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so I’m a prolific reader and have a large Star Wars book collection, and I decided to share my unpopular opinions on some books. Im going to rank them by my top five, with one being the worst.

for number five I am going to say light of the Jedi (high republic) this one isn’t so bad but it is a bit boring and hard to get into. I have read about 100 pages of it, quit, and read the first fifteen again.

Number four: ahsoka. Honestly I think this could have been edited a bit more as the writing felt a bit sloppy. I loved it the first time I read it, but the second time I found myself cringing a bit to much.

Number three: lost stars. The relationship felt very forced an the characters were slightly infuriating.

Number two: (this is technically a trilogy but whatever) the bounty hunter wars (by chuck wending). The characters were annoying and this book feels the need to repeat itself. Honestly I was bored to tears with how many times it was repeated. Finished the first book, but I have picked up the second on and off to no avail.

kivu reunion on ardok ranch 💙

My favorite thing about Rael is that he’s /really/ not a one-dimensional character. He has some real layers to him. He feels crazy amounts of guilt and tries so so hard to make up for things that he messes up new situations. He’s such a mess. I love him.

That said, I have no idea what Dooku was teaching him about the Jedi because some of the things he was saying were a bit wild. But that might just be an author thing because Pax and even Qui-Gon had their… interesting moments in that regard.

In all, Rael did immediately shoot up in my favorite characters list. His open ending (in this novel at least) is very well done and his final scene with Dooku? Chef’s kiss. GORGEOUS.

Like I love how Qui-Gon’s stoicism in TPM is directly influenced by Dooku’s coolheaded-ness while being a mentor. Meanwhile Rael is… not that. Like at all. Even without with his trauma, Rael would still indulge in his drinking and sex life. And with it, it’s just turned up to 11. Not to say that Qui-Gon isn’t a freak in his own respect, I would just say he hides it better moment to moment and really is Dooku’s spitting image, but better.

Don’t get your hopes up for Dooku: Jedi Lost in terms of Rael content. He’s there for sure, but so briefly.

I also liked the “cooler older brother” thing that Rael had going for him. It’s hard for me to articulate exactly but the way that he was a positive on Qui-Gon from such an early age to Qui-Gon being the one to bring him back to the light is so meaningful.

To me he fulfills the role of a side content character perfectly. Nothing he does becomes essential to the source material, so it's not imperative to know of their existence to properly engage with the story at large; yet he simultaneously re-contextualizes specific situations in ways that enhance the experience.

Rael is five years old when he's brought to the temple. At the time, he was the oldest kid ever allowed in the Jedi order. He willfully refused to ever let go of the culture where he came from, his accent, his ideas. It's not like the Jedi prohibited him from such, but it's pointed out by the book himself that a large part of this was done in defiance. He liked pushing the Jedi and their patience to their limits, it's why Dooku chose him as a Padawan.

Instead of teaching him healthy ways to engage with his culture, or assure him he could return if he so desired, he simply insisted on making him even more stubborn. He didn't respect anything about the Jedi, down to their clothing.

And man, he was a disaster. Got his first Padawan killed. Was utterly blinded for his love for who was basically a foster daughter. The Jedi never knew how to reach him best. This ends up nearly causing war in a planet that was relying on his protection and guidance.

scientists are still scrambling to figure out what “zigazig ahh” is so that they can give the spice girls what they really really want

the spice girls are getting impatient

THE kitten