Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – Black Spire; A Disney Nerd Book Review
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge – Black Spire (SWGEBS) is one of the ‘New Canon’ Star Wars books that you can pick up and check out. Once the Disney Company bought the Star Wars franchise, a big shake-up in the Star Wars official Canon hit almost right away. This was my first entry into that new Star Wars history.
What is Canon?
A quick history on canon. For the first 35 years or so, right after the release of A New Hope, Star Wars novels began to be released. The first, Splinter of the Minds Eye, was great in that it gave you a ‘quick’ mission with some of your favorite Star Wars characters. This was a formula that was a big success and continued on in countless books that were released. For this first book, it was Luke and Leia before the whole twins’ thing came out, on a mission that, of course, goes wrong.
Over the course of time and new movie releases, these books continued to be produced to the point where I would not be surprised that the numbers are above a hundred. We got to follow our heroes through secret missions and thru their times alone on missions. There was a 3 book series back in time with the Han Solo. And with Lando Calrissian when he first won the Millenium Falcon. Then, back to the future with Han and Leia getting married and having a family. We saw Luke become a Master and re-open the Jedi Academy. We even got to follow Wedge Antilles and Rogue Squadron from creation and then battle on through the war with the empire and beyond.
With the addition of the Star Wars 1-3 movies there was now a fuller history to draw upon and wow did authors pump out those books. This Star Wars Cannon was incredible and compatible with all storylines that might have been going on in the Star Wars galaxy.
Now flash to the purchase of the Star Wars Franchise by Disney. The above huge collection of books and comics are now known as the Expanded Universe (EU). All movies and TV shows that came out and the accompanying books would now be known as Star Wars.
“On the screen, the first new canon to appear will be Star Wars Rebels. In print, the first new books to come from this creative collaboration include novels from Del Rey Books. First, to be announced, John Jackson Miller is writing a novel that precedes the events of Star Wars Rebels and offers insight into a key character’s backstory, with input directly from executive producers Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, and Greg Weisman.”
Check out the full announcement here.
The Review
Now, full disclosure first. I was pretty disappointed with this all-new Canon stuff and thought it was a load of Drustash castings. Since a New Hope, I’ve read dozens and dozens and dozens of Star Wars books. I felt a bit betrayed when this was announced. In fact, I’ve been catching up on Star Trek and spoiler alert, with the Chris Pine Star Trek re-do, I’m Snot out of luck with another franchise. (FYI, Star Wars is best, but Star Trek was first. Love them both…but SW always the best).
The only reason I picked up this book was I was going to Walt Disney World and Galaxy’s Edge for the first time. I was amazed to find that this book was out there and bought it in a heartbeat. To be more exact, I tried to find it on my online public libraries and then Kindle and with no luck at a free read, bought it. Now, as another disclaimer, I read every day and average a book a week, but I have not bought a book in a decade. But I did buy this one with no regrets.
The first thing I noted as I started was that this book needs to be viewed through two different sets of optics. In the first set, we can call the Star Wars new Canon lens. The second set of optics should be called the WDW Commercial Macrobinocs. (I think they sell those at the First Order Store) What I mean is that there is a great story here with that classic formula from old with a great intro to an actual place that you can go and visit.
The Story
This story takes place after Star Wars Episode VIII The Last Jedi. Vi Moradi is an experienced spy and Resistance fighter, taking her orders direct from General Leia Organa herself. In her last mission, Vi turned a high-ranking First Order captain, code name Cardinal, but in the process lost a good part of herself, both physically and mentally. The book opens with her getting a new kind of assignment. She’s to go to the Outer Rim and find a planet for a new Resistance base.
Beyond Vi, the main focus of the book is the setting itself…Black Spire Outpost (BSO). A dot on the Outer Rim, it is the sort of place with nothing to recommend it. The Outpost is full of locals and beings who have become locals. They are all serving a constantly revolving group of smugglers, pirates, and legit traders. You meet Salju, who runs the Outpost gas station; Oga, the local crime lord and the only government that matters; Mugu, who runs a droid depot for repairs; and Savi, owner of the scrap yard. They have their own interests and occupations, which are only hinted at, and lend depth to the book. You have a sense they all could fill a short story all their own.
Live the Story
This is a great book and well worth reading. It gave me incredible insight into the Disney Hollywood Studios Galaxy’s Edge land before even getting there. It was a kick to read about drinks, food, and general locations. Then to be in those locations and trying out those very drinks and snacks. A Jet Juice from Oga’s Cantina plays a good part in the story. Also, knowing about Savi’s Gatherers increased my Light Saber experience ten-fold. Either way, this is a great read. If you are going to WDW or Disneyland this is a must-read primer for an even more immersive experience.
