Most of the pre-prequel trade paperbacks explain the rise of the Sith empire and the wars fought between the Jedi and the Sith. Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi- Redemption, by Kevin J. Anderson, tells the story of a former Sith follower who tries to escape his past and redeem the evil he has done. Ulic Qel-Droma was a Jedi Knight on a mission to infiltrate the followers of the Sith from within. He was seduced by the Dark Side and became the chief lieutenant of the Dark Sith Lord, Exar Kun. During the Sith Wars, Qel-Droma committed several atrocities, including murdering his own brother, Cay. Now, 10 years later, Ulic Qel-Droma has isolated himself from the rest of the world in an attempt to escape the horrors of his time with the Sith. He doesn't count on the appearance of Nomi Sunrider's daughter, Vima Sunrider. Vima is frustrated with the political figure her mother has become. Seeking to begin training in the ways of the Jedi, Vima hunts down Qel-Droma and begs to become his apprentice. But training Vima in the ways of the Force prove difficult for Qel-Droma, especially when Nomi discovers where her daughter has gone and whose aide she has enlisted for her Jedi training. Kevin J. Anderson is an extremely gifted story-teller and the art in this trade paperback is amazing. Equally amazing is the cover art section-definitely worth the money.
The tales Dark Empire I and II, by Tom Veitch, are integral stories to the Expanded Universe. They tell of Luke Skywalker's experimentation and fall to the Dark Side. In Dark Empire I, it is revealed that while the Emperor's body did indeed die on the second Death Star, his spirit lives on. Knowing that the Dark Side was slowly destroying his body, the Emperor prepared clones of himself, which he would eventually transfer his soul too. Luke finds the cloned Emperor, and rationalizing that if he truly wants to begin training future Jedi, he must learn all of the ways of The Force, Luke becomes the cloned Emperor's apprentice. Luke believes he can resist the temptation of the Dark Side while learning its secrets. While significant in the tales of the Star Wars Expanded Universe, I strongly urge you not to waste your money on these trade paperbacks. First, I believe that the storyline was pretty lame, especially in light of the warnings Obi-Wan and Yoda issued about the temptation of the Dark Side, you would think that Luke would be less enthusiastic about learning from the Emperor. In addition the artwork does nothing to progress the story. None of the characters resemble our favorite heroes. Leia, who is pregnant with Anakin Solo during this story, is ugly, obese, and a drab rendition of the Princess we all love. The outcome of the story is perfectly predictable, and there was absolutely no reason for the story to be told in two trade paperbacks. I bought the comic version of this tale - a total of 12 comics in all - because I wanted to understand what the novels have made vague references to. I also thought it would be cool to see Luke fall to the Dark Side and wondered how he crawled his way back to the Light Side. I never imagined it would be anything like this tale. Of course, die-hard Star Wars fans may want these trade paperbacks anyway, if only to add continuity to their vast Expanded Universe collection.
I strongly urge potential buyers to follow my example - I purchased my comics on EBAY. I urge you to do the same. Maximize your cash flow, buy used!
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