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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The dark is generous and it is patient and it always wins – but in the heart of its strength lies its weakness: one lone candle is enough to hold it back.
Love is more than a candle.
Love can ignite the stars.
This novelization is my favorite book of all time.
If I had the words to describe this book, they’d be never ending. Movies are one thing with expressing emotion, but literally nothing can beat a book with inner dialogue and thoughts. Stover dug in and dug in deep really well. Through his detailed imagery and fantastic, well-paced storytelling, it made me appreciate the Star Wars focus all the much more.
There are rare instances where a movie will be released and a book adaptation will be good...
But this one?
I prefer it over the movie, and that’s saying so much. The phrases & wording Stover uses brings in new depths and insights: insights you could never get from a film. You could feel Anakin’s stress and fear. You could feel Obi-Wan’s morosity over losing his friend. Through Stover’s words on paper, it was a new world.
REGARDLESS
JUSTICE FOR ANAKIN CHARACTERIZATION
This novel was released in April of 2005, with the movie releasing in May. Why they decided to release this book before the movie, I am not sure. It was based upon the script of the movie at least. Where I’m going with this is that it takes the near-awful writing of the prequels and develops it. In this novel, it was not the continuation of AOTC Anakin to ROTS Anakin, but a shift from The Clone Wars Anakin to Revenge of the Sith Anakin. The Clone Wars did not begin until 2008, but George Lucas and Dave Filoni continued an Anakin in the show that was developed. This ROTS novel helped bridge this. Having someone finish The Clone Wars, proceed to read this book, and then watch the movie would be the ultimate move.
After all, a great focus on this part of the storyline is the fight between Anakin and Obi-Wan: how it’s brother vs. brother, best friend turned against the other, etc.
“You were my brother Anakin. I loved you,” from the movie, but where was this shown?
It’s hard to cover thirteen years of this relationship in this short time-span, but Matthew Stover decided to sit down with some paper and a pencil, and began writing with fire. Anakin and Obi-Wan’s relationship was discussed more in depth here through the emotions and imagery Stover conjured. It was shown through their actions and through their ideas. Essentially, to truly make the pain of Anakin’s betrayal, Dave Filoni had a job to do with The Clone Wars. However, even without the show, Stover made a great attempt here to show just how breaking this story’s end was.
At the end of the book with Palpatine, Anakin was stressed. He was crying, he was in terror, and it was fantastic. Not for him, but to see that. Again, this is another issue with the movie and it’s questionable writing and directing, but to be graced with despair from Anakin in writing is a breath of fresh air.
In the end, Obi-Wan was heartbroken. He never wanted it to come to this.
The man he faced was everything Obi-Wan had devoted his life to destroying: Murderer. Traitor. Fallen Jedi. Lord of the Sith. And here, and now, despite it all…
Obi-Wan still loved him.
This is what I’m talking about. Let Obi-Wan be sad. Anakin betrayed him. Such smaller things, like when Obi-Wan tells Anakin, “You have done that yourself,” he says it ‘sadly.’ In the movie, he is cautious and angry. This was his best friend turned Sith. It was a breaking point. A shattering of this relationship between the two.
ANAKIN AND HIS FEAR
It was so prominent in this book. Let the irony show of the Hero With no Fear being the most afraid of them all. That is the beauty and tragedy of Anakin’s story. He cannot be the sun dragon. He cannot protect everyone. He cannot save everyone.
Fear.
This was the wound Anakin had taken. This was the hurt that had him shaking and stammering and too weak to stand. Some black fear had hatched like fever wasps inside the young Knight’s brain, and it was killing him.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Anakin opened his blood raw eyes.
I love the movie, but come on. If they had just given Anakin a little more emotion/fear of this whole situation, it would be fixed. As this was written and published before the movie hit theatres, it was based off of the movie’s script, so it was a directing error to have Hayden act the way he had (at no fault to Hayden’s acting whatsoever).
