it’s always a joy to see fans react to each new release, be it favorites getting their time to shine, stories they guessed, or big surprises, and today’s character cards were no different. Head below to see my Top 10 most anticipated and some general thoughts on the rest. Continue reading “From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi Character Cards Revealed!” →

From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi Cover and Authors Announced!

Posted on March 10, 2023May 11, 2023 by Head Butler Ryan

Bless the Ewoks, the moment we’ve all been waiting for in this year of the Wicket, the 40th Anniversary of Return of the Jedi, is here: From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi has been announced! These excellent collections of 40 stories from 40 different authors has brought us memorable, unique, jaw-dropping, exciting, and weird new perspectives on the original trilogy films so far and I expect Return of the Jedi’s to be no different. Head below for the list of authors, what stories have already been revealed, and some little tidbits on this and the series from Random House Worlds Editor Tom Hoeler! Continue reading “From a Certain Point of View: Return of the Jedi Cover and Authors Announced!” →

Canon Novel Review by Chris: Brotherhood

Posted on May 10, 2022 by Chris

Authors of Star Wars book, “more to say, have you”, on the Clone Wars? Seems hard to believe, seeing how much material has already been created focusing on the era. Specifically, seven seasons of a TV show, a handful of comic mini-series, and the beginning and end of the second Prequel films, and plenty more have explored the Clone Wars. My first reaction to hearing that Del Rey was going to be producing yet another Clone Wars story was met with more “…huh, okay” from me than an enthusiastic welcome. And, unfortunately, the nature of From a Certain Point of View stories meant that I couldn’t remember Mike Chen’s entry in the anthology well. Thankfully, my trepidation and forgetfulness was negated by what turned out to be a well-written, engaging novel: Star Wars Brotherhood! Continue reading “Canon Novel Review by Chris: Brotherhood” →

Canon Novel Review: Brotherhood

Posted on May 3, 2022 by Head Butler Ryan

– Slight Spoiler Review –

Brotherhood, written by Mike Chen, taps into a unique point in Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker’s life, just after the events of Attack of the Clones as the war builds and their Master and Apprentice roles change, and reveals how the two adjust to their new lives due to some business on Cato Neimoidia. Thanks to some intriguing new characters that challenge the pair’s ways and our perceptions of them and other aspects of Star Wars, as well as beautiful, lush, and sometimes haunting prose, Brotherhood secures itself a spot in a select pantheon of memorable and engaging top-notch Star Wars books. Continue reading “Canon Novel Review: Brotherhood” →

Dark Horse Returns to Star Wars Comics Spring 2022; Brotherhood Cover Revealed

Posted on November 19, 2021 by Head Butler Ryan

Nearly 8 years after losing the Star Wars license to Marvel, itself the original publisher of Star Wars comics decades before, Dark Horse Comics (DHC or DH) will return to offer up all-ages content, replacing IDW in Spring 2022. In the announcement, DHC founder and CEO revealed they’ll initially “…focus on stories featuring the High Republic,” but expect all eras to have content eventually, across on-going series, anthologies, one-shots, and specials. As for when in 2022, I’d expect we’ll see their content start in April, maybe May at the latest, as IDW’s current series are all solicited out until March. We’ll have more as they announce it, like what series, authors, and artists to expect, but for now head below to see the writing was on the wall for some type of announcement like this since September, plus see the final cover for the upcoming Obi-Wan and Anakin novel, Brotherhood! Continue reading “Dark Horse Returns to Star Wars Comics Spring 2022; Brotherhood Cover Revealed” →

Book News: Shadow of the Sith, Brotherhood, and More Novels Bring Essential Stories to 2022

Posted on October 7, 2021October 7, 2021 by Head Butler Ryan

With The High Republic books and comics dominating the publishing landscape of Star Wars, we were due for some news about books across other parts of the Saga, but I did not expect what just dropped today! For starters, fans eager to see more of Luke Skywalker post-Return of the Jedi get a meal of a novel, Shadow of the Sith, which explores his mission with Lando Calrissian trying to find Exegol and all the backstory that comes with it, Brotherhood focuses on Obi-Wan & Anakin in the earliest days of the Clone Wars and that business on Cato Neimoidia, Stories of Jedi & Sith brings 10 authors together to tell new tales about the Force-users, and Padawan gives Obi-Wan fans more goodness to enjoy in 2022 with a story set early in his Padawan years with Qui-Gon Jinn. How about that feast of Star Wars books?! Head below for more details on each of these exciting new releases! Continue reading “Book News: Shadow of the Sith, Brotherhood, and More Novels Bring Essential Stories to 2022” →

Novel Review: From a Certain Point of View – The Empire Strikes Back

Posted on November 10, 2020April 4, 2022 by Head Butler Ryan

The idea for the original From a Certain Point of View garnered tons of attention for its nearly endless possibilities to reshape such classic films, giving them new life even 40 years after their debut. Thankfully it seems to be a tradition, at least for now since the prequels won’t have the opportunity for another 20 years (and let’s not even talk about how old I’d be when the sequels would hit the milestone…), to take the original trilogy films and retell them from new, interesting, and unexpected points of view, which brings us to From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back. Stronger across the board in its stories, with more consistently engaging tales and original or surprising points of view, and a far more coherent structure from one tale to next, From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back does not fall short of its source material, doing it justice by being such a great and memorable sequel. Continue reading “Novel Review: From a Certain Point of View – The Empire Strikes Back” →

From A Certain Point Of View: The Empire Strikes Back Character Cards Revealed

Posted on October 7, 2020November 11, 2020 by Head Butler Ryan

Updates regarding the much anticipated From a Certain Point of View: The Empire Strikes Back have been sparse to non-existent since its announcement but one of the most moments leading up to its release has finally happened: social cards revealing who or what each of the 40 authors is writing about! Rolled out in 5 minutes intervals through Del Rey’s Twitter account, it was a blast to watch the unveiling unfold, especially when the Twitter account VeersWatch got his due. Head below for all the stories to be told, as I break them all down and reveal the top 10 I’m most excited for. UPDATE: Here’s my review, including which ones made my final Top Ten. Continue reading “From A Certain Point Of View: The Empire Strikes Back Character Cards Revealed” →