Customer Reviews

Hard Contact (Star Wars: Republic Commando, Book 1)

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In a rather ironic moment, Hard Contact is so far the Clone Wars novel that best exemplifies the common conception of the Wars--but it doesn't have the logo on the cover. As befits a novel based on a first-person shooter, Karen Traviss's Hard Contact is not a novel about sitting around and talking, as others have been. Much as MedStar was "a day in the strife" for the non-combatants in the war, Hard Contact does the same for another neglected group: the clones themselves. (Perhaps this is why the earlier novels have seemed peripheral, plotwise: for all their seeming importance, the Jedi don't seem to do much in the war.)

Hard Contact is a showcase for Traviss's abilities. Her worldbuilding talents were used to create the environment of Qiilura, with its new flora and fauna that play a non-trivial role in the story. The background of the commandoes--of the clones in general--is also essentially produced from whole cloth, and manages to be distinctly, though not overtly, Imperial. She also managed to create distinct characters among the commandoes--and provide justification for it, something not really seen before. None of the four come across as cardboard. Another point worth mentioning is the sense of humor--Traviss doesn't go overboard with it, but the clones offer us some of the best quips since the Wraiths.

The same can be said of the other characters, as well. Unlike other recent novels, the "villain" is a complex character in his own right, as are the other antagonists. Traviss does a good job of showing the breadth of the Separatist movement. Some of the minor characters (read: the two-scene cannon fodder) are a bit flat, but there's really not much opportunity to avoid that, either.

All in all, Hard Contact is an excellent read, being what many were expecting from the Clone Wars. Don't be fooled by the ties to a video game; Hard Contact is the best SW novel since Shatterpoint (and perhaps earlier, depending on what you're looking for). We're lucky to have Karen Traviss writing Star Wars.

So many Star Wars books focus almost exclusively on the saga's main heroes, especially the many post-Return of the Jedi adventures of Han, Luke, and Leia. This can make for a smaller-feeling universe than I like to imagine for the galaxy far, far away. Republic Commando: Hard Contact is a brilliant step away from the characters of the films, not featuring a single scene with anyone we know from the movies. Karen Traviss has real-life military service on her resume and it serves her well as she explores life in the Grand Army of the Republic.

When introduced in 1977, stormtroopers were the faceless minions of the Empire and primarily served as cannon fodder for our heroes. We never saw any faces under the white helmets and rarely saw one manage to shoot straight or show any particular aptitude for soldiering. With the prequels, George Lucas brought us a fascinating origin story: we learned that the stormtroopers' predecessors were clone troopers and the men in white served the Jedi in the Old Republic! Along with this new story came a higher visible level of competence from the troops onscreen.

Traviss takes this to a whole new level with her crack team of Republic commandos named Omega Squad (the commando concept was possibly inspired by a throwaway line in Attack of the Clones at the Battle of Geonosis, when a clone trooper informs Mace Windu that five commando teams are standing by). Through the course of this book, the clones are transformed from one-dimensional supporting characters into fully fleshed-out human beings with some seriously interesting perspective on why they exist and what life is all about. These men did not ask to be created and sent to war, and any thinking Jedi must confront the uncomfortable reality and the extremely shaky ethics of sending these men off to die in battle against the countless droid armies of the Separatists.

We get a main Jedi character who does just that in Etain Tur-Mukan, a confused and not-so-terribly-powerful Padawan whose master has just been violently taken from her. Her inner conflicts about the clone commandos who look to her for guidance and leadership make for compelling reading. Traviss handles the interactions between Etain and her team, especially with Darman, the clone Etain favors most, with grace and aplomb, writing the early awkward stages of their initial contact as well as their cohesion into a single working team by the climax of the book.

Qiilura is a memorable world of the many we encounter in these books. Most residents are living at subsistence level, barely scraping by on what little profit the Trade Federation permits them to retain. They seem to be obvious victims, but some doubt is introduced by the presence of the Gurlanin, native shape-shifters who have seemingly been persecuted viciously by the planet's more recent inhabitants. Ghez Hokan also has slight shades of gray; definitely a villain, but never one of the cackling, mustache-twirling variety. I appreciate how much gray Traviss places into her characters, setting, and story; it seems extremely appropriate for the first tale we read of the Clone Wars.

