The Starbird Files

  Hello there, and welcome to my review of the year, a not at all exhaustive look at the year in Star Wars from my perspective as well as your thoughts. Thank you to all who contributed. We’ll kick off with  SW on our Screens , which it has to be said has been a bit quiet this year, but we’ve had some real gems. The first season of  The Bad Batch  was really enjoyable with some great canon connections, I adored the first episode especially, and it will be very interesting to see where it goes. “I loved seeing Kamino and Tipoca City (RIP) once more in The Bad Batch, I hadn't thought we'd ever see it again so it really brought home the 2002 AOTC feels.”  Matt, @StarWarsSession (Twitter) The highlight of the year on screen for me was undoubtedly  Star Wars Visions , I loved seeing a brand new take on the galaxy far far away through the lens of japan, one of the very things that inspired George Lucas all those years ago, and it seems I was not alone; “The thing...

I have to admit I wasn’t the most excited for The Book of Boba Fett initially, despite considering myself a Fett fan, but as time went by and more and more teasers were released over the last month or so, my hype for this show had increased dramatically. So I was eager to get stuck in when it dropped at 8am in the UK, and I wasn’t disappointed. Starting with Boba in the bacta tank having dreams of his past was a great way to begin, seeing flashes of Kamino and Geonosis before diving into the big question of how he got out of the Sarlacc. It is unclear how much time has passed when he awakes in the stomach of the Return of the Jedi monster, from the lack of smoke from the wreckage of Jabba’s sail barge it must be a few days at least, but really could be much longer. Back in the present, Boba & Fennec receive tributes from the citizens and criminals of Mos Espa, and I loved hearing Matt Berry voicing the droid. They then begin to make their rounds of the city, visiting the Sanctuary,...

  Marvel Star Wars War of the Bounty Hunters Vol.1 Written by Charles Soule Art by S McNiven, L Ross, D Messina, L Martin, N Menon, Guru-eFX I have a mixed history with the Star Wars comics, there are some I love - the first two Vader runs of the new era, The High Republic comics, I enjoy some of the short mini series like Lando and Shattered Empire. But I struggle with the main Star Wars line, that for me takes some of the mystery away from the time between the OT movies and makes it too crowded, and that was in part why I’d shied away from War of the Bounty Hunters for a while. But having seen people’s reaction to the series and the reappearance of Qi’ra piqued my curiosity to pick up this first trade paperback from the crossover event. The basic story hinges on Boba Fett’s prized bounty of Han Solo frozen in carbonite being stolen from him enroute to Jabba. The thieves are Crimson Dawn agents, led by Qi’ra who is now in charge of the organization, and they plan to auction Han of...

The Edge of Balance Volume 1 by Shima Shinya & Justina Ireland (Viz Media) Art by Mizuki Sakakibara I was excited to finally get my hands on The Edge of Balance when it finally arrived in the UK after many delays, especially as it is my first Star Wars manga - heck my first manga. The story begins just before the Republic Fair, as Jedi knight Lily Tora-Asi and her former master Arkoff, a Wookiee, resettle refugees from the Great Disaster to Banchii -    a quiet farming world where their Jedi Temple has just been built. That serenity is of course broken when they discover several Drengir close to the village, after fighting them off they discover that some of the victims had, unusually, been turned to wood. The story concludes with Arkoff being called away to help deal with the Nihil following the attack on Valo, leaving Lily to investigate how the Drengir came to Banchii and why their victims have been turned to wood. The relationship between Lily Tora-Asi and Arkoff is an...

Do you have a Star Wars fan in your life and you’re not sure what to get them? Or do you want to make sure your relatives get you something good? Fear not because The Starbird Files is here with the 4 book suggestions that you can ask your local bookshop for, as it’s always good to support local especially at this time of year. 1. Star Wars: The Lightsaber Collection (Titan Books) This unique book is the ideal gift for any Star Wars fan, after all who doesn’t love a lightsaber? Featuring 58 illustrated lightsabers from all eras of the saga from fan favorites to more obscure characters. This will make a fine addition to anyone’s collection. Full Review  2. Ronin: A Visions Novel by Emma Mieko Candon (Del Rey) Star Wars Visions was a new DisneyPlus animated show released this year, inspired by Star Wars Japanese roots and created by anime creators and Ronin continues the story of one of these short films, The Duel. If you have (or are) a Star Wars and Anime fan in your life then this...

Ronin: A Visions Novel by Emma Mieko Candon (Del Rey) Ronin: A Visions novel comes on the heels of the first anime Star Wars series and takes place in the world of The Duel. Star Wars, as we know has a rich influence of japanese culture including the influence of Akira Kurosawa on George Lucas. I thoroughly enjoyed the Visions series and enjoy what little I have experienced of Japanese culture so I was excited to read this novel by Emma Mieko Candon which promised to be a different kind of Star Wars book. And boy is it different! The story kicks off with the events portrayed in The Duel, adding some internal flavor tho the characters we met there. A big mystery is quickly established with the voice that the Ronin hears, and Candon is superb at drip feeding us hints and clues whilst maintaining the air of mystery throughout, in fact we never learn the Ronin’s real name. With such an air of ambiguity coupled with the fact that Visions is not canon, it is easy to accept a kind of timeless...