Customer Reviews

Tales from Mos Eisley Cantina (Star Wars)

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"Mos Eisley Spaceport," says Obi-Wan Kenobi to Luke Skywalker as they stand on a mesa overlooking the Tatooine metropolis in a transition scene in Episode IV. "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be careful."

Of all the many eye-catching and memorable sequences in Star Wars (aka Episode IV: A New Hope), the fateful meeting between Luke Skywalker, Ben Kenobi, and a pair of smugglers with a starship for hire is perhaps the most intriguing. It's not only important dramatically or even as far as the change in the film's pacing goes (from this point on, there will be chases, shootouts, rescues, and battles), it's also visually intriguing. The dim lighting, the tense atmosphere, all those aliens, and, of course, that funky cantina band playing Benny Goodman-like tunes.

Of course, in the film, the focus was on Kenobi, Skywalker, Han Solo, and Chewbacca as they negotiated a charter flight to Alderaan. But there were others in the cantina that day on Tatooine...many other minor players and eyewitnesses on that fateful day. Who were they? What about their stories? What were some of them doing in Chalmun the Wookiee's Mos Eisley speakeasy?

Star Wars: Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina, edited by novelist Kevin J. Anderson (The Jedi Academy Trilogy), is a collection of 16 original short stories set during and after the events depicted in Star Wars: A New Hope. Within such stories as Kathy Tyers "We Don't Do Weddings: The Band's Tale" there are little tidbits of heretofore unknown data that add depth and nuance to the scene in the film. Want to know the name of the cantina band? (It's Figrin Da'n and the Modal Nodes). What are those two women who look like twins doing in the cantina? (I'm not giving any more free info away here...read Timothy Zahn's "Hammertong" to find out.) All 16 stories are well-written and move almost as fast as the Millennium Falcon, and they all seem to fit into the Star Wars storyline without feeling, well, forced.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this anthology was discovering that authors better known for writing about the Star Trek universe also moonlight in the Star Wars Galaxy. A.C. Crispin, who has written such Trek classics as Yesterday's Son contributed "Play It Again, Figrin Da'n: The Tale of Muftak and Kabe," while Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens wrote "One Last Night in the Mos Eisley Cantina: The Tale of the Wolfman and the Lamproid." Reading these stories and marveling at how they captured the essence of George Lucas' "galaxy far, far away," I realized that they are not only good writers of Star Trek fiction, but they are good writers, period.

The Mos Eisley cantina is the setting for only a single brief, if pivotal, scene in the first Star Wars film. (That's A New Hope for those of you who weren't around when it opened in theaters the first time.) It is there we first see the formidable fighting skills of Obi-Wan Kenobi, get our first glimpse of the hirsute Chewbacca and witness the cunning ruthlessness of Han Solo (at least in the original version; George Lucas applied revisionist history to the recent re-release, spoiling a good scene by making Solo play nice with the bad guy). It also provided us with a quick glimpse of the many diverse lifeforms that populate the spacefaring regions of the Empire.

Star Wars: Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina provides a peek into those lives via 16 short stories, each intertwined in some way with the characters and events of that brief movie scene. Each character has little beyond a split-second cameo in the film, a flash on the screen to demonstrate the cutting edge in alien makeup. Now, each has a story.

Each also gives readers a slightly different perspective on the droids' failed entrance into the cantina, and each has a different angle on Kenobi's fight at the bar and Greedo's demise. The stories unfold like a great Tatooine tapestry

I've read all but one of the tales of/from series. There were a couple of duds, but overall a good collections of stories. The most interesting one was the last one concerning the "wolfman." I found the one about the pipe smoker a little disturbing and didn't like it. I would recommend this book it is worth your time to read.

While I am fairly well versed in Star Wars literature, this was the first of the tales books I've read, and I have to say I was impressed. It's amazing how many other struggles between life and death were going on at the same time as A New Hope. Each story in this book is excellently well crafted, and it is amazing how just about every character in the Mos Eisely Cantina scene not only had a name, but also an intire backround as to what they happened to be doing and why by pure chance they happened to be there on that particular fateful afternoon. Also, in order to read this book one doesn't have to be particularly well versed in Star Wars, unlike many of the other novels, which are practically impossible to read unless you have read every single one that takes place before it. This book only requires that you have seen the movies. The authors were chosen well too, and I recognized many of them as authors of Star Wars novels I have read. The stories are: We Don't Do Weddings: The Band's Tale, this is the story of Figrin Da'an and the Model Nodes, the band who was playing in that scene.

A Hunter's Fate: Greedo's Tale, as you can probably tell from the title, this story is about Greedo the bounty hunter, and is surprising heartfelt and sad.

Hammertong: The Tale of the "Tonika Sisters", at last I know what a Mistryl is! This story tells of the two women masquerading as the Tonika sisters in that scene.

Play it Again, Figrin Da'an: The Tale of Muftak and Kabe, a heartwarming story of friendship and love.

The Sand Tender: The Hammerhead's Tale, a sad and haunting story of an exiled Ithorian caught under the heel of the Empire.

Be Still My Heart: The Bartender's Tale, ever wonder about the sweaty bartender who orders Threepio and Artoo out? this is a surprising sweet story of how even the most hardened people can eventually be reached.

Nightlily: The Lover's Tale, one of my least favorites, but still a pretty interesting story, very surprising ending.

Empire Blues: The Deveronian's Tale, a somewhat depressing story about the little devil guy hanging around the cantina.

Swap Meet: The Jawa's tale, an interesting story of a Jawa overcoming fear to take revenge on a pack of imperials, we don't get the true outcome until we read the next story.