Republic Commando: Hard Contact massively exceeded my expectations for a book based on a video game, of all things (even though I did love the game too). It changes the way I regard the clones and is a thrilling story to boot. Thankfully, others must have liked this book too, since one sequel has already been published and as of this writing (August 2006) books three and four are rumored to be on the way. I would be fascinated to read Karen Traviss' account of how Omega Squad reacts to Order 66 and hope she gets the opportunity to tell that tale.

I was worried when I picked this book up that I'd overhyped it in my mind. I'd only read one other book by Karen Traviss, her excellent CITY OF PEARL (though now I've also read the sequel, CROSSING THE LINE, and heartily recommend them both), and while I'd liked it quite a bit, I was wondering if perhaps I wasn't looking forward to RC a bit too much. I needn't have worried.

I think I mentioned in my review of the first MedStar that one of the things I liked about it was the Wraith Squadron vibe from the assortment of eclectic, non-movie characters. Similarly, I get a great X-Wing feeling in RC, not only with the non-movie, imperfect characters, but also the whole military side, the impossible mission, impossible odds stuff.

The action and introspection were well-balanced; the violent scenes in CITY OF PEARL I thought were some of the weaker scenes in the novel, so I was pleasantly surprised by how much better and more clearly the violence was handled here. The book was a quick read, but a lot more thoughtful than any other Clone War novel so far besides maybe Shatterpoint. The portrayal of the Clones themselves is far superior to that in Cestus Deception.

It seems wrong that one of the finer Clone Wars novels will probably sell fewer copies thanks to the fact that it's marketed as a video-game tie-in with no movie characters.

This is tie-in novel to an upcoming video game. Therefore, it SHOULD be a by-the-numbers, weak, poorly written piece of fluff. The thing is, it isn't at all. This may well be one of the finest Star Wars books out there, and since I've read pretty much all of them since I first clutched the Star Wars novelization in my hands back in 1977, I've a basis for comparison.

First off, this is a suprisingly decent special operations novel. The author obviously did a bunch of researh and her influence by the British side of the house, namely the SAS/SBS, is evident. It's almost a shame that this is a Star Wars novel, since it is significantly better than a lot of the pap out there that passes for a technothriller or SOF novel but the Star Wars title will keep a lot of those readers from giving it a chance.

Second, the book has no characters that we are familiar with from previous movies or books but instead a host of new ones, yet deftly sketches them as characters who are better fleshed out and more alive than characters who've been in multiple books (I'm looking at you, NJO series). The inexperienced Jedi could have been by the numbers, but instead she is fully realized character with an honest to goodness character arc. The commandos could have been characterless, grunting SF stereotypes and instead they are new and different, giving us an idea of what someone trained for 10 years of an accelerated life might be like.

Finally, the book subtly but surely gives us a greater understanding of the Star Wars universe. Sure, we're supposed to see that the Jedi have lost their way, their sense of the force diminishing. However, when we read of the clone commandos; how they were raised, how they were trained, how they are used, we begin to understand the depth to which the Jedi have lost their way. Disposable troops, brutally trained with massive training losses, and no luxuries or pleasures allowed until they get used up and replaced are exacly what the Jedi should be against. Instead, they use them, living men genetically brainwashed to serve the Jedi, as if they were droids. Certainly, they are the difference between victory and defeat but where are the Jedi demanding better treatment for their warriors? Where is their compassion for all things in the force? Here we get our best glimpse yet of the difference between what the Jedi profess to do and what they actually do before the fall.

All in all, this is an excellent book. If LucasFilm has any sense, they will sign Ms. Traviss to more books immediately. Either show out commando squad again or show them with more familiar Jedi or just give her a more standard style of book. Whichever, they had best not let her slip away. This book was good enough that I'll buy any book of hers, sight unseen, from now on until disappointed. I have few authors that I'll say that of.