Anakin in this book felt like he had no choice. He was so afraid for Padmé and that’s what ties it together. He never wanted the power of the Sith for destruction, but to save her. He never wanted to bring the fall of the Jedi, but after accepting that with Palpatine, it just overtook him. You could feel that shift of character in the pages: falling-apart-Anakin to thinking-he-can-do-anything-Anakin. There was a power corruption later on, but this was when he was walking to Padmé and post-slaughtering younglings, which was when he was too far gone. Regardless, it was there and it was fantastic. The Dark Side corrupts, and what better way to show it than with the character that wanted to save and protect everyone?
OBI-WAN FINAL WISH
Lastly, when Obi-Wan said that raising Luke would be the perfect life for him? This was so sad. He agreed to be the uncle: to show his brotherhood from Anakin. This book was beautiful. Just everything. The last few chapters were gut-wrenching, and it never gets old.
This was not Sith against Jedi. This was not light against dark or good against evil; it had nothing to do with duty or philosophy, religion or morals.
It was Anakin against Obi-Wan.
Personally.
Just the two of them, and the damage they had done to each other.
And I did not forget this excerpt. Good lord this is lovely writing.
WRITING CHANGES
This book was written based off of the script, so some things are a little different. One thing I am thankful for is that Anakin’s corny line of, “You underestimate my power!” from the movie was gone in this book. It’s fun to recite irl to friends, but… c’mon now. This is just one example.
“You were my brother, Anakin! I loved you. But I could not save you.”
Like damn? Talk about some guilt from Obi-Wan’s side. This was such a small but fantastic addition, because Obi-Wan harbors guilt for Anakin Falling. He loved Anakin, but couldn’t save him. No greater pain than having the responsibility of tutoring the literal Chosen One and having him become the next Sith Lord. Damn.
IN THE END
For any Revenge of the Sith movie fan, I would slide this book across the table in milliseconds. It’s a total game-changer, and a prized piece of novelization. A solid 5✰ rating from me, and more if I could.
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was better than the movie, I'm not going to lie, and I love the movie. The build-up to Anakin becoming Vader was brilliant and the pain of the other characters is portrayed so well, especially Obi-Wan Kenobi and Padme Amidala. I'm glad it recognised how the Jedi were not perfect towards the end when Yoda fights Sidious and how it adds scenes that were cut from the movie that makes the emotional damage all the more painful. I love that it goes into how it feels to be certain characters in specific moments. It really makes you connect to only rip your heart out at the end.
there has never been a more tragic story than Anakin Skywalker; the chosen one who become the very thing he was supposed to destroy
i thought the movie was painful but this was a whole other level of soul shattering
”This story happened a long time ago in a galaxy far,
far away. It is already over. Nothing can be done to change it.
It is a story of love and loss, brotherhood and betrayal, courage and sacrifice and the death of dreams. It is a story of the blurred line between our best and our worst.
It is the story of the end of an age.
A strange thing about stories-
Though this all happened so long ago and so far away that words cannot describe the time or the distance, it is also happening right now. Right here.
It is happening as you read these words.
This is how twenty-five millennia come to a close. Corruption and treachery have crushed a thousand years of peace. This is not just the end of a republic; night is falling on civilization itself.
This is the twilight of the Jedi.
The end starts now.”
i thought the movie was painful but this was a whole other level of soul shattering
”This story happened a long time ago in a galaxy far,
far away. It is already over. Nothing can be done to change it.
It is a story of love and loss, brotherhood and betrayal, courage and sacrifice and the death of dreams. It is a story of the blurred line between our best and our worst.
It is the story of the end of an age.
A strange thing about stories-
Though this all happened so long ago and so far away that words cannot describe the time or the distance, it is also happening right now. Right here.
It is happening as you read these words.
This is how twenty-five millennia come to a close. Corruption and treachery have crushed a thousand years of peace. This is not just the end of a republic; night is falling on civilization itself.
This is the twilight of the Jedi.
The end starts now.”
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
sat here giggling at every mention of yoda as “the little green freak”