Customer Reviews

Star Wars: The Clone Wars (Star Wars (Random House Audio))

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"The Clone Wars" tells a story about a day in the life of Anakin. This is no rehash of the Cartoon Network's "Animated Clone Wars." Even compared to episodes II & III, many of the prominently featured characters play a much smaller role. This is okay because this story introduces an exciting new character to the Star Wars pantheon: Ahsoka. Ahsoka is Skywalker's apprentice. Along these lines, one of the central themes to "Clone Wars" is the master-apprentice relationship. While this has been done before, the theme is fresh as Anakin and Ahsoka negotiate their relationship. Having nicknames like Skyguy and Snips, their partnership is a contrast to that of Anakin and Obi-Wan. In this story, we delve deeper into the clones. We find a surprising amount of individuality and contemplation. Whether it be their physiology, politics or reproductive habits, we also learn more about the Hutts. Naturally, Count Dooku, Asajj Ventress and Darth Sidious are participants. As the title suggests, there is a good deal of action in the story. Karen Traviss has a knack for combat writing. In addition to conveying the characters' fatigue and injuries, the reader can also feel their motivation to survive and continue fighting. As with the Republic Commando books, some may find that too much page time is given to combat. Indeed, compared to the theatrical trilogies, this story is heavy on the action and light on character development. With the exception of Ahsoka, "The Clone Wars" does little to advance our understanding of Anakin or other characters. In fact, it does little to flush out significant events of the Clone Wars. Compared to the battles of Geonosis and Utapau, the fighting on Christophsis and Teth have little significance when it comes to the big scheme of things. In the end, we shouldn't over intellectualize; this story is eye candy (or is it mind candy when read from a book?). Despite having over 250 pages, this is an enjoyable story that moves quickly. Whether as an end unto itself or an appetizer for the upcoming film, "Clone Wars" is action packed fun.

POST-FILM ADDENDUM
Now that the film has been released, I thought that I'd throw in a comparison between the "Clone Wars" book and the movie. As would be expected, the book contains more detail. Much of the book's internal dialogue is sacrificed in the name of big screen action. The film excludes the little character development that could be found in to the book. In particular, the film lacks the interesting mental dialogues of Anakin, Ventress, Jabba and to a lesser extent, Count Dooku and the clones. Dave Filoni's screen adaptation highlights the lighter side of the "Clone Wars" story. While the motion picture lacks substance when compared to the regular trilogies, it makes up for it with fun. At this point, I imagine that most people reading this review have seen the film and are wondering if they should bother with the book. Unless the viewer just hated the film, the answer to this question is 'yes.' Traviss' poetic description of combat is much appreciated. The heretofore character development is also enjoyable. The book contains all of the movie's action and additional content substance. So as a post-film supplement, Karen Traviss' book can be most gratifying.

[This review contains spoilers for The Clone Wars]

Earlier this year, the Star Wars Lit community was abuzz with the news of a couple of things - that there was an untitled Karen Traviss novel coming, and that there was a Clone Wars movie coming out. A couple of months ago, fans learned that they were both connected, as Karen turned out to have been writing the novelization.
The release of The Clone Wars brings about the first book released in the time frame since Traviss's last Republic Commando novel, True Colors, which was released last year, and once again shows that Traviss is one of the better writers for the Clone Wars.

This novelization isn't the best work that Karen has released. The book is a very short one, and plotwise, has a bit to be desired. In a nutshell, the Seperatists have kidnapped the son of Jabba the Hutt, hoping to anger the Hutts enough to ensure that the Republic can't utilize their space lanes.

The book is rife with action, which is Karen's strong point, especially when it comes to Clones. the main characters are introduced with a battle, where Karen puts her expertise gained from the Republic Commando books. What I really enjoyed was seeing an author put a level of military realism to this - the Clones talk and act like soldiers.

Karen leaves a lot of nods to the 501st, helping to further explain the role of Vader's fist, the battalion seen in Revenge of the Sith, named for the 501st Legion. One of the more interesting characters in the book is Captain Rex, whom a number of Legion members are building in anticipation of the film's release. Karen pushed these guys to a particular prominence in the book, which is a great nod to the group, of which, she's an honorary member. There weren't any mentions of Republic Commandos, which surprised me a little.