I have to admit that I loved getting to know the clone troopers in Republic Commando: Hard Contact. Up until now I had basically looked at them as faceless cannon fodder. I could not have been more wrong. The Commandos clearly have emotions and questions about their role in life, but their ingrained sense of duty still overwhelms their questioning.

Their lives are ruled by a concept of being a team as they serve in four-man squads. In the beginning of the book during the Battle of Geonosis, the initial teams suffer losses of three team members each. The surviving team members go back to Ord Mantell and are reformed into new teams. The melding into a unit takes a little while but it comes. The next mission for the newly formed team is to travel to a Separatist-held planet, sabotage a nanovirus research facility, and capture alive the scientist in charge of the facility. All of this has to happen in the face of overwhelming odds and in a short period of time.

For once in these early Expanded Universe books we have to get along without Obi-Wan and Anakin. I found that to be kind of refreshing. We are introduced to Etain Tur-Mukan, a Padawan whose Master has been captured. She is alone on the planet and is left to her own devices. The primary difficulty with that is her complete lack of confidence in her abilities. She meets up with the Republic Commandos by chance, and we get to watch her grow as the tale moves along. Another new character who I found to be completely fascinating was Jinart, a Gurlannin shapeshifter who turns out to be a huge help in the team's efforts to fulfill their mission.

The story moves along swiftly and you will find yourself constantly thinking that you should just read a few more pages each time you pick up the book. The author also raises a number of points that apply to our current times. For example, the concept of using clones to fight wars is not nearly as farfetched as it once seemed. Try to imagine leaders of countries sitting back and sending clones into action. The day may come.

Republic Commando: Hard Contact is an extremely enjoyable read. You will like the characters. The action grabs your attention, and you will finish the book with a lot of thoughts spinning around in your head. I can't wait to meet up with these guys again down the road.

I agree with most of the other folks here. This book is fantastic. My primary complaint about the newer movies is that they skip right over the clone wars...a story I have wanted to see since I was 10, and would think most fans would like have seen played out. The title of the whole thing is Star WARS after all!

While the official clone wars novels have skimmed around the subject from the Jedi point of view, this novel plunges you right into the thick of things through the eyes of the troopers themselves. In place of the usual "cannon fodder" profile, we get to see them using their wits to keep themselves and each other alive. Ultimately the clones will betray the Jedi Order due to built-in programming, but here they are living thinking beings who struggle to make sense of the world around them given there limited perspective as (young) gung-ho war machines.

They are led by a Jedi who has demonstrated little or no skill in her art up to this point in her life. It will take everything she has to pull it together and help these guys do their job. This is a nice counterpoint to more familiar knights who are blessed with abilities and self confidence that most of us have a hard time relating to. Sure, we'd all like to be the Jedi super-star that can pummel their enemies effortlessly. But It seems more realistic (if that word applies here) if there are some who must work twice as hard to succeed.

In short, I'd have to call this the best novel I've read on the clone war period and am very pleased to hear that a sequel is on the way next spring. Hopefully, with Star Wars on the up-swing again, we will see several related novels from Karen Traviss.

Let's be honest-most of these Star Wars novels are poorly constructed at worst, formulaic at best. We read them because we like the Star Wars universe and enjoy reading books set there. This novel is the counterpart to a videogame, setting the bar even lower. How surprising to discover that this is actually an extremely well-crafted bit of miliatry/sci-fi writing. I enjoyed this book immensely, and would have been satisfied by far less in terms of complexity, character development, and writing style. Although the plot revolves around a commando team on a dangerous mission with a Jedi Padawan, the book is really about the culture of the Clones and gives the reader a fascinating look into the culture of the clone troopers as a whole. Darman, the lead Clone commando, is by far the most interesting character in the book, outshining the Jedi Padawan by a long shot. The Clones come off as heroic yet tragic figures, born and bred for war but with the capacity to understand peace and enjoy levity. Accelerated in growth to be ready to fight but of normal emotional devlopment when confronted by emotionally challenging situations.

