Customer Reviews

The New Essential Guide to Droids (Star Wars)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Finally a New Essential Guide that can truly be called "Essential!" This may be the best essential guide (only the New Essential Chronology competes with it) written. Dan Wallace (with the aid of Able Pena and Pablo Hidalgo) has gone over every nook and cranny of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, and if there's a droid to be found, a detail to uncover, a story-element to expose, he's done it!

After the disappointing New Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels (which followed the trend of ignoring a lot of early Expanded Universe sources), I thought I was through with the NEG's. The New Essential Chronology changed that and this book has now upped the ante on ALL future Star Wars reference books!

Everything is here. Entire pages are devoted to characters from rare and even out-of-print continuity sources, from old newspaper strips by Russ Manning, to the Droids animated show and spin-off Star Comics series, to Alan Moore's rare stint on Marvel UK's Empire Strikes Weekly (reprinted in Devilworlds) to the requisite but often overlooked pages of Marvel Star Wars (reprinted recently as A Long Time Ago volumes 1-7), L. Neill Smith's brilliant Lando Calrissian trilogy, RPG sources, novels, young readers books, Dark Horse comics; It's all here and much, much more! Not a stone is left unturned from 1977 to 2006, nearly 30 years of continuity has gone into this book that actually succeeds in demonstrating that the much maligned "appliances" of Star Wars are really fascinating creations in their own right, and every bit as intriguing as their human masters.

Wallace handles the text expertly, weaving bits of continuity to form a much stronger and cohesive whole. This is not a guide for techies either, or even just for those who've read every original source out there, but rather it's a book for the average Star Wars reader written with a narrative structure. Far from simply providing the origin and purpose of the droid in question, each entry features fascinating short biographical tales of some of the famous examples that caused either salvation or destruction to the galaxy! Also, there's a history of droids section that details the dawn of their inception to their persecution and abolition at the hands of the Yuuzahn Vong. Also, as an added bonus, the illustrations here are stunningly realized.

This is definitely a guide you don't want to miss and represents the high watermark Star Wars authors can achieve when they combine love of the universe with intelligent, diligent research and a deft hand at fixing the plotholes and connecting the dots. For from these often disparate pieces, some of the great tales emerge. This book is proof of that.

For the most part I feel the Star Wars "Essential Guide" series are a good value for the money. Yes, there is a LOT of SW product out there but the entire line is well done, and this new book on droids is no exception. The illustrations are excellently done, and the text is detailed enough to be interesting but brief enough to be enjoyable. Even a casual SW fan should enjoy this book.

Great refrence, for your own art, or learning drawing and etc. great info on the types of droids, good decriptions, and what they do in the Star wars worlds.

if you are a star wars fan, the star wars "essential guide" books are probably the best, most informative set of books out there and well worth the price, especially from amazon. my boys have been reading them as young as 3rd grade and they love them. hours upon hours of reading, only to be picked up and read all over again. my youngest (now 11 yrs old) asked for this book in particular about a year ago and i finally bought it for christmas. there is an earlier version of the book, but i thought that this was the better choice considering it covers all 6 movies.

It's a good book with a lot of useful information. Doesn't give any stats though.

I was just checking it out and was going to pass on it when I noticed that one of the droids in the book is a joke - it's made up of all of the Kenner Droid Factory toy parts stuck together, and then they made up a complete backstory for it. Had to pick it up after that!

Pictures are awesome. Just wish it provided a little more info that could be used or interpreted for game play.

Another great Essential Star Guide by Dan Wallace. This volume includes material from the three prequel movies and is worth every cent. Good job Dan! Looking forward to Helen Keier's New Essential Guide to Aliens.