The plot of the book leaves more to be desired beyond the military sections. There are some interesting political ideas here, but the idea that the Republic would send two of their most highly regarded Jedi after a Huttling is somewhat ridiculous. While this is addressed somewhat at points, I found it hard to believe.

More so, I found the notion that the Hutts, or more particularly, Jabba, would completely base foreign policy on a kidnapped child a ridiculous notion. Granted, this is a novelization based off of an animated movie, so expecting something on the level of Karen's other books or other Clone Wars novels such as Shatterpoint is somewhat expected.

Unfortunately, the book is short, clocking in at around 250 pages, taking me a total of five or so hours to read. Fortunately, Del Rey seems to have realized this, and as a result, I only paid $12 for the book (yay for a 40% discount at Borders).

Overall, this is a decent enough read, despite the fact that it is short and not as good as her other books. However, with four more books to go in the series, there's plenty of room for more improvement and Clone action.

I loved listening to this star wars novel. I not only love the way the reader reads the book, but I love the star wars music and sound effects that are woven into the reading. If you are blind like me, there is no better way to enjoy star wars.

The problem with modern Star Wars on the big screen and TV, is that it is geared for the "No Child Left Behind" generation of dumbed down children who have grown cold the the mysteries of this world, nature, and our own being.
Likewise the adults of present are growing up to be 30 something year old teens, also lacking that special something we've been growing more and more distant from since the last of the natives were all but completely slaughtered upon these shores.

No this is not a slander towards all man kind, or some sort of political or ethical injection, I'm just saying, the people of the world today, for the most part, can't get the Teaching of The Buddha, Yeshua, The Great Prophets, The Wisdom of The Vedas, Tao Te Ching, etc. Many are all mind, and passion, but no Spirit. A Jedi Master's greatest challenge! ;)

So naturally, the movie this is based upon, was written up by some random guy who was told to market this junk to dumbed down children, and pay no mind to the old school fans of the Radio Plays, Classic movies, comics, and novels. Heck, pay not mind to consistency at that. On top of that, it is obvious that the plot and new characters were intended to capture the imagination of toddlers, and pre-teen girls indoctrinated with a hint of neo-feminism. That independent, hard headed, self determined, self respecting, self reliant, girl...

...who happens to be 13 and wears not battle armor like everyone else, especially considering that shes ONLY 13, but rather she prances around the battle field without a care in the world wearing only a tube top and a extra-mini skirt.

There is also the transsexual hutt who has been injected into the story line to appease the ever so cliche, hair salon homosexual crowd. Yes, the Jedi principles have been sacrificed to appeal to each and every demographic, except for the seasoned fan boy from yesteryear. Sighhh...

No I'm not bashing those who engage in homosexual activity here either, I'm just pointing out the realities of modern Star Wars media.

So as for the book, they hired the genius Karen Traviss, told her to forget about the other great novel series she provided us with, and focus on patching up the horrible script of a horrible movie. And that is what this is.

As for her books that follow after this...

...well they are not much better, but at least she wasn't forced to attempt to fix another man's trash.

"If we get chummy with organized crime, and turn a blind eye to our allies...what exactly are we fighting for?"
Jabba's son, Rotta, has been kidnapped. The Jedi Council sends Anakin and his new Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, to retrieve him, in hopes Jabba will open the Outer Rim hyperspace lanes to the Republic. But the rescue mission smells worse than the baby Hutt...

