Master and Apprentice (Star Wars)
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Description
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Not Recommended. Master and Apprentice is a prequel to The Prequels, following a part of Obi-wan and Qui-Gon Jinn’s relationship prior to episode 1 as they embark on a diplomatic mission. Unfortunately, the book does not seem to realise it is a prequel. One of the major threads of tension throughout the book is the relationship between the two Jedi, master and apprentice, as Master Jinn decides if he will take a seat on the Jedi Council or not. Jinn & Kenobi have a troubled relationship due to philosophical differences in interpretations of Jedi Scripture and the Force, and the book wonders if they will be able to resolve these differences to forge a good relationship or not. Will Jinn and Kenobi get along? Will Jinn take a seat on the council? If You've seen now-over 20 year-old Episode I, you know the answer. Much of the tension of the book dissipates if you are already a Star Wars fan, and if you are not, this is a poor introduction to the galaxy. Master & Apprentice also introduces several technologies and abilities that break the pre-established world - a big no-no for any expanded universe works in any canon. Particularly egregious is the inclusion of lightsabre-impervious shields - if this technology exists, and it does in Master & Apprentice, why doesn't everyone use it throughout the rest of the series? Gray tries to write herself out of his but ends up providing two mutually-contradictory explanations that sort of 'cancel' each-other out of resolving the actual inconsistency, both of which create more plot holes than they fix and feel like a hastily applied band-aid at the editing stage. That is a good exemplar of what is wrong with Master & Apprentice. It's messy, lacks consistency with the established world and even lacks consistency with itself. The characters borrowed from the existing Star Wars Universe feel very at-odds with their portrayals in the movies and elsewhere, and although for the Young Obi-wan this could be excused by his immature age in the book, the portrayal of Master Yoda feels like a completely different character, and Qui-Gon has experienced heavy Flanderization. The newly introduced characters are not much better - and what they lack in schisms with the rest of the canon, they make up for in flat characterisation. The best and most interesting character gets only a few pages of 'screen time' before they are unceremoniously ignored The plot fares no better. Intriguing enough in synopsis, its realisation is riddled with plot holes, inconsistencies, and characters straight up acting as if they were possessed - taking actions not because their character motivations lead them to but because the plot demands it. The plot is incredibly circular, too, and the big reveal in the end made absolutely no sense in the context of the beginning of the book. Without wanting to spoil too much, a Terrorist organisation wants to stop the signing of a treaty, and so attacks The Republic Delegation that comes to sign it. But if that was the plan, why would they give themselves away with earlier attacks and draw attention to themselves rather than just lying in wait for their ultimate goal? The answer - because the author needed a reason to send the Jedi there, and needed something for them to do before the climax. If this book had started with the attack on the treaty and Jedi had been sent to deal with the aftermath in an attempt to restore peace to the planet in the minor war that would have followed, the plot would have felt less forced, contained less holes, and the most interesting character would have had a lot more 'screen time' and influence. This is a classic case of putting the cart before the horse. Maybe I'm just salty because, in this case, I am 100% on the side of the Antagonists in this one.
So viele Teile des Buchs waren einfach langweilig und überflüssig. Man hätte die Geschichte kürzer schreiben können und der Inhalt wäre derselbe gewesen. Die Beziehung zwischen Qui-Gon und Obi-Wan ist interessant und schwierig und es wird aufgegriffen, was ein wenig in Episode 1 angekratzt wurde. Der einzige Grund, weshalb ich das Buch überhaupt zu Ende gelesen habe, waren die Momente, in der ihre komplizierte Meister-Schüler-Beziehung im Mittelpunkt stand. Die wenigen Kapitel, in denen es um Dooku ging waren auch spannender als die eigentliche Action, um die es im Buch geht. Die anderen Protagonisten wie Rahara oder Rael Averross hatten zwar Backstories, die an sich besonders waren, aber irgendwie erschien mir ihr Auftreten immer eher platt und nicht wirklich lebendig. Ich denke, dass das Problem vor allem an Claudia Gray liegt. Ihre eher oberflächliche und langwierige Schreibweise gefällt mir nicht. Es hat sich alles überflüssig in die Länge gezogen.