Tradewins: The Ranat's Tale, a companion story to the previous one, have to read one to understand the other.

When the Desert Wind Turns: The Stormtrooper's Tale, even Imperials are human beings, just like anyone else, learn the name of the "Look Sir, Droids" stormtrooper!

Soup's On: The Pipesmoker's Tale, possible the most disgusting of them all.

At The Cross Roads: The Spacer's tale, the guy who Ben talked to before Han.

Docter Death: The Tale of Docter Eveson and Ponda Baba: ever wonder what happened to the guy who picked a fight with Ben?

Drawing the Maps of Peace: The Moisture Farmer's Tale, a sad, but uplifting story of people like Owen and Beru.

One Last Night in the Mos Eisely Cantina: a fitting finale, and extemly haunting story.

Anyway I would recommend this book to any Star Wars fan, especially those just getting into Star Wars since it provides very interesting backround.

This is the "tales" book that started it all, and what a way to start!

Some highlights include: 1. We Don't Do Weddings: The Band's Tale, a funny story about everyone's favorite jizz band, Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes. 2. Soup's On: The Pipe Smoker's Tale, a very bizarre story about how the guy with the pipe hunts down his victims...3. At The Crossroads: The Spacer's Tale is a very cool story about the guy that Obi-Wan talks to first and is directed to Chewie by. You'll love how he relates to Han and Chewie and his impressions of the strange Jedi who talked to him. 4. A Hunter's Fate: Greedo's Tale is a funny story that shows the reader how pathetic he actually was. 5. The Sand Tender: The Hammerhead's Tale is nice because it gives background info on a cantina character that was actually seen again in later Star Wars novels. 6. Doctor Death: The Tale of Dr. Evazan and Ponda Baba is great! Dr. Evazan is truly a twisted individual! 7. Drawing the Maps of Peace: The Moisture Farmer's Tale is very well written. It is about the struggles of a man much like Owen Lars who has to lay down the law with marauding Tusken Raiders.

There are sixteen excellent stories in this book by some of the best sci-fi writers around. This book is a definite must-own for any Star Wars fan! Buy it now and see which tales you like the best and get your VCR ready to find all of these cool characters. Happy hunting!

I think we all remember the Mos Eisley Cantina scene from A New Hope. All those different species mulling about. Now, they all have their own story in Tales from the Mos Eisley Cantina.

First, I must say that this collaboration was brilliant. It appears that every author consulted with each other to ensure that if you put every single tale together to make one story, it would be seamless, no conflicting information. You get to see the scene from the movie from each character's point of view as well as learn the background story of each of them. After I read this book, I watched that scene again and now see it in a totally different light. This has been one of the better SW novels I've read.

Warning: There is one (and only one) tale that is not worth reading, in my opinion-Soup's On: The Pipe Smoker's Tale. This story is worthless. There is no plot and no characterization. Just the pipe smoker at the bar talking about how he eats people's soup (aka their brains) and who's soup he prefers over others. The story is 14 pages long and is worth skipping. Other than that, the book itself is definitely worthy of your attention. May the Force be with you!

The cantina in the first Star Wars movie (now technically the fourth episode, dubbed "A New Hope") was one of the most memorable scenes in that movie, so an anthology delving into the assorted characters at the bar has a lot of potential.
I enjoyed several of the stories, especially Greedo's tale, the hammerhead's tale, the moisture farmer's tale. The ending to Nightlily made me laugh and Timothy Zahn's short story was also good, mostly because Zahn, who originally created Mara Jade, can make some awesome female characters.
I didn't like some of the characters, but I count that as a good thing that means, to me, that the author developed a character strong enough to evoke a reaction. (And plus, given Mos Eisley's reputation as a "wretched hive of scum and villany" you should expect some awful or pathetic beings)
However, a few of the stories were clunkers, with poor characterization, weak plots and stilted writing that relied on too much techno-lingo. Good writing should challenge a reader to think about situations, about characters and motivations, but some of these authors seem to like showing off the jargo, forcing a reader like me (I would call myself a moderate Star Wars fan who has read a fair number of Expanded Universe novels) to have to do way too many double-takes.

All those nagging Star Wars questions have now been answered. This fact filled book will give you an in-depth view of the cantina characters who have forged themselves into the darkest, most deepest part of you cerebellum. Imagine! Purchase this book and you'll no longer have to wonder.....

1. Whatever happened to Greedo's body after Han killed him?

2. Whatever became of Ponda Baba and the doctor after their run-in with ObiWan?

3. How did the band get their gig and what were those instruments they played?

4. Learn who the dude is at the bar smoking from a hookah? (Hint: He wants you soup)

5. The two chicks with the dark hair? (Hint: they are in disguise)

6. Why does the bartender hate droids?

7. Hammerhead is an exiled priest who talks to plants?

8. How did Han escape from Hanger 94 so easily? (Hint: A Stormtrooper went renegade and shot his leader in the back)

9. What the hell is that giant polar bear looking thing sitting at the table (Hint: He's a thief, not an albino Wookie)

10. So what's it like to be a Jawa on a mission of death?

You'll no longer wonder, now that the truth is finally here!

I thought that this book was just brilliantly written by a number of talented writers.I loved that I was provided with insite into all the characters backrounds from the cantina, not just the main ones.It was a wonderful book I couldn't put down once I picked it up.I loved it!

It`s cool to read the background stories of all the creatures inside the Cantina, when you only got a glimpse of them in the movie. The one bad thing about this book is that even though there are many stories, you have to read them together and can not jump around in the book. Overall, Star Wars fans will like this one.