More of the Star Wars books should be on this level. It raises the bar for the whole series.

'Star Wars: Republic Commando - Hard Contact' is definitely one of the best Star Wars books that I have ever read.

The tag of 'official game tie-in' normally means that a book has been published merely as a money making exercise in an attempt to milk a Lucas license for all that it's worth. This book, however, is well worth the read.

The book has almost no linkages whatsoever to the common Star Wars characters, indeed nobody from the Star Wars movies appears in this book.

Instead, it focuses on a group of Clone Commandos sent on a dangerous mission behind enemy lines, and a young Jedi Padawan that they meet up with.

The story is brilliantly written, and the characters are quite engrossing. The central clone commando, Darman, is a great character. The chemistry between him and Etain (the Padawan) is fantastic, and hints at something deeper than friendship.

The characters portrayed here are screaming out for reappearances in later Star Wars books, particularly Darman. Here's hoping that we see them again.

From a technical perspective, Karen Traviss's writing is up there with the likes of Tim Zahn or Matthew Stover. Her military background gives her excellent insight into military operations and the life of a solider.

I found that the story of the clone soldiers had similarities to that of the clone soldier 'Nate' from 'The Cestus Deception', which was another fantastic novel. If you like reading about these universal soldiers, then 'Hard Contact' is definitely a book for you.

The one qualm that I had with this book was the ending. While I don't wish to give anything away about the plot details, I did find that the mission was achieved a little too easily.

But it's a solid read, and well worth the money. I highly recommend 'Hard Contact' to any Star Wars fan.

"Republic Commando: Hard Contact" is a video game tie-in novel which is set in the Star Wars Universe during the Clone Wars. While other Clone Wars novels have given us glimpses into the lives of the clone troopers, none have given us this level of detail, though "The Cestus Deception" comes close at times. This is a novel completely about clone troopers and even though there is a Jedi Padawan in the novel it is a reversal of the norm as she is dependent on the clones.

Four clone commandos, an elite fighting force, are sent to a planet controlled by the Separatists. The mission is to attack a chemical weapons facility which is making a virus which targets and kills only the Clones. If used, it would turn the tide of the Clone Wars against the Republic. "Republic Commando: Hard Contact" is a covert mission of the Clone Wars and one that features almost entirely clone commandos (the Jedi are secondary and far less important than the commandos). We are given the opportunity to see how the clones relate to each other and how they truly are individuals. They are just bred to fight and serve the Republic, but they have hopes and fears and distinct personalities despite the fact they are genetically identical.

Karen Traviss is an exciting new author. As a Star Wars author, one the strength of one book, she is already one of the best. There is a level of authenticity that runs through "Republic Commando: Hard Contact" that just feels right. Traviss gives us an intelligent, exciting story of one small squadron of elite clone commandos and she succeeds in humanizing them both to the reader as well as the Jedi apprentice in the story. Karen Traviss is one of the few Star Wars authors who did such a good job that I want to read her non-Star Wars work. This is a story which does not feature any of the main Star Wars characters, but it is easy to relate to Traviss's characters and fit them into our picture of the greater Star Wars universe.

-Joe Sherry

Not only are the main characters, the Commandos, considered the Best of the Best. This book should be considered one of the best Star Wars novels available. Too bad it arrived as a video game tie-in, and not as one of the official Clone Wars books.

The plot line is pretty straight forward. It is the intimacy of the clone troopers that really makes the book a stand-out. Darmen, one of the commandos, is now one of my all time favorite characters. This book is a treasure trove of information relating to the lifestyle and training of clone troops.

Other memorable characters were the three other troopers, Niner, Fi, and Atin. Etain, the novice Jedi, was interesting to read about. Here is a force user who, to put it bluntly, isn't very good. Also Hokan, the Mandalore villian, fits nicely into the bad guy role.

If you thought Stormtroopers and Clone Troopers were the coolest thing about Star Wars, you'll want to read this book over and over again. If you are at all into Star Wars, you'll definitly want to make this mandatory reading. Captures the feel of the Clone Wars probably better than any other book out there.