I Liked:
I wasn't that fond of the movie and really wasn't looking forward to reading this book. Karen Traviss is a good author, no doubts there, but sometimes her anti-Jedi sentiments are a little overwhelming.
Boy, was I surprised when I started reading! This is a superb book, I just couldn't put it down! I haven't enjoyed a Traviss book this much since Hard Contact.
The characters in this book are positively wonderful, unique and exquisitely written. Traviss does a brilliant job portraying Jabba the Hutt, pushing him beyond his mafia stereotype and making him a caring father, a real being. I was astounded at her personification of Dooku. She refuses to lean on the "evil" stereotype for the Sith Lords and makes him, and his Sith assassin Ventress, real believers in the Separatist cause. I loved how clever, skilled, quick-thinking Dooku was and how Ventress was so wounded, she could only extend trust to a spy droid.
For the protagonists, Traviss shows us the viewpoints of Anakin and Rex, a superb choice. While I did miss Obi-Wan's viewpoint, I was relieved at not having to read the annoying Ahsoka's view. However, through Anakin's view of her, I got a deeper appreciation of the Togruta Padawan and actually began to like her a little! Anakin himself is great, conflicted, young, world weary, struggling with his murder of the Tusken Raiders, chafing under the Jedi Council, sympathetic to Ahsoka being unwanted by the Jedi Council, disgusted with the decision to aid the Hutts. All were powerful, powerful additions to his character. Traviss' Rex is much like the clones from her Republic Commando books, brave, honorable, determined. His viewpoint likewise shows how Anakin is a great leader and how his men would die for him in a heartbeat.
Since the story is based on the movie, I won't critique that so much, as Traviss likely had little to do with it. But I will say, that Traviss attempted to make the story make sense (namely, why do the Jedi need the Hutts' access to hyperspace routes?).
Many Star Wars novels have tried to capture the spirit of Star Wars and have failed, mostly because they either focus too much on action or too little. Traviss is not one of these authors, at least not in this book. She is brilliant at the intense character study but never once does she let up in the action. Her descriptions of the surroundings, the military accoutrements is spot-on, realistic and enthralling. I don't think any other author could have written this novel adaptation and done as brilliantly as Traviss has.

I Didn't Like:
Minor, but Traviss continues to avoid balancing her anti-Jedi, anti-Republic mantra with a single, non-corrupt pro-Republic character. All the characters she viewed thought the Republic was corrupt; the ones who might not have (Padme, Yoda, and Obi-Wan) were oddly absent. This wasn't a huge deal, but it was tiring to have characters, even Anakin, rant against the Jedi Council and the Republic. I suppose it was better than having Obi-Wan in the book and have him behave out of character though.
Ventress is a fairly well-done character, but I was a little caught off guard with her huge anti-Jedi basis, which didn't jive with how she was portrayed in other materials. She almost seemed to harp on Rattatack and Mace Windu too much.
Obi-Wan and Padme sequences from the movie are omitted in the book, leading to some oddly wrapped up battles and investigations. I was particularly upset to see Padme on the cutting room floor, as she, unlike her daughter, has become merely a plot device instead of a real person.

Dialogue/Sexual Situations/Violence:
Soldiers use "kriffing" as a substitute for swearing.
Ahsoka, in the movie, wears a mid-riff baring tunic.
Most of Anakin's company dies. Rotta is sick. Jabba says he wants Anakin's skull for Rotta to play with.

Overall:
I have been putting this book off for ages because of my feelings for the movie. Now, I wish I hadn't. This is a brilliant book, much, much better than its source, the movie! I highly recommend!

Brought to you by:
*C.S. Light*

I've become a big fan of Karen Traviss' work in the Star Wars Republic Commando novels, so much so that I recently decided to pick up one of her non-Star Wars books. I also recently read her novelization of the The Clone Wars animated movie (the prequel to the current series). What I like most about Traviss is that she draws forth surprising but believable insight into the motivation of characters that other writers make mundane, like Clones, Asajj Ventress, and even Hutts. They become three-dimensional characters when Traviss writes them, and she also delivers an interesting approach to the political machinations of the Clone Wars--she has characters wonder why the Republic is fighting to keep planets from peacefully seceding (a question I've never seen answered), whether it's moral to fight a war using the equivalent of indentured servants (the Clones), and more. She also has a great grasp on military tactics and (fictional) technology that works well for the battlefield-heavy Clone Wars setting. An interesting thing is that she's the only Star Wars writer I've read who seems implicitly hostile to the idea of Jedi, with sympathy for their goals or traditions. Anyway, the novelization is definitely worth reading even if you've already seen the animated movie, as there's a new angle and depth to several of the scenes--it reads like a book meant for adults instead of a cartoon made for kids.