Description
Posts
Not Recommended. Master and Apprentice is a prequel to The Prequels, following a part of Obi-wan and Qui-Gon Jinn’s relationship prior to episode 1 as they embark on a diplomatic mission. Unfortunately, the book does not seem to realise it is a prequel. One of the major threads of tension throughout the book is the relationship between the two Jedi, master and apprentice, as Master Jinn decides if he will take a seat on the Jedi Council or not. Jinn & Kenobi have a troubled relationship due to philosophical differences in interpretations of Jedi Scripture and the Force, and the book wonders if they will be able to resolve these differences to forge a good relationship or not. Will Jinn and Kenobi get along? Will Jinn take a seat on the council? If You've seen now-over 20 year-old Episode I, you know the answer. Much of the tension of the book dissipates if you are already a Star Wars fan, and if you are not, this is a poor introduction to the galaxy. Master & Apprentice also introduces several technologies and abilities that break the pre-established world - a big no-no for any expanded universe works in any canon. Particularly egregious is the inclusion of lightsabre-impervious shields - if this technology exists, and it does in Master & Apprentice, why doesn't everyone use it throughout the rest of the series? Gray tries to write herself out of his but ends up providing two mutually-contradictory explanations that sort of 'cancel' each-other out of resolving the actual inconsistency, both of which create more plot holes than they fix and feel like a hastily applied band-aid at the editing stage. That is a good exemplar of what is wrong with Master & Apprentice. It's messy, lacks consistency with the established world and even lacks consistency with itself. The characters borrowed from the existing Star Wars Universe feel very at-odds with their portrayals in the movies and elsewhere, and although for the Young Obi-wan this could be excused by his immature age in the book, the portrayal of Master Yoda feels like a completely different character, and Qui-Gon has experienced heavy Flanderization. The newly introduced characters are not much better - and what they lack in schisms with the rest of the canon, they make up for in flat characterisation. The best and most interesting character gets only a few pages of 'screen time' before they are unceremoniously ignored The plot fares no better. Intriguing enough in synopsis, its realisation is riddled with plot holes, inconsistencies, and characters straight up acting as if they were possessed - taking actions not because their character motivations lead them to but because the plot demands it. The plot is incredibly circular, too, and the big reveal in the end made absolutely no sense in the context of the beginning of the book. Without wanting to spoil too much, a Terrorist organisation wants to stop the signing of a treaty, and so attacks The Republic Delegation that comes to sign it. But if that was the plan, why would they give themselves away with earlier attacks and draw attention to themselves rather than just lying in wait for their ultimate goal? The answer - because the author needed a reason to send the Jedi there, and needed something for them to do before the climax. If this book had started with the attack on the treaty and Jedi had been sent to deal with the aftermath in an attempt to restore peace to the planet in the minor war that would have followed, the plot would have felt less forced, contained less holes, and the most interesting character would have had a lot more 'screen time' and influence. This is a classic case of putting the cart before the horse. Maybe I'm just salty because, in this case, I am 100% on the side of the Antagonists in this one.
So viele Teile des Buchs waren einfach langweilig und überflüssig. Man hätte die Geschichte kürzer schreiben können und der Inhalt wäre derselbe gewesen. Die Beziehung zwischen Qui-Gon und Obi-Wan ist interessant und schwierig und es wird aufgegriffen, was ein wenig in Episode 1 angekratzt wurde. Der einzige Grund, weshalb ich das Buch überhaupt zu Ende gelesen habe, waren die Momente, in der ihre komplizierte Meister-Schüler-Beziehung im Mittelpunkt stand. Die wenigen Kapitel, in denen es um Dooku ging waren auch spannender als die eigentliche Action, um die es im Buch geht. Die anderen Protagonisten wie Rahara oder Rael Averross hatten zwar Backstories, die an sich besonders waren, aber irgendwie erschien mir ihr Auftreten immer eher platt und nicht wirklich lebendig. Ich denke, dass das Problem vor allem an Claudia Gray liegt. Ihre eher oberflächliche und langwierige Schreibweise gefällt mir nicht. Es hat sich alles überflüssig in die Länge gezogen.