I had seen the animated movie. I knew that it was directed mainly at the younger generation of prospective fans and dyed-in-the-wool Star Wars aficionados. Since I knew about Tracy West's same-titled junior novelization of the movie, I assumed that Karen Traviss's adaptation would be directed at adult Star Wars devotees. To put it simply: I was mistaken.

While the book does give more background and describes events in more detail, the plot simply isn't deep enough for an adult novel. And while more material is included in the book as opposed to the movie, some events from the movie are simply missing. For instance, in the denouement, while we know exactly what was happening with Anakin, whatever happened to Ahsoka and the Huttlet between the time she and Anakin split up and then reunited is simply omitted.

I already had seen the movie and thus knew (mainly) what was going to happen. Couple that with the fact that the book ended up being below my expectations, and the rating is * * *. However, if I hadn't seen the movie and hadn't seen the book's dust jacket (with the characters clearly animated), the fact that the book turned out to be a young-adult novella, etc. wouldn't have mattered that much. Thus the rating would probably have been * * * *.

The actual Clone Wars, not the book, have come a long ways in the Star Wars universe. We originally learned of them from a mostly off-hand reference early in the films. Some of us may have wondered then what kind of fighting went on during the Clone Wars. When was it? Where was it fought? Exactly who was on each side?

Well, here we are down the road. We have a movie. We have an animated TV series, and we have a book by none other than Karen Traviss. Ms Traviss is noted particularly for her excellent Republic Commando series, and she has maintained her high standards with The Clone Wars. She is now one of the authors whose name alone on the front of a book can increase sales.

At the time of this book, the Clone Wars are raging across the galaxy. On one side we have the Separatists, led by the venerable Count Dooku, a onetime Jedi and current Sith Lord in secret. He manages a huge droid army. On the other side we have the Republic, publically led by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine (Nudge! Nudge! Wink! Wink!) and his army of clone troopers led by Jedi generals.

The story is fairly straightforward and includes a number of impressive action sequences (as you might expect since the story is based on the TV series). Jabba the Hutt's infant son has been kidnapped, and both sides are trying to rescue him. The successful side is hoping to gain enough favor with Jabba to gain access to key routes through Hutt-controlled space. Basically we end up with Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Won Kenobi with their clone troops fighting droid forces led by Asajj Ventress. We also are introduced to Anakin's new Padawan Ahsoka, who turns out to be a breath of fresh air in all of the Clone Wars

As the tale unfolds we are privy to much of the thinking of the clone soldiers. Ms Traviss seems to be specializing in this. We are also allowed in the mind of Palpatine to see what he is actually thinking. This was a great idea because there are some classic moments when Palpatine may not be thinking exactly what you expect.

All in all, The Clone Wars is a fun story to read. See the movie! Watch the TV series! Read the book! It's all good.

This is another exciting adventure in the Clone Wars. I really like the way that they give a little bit of background on Asajj Ventress. Another great character that I think a book should be written about her. This also shows the struggles that Anakin has with being a general, a jedi, and a mentor and the sruggle within himself.

Over all a good quick read that keeps the cast of characters to a minimum and the characters are ones we know.

Karen Traviss isn't my favorite Star Wars writer, but she is coming a close second with this one. I was a little worried because even though I had read her other books I still thought she lacked something in the telling of Star Wars, she was too military with her story telling, and I'm in the military. With this book she proves to me that nobody writes clones better than her. She weaves the military into the Star Wars genre with ease and without the forced spec ops feel of the other books she has written. Plus she has really grasped the other characters, Kenobi, Anakin, and the newest member Ashoka, with a freshness that brings new life to characters that appear more real than in other of the clone wars novels. Traviss has out done herself on this one, even if you've seen the movie it makes a great read, because it gives more detail to the motivations of characters like Dooku, Asajj Ventress, and Anakin comes off better in this book than in all three newer movies, and all the other books except maybe Labyrinth of Evil. Just buy it already. I've read too many Star Wars books that have moments of brillance, or insight. This book is that from page one to the end. Traviss keep it Girl! Here's hoping Order 66 rocks like this book. A must for any Star Wars fan, don't wait for the paperback, get it, you'll be pleased!!!